Hello all -
I was out sick yesterday. The substitute didn't get to all that I left for her, so today was spent on getting caught up on that, not in preparation for the Pioneer books that were supposed to go home tonight.
So there will NOT be a Pioneer book to be read this evening. I will assign a new question to go with Johnny Appleseed Heads West on Thursday, just no reading of the Pioneer book tonight.
I apologize for the change in plans. Thank you for your flexibility!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Awesome-Autumn-Appleseed!
Hello! I hope you're enjoying your weekend!
This past Wednesday marked the first day of Autumn, as well as our field trip to the Great Frederick Fair! The students did a wonderful job - and what a great opportunity!!
In keeping with the Autumnal theme, we will be reading about Johnny Appleseed this week!
Your child will be coming home with a paper book about Johnny Appleseed, please keep this book in his/her book baggie all week long.
Before I go any further, I would like to bring something to your attention that has become a concern of mine. Please understand that I know not all students are directly involved in any of these situations, but there are enough students for me to bring it to the attention of the entire class. I have received messages, in one form or another (email, notes, verbal) expressing concerns about some unsafe behaviors that are happening between the students in our class. By unsafe I mean anything from running in the hallways, to yelling in one another's face, to bullying (teasing, leaving students out, etc.) on the playground. What concerns me the most is the safety of the students. Second, these behaviors are occurring during times where there is less adult supervision - in the hallways and at recess specifically. I took some time on Thursday to reread a book that we read towards the beginning of the year as a model for the "Respect" pillar of Character Counts. The book, Do Unto Otters, shows examples of the Golden Rule - "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you" or "Treat others the way you want to be treated"
As a class, we reviewed what it means to treat others the way you want to be treated. We reviewed the concept that while you don't need to be best friends with everyone, you do need to be respectful to everyone. We also reviewed the appropriate choices to make if someone is bothering you. For example, tell them to stop in a strong voice, ignore, walk away, if the situation doesn't improve, go tell an adult - all appropriate ways. Finally, we reviewed that just because an adult (teacher, parent, babysitter, etc.) isn't standing right next to them, doesn't give them permission to stop being respectful. I know that all our students usually DO treat others the way they want to be treated. We're all human, we all steer off the path every once in a while. It's just important that we steer back onto it again as quickly as possible :)
I would greatly appreciate it if you could communicate a similar message at home. Thank you so much!!
Moving on :)
We will be using the story of Johnny Appleseed,as well as many other Tall Tales, during our study of Short Stories. The Short Stories unit will focus on story elements (character, setting, problem, solution), genres of Short Stories (Tall Tales, Realistic Fiction, Fables and other Folktales), as well as utilizing their knowledge of the Writing Process and Good Traits of Writing to respond to questions.
Short a words will continue to be our focus for spelling. Students will be bringing home their spelling lists this week. Ten words will be assigned to the whole class, the other ten will be of their choice. The spelling lists will come home on a piece of journal paper, with a typed list of the assigned words glued to it. Please note that students will be expected to write sentences on their next spelling quiz. Students must use five of their spelling words (their choice) and include them in 3-5 sentences. Words must be spelled and used correctly. Each sentence will be worth 4 points - capitalization, punctuation, spelling and usage. The ten assigned words are available on Spelling City for practice!! To search for the list, click on the "Find a List" tab, then type "Mawhinney" into the search window. Surprisingly enough, my name is the only name that comes up :)(Not too many Mawhinneys I suppose!!) Just click on my name and that will take you to the available lists for my class. As of right now, Short A is the only available list. Practicing words on Spelling City ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY counts for a spelling practice activity :)
Math this week will have some multi-digit addition practice, as well as some place value and number line practice. I must say I am really impressed with how ALL the students are progressing with their Mad Minute Quizzes - way to go kiddos!!
We will be finishing up the Drug Awareness Unit this week, with a quiz on Friday. The study guide for the quiz was sent home Thursday in the Home-School Folders. This is just a reference tool for you and your child to use together in preparation for the quiz. This does not need to be returned to school. Thank you!
