Let's give it a go!

Let me start with a disclaimer - (just what you want from your child's teacher, right? :-)  I have never done a blog before, so bear with me!  If I can make it work (and my husband doesn't divorce me for taking on yet another endeavor), I think it will be a super cool way for me to show you some of the fabulous work your children are doing in AIG.

In 4th grade, we began with a hands-on activity to help us build a collective understanding of team work.  We were guided by the essential question: What makes a team successful?  Students were randomly put in groups and asked to use only 4 strings and a rubber band to create a pyramid out of Solo cups.  (Thank you Science Gal for the great idea!) They loved it! You can see from the pictures below just how seriously they took the task and how proud they were once they accomplished their goal!
    

We then used our experiences to generate a list of expectations for group work  Here's what the class came up with:

1. everyone participates
2. share your ideas
3. practice makes perfect
4. stay on task - concentrate
5. communicate - talk to each other

This list, as I explained to the kids, is a "living document," meaning that it will evolve as we work together and learn more.  Stay tuned!