I apologize for the delayed posting…

Math

This week in math we will be reviewing multiplication strategies, while focusing on word problems.  We will take Quick Quiz #4 on Thursday and our end of the unit Review Test on Friday.  I will spend the weekend grading and evaluating the Review Tests to determine reteach groups for next week.  Their Unit Test will be sometime early next week and they will only need to complete the problems they get incorrect on the Review Test.  Please spend this week practicing multiplication with your child, with a special focus on those word problems.

Reading / Social Studies

This week we will be beginning our new unit on non-fiction texts.  Students will be exploring non-fiction text features such as headings and subheadings, photos, captions, and glossaries.  We will be discussing how all of these features are put in the text purposefully by the author to help us better understand the topic they are writing about.  We will also be using this unit to incorporate our Social Studies unit on the Core Democratic Values.  We will be reading a lot of texts with a social studies focus during this time.

Writing

Students will be finishing their oral sharing of their realistic fiction stories this week.  We will then begin our personal essay unit.  Students will learn to write about their lives in new ways as they begin writing mini stories to support bigger ideas.  They will be examining mentor texts to determine how authors use personal experiences to support an opinion they have about a topic.

Science

Students will continue to explore living things this week, focusing heavily upon the interactions within a food web.  They will be able to describe the importance of each link within the web and how even the slightest interruption in the web can have devastating effects for different organisms in that ecosystem.

CLASSROOM ANNOUNCEMENTS

• I am so happy to have already met with so many great families for conferences and look forward to meeting with the rest of you tomorrow and Thursday.  Remember…we are a team.  If you ever have any questions of concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.  I want to help in any way that I can.
• The Book Fair will be going on all week.  Our Book Look Day is today, so students should be completing a wish list this afternoon.  Our Book Buy Day is on Thursday, so if you are interested in purchasing any books for your child through the book fair, please send in money with them on Thursday morning.  You may also make purchasing before or after your conferences this week.
• The November Scholastic Book Club order will be submitted this Friday.  If you haven’t made a purchase yet and would like to, please place those orders online by Friday morning.  Thank you to those of you that made purchases during the month of October.  Those purchases allowed every student in the classroom to receive a book as well as our classroom library to grow.  Thank you for your continued support.

UPCOMING DATES

• Wednesday, 11/9 and Thursday, 11/10 are the remaining Parent Teacher Conferences – If you’re unsure of your date or time, please email me and I can resend it to you.
• Thursday, 11/10 Terry Hall Skating Party 6:30 – 8:30
• Thursday, 11/17 Tornado Drill at 2:00pm
• Friday, 11/18 Popcorn Friday