So That's What Our Country Looks Like!

 You may remember that last month, Ms. Bishop's third grade class started their adventure learning American history. At the end of that post, we told readers to stay tuned for the maps that the kids would be making next.   


So off they went to their geography unit.  The kids learned the continents and oceans, the compass rose and directions, and where they live in the world. Then they looked more carefully at the United States, after all, how can you learn its history if you don't know what the country looks like. 



Then to make the information feel more concrete, the kids worked in groups of three to create three-dimensional maps of the United States. Each day they added more information. They started by learning what borders the United States. Then they learned about the largest river, the Mississippi River, and two of the largest mountain ranges (the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains). The kids also put Washington, D.C. and Massachusetts on the map so they could visualize where we live within the United States. 

As they move forward in our history studies, these maps will serve as a reference tool. For example, when the kids learn about the Pilgrims leaving Europe and sailing to the United States, they will understand that the Pilgrims sailed across the Atlantic Ocean and reached the east coast. 

Before that, however, they will be using their maps in the Native American unit they have just started.  They are looking at the land features and climate in different regions of the United States and learning about how these features affected the way of life for Native American tribes within the region.

This is getting interesting, isn't it?  Start tuned...

What is History?

The 3rd, 4th and 5th grade classes at the Michael J. Perkins are going to be studying U.S. History this year. As an introduction, one of our new third grade teachers Ms. Bishop asked her students, “What is history?”

To assist them in answering this question, Ms. Bishop gave the kids a variety of history textbooks to flip though. As the students analyzed the pictures, they organized their ideas into a web.

If you don't know what an idea web is, here is a picture of one. It's a way to brainstorm about a topic and list ideas.


What are some of the ideas that the students came up?

History is:
Maps, famous people, Indians, ships, a long time ago, horses and wagons, cloth made out of animals, Pilgrims, flags, animals for food, presidents, wars, stories from the past, how people lived in the past, Abraham Lincoln, Paul Revere, John F. Kennedy. And that's just the beginning.

As you can see, one student said the idea of history includes maps. That's actually where these third graders will be starting--with geography. Stay tuned to see our map projects!

Another Trip Around the World with Ms. Meadow's Class

If you remember, there's a big geography project going on in (and right outside) Ms. Meadow's room. Since people from all around the world are taking an interest in us by visiting our blog, these third graders are returning the favor. They are researching the countries that have shown up on our visitors list and writing down an amazing fact about each one.
Amazing facts about the world keep coming in...







Have you ever seen one? This is what it looks like:























Have you ever seen hieroglyphics? They look like this:


















Moving on to Europe, Mecca wrote about the view from a famous Paris monument.

There are lots of views, of course, but this one includes another famous monument, the Eiffel Tower.






We don't have an illustration of this last fact. Perhaps that's all for the best!

The World in Just One Classroom

If you remember, there's a big geography project going on in (and right outside) Ms. Meadow's room. Since people from all around the world are taking an interest in us by visiting our blog, these third graders are returning the favor. They are researching the countries that have shown up on our visitors list and writing down an amazing fact about each one.


They have learned some impressive things. Here is something Raymond learned about Japan:















It's an amazing fact, but also an amazing looking creature!



Talking about spiky things, Andrea found out about a medical use for needles besides giving shots:














What does that look like? Well, check it out. In China, doctors sometimes use acupuncture instead of drugs when patients have an operation. The needles block the pain completely.

















Meanwhile Molly went to the other side of the world to learn about the country of Brazil. It's a huge country, with a huge and long river called the Amazon. Here is one of the things that interested Molly the most:
















And, why not? Look at this guy!

The World in Ms. Meadow's Classroom

If you remember, there's a big geography project going on in (and right outside) Ms. Meadow's room. Since people from all around the world are taking an interest in us by visiting our blog, these third graders are returning the favor. They are researching the countries that have shown up on our visitors list and writing down an amazing fact about each one.

For example, did you know this?

















You would think that fortune cookies came from China because, in the United States, we usually get them in Chinese restaurants. Well, you learn something new every day!


