Back in Team Bond for a 5th Year

I am so excited to be back!  When the kids first noticed me, a bit into the school day, they crowded around me and looked so excited!  It is so much fun bringing excitement to little ones!  Team Bond looks pretty much the same, except for the addition of crayfish.  There are some really big ones too!  Yesterday they found that one of them chopped the claw of another one.  Poor guy!

I have had a great view out into the classroom, as I have been sitting perched at the top of the book spindle.  I was touched by a student on my first day, so I lost a bit of the magic to move, but it was OK because I loved the view I had.  Sometimes the kids got a bit noisy, but they seem to be excited learners!

One of the things I really enjoyed seeing is this thing called Hour of Code.  The kids learned about Bits Box on Monday, and then I have been able to watch them type code, modify code, and even create their own apps.  One girl had a big Justin Bieber face on her app, and a lot of them enjoyed having stamps that if you tapped on them, they would explode.  Mrs. Bond said they are going to create their own app to send with their holiday card. I am excited to see those come to life. 

They are also making the wonderful bag wreaths that I love seeing each year.  They look so comfy...I just may have to hang out there in the next few days. 

One thing new that I noticed that I haven't seen in years before is The Positivity Project. The kids are learning about kindness this week and having such great conversations and sharing how they show kindness.  I also noticed there are other traits they have learned like curiosity, open-mindedness, perspective, creativity, teamwork/citizenship, bravery, gratitude, and modesty/humility. They had a conversations about book characters having these traits, and I was really impressed with their thoughts!

Today I hung out in a comfy cardboard house. I even had one of the boys write a note for me. I really enjoyed seeing kids after school work on being creative.  I think they were in a program called Destination Imagination. I got to watch some of the kids saw wood, sing, and research pollution and space.

I hope to see a lot more interesting things happening in Team Bond over the next few weeks! 

Sincerely,

Elfran Etavonni 

Email From a Student

I got an email from one of Mrs. Bond's students. Her name is Maddie, and she was very compassionate about my fall the other day! It made my night to see her email in my inbox. I was just getting ready to send an email to Mrs. Johnson to report on how the class has been doing, and I saw her email. I am a bit sad that tomorrow is the last day in Team Bond. All of the kids and teachers will be leaving for their holiday break. I am not sure if I will be sticking around or being sent elsewhere. It has been great to be back! Elfran Etavonni

Holiday Fun in Team Bond

Last week I thought it would be awesome to hang around in Team Bond on the beautiful wreaths they have made out of plastic baggies, but in the afternoon I took a fall to the ground.  Check out the tweet I found from Mrs. Bond


Luckily a little boy picked me up with a piece of paper, in order to preserve my magic.  I wasn't strong enough to move anywhere else in the room the next day, so I stayed in the back of the room.

They were working on the computer doing math problems on Edmodo Snapshot.  I am impressed with the kiddos in this classroom.  I have seen some of them coding, and a lot of them love playing on a site called Prodigy.

On Monday I was very touched, as 2 boys left me presents...a bow and an elf sticker!  I liked them so much, I decided to take them with me to my new location.  I decided to tuck myself inside a pocket near the classroom makerspace.  This is a very cool section of Mrs. Bond's room, as it has a lot of neat things that kids can build with.  It also has a very large box that the kids like to sit in and read. Sometimes they get in arguments over who can sit in the box, so that isn't so nice, but I think that it is cool that Mrs. Bond has a big box like that in her room.  Monday was pretty interesting too, as there were 8 new kids in the classroom, as their teacher was sick, and there weren't enough subs. Their class had to divide into 3 groups, and Team Bond got 8 of the kids.  It made it a more interesting day, I'm sure.  I liked watching them do explorations with mirrors and light.  That was super cool to watch!  They also learned a lot about how Christmas is celebrated around the world!

Well...school gets out on Thursday, so I will be sticking around for a bit more!  I'm looking forward to observing their holiday party! 

Etavonni the Learning Elf

Back in Team Bond!!

I was a bit bummed that I missed out on being in Mrs. Bond's third grade class last year, as she was a 5th grade teacher.  I am so glad that she is back in 3rd grade, as I love observing all the fun things she does with her little kiddos.  As usual, the students were so excited to see me in their classroom.  I heard a lot of kids comparing me to their Elves on the Shelves at home.  They were wondering if I was a girl or a boy, as they couldn't see what outfit I was in.  (I was hiding inside a book spindle.) It was pretty neat, as there are branches of leaves that have cool words on them.  I bet Mrs. Bond taught something where they had to look up words.

From my point of view, I was also able to see a map of where the kids had Skyped or had Hang Outs with. I think it is cool that they are able to connect with people from other states.

In Math I was able to see the kids practice how to measure to the nearest half-inch. Some kids enjoyed measuring the Minecraft books.  I am glad to see that Minecraft is still something kids are interested in.  I love how creative kids can get while using it. I was not too happy with some of the kids that were trying to make me spin around and around on the spindle just for fun.  I mean, if they are looking for a book, that is fine, but these boys were just spinning it for fun.

It was amusing watching the kids get bundled up for recess.  One child said that they had to put 50 things on.  I didn't really see 50 things, but I am sure it felt that way.  Hopefully they stayed warm. 

One of the students wanted to know what it would be like to have me sit on the flagpole..so that is where I plopped down last night. So far today I have watched the kids measure their show lengths and create a line plot, and I enjoyed watching them write letters to their parents about the things they needed. I bet the parents will really like that!

That's all for now!

