Wax Museum 2011 is Complete.

Congratulations to all of you on your performance at the Wax Museum. I can not express enough how proud of you I am. It was a great night. I was in awe of the amazing costumes and the wonderful speeches you gave. Indeed, the Wax Museum was a tremendous success. The turnout was amazing and that is all thanks to you and your hard work. It is a night you will never forget. 50 years from now, you will look back and think "I remember when i was (character)." For the rest of your life, you will never forget this night and the character you portrayed. This is more than just a school project. This is a life-changing event. I hope you see how great it feels to work hard for something other than a letter grade, something much more important. For one child, we have just changed their life.
Feel free to comment on this blog post, but an official Wax Museum 2011 Reflection will be coming soon. Also, look for the 2011 Wax Museum video production coming soon as well. But for now, I would just like to say Great Job. I am very proud of you.

2011 Wax Museum is almost here...

A night like no other. A night you will remember for the rest of your life. A night that will change a young kids life forever by granting them their wish. Watch the video and visualize yourself giving a great performance on the 26th. You are prepared. You will do great. Believe it and make it so. You have all made me very proud already.

Glogs, Standard Checks, and More!

Let us not waste our computer lab time today. Let's be focused and work hard. There are a lot of distractions in your life right now: Wax Museum, spring time coming, Spring Fling which brings nervousness in trying to get a date to the dance, and of course the Medieval Times. Despite the many distractions, we must concentrate and do our best. We have passed the midway point in the Medieval Times unit. Today, we will take a moment to slow down and see what information we have learned so far. Below, you will find your tasks. Do them in the order listed.

1. Bullying Survey: Take the Survey

2. Standard Check: Take the Standard Check by clicking on the Classmarker.com page at the top of WSG.
3. Glog Follow-Up: Browse through each class periods Glogs. Look at them. Read them. Respond to them. We made these glogs at the beginning of the unit, at a time when a lot of this stuff was new to us. Now, we have learned many things about the Medieval Times, so perhaps you have something to add to some of the topics you see on our Glogs. Your glog follow up activity is this: Look through the glogs and select 3 Glogs to respond to. For each Glog you choose, add information related to the topics on the glog. Try to write at least one thing about each of the topics on the glog. If you get done with all three glog follow-ups, then do more. You will add this in the form of a comment box for this post.

Period 3 Glogs
Period 4 Glogs
Period 6 Glogs
Period 8 Glogs
Period 9 Glogs
Extra Time: Look through your Medieval Times detective and see if you can figure out the identity of any of the mystery people.

Where Do You Come From?

One unique thing about the Medieval Times unit, unlike other units, is that it is the place that many of our ancestors came from. Ancestors are your relatives from long ago. Not all of our ancestors came from Europe, but compared to the other units we have studied so far, a lot have. I think it would be interesting to share with each other where we came from. Where did your ancestors live? What countries? On my dad's side, one of my great grandpas was born in the Netherlands and the other one was born in Germany. On my mom's side, one of my great grandpa's was born in Germany, and the other one was born.....hmm, ya know, I don't know. I guess I will have to ask my mom. For this blog post, I want you to share where your ancestors came from. If you do not know where your ancestors are from, you better ask your parents. I think it will be fascinating to see all the different countries that we come from. Perhaps your family is mainly from one or two countries, or maybe a lot of countries like my wife (8 different countries). Either way, I look forward to learning a little about your family history.
Task: Post a comment sharing where your ancestors are from. If you do not know, ask your parents. If there is an interesting story that goes along with one of your ancestors, by all means, share that as well. If your ancestors didn't come from Europe, that is okay, still share!
DUE: Saturday, April 23, 2011.
Good Luck!

Our Amazing World...

The world we live in is amazing. Sometimes I think we take it for granted. Watch this preview. Then go watch the movie and think about just how amazing our world is and all the creatures that inhabit it. Let's think outside of our safe little world here in Brandon. What can we do to help?

Did You Know? A thought provoking video....

Watch the video. You might find some of this information interesting. I know I did. Watch the video and think about what it all means. At then end, post a comment answer one simple question: What does it all mean?

Let's Glog about the Medieval Times!

We have blogged all year long on Water for Sixth Grade. Today, we shall venture into a new world of virtual creating with Glogging. A glog is something you create on the internet. It is basically a virtual poster, that allows you to add pictures, text, graphics, backgrounds, and more. You will create a Glog for the Medieval Times. This assignment will allow you to have some creativity. I want you to search, discover, and create on your own. Throughout the Medieval Times, we will discuss many topics. Using a glog, we will introduce ourselves to what some of them are. So, what can you come up with? What can you create? See below for details. Task: Create a glog about the Medieval Times. Details: For your Glog, here are some ideas to research and represent: Feudalism, Black Death, crusades, castles, weapons, tools, daily life, famous people, wars, knights, Magna Carta, Kings, queens, religion , and anything else you can find that is interesting/important to the Medieval Times. **Use the websites I have provided for you. To find pictures, use google or bing images. Requirements: All Glogs must have AT LEAST five different topics on them. The topic name must be on the glog as well. Use pictures, make your glog look sharp. I don't care how you do it, just make sure five different topics are represented on your glog. Have fun with this. Be creative. Make the coolest Glog in the class. Click here to get the Username. You will receive the password in class.

Super Sleuth: Becoming a Medieval Times Detective

We have ventured our way into the Medieval Times. Just like the name suggests, this time period is evil, its dark, its scary, its gloomy, and its also very fascinating. Kings, queens, princes, princesses, noble lords, knights, death, disease, castles, religion, war, and even leeches! Not only are there a wide variety of topics, but also a wide variety of people. You are heading back into the Medieval Times to become a detective and try to figure out what types of people our 8 mysterious people are. Each of the 8 Medieval Times characters will offer you clues as to their identity. Using the clues, and paying attention in social studies class throughout the unit, your task is to figure out the identity of all 8 characters.

**Important: Use the clues sheet to record any clues that you believe will be important in helping you identify the characters. **Your Task is to figure out all 8 Medieval Times characters by the end of the unit. So find the clues and pay attention!

It is time to....Become a Medieval Times Detective

The 2011 Wax Museum Program Cover Winner is......

The winner of the 2011 Wax Museum Program cover contest is Kate Forster. Congratulations to Kate. Her winning entry will be seen tomorrow in social studies class. I would like to thank all the students who entered a cover design. It was a very difficult decision because of all the deserving designs. I appreciate all the time and effort that was put forth for this contest. Ultimately, a winner had to be selected, and it is Kate. For the designs that were not selected, do not let this discourage you in your artistic or graphic design ambitions. Keep working hard and one day your art work will be on display as well.

Blog Book #7: Conclusion

Well, students, here we are. We have reached the end of our Blog Book. The only thing we have left to do is the conclusion. For the past three weeks, you have all waited patiently to find out what the color of your blog book means. Well, wait no longer as I am now ready to reveal the meaning. Each color means something different. No matter what color you have, your conclusion will be awesome and I can't wait to see what happens. Many people will be very happy with me, it just might not be you :) So, without further delay, click the link and discover what your conclusion will be.

#7: Blog Book Conclusion: On the back of your blog book, write down what your task is, then a line for your parent to sign it. If you do not do the conclusion and do not have your parents signature, your blog book will result in a zero. So DO IT!

ROME BLOG BOOK CONCLUSION