We had an excellent day in Target!  The kids were busy learning right up to the end of the day!

We started with a challenging and very fun Code.org lesson on "Artist Nested Loops".  The creations were artistic and fun!  Then we did our last Robot Mission:  "Reconnaissance".  The kids had fun trying  to keep their robots in stealth mode while maneuvering through a path.

We had a fantastic time during our first Breakout: "Caught in the Code"!  The kids had to solve a series of codes and puzzles to unlock 5 locks to breaout of the box.  They were all successful due to teamwork and good problem solving skills!  

We finished our day with the last few chapters of our book.  What a great ending!

Until next year,
Dr. Kraeger

We had a great day in Target!  They are still so excited about learning!

We worked on a Padlet to use our critical thinking skills while reading our novel.  Check out their creative answers.  We're getting SO close to the end that the kids are beyond excited to see what happens!

Of course the kids had a fantastic time with our coding and robotics sessions!  They worked on a cool PlayLab coding using all the things they've learned throughout the 16 prior lessons.  Then we did a "Search & Rescue" Robot MIssion.  The kids did a good job problem solving to achieve their mission objectives.

We combined our affective skills and convergent thinking to work with a multiple intelligence Versatiles activity.  We followed that up with analogies for extra convergent thinking practice.

No HW this week!
Until next week,
​Dr. Kraeger

We were VERY happy to be back in our Target classrooms today!  The kids started out strong and kept up the pace all day!

Our day began with a coding lesson about "Events", which led to our Robot Mission--"Advanced Maneuvers".  The kids had a blast creating obstacle courses for their robots to maneuver through.  Then, they had to program the robot to move through the Obstacles.  It was pretty tough, and the kids did a great job!

Later, we continued our algebraic thinking with Ken-Ken puzzles.  All of the kids have become more adept at solving these challenging puzzles.  

We used our convergent and divergent thinking skills to tackle a logic puzzle, a Robot Transformation, and an advice letter to the Hero of our novel.  The kids are so creative in their ideas!  

Finally, we worked more on our novel.  We read a chapter, then replied to a critical thinking question on a Padlet.  This is a new web tool for us, so some need a bit more practice in using it.  We'll use it quite a bit next year, so the kids will become more familiar with it.  We read a bit more to check our ideas, and then made predictions about the mysterious Black SUV in our book.  

We have a VERY exciting event planned for next week!  It's the first of many activities of this type that we will do next year.

HW:  Edmodo

Until next time,
Dr. Kraeger

Milestones testing continued for our 5th Graders today.  So this morning, we took our Target class on the road and hung out in the Media Center for the morning!

The kids worked hard too!  They used convergent thinking to solve logic puzzles and various problems in our "Robots and Special People" activity.  They also used critical and divergent thinking to create a Ninja Comic strip after reading a chapter in our novel.  Check those out by our classroom.  They're so creative!  We worked both algebraic and convergent thinking in doing some Ken-Ken puzzles.  These are also available online for extra math challenge at home.  All you Sudoku fans should check these out!

Later, we read more of our novel and found out the "E" the Robot has been "Robo-napped"!  More to come next week!

Back in our classroom, we learned about "Events" in coding by practicing some events while singing "Old MacDonald Had a Farm".  Then we created unique dance moves to program our robots.  The Robot Dance Recital was spectacular, especially when several of the boys spontaneously started line dancing with the robot!  So GREAT!

HW:  Edmodo-Book Question

Until next time,
​Dr. Kraeger 

We thought we'd never be able to pick up our kiddos after testing today!  Finally, we were able to pick them up and get to some work!  We started off with reading some of our novel, then took a break for lunch.  After that, we went out for some much needed and very deserved RECESS!  

We came back ready to work on programming our robots.  The mission was "So You Think You Can Dance!"  The kids enjoyed a preview with a video of how to "Do the Robot" and a fun video of some kids doing a great job dancing the robot.  Next they programmed music and dance steps and the robots showed off their moves!  Next week, the kids will create their own dance moves and turn those into programs for the robot.  We'll also add our own music.  Can't wait!

We read a bit more of our book and used our critical thinking skills to predict the outcome of a crazy, dangerous science experiment.  

Finally, we worked on some challenging math problem solving.

Whew!  What a day!

HW:  Edmodo
Until next week,
​Dr. Kraeger 

The kids were excited to be back in Target today and got so much accomplished!

We started the day with some work on Binary Coding.  After a short video explaining this system, we created "Binary Necklaces".  Check out the image below with our "Binary Codes".

We used our algebraic thinking skills to learn the way to represent equations using the Pictorial Method and also to continue our work on word problems.

We stretched our critical thinking skills with some comprehensive analogy practice, used our creative thinking to transform an egg, and reflected on ways that we're not perfect.  We followed that up with a book about being perfect.  The kids wrote and illustrated about a time they made a big mistake.

Later, we enjoyed reading some of our novel outside in the shade.  How nice!

HW:  "My Big Mistake" (if not finished in class) and Edmodo question

Until next week,
​Dr. Kraeger

The kiddos were excited and ready to learn this morning!  They tried a VERY challenging Versatiles activity.  Pretty tough, not many finished!

