I am sending home possible homework ideas for do this week and the following week during vacation. These are simply suggestions for how to keep those brains growing even during our days off from school. These ideas are fun! Give them a try as a family. The best learning always happens when we work like a team!
Reading
Check out the local library for some super fun books! Remember, reading isn’t just being able to decode the words that you are reading but it is also about understanding what you’re reading. Make sure you ask questions before, during, and after reading your book. You could even use your schema to make some awesome connections! Reading is like an adventure, so head out on your adventure today!
Writing
A family holiday journal is a great way to not only work on your writing goals but also to keep track of all of your precious memories that you are creating together. Try taking pictures of all of those special moments and then writing a caption for each of the pictures. Then, you could put them together in a book so you could look back on your memories for years to come!
Another fun activity to do with family is to write a progressive story, where everyone in the family takes turns adding a sentence to the story until the story is complete! It’s amazing to watch everyone’s creativity come together to make a stupendous story!
Math
There is so much shopping that is going on during this time of year whether it is for gifts for your loved ones or your weekly groceries. Have your child figure out how much money to pay or count the change that your receive.
You could also create your very own schedule for this crazy time of year! Making a schedule and sticking to it is a great way to reinforce all of our telling time skills!
You could also play any or all of the math games that were sent home! Those games are not only tons of fun, but they also reinforce incredibly important place value skills that are a crucial part of our next few standards.
You could also practice those math facts of yours! Once you feel like you have mastered one math fact family, start working on the next one!
Science
Cooking and baking involves language arts, math, and science! Why not involve your child in all of the kitchen activities? Topics could include:
measuring (measurement and fractions)
hot and cold temperature (fridge, stove, etc)
mixing ingredients (chemistry)
reading and following a recipe
writing/copying a recipe legibly
You could also spend some time tracking the weather. Make your own weather journal and track the temperature, the kind of weather (sunny, cloudy, snowy, etc), and what kind of clothes you should be wearing. During vacation, you’ll be heading into the first few days of winter. How are they different from the days in other seasons like fall or summer?
Social Studies
Talk about your family traditions. What traditions did your grandparents have? How are they the same or different to yours today?
You could also talk about how everyone is struggling with different things this time of year. Maybe you could create a family plan for how you could help out someone in need. For example, is there someone who could use a little extra joy in their life? Maybe you could make them a card telling them how special they are to you and how you were thinking of them!
Physical Activity
It’s so important to get at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day! Build a snowman together! Go on a family walk! Dance to your favorite songs! Whatever you do, just get your bodies moving!
Health
The holidays always offer lots of treats! Treats are ok as long as they are in moderation. Take some time to talk to your family about the importance of eating healthy not just during the holidays, but eating healthy all year long!
Art
Try making homemade cards, gifts, or even wrapping paper!
HAVE FUN!!
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
December 17th-21st
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:
Homework will look a little different this week. I know everyone has been super busy with the holidays coming up and I'm sure you won't have time to slow down during our Winter Vacation either. Instead of sending home our normal homework packet, I've sent home a list of fun suggestions for you and your child to do to keep their brains growing even if we don't have school. This packet is optional and you do not need to return anything to me. If your child wants to bring in what they did to share with the rest of the class, they can definitely do that! I will post the entire "Holiday Homework Extravaganza" in a separate post. This way, you will always have access to it even if that pesky little paper gets lost! As always, if you have any questions about it let me know!
This Friday, December 21st, our class will be boarding the Polar Express and be heading to the North Pole! Students will be invited to wear their pajamas to school. I am also planning on serving hot chocolate to the class. If this is something that you do not want your child to have, you are more than welcome to send an alternative to school. Please just give me a heads up either by written note or by email. I will also send home a paper reminder tomorrow.
This week in...
Language Arts: This week, we are going about a rather unusual schedule. There is so much holiday excitement in the air so rather than fight it, we're going to embrace it! I decided to let the team have a little more time for craftivities so this week, we are tackling some of our language arts standards with some holiday read alouds to go along with it.
