We finished reviewing all reading genres--fantasy, realistic fiction, traditional literature, mystery, biography, autobiography, and informational. Students will record the genre of each book he/she reads. Soon we will begin to track the types of genres we are reading to make sure we are reading a variety of texts. We also introduced the CAFE (comprehension, accuracy, fluency, expand vocabulary) board to students and taught a fluency lesson. We discussed how readers pick up their pace while reading. Students learned that readers follow the words with their eyes while they read, read smoothly so they don't have to look back so often, and read with feeling.
Writing Workshop
This week students have spent time writing independently in their writer's notebooks. We have discussed the difference between a watermelon topic and a seed story (a big topic vs. a small moment from the big topic). We also modeled for students what a writing conference looks like and our expectations for the class as we hold individual writing conferences. Students practiced telling a small moment step by step across their "story hand" using sequence words. Finally we focused on including descriptive details in our writing to paint a picture in the reader's mind.
Math Workshop
This week we continued to work on multiplication and division word problems. Students need to be able to solve the word problems with a math drawing and an equation. We also discussed equations with variables, such as 9 x n = 18 so n = 2. Finally we learned a trick using our hands to help us with our 9 facts for multiplication and division. Check out the video from You Tube to understand our 9s trick.
Science
We have completed the first two science investigations. In the first investigation students observed water more closely. They used a dropper to place individual drops of water on the different surfaces (wax paper, foil, paper towel, and sponge). Through this investigation they learned water is absorbed by some materials and it beads up on some materials. In the second investigation students explored the surface tension of water. Using a dropper, students placed individual drops of water on a penny until the water spilled over. Through this investigation students learned surface tension makes water form a sphere or dome and soap added to water reduces its surface tension.
Headlines
Students were engaged in a Visible Thinking routine known as headlines. They worked together to come up with phrases they felt described our classroom community. Then they worked with a partner to decorate a pennant with a headline. Pictures of each pennant are below. In case you are unable to read a headline, the pennants say the following:
-Kind and Nice in Every Way
-Keep Calm and Read On
-Reach for the Stars
-Best Team in School
-Have Fun While Learning
-Fill Buckets Everyday
-Do Whatever It Takes to Learn
-Never Give Up
-Believe Anything Is Possible
-Good as Gold
-Work Hard Play Hard
-Never Bully
Jog-a-Thon
Students attended an assembly to learn more about the upcoming Jog-a-Thon. Your child's pledge sheet and collection envelop went home on Thursday. The 2013 Jog-a-Thon will be Friday, October 5. A couple of students from our classroom were picked to participate in the assembly...
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