Mike Artell Visits DFW

I got to sit with the class teddy bear, Peek-A-Boo and watch as Mike Artell, author of Petite Rouge and 3 Little Cajun Pigs taught us about the Cajun culture, Mardis Gras, how to draw, and King Cake.

Learning about the food chain....

Hello everybody! I have had so much fun visiting with Mrs. Bond's class (she has been out due to a family emergency, but the substitute tried to keep me entertained). Today we learned about the food chain....MY food chain!!! We researched what the mammoth might have eaten and what predators might have preyed upon me. The theory that we read about stated that I ate plants, roots and herbs. Early humans were most likely my main predator, but I probably became extinct because of the Ice Age's impact on plant life. Here is a picture of me eating a plant, and a human trying to come after me with a spear-like weapon.

Wally Arrived in NC!

Wally arrived in Edenton, NC yesterday, but it was a teacher workday. Mrs. Bond decided to give him a tour of Edenton. Edenton is a very historic town. Mrs. Bond took Wally to the Barker House where the historic Edenton Tea Party occurred. Wally took a picture on the cannon used by the Edenton Bell Battery...

the cannon was made from the bells that were taken from various buildings in Edenton and then melted down to construct the cannon. Wally will be attending Mrs. Bond's 5th grade class and we are looking forward to some exciting events, including a visit from an author!

http://www.edenton.com/

Wally on his Way!

Wally has left PA and is traveling to his first destination...North Carolina! We hope to hear from Wally soon!!!!

Wally’s day with a friend
Hi ! I am Wally .I went home with a friend on Dec 8 I made snow angels in the parking lot outside her home, I saw the Schuylkill River ,and made sparkly black boots, and played in VERY ,VERY, VERY deep snow, and saw a lot of cool things, I learned there is a quick way to the Schuylkill River ,and how to make boots and how to make amazing snow angels,
Bye ,for now, WAIT! I have one question ,If you took me to a river which one it will be?

A Great Basketball Game With My Friend

Wally Experience With A Friend On Dec,16


Hey guys how ya doin’. I’m Wally and I’m gonna tell you what I did with my friend my friend on December 16th. my friend and I went to a Sixers game . On the way there we saw the Schuylkill River. Do you know what’s so special about the Schuylkill River well…? I’ll tell ya. The Schuylkill River is a landmark in my friend’s state.Wanna know why it's a
land mark well…? I’ll tell ya (again.) Well it’s soooo special because there’s a bunch of boathouses on the bank of the river and the people who use the boathouses are rowers, rowers from all over come and compete The Schuylkill is also a big shipping industry . Well may I inform you that my friend said this with quite enthusiasm. Well after that trip over the bridge my friend and I came to the big Wachovia Center and took are seats , even know the Sixers lost I was still the happiest Woolly Mammoth in the world .


Oops forgot something. What's your favorite landmark in your state and why?



Well it’s time to go . Bye from your woolly friend Wally .

By Wally

Eagles

Do you like the Eagles? Why? Because I went to Max’s house, I watched the Eagle’s game. I learned that the Philadelphia Eagles football team is the Eagles . Did you know that P.A. was the first capital and that the Eagle is the national bird? Now the Bald Eagle is my new favorite animal! The Eagles lost 24 nothing, to the Cowboys.




So answer this question: Do you like the Eagles? Why?

Bye for now


p.s. Eagles rocks!!!

By Wally

Wally's Experience With His Friend

Hi people from America and beyond! Wally here. I got to go to Merion School but not for long because I’m TRAVLING!! I went home with my friend on 1-6-10. I went to my friends basketball practice .My friend taught me that people don’t just sit on sofas and watch T.V or go on computer they conserve energy and go out-side and play games like soccer football ect. My friend and I……………………………………………………

BASKETBALL!!!! I loved it and I took a shot in the basket and I made it. The best part about it was that I can teach you about basketball and how to play if you don’t know.

I had the best time with my friend who is awesome. When we were in the car we listened to Pink. Pink is a singer who
grew up here in Pennsylvania. Pink is my role-model. A role-model is a person who you want to be like.

Now I have a question? If I came home with you what would you do? What would we see? How would you teach me about your state? I’m going to teach you a lot about my state. Sorry folks got to leave so Wally has left the computer. BYE-BYE.