Etavonni, the Learning Elf

Tis the Season for Gifts

The other day Mrs. Bond told the kids they were going to write about gifts.  Well, after all, this is the season for gift giving.  However, she had a different twist on it.  She talked about the gifts each person has within them to share with the world.  She showed them a book called Classroom Habitudes by Angela Maiers, which highlights the importance of having students realize the gifts each of them had to offer.  Each student brainstormed the gifts they had within and wrote them in their Idea Notebooks.  It was neat when the kids shared, as Mrs. Bond wrote them all on a chart. It surprised me though, some of the kids did not know what gifts they had inside them.  One boy is always the first to raise his hand and participate in classroom discussions with smart things to say, yet he didn't know that it was a gift he had.  Silly boy!  I hope he can recognize that many kids are so scared to answer questions and participate.  His courage and leadership is a strength!  It will definitely help him later in life too! The kids typed up their paragraphs about their main gift inside and printed them off.  Then they decorated a paper like a gift.  They used glue and colored sand to create the wrapping paper.  It got a bit messy, as the kids put on lots of glue, but it worked out.  Today I decided to hug the gift sign that Mrs. Bond painted to show the kids how much I like the gifts they have inside to offer the world! They liked seeing me there!  I even snuck and wrote a little note to them!

Today the entire third grade class has a winter party.  They had a breakfast and then did a craft.  They did a neat craft that can measure the amount of snow is on the ground.  It seemed like the whole day was full of crafts.  The students really enjoyed using their creativity.  They even had Art this afternoon, so it was a day full of artsy fun! I bet the families of Team Bond will enjoy all of the handmade treasures heading their way!  

My time in Team Bond is coming to a close, and again, I have enjoyed being with them.  I am going to see if I can get assigned here again later on this year.  I saw something on the wall about Digital Learning Day.  I think it is February.  It would be neat to be there for it, since I got to be there for Hour of Code.  

Round and Round Etavonni Goes

Today felt more like a ride at an amusement park than a day spent in a classroom.  What was I thinking when I moved to the top of the book spindle?  I had to hang on pretty tightly!  Speaking of amusement parks...the class had a sub named Mrs. O.  She did a really cool thing to get the kids attention that sounded like a roller coaster! Maybe they can teach it to Mrs. Bond.  It looked like they really enjoyed it!

They are making beautiful wreaths made out of plastic baggies.  I noticed one of the boys left a lot of the baggies under his desk, but Mrs. O picked them up.  No matter what type of classroom I am in, I am always noticing how the teachers are always so helpful.  I did notice a lot of the kids helping Mrs. O too.  Being a sub must be hard, but having students that are willing to lend a hand really helps!

I really like watching the video that Mrs. O played this afternoon on the transfer of energy.  My favorite transfer is food energy!  I found some cookies in the Teacher's Lounge tonight.  Those calories transferred into energy to help me fly back to the classroom.

Tomorrow the kids have extra time in art because they are working on clay pots.  Mr. Miller, the art teacher, left a note for Mrs. Bond to let her know of the adjusted time.  How neat is that!  I hope they make cool things and have fun!

One thing that I would really like from the students is letting the kids find me on their own.  I know they are super excited to show people where I am, but it makes it more fun when kids find me individually.  I love to see their searching eyes and then their smile when they do find me.

Finally, I have to give a shout out to my email buddy, Maddie!  She emailed me a lot last year, and she has been emailing me again this year.  What a kind and welcoming young lady!  She just told me that she is going to be published in a book!  I hope she will let me know when it comes out! Mrs. Bond is so lucky to have such wonderful students each year!

Etavonni

Week 2 Off and Running

Well, like Mrs. Bond, I did notice there were a lot of tired eyes this morning! Perhaps it was a busy, busy weekend for the Team Bond members, or it was the pesky full moon still making mischief in the lives of the children. The kids went right to Music and PE this morning, which I think helped.  They came back much more energetic...but in a good way!

Today in reading Mrs. Bond read from The Secret Zoo.  It is one of the highlights of my visits each year.  I love the way Bryan Chick brings the scene to life...just as if it was a movie! Today Mrs. Bond focused on the ways characters tackle problems. Noah, Ella, and Richie, characters in the book, made it to the City of Species inside the Secret Zoo, however Ella and Richie were being chased by police monkeys.  They ran into a sector, which ended up being just for birds.  It had a big cliff and the prairie dogs that were chasing after them ended up falling off the cliff. Noah handled it by calling to one of the birds Marlo for help, and Marlo was able to gather his friends to go and get the falling prairie dogs.  The kids had to focus on how their characters handled problems in their series chapter books.

In Math the kids were super engaged and super quiet.  It was like a whole different class.  Mrs. Bond had them practice finding perimeter, and they were able to use Minecraft and Build With Chrome.  They were able to construct walls and buildings and then find the perimeter.  They also did a small assessment with Mrs. Bond.  Minecraft is a neat app!  Mrs. Bond shared a Math World she has on her iPad.  The students were able to pass around her iPad to add to the Math World.  The land that they were building on looked a lot like the North Pole.  It is a frozen tundra!

I could tell listening was still a bit of an issue today during the Social Studies BA.  Mrs. Bond modeled it and discussed what the kids had to do for their test...she even asked a couple times, "Are there any questions?"  I kept watching child after child turn in their test, only to find out they did not follow the directions. I hope the students will be able to focus on the oral directions and written directions, as I know it is a very important skill for life!

The craziest thing happened today after school.  A boy stopped in for some extra work, and he turned it back in.  While they were talking, I leaned in to read some of the Great Gator slips that were below me.  I can't believe it, I actually dove right into the bucket.  Mrs. Bond and the little boy looked right at me, and they couldn't believe it themselves! Mrs. Bond said it is the first time she had seen me move...and she is right. Today, I blew it a bit.  Then, I had to stay there, head-first, in the bucket.  I  can only imagine my muscles are going to be sore tomorrow! The good thing is, I was able to get a closer look into the great things about Team Bond.  There's a teacher named Mr. Vogt that gives a lot of Greater Gators.