The Polar Express: After listening to the polar express, students were challenged to write the beginning, middle, and end of the story (a HUGE comprehensions strategy). They wrote each part of the story on a piece of a train. Then they connected these parts together to make their very own Polar Express. On Friday, after watching the movie, we'll have a chance to compare and contrast the book to the movie using a venn diagram.
Imogene's Antlers: After reading the story, we'll get the chance to design and describe our very own antlers! Using really descriptive words and trying to "show not tell" can be really tricky! But with so many creative minds in the room, I know we'll be able to do it!
Olive the Other Reindeer: We will read the story of Olive, the Other Reindeer and then tackle our persuasive writing skills by filling out a job application to be one of Santa's Reindeer.
Math: In math this week, we will continue to play our place value math games! Here are some of the things that our games our helping us practice:
-adding numbers
-subtracting numbers
-coin recognition (value and name)
-counting money
-telling time
-skip counting
-place value of a number (hundreds, tens, and ones)
-bundles of numbers (bundles of hundreds, tens and ones)
-using a hundreds chart
-using a number line
-drawing pictures as a strategy
-adding number strings
-adding numbers mentally
-adding and subtracting numbers within 20 mentally
-subtracting two digit numbers
-using a calculator
And so much more!
These games and the skills that they let us practice are incredibly important when we start unpacking our next few standards!
I think that's it! I hope you all have a wonderful week!
Monday, December 10, 2012
December 10th-14th
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:
Tonight is the Winter Concert! Come on down to the middle school. The concert will start at 6:00, second grade will be singing around 6:30. See you there!
A paper went home last about our Elf Workshop. If you would like to send in supplies to help us out, please send them in ASAP. Also, if you would like volunteer and help us out with the crafts during our Elf Workshop, just let me know! The Workshop will be on December 17th and will run from around 9 to 11.
Homework packets are due tomorrow! Send them in the boomerang folders! Remember, I love any feedback you have to give!
Calling all Mystery Readers! If you would like to come into our classroom and read a short story, please let me know! We have plenty of space still open!
IXL:
Graphing: R. 2, 3, 6, 7
Facts: E. 1-12, L. 1-5
Time: Q. 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10
Money: P. 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 15
Odd and Even: A. 6, 7, 8
Geometry: T. 1, 2, 3
Fractions: U. 1-5, 7, 8
This week in...
Phonics: We are studying the long /u/ sound with the spelling patterns u_e and u. We practiced with the following words: mule, bugle, fuse, use, flute, June, music, duke, tune, and dune.
Vocabulary: Our new vocabulary words are: tips, obeys, attention, accident, enormous, and buddy. We'll figure out what these new words mean and build connections to them. Then, we'll search for them in the story called Safety at School by Brian Sullivan.
Comprehension: This week we'll be focusing on using the illustrations to help us understand story events. We'll be working on this skill in small groups and as a whole group while we read the story called Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann.
Writing: We will begin thinking about persuasive writing. When we are trying to persuade someone, that means we are trying to express our idea or opinion about something. We'll be using the OREO model to help with this. OREO stands for: state your OPINION, give your REASON, give an EXPLANATION, and then restate your OPINION.
Grammar: We're working with present-tense verbs. These verbs tell about actions that happen now. For example, answers, stop, stand, blinks, and watch are all present-tense verbs.
Math: We will continue working with our game menu. These games are giving us the chance to not only practice the games we'll be using a lot in our next unit but they also give us the chance to practice some really important strategies for how to add and subtract using place value.
Social Studies: We will continue to work on making an S.O.P. for our kindergarten friends for how to get dressed for outdoor recess in the winter months. This will take some time and maybe a couple rewrites. Then, we will share it and model it to our kindergarten friends.
I hope that was everything on our to-do list for the week! Let me know if you have any questions!
Have a fabulous week!