We will also be beginning our Star of the Week schedule! I have done a Star of the Week - style project in the past, but have recently changed a few things based upon the way Mrs. Brunner does hers. I think this way really allows the student to practice a wider variety of content area skills - in addition to their moment in the spotlight!
Star of the Week is a time for everyone in our class to celebrate the uniqueness of the student being honored. It provides an opportunity to recognize the qualities that make the individual a good friend, a good student, and other ways they display the Character Counts pillars. It is a wonderful occasion for students to share and to be appreciated.
Each student will have the opportunity to be the Star of the Week. A schedule of the Stars of the Week will be coming home this coming week (in addition to being posted towards the bottom of this post). The week before your child's turn to be Star of the Week, a Star of the Week bag will be sent home that will include a personal information sheet, some timeline templates, as well as a set of directions. On the date indicated, your child should return the bag with the completed information sheet, timeline, and a few small items that might help define who they are. The timeline will probably be the most time-consuming activity so you may encourage your child to begin thinking about and planning for it in advance. The purpose of the timeline is to reinforce the sequencing of events and help them understand the passage of time. (It also correlates PERFECTLY with Math - as we're using number lines this week - wooo hoo!)
My favorite part of the Star of the Week is that it encourages a sense of community and increases self-esteem. A wonderful keepsake that each student will receive is a book of friendly letters from all the classmates affirming his/her positive character traits. It's important that all students feel welcome and respected. I am confident that an end result of this project will be that students will feel good about who they are and what they do.
I hope that you will make a note on your calendars as to when it's your child's turn to be Star of the Week.
To model what is expected for the Star of the Week presentations, Johnny Appleseed will be our first star of the week! The rest of the schedule is below:
10/4/10 Diego
10/11/10 Trixy
10/18/10 Connor
10/25/10 Emma
11/8/10 Maegan
11/15/10 A.J.
11/29/10 Jemma
12/6/10 Helen
12/13/10 Sophia
12/20/10 Gabriel
1/3/11 Damien
1/10/11 Nicholas
1/24/11 Kristina
1/31/11 Nikita
2/7/11 Chelsea
2/14/11 Hasita
3/7/11 DeVante
3/14/11 Kevin
3/28/11 Drew
4/4/11 Matthew
4/11/11 Joseph
5/9/11 Thomas
Thank you again for your continued support! As always, please email me with any questions or concerns you may have.
Have a wonderful weekend :)
K.M.
This past Wednesday marked the first day of Autumn, as well as our field trip to the Great Frederick Fair! The students did a wonderful job - and what a great opportunity!!
In keeping with the Autumnal theme, we will be reading about Johnny Appleseed this week!
Your child will be coming home with a paper book about Johnny Appleseed, please keep this book in his/her book baggie all week long.
Before I go any further, I would like to bring something to your attention that has become a concern of mine. Please understand that I know not all students are directly involved in any of these situations, but there are enough students for me to bring it to the attention of the entire class. I have received messages, in one form or another (email, notes, verbal) expressing concerns about some unsafe behaviors that are happening between the students in our class. By unsafe I mean anything from running in the hallways, to yelling in one another's face, to bullying (teasing, leaving students out, etc.) on the playground. What concerns me the most is the safety of the students. Second, these behaviors are occurring during times where there is less adult supervision - in the hallways and at recess specifically. I took some time on Thursday to reread a book that we read towards the beginning of the year as a model for the "Respect" pillar of Character Counts. The book, Do Unto Otters, shows examples of the Golden Rule - "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you" or "Treat others the way you want to be treated"
As a class, we reviewed what it means to treat others the way you want to be treated. We reviewed the concept that while you don't need to be best friends with everyone, you do need to be respectful to everyone. We also reviewed the appropriate choices to make if someone is bothering you. For example, tell them to stop in a strong voice, ignore, walk away, if the situation doesn't improve, go tell an adult - all appropriate ways. Finally, we reviewed that just because an adult (teacher, parent, babysitter, etc.) isn't standing right next to them, doesn't give them permission to stop being respectful. I know that all our students usually DO treat others the way they want to be treated. We're all human, we all steer off the path every once in a while. It's just important that we steer back onto it again as quickly as possible :)
I would greatly appreciate it if you could communicate a similar message at home. Thank you so much!!