Wally Learns About Philadelphia

Dec.21 Hi kids Wally here. Today my friend and I went out in the snow when I asked “How much snow do you get a year here in Philadelphia?” “Good question Wally.” Said my friend “We get about 1 inch of snow a year.” “But this year is special I heard on the news we haven’t gotten this much snow in a century!” Then my friend and I went inside and as soon as I saw the nativity set I asked. “What’s that?” He told me and explained that Pennsylvania was one of the first places to have religious freedom because of William Penn's Holy Experiment. He thought that people should be able to practice their own religions and that people were all equal. This later became part of the US Constitution.
We went upstairs to catch the Eagles game. I loved it. My friend also told me “The Eagles travel all over the U.S.A. and are the Philadelphia football team. They’ve been playing since 1933 except the 1943 season when the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers joined forces to make the Philadelphia - Pittsburgh Stegles By the time the game was over it was time to go to bed.
But before I say goodbye answer this question: How do you or someone you know effect you’re state? Explain you’re answer.

By Wally

Wally and Mr. Diemer

Lights camera action! Wally in the house! Welcome to my blog. so I need to tell you about January 4th 2010. Am I right? Ok so Grace took me home and we both learned a lot. We also had a lot of fun.

One fun and educational thing we did was we leaned that there are other kinds of mammals in P.A. And that a lot of kids and adults have pets like cats, dogs, and guinea pigs. Ok now I am on a roll!

Oh I almost forgot to tell you about Walter E. Diemer. That person is problem one of Grace's favorite role models because he invented Bubble Gum and also even though it was Walter E. Diemer's invention he did not receive any royalties (money), and he even did not care about it. He was just happy that he invented Bubble Gum.
He also invited kids to his house to tell them about his accidental invention ( Bubble Gum). One more fun fact about Walter E. Diemer is that he was born and he died in P.A. just like Grace!
Now that I learned these things I am very happy to learn more about PA. Well that’s how I feel now. I am trying to learn more about different places and about other things.

There is more to learn about. Who’s your role model? Why?

By Wally

Wally's Day With Fiona

I went home with Fiona on December 22nd. There had to be something that she would be able to teach me about Pennsylvania on that day. Her argument was she would teach me about when the German, Austrian and Swiss settlers came from Europe to Pennsylvania in 1610 and brought their countries foods and later on the different foods became an industry to Pennsylvania. One of those foods were pretzels. Some companies in Pennsylvania that make snack foods are Snyders and Herrs. She taught me that the first commercial pretzel bakery was founded in Pennsylvania by Tom Stergus. I thought that the fact that the first pretzel bakery was founded in Pennsylvania was pretty cool. Fiona and I also walked her dog showing me the landscape and people of Pennsylvania. There were a lot of dips and hills and plants and trees and the climate was pretty cold since I was there in the winter. All though I’ve heard it’s really hot in the summer. The people were nice too. I had a great time at Fiona’s state and I can’t wait to see yours as well! While you're waiting for me to arrive at your school ,think what can you teach me about your state? Please respond!
Yours Truly Wally!

Wally's Stay With a Friend

Wally’s Page


Hey kids! I (Wally) stayed with some of my classmates on December 30-31. I had a blast! We went to the ice-skating rink.
I had SO much fun ice-skating. It reminded me being back on the ice. Even though I got wet, they told me that I skated beautifully.

When we got home, my host zoomed right to her sister’s bookshelf and grabbed 3 different books about Ben Franklin. She let me choose which book I wanted to read first. After that, I took a mini quiz on the back of the book. Guess how I did! I got 100%! She was so proud of me. I guess I am a Ben Franklin expert.

I learned that Ben Franklin convinced France to be in the war with America so they could defeat England and be a free country. Ben Franklin also started the first library so everybody could take books and read. Did you even know that there’s a museum called the Franklin Institute all about his phenomenal inventions? If you haven’t, I totally recommend it. Hey! Guess what? He even was one of our founding fathers! Ben’s a cool dude. He would so be a best friend of mine.

5 point Question: Who is a famous person that was born/ grew up in your state that did something similar to Benjamin Franklin?
P.S please respond to my question!

