That's A Wrap!
2/21/2018
Well, they did it! After several weeks of blood, sweat, tears, not to mention a whole heck of a lot of hard work, third and fourth grade's KPNA has shuttered its doors -- for now. They leave in their wake seven professionally produced and polished episodes of the KPNA morning show. What is most remarkable about this whole endeavor is that students were rotated through different positions each and every day, and were forced to think on their feet and draw on the advice and experiences of their peers. Each student got two or three turns at every job. MondayTuesdayWednesdayFor our final broadcast, we wanted to make sure we were completely polished and professional, and we worked hard to ensure we were a well-oiled machine. With the exception of one switching error by the Fourth Grade Teacher (whoops, sorry!), we had an otherwise flawless program! Watch and try to tell us that you don't agree! And, Some Math...The fourth grade teacher will admit that there's been a fairly strong focus on the production, as of late, but we have been doing other things in class. In the photos below, students play a game of 'Target One Thousand'. In the game, each player draws eight cards and then must place them in combinations of three that, when added together, equal as close to one thousand as possible. We also worked on another 'mat-mat' -- which is a 100 mat grid of smaller, 10,000 unit grids, which when combined totals a whopping one million. (But don't tell the students that, it's their job next week to calculate what they've assembled.) In the video below, students work together to assemble their one million unit grid. And There Were Olympic Events...On Wednesday, PNA held its answer to the winter Olympics, in the form of four events of their own -- the bobsled, skating, curling and hockey competitions. In the video below, watch as Nevaeh and Bella try their hand at hockey... Hush Hush & On The QTREHEARSALS! *** Fourth Grade will meet for Three Musketeers rehearsals on both Monday and Tuesday from 10 - 11:30 AM, and 1 - 3 PM, and then on Wednesday again from 10 - 11:30 AM. CALL TIME for Wednesday evening's performance is at 5:30 PM and SHOWTIME is at 6:00 PM. Should you have any questions, please contact Mr. Yancik or Ms. Katie! *** Costumes For Wednesday's ShowFifth Grade Sneak PeekWould you like a sneak peek at what's happening in Fifth Grade this year? Click the link below to check things out!
Live In 3... 2... 1...
2/16/2018
This week, we're happy to report that the Fourth and Third Grades met their goal for their broadcast project by going live with four morning news programs! This show was seen promptly at 8:30 AM each and every day in any Pacific Northern Academy classrooms that chose to tune in. Additionally, the broadcast was available to parents and anyone else who wished to view. (We would have broadcast on Monday but for a snow day that prevented us!) Segments included facts on that particular day in history, birthdays of students and faculty, events going on within the school, the local weather forecast, and a featured student/faculty member of the day! (Along with other little surprises!) Last week both grades spent a good amount of time practicing their craft and, in the videos below, you can clearly see that the Fourth and Third up our game with each successive episode of the show. Students become more confident in their abilities, and the behind the scenes crew works hard to make sure those are camera look flawless and smooth! In our first broadcast, just below, students work on handing the baton back and forth with live, on-air switching between scenes, and simple speaking form. They also work to hit their marks polish their timing. Here we go! As you can see, the students did an incredible job! Students didn't have time to relax, though, and crews were rotated to ensure that every student got a chance at every piece of the puzzle. In the next video, each and every student has been moved to another job that they now have less time to prepare for. Students need to perfect their craft through preparing their routines, repeating what they may have seen before, and making things up on the fly to deal with new issues! Here with go with day two! Another successful broadcast! But there was no time to waste, because the Third and Fourth Grades were going to do it all again the next day! All students were, once again, rotated in their roles and then snapped to it! Hosts developed the schedule and wrote their scripts! Researchers worked with hosts to come up with birthdays, historical events and other important facts! The breaking news crew roamed the school to see what had happened and what would happen! The weather crew worked to make predictions for the next day! And, last but not least, the interview crew gathered people from around the school to feature! Let's see how they did... Nice job, everyone! After our Thursday broadcast, we finally took a moment to catch our breath. But, we weren't relaxing, because it was... Time To Reflect...And so, on Thursday, after a week and a half of practical practice, and several days of actually broadcasting for real, students took the opportunity to reflect on their work and the work of their peers. In the video below, watch as Mrs. Orbase takes the class through a rubric which helps Third and Fourth Graders evaluate their work, and performances, in detail. Students evaluated themselves on a scale of 1 - 4 (Needs Improvement, Approaching Standards, Meets Standards and Exceeds Standards) over several different categories (Content, Speech, Performance, etcetera). In this way, students are able to reflect on their own abilities, as well as those of their peers, and work to improve and give critical advice to others. After further reflection, students took tweaked their own performances... and it all paid off in Friday morning's week-ending finale! Watch below, and be dazzled! Best show of the week, wouldn't you agree? Now, imagine how great their shows will be next week! Where To Watch...Do you want to watch us live each morning this week? KPNA broadcasts live, Monday through Friday, at 8:30 AM at the following link. Just click and watch! And, if you miss watching us in the morning, each episode is archived on Fourth Grade's YouTube channel, so you can watch any time you want! Hush Hush & On The QTMonday, February 19th will be a school day! Please join us! Monday - Wednesday are Olympic Spirit week! On Monday, students should dress in their favorite color from the Olympic rings! On Tuesday, students should dress as their favorite Olympic athlete! And finally, on Wednesday, students will dress in the style of the country their class is cheering for! Student-led conferences will be held on Thursday, February 22nd. If you have not signed up already, please be sure to reserve a time for your students. Due to these conferences, there will be no school on Thursday! And, Friday, February 23rd, will be an in-service day... no school again! What's Happening In Fifth Grade?Would you like a sneak peek at what's happening next year? Hit the button below for a special look at Fifth Grade!