Moving on :)
We will be using the story of Johnny Appleseed,as well as many other Tall Tales, during our study of Short Stories. The Short Stories unit will focus on story elements (character, setting, problem, solution), genres of Short Stories (Tall Tales, Realistic Fiction, Fables and other Folktales), as well as utilizing their knowledge of the Writing Process and Good Traits of Writing to respond to questions.
Short a words will continue to be our focus for spelling. Students will be bringing home their spelling lists this week. Ten words will be assigned to the whole class, the other ten will be of their choice. The spelling lists will come home on a piece of journal paper, with a typed list of the assigned words glued to it. Please note that students will be expected to write sentences on their next spelling quiz. Students must use five of their spelling words (their choice) and include them in 3-5 sentences. Words must be spelled and used correctly. Each sentence will be worth 4 points - capitalization, punctuation, spelling and usage. The ten assigned words are available on Spelling City for practice!! To search for the list, click on the "Find a List" tab, then type "Mawhinney" into the search window. Surprisingly enough, my name is the only name that comes up :)(Not too many Mawhinneys I suppose!!) Just click on my name and that will take you to the available lists for my class. As of right now, Short A is the only available list. Practicing words on Spelling City ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY counts for a spelling practice activity :)
Math this week will have some multi-digit addition practice, as well as some place value and number line practice. I must say I am really impressed with how ALL the students are progressing with their Mad Minute Quizzes - way to go kiddos!!
We will be finishing up the Drug Awareness Unit this week, with a quiz on Friday. The study guide for the quiz was sent home Thursday in the Home-School Folders. This is just a reference tool for you and your child to use together in preparation for the quiz. This does not need to be returned to school. Thank you!
We will also be beginning our Star of the Week schedule! I have done a Star of the Week - style project in the past, but have recently changed a few things based upon the way Mrs. Brunner does hers. I think this way really allows the student to practice a wider variety of content area skills - in addition to their moment in the spotlight!
Star of the Week is a time for everyone in our class to celebrate the uniqueness of the student being honored. It provides an opportunity to recognize the qualities that make the individual a good friend, a good student, and other ways they display the Character Counts pillars. It is a wonderful occasion for students to share and to be appreciated.
Each student will have the opportunity to be the Star of the Week. A schedule of the Stars of the Week will be coming home this coming week (in addition to being posted towards the bottom of this post). The week before your child's turn to be Star of the Week, a Star of the Week bag will be sent home that will include a personal information sheet, some timeline templates, as well as a set of directions. On the date indicated, your child should return the bag with the completed information sheet, timeline, and a few small items that might help define who they are. The timeline will probably be the most time-consuming activity so you may encourage your child to begin thinking about and planning for it in advance. The purpose of the timeline is to reinforce the sequencing of events and help them understand the passage of time. (It also correlates PERFECTLY with Math - as we're using number lines this week - wooo hoo!)
My favorite part of the Star of the Week is that it encourages a sense of community and increases self-esteem. A wonderful keepsake that each student will receive is a book of friendly letters from all the classmates affirming his/her positive character traits. It's important that all students feel welcome and respected. I am confident that an end result of this project will be that students will feel good about who they are and what they do.
I hope that you will make a note on your calendars as to when it's your child's turn to be Star of the Week.
To model what is expected for the Star of the Week presentations, Johnny Appleseed will be our first star of the week! The rest of the schedule is below:
10/4/10 Diego
10/11/10 Trixy
10/18/10 Connor
10/25/10 Emma
11/8/10 Maegan
11/15/10 A.J.