My Wonderful Experience

My Experience On Dec. 17, 09

Hi! Wally here. I went home with a friend on Dec. 17th. We went to get a Christmas tree at St. Margaret Church. I had loads of fun. On the way there I saw, the town of Narberth, the church and a long row of Christmas trees. She told me about how William Penn got granted land here in Pennsylvania. He felt that it wasn’t fair everyone had to practice the king of England’s religion so he started the holy experiment. William Penn let everyone who came to Pennsylvania practice his or her own religion. Cool right?
Now I have to ask you something; Do you know about any body in your state who made as big of an impact as William Penn? If so tell me when I come to your school!
Peace -Wally

Wally's Visit With Katie

The other day I came to visit Katie on the 25th-26th of December
Katie and I went to the Philadelphia Nutcracker ballet. When her mom drove there we passed the town hall, the Delaware and Schuylkill river then Katie told me that the Delaware and Schuylkill river are natural resources, and recreation. The Delaware river is a major shipping port and shipping is a major industry in Pennsylvania because of it.

What kind of industry is in your state or country?

By Wally

Wally's Experience

What’s up? Wally here, I went to a friend’s house and he taught me about Pennsylvania.
He taught me that music is a culture in Pennsylvania. He even taught me how to play the electric guitar. If Wally came to your house, what would you teach him and why?

My Day With My Friend

My day with my friend



Today, 1/10/10, I went to a friend’s house. It was the last time that I was going to go to a student’s house until I traveled again so I knew that he HAD to do something special for me.
After that we read a book about famous Pennsylvanians.
I absolutely loved it so I asked him if we could research my favorite character, Gifford Pinchot. He was actually Pennsylvania Governor 2 TIMES and he tried as hard as he could to cut government spending. Some times he did not even take his salary! He made a huge impact in PA. I’m glad I got to learn about him.
Now I have a question for you. Does your state have famous people that still effect you today and how?
Signing off,
Wally

Wally's Trip

Wally’s Trip
Hi! Wally here this is about my experience with a friend. She and I went to the Franklin institute. It was so much fun. I even got to go on a plane [not a real one at least.] Did you know that the Franklin institute was dedicated to Ben Franklin? Well if you didn’t he invented a lot of things.

For example the Franklin stove. He also convinced France to help America defeat England. And if France didn’t help then every day we would be saying the pledge of allegiance to England! He also signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

He also created the first college in P.A! And the reason why Ben Franklin is important to P.A is because he was born in P.A! Now here is a question about Ben Franklin. Who was a great inventor from your state?
By Wally

Wally Visits the First Mint!

I went home with a friend on the 27th and the 28th of December. We took a friend to Philly by train, and on the train I saw the Philly landscape there was a church, which meant the settlers, brought different religions with them. When we got to the train station, we had to walk in the cold! We walked past the building where George Washington lived when he was president. He was the first president and Philadelphia was the first capital! Then we got to our destination. Which was the first Mint in the US! We watched money being made. She told me that this was a coin factory and that there are only two money making factories in the US that are open to the public. They used to pay people with bits of silver and every state had different money. Until a person named Alexander Hamilton said. “We are one country, we should have one currency instead of different”. Now we have big factories which make one kind of money.We also went to Ben Franklin's grave.



What would have happened if the U.S. had not changed our money and every state had a different currency?

Snow In Pennsylvania

On 1/8/10 I went home with a friend. We went snow boarding. This taught me that Pennsylvania can get snow.
Who cares? How does what I learned matter to Pennsylvania? Well people pay money to go to vacation houses when it snows. They eat there, go sledding, skiing and snowboarding. That’s even more money that people spend.
In the summer time it’s very warm, but in the wintertime it’s very cold and it snows a lot. We’ve had snow days and delays. Climate really affects our lives.

How does your climate and weather affect your lives? Explain your answer.
By, see you soon!

By Wally

The Day Wally Learned About Pretzels!

My Experience on December 20,2009


Hey kids, I’m here again to teach you something else about Pennsylvania. On December 20,2009,I went home with a friend. I knew she was going to teach me something about Pennsylvania! In the morning, we played in the snow. The snow is even higher than me! She told me that the snow was about 5 inches and the snow is an enormous storm.
In the afternoon, she brought me to a birthday party. At the birthday party, I watched her playing Wii. We watched a movie. We also ate pizza; chips, soft pretzels and we drank Coke and Orange juice. she told me that the pretzels were first in southern Europe in 610 A.D. The German, Austrian and Swiss settlers brought the soft pretzels. The first commercial pretzel bakery was founded in Pennsylvania. I learned a lot about pretzels. It was really fun. Bye! I’ll see you next time!


