Mr. Miller's Blog

Tech Summer Camps

2009-05-06T11:39:00.002-07:00

The Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona, a top ranked business school, once again, presents four fun and exciting summer programs for students entering 3rd through 8th grade. The camps offer fun and interactive activities to help your child gain the skills, confidence and knowledge he or she needs to be the most tech savvy student in their class! Spaces fill up quickly so log on and reserve your child’s spot today!

"Divas" and "Dudes" will do projects in digital photography, videography, graphic design, photo editing, and learn basic skills in MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and more, all while exploring the world with Google Earth and planning their dream vacation!

Cost for the day camps is $225

Summer camps coordinated by and held at: Eller College of Management The University of Arizona
1130 E. Helen Street P.O. Box 210108 Tucson, AZ 85721-0108 www.eller.arizona.edu

For more information and to register - log onto:
http://ugrad.eller.arizona.edu/k-12/

University of Arizona employees receive a $25 discount
Contact: Diana Anderson, Dean’s Technology and Early Outreach Program Director, dlanders@email.arizona.edu 520.626.1849

Camp Dates

Girls entering 3rd through 5th grade
June 8th – 12th from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm
Girls entering 6th through 8th grade
June 22nd – 26th from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm

Boys entering 3rd through 5th grade
June 15th – 19th from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm
Boys entering 6th through 8th grade
July 6th – 10th from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm

Fourth Quarter Map Locations

2009-03-23T11:51:00.000-07:00

Map locations for this quarter are at
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dghtx59v_3dx4dgcfk

Third Quarter Map Locations

2009-02-17T11:17:00.002-07:00

The third quarter locations can be found at

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dcnxzhzb_7crcgfqdh

Doodle for Google Contest

2009-02-17T10:43:00.003-07:00

This year Walker is participating in a contest sponsored by Google.com
Students are to design an original logo for Google based on the theme,"What I Wish for the World."
Information about the contest can be found at

http://www.google.com/doodle4google/index.html

Be sure to check the link for Doodle History

This webpage has some great examples of last years finalists as well as a demonstration video by one of Google’s professional doodlers.
Below are some tips for creating a great design. I have provided an official Google logo for the students to use.

Top Ten Tips
Make sure your design complements the shape of the letters in the Google logo, but don't let that restrict your creativity.
Experiment with different media to see which one works best for your design (you can even create your doodle on your PC).
Don't over-complicate your design – simpler images often have the most impact.
Remember that your design could end up on the Google homepage, so imagine how it will look on screen.
Remember to use color well and think about how it interacts with a white background.
Avoid commercial or copyrighted images.
Think outside the box – try to create a doodle that's different from your classmates and hasn't been done before.
Feel free to use the space behind and in front of the Google letters, but try to maintain your design's overall balance.
The doodle needs to fit on an 81/2 x 11” paper.
Have fun! "Doodle 4 Google" is all about creativity and enjoying designing fun things.

Science Fair Information

2009-01-05T14:57:00.003-07:00

Greetings Parents, Students, and Friends,

I hope all of you have recovered from the new year festivities and are ready to jump back into school. I know I am (NOT!). I am looking forward to the rest of the year with this great group of students and am ready to tackle some new challenges.

Your child should have brought home information about the science fair today. All fourth and fifth graders are required to participate. Projects should be experiments and not demonstrations. For example, what design makes the best paper airplane is testable and therefore an experiment. How an engine works is a demonstration.We will discuss the elements of the science fair in class so that students are informed as to what to do on their projects.

All students will need a demonstration board to display their project. They are available at many stores including Michael's, Wal-Mart, Office Max, etc for under $10. Please get one soon so you can begin to plan your display. An attractive board can greatly benefit a project. If cost is a problem, please contact me and we will work together to find a solution.

There are many online resources that can help you with the science fair. Our class wiki (linked on the right) has many ideas to help you. If you simply search Google or any other search engine for science fair projects, thousands of links will come up. Make sure your child picks one of interest to them and that they can do mostly on their own. There should be minimal parent help.

Boards will be displayed in the school science fair. Students are expected to present a short presentation to the class about their project. Important dates are listed in our class calendar, also linked to the right.

Please leave a comment if you have any questions and I will answer them as soon as possible.

Thanks,
Mitch Miller

Second Quarter Map Test

2008-10-07T15:30:00.002-07:00

Our class did extremely well on the map tests first quarter. A big thank you to all the parents for the hard work you put in helping your children study.
In order to keep those high scores up, I am posting the new map list here. Your children will get a hard copy of the list before the end of the week.
Thanks and have a fun intersession.

Open House

2008-08-28T15:13:00.002-07:00

Thank you all for coming to Open House. It was a pleasure to meet everyone. I hope you will comment on the blogs and become a part of our classroom community.
If you weren't able to make it, please stop by anytime for a class visit. The links below will allow you to access the handouts from Open House.

Fifth Grade Curriculum Overview
Art Curriculum

Internet Permission

2008-08-13T14:36:00.002-07:00

Your child came home today with a permission slip to use the internet. I thought I could give you some more information about what it says.
I am the Technology Coach at Walker. That means my job includes helping teachers include technology in their lessons. I have had extensive training with computers in classrooms and I share that with teachers around the district.
That means that many of the projects in our classrooms will involve computers, technology, and 21st century learning. The slip your child has will allow them to participate fully in those projects.
First, your child needs permission to use the internet. They will not use it to visit whatever site they choose. All use is educational.
Second, they need permission to have their intellectual property on the net. That includes writing, art, and other project based work. This will allow you to see more of what they do at school and allow them to feel that they are contributing to a world wide audience.
Third, they need permission to have their picture on the web. This is used very rarely. No last names, addresses, emails, etc. are ever used. Students are taught internet safety and we use it all the time.
Let me reassure you that all safety precautions are taken. The internet is a valuable tool at school and we learn to use it wisely and safely. If you have questions please email me at
mmiller@amphi.com
or call me at 696 - 6551
I would be happy to talk to you at anytime.
Thanks,
Mitch

Be Ready For Math

2008-07-26T15:37:00.001-07:00

We expect you to come to fifth grade knowing your basic multiplication facts. If you need to practice over the summer, here’s a site that lets you print out some worksheets.
http://www.math-drills.com/multiplication.shtml

Welcome

2008-07-21T21:28:00.006-07:00

Hello and welcome to the students, families and friends of Room 25 at Lulu Walker School. As we start a new school year, I am thrilled about all the new and exciting possibilities waiting for us. One of those possibilities is this blog. My intent is for it to be an ongoing newsletter of the happenings in Room 25 and at Walker School.
I will use this blog to provide you with information and you can comment back to me.The possibilities for two-way communication are endless. So please join with me. I welcome all comments and feedback.
The students will be writing a similar blog on an almost daily basis telling you what happened in class that day and posting their classwork. I will get the address of that blog to you shortly. If you would like to see how this worked last year, visit
http://www.room25online.wordpress.com/

A good place to start is our homepage at: http://www.amphi.com/teachers/mmiller/
or
our podcasts at: http://mmiller.podomatic.com/

I'm excited to start the new year and look forward to meeting all of you.