Weekly Update

What a great time we had last week!  In addition to finishing up our poetry books, completing Unit 7 in math and wrapping up our region tour of the West, we also had fun at our Poetry Cafe, our field trip to the Oakland Yard, and Field Day!  Check out the slideshows below to see TONS of photos from each event.

Poetry Cafe:
It was fun to see so many parents and students attend our Poetry Cafe.  The students did an outstanding job reading their poems, and we loved having some parents participate as well.  Double click on the slideshow below if you would like to see full-size photos.  If the slideshow does not work on your computer or phone, click HERE!






Hawaiian Luau at the Oakland Yard:
We took a field trip to the Oakland Yard in Waterford to celebrate the end of our U.S. Region Tour.  We pretended to be in Hawaii, the last stop on the region tour.  A huge thank you goes out to Mrs. Alexander, our room parent, who helped plan fun events for the kids and served yummy treats!  Double click on the slideshow below if you would like to see full-size photos.  If the slideshow does not work on your computer or phone, click HERE!





Field Day:
The annual Hill School Field Day was on Friday.  The students had such a fun time playing games and getting wet!  Double click on the slideshow below if you would like to see full-size photos.  If the slideshow does not work on your computer or phone, click HERE!






All-Star of the Week:
Griffin was our last All-Star of the Week!  He loved sharing his favorite stuffed dinosaur with the class on Monday along with great family pictures that included his 2 brothers.  His favorite book was Pete the Cat, which was read aloud on Tuesday.  His mom joined him in the cafeteria as his lunch buddy on Friday.  What a fun week!

Weekly Update

Reading & Writing Workshop:
Students have been working diligently in their poetry anthologies.  They've spent time copying their final drafts and drawing and coloring illustrations.  We also spent time in the computer lab creating a cover page.  We look forward to sharing the anthologies with you Tuesday evening during our Poetry Cafe!

Math:
We continued to learn more about fractions.  Students are able to identify shaded parts of a whole as a fraction.  They are also able to place fractions on a number line.  As long as the fraction is less than one students don't seem to have a problem placing it on the number line correctly.  However, it is trickier for students to place a fraction greater than one on the number line (see example below).  We also learned how to compare fractions using the greater than, less than, and equal symbols.  If the fractions being compared have the same denominator, the greater fraction is the fraction with the greater numerator.  If the fractions being compared have the same numerator, the greater fraction is the fraction with the lesser denominator.  Finally, students learned equivalent fractions, such as 2/4 = 1/2.  We will wrap up Unit 7 this week and take our final assessment at the end of the week.

Science:
Our measurement unit is coming to an end.  There will be a final assessment at the end of the week.  We practiced measuring weight and capacity last week.  Students measured the weight of items using a balance scale.  They placed an item in one cup of the balance scale and gram pieces in the other cup.  Students also measured the capacity of different containers.  They worked together in groups to estimate how much water they think a container held.  Then they used syringes (measuring 50ml) and beakers (measuring 100ml) to determine an accurate capacity of each container.

All-Star of the Week:
Grace was our fabulous All-Star this week!  She enjoyed a special lunch with her dad on Friday.  Students enjoyed listening to her read aloud chapter one from the first book in the Harry Potter series.  We also had fun listening to Grace share her photos and items from her sharing sack.  Students wrote nice compliments to Grace at the end of the week.