11/29/10 Jemma
12/6/10 Helen
12/13/10 Sophia
12/20/10 Gabriel
1/3/11 Damien
1/10/11 Nicholas
1/24/11 Kristina
1/31/11 Nikita
2/7/11 Chelsea
2/14/11 Hasita
3/7/11 DeVante
3/14/11 Kevin
3/28/11 Drew
4/4/11 Matthew
4/11/11 Joseph
5/9/11 Thomas
Thank you again for your continued support! As always, please email me with any questions or concerns you may have.
Have a wonderful weekend :)
K.M.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Hello, hello!
Upcoming this week...
FIELD TRIP!! Looking forward to the Great Frederick Fair! Please be sure your child is dressed appropriately for the weather and for WALKING - because we'll be doing LOTS of it :) Water bottles, hats and sunglasses are permitted, but please remind your child that he/she is responsible for them. Please be sure your child's name is written on his/her disposable lunch bag. The majority of this field trip will be spent outside, so please apply any sunscreen/bug spray before sending your child to school. Thank you!
We did not begin the drug education unit last week as originally planned, but we are starting it this week! There will be a small quiz on the information presented in the drug education unit on Friday, October 1st. A study guide will be sent home this week.
We will be finishing up the Velveteen Rabbit this week! On Thursday, students may bring in their favorite stuffed animal/toy to show to the class. This will also be the subject of a letter that they will be writing to the Velveteen Rabbit. I ask that students refrain from bringing in any toys that make noise, or any toys that are too large for them to carry. Thank you!!
In math we are taking the skills we've learning with patterns and place value and applying them to addition and subtraction. This is also referred to as "Composing" and "Decomposing" numbers. Students will also be using what they've learned about place value to create a class "I'm thinking of a number..." book!! Each student will create a page in this book that will contain clues about the 3-5 digit number they are thinking of. We (Mr. Kidd's class and ours) hope to present these books to the first grade!
Thank you so much for your continued support and communication! Be on the lookout for information about Wednesday's field trip to come home tomorrow and Tuesday.
Have a wonderful Sunday!
:) K.M.
Upcoming this week...
FIELD TRIP!! Looking forward to the Great Frederick Fair! Please be sure your child is dressed appropriately for the weather and for WALKING - because we'll be doing LOTS of it :) Water bottles, hats and sunglasses are permitted, but please remind your child that he/she is responsible for them. Please be sure your child's name is written on his/her disposable lunch bag. The majority of this field trip will be spent outside, so please apply any sunscreen/bug spray before sending your child to school. Thank you!
We did not begin the drug education unit last week as originally planned, but we are starting it this week! There will be a small quiz on the information presented in the drug education unit on Friday, October 1st. A study guide will be sent home this week.
We will be finishing up the Velveteen Rabbit this week! On Thursday, students may bring in their favorite stuffed animal/toy to show to the class. This will also be the subject of a letter that they will be writing to the Velveteen Rabbit. I ask that students refrain from bringing in any toys that make noise, or any toys that are too large for them to carry. Thank you!!
In math we are taking the skills we've learning with patterns and place value and applying them to addition and subtraction. This is also referred to as "Composing" and "Decomposing" numbers. Students will also be using what they've learned about place value to create a class "I'm thinking of a number..." book!! Each student will create a page in this book that will contain clues about the 3-5 digit number they are thinking of. We (Mr. Kidd's class and ours) hope to present these books to the first grade!
Thank you so much for your continued support and communication! Be on the lookout for information about Wednesday's field trip to come home tomorrow and Tuesday.
Have a wonderful Sunday!
:) K.M.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Addendum :)
Hello again!
One of the excellent questions asked at Back to School Night was in reference to Frederick County's expectations for basic facts acquisition. It was mentioned that MCPS expects a student to recall 1 basic fact/3 seconds. FCPS curriculum states the following: MA.200.60.26c Demonstrate quick recall of number combinations for addition & subtraction (6.C.1.a)(Second Grade); and MA.300.60.26c Maintain quick recall of number combinations for addition & subtraction (Third Grade). The State curriculum states: Demonstrate proficiency with addition and subtraction basic facts using a variety of strategies (Second Grade). So that doesn't quite answer the question!
