Nine Cub Scouts from TWE helped pick up trash and weed the front flower beds at TWE for about an hour Saturday morning, Dec. 12. They worked hard until the rain started falling!!!!

 

Helping out were first-graders: Matteo B., Nick C., Paulie I., Luke J., Athri K., Ved R., Dylan S., Quinton S. and Matthew W.. 

 

The boys are in Pack 281 Tiger Den 11, The Rock-o-Moles (pronounced like Guacamole), led by Matt Samuels.

 

 

Have You Heard?

 

Sesame Street has a new character who has joined the rest of the cast! Julia is a is a green-eyed, orange haired character with autism.

 

 

In the United States, 1 in 68 children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Sesame Street has paired up with Autism Speaks to create an initiative to help increase understanding, reduce stigma and demonstrate the commonalities that children with autism share with all children. 

 

One of the first videos created by the talented team depicts a little boy named Nasaiah. Nasaiah takes a trip to the park, but as Julia explains, he interacts with both the equipment and his peers in a unique way.

 

https://youtu.be/xU2MegkqIxQ

 

Remember to “see amazing in all children.”

 

http://autism.sesamestreet.org/

 

 

Thank You

 

The Special Education Team would like to thank Mr. Wilson for dedicating his time several times a year to come help in our classrooms and for playing the piano for our students. Our students anxiously await their turn to go sit next to Mr. Wilson and try their hand at playing the piano.

 

 

 

TWE - A "No Place For Hate" Campus by Mrs. Ratliff - TWE Counselor

TWE is proud to once again be participating in No Place for Hate. We earned this recognition last year and are excited about this year’s activities. The No Place for Hate Coalition group consists of 4^th and 5^th graders that meet together approximately once a month. During those meetings we discuss any improvements the coalition would like to see. Mutual respect is a common improvement we discuss. Currently we are brainstorming ideas and filming instructional videos to be viewed in homeroom classes. These videos are designed to be informational to students by demonstrating kindness towards others. If you are in the gym, take notice of our new banner. Each year we will add a star to show our ongoing efforts in making Tom Wilson a place where “kindness is the new cool”.

#CoreEssentials by Counselor - Mrs. Ratliff

Hopefully you’ve noticed a new blue shirt in your house…#CoreEssentials. We are very thankful and appreciative that the TWE PTA ordered a Core Essentials shirt for each and every student and staff member.

Each month the Core Essential program introduces a new character trait. How did you learn about compassion? Who taught you about service? What or who do you think of when you hear the word Individuality? These traits are often lessons most of us learned in our childhood that we sometimes forget need to be taught explicitly. Teachers and staff educate students on the value of these traits and recognize individuals monthly who demonstrate them in class. We call these kids CoreEssentialists. Check out their pictures near the fine arts hallway.

 

My Experience as a Watchdog by David West

Being a watchdog dad was an extremely rewarding and enlightening experience. My day at TWE provided me an opportunity to give back to the school in a very unique way.  

 

Consistent with the goals of the program, I was able to be a positive male role model in an environment that is predominantly lead by females.  Additionally, participating in the Watchdog dad program allowed me to assist the staff at TWE by providing extra support in a wide array of activities from participating in recess and PE (which was exhausting) to working with second graders on predictive math.  Finally, and most importantly, I was able to participate with my son in a number of special activities for which my son said he was "proud of his Watchdog dad".

 

I would strongly encourage all dads with kids at TWE to get involved in anyway they can and that being a Watchdog dad is an easy way to do so.

 

12-1-15 The Day the Elves Appeared By: Lane B., 3rd Grade Ms. Cabness’ Class

 

 

On December 1, our Elf on the Shelf came to visit. When we came into the classroom we noticed that he was on Mrs. Cabness’ Christmas tree! We were all SO excited to see him! Mrs. Cabness began class by reading the Elf on the Shelf book and knew we had to give him a name. We also realized we have two elves. Mrs. Cabness’ elf is a boy- Pippi Peppermint and Ms. Morgan’s elf is a girl- Snowflake.

