I have had an AMAZING birthday! It feels good to finally be 30 years old...I tried to convince my students that I was still in my 20's but they weren't buying it. They said I looked like I was 30. I'll take that! They also told me how OLD some of their parents were; like in their 40s.
Besides celebrating today, here is what else we've done this week in Room 315...
Phonics/Grammar: We began our study of verbs. We learned that action verbs tell what the subject is doing. We watched a fun video, made a list of verbs, then created verb flip books. Our spelling pattern this week was two-syllable words. We practiced segmenting our words into syllables and then sounding out each part, which will also help us with more challenging three and four syllable words.
Writing: We put our finishing touches on our last narrative, then we read a fun book, Crankenstein. We used what we know about elements of fictional stories such as interesting characters, setting details, a plot that builds to a climax, and then a great closing to create our own Crankenstein versions. You can read these amazingly creative stories in the hallway next week when you come for your child's conference.
Reading: We began our informational unit in reading and discussed the nonfiction text features that help us learn new information. We read a story on the Titanic and identified these features; photos, headings, bold words, a glossary, captions, etc. We also practiced our comprehension strategy of stopping and jotting; using boxes and bullets to identify the main idea and important details of each paragraph. We read the first five chapters in our book club selections and met with our groups to discuss the main characters and traits that describe the characters. We used evidence from the text to support our answers. We took the final quarter one reading touchstone as well. Results will be shared next week.
Math: We learned about how the distributive property can help us solve more challenging multiplication problems. We first used manipulatives, then we learned how to break down the equation. We worked in small groups to practice our multiplication and division strategies, work on Conceptua Math lessons, and stretch our thinking to solve exemplars (longer math tasks that require multiple step problems). We continued to work during Number Talks on balancing equations, which helps us when we are solving for unknowns in multiplication and division problems. We also took our first timed test on x2 facts. Our goal is to answer 25 problems in one minute. Memorization is a must before fourth grade! If your child mastered this set, x5's will be next!
Dinner Conversation Starters...Here are some ideas to get the conversation going about your child's week!
*Ask your child who the character was in his/her CRANKENSTEIN story
*Ask your child to explain how the distributive property can help solve 8x7
*Ask your child to tell you about Sudoku in Mrs. Okraski's room
*Ask your child what he/she learned about the Titanic from reading the informational article
News and Announcements...
Congratulations to Cassidy Beames and Audrey Tanchez for winning 2nd place in the SCIENCE FAIR! Their project on apples was AMAZING (and delicious).
Thank you to Mrs. Newlin for helping make our White Giraffe themed pumpkin display. Check it out in the Media Center.
Remember next week is Early Release to allow time for parent-teacher conferences. Our lunch time will be 10:56-11:26 all week.
If you haven't done so, please return the New Echota permission slip and donation as soon as possible.
THANK YOU for making my birthday so special! I loved all the cards, gifts, and flowers. I had such a fun day!
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