On the other hand, the Chinese people managed to come with some pretty delicious things to eat. This is what Cladwyne discovered:












Speaking of snow...
Most of our readers come from the United States. The kids decided that there are plenty of interesting things to learn about our country. Check this out:











How about making that into ice cream!?!

Our International Readers

A while ago, we posted about a geography project taking place in Ms. Meadow's third grade class. The kids are learning about the different countries that have come to read our blog. There have been a lot of them too.

Yesterday, for example, most of the people who clicked onto the blog were from the United States. Nevertheless, we also had visitors from Columbia, Kuwait, Germany, and India.




Where are these places? What are they like? What and who lives there? These are the kind of things this third grade class is beginning to find out.

They haven't researched yesterday's countries yet. Here are some amazing facts they have discovered:






















































Just in case you were curious about what that Russian blue cat looks like, here it is!









What will the kids learn about next?

The World in Mrs. Meadow's Class

We're doing it again!

Mrs. Meadows has found a new fun way to teach her third graders geography. She tried it last year and liked it so much that she's trying it again.

Our blog has many readers in Boston, the United States, even all over the world. Mrs. Meadow's has decided to teach her students something about the people who are learning about us. The kids will all be assigned the countries our visitors come from, learn where they are and what continent they're in. Then they will write up some of the most interesting facts they have found. Last year, for example, some of the kids on the project discovered that some people in Japan grow miniature trees called bonsai and that Serbia is the raspberry capital of the world!

What will this year bring? Who knows. One thing we do know is that the kids will be working hard. Last year they had a list of 38 visiting countries to learn about. At the beginning of the project this year, there were forty-three!

And little does Mrs. Meadows know--this morning number 44, Latvia, came to look at our site!

The World in Just One School

Every day is like the United Nations at the Perkins School, given all the different countries our students or their families have come from. One day last week, however, was extra special.

Our kindergarten and third grade classes had a visitor from Rwanda. Sister Felicity came to see what kind of books our school has for students in these grades, and if any would be good for the kids she works with in Africa. It turns out that Rwanda has decided to turn their official language from French to English. Wow, now it isn't just their kids who will be going to school!




















Up in Ms. Enos's classroom, kids who moved from different countries to Boston and our school were learning about Thanksgiving. They started with the basics: cider and pumpkin pie with whipped cream!

























Two of our new students come from Vietnam. So seeing teachers dressed like Pilgrims is a whole new experience!

























It was also our new music teacher's first day at the Perkins. Ms. Lynch was conducting her class outside so the kids could play a game and sing loud. The kids were playing a game of rock, paper, scissors. But they were playing it the way children do in Japan.
In the Japanese version, two people stand on a piece of paper facing each other. They sing a song (in Japanese, of course). At the end of tune, they throw out their hand signal for rock, paper or scissors.





The loser must fold his or her paper in half. Then it's time for another round--the song and the draw. The game goes on until one of them can no long balance on a piece of paper that has gotten smaller and smaller with each loss.




No matter who wins, learning a song in Japanese is a victory for everyone!

It's the Culture Alert, Part 3

Perhaps you remember that Ms. Alert's third grade class is studying different cultures. When the kids realized that so many of their parents or grandparents came from a different culture, they decided to interview them about some of the differences in habits and attitudes found in their home countries. Then our author-in-residence, Ms. Goodman, showed them how to conduct an interview by doing one with Ms. Alert, who was born in Guyana.

Well, the first reports are in--

Here is Shakira's interview about life in Belize:



Looks like their houses were on stilts; they didn't really celebrate birthdays; and, they had huge breakfasts. Also sounds like people are a bit less polite here. Click on the papers, to make it easy to read the details.


And here is what Hibaq learned about living in Somalia:



When you come from Somalia to the United States, the cold is really hard to get used to. And kids there wear uniforms when they go to school.

Well, some things are very different. What will some of the rest of the kids find out from interviewing their families?
And what kind of things will they discover are the same--all over the world?