Ultimately, as I was saying, the goal of the Mad Minute is to beef up those basic facts. The students' lives will be that much easier down the mathematical road as their basic facts acquisition and recall skills strengthen.
Also, you may notice as more papers are coming home that you will see some papers with actually grades/percentages, and others with smiley faces. The smiley-faced papers indicate activities that we did together as a class, or as a practice activity after a lesson. If your child brings home a paper with a "Please Complete" or "Please Finish" message written on it, please have him/her complete/finish the work and turn it back into me again. I use the :) papers to determine the learning skills grades - so let's make sure they're getting credit when credit is due!
Thank you again! Have a wonderful weekend!
One of the excellent questions asked at Back to School Night was in reference to Frederick County's expectations for basic facts acquisition. It was mentioned that MCPS expects a student to recall 1 basic fact/3 seconds. FCPS curriculum states the following: MA.200.60.26c Demonstrate quick recall of number combinations for addition & subtraction (6.C.1.a)(Second Grade); and MA.300.60.26c Maintain quick recall of number combinations for addition & subtraction (Third Grade). The State curriculum states: Demonstrate proficiency with addition and subtraction basic facts using a variety of strategies (Second Grade). So that doesn't quite answer the question!
Ultimately, as I was saying, the goal of the Mad Minute is to beef up those basic facts. The students' lives will be that much easier down the mathematical road as their basic facts acquisition and recall skills strengthen.
Also, you may notice as more papers are coming home that you will see some papers with actually grades/percentages, and others with smiley faces. The smiley-faced papers indicate activities that we did together as a class, or as a practice activity after a lesson. If your child brings home a paper with a "Please Complete" or "Please Finish" message written on it, please have him/her complete/finish the work and turn it back into me again. I use the :) papers to determine the learning skills grades - so let's make sure they're getting credit when credit is due!
Thank you again! Have a wonderful weekend!
Friday, September 10, 2010
Buzz Buzz!
Worky work! Busy bees!!
This week in Language Arts we have continued comparing fiction to non-fiction texts, utilizing before, during, and after reading strategies, as well as using those strategies to make predictions.
One book we practiced making predictions with is The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein. This is the Caldecott Award-Winning story of Phillipe Petit - the man who walked a tight rope between the World Trade Center Towers in August of 1974. If any of you are familiar with the book or independent film Man on a Wire - this is the same guy.
I've been sharing this book with students on or around 9/11 for the past four years. I think it's a wonderful way to associate a positive memory with the towers, and it has also served as a springboard for students to ask questions about what happened on that day. There weren't any questions or connections vocalized by the students today.
Beginning next week, we will be reading The Velveteen Rabbit as a whole class. I choose to read this book with the students for multiple reasons. First, it ties in with Character Counts – showing examples of so many different pillars of character! Second, I like to start with a smaller chapter book to begin the discourse model for reading groups. This model is great to use with the Gifted and Talented program as it really harnesses the higher level comprehension and questioning skills. I will be alternating back and forth between the discourse model, and the Literature Circle model throughout the year.
Students will be expected to read one chapter per night, twice. Please do not let the students go ahead in the book – our discussion relies on all the students being at the same point in the book. Each day we will meet in our groups to discuss new vocabulary, answer any questions the students may have about the book, as well as answer questions in response to the book. These small group discussions will build up to the whole group discussion that we will have at the end of the week.
The book will be kept in the baggie with the Reading Response Journal (RRJ). The pages in the journal will be used as note taking pages, and response pages. The pages will be clearly marked as such: each chapter will have a page labeled for note taking, and a page labeled for responding. The note taking pages will be for listing unknown or interesting words, questions students have about what has happened in the story, and/or an area to prepare their responses.
I have seen such a great amount of success with this model in the past. The quality of discussion is like that of a book club – for adults!
