Learning+in+the+Cloud

The Great Panda Adventure

What: Mei Xiang the **MOTHER** OF a giant panda cub Where: They live in the Smithsonian Zoo. Where is the Smithsonian located? When: The baby was born 7 months ago (please confirm this).

You will go to [|Epals.com]. Go to the bottom left. Click on “The Baby Panda is Growing”. It will take you to this link [|http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/GiantPandas/default.cfm#update]. Click on the web cam in the top left. It will take you to [|this link.]

** Let's Learn About the Great Panda ** I. Research the Great Panda. Use [|this link.] -** [|Name the panda cub] **

II. What do panda bears sound like as a newborn? At the age of 3 months? As an adult? Click on the speaker embedded in the above site to hear.

III. Go to the Panda #|Photo Gallery. It [|is linked here.]

** Let's Learn How to Take Two Column Notes **

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 * Let's Compare and Contrast **
 * 100 days to 7 months **

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IV. #|Partner with a classroom in ePals. Exchange information about Mei Xiang as she grows.

V. Log into KidsBlog Use a catchy title Include a visual photo or other visual media. Write about an interesting topic with enthusiasm. Proofread your work. Write in #|complete sentences. Don't forget to use paragraphs. Include links like you have seen used in this Wiki.
 * Make **//weekly//** posts
 * Happy Blogging!
 * //** Tips **// for making a good blog post:

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[|Link to Student Blogs Recognized by Edudemic as OUTSTANDING.]

[|Link to Student Blogs Recognized by Edudemic as OUTSTANDING.]


 * 1. Mrs. Failing[]
 * 2. Coach Felder[]
 * 3. Coach Pearson[]
 * 4. Mrs. Riek []

** HOT Blogging **


 * Tip #1 ** - Restate the question and indicate who posted it.
 * Tip #2 ** - State your opinion.
 * Tip #3 ** - Provide multiple reasons to #|support your opinion.
 * Tip #4 ** - Use evidence from the reading selection and include page numbers so that others can refer to your evidence.

THINKING ACROSS TEXT FOR DEEPER MEANING SYNTHESIS SCAFFOLDING
 * ** My thoughts..... **

Copy and paste your blog comment here || ** Comments from........ **

Copy and past a classmate's comment here || ** Comments from...... **

Copy and paste another classmate's comment here || ** Comments from....... **

Jot down notes from your class discussion. ||

In the chart above, circle ideas that are the same as yours. Box the ideas that are new or different (can use different colored font if on a computer). || Now take a few minutes to ** THINK ABOUT ANY NEW ** ideas you have about the text. You may choose to think about your classmates' comments and share your thinking about their ideas below. ||
 * Ask yourself this. How are #|my classmates' comments the ** SAME OR DIFFERENT ** from mine?





- - - - - - - - - ||  ||
 * ** Now combine your writing from the two boxes above and paste it below. You have now synthesized across multiple texts. ** ||  ||

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** Great Panda ** ** How Big Will She Get? **  **// Make a prediction: How big will she get? //**  media type="custom" key="24410498"


 * **Date** ||  **Weight**  ||  **Length**  ||  **Right Paw**  ||  **Back Paw**  ||

** Panda Cub Rolls Over ** media type="custom" key="24410526" align="center"

** Panda Box ** // ** Identify our information and observations ** // // ** by ** **alphabetizing (categorizing)** //
 * A || B || C || D || E ||
 * F || G || H || I || J ||
 * K || L || M || N || O ||
 * P || Q || R || S || T ||
 * U || V || W || X || Y ||
 * Z ||  ||   ||   ||   ||

** Saving the Species ** ** Read like a detective and think like a PI ** ** Thinking across the text (see above) ** Read[| this article]. Why and how did scientists discover this new species?

** National Geographic [|Endangered Animals Quiz] ** ** Click above link to take the quiz ** ** Blog about it..... **

U. S. Endangered Species Act of 1973 How has this Act been effective for the disappearing animals of our planet? Blog about it......  [|Apps in Education - Studying Endangered Species]

** Let's Think About It ** **Critical Thinking ** PMI - A brain storming model

Plus, minus, and interesting

Step 1 For two minutes in the plus column, write (with laser-beam focus) about all of the possible positive things regarding a subject or about taking an action.

Step 2 For two minutes in the minus column, write (with the focus of a begging Labrador) about all the possible negative things related to a subject, or about the negative effects of taking an action.

Step 3 For two minutes in the interesting column, write (with the focus of a pre-tenure NYU professor) about all the interesting things related to the subject, or implications and possible outcomes of taking an action, whether positive, negative or uncertain.

