The Adventures of Miss Fuller's Class

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Typing Fun!

Division 1 is brushing up on their typing skills!!!

Check out our online program here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/

(We hope you're familiar with different accents!)

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Welcome Grades 3-5!

Your project is to research a person who was considered to be disabled but who overcame their disability to achieve great things. One example of such a person is Helen Keller.

I'd like you to explore the links below to begin research on your Exceptional Person.

Stephen Hawking - Theoretical Physicist, Cosmologist and Mathematician

Rick Hanson - Spinal Cord Injury Activist.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt - 32nd President of the United States of America

Aimee Mullins - Athlete, Actress, Model

Harriet Tubman - Humanitarian

Ludwig van Beethoven - Musician and Composer

Albert Einstein - Theoretical Physicist

Christy Brown - Artist

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Learning about Annie and Helen

This week, we've been learning all about Annie Sullivan and her student, Helen Keller.

Annie and Helen in Cape Cod, July, 1888. Helen is 8 years old. Annie is 21.

Johanna Mansfield Sullivan or "Annie", as she was known to her friends and family, was born to poor Irish immigrants in Massachusetts. Annie suffered from Trachoma when she was three years old, but her parents could not afford a doctor. Due to the disease, Annie suffered considerable vision loss as she grew up. After her mother died of Tuberculosis, Annie and her brother Jimmie (who also suffered from a tubercular hip), were sent by well-meaning relatives to the Tewksbury Almshouse - a place where poor people were allowed to live when they had no money and no place else to go. Between the terrible living conditions at Tewksbury and the Tuberculosis in his hip, Jimmie soon died. Annie managed to get herself enrolled in a special school - Perkins Institution for the Blind. By this time, Annie was almost completely blind. Luckily, after a series of operations, she regained some of her sight.

Annie's nickname was "Miss Spitfire" when she was a teenager.

After she graduated from Perkins, Annie was given a job offer by Michael Anagnos, the director of the school. Arthur and Kate Keller of Tuscumbia, Alabama were in need of a teacher for their daughter, Helen. Annie accepted the job.

Annie Sullivan as a young woman,

Helen Adams Keller was born in Tuscumbia, Alabama in 1880. She was a normal enough child until just before her second birthday when she suddenly got sick. Helen was sick for weeks, and the doctor wasn't sure that she'd survive.

Modern map of Alabama with Tuscumbia labelled. The town of Tuscumbia still exists today!

Helen did indeed survive her illness but her senses of hearing and sight did not. Helen became deaf and blind. Without any sounds on which to base her speech, Helen soon lost the words she'd been learning. Helen lived another five years in her dark, silent, and lonely world until 1887, when Annie Sullivan came to her house to be her teacher.

Annie and Helen during Helen's years at Radcliffe College.

Our class learned all about Annie Sullivan and Helen Keller through a fantastic biography: Helen Keller's Teacher by Margaret Davidson.

We learned how Annie began teaching Helen the manual alphabet (or 'finger spelling') and how Helen eventually made the connection between the concept of water and the word spelled into her hand.

Helen Keller as a young woman

Helen went on to accomplish great things in her life. She became the first deaf-blind person to graduate from college. She became a world famous author and activist who wrote articles, stories, and even an autobiography. She learned to speak and became famous as a lecturer. Helen and Annie even put together an act based on her lectures and toured with the Vaudeville theatrical circuit!

Annie and Helen visited many countries. Here they are in India!

To wrap up our study of Helen Keller, we watched The Miracle Worker to compare the events of the movie with those in the book. Our class was amazed at Helen's bad behaviour at first, but were relieved to see her have the opportunity to learn manners.

We even learned finger spelling! Here's a guide for you to try out at home:

Our Blog is Back and Better Than Ever!

It's been a while! Our apologies for the delay - in the whirl of report cards, assignments, and two weeks of spring break, almost a month and a half has passed.

We'll catch you up as soon as possible!

Sunday, February 13, 2011

E-mails from India - Part 2

Here's another e-mail, this time from our Grade 1 friend.

February 12, 2011

Mumbai, India

Hello everyone. This is J.

My first picture was taken by C. in the London airport. This is a Boeing 777, one of the biggest planes in the world. This is our plane that we flew on!

My second picture is of a humungous wasp that we saw in Mumbai in my Aunt and Uncle's house. It was as long as a battery!

My movie was taken at the textile market. I chose this movie because we are doing textiles at school. This man is weaving silk together into a blanket I think.

Om,

E-mails from India- Part 1

This weekend brought the first emails from our two classmates who are visiting India. Our friends have included pictures that they took while travelling through this amazing country! Below is the first e-mail from our Grade 3 traveller.

February 12, 2011

MUMBAI, INDIA

Hello Classmates!

I am having a great time in India. Here are some photos from Mumbai. Mumbai is busy: it is filled with beggars, cab drivers, millionaires, and deities. The religion here is mainly Hindu, although there are Buddists, Jains, Catholics, Muslims, and Sikhs as well.

The black deities that you see in my picture are from the Jain temple. The Jains wear things over their mouths to prevent breathing on the gods and goddesses. The Jains also sweep ants out of the way to prevent stepping on them.

The temple you see is on Mount Mary. It has a statue of Mary that was found more than 300 years ago. This statue is called the Pearled Mother and there is a legend that it was found floating in the sea by a fisherman. It is next door to my Aunt and Uncle's place. Some people believe that she grants wishes. We lit candles and I made a wish.

My Aunt and Uncle have a statue of Ganesh, the god of good luck. Legends say that his head was chopped off and replaced with an elephant's head. This is a picture of me meditating in front of Ganesh.

Hope you are having a good time up there.

Namaste,

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Stowaway: The Voyage Returns!

Today our intermediate students finished Stowaway by Karen Hesse. As part of their novel study, they will be putting time and effort into a final project for the novel.

(There's talk of making a movie!)

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Stowaway Part 17

Nicholas, Tarheto, and John Charleton witness a light display in the sky, much like the aurora borealis (Northern Lights). However, they are currently in the Southern Hemisphere, sailing through the East Indies, so it definitely wouldn't be the Northern Lights.

What do you think this light display is called?

Friday, January 28, 2011

Visit From a Fox

We had a productive Friday - we worked on our journals, finished our School Wide Writes, worked on our Stowaway novel study, did an art project, and engaged in math games. Although the kids are working on their animal investigations, we ended up having our own animal investigating us.

Meet Scarlett.

Scarlett was out in the playground at recess.

Scarlett's trip to the zoo. She was fascinated by the strange creatures she saw there.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Bridging the Gap

Today our class had a library period with Ms. Abbott. We continued our study of bridges by building a bascule bridge!

According to the Academic Kids Encyclopedia a bascule bridge is:

a drawbridge with a counterweight that continuously balances the span, or "leaf", throughout the entire upward swing in providing clearance for boat traffic. Bascule is a French term for seesaw and balance, and bascule bridges operate along the same principle. They are the most common type of movable bridge in existence because they open quickly and require relatively little energy to operate.

Although the bascule bridge has been in use since ancient times, it was not until the 1880s that engineers developed the ability to move very long, heavy spans quickly enough for practical application. Tower Bridge in London was the first large bascule bridge and is probably the most famous bascule bridge in the world.

Our Little People motorists make the first crossing of our bascule bridge.

Our "boat" calls for a raising of the bridge.

Thanks to Mrs. Abbott for a fantastic library period and an excellent engineering experiment!