January 4th-8th

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

Welcome back to school!  I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season!  I definitely enjoyed being able to spend some quality time with my family.  Any time I get to spend with them is so special to me!

Now that the snow is here, please help you child to remember to bring all of their winter gear with them to school.  They will need their winter coats, snow pants, boots, hats, and mittens to play during recess time.  

Regular homework will begin again this week.  Homework packets are due on Monday!

THIS WEEK IN...

Writer’s Workshop:  We are focusing on the writing goal that states that our writing has an order and that it makes sense.  We will playing a fun game called “Masterpiece Mixup” where a brilliant story has been broken into pieces.  It will be up to us to put the masterpiece back together again!  In our individual work time, Team Howard will visit three stations.  First, they will help fix mixed up short stories and put them back in the correct order again.  Then, they will use picture cues to help them write a short story that has a beginning, middle, and end.  Finally, we’ll use pictures, questions, and statements to prompt our writing.  Students will have the choice to write for three different purposes:  to inform, to persuade, or to share a personal memory (a narrative).

Reader’s Workshop:  Each day will focus on a different reading strategy.  First, we’ll talk about the importance of tuning into interesting words.  There are so many great words in the books we read each day!  We’ll practice how we stop and think about them in our reading.  Then, the team will be given their very own word catchers to catch any interesting words that they find during their read to self time.  These words will be words they can use in conversations or in their writing.  Next, we’ll focus on a strategy that helps us solve unknown words.  This strategy is called cross checking.  When we cross check, we’ll ask ourselves three very important questions.  Does is look right?  Does it sound right?  Does it make sense?  We’ll also practice a comprehension strategy called retelling.  This time, we’ll practice it with flair!  We’ll use the yellow brick road from the Wizard of Oz to help us retell the characters, setting, problem, beginning, middle, end, and solution.  Finally, we’ll practice another accuracy strategy called stretch, blend, and reread.  We’ll stretch out each sound in difficult words, blend them together, and then reread them with gusto!  

Spelling:  This week will be our review/challenge week.  Any words your child missed from units 5-8 will be words that they practice again this week.  Then, however many words remain in our 10 practice words will be filled with challenge words from the third grade priority list.  Team Howard will be assessed on these words on Friday.

Math:  This week, we are going to have a lot of fun reviewing our strategies for memorizing our math facts.  In second grade, we have to remember how to add and subtract numbers up to 20 in a snap!  That’s a lot of math facts!  To help us with our fluency we’ve been practicing some strategies to help us remember these facts quickly.  Here’s a review of what we’ve practiced so far:

+1/-1:  We picture a number line in our head.  The number we are looking for is either the next number (+1) or the number before (-1).

+2/-2:  We picture a number line in our heads again.  If we add two, we take two hops forward on the number line.  If we subtract two, we take two hops backward on the number line.

+/- combinations of 10:  We’ve practiced this a lot!  Every day, we count the days of school.  We then review how many more straws we’ll need to make a bundle of 10.  For example, on the 57th day of school, there would have been 7 bundles of one (straws) in the ones place.  On this day, we would have needed 3 more bundles of one (straws) to make a bundle of 10.  We’ve also practiced this a lot with tens frames.  We’ve practiced identifying how many dots are in a tens frame in a snap.  Then, we talk about how many more would be needed to make a bundle of 10.  With each kind of practice, we talk about how the facts can be flipped as well.  For example, if we have 4, we’ll need 6 more to make 10 because we know that 4 + 6 = 10.  If we know that, then we also know that 6 + 4= 10.

+/-doubles:  We love singing the doubles rap!  These facts come with lots and lots of practice and are super important for us to know!  We need to know our doubles facts forwards and backwards if we want to be able to memorize our near doubles (doubles +1) facts.  Here’s a silly video of some teachers singing the doubles rap:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jG6n5xLt-0Q

+/- near doubles:  If we know our doubles, then we can practice our near doubles!  Near doubles facts are facts like 1+2, 3+4, 5+6, etc.  So, if we know 1 + 1 = 2, then we know that 1 + 2 = 3, because 2 is one more than one.  Here is another example:  I can solve 6+7 because I know that 6 + 6 =12.  So, that means 6 + 7 = 13 because 7 is just one more than 6.  

