Jesus is Born! Our Recaps of the Big Event

The children stood in a circle and each one told a sentence from their memory of the Bible story of Jesus' birth. We went around a couple of times until the whole story was told. Once the children has the sequence established. we created a word bank on the chalkboard. Then each child got to work trying to create sentences to retell the story in thier own words. After a meeting with their "editor', they copied the stories in neat handwriting and drew a nativity scene free hand. The pictures are terrific. As soon as I figure out how to scan the children's drawings, I will put them here with their stories.

Here are a few of the stories.

Sulmi wrote:
The Angel Gabriel told Mary, "You will be pregnant."
Mary was afraid.
Joseph led Mary on a donkey to Bethlehem.
All the people said "No".
Mary gave birth to Jesus.
Mary was happy.
Three kings followed a star.
The kings gave gifts to Jesus.
Mary and Joseph kneeled.


Rayan wrote:
An angel talked to Mary.
Mary will have a baby.
Then jesus was born.
The baby slept in a manger.
A star shone on the manger.
Shepherds watched their sheep,
The angels ang and smiled,
Three kings went to see Jesus.

Kristel wrote:
Mary was afraid because the angel said, "You will have a baby."
Mary and Joseph rode the donkey to Bethlehem.,
They knocked on all the doors.
Only one man said, "Yes, you can sleep here."
The shepherds saw the angels. They left their sheep and followed the star.
Far away they went to see the baby Jesus.
They gave gifts to the baby.
Cows and horses watched the baby.
Mary was happy.

Hipolito wrote:
The Angel Gabriel came down from Heaven.
The Angel Gabriel said, "Don't be afraid, Mary."
He said Mary will have a baby.
Mary and Joseph rode on a donkey.
Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem.
Mary and Joseph knocked on many doors.
Finally one man said, "We are full. There is no room, but you can sleep with the animals."
Mary hurt because she was pregnant.
Mary gave birth to the baby.
She was happy.
Joseph made a manger bed.
Mary wrapped the baby in cloths and put him on the manger.
A star shone down on Jesus.
Jesus was famous.
Then the angel came down to the shepherds.
The angel said, "Don't be afraid. Go to Bethlehem."
The men went to Bethlehem and saw the baby Jesus.
Later three kings followed the star.
The three kings gave Jesus gifts of gold.

Dreams

We learned about Marc Chagall. He was a French painter who painted many pictures that have a dream-like quality. Sometimes the things he painted really happened to him and sometimes they were just in his imagination. The children drew pictures of their dreams and then wrote stories about the drawings. All the stories went through a writing process that included individual, peer, and teacher editing.

Enjoy these "dreams".

Playing Football
By Alejandro Gomez

I was playing football with the other boys near my house. We play at Trial Farm School in the grass there. A boy put his foot out and I tripped over it. I fell. I was hurt.

Many boys play football. One team is red and the other team is blue. We play five on a side.

When I fell the boys teased me. They laughed at me. No one helped me. I cried. My mom took me to the hospital.
Later, when I was strong again, we played a football game in the stadium. There were many people sitting on the bleachers watching. We played hard. I drank a lot of water. I was tired but I continued to play anyway.

I kicked the ball. I made a goal! We won the game. All the people said “Hooray for Alejandro!”

Magic Fingers
By Misael Ayuso

The bus is a mess. It is old.
The bike is a mess. It is broken.
The boy doesn’t like messes.
The boy is sad.

The boy likes clean and new.
The boy has magic fingers.
The boy touches the bus. It is new.
The boy touches the bike. It is new.
The boy is happy because the bike and bus are clean.

The Boat Trip
By Sulmi Valencia

Sulmi enjoys riding in the boat nad seeing the water. The blue sky and clouds are beautiful. Sulmi sees a black bird. It flies into a green tree. Sulmi wants to swim in the water. She swims in the clean water. She can see the black bird and the tree.

Then the shark comes. It bites Sulmi’s arm. Sulmi yells for help. She cries. There is blood all over the water. Sulmi is hurt.

Sulmi swims fast. She sits by the green tree and rests. She will be better.

I Can Fly
By Rayan Poncio

I can fly.
I see the tree top.
I see a fox.
I see the house.
I see the girl jump.
I fly like an airplane.

A Dream
By Hipolito Cima

San was sleeping. He had a dream. He dreamed he was strong and his skin was green. He dreamed he was a man. He tossed and turned while he was sleeping.

He dreamed some men were flying a big plane with many people inside. The plane crashed into a factory where they refine oil. San, who was big and green and looked like Hulk, jumped near the broken plane. He ripped the crumpled metal side of the plane to open it. He let the people out. All the people thanked him.

Suddenly San was awake. His dream dissolved and he was no longer green or huge or strong. He was back to his normal size. San walked sleepily into the kitchen to eat breakfast. He smiled as he remembered his dream.