Monday, December 3, 2012
What to Practice on IXL
Graphing: R. 2, 3, 6, 7
Facts: E. 1-12, L. 1-5
Time: Q. 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10
Money: P. 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 15
Odd and Even: A. 6, 7, 8
Geometry: T. 1, 2, 3
Fractions: U. 1-5, 7, 8
December 3rd-December 7th
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:
Team Blowey earned their last marble today! They chose to have a pajama day. So, tomorrow (Tuesday, December 4th) students will be allowed to wear their pajamas at school.
Homework packets are due tomorrow! Please send them back to school with your child! If you have any questions, comments, or insights, please take a few seconds to jot them down on the parent feedback page.
The holiday concert will be at the GNG High School, December 10th at 6:00! It's a great evening and the students love to show all of the parents how hard they have been working!
This week in...
Phonics: We are studying the long /e/ sound with the spelling patterns e, ee, ea, and y. We practiced with the following words: eat, leaf, mean, queen, need, seek, baby, pony, he and we.
Vocabulary: Our new words are: swung, attached, gasped, breathe, frantically, and delicious. We will work together to figure out what these words mean and to build an attachment to them. Then, we will search for these words in The Story of the Giant Carrot by Rosa Manuel.
Comprehension: This week's focus is around cause and effect. The effect is what happened and the cause is why the event happened. When we think about cause and effect, it helps us to better understand the story. We'll be practicing this skill in small groups and also as a whole group while we read the folk tale called Head, Body, Legs: A Story from Liberia. Together, we will fill in a cause and effect graphic organizer. This strategy will also go up on our CAFE board. Check out our CAFE board now! We've already been introduced to so many strategies that will help us become better readers!
Writing: This week, students will have the chance to explore what would happen if they lived in a snow globe. Many students might have seen the Pixar Short called Knick Knack where a snowman tries to leave his snow globe to join the other friends on the beach. That's one scenario of what might happen if you lived in a snowglobe... trying to escape! However, Team Blowey will have the chance to think up their own scenario and explain it to their audience.
Grammar: We will be talking about action verbs. Action verbs are words that tell us what someone or something is doing. Some examples of action verbs are: walks, opens, sits, eats, sleeps, runs, plays, etc.
Math: This month students will be diving into the wonderful world of educational games. This week, we will be learning how to play 12 different games that will help us to add and subtract numbers using place value. The skills that are introduced and practiced in these games are critical to the next two units we will be studying, place value and being able to add and subtract using place value. Once students have learned how to play all of the games, they will then have the choice of which game they play each day. They will be playing each game at least two times.
Science: Last week we gathered all kind of weather words while we were reading. We found and discussed weather words like: wind, air pressure, snow, cumulous clouds, cirrus clouds, stratus clouds, tornado, and many more! This week, we will be working on the very first part of our year long service project to help kindergarteners and first graders be prepared for the various types of weather that we might face. A huge part of that is just being able to get dressed to go outside quickly and efficiently. This week, we will be putting together a "Getting Dressed for Outside" S.O.P. This S.O.P. will be shared and taught to other classrooms in the school in hopes that it will make their "getting ready" time a little bit easier. Check out our Weather Words anchor chart below!
Mystery Reader: We have another mystery reader coming into our classroom this week! We still have plenty of open weeks for others to sign up for! If you or someone you know is interested in coming into our classroom on a Wednesday from about 11:50-12:10, let me know! This is something the team really enjoys and it's a lot of fun for those of you who decide to do it as well.
Words to Think About: Here is a picture of our words to think about for the month of December.
Remember, please don't hesitate to send any comments, questions, or insights my way! Your feedback is always considered and definitely appreciated!
Monday, November 26, 2012
November 26th-November 30th
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:
Homework is due tomorrow! Please remember to send it back to school with your child! Also, if you have any feedback, please write it down on the packet. All of your feedback has been so helpful!
Thank you so much to all of the parents who have been so generous! Our classroom recently got a bunch a new goodies! We received:
-index cards so we could make flashcards to practice our math facts
-new play-doh to help us practice our spelling words
-not one but TWO beautiful mailboxes to help us set up a mailing system so we can continue writing friendly letters (one mailbox will be used for Team Blowey mail, the other mail box will be used for mail going to outside classrooms)
Please remember to send in a healthy snack for your child every day! We eat snack in the afternoon to help us keep our brains energized!