Social Studies:  This week, we will go back to basics with our classroom vision.  We’ll be breaking each part of it down and sharing what each part means and how we can show that in the classroom.  We’ll talk about respect, effort, attitude, cooperation, and honesty.  

Read Aloud:  This week’s read alouds will focus all on the power of a growth mindset.  A growth mindset is one where you believe your brain is flexible and can grow with practice and determination.  Those with a growth mindset are able to persevere, take chances, and learn more.  They believe anything is possible!  We’ll kick off our book study with this video of an inspiring little boy in California who invented his very own arcade!  Check out the video below:

We’ll also learn a little bit more about how our brain works.  The team already knows the parts of their brain and what each part is responsible for.  This short video shows them a little more about how their brain can actually grow and become stronger.  

Then, we’ll use the books below as conversation starters about how the characters in the book were able to show growth mindset and how it their mindset and their attitude helped them accomplish their goals in the end.  

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

December 21-22

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

Tomorrow will be the last day of school before winter break.  I hope everyone enjoys the holidays!

Tomorrow, students are invited to dress in their pajamas or comfy clothes for our Elf Workshop Celebration Day!

Flat Kids went out in the mail today!  We'll all be looking forward to the fun adventures your friends and family will be taking our flat kids on in the near future!

THIS WEEK IN...

ELA:  Our focus for the week will be our Reader’s Theater performances.  We have worked so hard on ready accurately, smoothly, and with expression.  We’ve also practiced reading at an appropriate volume, reading while standing, and reading with gestures and movements.  It is going to be so fun to perform for each other today!  This morning, the team worked hard on creating name tags, props, and scenery to enhance their plays.  This was definitely a test in cooperation and communication.  However, everything is coming together and I know the performances will be beautiful!

Read Aloud:  I purchased a new book for the classroom called How to Catch Santa.  It’s a great read!  We’ll read it today.  We’ll also read the holiday classic, The Polar Express.  The holidays really seem to bring about a LOT of great children’s literature.

Elf Celebration:  In celebration of our very own Elf Workshop opening, the second grade team will be submitting Elf Applications to the one and only Santa Claus.  Then, we’ll watch Saving Santa as a whole grade level in the library.  During the movie, students will also be invited to take some pictures with their friends in our very own photo booth, complete with holiday props.  

Holiday Celebration:  We’ll also be wrapping all of the fabulous gifts the team has made and purchased for their families over the past few days.  We hope you enjoy the small gifts that come home.  A lot of love and patience went into making them :)

I hope everyone has a lovely winter break and enjoys celebrating the holidays!  See you all again in 2016!

December 14-18

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

There is not a normal homework packet this week.  Your child's only homework is to practice their lines in our holiday reader's theater plays.  Your child brought home their highlighted script today.

This week, Russell School  will be receiving a $500.00 check from a local bank!  We are so lucky to be in such a supportive community!

The Studio of the Living Arts will be visiting Russell School on Thursday and performing a shortened version of the holiday classic, The Nutcracker. I look forward to seeing members from our special community perform such a special presentation for us!

On Friday, students from GNG High School will be singing beautiful Christmas carols to the students of Russell School.  It's going to be great to see the older role models of our district bringing some festive holiday cheer to our school!

We'll also be having a Holiday Shop hosted by the Patriot Parents.  Students are invited to bring a small amount of money to purchase gifts for their families.  All gifts will be under $1.00.  If you would like to send in money for your child, please send it in a closed envelope with your child's name clearly written on it.  

