Every yearin January the students read biographies of their choice. After they read the biography they write a letter to somone summarizing the famous person's life. In addition to mailing their letters, the students have posted their biography summaries to their blogs. Who have you read about? What did their life teach you?

So many teachers, principals, and parents have quotes of advice for starting a new school year. Here at Cold Spring our motto for the new year is "Be more than just ok!" We want to extend ourselves and do more than what is required.

Do you have a favorite quote or saying to share? Why do you think your quote is important? What is the message it gives?

Thanks for helping us own our learning as we begin the new school year.

The last weekend of summer is coming to an end. I had a wonderful time in Ocean City New Jersey and got to spend time with my husband, and both my sons. That is really a treat! I also read "The Art of Racing in the Rain." It is a great book for dog lovers, like me!

I was at school last week unpacking supplies and books for the coming year. Have you decorated your writer's notebook yet? I always liked getting new supplies for school. I have loved reading your blog posts and your survey comments. I can tell we are going to have a great year.

Enjoy your last week or so of summer and I'll see you soon.

Mrs. Griffin

Wow! What a great summer it has been! I hope you are having a great summer too! Remember we talked about our goals and plans for the summer? How are they coming? What are you up to?

I have been so busy...I have spent  a lot of time in my garden, although lately it has been too hot. I have also been running, swimming, and riding my bike. I was really slow, but I finished and am proud of my hard work.And guess what, I did my first triathlon! I hope you are having good luck with your sports and activities.

I hope you are reading some good things. I just finished the second book of the Hunger Games series. Wow! It is a pretty intense series. What are you reading?

Anybody go on vacation yet? I know some of you were going on cruises. I'll bet they were loads of fun! I have spent some time at the Jersey Shore. Mr. Griffin and I are going to Maine too to see Acadia National Park.

I look forward to hearing about your summer. Make sure to check in on your fourth grade classmates' posts too. Enjoy the rest of your summer, and I'll see you in September.

Do you have someone you respect or admire? Perhaps even a hero? Students are spending the month of January reading biographies and learning about important people in our world. Check in and see the students' reflections as they learn more about their chosen person.

     Homework has been around since the first days of school. Many people, including teachers, wonder if children should have homework. Is homework an important way to reinforce learning and include parents in their child's school experiences? Or, is homework too much work after a long, hard day? The students gave some thought to homeowrk and wrote a blog post. We would love to know what you think. Please see the individual blogs to the left.

I know that New Year's is in January in the United States but I always feel like the start of a new school year is a real new year. I have had an amazing summer with lots of learning, travel, fun, and relaxation. Well, maybe not "lots" of relaxation. I have read a lot and worked in my garden - although not too much of that because of the heat! I am looking forward to getting to know my new students and getting to see former students. Here's wishing everyone a great year!

I rode a helicopter and walked on a glacier! I was really scared, but really proud of myself for doing it anyway!

This past weekend we received a LOT of rain. The weather forecasters said that we received about 4 - 5 inches of rain! What problems do you think we will have because of this much rain? 

We are excited to be participating again in Voices of the World. This is our first submission.

Today the students in our school had a chance to hear about the country and people of Haiti firsthand. They saw pictures and learned about the poverty in Haiti. They also saw how the money they are raising will help the people of Haiti. Read their thoughts on the left.

We have now begun our second science unit - Watery Earth. What are some of your water wonderings? Why do you think we study water?

When you are old enough to drive a car, you need a license to make sure that you are safe and know what to do. Being on the internet is a little like driving. It is also important to be safe and know what to do. Get your Digital Driver's License here. http://moourl.com/DigitalLicense

This week we learned about the very first people of America. Share what you have learned about immigration to the Americas.

Dear Fourth Grade students,

As a way to learn more about data and understandi it, we are researching CSE fourth graders' favorites. Please take each  of the surveys below.Each one is only one question. Thank you!!

Look outside our classroom and on our wiki for some graphs, charts, and conclusions. We hope to expand our data collection to include other states, and maybe even 4th graders in other countries! Thanks again!!