Well, hopefully I will be able to stay still tomorrow! I am going to try and get a good view point, as the kids are doing the Hour of Code tomorrow.  It involves computers and sounds very interesting.  Today the kids watched a video from President Obama talking about it. I searched on You Tube and found it...and I found a picture Mrs. Bond took of me nose diving into the bucket.  I'll add it below too!

Thanks Mrs. Bond!  This was not one of my finer moments!

I'm Back in Team Bond

I am so glad that I am back in Team Bond!  This is my 3rd year being assigned to watch them and report.  Each year I look forward to joining Mrs. Bond and checking out what her students are up to! The kids noticed me today, but what they don't know is that I actually arrived on Tuesday night!  I was able to watch the kids from inside a box on their bookshelf.  My first thought when I arrived was...Mrs. Bond doesn't have many kids.  She only has like 12 desks in her room.  She has never had a class that small! When the kids arrived, I figured out that she has 3 tables that kids sit at too now.  She really does have 23 kids in her class.  Weird though...15 boys and 8 girls.  It's crazy that there are twice as many boys as girls. I wonder if it is like that in all the third grade classrooms?
        In the morning they worked on cards with Michigan lighthouses in the winter.  It was crazy to see how the ice forms on the lighthouses.  Mrs. Bond said it looked like a scene from Frozen. They also did a neat thing in the afternoon called Energy Playground.  Kids played but they were able to explore things that used energy. There were sounds galore all over.  From buzzing motors,  to carols from musical cards, and a high pitched noise machine, the kids had fun making noise.  (I have found this to be the case in most 3rd grade classrooms I visit!) A few kids were on laptops working on coding a lit tree.  I heard a bit about it and it has something to do with the trees in Washington, DC.  I am not sure how kids can code trees for Washington, DC, but it looked pretty cool!
     

      Today I moved to the outside of the box (I took a picture from my view point), and sure enough, the kids noticed me during their read aloud in the morning.  Mrs. Bond was so excited when one of the kids pointed to me.  She let them know my background.  I am not a Santa Elf...I am a Learning Elf.  Instead of reporting to the big guy in the North Pole, I report to the head people in schools...principals, superintendents, professors, etc. Mrs. Bond had to go to a meeting this morning, so a guest teacher came.  I think her name was Mrs. Abbot. She seemed very nice.  I felt a bit bad that she struggled with the projector, as the image was blurry, but she was a good problem solver.  The wipe board works just the same!
        In the afternoon students had fun measuring their body.  They measured their arms, their necks, their wrists, and a bunch of other things.  Some of them still need to work on stating at the 0, as they came up with some weird measurements.  One girl thought a boys waist-to-floor measurement was 7 inches.  (That's more like my size!) Silly her...she was using the wrong end of the meter stick.  After math the kids left and went to art.  Then they came back in for just a bit because yesterday was one of the girl's birthdays, and she chose to have an extra recess for a thing called 15 Minutes of Fame.  This must be something new.  I will have to keep my ear open for more examples of it.
       I hope I will get to stay for a bit more in Team Bond.  I did notice there were some kids that still need to work on their listening.  It is such a shame when Mrs. Bond is talking to them about their assignments, and they can't even tell her what they are supposed to be doing.  I also noticed that some kids were being bucket dippers. Perhaps it was just a bad day for them.  (I did notice there is a full moon tonight!) I look forward to watching the kids learn more and enjoy their time with Mrs. Bond in third grade.

Elfnapped!

On Wednesday, there were a bunch of kids staying after school for a program called Destination Imagination.  It was wonderful to see the kids work in teams and use their creativity.  They left for a while to go research in the computer lab.  It sounds like they have a lot to do to prepare for a competition in March. I started to wonder what happened in the other third grade classes, so I decided to check out another third grade class at Glengary the next day.  It completely confused Team Bond, as I heard they searched high and low for me.  Team Bonkowski, which is the class next door to Mrs. Bond's class, welcomed me in.  Just for comfort, I did bring my wreath that the girls made for me, as well as the letter Mrs. Timlin wrote to me.  I found a sweater bag to put the note in, as I have noticed Team Bond adding notes to their mitten and sweater bags on the Winter Bucketfiller Board.  Mrs. Bond had a few more on her desk.  I hope she didn't mind.

While I was in Mrs. Bonkowski's class, I noticed there was another teacher.  I have seen him come into Team Bond here and there.  His name is Mr. Thomas, and he is an intern teacher from MSU.  Team Bonkowski created beautiful snowflakes while I was there. I always love seeing kids get creative!

I decided to hang out for another day in Team Bonkowski, but Team Bond had other plans for me.  I guess they wanted me there for their party, so while the kids were out of Mrs. Bonkowski's room, a girl and a boy came and got me.  I was a bit worried, as they had this purple thing that looked like a hippo and they used it to grab my hat and put me in a green cylinder.  Luckily it was filled with cushy blue felt, and it was actually quite comfortable.  Mrs. Bond remembered that I lots of kids had wrote persuasive letters to me about sitting on the book spindle.  They said that it would be like an amusement park ride when it spun, but that I would also get a great view of the classroom and be around books!  I do remember some kids thinking that the Greater Gator bucket would also be a good place, even though there is a couple stuffed gators near by.  I think I may choose that location tomorrow, as I would love to read what the kids have done to earn the Greater Gators.  Mrs. Timlin talked about that in the letter she sent me.  I wonder if any of the kids have earned one for being trustworthy...the word of the week?

