This Week...

September 18- September 22, 2017

Reading:  We continued working on making strong connections to various texts.  Students read a Time for Kids article about Hurricane Harvey, as well as an article from Zoobooks about animals that travel incredible distances.  They made great personal connections and were able to participate in meaningful discussions with their peers.  Another main focus was choosing just-right books and setting goals for reading workshop time. Reading Logs are due Monday, September 25.  (100 minutes)

Math:  Students reviewed major concepts from chapter 1.  They took their chapter 1 test on Tuesday.  An informational letter was sent home detailing the concepts that we will be covering in unit 2.  At the end of the week, students learned two mental math strategies: “add the tens, then add the ones” and “add the tens, then subtract the extra ones”.  They utilized number bonds to help them with these strategies.  Xtra Math letters went home on Thursday.  This is a great resource to help students learn their basic facts.

Social Studies:  Students learned how to use map scales to find accurate distances from one place to another.  By using a ruler to measure the distance in inches, students were able convert that measurement to determine the actual distance in miles.  We also discussed the country project, which students will create at home.  A list of guidelines and directions were sent home today, as well as a piece of white construction paper.  These country projects will be due on Friday, September 29.  I am looking forward to seeing the students’ creative ideas!

Writing:  In WEX, students practiced giving specific feedback to classmates by using various response starters.  They also started working on their first skill: focus.  We practiced focusing on a single moment in time by using careful observation and tiny details.  In grammar, students differentiated between commands and exclamations.  They used correct capitalization and ending punctuation to make sure the words formed a complete sentence.

Word Study:  Students worked with words that contained short vowels.  They selected words with these particular vowel sounds, made the words with tiles, and recorded the words.  Next week, we will begin buddy spelling!

Miscellaneous:  We continued celebrating Character Counts week!  It was great to see students celebrating the pillars by wearing their colors.  We also worked on our Flat Stanley letters!  We hope to send these out by the end of next week.  Finally, thank you to everyone who donated to the victims of Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma!  I hope you all have a fabulous weekend and please let me know if you have any questions!