As always, should you have any questions about this model please contact me as soon as possible. Kelly.Phelps@fcps.org
This coming week in math we will be wrapping up place value skills while continuing to practice patterns skills. We will be picking up where we left off with the Mad Minute next week, finishing up with a quiz on Friday.
Our next Social Studies Unit is a drug education program entitled "Here's Looking at You". In this unit students will be able to: identify themselves as unique individuals, discuss the qualities of good friends/friendships, describe the physiological and behavioral effects of nicotine, identify drinks that contain alcohol, describe the behavioral effects of alcohol, identify and describe the functions of the brain, heart, liver and lungs, describe the effects of nicotine and alcohol on the body, and identify drugs as "any substances except food that affects the way the mind or body works." This program was developed by teh Educational Service District No. 121 under grants from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. This program extends from Kindergarten through 12th grade. The overall goal of this program is to help young people make responsible decisions concerning drugs. As always, should you have any questions about this unit please contact me as soon as possible. Kelly.Phelps@fcps.org
In the students' Home-School folders today was the permission slip for our first field trip!! We will be going to the Great Frederick Fair on Wednesday, September 22! This trip is not for rides and games, but for the agricultural and economical lessons that can be learned from a fair. Chaperones are welcome to attend. If you wish to ride the bus, please be advised that the cost is $2.00. If you wish to attend but are willing/able/would rather drive that is perfectly fine as well, without the $2.00 fee. Chaperones must be present at the school before we leave for the field trip, and follow or ride the busses to the Great Frederick Fairgrounds. SO EXCITED!!
Thank you to all of you who signed up to volunteer! I will be putting together a volunteer calendar to begin the week of October 4th. I'll be in touch - thank you again!
Have a wonderful weekend! Enjoy this great, autumnal weather!
:) KM
This week in Language Arts we have continued comparing fiction to non-fiction texts, utilizing before, during, and after reading strategies, as well as using those strategies to make predictions.
One book we practiced making predictions with is The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein. This is the Caldecott Award-Winning story of Phillipe Petit - the man who walked a tight rope between the World Trade Center Towers in August of 1974. If any of you are familiar with the book or independent film Man on a Wire - this is the same guy.
I've been sharing this book with students on or around 9/11 for the past four years. I think it's a wonderful way to associate a positive memory with the towers, and it has also served as a springboard for students to ask questions about what happened on that day. There weren't any questions or connections vocalized by the students today.
Beginning next week, we will be reading The Velveteen Rabbit as a whole class. I choose to read this book with the students for multiple reasons. First, it ties in with Character Counts – showing examples of so many different pillars of character! Second, I like to start with a smaller chapter book to begin the discourse model for reading groups. This model is great to use with the Gifted and Talented program as it really harnesses the higher level comprehension and questioning skills. I will be alternating back and forth between the discourse model, and the Literature Circle model throughout the year.
Students will be expected to read one chapter per night, twice. Please do not let the students go ahead in the book – our discussion relies on all the students being at the same point in the book. Each day we will meet in our groups to discuss new vocabulary, answer any questions the students may have about the book, as well as answer questions in response to the book. These small group discussions will build up to the whole group discussion that we will have at the end of the week.
The book will be kept in the baggie with the Reading Response Journal (RRJ). The pages in the journal will be used as note taking pages, and response pages. The pages will be clearly marked as such: each chapter will have a page labeled for note taking, and a page labeled for responding. The note taking pages will be for listing unknown or interesting words, questions students have about what has happened in the story, and/or an area to prepare their responses.
I have seen such a great amount of success with this model in the past. The quality of discussion is like that of a book club – for adults!
As always, should you have any questions about this model please contact me as soon as possible. Kelly.Phelps@fcps.org
This coming week in math we will be wrapping up place value skills while continuing to practice patterns skills. We will be picking up where we left off with the Mad Minute next week, finishing up with a quiz on Friday.
