April Updates

          This week we change the calendar to May! This is the time of year when we say, wow this went quick! The students worked so well on their SBAC English Language Arts Test. As I walked around the room I observed them really taking their time to read and answer the questions. I am so proud! Thursday and Friday of this week and Tuesday of the following week will be our SBAC Math assessments. I am sure they will continue to put forth their best effort. Thank you for making sure they are in school ready to go!
   We have begun our new reading and writing unit-Fractured Fairy Tales. Fractured means traditional fairy tales that have been modified but maintain the just of the story. The author may have changed the characters, setting, point of view or plot. We will read and compare these to traditional fairy tales as well as multiple versions of the same. Students will continue to build reading stamina and participate in collaborative conversations about their reading. They will write their own version of a fairy tale which is always of high interest.

            We continue to work on Unit 6 in math. This unit focuses on geometry. Students will learn to describe, classify and make generalizations about polygons. We focus on quadrilaterals and also incorporate measurement as students measure the perimeters and areas of polygons. To end the unit students will apply what they have learned about quadrilaterals and area with fractions. 

March Updates

    In Reading we completed our Mystery Unit and will move into Research Clubs. This unit will align with our Information Writing and Research unit. We will read high interest nonfiction materials and study text structures. This helps students become better readers of non fiction material. In addition it will increase their understanding of academic vocabulary. 

      Students are in groups researching an animal. They are learning to use various resources, including digital,  to take notes. Students will demonstrate what they have learned with solid paragraph writing, grammar and spelling. Ask your child which animal they are studying! They are working well in their groups, as they learn to work together and compromise. 

 

In math we just began unit 5. We will return to the study of multiplication and how it
relates to division. Students will build arrays and use them to solve division and multiplication
problems. Story problems will be analyzed and build knowledge of how division relates to their
everyday world. Students will continue to work on fact fluency and practice with fact families.
Area will be explored in this unit and again in unit 6.

As the SBAC State test approaches I will begin to discuss this more with the students.
I find this helps them to be less concerned with the unknown. While we communicate how
important this test is we do not want students to be anxious. As a reminder the dates are
4/25, 4/26 and 5/2, 5/3 & 5/7.

Thank you for your continued support at home Please contact me with questions or concerns.

January Updates! Brrr*

Hello Families of Room 32,

         We are beginning new units in all subject areas. Students continue to work hard on their studies. All students have learned a strategy called RACE- Restate, Answer, Cite, Explain. This acronym supports students with their written responses to text.  All students practiced in class and brought home their work. They will continue to work on written responses to text throughout the year.

         In reading we are beginning our Mystery Unit. We use the A to Z Mystery series by Ron Roy, for this unit. We will follow the detectives, Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose as they identify suspects and follow the clues to help solve the mystery of the missing lottery ticket. Students will read their own A-Z Mystery in book clubs. They will apply the skills learned from our mentor text.  Students will know key vocabulary terms related to the mystery genre, read with suspicion and fit clues together and learn how books in a series are similar. This unit is really fun and engaging for teacher and students!




            Our new writing unit focuses on our opinions. We will write persuasive speeches that have a thesis statement followed by strong reasons that will convince our readers to think like we do. Students enjoy giving their opinion on topics that are important to them. Within this unit I will be looking for improved spelling and grammar skills.

           Lastly, the math Unit 4 is all about measurement and fractions. Students will tell time to the minute and work on elapsed time problems. Students will work on calculating mass and volume. In addition, this unit will also introduce students to fractions. Students will use models to build, compare and investigate relationships among fractions.

       As always thank you for your support at home. Please contact me with any questions.
Stay WARM!!

December Units of Study

Hello Families!

       We have now completed two units for reading and writing. We have just begun our third unit, Character Studies. In this unit we will focus on the study of character traits in and across texts. Students will be reading books with strong character development. During the unit they will move on to reading in book clubs. This is a high interest learning activity.

