Doodle 4 Google

One of my favorite contests is Doodle 4 Google! The theme this year is, "My best day ever..." This is your chance to take the Google Logo and change it! You must have a title for your doodle and a 50 words or less statement to explain your answer to the theme!
Happy Doodling!

Doodle 4 Google

Mystery on 5th Avenue

Love a good TRUE story?   You HAVE to check this one out!   It is a combination of mystery, codes, inventive ideas, curiosity and a clever architect!   ENJOY!  


Mystery on 5th Avenue

Inventive Links

Hey Inventors!   I was so proud of the SCAMPERING you did last week!   Here are some fun Inventor Games for you to play as a reward!   Please let me know if you find another one and I will post a link with your name on it!   Happy Inventing!  

Inventive Games

Morse Code and Inventions

The detectives had a great time last week reviewing everything they learned while solving mysteries.   They discussed how mysteries can be found across all subjects, not all of them are solvable and it takes strategy to solve them.   I am so proud of all the critical thinking skills they applied in this unit.   The best part is that they didn't even know they were learning!   ;)  

The last code we learned about was The Morse Code.  After reading about the origins and history, we decided that the Morse Code was an invention and really the first version of modern day texting.   ;) They loved decoding messages, hearing it transmitted and seeing the instrument that made the sounds.   See if you can decode this audio message!   ;) 

Audio of the Morse Code

Parker Publishing Press

The 5th Grade Parker Publishing Press is in full swing!   Over the last couple of weeks, the students  have been delving into evaluating what literary qualities make a book hook their audience.   We have been focusing on finding morals/themes, problems and creative solutions found in books we like to read.  Watch some of these stories on-line and test your literary skills!   Post a comment with the title of the book you watched, the moral, the problem and solution!  I can't wait to see what moral, problem and creative solution you are going to use in your own book!   Let the writing begin!  

Storyline On-Line

We have also been reading bios and interviews of our favorite authors!  Students are focusing on finding a fact that helps them see an element of why the author chooses to write about their topic and how do they get their ideas.    Post a link to your favorite author's web page on Edmodo along with one cool fact your learned about them.  

Mystery Unit Goodies and Codes

The students and I are loving applying all of the critical thinking and deductive reasoning skills we learned in the Mystery Unit!   We applied those skills to some challenging Math Mysteries this week!   I was very proud of the way everyone learned to apply different strategies to solve each problem.   It was extremely proud of each and every child!   As a reward, I want to share a couple more Mystery Links to share with your families!   Enjoy!  

FBI Biometrics - Face, Palm, Iris, Voice, Fingerprint, DNA and Emerging Biometrics!
Check out what technology the real FBI is using to solve mysteries!   We discussed all of these modalities of identification except the Iris!   I can't wait to hear what you think about how these technologies have evolved over the years and where they are going to go in the future!  

The Problem Site: Codes and Secret Messages!
Here is a link to a cool interactive code site for you to explore that was discovered by one of your classmates!   I know how much you guys enjoy writing messages in secret codes!   Can you create one of your own?  

 

CODES, CODES, CODES

Today we started talking about secret Codes!   Here is a Binary Code Game to pique your interest.   Can't wait to teach you more next week! 

Cisco Binary Code Game

Do you know any other codes?   If so, tell us about them in the comments or share your code in class next week.  See you soon detectives!  

A History Mystery

5th Graders ~ Did you know that the game of Monopoly helped save British POW's during World War II?    The 3rd Grade SPACE students and I have an awesome discussion about how a little creative problem solving helped a third of the British POW's escape!   Read more about it here.   ;) 

3rd graders ~ Please share this link with your parents.  It has actual pictures of the maps they used and other cool details!  Enjoy!  

SNOPES.com - WWII Monopoly Game Link

Mapform.com - Link to pictures of  the maps and more cool facts

Does anyone else know about a History Mystery they want to share?   Ask your families if they know about one.  Post a comment here or share your History Mystery in class next week!