The kids had a great holiday party.  They made ornaments that were stuffed with slips of paper that highlighted specials things about them at this age.  I think they will like reading these when they are older.  They also played fun games.  They had to stack cups fast, hit balloons with paper plates, and even stack nuts (the fastener kind) using only a candy cane.  After the party another teacher came in.  Mrs. Bond had to take her daughter to the doctors.  The children seemed to do well.  They learned more about area.  They also read about energy conversions, although some of the struggled with the questions at the end.  Finally, they worked on Kwanzaa Hearts.  They had to put them in their desk to finish tomorrow.

Well, one last day before holiday break!  I am sure that there will be a lot of excitement in the air! It sure has been fun watching the learning in their exciting educational environment!

Reaching New Heights!

Monday, December 16, 2013

Today, the kids cracked up to see me swinging high above the class sitting comfortably on a lush baggie wreath!  I love the view around the classroom, as it is adorned with these great crystal wreaths.  Who knew sandwich baggies could be so beautiful!  In fact, I overheard some girls talking about making me one.  Mrs. Bond hung it right in front of me.  They are supposed to put a note on it, letting me know that it is for me.  I don't think they knew I was listening in.  I am so excited to know that I will be able to keep one! 

This morning, Mrs. Timlin, the principal, talked about the word of the week.  The word of the week is trustworthiness. What an important word to focus on!  Being a trustworthy person is a life skill that is so essential.  You have to be a trustworthy friend, a trustworthy employee, and a trustworthy neighbor, among other things.  Being able to count on other people to be honest and loyal and dependable is what makes relationships grow! I wonder if I will be able to spot kids being trustworthy to each other?  I sure do hope so!  I noticed Mrs. Bond put the word on this poster.  I wonder what she is going to do with it?

Today in math, Mrs. Bond showed the class how to use the iPad and an app called Minecraft to practice perimeter.  It was pretty cool.  She made a diamond rectangle that had a perimeter of 14 by having 1 row of 6 blocks.  The kids seems super excited to use Minecraft in math.  Not all the kids were able to do it today, but Mrs. Bond said every child would be able to do it by the end of the week.  That's nice that she can trust them with her own iPad! 

In the afternoon, Mrs. Bond read more of The Secret Zoo!  OH BOY!  IT IS GETTING SO GOOD! Today, the kids met a new character, Mr. Darby.  He is an old man that wears a purple velvet trench coat, has a long gray beard, with long gray hear in a pony tail, and wears beady sunglasses.  He sounds creepy, but Mrs. Bond assured the class he is a good guy.  She also said that she sometimes pictures Dumbledore from Harry Potter with sunglasses on.  Some kids thought he sounded cool.  

Then, the kids were able to tune into a live video stream from inside the White House.  There was a man getting interviewed about the White House artifacts, furniture, and art. It was very interesting.  He talked about presidential portraits, the furniture presidents decide to have, and even a piano that was the 300,000th piano Steinway produced, complete with eagle legs. 

Then, the highlight came at the end of the day.  It was Goal Time, and the kids were busy!  There was a pet club meeting in the back of the room, as well as a spa!  Hand massages in a container of water, raffles for bracelets, and even a braiding station. They even had background music playing.   Some kids were creating snowflakes and drawing, while others were crocheting.  One boy created a small hat on the knitting loom.  I think it could even fit me.  I may try one on tonight, as there is a rainbow one on the top of the yarn pile.  The other hats are in bags with kids names on it. 

A man brought in Mrs. Bond's mail, and there were more cards delivered.  This Holiday Card Exchange project is pretty neat.  The kids LOVE getting mail! Mrs. Bond got a card all the way from Canada today!  Check out the chart they have created to keep track of the information shared on the cards. It amazes me that the class sizes are pretty small...with the exception of Sweet Apple Elementary in Georgia.  (What a cute name for a school!)

Again, this third grade classroom has been so much fun to visit.  I may have to try to see if I can stay here for the rest of the week.  I hear they have a party on Thursday.  What fun! 

Cheers to Learning, 

Etavonni

A Friday with Mrs. Share!

(I tried to post this on Friday, but my internet was acting funny.  I thought it posted, but when I went on, I noticed that it never was published. Sorry for the delay.)

Hey, something strange happened last Friday!  When the door opened, it wasn’t Mrs. Bond.  It was a different lady.  I heard the kids calling her Mrs. Share.  They all seemed to know her, so she must be OK.  She said “hi” to everyone.  Some of the kids saw me right away.  They told Mrs. Share that I am here to watch the learning in the room.  Mrs. Share said she was nervous because I was watching her.  I was laughing…he he ha ha…

The kids had to go to a thing called PE.  I wish I could go because you get to wear special shoes called PE shoes.  I wonder if they are magical.  Are they flying shoes?  Anyway when the kids came back it was test time.  I don’t know how they kept it all straight.  Blue this and Yellow that.  Then Kalyn and Brandon got to use the computer behind me.  I hope I’m not in trouble. 

After the “BLUE/YELLOW test” the kids went to music.  I love music.  I wonder if they were singing “Elf in the Pointy Shoes” or “Red Is My Favorite Color”.  I love those songs.

The next activity was called TFK.  I heard so many good readers.  There was Gabby, Margeaux, and Lily, just to name a few.  A lot more kids read, but I was really interested in the stories.  I didn’t know jellyfish bloom!  And those field trips, should they be about learning or fun?  I just can’t decide. 

Oh no!  The kids are making a mess!  They called it desk organization, but it looks like room disorganization.  They were trying to clean up.  I hope they can do it.

Yumm! Brianna brought carrots back from lunch.  My bunny loves carrots.  I hope my mom remembers to feed her.  I miss my bunny.

I enjoyed lunch because I took a nap.  It’s hard work watching 25 students all day.  I’m really glad I took the nap at lunch cuz there was no sleeping during science.  It looked like the kids were learning all about different kinds of energy.  That means sound energy was noisy, light energy was bright, and electric energy had noisy motors too.  The quiet center was the one with the books.  Most of those kids went to the hall.  They knew it was easier to think in the quiet.  I liked watching science because everyone got to test the stuff.

