International Dot Day :: Connect Professional Dots!

Mrs. Yollis' class is celebrating International Dot Day!

We are celebrating in many ways with our global Dot Day blogging buddies!

Here is a link to our collaborative International Dot Day Project Blog! 

Map Credit: Kathleen Morris 

You might be asking, how did Mrs. Yollis connect her students in Los Angeles with these classrooms in other countries? The answer is by taking a risk and reaching out through social media. Building a professional learning community is so important for teachers and has never been easier.  Leaving comments on classroom blogs and/or discovering professional opportunities on Twitter provide teachers with collaboration opportunities for their students. Let's connect the professional dots! 

Mrs. Yollis met Mrs. Morris from Australia through blogging! Their classes left comments for one another on their classroom blogs and a ten-year friendship began. Their passion for education blogging was shared at the ISTE conference in 2012, in San Diego.  

Photo by John Miller 

Mrs. Morris even came to meet Beverly and see the classroom. 

Educational Bloggers Meet from yourwonderfulteacher on Vimeo.

Here is a link to Mrs. Morris' Blog. 

Mrs. Yollis met Mrs. Beal from South Africa in 2012, at the Google Teacher Academy in New York City.  They share a strong interest in global collaboration and meaningful integration of technology in the classroom. Mrs. Yollis learned about the Google Teacher Academy via Twitter.

Mrs. Yollis met Miss Versteeg from Canada through Edublog's  Better Blogging with Students program run by Mrs. Morris on The Edublogger. Miss Versteeg was featured on  TheEdublogger. Mrs. Yollis starting following her class blog and is enjoying learning with her. Here is Miss Versteeg's Grade 2 Blog. 

Connecting with educators through blogging, Twitter, or Instagram can have a tremendous impact on student learning. It's never been easier to flatten the classroom walls and create a true global community!

Here are a few screenshots of some "connect the dots" stories and blog comments that you can find on the 

Collaborative International Dot Day Project Blog! 

Photo by Mrs. Morris 

"Connect the Dot" Words: dot, green, puppy, line, tree

Photo by Mrs. Morris 

"Connect the Dot" Words: line, Tokyo, campfire, diamond, quack

Photo by Mrs. Morris 

"Connect the Dot" Words: pen, splash, China, shark, potato

If you are looking to connect with other classrooms, join the Student Blogging Challenge!

Register Individual Student Blogs 

Register a Class Blog 

The Student Blogging Challenge starts October 7, 2018. 

What do you like about working with other classrooms around the world?

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Blogging Promotes Quality Writing!

Guest post from one of my former students, Nolan. He is a fabulous fourth grader who serves as a blogging mentor for my third graders. Enjoy his informational text and narrative! 

Photo by Nolan's mom 

This is a photo of my brother, Troy, and I playing in the snow in Wisconsin in December. My family goes to Wisconsin almost every summer to see my grandma. We sometimes go in winter, too, as you see in this scenario. My grandma is famous in Mrs. Yollis' class. She has been a great virtual volunteer for all bloggers, and she even has visited the classroom!

It snowed a good amount in Sheboygan (the city where my grandma lives) when we were on this trip. But where my great-grandma lives, in Door County, there was maybe almost two times the amount of snow.

You can see all the snow in this photo. You realize that we are bundled up, so you can tell that it is freezing. But what you don't notice is that the temperature is 3 degrees! The wind chill temperature range was -8 to -25 degrees! Wind chill is how the cold feels to humans on their skin in certain conditions. Humans have almost like a warmth shield on our skin that protects us from the cold. When a cold wind blows, that protection goes away and the temperature feels even colder.

It got VERY cold at some points in time on this trip, but the moment in this photo was probably the second coldest moment that we faced in Wisconsin. It got to -9 degrees when my family stayed overnight on Christmas day at a hotel called Bridgeport. Thank goodness we were inside!
I'm surprised my brother and I didn't get hypothermia, or, even worse, frostbite!

Eventually, my brother and I were getting cold and tired, so we went back inside.

Here is a narrative description about Troy and I playing outside before we came inside:

Hike! My brother and I were playing football in my great-grandma's backyard. I'm the one in the neon snow pants. I've got a good tackle going on, right? I think my best play was when I faked left, then ran right, and my brother came for me when I was faking right. He missed me, and couldn't catch up to me at that point. TOUCHDOWN!
I jumped into a pile of snow that had just a little more snow than the rest of the yard. I got up, and tossed the rubbery ball to Troy. He looked left, then right, thinking of a play. Then he shouted: "Blue forty-two! Ready! Hike!"
Stomp! Stomp! Stomp! He ran full speed to the left of me, keeping distance by running away from me.
Thump! I grabbed his torso and brought him down.
"Ugh! You got me!" he said. (He is pretty hard to bring down. I guess I got lucky? No, I think it was just my good skills).

Have you ever been in very cold weather like this?

How are mentors helpful? Have you ever mentored anyone?

Leave a comment so I can all hear about what you have to say!

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*Badger Claws* Clauses

A tip of the hat to retired teacher, Mrs. Ranney for this repost!

