This Week...

April 9- April 13, 2018

Reading:  Students continued reading various poems.  Students analyzed the subjects of poems to determine the poets’ inspirations.  We also discussed how the language a poet uses can elicit a certain mood or feeling for the reader.  Students connected to the poems through personal experiences to deepen their understanding.  We also talked about how poetry can contain difficult vocabulary or use words in unusual ways.  We used our background knowledge and context clues to determine the meaning of words. Reading Logs are due Monday, April 16.  (100 minutes)

Math:  Capacity and volume were the areas of focus this week!  Students learned that capacity is the amount of liquid a container can hold.  Volume is the amount of liquid a container is actually holding.  We focused on using milliliters and liters.  Students practiced reading scales and converting measurements.  On Monday, students will complete a review for chapter 11.  The chapter 11 test will be on Wednesday, April 18.

Science:  Students reviewed key concepts from our force and motion unit.  They took their unit test today.  In the LMC, students used BrainPop to create word meaning maps about static electricity.  Next week, we will begin our next social studies unit: Chicago!

Writing:  In WEX, students brainstormed typical morning activities for their characters.  They worked on incorporating strong verbs and dialogue to show how their characters reacted during these activities.  In grammar, students focused linking verbs.

Word Study:  This week, students analyzed the parts of speech.  They sorted words into the categories of nouns, adjectives, and verbs.  They also sorted concrete and abstract nouns.

Miscellaneous:  On Monday, students participated in the spring bus evacuation session.  They learned important safety rules to follow while riding the bus.  On Thursday, students enjoyed our Elgin Symphony Orchestra field trip!  They were exposed to various instruments during a variety of classical songs.  Next Tuesday, April 17, we will be taking our MAP math test.  Please let me know if you have any questions…have a wonderful weekend!