The rules of our elves are simple: once we named the elves, we are not allowed to touch them or they will lose their magic. Our elves will report to Santa every night to tell him whether we have been good at school or not. When Christmas arrives, the elves return to the North Pole. Elves on the Shelves are great, because you know they are watching you every step of every day. You should behave, so you can be on the nice list. You can also write letters to the elves to tell them what you want for Christmas and they will tell Santa. They may even write you back.

               Our elves have moved every day. They have been on the Christmas tree and on the shelf with a reminder note to bring money for the holiday school store, and today, Pippi Peppermint was sitting on the computer. Snowflake got stuck in the blinds in Ms. Morgan’s room after taking an elfie selfie with Pippi Peppermint! It is really fun to find where they are each morning when we come to school. Everyone needs an Elf!

The Thankful Party By Chase E., 3rd Grade Ms. Lynch’s Class

 

 

                The Thankful Party was the best one ever! There were really fun games like bingo. The markers were candy corn! You got a prize if you got bingo. Each of us got placemats with fun games like tic tack toe. The most fun part was when we ate cupcakes and relaxed. We talked and met other moms. We took pictures with friends. We all got thanksgiving pencils. We got candy corn to eat. We all got a water to drink. Not all of us got a bingo prize, but we all had a lot of fun. We all said goodbye to our friends and teachers. Everybody was going to miss each other over the break. We hugged our teachers. A lot of us were really sad to be leaving for break; maybe some of us even cried.

Thanksgiving Rotations By Camryn D., 3rd Grade Ms. Lynch’s Class

 

 

                The first day when we went to our Thanksgiving Rotations, we went to Mrs. Reid’s class and we did fun math thanksgiving projects. Then we went to Ms. Cabness’s class and we chose thanksgiving words and described them so our partner could guess them. We also decorated our names in Mrs. Cabness’s classroom. We went to Ms. Morgan’s class and Makenzie read us The Old Lady That Swallowed a Fly and we made turkeys. It was a fun day

                The second day we went straight to Mrs. Frias’s class and we made turkeys. For their bodies, we put what we were thankful for. Then, we went to Mrs. Lawson’s class and we colored in the correct math questions. When we had finished coloring, it formed a turkey. It was beautiful. We came back from specials and went to Mrs. Keel’s class. We cut out the body of the turkey and we wrote Fact Family Turkeys. On the colored feathers, we used three numbers and I did 5 times 10, 10 times 5, and 50 divided by 10. It was pretty fun. Then, we went back to Ms. Lynch’s class and had our Thankful Party.

 

 

 

Teacher for the Day By Kinley G., 3rd Grade Ms. Lynch’s Class

 

                Being teacher for the day was awesome! Teaching the other classes was really fun getting to teach them how to use a Venn Diagram. Teaching the classes showed me how to teach different ways for different classes. I mostly liked when people needed help. I went over what they were supposed to do, they listened, and they knew what to do afterwards.

                It was funny at specials because I went to art. Then, my teacher said that the other teachers had their teacher for the day kids. When we headed back to 3^rd Grade, a teacher for the day said that no, we had to go to specials, so I had to go back to art again.

                Lunch time was tiring but it still was fun getting to help people with what they needed. Even though I did not go outside for recess I still had fun eating with the teachers because the other teacher for the day and I got pizza.

 

Using Technology to Enhance Writing in 4th Grade

The fourth graders have been busy writing expository essays about their favorite places. To conclude their unit, the children created advertisements for their favorite place and then published their writing as a voice-over recording. They cannot wait to share their hard work with you!

 

Abigail B.  

<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/a/katyisd.org/file/d/0B2jH71ztk49LX090SHlRX3c2a1k/preview" width="640" height="480"></iframe>

 

Ella L.

<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/a/katyisd.org/file/d/0B2jH71ztk49LN3JQUGJDNzZQTWM/preview" width="640" height="480"></iframe>

 

Matthew B. 

<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/a/katyisd.org/file/d/0B2jH71ztk49LbUhvMk9WRzZsc2s/preview" width="640" height="480"></iframe>

 

Jonah M.