** If You Could Save The Species... ** **Edward DeBono’s Model ** To - Where do you want to get To? (Definition) Lo - Look at the Problem. (Logical Analysis) Po - Possible Solutions (Generate Possibilities) So - So what shall we Do? (Make your Decision) Go - Get Going (The Implementation Phase)

** Create a VoiceThread ** [|Lesson Plan - Squirrely Behavior] #|animal behavior lesson

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**Smithsonian Zoo** **How Many Species Are At The Smithsonian?**

** What Other Challenges Do Our Animals Face? **  Karen Stadler's classroom in Cape Town, South Africa is uniting to raise awareness about dangers the rhino is facing. Here is their classroom wiki, called Save Our Rhinos! To educate others about this epidemic, her class is sponsoring a traveling rhino project. The National Geographic has a photo gallery dedicated to the white rhino. [|See here.]

Elephants have strong family ties. They are said to actually shed tears when a member of their family is lost. Why are some animals more prone to these kinds of feelings while others are not? [|Linked here] is a database about the sophisticated language elephants display. What are researchers doing to better understand their communication? How do [|elephants communicate]? Blog about this.

Elephants are threatened by illegal poaching. Check out the [|interactive map]from The National Geographic site. What does the data within the map tell us about the struggles facing the elephants? What drives illegal poaching? Blog about this. Use data from the map to support your statements. Use a hyperlink to this interactive map in your blog post.

Below is a book written by an Oklahoma author. I highly recommend his books. He is a retired college professor. Mr. Trout taught biology at Oklahoma City Community College. He uses his experiences as an outdoor ecologist to write about environmental concerns. Below is a link to Amazon where you can order his book, "Elephant Tears". [|Lesson plan] from Time For Kids. Here is an article from [|Time Kids] to help you support your position.

[|Elephant Tears Written by Richard Trout]

Skype with [|Richard Trout]

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** Tigers Fight For Survival ** ** Follow this[| link] **



** Let's Attack Writing ** Writing is nothing more than telling a story. We've been writing stories since pre-historic cave drawings. We've (8th graders) talked about writing strategies like RAFT ([|linked here]). Mr. Grabowski, a teacher in Canada, blogs about writing strategies [|here]. [|Mr. Grabowski is an avid] scuba diver who loves to share about his experiences through Skype. His main interest is in preserving our ocean waters. We are planning to Skype with Mr. Grabowski on the 17th of December. Could Mr. Grabowski share his knowledge about sea turtles and their threatened existence? Sea turtles are being illegally hunted for their meat, shells, and eggs. See this [|link here]. Mr. Grabowski has a wealth of information on his blog [|linked here] about challenges facing Mother Earth. What do you think is the #1 biological/ecological threat facing Mother Earth? Can you defend your answer? Let's use the P, M, I technique above to organize your argument.

Mrs. Jodie Riek is a native Australian living now in Oklahoma. She is a graduate student on staff at Oklahoma State University in the College of Education. She recently was accepted into the Ph.D. program at OSU. Her interest lie in technology and early childhood learning. Her visit will shed yet another light into a problem her home country of Australia is facing. Did you know that [|Australia] is the only country that occupies an entire continent? We will visit with her to learn more about a massive algae outbreak. See [|link here].

How could we connect what we've learned about the threats the Giant Panda is facing with yet another ecological threat that Mr. Grabowski has devoted an interest in? What about Australia's algae threat? How could we persuade others to take an interest in these topics? Here is a [|rubric from Edmond Public Schools]. What strategies should we attend to when writing persuasively? Persuasion papers give opinions. Argumentative papers give facts. media type="custom" key="24562482" How can we transfer our knowledge into well organized writing that demonstrates our ability to competently weave points, ideas, and thoughts? We've learned about these threats in other parts of the world. Do we in Oklahoma face any ecological threats? What animals, if any, are facing extinction? What other competing forces threaten habitats or ecosystems here in Oklahoma? Read this [|article] here. How can we relate to the text to better understand where we fit into the picture? Use the reader to text strategy here. [|Text To Self, World, Media, and] Text Oklahoma is a state whose economy is supported primarily by agriculture and oil industries. Will the drive for ethanol do anything to our wide open spaces? What has aggressive oil exploration done to the landscape of Oklahoma? Writing about similarities and differences Oklahoma has with respect to other parts of the world will help our understanding of this topic. Let's apply our Thinking Across the Text strategies posted above and blog about this topic. Should we save the wildlife or power the world? Can we problem solve? How can we make all of these competing forces work to our advantage? Can you apply the PMI critical thinking strategies listed above to organize your thoughts? This is a pre-writing strategy. Let's get blogging!! ** Slow Mo ** media type="custom" key="24562910"