Novel Study:
We read 4 more chapters and found out the E can do all sorts of cool stunts now.  Our reading ended with a critical thinking exercise to predict what E will do next.

Algebraic Thinking:
We continued our work on Hands On Equations with a review of Lesson 6 (equations with parentheses) and another lesson about representing word problems with algebraic equations.  Good work by all!

Unit Study:
We learned about "Conditionals" today by practicing an "If, then" command.  This was pretty challenging, but most have caught on easily!  We also worked on our Robot Mission with a mission to deliver a dog treat.  That was a lot of fun!

Stations:
We continued our convergent thinking practice with more analogy work and then stretched our divergent thinking with "SCAMPER" a Robot!  Very clever and creative ideas with this activity.

Affective Skills:
We continued our mindfulness practice with "Nelly's 66 Second Day" and "Mindful Minute".  Both were very effective.

Our group also worked on lessons in perseverance, diligence, and cheerfulness.  All are KEY when trying protect the Growth Mindset!

HW:  None-Enjoy the Break!

Until April,
Dr. Kraeger

I was at Georgia Tech with my 5th Grade InVenture Challenge teams today, so we decided to keep it simple for Target.  The kids worked hard and got a lot of learning accomplished!

Convergent Thinking:
We got off to a fun start with an in-class session of Kids' Chess.  The kids LOVED it, and learned so many new strategies for mastering chess!  This is a great way to stretch those critical thinking skills of strategy, logic, planning, evaluation, and synthesis.  

The kids also worked more on coding with an activity from Code.org.  They really enjoy the challenge of solving each task, as it builds upon the previous task.  Ask your child about debugging and how that might help when we do "Relay Programming" again.

Algebraic Thinking:
We worked on math problem solving tasks to hone our algebraic thinking, as well as our skills of evaluation, analysis, and application.  The kids are getting better in applying the strategies we learn through Hands On Equations to other types of math problems.  

Novel Study:
We read a bit more in our novel, House of Robots, today.  The kids also used their critical thinking skills to work on some activities with our novel.

Research:
The kids shared some of their "I Wonder" research today.  It is interesting to see the topics that they wonder about.  As always, they amaze us with their curiosity and excitement in learning new things!

HW:  Edmodo Question

Until next week,
​Dr. Kraeger
 

We had an awesome day of learning this week!

Unit Study:
We started our day with a coding lesson to practice using loops in our programs.  The kids did a great job with this!  Then we moved onto a Robot Mission where the kids had to program the robots to patrol a doorway and warn intruders to "STAY OUT!"  Again, fabulous work on this!  Finally, we ended with Relay Programming.  The kids worked in teams to write code to color squares in a grid, following a given pattern.  The catch was, each kid only wrote one command in the program.  Then, the next kid came up to check the code and write the next command.  It was super fun for the kids and they absolutely LOVED it!  We'll do it again in a couple of weeks!  This process is very similar to the way teams program for big projects in the business world.

Convergent thinking:
The kids did a great job on their logic puzzles again this week.  Next week, we'll start working on analogies to stretch a different type of convergent thinking.

Algebraic thinking:
We started our study of word problems today.  The kids really got the hang of transferring the words into an algebraic equation.  The solving part was SO easy for them!  We'll continue this for quite a while, working on different types of word problems.

Novel Study:
We read a few more chapters in our book and worked hard on some critical thinking questions.  There's a mysterious black SUV that is lurking around causing the kids to wonder what's going on.

Affective Skills:
We continued our mindfulness practice with Widdle the Worrier and 2 Minute Relaxation. 

HW:  I Wonder Research:  Choose one topic from the "I Wonder" chart to do a mini-research project on.  Next week, we'll share what we learned.  No need to create anything to share, just talk about the topic for a moment.

Until next week,
Dr. Kraeger

We had an interesting and productive day!  The kids seemed a bit out of sorts today, but managed to accomplish a lot of learning!

Convergent Thinking:
The kids are working along on more and more challenging puzzles!  Soon, they will be ready for the next level of logic puzzles!

Algebraic Thinking:
We are close to finishing the Level 1 Hands On Equations curriculum.  Once group finished today, the other will finish in the next week or two.  From there, we move on to applying these methods to word problems.

Unit Study:
We had a great time with our Coding lesson- Artist Loops!  The kids were amazed at how much easier loops made the coding process!  They also had a great time experimenting with what would happen when they increased the number of loops to VERY high numbers like 50.  Cool stuff!

Our Robots experienced "Night Surveillance", which was a lot of fun!  They were very successful with this mission!

Affective Skills:
We worked on our curiosity by expanding it to the next trait, "Love of Learning".  The kids brainstormed about things they wonder about.  They are incredibly inquisitive--pondering things like: Why do people fast?, What happens to our bodies when we die?, Why do we have to eat food?  How do people grow?  Wow!

Novel Study:
We read another couple of chapters in our House of Robots.  The kids found out that Sammy's mother is missing!  

HW:  "Missing Mom" Poster

Until next week,
​Dr. Kraeger