<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/a/katyisd.org/file/d/0B2jH71ztk49LelpmRFVFa3pUbVE/preview" width="640" height="480"></iframe>

 

Erica D.

<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/a/katyisd.org/file/d/0B2jH71ztk49LQWNKZFNXRzNQeG8/preview" width="640" height="480"></iframe>

 

Spirit of Giving by Rhonda Henderson

 

 

The Spirit of Giving is evident at TWE this week. Our PTA volunteers have givne of their time and created a magical shopping experience for our students. This morning one of the volunteers told me that it is her absolute favorite volunteer experience at TWE because it is so amazing to see the excitement of the students as they choose the "just right gift" for their family members and friends. I have to agree with her. It is so much fun to have conversations with our students about what they are purchasing, who they will give it to, and why they are choosing it. It is evident from their responses that they LOVE their families and friends!

 

Thanks to our PTA for providing this opportunity for our students to experience the joy of giving to others. Thanks to our parents for supporting this event. 

 

 

The Teacher Becomes the Student by Christy Williams

 

 

 

This year I have been honored to represent our school at REMSL.  What is REMSL?  It is the Rice Elementary Model Stem Lab sponsored by Conoco Phillips.  It is a nationally renowned program that promotes science education by training elementary school teachers to deepen their professional knowledge, explore the latest science concepts, and learn new teaching methods for elementary students.

 

Over the summer, I took a week long course.  We went to the Children's Museum one day.  We were given a scavenger hunt and had to do different experiments throughout the museum based on science curriculum.  During this school year, I have to miss a few days of school to be a student.  In my class, we are given the science concepts and asked to explore these concepts through hands on learning experiments.  It is the most fun I have ever had learning!

 

As teachers, we are given many of the supplies to do these experiments in our classrooms.  I love being able to share these experiments and ideas with other science teachers on our campus.

 

During each class, I am challenged to think outside the box and find new ways to explore science concepts.  We often do STEM projects where we are given a problem and materials and asked to come up with a solution.  Every idea is a possibility! 

 

 

I have been able to build a tower out of notecards that would hold a teddy bear, build circuits, learn about slope and distance by building cars out of classroom materials, create a marshmallow catapult, create a model of the earth, moon, and sun, play with shadows, create rain using water and ice, design a Mars habitat, test water retention in soils, and experiment with weathering, erosion and deposition.  I am learning so much!  The best part of REMSL is coming back to TWE and sharing all the wonderful ideas and possibilities with our science teachers!!!!

 

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 I am documenting my classes on Twitter. Check it out at #twehowl

AYE MATEY!!!!! by Some 4th grade Pirates

 

 

Maya K.

Hello, my name is Maya and I am writing to you about the 4th grade musical that was held on November 19 2015. There were 2 different times that it happened. There was one held during school at 9:30 for the students and one held at 6:30 for the parents. I was chosen to play as a person in the crew called Brownbeard. We all learned that practicing for a play isn’t easy. I would definitely recommend the play to others. Another cool thing is if you see the play one year they change it the next year. This year theme was Pirates 2, The Hidden Treasure. One of my favorite parts of this year’s play was when all the 4^th grade teachers came out and did the Long John Silvertones dance and the Special teachers did the Jolly Red Beards. We all had a great time this year! 

 

Avery M.

My name is Avery and being in the play was a really cool experience.  I loved memorizing songs and performing in the musical.  It was really fun learning choreography as well.  My favorite part of the whole musical was probably acting.  I would recommend others to take place in a musical because it is a really cool experience and you can actually learn how to be a real actor or actress!

 

Corrine M.

When I got a part for the play I was so excited! But I might have gone a tiny bit crazy! Then I got a note saying that I need to go to rehearsal every Monday until the show. And over time I learned that it takes a lot of hard work to put on a show\play!

 

Sienna G.