The weather has cooled down quite a bit so please send your child to school with their jackets, hats, and mittens.
This week in...
Phonics: We are practicing the long /o/ sound with the following spelling patterns: o, ow, oe, and oa. We sounded out, spelled, and sorted these words: told, most, grow, mow, crow, toe, goes, toast, soap, and foam.
Vocabulary: Our new vocabulary words are: imaginary, uniform, practices, starting, tryouts, and coach. After talking them out with partners, we'll search for them in the story called Brian Gets Fit on the Field by Emily Goldman.
Comprehension: Our focus for this week will be to generate questions and to make inferences. When we generate questions, we're asking ourselves questions as we read to help us understand the characters, the story problem, and what might happen next. When we are making inferences, we really have to make our brains work hard! We have to take what we already know and what we've read to figure out the parts that the author didn't necessarily tell us in the story. We'll be practicing these skills while reading There's Nothing Like Baseball by Angela Johnson.
Writing: This week, we'll be writing an explanation. Student's will need to include personal feelings, lots of details, and reasons to help their audience understand the writer's opinion or experience. We'll make sure to use precise words to make the writing clear, we'll organize our ideas and give good reasons to back up our opinions, and we'll make sure we vary the types of sentences we use to make our writing more interesting.
Grammar: We'll continue our practice with possessive nouns. Whenever we want to show possession, we need to add an apostrophe and an s. Sometimes we get tricked, though, and add an apostrophe to any words that end in s!
Math: We're continuing to work with odd and even numbers and being able to prove why a number is either even or odd. We're also working with rectangular arrays. When we're working with arrays, we're adding up how many same-sized squares are in an array by using a repeated number addition equation. This will provide us with the foundation for multiplication. Arrays give students the concept that they can add the same number over and over again.
Social Science: This week our read alouds are focusing on weather. While we're reading, we'll be adding weather words to our anchor charts to help us become more familiar with them as we dig deeper into the world of weather.
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and I hope you have a fabulous week!
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
November 13-16th
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:
Remember to send in your child's homework packet on TUESDAY! It shows me how they practiced at home and allows me see any of your feedback.
Next week is Thanksgiving Break! No school!
Remember to send in a healthy snack for your child each day! That snack helps keep their brains fueled and energized for the rest of the day.
Here are the things you can practice with your child on IXL:
Graphing: R. 2-7
Facts: L. 1-5, E. 1-12
Time: Q. 2-5, 7-10
Geometry: T. 1-3
Fractions: U. 1-5
Odd and Even: A. 6, 7
Unfortunately, there is nothing on IXL to help with Arrays.
Classroom Wishlist: Playdoh and index cards! If you are willing and able to donate any of these materials to the classroom, it would be greatly appreciated!
This week in...
Phonics: We are practicing the long /i/ sound with the spelling patterns: i, igh, ie, and y. We practiced sounding out, spelling, and sorting the following words: sight, high, light, mind, wild, tie, lie, cry, dry, try.
Vocabulary: Our new vocabulary words are: peered, giggled, snuggled, fluttered, vanished, and recognized. We figured out what these words meant and built connections to them. Then, we searched for these words while we read the story Leo Grows Up by Kevin Lee.
Comprehension: We are working on generating questions and making inferences. Good readers are always generating questions about a story to help them understand a story better. We'll be asking questions about the characters, problem, or what might happen next. We're also going to be practicing how to make inferences. The answers to some questions won't always be in the text so we'll have to use what we read and what we already know to make an inference.
Writing: We'll be discussing the steps of how to write a how to story! We'll be practicing using transitions words and making our ideas clear so that any reader will be able to do whatever we're telling them to do! This week, we'll be writing a story about how to catch a turkey!
Grammar: We'll be working on possessive nouns. A possessive noun shows who or what has something. We'll be talking about how to add an apostrophe and an s to a singular noun to show possession.