        Our mentor text, my teaching text, is Because of Winn Dixie. This is a story about a lonely young girl, Opal, who finds and adopts a dog, Winn Dixie. The bond between Opal and her dog brings together many people in her small town of Naomi. It is a wonderful story with strong characters. The students, and teacher, love to hear this story told from Opal's point of view. Through the development of the characters student will learn

      Our work continues with our Non-fiction writing. Students have been working hard on their expert topic books. They have worked through the table of contents, introduction, vocabulary, descriptive and sequence chapters. We will publish later in the month with final copies both in writing and with technology. 

       In Math we are working in Unit 3, Multi-Digit Addition and Subtraction. This unit includes rounding numbers to the closest ten and hundred and estimating to add and subtract. Please remember to work in the Bridges Home Connections book to support the current unit of study.

       Thank you for your continued support at home!

October Updates

Hello Families!

       We are beginning new units in our core subject areas of reading, writing and math. Students completed the first unit in reading, Building a Reading Life. This unit led students to really believe in the value of reading long and strong! 
       We are moving into our second unit, Reading to Learn, Grasping Main Ideas and Text Structure. It includes determining main ideas and details with non fiction texts. Our mentor text is "Gorillas." Through a series of mini lessons I will model how to read informational texts so that understanding and enjoyment is maximized. Students will practice reading more than one text on the same topic. We are fortunate to have many wonderful informational texts to choose from.

        In writing we are moving on to The Art Of Informational Writing. This unit aligns nicely with our non fiction reading unit. Students will write about a topic that they are experts in. Through a series of mini lessons each student will plan, revise, edit and publish their own informational books. This requires stamina with writing but the end result is well worth the effort.

        We have just completed our first math unit with our new program, Bridges in Mathematics. We move into our 2nd unit, Introduction to Multiplication. Students will complete the following:

• Apply their understanding of arrays, repeated addition and skip counting to discover efficient multiplication strategies.
• Understand multiplication as comparison using arrays and number line puzzles
• Solve story problems and identify multiplication strategies
• Solve multi-step story problems with various operations

Stone Fox & Word Study

           We continue to work on our Building a Reading Life unit. Stone Fox is the mentor text. As I read this book to the class teaching points are made. Students are then able to apply these skills in their independent reading. It is an engaging novel about a ten year old boy, Willy. He lives on a potato farm in Wyoming with his grandfather. When his grandfather falls ill, Willy is determined to save their potato farm. The story takes place at an indeterminate time in the American Old West. Through this engaging story we are learning how to read for understanding and enjoyment. And, boy do the students enjoy it!

          Students have begun their word study work. We use a program called Words Their Way. Based on pre-assessment results, I have grouped the students. They work on daily activities using their assigned word list. Activities include spelling words with tiles, sorting, writing sentences, technology based activities and finally a spell check.

Our First Few Days Together

  

      We had a great first week in Room 32! As you can imagine there are many routines to learn as we begin a new school year. Your children really made an effort to listen and get to know each other. Rules and routines are so very important to a well run classroom. This will help to maximize learning.

      To help us create our rules and understand why they are important we read an interesting story, Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. The main character, Max is acting WILD. Students laughed at his experiences with the wild things. Max thought it would be fun to be with those wild things because they allowed him to do what ever he wanted. He soon learned that he was lonely and wanted to be back with his family where he felt safe and loved.

        Our learning has begun! Students have already shown their enthusiasm for learning. In reading and writing we begin the year with creating a strong foundation for confident, independent upper elementary readers and writers. 

Our goal is to instill a love for both reading and writing that will become lifelong habits.

        In reading students will learn to choose just right books, set reading goals, make predictions as well as other comprehension strategies. Listening and speaking skills will continue to improve through reading and talking with each other about their books.

       In writing students will be continuing their work from previous grades and write their own personal narratives. They will generate ideas then focus and elaborate on small moments. They will edit, revise and write long and strong!

      We begin math with a unit focused on addition and subtraction fact patterns and strategies. This serves as a nice review of second grade skills. Students will also work with problem solving and practice their skills with multi-digit addition and subtraction.

   

      I look forward to a great year! Please feel free to contact me with questions.