My name is Siena and I had the part of Blackbeard in the musical.  I would have to say that my favorite part was when Blackbeard and the crew were playing “20 questions” trying to figure out who they lost.  I learned that friends are more valuable than a chest full of treasure.  I also learned that courage is the key to success.  I definitely recommend all of  the upcoming 4^th graders to at least try out for the part.  I loved changing from Siena to Blackbeard and talking on the microphone.  That was pretty cool!

Lex P.

My name is Lex and I had the part, The King of the High C’s!  I learned that being in a musical needs lots of practice to get it right.  My favorite part of the musical was the solo I had to sing!  I would recommend others to be in a musical because when it was the day of the musical, I had so much fun!

 Sampadaa

 Hi! I’m Sampadaa P. and I was the Captain in the 4^th grade musical. It was a very fun and amazing part for me to have. While I was practicing in the play I noticed you need a lot of patience and enthusiasm. For patience you might need to wait for the music teachers to help someone else or to figure something out and for enthusiasm you need to be enthusiastic to show your emotions and feelings in the play! I would recommend a few others to be in the musical (I will not mention who they are) such as more people for the “Talent Show” and a few other island natives to make the play a little longer, but otherwise I liked (loved) everything. My favorite part of the play was when I kept saying, “No,” and Blackbeard kept saying, “Yes,” and a few times we did that and I said, “Yes,” and Blackbeard got tricked and said , “No” and I said, “Tricked you!” and everyone started laughing. I really enjoyed being in the “Pirates 2” and I hope I get another opportunity like this.

 

Jamie B and Gemma T.

Our names are Jamie and Gemma.  We were in the cast of the fourth grade musical, Pirates 2. Jamie got play Blue Beard, and Gemma got play Dancing Beard.  Jamie learned that when the director says, “Hold please.” You say, “Hold thank you.” What Gemma learned is that you can’t speak on the sides of the microphone.

I would recommend being in the play because they can be funny sometimes.

Our favorite part in the play was scene three when we sang the storm. Also, scene six when the islanders came out they looked cool.

 

 Abigail B.

My name is Abigail and I had the part of Little Beard.  Whenever I found out that I got the part of Little Beard, I thought that since the part was named Little Beard, I was going to be a child pirate.  When I got on the stage and in costume, I found out that I played just a pirate with a little beard.  I would recommend for others to try out to be in a musical because once you get on that stage, you have a part to play that would please others to watch.  Also, I know that everybody likes to be having their own spotlight moment.  My favorite part was when I did my big paragraph line because when everyone had their eyes on me, it felt like me saying my line was the only thing that mattered.  Since during the show, we had some minor flaws like when the Native Americans were circling the pirates around the stage and a Native American tripped and fell down the stairs near the stage.  On top of that, one of the mics went out and the whole cast had to use the one mic left, but we accomplished the only thing that mattered, having fun!

 

Marin

 My name is Marin and I played the part of Red Beard.  I learned a lot like how to work together to make a musical a success.  I would definitely recommend others try out for a musical because it is a great thing to get out there and just shine!  My favorite part about the musical was when I got to say my line, “No booty?”

 

 

 

                                           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Veteran's Day by 5th grade student Megan L.

Veterans Day is the day where we appreciate the people that serve our country, such as people in the Navy, Air Force, Army and Marines. My class took time and wrote thank you letters to those veterans. We also watched a video about them to see all the things they do for us because some people probably didn’t know all of what they do. We put time and effort into our letters and made them special. On Veterans Day, we should all be thankful for all they do to keep us safe and free. So just take some time and maybe write them a letter or pray for them. If you know a veteran, give them a big hug and tell them thank you. I know they will appreciate it a lot.

 

Fish in a Tree Review by 5th grade student Emma P.

 

This year in Reading we are doing a Global Read-Aloud. It is so much fun because the book we are reading is Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt. This book is about a girl, Ally, who has dyslexia and hates school. When she gets a new teacher who makes ever thing better, she feels like she can actually do something, and tries. This book is really good and Mrs. Smith makes it so fun because we do some of the things that they do in the book. For example, there was a code they were trying to figure out, we tried. Also, they did a game where you figure out what’s in the boxes, we did that shortly after. She also created suspense by reading all the chapters but one, saving it for the next day. I have really enjoyed this book, and can’t wait to read the last chapter. I can just feel myself in Ally’s shoes and almost can say I’ve been through what she has. At least I can relate, and feel she and everyone else is real and in the classroom down the hall. This book is awesome and I recommend it. Check it out at the TWE Book Fair this week.

