November 11 - Ms. Wilson's Challenge Classes

I love technology in the classroom and my students always amaze me with the skills they showcase. The students have been studying geological forces for ten weeks and are creating their final projects for the unit. My students have learned how to use Pic Collage to create an informative poster, take a picture of it on their tablet, log into their Google Drive on the tablet and then upload the photo into their Google Drive. Once the photo is in Google Drive they move it into Google Slides. The students are able write about their poster and create a presentation. With this being my first year as a Challenge teacher and my first year in Katy ISD, I have used technology in the classroom but not like this. I have not had access to tablets before, so I am learning about Apps that I can use that allow creativity in the classroom. I am having so much fun learning alongside the kids. I can’t wait to explore more Apps so I can share them with the students. Technology is a huge resource in our classroom!

Ms. Sue Wilson

November 6 - Mr. Moreno's Third Grade

I was a little nervous about this, but I had to trust my kids and my ability to structure the lesson to avoid a huge mess. The kids would be making homemade dough for a science project. A project done for the very first time in MRE third grade history. “Can they handle this,” I thought. “What about clean up?” I envisioned my room being the battleground of an intense dough ball fight and immersed in a cloud of flour. We talk about taking risks in the classroom, and maybe this was it.

The kids had explored pictures of different landforms, had prior experience sculpting them with Play Doh and drawing them individually. They analyzed, compared and discussed the differences between them. In science, we discussed their theories about how each landform may have been formed. A great topic to topic connection….  They know matter is constantly changing: sometimes fast, sometimes gradual or slow.

So this was the culminating project. It could be a huge success or a complete disaster. I would categorize it as an elaborate activity in the Science 5E instructional model because students were applying and synthesizing prior knowledge and experiences related to landforms. Each table group created a “landform village,” (their own personal paradise) complete with hills, valleys, mountains, plateaus, canyons, plains, islands, rivers and some even discovered they could do waterfalls. Yes, it got a little messy. Yes, clean up was quite the chore, but it was worth it. The kids really shined. They sculpted and identified the landforms beautifully. They discussed, for example, how canyons and valleys formed. Some even used their knowledge of cardinal directions to place and locate their landforms. “That canyon is northeast of the valley!”

One student even called one of her landforms, “Hill Everest,” because she said over time Mount Everest weathered away and was the victim of many massive landslides. Not sure how realistic this is, but  I appreciate her imagination, while trying to connect her learning to other concepts.

A few carpet stains, specks of dough, and some powder did fill the room, but so did smiles, a collective vibe of pride and excitement and a sense of accomplishment among our kiddos. There’s no better feeling. It was a success!

Mr. Jeremy Moreno

October 17 - Mrs. Malfitano's Fourth Grade

Today, I had the privilege of spending time with these wonderful children and their families, fishing together. An experience that cannot be found within the walls of a classroom.

We have all heard the saying, "A picture is worth a thousand words." This picture represents all the times I heard, "FISH ON!!" Sharing in the excitement of these children catching their first fish. Watching families spending time outdoors, encouraging each other, laughing and squealing. Arms were tired from reeling in eight pound catfish. Moms and Dads were waiting with the net. There were even a couple of bass in the mix. We had a constant trail of fish being hauled to be weighed and measured. We captured these moments with many pictures.  Nobody wanted our time to end. One parent said, "This helps families bond."

Thank you teachers and Area Chief Angler Educators from Texas Parks and Wildlife who came out to share their love and knowledge of fishing. Everybody is "hooked" and is asking, "When can we do this again?"

Mrs. Lynne Malfitano

October 16 - Miss Suenkel's Art Studio

My sweet Mavericks have started the year off with a "Bang!" I am so proud of all the hard work each grade level has put into their first art projects. We just finished up a unit on uncovering the Element of Art, Line. Ask your students if they can show you different kinds of line. I am sure they would love to share their knowledge with you!

We used many different pieces to prepare ourselves for creating different types of line. Our manipulative box though was perhaps the favorite among K-2 littles. Look at their discovery of Line through these tools!  Amazing I tell you!!!

In closing our unit on line grades 2-5 began to write reflections about their projects in their art journals. Did you know that we create a special art journal for your students (grades 2-5) that they will be able to take home at the end of the year? It will be full of all the wonderful artists and art methods we discover throughout the school year.  

I am beyond impressed with the written reflections students had while analyzing their artwork.They rocked this assignment and are really beginning to understand how to plan, evaluate, and reflect on their work. It was a beautiful thing to witness in our art studio this week.

Miss Kimberly Suenkel

September 22 - Mrs. Miller's Fourth Grade

What a huge blessing it is to rub shoulders with my 4^th grade angels each day!  In our morning meetings, we talk a lot about what it means to be a “good” person.  We talk about manners, kindness, respect, and all those other things that we know are qualities of a good person. However, the proof is in our actions.  I tear up almost daily as I listen to the kind words that are shared between class members.  It warms my heart when I see another student stop what they are doing to help a classmate who appears to be struggling. No one asks them to do it. They just see the need and take action. 