Lights, Camera... ACTION!
2/9/2018
This week, the Fourth Grade, in cooperation with the Third Grade, turned our classrooms into real, honest-to-goodness television production studio. For all of next week (February 12 - 16), the two classes will write, produce and live broadcast a live news program each and every morning promptly at 8:30 AM. This is something that has never been done before at Pacific Northern Academy, and we're all a little nervous (in a good way)! The two classes have had numerous run-throughs this week in preparation, though, so we're well prepared. The video above shows a special, behind-the-scenes peek at what's been going on at the studio. Students were broken up into crews and then let loose to create their own segments, which included the Morning Show Hosts, the Breaking News Team, the Weather Watchers, the 'This Day In History' Crew and the Featured Interviews Crew. Each segment will feature a different aspect of what's going on at Pacific Northern Academy. If you'd like to watch live at 8:30 AM, please watch your email inbox this Sunday night or early Monday morning for a link to the show. Don't worry if you can't watch live, though, because each episode will be archived on the Fourth Grade and Third Grade YouTube channels. This week, we've collected three filmed rehearsals to show you the progress that we've made. We think that you'll be impressed by the level of progress that the students have made. And now, without further adieu... Monday (Our First) RehearsalOn Monday, February 5th, we had one of our first rehearsals. We were still trying to get a feel for exactly what we could and could not do, and had not added in a second camera yet. Wednesday RehearsalWe continued to rehearse through Wednesday, February 7th. In the video above, we've started to add (placeholder) graphics to introduce segments and we've begun to polish our performance. As you can see, the students are getting better! Friday (Our Final) RehearsalOn Friday, February 9th the students participated in their final rehearsal before going live on Monday. As you can see, the numerous run-throughs from the beginning of the week made all the difference! Students are far more polished and professional, and have a better feel for performing on camera. Great job, students! And Now For Something Completely Different...Hush Hush & On The QTThe Fourth Grade will be broadcasting the news live every morning this week (February 12 - 16) from 8:30 - 8:37 AM. The earlier your children are here, the better (8:00 would be best, if possible) Please make sure to have your child in on time, so they aren't left out! Next Wednesday is Valentine's Day! If you, or your child, would like to send a Valentine's Day card, candy or even a singing telegram, please see the students at PNA's Valentine's Day booth by the library to do so! A Special Peek At Fifth GradeWould you like a peek at what's happening this year in Fifth Grade? Please hit the button below to go to the Fifth Grade blog, we you can see what your kids will be doing next year!
Heroes, Decimals, Birds & Hyperspace
2/3/2018
This week, Fourth Graders (bored with the 'regular' Morning Questions) wrestled control of the Morning Question from the teacher, who decided to take a break and see what happened. In the photo above, you see the result... a very creative and fun way to start our days this week! Investigating Decimals & Place ValuesThe Fourth Grade Math Class continued their investigation into fractions, decimals, and place value this week with some games. In the photos below, Math Class played a game called 'Decimal More Or Less' to battle one another for decimal place supremacy. First, players rolled a 'More Or Less Die' to determine whether the goal was to create a lower decimal or a higher decimal than their partner. Once the goal was determined, next the players used a spinner to figure out the numbers they were given to work with. Finally, players had to place those numbers into the a blank XX.XX format. In order to win, students really had to understand the ins and outs of tens, ones, tenths and hundredths... and how much 'value' they held in their place! Check out some pictures of the game, below! Cooperation In Strategy & Character Motivation In NarrativeFourth Grade has been regularly playing a narrative roleplaying game since the beginning of Second Semester. For an hour or so per game, the Fourth Graders become fictional Heroes of their own creation, immersing themselves in, and navigating through, each 'episode' of an adventure based on the Hero's Journey. Sometimes the Fourth Graders must use clues found along the way to unlock mysteries, other times they gather evidence to persuade another character to do something for them, and still other times they use strategy to defeat, or diplomacy to befriend, Shadows that they encounter along the way. In the video below, watch as the Fourth Grade Class debates what actions to take when they encounter otherworldly beings... Birds, Feathers & Bird Wings...In Science Class, Fourth Grade continued to look at adaptations that animals and plants have made over millions of years. One of the adaptations that we focused on this week was bird wings and the ways that birds fly. In the video below, watch as birds, feathers, and the movement of bird wings are analyzed in super slow motion... and be amazed! Next week we'll be taking a closer look... Nothing To See Here, Please Move Along...Just waiting for Music... nothing to see here! Jackson Makes The Jump To Hyperspace...Fifth Grade Sneak PeekWant a preview of what to expect next year? Hit the button below to make the jump to Fifth Grade!
|
Martina HenkeMartina Henke has been a K-8 educator for 30+ years. A life-long learner, she loves working with kids of all ages, new technology, great books, fiber arts, and her wonderful family! Archives
April 2021
Categories |