Confidence by 5th grade student Megan

Mrs. Ratliff came into our room today to talk to us about confidence. If other people make fun of you and tease you, you need self-confidence to ignore what they say. Being self-confident is much greater than what other people say, even if they’re saying a positive thing about you. You need to like yourself and think positive things about yourself or else you will believe all of the bad stuff people say. Stand up for others and know what you’re good at.

  Here are some ways to get confidence:

Set a goal for yourself

Say positive things to yourself in the morning

 Just remember that it doesn’t matter what other people think of you, it matters what you think.

Fish in A Tree by 5th grade student Aditri C.

In 5^th grade we read our global read aloud book Fish In A Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt. As we read the book, we followed different classes on Twitter and joined their conversations to know what other people were thinking across the world. As we read, Mrs. Hernandez posted discussions on Canvas where we talked to our classmates about the book. We have used Padlet to talk more about the book. The author read us a few chapters, and we got to read chapters as well. If you saw the fifth grade teachers at the Book Character Parade, they were Fish In a Tree characters! Thank you very much for reading my blog on our global read aloud!

SKYPE by 5th grade student Rumaisa

Next week in the 5^th grade we are doing Mystery Skype! If you don’t know what that is Mystery Skype is when your teacher picks a class in the world and the class Skypes with them. The teachers talk before and the students have to figure out where the other class is located. Mystery Skype is a fun way to learn about geography and how to read maps because you ask questions like,  "Do you border Mexico or do you live in the United States?" Today in class we did a practice, and we got jobs and had a really fun time doing this. This is a creative activity and I am looking forward to it with another class.

Let’s Motivate! By Marilyn J. Triolo

 

As teachers, we play multiple roles in the eyes of our students. As each new school year comes around, we all know that the task of learning who our students really are will be one of the first set of goals that we aim to achieve.  When you look at this same task from the eyes of a parent, one might say, “Of course I know what my child likes”, or “I know exactly what motivates my child.” However, as time goes on these “likes” and “motivators” may change.  So, as I was thinking about what to blog about, I wanted to find something that may really touch our families at TWE, as well as our staff.  I found an excellent article titled Unmotivated Child? 6 Ways to Get Your Child Going by Debbie Pincus, MS LMHC.  As I read through her article several times, there were these 4 questions that were included in the article that kept popping back into my head.  The questions are as follows:

• What motivates my child?
• What does he really want?
• What questions can I ask that will help him discover and explore his interests?
• What are his goals and ambitions?

As a parent myself,  I started thinking about these questions and answering them to myself, as well as wondering if my own children’s teachers had done something similar for them at school.  I know that as a teacher, we all have to find and develop ways to motivate our students, as each child is different in what truly motivates them.  With that said, the motivators can change over time, and need to be "tweaked”, in order to have the best effect on the child.  This year at TWE, we have implemented a new system, still using our “Leader of the Pack” tickets.  Through this new system, our students are learning responsibility, accountability, and financial literacy skills.  It is awesome to see them treating these tickets as they would real money.  As the year has gone on, the system has been analyzed to be sure that we are still achieving the same motivation for our students through the use of these tickets.  I again realized as I read through those 4 questions, that I have asked my students what “rewards” would motivate them to want to earn more tickets in order to cash them in. By doing this, I have given them the opportunity to have a decision in the type of motivation that they were wanting to work for.  I saw this as a great way to begin teaching them financial literacy skills as they are “saving” in order to “spend” their tickets on something they really wanted which was something that motivated them to want to earn more tickets so they could “purchase” the reward.  Our students are learning and earning at the same time!!  That’s a great motivator in itself!!  When you have a minute, sit back and think if you, as a parent, can answer those 4 questions about your child(ren), and if you are stuck on one, just ask them….. they will be glad to share their ideas!!! 