Our next Social Studies Unit is a drug education program entitled "Here's Looking at You". In this unit students will be able to: identify themselves as unique individuals, discuss the qualities of good friends/friendships, describe the physiological and behavioral effects of nicotine, identify drinks that contain alcohol, describe the behavioral effects of alcohol, identify and describe the functions of the brain, heart, liver and lungs, describe the effects of nicotine and alcohol on the body, and identify drugs as "any substances except food that affects the way the mind or body works." This program was developed by teh Educational Service District No. 121 under grants from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. This program extends from Kindergarten through 12th grade. The overall goal of this program is to help young people make responsible decisions concerning drugs. As always, should you have any questions about this unit please contact me as soon as possible. Kelly.Phelps@fcps.org
In the students' Home-School folders today was the permission slip for our first field trip!! We will be going to the Great Frederick Fair on Wednesday, September 22! This trip is not for rides and games, but for the agricultural and economical lessons that can be learned from a fair. Chaperones are welcome to attend. If you wish to ride the bus, please be advised that the cost is $2.00. If you wish to attend but are willing/able/would rather drive that is perfectly fine as well, without the $2.00 fee. Chaperones must be present at the school before we leave for the field trip, and follow or ride the busses to the Great Frederick Fairgrounds. SO EXCITED!!
Thank you to all of you who signed up to volunteer! I will be putting together a volunteer calendar to begin the week of October 4th. I'll be in touch - thank you again!
Have a wonderful weekend! Enjoy this great, autumnal weather!
:) KM
Friday, September 3, 2010
Have a Wonderful Three Day Weekend!!
Hats off to another spectacular week!
This week in Language Arts we have been working on comparing fiction and non-fiction texts, identifying and describing text features, and using graphic organizers to prepare our writing. Next week we will be continuing to practice identifying and describing text features, in addition to inference and identifying the main idea.
The past two weeks in Social Studies have been concentrated on the Six Character Counts Pillars: Respect, Responsibility, Caring, Trustworthiness, Citizenship, and Fairness. We have been making text-to-self and text-to-world connections as we read various stories, and describe how they show examples of the various Pillars. Two books we've read so far are Do Unto Otters and The Berenstain Bears and the Messy Room.
We've focused primarily on patterns this week in Math. We will continue this focus as a practice point, as we move on to place value.
Even though it's September - it's still WICKED hot!! Our classroom is in an oddly-placed space in the building - as in not close to ANY water fountains. Please send in a water bottle with your child with his/her name written on it in permanent marker. This will allow your child to have water whenever he/she needs it, and eliminate the travel time it takes to go to and from the water fountains. We have a super-short day!! Let's do everything we can to make the most of our time! :)
I hope you all have a wonderful three day weekend with your families and friends. Thank you again for your continued support and communication ~
See you Tuesday!
K.M. :)
This week in Language Arts we have been working on comparing fiction and non-fiction texts, identifying and describing text features, and using graphic organizers to prepare our writing. Next week we will be continuing to practice identifying and describing text features, in addition to inference and identifying the main idea.
The past two weeks in Social Studies have been concentrated on the Six Character Counts Pillars: Respect, Responsibility, Caring, Trustworthiness, Citizenship, and Fairness. We have been making text-to-self and text-to-world connections as we read various stories, and describe how they show examples of the various Pillars. Two books we've read so far are Do Unto Otters and The Berenstain Bears and the Messy Room.
We've focused primarily on patterns this week in Math. We will continue this focus as a practice point, as we move on to place value.
Even though it's September - it's still WICKED hot!! Our classroom is in an oddly-placed space in the building - as in not close to ANY water fountains. Please send in a water bottle with your child with his/her name written on it in permanent marker. This will allow your child to have water whenever he/she needs it, and eliminate the travel time it takes to go to and from the water fountains. We have a super-short day!! Let's do everything we can to make the most of our time! :)
I hope you all have a wonderful three day weekend with your families and friends. Thank you again for your continued support and communication ~
See you Tuesday!
K.M. :)
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