Before...

This is what I came back to on Monday.  This summer Russell Academy was thrilled to get new floors and windows, along with some other improvements to the building.  At the end of the school year last year, movers came in and packed up the entire building.  They moved everything back in and the unpacking began.  It took me all week to unpack and try to get the classroom looking good.  I'm excited for you to all see it.  My husband came in every day to help and I had a friend or two help at times.  I'm looking forward to meeting all my students and having a great year together!

Special Performance

Today two of our students did a performance for our class.  They have been working hard practicing their parts and getting ready for this day.  Good job Frida and Zoe!

Science Fun

This week the students have been going through the steps of the scientific process.  This experiment they had to decide which would drop first, a roll of heavy tape, or a paperclip.  Gravity is amazing!

Portland Japanese Gardens Field Trip

Today we were treated with a special field trip to the Portland Japanese Gardens.  Students were able to walk around the gardens and capture words on clipboards to create some amazing haiku poems.  They were also able to use a camera to capture some moments to remember that will inspire haiku poetry.  Next week Miss Joan will come back to our classroom with some pictures that the students have taken and write some haiku poetry.  Thanks again to the adult volunteers that came with us today and captured their own haiku moments!

Bonneville Dam and Fish Hatchery

Yesterday we went to the Bonneville Dam and Fish Hatchery for our first field trip together.  Students were able to see the power of the river and how we get our power here in Portland.  Students also got to see some salmon in the fry stage at the fish hatchery.  We had beautiful weather and a great time!  Thanks for being so flexible with the date and thank you to all the adult volunteers that attended!

Salmon Life Cycle

Tomorrow we are planning on taking a field trip to the Bonneville Dam and Hatchery.  Today we watched this video to show the life cycle of a salmon.  Jordi particularly loves the  music and wanted to watch it again.  So here it is!

Spelling and Vocabulary Help

Franklin makes a great tool for students to use at home and at school.  This is a picture of Jordi using it in our classroom.  I taught the students how to look up words they don't know how to spell.  There are fun games they can play too.