Welcome back from holiday break! I hope everyone had the opportunity to relax and enjoy time with friends and family over our two week break. I know that it was a long time away, but we are jumping right back into things here at school.
In math, students reviewed questions that were missed on the review test prior to break. We will be taking the make-up test questions tomorrow. Please utilize the review test that was sent home before break to study those missed questions. On Wednesday, we will begin digging into Unit 4 which is our word problems unit. I think this unit, although challenging, will be a great opportunity to learn a variety of strategies to attack these difficult word problems. We will be working on reading problems carefully, underlining or highlighting important information, identifying what is known and unknown in the problem, drawing pictures to determine the appropriate operation(s) to solve, solving the problems, and then looking back to check if our answer makes sense. Students will likely have more homework this unit than other units because these problems take more time to attack, and they need the additional practice at home as well, so please be on the lookout for yellow HW/R worksheets coming home starting on Wednesday. Students should have have their planners filled in, letting you know what problems are expected to be completed by the time they come to class the next day.
We will be taking a break from grammar and shifting our focus to spelling for the next few months. Students have been doing much better with our grammar skills, but the spelling remains a difficulty for many. I will give a pre-test to students on Mondays. This pre-test will determine which spelling list students will be given for the week (list A is easier words, list B are middle of the road words and same as the pre-test, and list C are more challenging words for the students that do very well on the pre-test.). All lists will have 10 words focusing on the skill of the week (this week is initial hard and soft c and g) and 6 high frequency words (which will be the same 6 words regardless of which list students are assigned). They will have two opportunities throughout the week to quiz each other and practice their words, but then they will be given a spelling test on Friday. Students should be studying these words at home each night, either verbally or written down to prepare for Friday’s test. Lists will go home each Monday in their purple folders.
In reading, we will still be working on nonfiction skills, but we will be moving more into our research projects. Students will be assigned a research partner and a state this week. They will be utilizing books, videos, online resources, and interviews to learn more about their state so that they can determine a problem that exists for residents of their state and begin planning for a way to solve that problem. Students will have plenty of class time over the next few weeks to conduct their research, but they are always encouraged to do outside research as well at home or at the public library. The more they learn about their state, the easier it will be for them to complete their projects.
In writing, we are beginning our next opinion essay. Students did very well following the format for their first essays written to persuade their parents to agree with them on a specific topic. Now, students will have the opportunity to examine their school day and begin planning for an essay that they will write to either Mrs. McClure or myself. Their job will be to pick something they feel strongly about and attempt to convince us to agree with them. I love reading these essays and have actually made changes to my classroom based on some of the essays I have read in the past, so this is their opportunity to try to make a change happen. We want students to see that these essays aren’t just another assignment, but a way to convince others to see things from their point of view.
In science, we will begin our second instructional cycle of our Built for Survival Unit this week. Before break, our focus was on plant structures and how they helped a plant grow, survive, and reproduce. During computer time this afternoon, students will be given the opportunity to research answers to their questions about Giant Sequoias that may not have been answered during our unit. Starting tomorrow, we will be shifting our study to animals. We will be looking at the internal and external structures of grizzly bears and learning how those structures help them grow, survive, and reproduce.
This Week
| Monday, 1/7 | Welcome Back! |
| Tuesday, 1/8 | Lock Down Drill 1:30-2:00pm |
| Friday, 1/11 | Early Release at 12:15pm for Students
|