Mrs. Yollis' students have been reading about a Chumash boy named Badger Claws. It's been a great way to learn about the Chumash culture! We've also started learning how to improve our writing using dependent clauses. 

What are dependent clauses?

Dependent clauses start with special words:

After, Before, Since, While, When, If, During.

A dependent clause ends with a comma and cannot stand alone as a sentence. It must be followed by an independent clause, which is a sentence that can stand alone!

Here are some excellent examples of sentences with dependent clauses from our story about Badger Claws. 

1. If mischievous Badger Claws had not gone into the hot sweathouse, he would not have been caught by the Shaman!



2. After the Shaman left the brave Badger Claws in the high mountains, Badger Claws took a nap.



3. If Badger Claws shoots the fluffy, furry rabbit, he will have to skin it, clean it, and cook it before he eats it.



4. Since Badger Claws couldn't shoot a furry rabbit, he practiced shooting down the bumpy trail.



5. After Badger Claws shot a furry, little rabbit, he needed to skin the rabbit's soft fur.



6. When Badger Claws woke up in the freezing night,
he saw two monstrous "grizzly bears!"


7. Since brave Badger Claws found out the tracks were littleraccoon tracks, he was laughing like crazy!


8. Before Aged One got home, he devoured several acorn cakes and then lied about it. 

9. During the first two moons, Badger Claws was able to construct an ap, make acorn cakes, and adopt an orphaned raccoon. 


10. While Badger Claws slept, the little raccoon escaped and ate several acorn cakes.  

How did you like our dependent clauses?

If you have a sentence with a dependent clause that you'd like to share, we'd love to read it! (Hey, that was a dependent clause sentence!)

Maybe you can leave a sentence with a dependent clause about your biography subject! 

Again, dependent clauses start with special words: After, Before, Since, While, When, If, During.

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Blogging: How to Teach and Promote Quality Writing

In my 31 years as an elementary educator, I have never seen a project more powerful for sharing classroom learning, making global connections,  and building a positive digital footprint for young students than having a classroom blog. I recommend every classroom teacher consider flattening the walls via blogging. There are so many benefits!

Educational blogging is also a fantastic way to teach and promote high standards for writing. Students want their writing to get published and educational blogging is a great way to leverage that interest.  


I have two educational blogs that I use in our learning. Mrs. Yollis' Classroom Blog is a public blog where classroom events and projects are published. The comment section is where the blog comes to life. Students and parents interact in this online community. 

My second blog is called Yollis' 365 Blog, and it is a public photo-of-the-day blog. Students, family members, and other classes throughout the world contribute photos and text. The digital images are used to inspire creative stories, spark  poetry entries, and share information about hobbies and interests. 

Below are TWO videos I've made to help teachers begin blogging with their students.  

1. This is a video made by Mrs. Yollis' students called How to Compose a Quality Comment!  It offers FIVE tips to help take comments to the next level! I use this video to teach students about content. 

2. This is a video made by Mrs. Yollis' students called Tips to Ensure Quality Blogging. It outlines the rules for participation in our classroom blogs and the agreements the students make when publishing on our blogs.

Do you have any questions about blogging for my students?

How has your writing improved through participation on the blog? 

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Buck's Adventure: Write Your Own Ending!

Buck Is The First Dog In Space

Moon photo by Nolan's mom

A creative story by Kaya and Dylan B.

“See you soon, Buck, be a good boy! I’m going shopping, and I’ll be a few hours,” declared Mrs. Yollis. Mrs. Yollis added, “ I’m going to the mall to get 24 new iPad Pros for the class! Be sure not to get into any trouble. Mr. Yollis is busy building the new and improved movie-making station for the 24 new iPad Pros. Goodbye Buck!” Then Mrs. Yollis locked the door and was on her way to the Apple Store.

Buck was bored. He had nothing to do. Suddenly, he had an idea. Buck decided to go on an adventure to space. Buck went to the garage. Thankfully, Mr. Yollis just came in for a lunch break. He was having a tuna fish sandwich with tomatoes, pickles, carrots, and cucumbers. On the side,  he was having Dr. Pepper and Mr. Yollis’ favorite, Lays Barbecue Chips.

Buck was pondering, “That’s a good lunch, that will give me plenty of time to build a rocket ship.” Buck snuck into the garage and drew up some blueprints.

Next, he got down Mr. Yollis’ tool box and got to work. Buck was working without interruptions, until suddenly, he heard footsteps, so he hid in the corner. Mr. Yollis mumbled, “Oh, I guess there is no one in there." Mr. Yollis then went back to eating his delicious lunch.

“Whew, that was close,” Buck said to himself.

Finally, he was done. Buck pressed the button to open the garage door and dragged the spaceship outside. He climbed up into the pilot seat and remembered he forgot to put the seat belts on. Buck also forgot to get a co-pilot. He decided he didn’t need a co-pilot, but he did need a seat belt. So, he got out of the pilot seat and went into the garage. Buck got his seat belt and attached it to the seat. He was going to be the first dog in space. Buck was ready for anything...

Write YOUR ending in the comment box.

Have fun!