Math made me laugh.  A man came in to get Mitchell.  Mitchell was with a lady.  Then the man asked if the students were taking a test.  They kind of laughed because they were working so quietly and diligently.  Mrs. Share gave them a flower note.  Ethan called it a shining moment.  I like that.  I like things that shine.

Ahhh!  Next came quiet reading time.  I saw Aidan, Katelyn, Julia, Spencer, and oh so many students enjoying their books.  I was jealous because I didn’t have a book with me to read.  (I should have brought the story Maddie wrote for me.  Mrs. Bond…if you read this, can you print it off for me?) The books at my house are smaller and easier for me to hold.  It seemed like all of the kids were getting smarter right then and there.  All of those wonderful words soaking right into their brains.  Oh how I love to see them learning!!!

Yahoooooo!  Mrs. Share read from The Secret Zoo.  I am so curious to find out what happens.  Will they find Megan?  Will the animals continue to help the friends?  This is so exciting!

George and Nick were sitting near me for Roses and Thorns.  They were so excited to share.  Then Kalyn and Margeaux did a little play.  I think they like having fun.

Oh, Boy! What I wonderful day I had in Mrs. Bond’s room.  It was a great Friday to see all of the learning going on.  I am ready to climb to new heights next week! 

Wow! A Story Written Just for Me!

I really, really love this class!  I get notes from them, they tell me things when they are walking by, and they are always keeping me in mind!  Like today, when one of the dad's came in to talk to the class about electric cars, they counted me as a student.  They were talking about how Ford employs over 200,000 people and Mr. Tinskey asked how many kids were in the class.  They said 25, but then someone said I was included, so 26.  How cute is that!  I sure did enjoy learning about electric cars and energy.  Electric cars don't make a sound like normal cars do, so they are actual finding ways to add sound to the car so people can hear them, especially people that are blind. It was very cool having him in the class, and I had the best view.  He brought in a Tesla Coil that actually was able to make a light bulb light up without plugging it into anything!
It was so nice of him to share his time with the class.  Speaking of sharing, I got an email from his daughter the other day.  She created a story just for me, as I told her that I love to read. I decided to share it with you too!  I hope you enjoy Maddie's story...I sure did!

Since you said you liked to read, I wrote you a story.....

The Learning Elf's Wonderful Place To Stay

Once upon a time,  on a cold crisp day, a learning elf named Elfran Etavonni was looking for a place to stay. The winds were high and Elfran did not no where to stay. He searched high and low for a warm place to spend the night. He came across a street called Macini street. He thought he might look to see if there was anything just ANYTHING to stay in for the night. But when he turned the corner onto Macini street he was in for a big surprise. Huge rainbows of gold and red painted the sky. The houses, more like castles where made of pure gold that caught the rays of the sun.....The sun???? It was WARM on Macini street. WARM!!! Elfran Etavonni strolled across the diamond road. Seeing people with wings and knights with real       e shining armor. Everyone greeted him nicely with huge grins with every tooth perfectly white. A princess even invited him into the palace for a nice dinner. Elfran Etavonni gladly excepted the invitation. His stomach was growling fiercely. The princess escorted him into the beautiful golden palace. On the table that was big enough for a whole school  to sit on was a huge salad that was 6 feet tall with tomatoes, onions, olives, carrots, and a magical veggie that was called Aka Oka. Also there was a huge chicken that was 7 feet wide and 4 feet tall. For drinks there was fruit smoothies. Made with honey, strawberrys, bananas, mangos, peaches, and of coarse, SUGER!!! Elfran Etavonni's mouth drooled as he looked at the HUGE feast. My names Samantha said the princess. My name is Elfran Etavonni said the learning elf. The princess and the elf dug into the meal. Elfran Etavonni ate only a part of a chicken leg and a few veggies and spinach. The princess ate 5 pieces of chicken and 2 bowls of salad. The reason the learning elf ate only a little bit, was because he was miniature. Elfran Etavonni yawned. Oh are you tired Mr. Elfran? Asked the princess. Yes I am. Said Elfran. The princess took Elfran to a room labeled quests. Inside there were small beds made of pure gold and cloudy mattresses and huge beds made with pure gold and cloudy mattresses to. The princess took  Elfran to the tiniest bed. It was big enough for a doll. Oh this is perfect! Said Elfron! Good! Said the princess. Then I shall leave you alone until morning. Elfran curled up in the bed and put the extra fluffy blanket on top of him and dozed right of into dream land. Dreaming of home.

The end!!!

Cheers to Great Learning!

Etavonni

Wreaths, Goals, and Coding! What a Week!

I heard one of the kids say that it is below zero today with wind chill!  On the announcements, the principal said there was a pair of gloves found in the parking lot.  I hope that child gets them, as today is not a day to be without gloves!  Yesterday I had a great view of the outside window, and there is a bit of snow on the ground and on the trees.  Winter really can be beautiful!

Speaking of beauty, you should see the wreaths hanging in the classroom.  I was so excited to see the kids create them again this year, as this was a highlight from my visit to Team Bond last year. The kids use fold-top baggies and tie them around a wired circle.

I didn't have time to tell you about the neat thing I observed on Tuesday.  Mrs. Bond said the kids were going to do Hour of Code.  I thought that meant perhaps they were learning about Morse Code or perhaps some type of spy project, but I soon learned that it meant computer programming.  Did you know there were sites for kids to learn how to code.  One that Mrs. Bond showed was Gamestar Mechanic.  The kids really thought it was neat that they would be able to design their own video game.  Another one she highlighted was Learn Street.  When she went on their from her Edmodo page (I still have to figure out if I can get on that site!) she went into the App Launcher and opened it up.  She was able to modify and create code to build a holiday card.  It was neat. She had some challenges, as she said she isn't familiar with coding, but overall it went well.  Yesterday, the kids went to computer lab and worked on code for an hour...thus, The Hour of Code.  I guess there were some issues with the site and kids lost their card before they could share it, but they were excited that they were able to learn how to code. I wonder if Mrs. Bond will keep doing this with them.  I sure would love to report this out to my team.

