Back to reality...

I hope you all had a nice week off! Although it was freezing, my family and I were able to find a lot of "warm" things to do and took advantage of having the time off together! As nice as it is to be off, I think we're all looking forward to getting back on a "schedule" and are anxious for the weather to start warming up!

Here is a brief rundown of what we'll be doing in class this week:

Reading: We will be diving into biographies! By the end of the week, your child will be paired with a biography of a person from history that interests them.

Writing: This week we'll finish putting non-fiction text features in our non-fiction writing and learning how to edit with a partner.

Math: We are embarking on the "Wonderful World of Fractions!" We also will continue to work on multi-step word problems and learn some vocabulary associated with geometry.

Science: We will wrap up our solar system research this week!

There wasn't a Friday Letter before break. Friday Letter will resume this Friday. I did ask that students jot down what they read over break, so I'm expecting a Reading Log to be handed in tomorrow. Your child will be bringing home their spelling list for this week tomorrow. A March and April Current Events calendar will come home tomorrow as well.

NYS ELA and Math Exams: A brief note on the upcoming exams in April...our students have never taken an exam of this nature. Both exams are given over a three day period for 70 minutes each day. We will begin to learn test taking strategies as well as practice some sample exams so students become aware of their structure and become familiar with what will be expected of them. I feel that by being aware of the format, understanding how to take a test, and explaining that this is a "show what you know" test, helps to alleviate any anxieties. We do not spend a lot of time discussing this, but I do try to answer all questions students have openly and honestly. I let them know that this is to see if they have learned anything while being in school! :-) I encourage you to give them the same message.

Happy Snow Day!

Wow! February already! With today's snow day, this week is shaping up to be a short one!

     Tuesday is our first of two conference days this month. I have a full day of conferences planned for tomorrow, however, if you would like a conference and have not signed up yet, please look at available times for February 11.

   This month current events are voluntary and we have about 8 students signed up to present. If your child has not signed up, but would like to, please have them check on an available date with me this week.

Reading

     We continue to read our mystery book while taking notes like a detective. We are also reading our independent chapter books and writing a short response each day.

Writing

     We will finish drafting our informational writing piece while working on revising. We will also look at adding text features to make our writing more interesting. 

Math

    We will continue division, looking specifically at rules to understand when you have a divisor of 1 and 0. We will spend a large portion of this week looking at word problems and figuring out when to multiply or divide to answer the story problem.

   This week we will also continue to work on Area. This week we will find the area of large figures and irregular figures. 

Science

     We have begun learning about the Solar System. This week we will use the internet and books to research the planets. We will research Earth together to learn how to use these resources. Then the students will research each planet on his/her own.

Valentine's Day:

We will celebrate Valentine's Day on Friday, February 13th. If your child chooses, they can make a Valentine for each child in the class. They may decorate a "mailbox" for their Valentines. This "mailbox" could be a shoe box, a gift bag, a decorated coffee can, etc. Be creative! Please bring your "mailbox" and your Valentine's to school on Friday, February 13th. I will email you a class list so your child will be sure to make a card for each classmate.