P.S. How did the settlers’ in your area affect your state/country?

P.S.S. I might visit your school soon!

Hey kids! Today, 1/7/10, I went home with my friend. It was his birthday so his parents and his sisters and I went to get Sushi.

After the sushi we went to Maggie Moos for ice cream. I learned that Pennsylvania has lots of dairy farms. We can make milk, butter, cheese and my favorite ICE CREAM! Our state beverage is milk. We ship those products to other places through the Delaware River.

I had a great time. Before bedtime we listened to Will Smith's hit single just the two of us. Will Smith Is my new role model! I had so much fun!!
This is Wally Mammoth signing off for now! Do you have any dairy farms in your state or country? If or if not what is your favorite dairy product?

Ps. Respond! I want to know if you have dairy farms in your state or country.
Ps. Also I want to know your favorite dairy product.

Wally Visits Philadelphia

Hey! What’s up? Wanna know what I did on December 29? I went home with a friend .We went to Betsy Ross’ house and saw Samuel Nichols. I got a picture with him. We also went to East End Salon, which is made up of houses from the 18 century. One of the buildings was Betsy Ross’ bedroom! I got to sit by the fire there. I wish she could tell me a story. Her birthday party was soon, so we got stamps for the invitations at the Benjamin Franklin post office.

I learned what post offices looked like in the 1700’s. Betsy Ross is a famous Pennsylvanian who may have made the first American flag! Awesome…. Samuel Nichols said that no matter if an American flag has 13 stars, or 50 stars it is still an American flag.

What I learned matters to Pennsylvania, the USA, and the world because without a post office people couldn’t send letters, and if there was something really important of serious going on, they couldn’t notify some one far away. Benjamin Franklin needed to send important letters to important people far away to help this country.

Well, that’s what I did on December 29. But before you’re done reading, I want to ask you a question.

Do you think the Benjamin Franklin post office is more important, less important, or as important as the American flag? Why do you think this? Please make sure you have strong support.

All right that’s all for now. See you later. And answer my question at, The Wally Blog.

By Wally

Wally Learns About Pennsylvania's Climate

On the 23rd and 24th of December I went home with Eva. I walked home with Eva and her friends. When we got back I listened to Eva's ipod.
We went sledding on the way to her house. I never knew that people went sledding in this town. When we got to Eva’s house we had Hershey’s hot chocolate. Eva’s Dad told me something about chocolate.. “People use to have chocolate for medicine!" Isn’t that funny! After hot chocolate we went sledding again at Short Ridge Park. The snow was packed down a lot so we went really fast!

Eva told me that it had snowed just early that weekend. Eva also told me that the climate here in Pennsylvania is very unusual. In the summer it’s really warm and in the winter it’s really cold. How does the climate where you live affect your state? Here the warm weather makes people have beach houses and the cold winter makes people have ski houses.

Then we got back and played in the snow.
With these 2 furry things called dogs. They were really nice but we had to be careful because, one of the dogs, Toby, was younger and I could possible get eaten. The other dog, Buster, was chasing after a little green ball. He was always loosing the ball in the snow! His nose would get all white and Eva called him “Buster the White Nosed Reindeer”! I thought it was really funny. We made a snowman and had a snowball fight!

That night we also went caroling. It was really fun. If you don’t know already I’m a very good musician. I play the recorder and I like to sing. So, caroling practiced my singing. I also learned a lot of Christmas songs. My favorite one was Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Probably because of Buster.

The next day I had a fun time except it had nothing to do with Pennsylvania. We just had fun! Eva told me I am a great playmate. Overall, I had a GREAT time at Eva’s house. I also learned a lot.

Don’t forget to answer my question:
How does the climate where you live affect your state?

By, Fabulous Wally

The Wally Project

Although Wally has only been in my class for a few short weeks THIS year, the kids have become quite attached to him. Here is their understanding of "The Wally Project".