Retrieved from [|National Geographic Photo Contest 2013 - Polar bear in Hudson River] Defend Yourself Fridays [|SAMPLE OF STUDENT WORK] - ARGUMENTATIVE PIECE SCROLL DOWN TO 6TH GRADE - A Pet Story About My Cat, GusPlease note the student titled his paper as a story. This is incorrect. media type="custom" key="24902400" Here is a [|research article] from the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife. Use the 2 Column Note method that is listed above to build your argument. ||
 * Skype || Issue || Defend This Topic - ||
 * Richard Trout Elephant Tears || Illegal poaching of animals || You are a game ranger. PETA has demanded that you take a stand against the unnecessary killing of wild hogs in the state of Oklahoma. PETA is an organization that campaigns against unfair treatment of animals. Here is[| PETA's] website. Why or why not should we allow the shooting and hunting of wild boars when it is illegal to shoot other animals in other parts of the world.
 * || Illegal poaching of the rhino || Karen Stadler's class is advocating against the illegal killing of the rhino. A link to her classroom blog is posted above. Recently a man in the Dallas, Texas, area paid $350,000 to purchase a hunting permit to kill a black rhino in an organized hunt sponsored by the Dallas Safari Club. The money used to purchase the permit will then be donated back to efforts to conserve endangered species. Here is the [|article]. He and his family have received death threats since the purchase of the permit. Here is the[| article]. You are this man. Defend your right and desire to kill the black rhino which is an endangered species. What are your motives? What is your reasoning? Remember to defend your argument with facts. ||
 * Joe Grabowski Shark Fins || Illegally killing of sharks || Why should the wants and needs of humans be more important than animals? People in foreign countries eat shark soup as a sign of status. Facing world food shortages scientists are making bugs good enough to eat. Should we use bugs to help feed the world? Why or why not? [|Time Kids] article here. ||
 * Ranger Mike Yellow Stone Nat'l Park || Preservation of natural lands || A nuclear plant company wants to build a nuclear plant in your hometown. Write a letter to your Congresswoman to voice reasons why or why not the nuclear plant should be built in your hometown. ||
 * To Be Decided || Extinct Animals || Scientists want to re-create long extinct animals. Should they? Defend your position. Here is an article from [|Time Kids] to help you support your position. Let's Skype with [|Scotti Cohn] as she discusses big cats and their dilemma. ||
 * Garrett Burke || The Cost of a Penny || It costs more to produce a penny than it is worth. Should we continue to make pennies? Should we continue to use pennies? Here is an article from [|Time Kids] to help you support your position. What does the author support? What is his point of view? Also let's look at the figurative language in the article. Can you point it out? (Hint: Two Sides to the Coin).

Important Questions to Ask: Why do some people think the United States should stop using the penny? Why is Jarden Zinc Products fighting to keep the penny? What is the meaning of positive seigniorage?

Here is something extra. It is a short article about the Wheat Penny. It is [|linked here].

Let's join in with this Skype lesson created by [|Garrett Burke called The 50 State Quarters Journey] about the U.S. Mint's innovative 50 State Quarter Program. || Link to SDE student writing prompts

[|8th grade informative prompt] [|8th grade narrative prompt] [|8th grade argumentative prompt] [|8th grade rubric]

[|Outline Example] Set Up Your Argument

I. Introduction II. Background III. Supporting Evidence #1 IV. Supporting Evidence #2 V. Supporting Evidence #3 VI. Counter Argument VII. Sum Up Conclusion a. sum up + supporting evidence b. it should tell us why we should care about your paper or your claim c. do not be vague or unsure d. tell your reader why your argument is important

Oklahoma Game Warden Man purchases permit for $350,000 to kill rhino media type="custom" key="25035260" Interview With An Author  From [|Reading Rockets] media type="custom" key="24789672" Visual Note Taking We are going to learn about visual note taking. We are going to apply this strategy to a topic. Then we are going to defend your note taking in your blog post. What is a note taking strategy we have used up to this point? What did you learn about Garrett Burke that might possibly apply here? What did he use to help him visualize his idea?

So we are going to watch a short video about visual note taking followed by answering a question. media type="custom" key="25241564" media type="custom" key="25241578" Turn to your neighbor and discuss this question drawing while you are discussing. The question is: Why have the athletes in the Olympics changed? Now from your drawings defend your observations and conclusions. **//What Country Won The Most Medals? //** **//(What was your favorite event?) //** **//Google //** [|simply Googling “2014 winter olympics medal count”]

**//What is Google? //** a. car b. train c. search engine d. firewall

media type="custom" key="25267982" media type="custom" key="25268154" What note taking strategy did we use last week? a. Underwater note taking b. Visual note taking  c. Ice cube note taking   d. All of the above Graphs Is a graph a visual note? Vocabulary Communicate, Illustrate, Represent [|Create A Graph] We can apply some of Garrett Burke's concepts of idea, design, and framework.

1. The idea is the ...?

2. The design is the ....?

3. The framework is the ....? Defend Yourself Fridays KidBlog

What type of graph did you use?

Analyze why you used this type of graph instead of another graph? What other ways could you use a graph? Question  In general do things always appear the way they should? media type="custom" key="25269954" How do we or how can we determine the authenticity of what we see or read for that matter? media type="custom" key="25375108" What is //**authenticity**//? media type="custom" key="25493058" ** So.....what is most important in determining authenticity? What we see or what we hear? ** What, if anything, in this Wiki could you select and defend that what you are seeing is authentic?

What would it be?

How would you do that? **[|Grandfather Gandhi]**