Our Visitors Map is Done!

As you know, Ms. Meadows' third grade class has been tracking the foreign countries that our blog visitors come from. They have learned so much about geography and foreign cultures as a result.


And, now our map is done--for this year, at least. So far, people from 38 countries (not including the United States) have visited us: Canada, the United Kingdom, Russia, France, Mexico, Germany, India, Iran, Australia, Malaysia, Ukraine, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, South Africa, Thailand, Norway, Lithuania, Slovenia, Lebanon, Serbia, Aruba, Columbia, Egypt, Turkey, Singapore, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Philippines, Slovakia, Netherlands, Bangladesh, and Mongolia.

The kids have located every one and learned fascinating facts about them.



Nomar, for example, learned that Norway was called the "Land of the Midnight Sun." It is so far up North, near the Arctic Circle, that the sun never sets during the summer.








Gisselle discovered that the people of Japan practiced a very interesting type of gardening called bonsai. They grow miniature trees! As the years go on, these trees take on very interesting shapes.



We don't have room to list all the facts the kids learned but here are a few more cards they made on some of the countries.







Serbia, the raspberry capital of the world? Who knew!

Culture Alert, Part 2: Learning to Interview

On May 10th, the PerkinsBlog reported on the new project started by Ms. Alert's class. These third graders were looking at cultures around the world, and how diverse customs, beliefs, and habits make people act and live differently. Yet in many ways, all people are the same.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Many of the kids in Ms. Alert's class had parents and grandparents that came from different countries. They decided to talk to their families to discover the ways life was different there.

But how do you conduct an interview? Ms. Goodman, Perkins' author in residence, has done a lot of interviews to research her books. She knows a lot of good tips. She came to class to interview Ms. Alert, who was born and raised in British Guyana.


Ms Goodman had her questions ready. In fact, they were the same questions the class is going to use when talking to members of their own family. She used those questions, but she didn't just ask them, write down an answer and move on. She used them to start a conversation with Ms. Alert. This got Ms. Alert thinking and talking about her life in British Guyana so she came up with lots more examples than she might have with just one question.

Ms. Goodman wrote down the answers but she didn't try to write down every word. If she had, it would have taken her too long and she wouldn't have been able to hear what Ms. Alert said next. She put down the most important words of each answer. These words would help her remember what Ms. Alert said for when she wrote it up as a report later. (You can read her notes if you click on the image to make it larger.)


Also, once Ms. Alert started talking something she'd often mention a detail that was part of an answer to a question she had already been asked. Then Ms. Goodman went back and jotted it down where it belonged. For example, when Ms. Alert said that she came to the United States in 1996, Ms. Goodman added to the section about where she had lived before.


If Ms. Goodman didn't have enough room to write down the answers, she used the margins--or drew a line to where the rest of the answer would be.

The kids weren't just learning about how to interview. They were also learning about British Guyana, its culture, AND their teacher. In British Guyana, for example, people ate their big meal of the day at lunchtime and everyone flew kites on Easter Monday! Furthermore Ms. Alert's middle name is Cleoretta!!! Soon their hands were up all the time with questions and all Ms. Goodman had to do was take notes.

If we found out so much about Ms. Alert and her culture in just one hour, what are the kids going to learn about THEIR families?

Tracking Our Visitors: Another Geography Lesson

Here's the map again--the one that identifies where in the world our blog visitors come from. Perhaps you remember that the kids from Ms. Meadows' third grade class are researching each one of these countries and some of the amazing things that happen in them.



Georgia, for example, learned that the world's largest insect egg comes from this Malaysian stick bug. The egg is about the size of a peanut!





Angel learned that Spain has a national holiday on October 12th because it was the date that Christopher Columbus landed in the New World.






What other cool things have the kids learned about the world? Check it out!
(And remember to click on the pictures to make them bigger.)







And don't think this is the last post about this project. There are a lot more countries to go! By now, people in 33 countries around the world have checked out the Michael J. Perkins School Blog. How amazing is that?