I've been so excited to see all the visitors we're getting to our site!  Audrey and Savannah we got a visit (see our Guestbook comments) from the class with the blog you visited in Australia.  Maybe we can see if we can work on a writing project together with them.  We've also gotten visitors to our site from France, New Zealand, England, Canada and all over the U.S.  Our superintendent has checked out our site too.
Make sure you bring your parents in on Open House night (this coming Tuesday) and show them how to make a comment.  I'll take pictures of you and your parents commenting and post them on here.  
 
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Last week the fourth graders worked (they think they were just playing!) on creating their own animals on a really cool site called switcheroo zoo.  They merged a variety of animals and created new animals with new names.  This week they will perfect their creations, take pictures of them, and write about them.  They will need to include information about the animal, including its habitat and diet, as well as other information they think we should know about their unique creation.  I'll publish some of the best on here and you can take a look. 

 Remind me to save them to my flash drive so they're easy to put on here!

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We're going to visit some classes around the world.  Below are some links to school websites in England, New Zealand, and Australia.  We can leave them some comments and hopefully they'll visit us too!  When you comment, be sure to tell them:
1.   where we are
2.  how to find our blog (our web address is rolibrary.weebly.com)
3.  something you think is interesting on their site
4.  that we'd love to hear from them. 

Click on these links below to explore three types of blogs:

England (Nottinghamshire)
New Zealand (St. Clair)
Australia (Sydney)
Australia (see if you can figure out where)
Pondo (Mr. Rickett's class)
 
Students are starting to take a look around the blog and begin making their first comments.  As they become more proficient, they will get greater freedom to author their own posts and potentially their own personal blogs.  
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Look at the focus!  I think it's pretty cool to see them hard at work and having fun.

 
We are going to be talking about how to be safe, respectful, and responsible on the Internet.  Before we begin, what are your thoughts on the topic?  What things do you think are important to know regarding how to be safe on the Internet?  Are there "rules to live by" for Internet use?  What kinds of information do you share? 
I found the following information on a site called digital me:  It states that there are "3 core concepts" to think about with sharing information on the Internet.  We need to think about Who sees what we share, whether What we share is too personal or not ours to share, and Where should we share our information. 

Here's another video on how to be safe, respectful and responsible online.  Take notes and think about what you want to include in our raps. 


Below I have what you all came up with for how to be safe  online.  If you have suggestions for how to improve it or things we left out, leave a comment.  Once we feel it's ready, we'll make our rap!  Also, leave comments on rhymes you think would be good for this.  Have fun.
 
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Write a story!  Be an author!  Get published!
There's a really cool website you should check out called MrsP.com.  It's a free site with interactive games, coloring sheets, videos, and activities.  There are lots of stories to listen to, each of which has read along options so you can see the words.  The website has received The National Parenting Center 2009 Seal of Approval and the American Library Association distinction of "Great Website for Kids."
To help encourage kids to create their own stories, Mrs. P holds an  annual writing contest, which is open to submissions until October 15, 2010.  The winners will have their stories read by Mrs. P on her website for all the world to hear.  They will also receive a bound and illustrated copy of their entry – the child’s own story made into a real book!  The details of the contest can be found at  www.contest.mrsp.com
You can follow Mrs. P on twitter at http://twitter.com/MrsPstorytime


 
I just found this rap that goes through some of the big news from the summer.  My understanding is that each week during the school year they will put out a rap covering that week's news (click here to go to their site and see new weekly episodes).  Take a look and see what you think.  After watching it:  is there news that you already knew?  did you learn any news?  did you look up any information or ask anyone what it was talking about?  Comment, comment, comment.  What do you think of it?  Make sure your comments are at least three sentences long and be specific!
 
Welcome to Roosevelt!  I'm looking forward to a great year with you all and a chance to do some fun stuff in our library.  What are some of your favorite things we've done in here in the past and what ideas do you have for the library this year?