Oh, another thing I am going to share is Goal Time.  On Monday, the kids were able to bring in projects and work on anything they wanted for 40 minutes.  I watched kids crochet, draw, explore energy stations, and create fancy snowflakes. There was a girl that had the LONGEST yarn snake I have ever seen!  They used it to wrap around a corner of the classroom and create a spa.  Mrs. Bond even went into the spa and got a hand massage in a bucket of small rubber bands.  I thought that was pretty creative!

Overall, I am learning a lot!  From sources of energy to writing persuade, these kids are busy, busy, busy all day long!  I wonder what is going on in the other third grade classrooms.  I may have to explore a bit more next week.

Cheers!
Etavonni

A Lonely Weekend

I am bummed that I came at the end of the week.  I was just getting used to meeting the new members of Team Bond and then the weekend hit.  Boy, Glengary Elementary sure is quite when the staff and students are not there.  While it was quiet though, I had time to look around the classroom and the hall.  I took a rest in the mailbox in the hallway.  Perhaps this will be a good spot to keep in mind to hang out one day.

While I was out in the hall, I read over one of the bulletin boards.  There were many different posters that had examples of different ways you can be smart. Next to the posters was a huge graph that had kids names on it next to each poster.  I bet the kids had to figure out the type of smartness they use most.  I myself am more of a linguistic guy...a word smart kind of elf!  I love words!  That's why I love writing this blog.  

While writing this post I checked my email, and I just have to share with you an email I got from one of the students.  I actually got a couple emails from students.  How special is that! The student, who I'll call MT, asked me a ton of questions!  I love the curiosity of kids! I figure other kids may have the same questions, so I decided to copy the reply I created (in red text) for others to read.  I also got an email from the class with a ton of questions.  It is too late to answer all of the questions, so I am going to have to email Mrs. Bond back later on in the week.  For now, enjoy the email from MT. 

Wow MT!  You do love to write!  I am going to copy your email below and just reply to the questions in a different color...otherwise, I just know I will forget to answer some of your questions.  By the way, thank-you so much for the little note you put in the boat on Friday.  That was very kind of you. 

Hello class Elf! I'm MT and I'm in Team Bond. I want to welcome you back to team Bond! Will you stay with us until Christmas or longer? I am not sure what my schedule will be.  I know I have to make some stops in other classrooms, as I have some reports to turn in before all the schools leave for the holidays.  I may be able to stop back in after the new year.  It just depends on where I am assigned.  I'd LOVE if you would. I LOVE to read and write. What do you like to do for fun? I am like you, I love to read.  I enjoyed reading this weekend.  Your teacher has a lot of books.  There was a book called Snowmen at Night, and it reminded me of what I do.  During the day I have to be really still, but then at night the magic happens. Do you play any games? No. I don't play many games. I travel alone mostly, so it is hard to play games. What are they called? I'd love to talk to you and see you move. Do you like GA and JG's boat that you were sitting in?Yes, I found their boat to be a perfect fit for me.  It was just the right size.   Or did the spike ball scare you? The spike ball was a bit crazy, but I was OK with it. Josh made me a little nervous with it, but it worked out OK. How do you eat? I usually pick something up to eat when I do my reports.  I really don't have to eat a lot, being little and all.  Don't you get awfully hungry? Will you help me finish my river story? No, I am sorry.  I cannot help you with your assignment.  That is your job.  I am sure you will be able to get it done.  It is on top of my desk. My desk is the third desk at table one and it has a name tag on it that says ______. Are you scared of us? Not at all.  You all are so kind.  I have never received so many notes before.  I even got a nickel wrapped up in paper.  Do you know if I'm on the naughty list? I am not sure.  I don't really have anything to do with the big guy in the North Pole. I grew up an educational elf...learning elf.  So we aren't really connected, other than the fact we look the same as the elves that report to Santa.  My brother and sister would LOVE to meet you. Do you have any brothers or sisters? I have a brother that is visiting a preschool building as a learning elf.  Maybe I can have him send Team Bond a photo of what he is observing.  I know some kids had questions if there were other learning elves out there.  I have another brother that is in a first grade classroom too. Thank you SO much for coming to our classroom. What did you do over the weekend? Funny you should mention that.  I just jumped on the computer to add a blog entry, and then I checked my email.  I probably should get back to my blog entry.  In fact...I may just have to add this to my blog.  I bet the other kids would want to read some of these things too.  I left you a note, it is the neon green one. Please respond to it. I have many more questions to ask you but I have to get ready for bed. Thank you for reading this email! Bye until Monday!!!  Yes, in a few short hours you and your classmates will be here!  I am looking forward to seeing you again! 

Ps.you should create an account for edmodo on the computer. Then you could post things to team Bond!!!  Can you tell me more about this Edmodo? How would I get an account?  I know I heard Mrs. Bond talk about putting things on Edmodo, but I am not sure if it is something that I can do.  Maybe you can ask her for me. 

Happy Learning!

Etavonni the Elf 

The Michigan River Boats and Notes!

I was able to sneak on Mrs. Bond's computer while she was out of the class.  I think she was meeting with a mom, as I noticed a woman come in right before the kids left the room.  I already have been given lots of notes by the kids.  What a warm welcome to Team Bond!

Look at some of the notes that I got! 