In our class, every Thursday is “Thoughtful Thursday.”  That is when we take a few minutes to write a note of appreciation or kindness and give it to someone.   My angels, however, have taken this day to heart and have decided we should be thoughtful EVERY day.  We decided as a class to “choose KIND” in all we do.  That means, we leave things better than we find them, we greet others with a smile and eye contact, we choose to not take offense, we look for the good in others, and we look for opportunities to help and include others. We have taken the challenge to be our best and to bring out the best in others.

When it comes to academic learning, my Scientists and Mathematicians are ready and willing to take on any challenge I give them.  They love discovering how their world works and how addicting learning is when you make connections.  This morning, I couldn’t contain my joy when I heard some of my students on their way to class saying, “I wonder what we’re going to be learning in science today? Science is so much fun! I can’t wait to do another experiment.”  Be still my heart!  We, of course, had a blast testing what happens when you add heat to matter (chocolate chips, gummy bears, marshmallows, glue sticks, ice…)  

As if that wasn’t enough, my heart leapt again during math work shop when another group of students silently took the hand of a classmate who was obviously struggling with the activity. They went to a corner of the room and sang our Decimal Place Value song complete with the movements!  Again, they saw a friend in need and took action. Awesome!

So, yeah, you can say it was another amazing day mingling with some really special people.  I often wonder who is teaching who! I sure love my job!

Mrs. Julie Miller

September 11 - Mrs. Vasquez's Third Grade

What comes first the chicken or the egg? That may also be asked when thinking about our classroom environment and developing a sense of being a team. This year I decided to explore my classroom environment by gathering ideas from fellow educators. Prior to setting up our classroom, I asked some friends where they purchased their carpets, balls, wiggly seats, and alternative seating.

The journey began by submitting my Donor’s Choose application two weeks prior to the first day of school. I sent texts to my family and friends asking to help fund this adventure. I couldn’t believe it when I received my email from Donor’s Choose that my project was funded in THREE days. I was beyond excited! Step two, bins and stability balls submitted to Donor’s Choose one week prior to August 24^th. Project was funded in FOUR days. The students were beyond ecstatic when our materials arrived. 

We received ten stability balls and the students quickly brainstormed that our “class number” system would work for alternative seating, too! Student number 10 has access to the ball on even calendar dates. Student number 11 has access to that same ball on odd calendar dates. This idea was born from a class discussion…even better!

The students quickly suggested that we needed to enhance our room by adding wiggle seats. I was familiar with this because of the classrooms I visited. I decided that I would order these myself.  What an investment! The wiggle seats are amazing. One final touch was recently added - tractor seat chairs. 

The classroom environment truly has become a team now. This is evident on a daily basis. The students have flexible seating daily.  Every day the students are sitting at a different table and collaborating with different students. Our team developed a way to allow everyone the opportunity for each student to sit on a stability ball, wiggly seat, and tractor chair on a weekly basis.

The icing on the cake was demonstrated on Friday. We had a runt (smaller) stability ball that was defective. Two students decided to use it to lean on while working on FASTT Math. Next, I witnessed a third student wanting to lean on it and then there was the fourth student who joined them.  No words were said, the students just moved to allow the other students to join. Finally, two other students gathered, looked at each other, and the students moved to let the final two students join. Words cannot express how proud I was of our team. Simply amazing. What started as an adventure to allow more seating options has quickly enabled our classroom to truly function as a collaborative team! 

Mrs. Linda Vasquez

September 10 - Ms. Mitchell's Kindergarten

Family is a word that often comes to mind when I think about Morton Ranch Elementary. Whether it is about the amazing staff we have at our school or the students, it truly is a family at the ranch. Nothing makes my heart more full than seeing my students reflecting that same attitude just three weeks into the school year.

At the end of our second week of school, we found out that one of our classmates was moving to another school. When it was time for him to leave us, the kids began saying goodbye and hugging our friend L. What was originally individual hugs, turned into one big group hug without hesitation! These little Mavericks acted as if they were one large family of siblings.

During week three, we welcomed a new friend to our class and this same attitude carried through as he got settled into a new routine. Every child wanted to share their crayons, show him around, and assist him in any way possible. We also welcomed some friends from Mrs. Luna’s class into our room to learn how to comment on a KidBlog post. Not only did we teach our new friends, but our new friends taught us.

I think that Lilo said it best, “’Ohana’ means family. Family means no one gets left behind.” Five and six year olds exemplify the meaning of family. I can’t wait to see what adventures are in store for our family this year!

Ms. Katie Mitchell