Math: This week, we'll be diving right into odd and even and arrays. These two standards are combined to making the following checklist. In order for your child to meet these standards, they must show:
1. I know that even numbers can be made into groups of two (partners) or two equal groups (teams).
2. I know that odd numbers cannot be made into groups of two (partners) or two equal groups (teams).
3. I can write a doubles number sentence to represent an even number and a near doubles number sentence to represent an odd number.
4. I can add the same name repeatedly to find out the total number of squares in an array.
5. I can write an equation that shows the total number of squares.
This week, we'll be doing mini lessons to help students with each part of this checklist. Students will be working on their own individual goals by practicing a choice from our menu. When they feel like they are ready to meet the standard, they will present their evidence to me and complete a check-in. If their evidence and check-in are correct, they will move onto the next goal within these standards.
Science: This week, I will be beginning some weather related read alouds. These will serve as an introduction to our year long science goals that focus on air and weather.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
IXL
Here are the things you can practice at home to help with the things that we are working on at school.
Graphing: R. 2-7
Facts: L. 1-5, E. 1-12
Time: Q. 2-5, 7-10
Geometry: T. 1-3
Fractions: U. 1-5
Odd and Even: A. 6, 7
Monday, November 5, 2012
November 5th-9th
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:
Homework packets are due TOMORROW!
October reading calendars are due! Send them back to school ASAP!
If you haven't already sent the name and address of a friend or relative who is willing to participate in our Flat Stanley project, please send it to me by WEDNESDAY! We would love to start getting our letters going. Our goal is to have our flat selves and letters ready to mail by the end of next week!
Thank you so much to all of you who were able to help us with our Harvest Party last week! We had a blast! We wouldn't have been able to do it without you!
Classroom wishlist: 3M masking tape and, if anyone happens to have one, a mailbox (a girl can dream right!). I'm hoping to set up a mailing system in our classroom to help Team Blowey practice letter writing throughout the year.
This week in...
Phonics: We're practicing the long /a/ sound with the spelling patterns "ai" and "ay". Our words for the week are: main, wait, sail, tail, train, jay, pay, stay, hay, and may.
Vocabulary: Our new words are: serious, broken, personal, informs, and heal. We will figure out what these words mean and build connections to them. Then we will search for them in two short stories called A Ride to Help and Time for an X-Ray.
Comprehension: We will continue our work with summarizing and identifying the sequence of events. When we summarize, we only retell the most important information in the story. When we are looking for the order of events in a story, we are looking out for key words like first, next, then, and last, to show us when events happened. Below is a video that talks about some of the words that help us with identifying the order of events in a story. Check it out!
Writing: We are continuing to work on writing friendly letters and identifying the parts of a friendly letter.
Grammar: We'll be working with proper nouns. Proper nouns are days of the week, months, and holidays. We'll work together to find these things and make sure they always start with a capital letter.
Daily 5: Beginning this week, we are starting campfire reading groups. Team Blowey is divided into four teams. Each team is assigned a book to read and respond to. Then, later in the week, each team will meet with me to go over the book. This is a time for me to enforce the comprehension and accuracy strategies that we are working on. When we meet, students gather around the campfire and we'll read with flashlights. Then, we'll start some campfire conversation by talking about the book they we've been reading this week.
Math: This week, we are ending our work with fractions and will begin to move into odd and even. Here is the standard that we will be unpacking:
MA.02.OAT.03.01
Determine whether a group of objects (up to 20) has an odd or even number of members. Write an equation to express an even number as a sum of two equal addends.
We'll also be pretesting to see exactly what students will need in order to meet this standard.
Social Science: We have been talking a lot about elections lately. We know that this a big year for our country and that a lot of adults will be making their voice heard tomorrow by voting for who they think will help our country the most. In order to help us understand this a little more, we've been listening to our own candidates for classroom president by reading these books:
Tomorrow, students will be filling out their voter registration card and heading to the voting booths to cast their vote for who they would like for president: Duck, Grace, or me! Later this week, we'll be working on a writing activity where the students will write about what they would do if they became President.
