Saturday, April 23, 2011

Week of April 25-29, 2011

FYI... Progress reports will go home on May 3rd.

CLASSWORK:
Math - we are reviewing addition/subtraction; place value; reading graphs
Reading - students just checked out new books last week... we'll continue
working on speed, comprehension, and retelling stories (help with DRA scores)
Writing - we are still working on punctuation, capitalization, and our persuasion letters
Social Studies - Jimmy Carter was introduced via a video on his history which can be viewed at http://www.jimmycarter.info/.  We'll discuss his life and contributions while in the White House and afterwards (nobel winner).
Science - we've finished our butterfly project... students did a fabulous job!...
it's on display outside our room if you get a chance to stop by and see it.... we will finish up with the life cycle next week.

HOMEWORK:
Math - review in math book... p.
Spelling - WTW 28; write each word 3 times; choose any 5 words and write a simple sentence for 2 of the words, a compound sentence for 1 word; and use quotation marks in the last two sentences using the remaining 2 words.  Our test is Friday.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Week of April 18 -22, 2011

Monday- last day of CRCT schedule
Tuesday - regular schedule/ make-up CRCT
Wednesday - Friday... in math we will practice division and multiplication, addition and subtraction, and place value... science - We will wrap up the Life Cycle unit... reading - we are continuing to work on comprehension, making predictions, and retelling stories... writing - We are working on technology right now (font, size, inserting pictures, etc) and we will spend the next two weeks finishing up our persuasion letter; spelling -we're on WTW 27.

HOMEWORK:
homework folder - 2 page worksheet on capitalization... this will be graded; WTW 27... test is Friday.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Week of April 11-15, 2011

CRCT testing begins this week.  Although our class is not testing, we must follow the same rules... testing is from 8:00 - 10:30 and no one is allowed in the halls during this time.  This means students must take their bathroom break before 7:45 and after 10:30.  Please send extra clothes and a plastic bag with your child if he/she is at risk of needing them during this week.

CLASSWORK:
Math:   This week we will work on multiplication, division, time, money (making change) and addition and subtraction (2 and 3 digits).  For the next three weeks we will be reviewing these topics.

Spelling:  We will test over WTW 25 on Tuesday and over WTW 26 on Friday.  We will be studying these words every day - definitions, using them in sentences, synonyms/antonyms - until we take our test on Friday.

Reading:  Students should be reading 20 minutes each day... suggestion:  have students write in a journal about what they read that day.  They'll take another DRA test this quarter.  Areas of improvement - timed reading and comprehension.  Students should be able to tell you the names of characters; the beginning, middle, end of the story with details.  This is what we're working on in class, too... these areas should help your child improve his/her DRA score.

Writing:  We are still working on a persuasion letter.  For the next three weeks, students will be given prompts and asked to write about it.  This will be timed... no more than one hour to organize their thoughts, write their ideas on paper, complete a rough draft, edit, and write their final copy.  This will help them with their writing for the 3rd grade and also help them understand the process they'll use when taking the CRCT writing test in the 5th grade.

Science:  For a week and a half, we'll discuss the Life Cycle of plants, insects, and animals.  Most of our work will be completed in class; however, some work might be sent home (notated in agenda) if students need extra time.  After this, we'll work on Social Studies and then finish our Health.

HOMEWORK:
Math:  Students have a worksheet (word problems) in their homework folder.  They should show all their work on a separate sheet of paper (or the back of their worksheet); check all subtraction problems, and then write their answer in the box with the word problem.

Reading:  Students have a story and comprehension questions attached to their math worksheet in their homework folder.  They should find the answers to their questions in the story and underline them.  After underlining all their answers in the story, they should then circle the correct answer to each question on their worksheet.

Spelling:  WTW 26 should be completed and turned in on Friday.  Some students like to write their words to help them study, others say they like to make flashcards.  Whichever way is better for your child is ok with me.  In class we are working on definitions and using the words in sentences.