Saturday, March 12, 2011

Have You Been to Hollywood???

Today was a day filled with lots of fun and new things.  We didn’t have a specific classroom to be in first thing in the morning so we chose to walk around and see what classroom looked like they were doing something interesting.  We went to assembly where the whole school got together to watch Year 6 students perform a few scenes from the William Shakespeare play “Hamlet”.  It was very interesting to see how well the students used their voices and body movements to tell a story.  They did very well and were very entertaining for all the students, teachers, and parents that were in attendance.  The Year 6 classes will be traveling to Cheltenham to perform along with 10 other primary schools so it is something that they have been putting a lot of time and effort into so that it is performed well in front of all the other schools.  
After assembly, we decided to go sit in on Mr. Aj’s Year 6 classroom.  They were talking about the performance and things that could be improved and then went on to work on their Maths (yes, they put a S on the end of it!).  They were working on their multiplication facts  (like Mastering Math Facts) only they did it on dry erase boards and the facts were on the promethean board.  They asked Melea and I to participate as well and it was going really fast but we managed to get 100% correct.  It then went on to do doubles and halves of three digit numbers and that was really hard and really fast.  The students in the class were doing a better job than Melea and I!
After Aj’s classroom, we had tea time.  After tea, we were off to a Year 2 classroom where they were going to dance class.  The class had an equivalent to a student teacher and she just happened to be a dance instructor as well.  All of the students were together in the Hall (gym) and had their school uniforms off and PE clothes on and they began to dance.  It was so much fun to see them all dancing and having such a wonderful time with their teacher.  She was such an amazing dancer and did a wonderful job teaching the children.  After dance class was over, it was off for lunch! After lunch, we went to Mrs. Taylor’s Year 5 classroom for a question and answer session.  This was very fun because we got to hear all the different questions that the students had about America and about Americans.  We continuasly get asked about whether we have been to Hollywood, LA, have we seen famous people, do we eat a lot of hamburgers, and are we rich.  The perception of Americans is that we are all rich and we know famous people! I loved getting to hear their questions and also getting to ask them some questions.  We ended our day with a small question and answer session with some Year 1 students.  We were able to show them our money and they were fascinated by it.  
After school, Monica needed to go get her nails done so Melea and I chose to take the bus home.  We stopped by ASDA so that we could pick up some flowers for Debbie because we were going to her house for dinner and then it was off to the bus station to grab the bus.  We made it home around 4:15pm.  Melea and I also bought some cute pocketbooks to wear in London and just a souvenir to bring back! They were really cheap and they are really cute.  
After getting home, we had tea, hot crossed buns (they really exist) and had a few minutes to just relax before leaving for Debbie’s house for dinner.  She invited all 5 of us, Monica, and Mrs. Lyn Dance, who is the Headmaster at Milestones School.  She prepared roasted chicken, pesto pasta, garlic bread, fresh salad, and an apple tart with custard and yogurt for pudding (which is dessert).  It was so nice to be invited over for dinner and interact with them on a personal level and learn a lot about their lives.  After leaving Debbie’s, we went home, bought our tour bus ticket, and headed to bed.  Off to London tomorrow!!! 
Love from England, 
Miss Dodd
P.S. I am REALLY missing my little fourth graders at Centennial!! Mrs. Hartley’s Class and Mrs. Barry’s class...I hope that you are learning a lot and getting ready for Spring Break and learning a lot while I am gone! I miss each of you sooo much!!! Can’t wait to get back and tell you all about it! 

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