Read more: http://www.empoweringparents.com/Unmotivated-Child-6-Ways-to-Get-Your-Child-Going.php#ixzz3qkl3STeN

Technology in Second Grade Math by Sage Smith

Second graders are loving using technology in math this year! From iPad and Apple tvs to our wonderful Smartboards! Technology has made math extremely engaging for our kiddos! Second grade students are using their iPads to learn and practice math facts in ways that make basic facts seem fun! They also, use their iPad with QR readers to have self-directed and checking activities. Students can access their online textbooks and complete math assignments. The online textbooks also have videos that explain math concepts step by step which students can use at any point in an class assignment that they struggle with (and yes they know how to do it all by themselves!).

 

 

 Smartboards are used for lessons daily from introducing new concepts to practice to review. Having this awesome piece of technology takes learning to a whole new level!

 

 

 

IPads in Second Grade! By Lisa Ross

 

 

 

Thanks to the generous support of TWE families, our second graders are enjoying  classroom  ipads this year. We have been using them in many different ways.

 

In reading, students have learned to create pic collages of story elements, participate in QR code activities, and research using a website called KidRex.

 

In science, students are creating pic collages to differentiate between magnetic and nonmagnetic objects and in math students are using QR codes to solve math problems.  Students are also enjoying many math games on devices during math rotations.

 

In Social Studies, students were able to describe landforms using a fun app called Chatterpix.

Kahoot is another fun way to use devices to review skills learned in any subject, and many students are using istation on classroom devices to practice reading skills.

 

Here’s what some second graders have to say about our classroom ipads:

 

“Math games on the ipads are fun because they help you learn about math.” – John B.

 

“I like chatterpix and pic collage because you can make stuff and talk on it.”  –Julia T.

 

“IStation is fun because it’s interesting and there are different things to do.”  -Aidan B.

 

“I like to listen to books.”  -Lincoln B.

 

November is National Diabetes Awareness Month by Ginny Lund

 

 
 Welcome to Mrs. Lund’s class! When you look at our picture, you may notice something a little different. We’re ALL wearing BLUE! November is Diabetes Awareness month.

We have a student who has Type 1 Diabetes (T1D). Only 10 % of diabetics are type 1. There is nothing you can do to prevent T1D, and- at present- nothing you can do to get rid of it.

T1D is an autoimmune disease in which the person’s pancreas stops producing insulin, a hormone that enables people to get energy from food.  Low blood glucose can cause confusion, fatigue, seizures, coma or death.

To show our love and support for this student, everyone in our class wore blue! 

 What does this look like in our classroom?

A person with type 1 checks their blood glucose 8 or more times a day.  While he's at school, he wears a DexCom to constantly monitor his blood levels.   When his levels are low, the machine beeps letting him know he is low.  Then he will go to see the nurse and eat a snack to bring his levels up. 

 

 

Right before lunch, he goes to the nurse to get insulin for the carbs he will eat at lunch.  Then after recess, he goes back to check his levels.  Each time he visits the nurse, he needs a buddy to go with him.  Our class loves to volunteer to take him!    

               

 

He wears a Diabetes bracelet to let others know he has diabetes.  Students and teachers are aware of his condition. We are all learning about diabetes care and the importance of taking care of yourself!

 

 

2nd Grade Push and Pull by Christy Williams

 

 

What is Push and Pull?

Second graders have started a new unit of study in science.  We are learning about force and motion.  To kick off our learning, we visited the science lab to find out what a push and a pull were.  A push is moving something away from you.  A pull is moving something toward you.  Students went to four different stations to practice pushing and pulling objects.  They were able to use toy cars, straws and ping pong balls, balloons and a box of books.  Students were urged to start using a small amount of force to push and pull the objects.  Then students used more force to push and pull.  They had to decide on what was different when they used more or less force.  When students returned to class, we had a class discussion on which was easier to do-a push or a pull.  Second graders love hands on science experiments!