Sport Survey:http://moourl.com/g8ie4

Ice Cream Survey: http://moourl.com/xjy23

Lunchroom favorites: http://moourl.com/a0w0y

This week we began learning about matter and that it comes in different states. What are the states of matter? What do you know about the different properties of each state? Tell some more about your observations and learning.

We have started our first read aloud for the year. We are reading Judy Blum's Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing. During this book we will be working on self-questioning, making connections, and summarizing the main idea. What do you think about read aloud? What has been your favorite read aloud so far in school or at home?

School rocks!! But, Mrs. Griffin rocks more (That is according to PC and the whole class according to JB.) We think that blogging will be fun. We can write about what we are doing. People from all over the world can see it and tell us what they think, We hope you enjoy reading what we write.

I can hardly believe that we are halfway through our break. I have been very busy but still have lots I want to do. I had a great time in Washington, DC at the NECC conference meeting people, learning new things, and hearing others' ideas. I also had the chance to see two Smithsonian Museums for the firat time - The Native American and the the Botanical Gardens. Both were inspiring. I also got to see a real life pitcher plant and strangler fig like in the Great Kapok Tree.

Finally, I spent 4 days at the Jersey shore and met a student from our class next door. We saw each other on the beach every day. I hope you are all having a fantastic summer and I look forward to hearing from you.

While most people in America celebrate a new year in January, teachers are on a different schedule. The "year" ends in  June and  begins in August/September. What then is summer? Summer is a time for relaxing and renewing, reflecting on the just completed year - what went well, what needs to be changed. Students too have a chance to relax and reflect. What went well for YOU in fourth grade? What would you like to be different next year? Let us know how your summer is going.

I am off to Maryland today for three days of fun and learning with the Discovery Network. Then on Sunday I am visiting Sidwell Friends (where the Obama girls go to school) for a day. Monday begins three more days of fun and learning at the National Educational Computing Conference where I will be on a panel discussion about teachers learning together. Talk with you soon.

I am curious about the book you are reading, or one you have just finished. Please read below about a book I just finished and then write a comment telling about your book.

I have just finished reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. It is a historical fiction book set in England right after World War estruction from the war and she wants to find something happy and light to write about. She accidentally becomes connected to some people who live on the island of Guernsey off of the coast of England. They begin writing letters back and forth and Juliet becomes intrigued by their stories. She travels to the island and becomes part of their community. Eventually, she falls in love in Guernsey and decides to write a book about the people who make up the literary society.

I enjoyed reading this book because I learned more about World War II and the German occupation of Guernsey. It seems that the people of Guernsey suffered terribly during World War II.

Here is a "wordle" which was created using all the words from President Obama's inauguration speech. The more times a word was used in the speech, the larger it is in the wordle. Click on the wordle to see it full screen size. Below this is the wordle of the poem by Elizabeth Alexander from the Inauguration.

Our Voices of the World will be available shortly at the wiki. votw.wikispaces.com/

Here is a copy of our portion.

We are participating in a holiday card exchange with elementary schools from as close as New Jersey to as far away as Seoul, Korea. The slide show below are the various cards we sent with our holiday greetings. ( Coming soon ~ after December 8th) If you are one of our partners, please leave a comment. Thank you and happy holidays to one and all!

I am thankful for many things in my life. I have so much and it is easy to take it for granted but as we approach a time of remembering blessings I try to appreciate all I have. I am blessed with my family and friends who support me in all I do. I am grateful to work in an environment where people are encouraged and supported as they reach for the stars. Finally, I appreciate the wonder and awe of my students.as they grow and learn on their way in life. 

This month, for VOTW, we will be completing a project using the phrase, "All for one and one for all." What do you think this phrase means? Think of something in your own life, you have read, or have seen that illustrates this saying. Explain how that shows the meaning of "All for one, and one for all." Do you think this is a positive thing?

We are excited to be participating again this year in Voices of the World. Every month we will be creating a web-based project along with children from all over the world. This month, we created a voki to introduce ourselvs.

You can visit the Voices of the World wiki and see what other children have created.

The past few weeks we have been studying alliterations and similes. As a culminating activity, the students wrote poems about fall. Please see their poems on their individual blogs.               

                        H a p p y

                                              F

                                                 A

                                                     L

                                                        L