If you have any questions, please let me know! I hope you have a fabulous week!
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
October 29th-November 2nd
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:
Homework packets are due EVERY Tuesday! Please make sure you send your child to school with their homework packet so I can see how they are practicing their goals at home. It also allows me to follow up with any of your feedback. Remember when you are helping your child with their homework, to circle the day of the week that you pick each menu choice. This is how you communicate with me about what is going on at home.
Our Harvest Party is tomorrow. If you volunteered to bring items in, please send them with your child or bring them to school yourself. Let me know if you have any questions! Thanks again for being able to help us out!
Hurricane Sandy made her way through Gray. I hope everyone is ok and that you all have power... or that you will have power again very soon!
Please remember to send back the green Flat Stanley paper with the name and address of someone who is willing and able to participate in our project. I need these papers by Friday!! If you need another one please let me know.
Our mystery reader on November 7th would like to bring in a snack that goes along with the book to share with the students. I sent home a blue sheet with your child that lists the ingredients. Please send it back to school letting me know if you are ok with letting your child eat the snack or if you are going to provide an alternative snack for them that day.
This week in...
Phonics: We are practicing consonant blends, meaning letters that blend together in a word. We're practicing blends with the following patterns: /dr/, /sl/, /sk/, /sp/, and /st/. We're practicing these blends by learning these words: dress, drop, slide, slips, task, skin, spell, crisp, must, and still.
Vocabulary: Our new vocabulary words are: rescued, mammal, young, hunger, examines, and normal. Together we figured out what the words meant and built connections to them. Then, we searched for them in a story called A Whale is Saved! by Elizabeth Baker.
Comprehension: We are continuing to practice summarizing stories by retelling on the most important parts of the story. We are also going to introduce the idea of sequencing events. This means that we are paying attention to the order of events in a story. To do this, we'll be looking for clue words like first, next, then, and last. We'll practice these skills while reading A Harbor Seal Pup Grows Up by Joan Hewett.
Writing: Last week we learned the parts of a friendly letter. For example, heading, greeting, body, closing, and signature. This week, we'll practice writing friendly letters as a part of our Flat Stanley project.
Grammar: We'll be working with plural nouns. For most words, we can make them plural by simply adding an "s". However, this isn't true for all words. For example, if a word ends in s, sh, ch, or x, we'll make the noun plural by adding -es. We'll also practice some special plural nouns. For example, we'll change child to children, or foot to feet.
CAFE: We'll be introducing an accuracy strategies. This is a strategy that will help us to know the words when we see them. We will be practicing how to chunk words. This means we'll be looking for smaller words that we already know inside bigger words. For example, if we came across the word cat. We already know the word at, which is hiding inside. We would read that part first and then move on to tackling the whole word.
Social Studies: This week, we are continuing to learn a little more about maps. Last week, we had the chance to learn a little bit about what maps are. Today, we began a project to help us figure out where we are in the world. After reading, Me on the Map, students then began working on figuring out where they were in the world by writing down their street, their town, their state, their country, their continent, and finally their planet.
Math: We are continuing with our fraction unit. Students are learning about halves, thirds, and fourths. They are also learning how to divide shapes into equal shares and describe those shares. They are also working on dividing shapes into different shaped shares. For example, they can divide a rectangle in half by dividing it horizontally or diagonally.
Halloween Themed Activities:
Math: M&M fractions, Bats: Cute or Creepy? graph, bat glyph.
Language Arts: Reading Stellaluna and Bats at the Beach, Spider: Fact or Opinion.
Craft during Harvest Party: pumpkin sun catcher.
I hope you have a great week!
Monday, October 22, 2012
October 22nd-26th
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:
Homework packets are due tomorrow! Please send them in, completed, showing me how your child practiced their goals at home this week.
Remember these are the minimum requirements for you child to be doing at home: Practice your spelling words twice a week, math facts twice a week, reading for 20 minutes everyday! The hungry to learn homework is optional and for those who wish to make their brains grow faster and in different ways!