Like I said before, the boats turned out great.  I am looking at a table with some on them from my view in the boat. 

 I wonder what they learned about Michigan rivers and the Great Lakes?  If Team Bond would like to email me, my email address is learningelf@gmail.com.  I will try to sneak on a computer and answer you back! 

Cheers to Learning, 

Etavonni

Back in Team Bond!

Wow!  I decided to rejoin Mrs. Bond and her class, aka Team Bond, and I watched from inside the closet yesterday.  The kids were working on Michigan river projects, and they were building boats.  Holy cow!  Craft materials were everywhere, kids were working in partnerships, creativity was thriving!  I enjoyed it so much, I decided to take a closer look at some of the boats last night.  In fact, I found a spot to hang out for the day. 

The kids noticed me this morning right away.  Many of them thought that someone brought their Elf on the Shelf  to school.  Mrs. Bond thought so too, but then I think she remembered me!  Perhaps I will be able to sneak the computer again and add some photos!  You just have to see the great boats the kids have made. 

Good-bye for Now Team Bond

 The students noticed that I hung out with my new friends in frames, the giraffe and the cow a bit too long. To be honest with you, I was quite content relaxing and keeping an eye on all of the wonderful learning.  Plus, I figured this was a great place to stay that was germ free.  I don't think many third graders have touched up here.  There have been many kids staying home from school because they are sick.  Mrs. Bond had to remind the kids to cough into their elbow.

I also wanted to hang around Team Bond so that I could hear the rest of The Secret Zoo by Bryan Chick.  It was quite an intense ending to Book 1. The Action Scouts had to battle the Sasquatches in The Dark Lands. Mrs. Bond allowed the kids to turn off the lights to make it a bit spookier.  It worked!  I really wanted to be cuddled next to Maxi like I was last week. All in all, the book was awesome!  Since there were some kids out, Mrs. Bond used her iPad to record her reading using a program called Evernote.  I thought that was pretty cool...as I know the kids that were absent would not want to miss the ending!  I wonder if she will email them the recording or will they have to listen to it on her iPad?

Well, since I have had a lot of time in Mrs. Bond's classroom, I decided to get a new perspective on third grade by visiting Mrs. Hamlin's class.  There is one boy that is in Mrs. Bond's bus line that is always talking about his Elf on the Shelf.  He had fun spotting me each day in bus line, so I thought I would give his classroom a visit.  Mrs. Hamlin had been out sick on Monday and Tuesday, and I could tell she still wasn't feeling 100%.  Hopefully she feels better tomorrow.

The students learned about decimals today in math. They learned about the tenths and the hundredths place. While I was listening, I noticed Mrs. Hamlin used these green blocks to show the kids what a tenth looks like and what a hundredth looks like.  A "long" which is a row of 10 cubes stuck together was a tenth.  The little cubes by themselves represented hundredths.  That helped me understand it better.   I really was interested in this app that kids were playing on the iPad.  It was called Stack the States.  Kids had to answer questions about the states and then they would try to catch some of the states.  It was pretty cool.  Just like in Team Bond, Team Hamlin was also working on gifts for the holidays.  Today I noticed some kids wrapping their gifts.  I bet their families are REALLY going to like what they made!  Speaking of families, there was another adult in the room helping out.  I think she was one of the student's mom.  That sure is nice that family members donate their time to help out at school! 

The kids are having another one of those BA things.  This time it is for Science.  They learned all about Matter and Energy, so they were reviewing for it today.  They had to remember all of the forms of energy they learned about.  Let's see if I can remember...light, heat, electricty, sound...and I think there are a couple more.  Perhaps I will be able to think about them more tomorrow.

At the end of the day Mrs. Hamlin read a book.  It was all about Santa getting a new suit.  The kids seemed to enjoy the book.  The kids go to different classrooms for bus line, so I got to see some of the kids from Team Bond. I could tell they were happy to see me!  Well, that's it for now!  Only 2 more days until the kids go on break! 

Wow! What a week!  I tried to get on the computer the other night, and I could not remember my Google password. I had to go through the whole process to have Google send me a new one.  I felt silly, but I know it happens a lot.  Mrs. Bond has a folder with all of the log ins for her students.  She has brought a red folder down to the computer lab each time they go there. Mr. Hester, the media center teacher, has the kids bring their log-ins to media, but many of the kids say they have it memorized when Mrs. Bond reminds them to bring their books down.  I hope I will be able to memorize my log-in information soon. 

I am really into the book that Mrs. Bond is reading to the class!  I have learned so many new words.  I think Mr. Chick must have a Thesaurus right by his notebook when he writes. The kids tell Mrs. Bond to add many of the interesting words to a chart they have created.  There are words like puny, crevices, illuminate, etc. on a chart.  I wonder if kids will try to add these words into their own writing?  Yesterday the class brainstormed ways to add details to a sentence.  They started off with the sentence, “I saw a tree.” Next thing I knew, they had a sentence that had 34 words.  They added when, where, how type details.  The kids are also writing opinion paragraphs.  I so hope someone asked the question, “What is the best day of the week?”  I am so curious of what people said.  Mrs. Bond taught the class about transition words. Examples of transition words are “In Conclusion, First, Next, Similarly, etc.” 

It got really busy on Thursday, as the entire Third Grade got together for a New Year’s project.  All of the third graders came into the classroom to watch a video on 2012.  There were awesome video clips and photos.  My favorites were the photos from the Oympics. Mrs. Bond had shown the “Call Me Maybe” video with the Olympic Swim Team on Wednesday to discuss numbers in the millions, so it was nice to see Michael Phelps on this video too! Having all of the third graders in the room made me think about the other classrooms.  I wonder if they are learning the same things as Team Bond?  I may just have to pop over there for a day or two to compare. Maybe I can even make some Venn Diagrams.  Teachers always like to use those when they compare things.

