Shelton Herb Farm!

We went to Shelton Herb Farm in Leland on November 21, 2013.  We got in a circle and met Mrs. Shelton, the owner of the farm.  She told us how to pronounce 'herbs' (the H can be silent or not, but in England people pronounce the H.)  We also met Holly, the farm dog.  Then we went to see plants.  We smelled rosemary, lemon balm, the pizza herb (also known as oregano), and several different kinds of mint.  Then we went into a greenhouse.  We learned that a greenhouse is good for plants because it keeps out animals and keeps in the sun's heat.  We saw so many peppers!  There was a ghost pepper and a scorpion pepper and they are the hottest peppers in the world!  There were red peppers, yellow peppers, purple peppers, green peppers,  some were round, some were long and pointy, and some had bumps on them.  We learned that peppers can burn us more when they are cut into, but we still didn't touch any, just in case.

Next, we went to visit the farm's animals.  First we met the turkey named Jake.  He had lovely black and white feathers!  We saw up close his wattle and beard.  He gobbled and showed off his feathers for us!  We saw hens and roosters of all shapes, sizes, and colors.  They also had a guinea that was very loud and protective.  His job is to scare off foxes.  Then we saw pigs that were not pink.  They looked like wild pigs and were fat.  They were giant, brown, and hairy!  Two pigs were sleeping, but one was up and friendly to us.  After that, we held fresh farm eggs!  Some chickens at the farm lay blue, pink, brown, and purplish eggs!  We held pink eggs and took some pictures.  We enjoyed the animals so much.

We learned alot at the farm.  Our tour guide showed us how to pick up items from the ground on a farm.  You must pick it up facing away from you in case a snake is hiding underneath!  Also, a couple members of our class went into the old farmhouse and got a little spooked!  Overall, we had a great trip!

We worked together as a class to write this blog post!  Check back for our next field trip in January!

Technology in the Classroom

We are so fortunate at Snipes Academy to have a beautiful building that's only a few years old equipped with some of the best technology available.  Every classroom is equipped with a Smartboard, a document camera, four desktop computers for students, and teachers utilize iPads for assessments and instruction.  We also have a laptop cart and an iPad cart available for classrooms to checkout to use for lessons!  We love getting to all get on the computer at once!  Mrs. Saunders, our Graphic Design and Computer Skills instructor, brought the laptop cart to us to help us learn about attributes of animals and using figurative language to describe ourselves.  We are getting pretty good with adjectives, and this was a fun way to apply what we have learned.  We made animal masks that included parts of different animals that match a character trait to describe us.  We had a blast!  Check us out!

It's a Salvador Dali kind of Halloween

Our class was so hyped up in the days leading to Halloween, chattering about costumes and candy, that we couldn't let the day go by unnoticed at school.  So on October 31st, to further our art knowledge, we learned about Salvador Dali!  We learned that he was from Spain and was famous for his paintings and sculptures.  He thought about the world differently and wasn't afraid to take risks or try something new.  We also loved his crazy mustache!

http://www.fakenation.info/ckeditor/kcfinder/upload/images/Salvador-Dali2.jpg

http://theyearofhalloween.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/1954-phillipe-halsman-photogrpah-of-salvador-dali.jpg

So, we decided to have fun with mustaches of our own in the spirit of Mr. Dali!

Learning about art and artists can be fun in unexpected ways!

Name Change!

A few days ago, our class team decided on a team mascot. Although "Laney Lions" had a nice ring to it, we are a new class after all, and that just seemed so last year.  So the suggestions came pouring out of our 18 class members, and one suggestion stood out among the others, possibly due to an accompanying illustration drawn by the artist/inventor. That's right, our class is so original, so special, and so inventive, that Ha'Cazjwel decided to attach his engineered animal to it:  thus, we are now.....(drumroll please)... The Laney Liogons!  Half lion, half dragon, we have the fierce determination to learn, with the wings to soar. We breathe fire on any obstacle to our success!  Now, if Ms. Laney can just figure out how to change the header on this blog...

It's a New Year!

Wow, time sure does fly by!  The summer is gone and school is now in session, and I am so excited to have a fabulous crop of new 2nd graders!  So far we have been learning about bucket filling at Snipes.  Bucket Filling is based from the book "Have You Been a Bucket Filler Today?" by Carol McCloud, and teaches kids that everyone has an invisible bucket inside that holds our good feelings about ourselves.  We should all strive to fill each other's buckets each day with kind words, compliments, and helpfulness.  Bullies are bucket dippers with their mean words and actions.  When we dip from other's buckets, we also dip from our own buckets, because it doesn't feel good to make others unhappy.  Check out more about Bucket Filling at this website:  www.bucketfillers101.com

Welcome to a new year, Shining Stars!  I can't wait to post about all the new exciting things we'll be doing this year!

Field Trip!



Our first field trip was a huge success!  Our class received many compliments from our guides and chaperones for our respectful behavior while we visited the Wilmington National Cemetery to pay our respects to fallen soldiers and their families.  We learned that there are soldiers buried there from every major war and from all over the United States...even Puerto Rico!  Family members are also permitted to be buried there, but space is more limited now, so only a few people a year receive the honor of resting in such a distinguished place.  A local hero from Afghanistan, TJ Butler, was laid to rest here only a few weeks ago, and many of us were saddened to hear of his passing.  We made sure to find TJ to pay our respects. 

We also learned all about keeping our trash out of our waterways and about many animals that live in our area that are friendly, such as the Granddaddy Longlegs spider that we met!  It was a beautiful, chilly fall day, and the cemetery and nearby Burnt Mill Creek watershed were so peaceful.  We especially enjoyed the pretty spanish moss.  It was also extra special that we got to visit on Halloween!  Our guide even let some of us try on her witch's hat!  Check out the pictures from our trip!  Thank you, Cape Fear River Watch, for taking us on a cool adventure right in our own backyard!



This is our group walking along Burnt Mill Creek, right next door to Snipes.



We saw the creek and plants up close.



The national cemetery is beautiful.



We were solemn as we read the names of the men and women buried here and learned about the different branches of the military.



TJ Butler, local hero from Afghanistan



Can you see the Granddaddy Longlegs in her hand?  They don't bite!




Camarion and the rest of the class were delighted to find hickory nuts under the giant trees.




Madison got into the spirit of Halloween with our guide's hat!







1st Nine Weeks Down!

I can hardly believe that the first nine weeks of school have already passed!  It seems like only yesterday we were exploring our brand new classroom and showing off our new shoes and supplies.  We have learned a lot this quarter, I think most of us will especially say we have learned a great deal about the upcoming presidential election!  This Thursday, November 1st, is our chance to exercise our privilege as citizens and vote for our choice for president, governor, city council, and school board members.  Our class is so excited to take part in this election, and I think most of us feel prepared to make an informed choice.  We will discuss the results as soon as they are announced!
Also, this week is our first field trip!  We will take a walking tour of the Wilmington National Cemetery with a guide from Cape Fear River Watch, who will also educate us about the natural area between our school and the cemetery that includes Burnt Mill Creek.  We will also learn about the history of events that leads to some of our service members being laid to rest in the National Cemetery and some of the positions and branches of the military.  Oh, and it's also kind of a spooky day, wish us luck that we don't encounter any ghosts! 

Stay tuned for pictures of our visit!