Here are the things on IXL that your student could be practicing:
Math Facts: L.1-5
Graphing (review): R. 2, 3, 6, 7
Time: Q. 1-5, 7, 8
Geometry: T. 1-3
Fractions: U. 1-4
Make sure you sign in to IXL so I can monitor your child's struggles and progress. It helps me better meet their needs as a learner here in the classroom.
Remember to send your child in with a healthy snack! We want food that will help our brains stay energized! Water bottles may be sent in daily and students may keep them on their desk so that they can stay hydrated throughout the day.
Our new read aloud book is Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown which means we will be flattening ourselves very soon and sending ourselves all over the place! By the end of the week, I will be sending home some papers so that you can write down the name and address of a friend or a family member that lives somewhere else. Then, your child will be writing a friendly letter to them and sending their flat selves so that we can look all about some of our world's amazing places! If you do not have any friends or family members that are willing and able to participate in this project, please let me know and I will find an alternative address for your child. If you have any questions, please let me know!
Last Thursday, the students had a chance to visit the Portland Museum of Art. While we were there, they gave all of us a "Member for a Moment" offer. With the ticket that was sent home, you get free admission for two (Children under 12 are free) and a 10% discount in the Museum Store and Museum Cafe. Unfortunately, I don't believe this offer allows you to visited the ticketed events like the Winslow Homer exhibit, but the rest of the museum is definitely worth it! The students had a great time trying to think of all of the stories behind the artwork. Take them to the museum and let them share their thoughts with you! The offer expires on June 30, 2013.
This week in...
Phonics: We are studying the long and short /u/ sound. We practiced sounding out, sorting, and spelling the following words: bud, dude, rude, rule, fume, duck, sun, bump, cup, and cube.
Vocabulary: Our new vocabulary words are: drowns, drifts, desert, gently, burst, and neighbor. We'll be figuring out what these words mean and building connections to them. Then, we'll search for them in a story called Plant Power by Bradley Roberts.
Comprehension: We are going to continue to practice our summarizing skills, which means retelling only the most important parts of a story. We will also practice drawing conclusions about a story. We'll do this by using what we know, clues in the story, and picture clues. Being able to draw conclusions helps us to understand the story better. We'll practice these things while reading The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle.
Grammar: We're going to try and put our grammar minds on overdrive this week! We're going to try and use our writer's eyes to help us find nouns (people, places, or things), use commas to separate three or more words in a series, look for capital letters at the beginning of a sentence and punctuation at the end of a sentence! Together, we'll work to find the nouns, insert commas, fix capital letters, and add punctuation to a short passage.
Daily 5 and CAFE: Students are still practicing each of the daily 5 during their language arts goal time. For this week, we will not be adding any new strategies to the CAFE board but we will spend some time reviewing the ones we already have up.
Math: We are nearing the end of our geometry standard. Students will be working hard to complete any remaining goals they have in geometry and then complete a geometry assessment. Tomorrow, we will be taking a pre-test on fractions to see where all of the students will start. On Wednesday, we will unpack the following standard:
MA.02.G.01.03
Partition circles and rectangles into two, three, or four equal shares, describe the shares using words like halves, thirds, half of, third of, etc. and describe the whole as two halves, three thirds, four fourths. Recognize that equal shares of identical wholes need not have the same shape.
Students will be given a checklist specific to their goals to use with the fraction menu. When they are able to demonstrate all things on the checklist, they will be able to do a fraction assessment.
Social Science and Read Aloud: Since our new read aloud book is Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown, we will be introducing the topic of maps! Flat Stanley is an ordinary boy who gets flattened by a bulletin board. The book tells us of his adventures, including mailing himself all the way to California! Students will be creating their own flat selves and writing a friendly letter to someone who lives outside of Gray, Maine. We'll be looking at maps to see where all of our teammates travel! Along with this, we'll have the chance to learn a lot about other places like the climate, the landmarks, and much more!
Words to THINK about: I know I posted it already, but I figured I would post it again just because it is such an important message! Don't let the things you CAN'T do stop you from doing the things that you CAN do!
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