One thing that I have noticed is that there are some students that really struggle with staying on-task.  There are kids that will talk to their table mates when they are supposed to be working.  I noticed that Mrs. Bond has been getting frustrated.  I can’t understand why they continue to make these poor choices.  Kids have had to put their sticks down and some have had to stay in from recess.  Maybe Mrs. Bond needs to move some students away from grouped tables.  If they are by themselves, there won’t be anyone to talk to.

There was a girl that looked a little different the other day.  I was trying to figure it out, but then she told her friends…she got her braces off!  I have always looked at the kids with braces and wondered what they feel like. They look like they are uncomfortable, so I can imagine she is much happier now.

Oh…on Wednesday the kids had a new teacher for a bit of time. Mrs. Bond’s daughter was sick at her school.    It was not that Mrs. Share that was there last week. This time it was a lady named Miss Crist.  The kids recognized her, as she is an intern teacher with Mrs. Wormlinger. She did a good job! 

 

The room is getting more and more holiday spirit!  They have beautiful wreaths hanging, a snowman that cheers, holiday cards from all over the US, and they even made up new verses to the Dreidel Song!  At the end of the day today Mrs. Bond found out that the third graders won a contest for edmodo!  She made a banner wishing everyone Happy Holidays.  Edmodo even added it to their blog! What a fun way celebrate the season of joy! 

 

There has been a lot of energy in the room this week, so I am looking forward to some peace and quiet over the weekend.  I do remember that it gets chilly, since they turn the heat down.  I wish Maxi the Moose was here to cuddle with.  He sure did keep me warm. He went home with one of the boys for the weekend.  Luckily there is another moose that is hanging out on Mrs. Bond's filing cabinet.  He should be able to keep me warm...and in good company!

 

 

 

An Email From Etavonni

(Mrs. Bond, Can you cut and paste this into the blog I set up on your computer.  I am not sure how I can get into the account.)  

I searched for Mrs. Bond's computer, but I think she took it home.  Luckily I was able to use the computer in the classroom.  Unfortunately I couldn't get to my blog that I created on Mrs. Bond's computer.  So, I problem solved and signed up for a Gmail account!  You can now find me at learningelf@gmail.com!  

Weekends at Glengary are so very quiet!  No one is in the building and it gets really cold.  I have enjoyed looking out the window and watching the birds and squirrels.  I did see some kids playing outside too.  I am looking forward to having Team Bond back in class on Monday. I think they are going to work on their wreaths more, which should be pretty.  I am not sure where I put my wreath.  Maybe I will get a chance to finish mine too! 

 I hope the kids do the teamwork challenges again too.  It was super cool watching them try to make a pyramid of cups using rubber bands and strings.  I really did see a lot of great cooperation from the teams.  I couldn't believe that Lucas came up with the perfect way to do it right off the bat.  He must be a great thinker!  

I have enjoyed learning about Science the most.  Mrs. Bond said that the color red travels the fastest to eyes.  I am dressed all in red...so I bet the kids can spot me right when they walk in the classroom.  Perhaps I should hide better.  The students also explored how different colored lights make colors look different.  Most lights, like flashlights or ceiling lights are white light.  That means they are carrying all colors of lights.  When we see certain colors, that means those colors are being reflected back to our eyes.  That is such a weird concept.  When things appear black, all of the colors are being absorbed.  The kids did explorations with gel color overlays, flashlights, colored cubes, and cardboard tubes.  They also watched a video on color and light. I think they are getting ready for one of the BA things again.  

A highlight of the week was watching the kids create snow globe holiday cards.  They are participating in a Holiday Card Exchange with classes from all over the United States and Canada.  They have already received 3 cards.  One of the cards is from a classroom in Wisconsin that has Senator Paul Ryan's daughter.  Mrs. Bond thought that was pretty cool!  Most of the class got their card done, but some still have not finished.  Some of the kids really struggled with adding the address on their envelope.  I wonder if their parents have ever let them address an envelope.  Perhaps Mrs. Bond can mention that to the parents...as many of the kids need practice. They are going to work on a card for a Children's Hospital, which is one of the requirements of the card exchange.  I hope they make a huge one!  Maybe I can be a part of it too!  Anyways, it should be fun to see all of the cards come in!  


Loving the Learning in Team Bond,
Etavonni

Tonight was a busy night!

Boy!  The last 2 nights have been very quiet at Glengary, but tonight there was a lot of activity.  I could hear noises coming from the cafeteria, so I tiptoed down the hallway to see what was going on.  Mrs. Bond was in the cafeteria with a lot of families.  They were celebrating the newest Secret Zoo book and the author, Bryan Chick, was there.  I heard Mrs. Bond talk about this in class.  He dedicated the book to Mrs. Bond and all of the "teams" of students she has read the books to over the years.  They had a pizza party and then he did a book signing in a place called The Big Gym.  I was curious what that meant, but there were too many people going down there.  I was afraid I would be spotted.  I did see one girl from the class walking in the hallway.  I think her name is Rook.  They were here for a Holiday Craft Workshop.  I noticed some of the Team Bond members made crafts today in class.  I looked around the class for materials and decided to have my own craft workshop in Room 10.  Sorry McKenna and Aly, I borrowed some of your baggies.  It was very hard to tie knots, but I did my best.  Hopefully I will be able to finish by the weekend.

The students brought in their Secret Zoo: City of Species projects today.  Oh my goodness...they were SO creative!  I loved watching the kids present!  I also liked seeing all of the wonderful grades on the Math BA's they took yesterday.  Mrs. Bond was very happy with most of their grades!  Good job Team Bond!

Again, I am really enjoying blogging all of these neat things out.  I hope others are enjoying reading about all the neat things happening in Team Bond!