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Write Your Own Ending: The Gingerbread Mission

Gingerbread Mission

By Nolan and Elie

Photo by Mrs. Yollis 

One day, Elie was at Nolan’s house when they saw the mailman. “I’ll get the mail.” announced Nolan.

Strolling to the box, he popped open the lid, and  saw a flyer for something. The flyer read: “Come to the Gingerbread baking competition! It will be a blast! It is at Marcus Hall on Peach Street at 2:00 P.M. It is on Sunday, June 18th.”

It was Saturday, June 17th. There was no time to waste. Nolan rushed in the house while waving the flyer.

“We should really enter this!” Elie said while reading it. “We are some of the best bakers in town!”

That was true. One time Elie and Nolan entered a cookie baking competition, and the judges were blown away by their creations. They won by using a secret ingredient. The boys were going to use that ingredient for the gingerbread house. They were confident.

“We should start baking right now!” Nolan exclaimed. So, they started planning.

They got a ride to Buck’s Market from Nolan’s mom. At the store, they got the ingredients. Plus Nolan’s mom got some groceries. Back at Nolan’s house, they started baking. Gingerbread and frosting went flying as they baked and baked. Then they put in the secret ingredient. After an hour, Elie said, “I’m tired.”

“Good,” said Nolan. “because we are done!”

“Great! But it will melt if we don’t put it in the refrigerator,” Elie noted.

“Right!” concured Nolan.

They put the gingerbread house in the refrigerator and they went away. Elie was sleeping over, so they got their sleeping bags unrolled and quickly fell asleep.

The next morning, they were very excited. It was Sunday, June 18th, and it was time to go to the competition. They went to the refrigerator. Then it happened, and they saw it...

Write your own ending in the comment box!

Have fun!

(Put your rough draft ending in your Google Drive and share it with Mrs. Yollis. She will help proofread your dialogue.)

Any of our blogging guests are free to write ending too! Join the fun!

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What Are Text Features?

Mrs. Yollis' class is learning about informational text. 

Informational text, or nonfiction writing, is based on facts, real events, and real people. There are many helpful text features found in nonfiction writing. Some common text features are:  headings, subheadings, captions, diagrams, time lines, maps, charts, and the glossary.

Below is a humdinger of a video made by Sheriff Yollis and Sheriff Salsich. They hope their video helps you greenhorns learn about about these important reading features!

Yee-haw!

Here it is on Vimeo if YouTube is blocked.

The Nonfiction Trail from Jonah Salsich on Vimeo.

 What are your favorite text features?

(Headings, subheadings, captions, diagrams, time lines, maps, charts, and the glossary.)

In class, we are writing informational text. What two text features are you using in your informational text and WHY?

What text feature is not necessary in your information text?

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Opinion Writing Lessons

We have been learning about opinion writing from our district writing TOSA, Mrs. Andrews. Here is what we've learned.

1. What is an opinion? How is it different than a fact?

A fact is true. A fact can be proven through research and/or by using your own eyes to verify. 

An opinion is what a person thinks or believes. It cannot be proven. When stating an opinion, it is important to have reasons to support your opinion. 

2. How should you begin writing an opinion piece? 

Mrs. Andrewrecommends making a list of all the reasons that  support an opinion. Here is a surprising opinion about Disneyland with a list of reasons.

3. What should you do with your list of reasons? 

Choose your top three reasons for your opinion writing piece. The most important reason should be your last reason. 

Then come up with support sentences for your reasons. Explain your reasons. Give examples.

4. Write a first draft of your opinion.  

The easiest part for many was coming up with reasons. The hardest part was supporting each reason. Many students ended up writing a paragraph made up of reasons.

:-(

To avoid confusion, Mrs. Yollis cut up sheets of colored paper and placed them in an opinion writing center. 

OPINION SENTENCE: on green paper

REASON SENTENCES: on  yellow paper

2 SUPPORT SENTENCES: on pink paper 

CONCLUSION SENTENCE: on green paper 

Below is a photo of the opinion center box. A completed opinion piece is taped together and displayed to the right of the opinion center. Because the strips of paper could easily be taped together, revision was easy! 

For the first two opinion pieces, the topics were chosen by Mrs. Yollis. 

First opinion piece: 

Which Chris Van Allsburg book is the best? 

We had done an author study on Chris Van Allsburg, so it was a great beginning point for opinion writing. Students had one week to write a draft on the color-coded paper, type it in Google Classroom, and then revise it with help from peers and/or the teacher. Final opinion paragraphs were copied and pasted from Google Classroom to the class blog. You can read the final opinions in the comment section here.  

Second opinion piece:

The Daily 5 is great.

 That was the unanimous opinion!

As a class, we listed all the reasons to love the Daily 5.

Photo by Mrs. Yollis 

Next, students wrote rough drafts using the color-coded strips. Once the color coded strips were approved by Mrs. Yollis, students went in and typed the Daily 5 opinion piece in Google Classroom. 

Students used this chart with useful words and phrases to give the opinion piece the final touches. 

This week, students will write and publish an opinion piece all on their own! Here are a few ideas that we brainstormed together.

Photo by Mrs. Yollis 

What is your opinion about this opinion writing process? 

Which step is the easiest? 

Which step is the hardest? 

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