Finally, the second grade students will find out soon (probably on Thursday) that they were able to persuade the elves to keep the workshop open!  That means we'll get to host our very own workshop on Friday!  Second graders will travel to all of the second grade classrooms to make gifts for their families.  In my room, students will have a choice between a book mark or a card holder.  Thank you so much to all of you who were able to donate items!  

Students are also invited to dress up like elves on Friday for the workshop!  Red, green, festive hats, scarves, jewelry, etc. are all welcome!

If you would like to volunteer at our Elf Workshop, it will be this Friday from 12:10-2:00.  If you plan to come in, just send me a quick note or email so I can plan on having you there to help out.  

THIS WEEK IN...

Spelling:  We will work on unit 8.  The words are no, make, than, first, and been.  This also means that we will have a summative test on units 5, 6, 7, and 8 on Friday.  The week we come back in January, will be our review/challenge week.  Your child's words for that week will be decided from the summative test.  

ELA:  We are hard at work practicing for our reader's theater performances!  We will be performing:  "Olive, the Other Reindeer", "The Gingerbread Boy", and "Mooseltoe."  When we practice for our performance we are practicing our accuracy (reading words correctly) and our fluency (pace, expression, and phrasing).  Then, we'll have the chance to make our plays come alive with props and a dynamic student created background!  We'll perform these plays for our team on Monday, December 21st.  

We'll also be helping these stories come alive with some fun activities.  For Olive, we'll be writing our very own reindeer applications and explaining why we would make great reindeer.  For the Gingerbread Boy, we'll be sampling some gingerbread cookies and writing how to eat a gingerbread cookie.  For Mooseltoe, we'll write about a time where things didn't go quite so perfectly perfect.

Math:  This week, our focus is going to be on telling time.  We'll review the difference between analog and digital clocks.  We'll review the parts of a clock.  We'll also practice telling time to the nearest hour, half hour, quarter hour, and nearest five minutes.  Finally, we'll practice the difference between a.m. and p.m.  

Holidays Around the World:  We'll finish up with Russia, Mexico, Australia, and finally America for Kwanzaa and Christmas.  It has been such an eye-opening experience for Team Howard to learn a little about the many countries around the world and their different traditions.

December 7-11

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

Tomorrow is an early release day!  This month’s theme is Holiday Spirit.  Students are invited to wear the colors of the holidays or a festive hat, scarf, or jewelry.

This week, Mrs. Thibodeau and her good friends, George and Kelso, will come to visit us again!  

Next week, the second grade team will be hosting an Elf Workshop to allow students to make gifts for the families.  In my room, students will get a choice between making a card holder or a bookmark.  SUPPLIES NEEDED:  ribbon (preferably festive and at least 1 inch thick), clothespin, and festive holiday scrapbook paper.  If you are willing and able to donate any of these items, please send them in by Tuesday, December 15th.

On Friday, your child will be receiving a script for a Holiday Readers Theater play that we will be performing on December 21st.  Please do not misplace this script!  Practicing  their lines will be your child’s only homework for next week.  Please contact me with any questions you may have.

THIS WEEK IN...

Phonics:  We are working with the long /i/ sound with the spelling patterns:  i, ie, igh, and y.  Our focus words are:  wild, mind, lie, tie, high, sight, light, dry, cry, and try.

Vocabulary:  Our new words are:  peered, giggled, snuggled, fluttered, vanished, and recognized.  We’ll define these words and build connections to them.  Then, we’ll search for them in the short story called “Leo Grows Up”.

Comprehension:  This week, we will review the challenging skill of making inferences.  When we make inferences, we make decisions based on the clues in the story and in the pictures and on our schema (what we already know).  We’ll practice this skill while we read Farfallina and Marcel by Holly Keller.

Grammar:  We will work on possessive nouns.  A possessive noun shows who or what has something.  We add an apostrophe and an “s” to make a singular noun possessive.  For example, “The duck’s egg will hatch soon” or “The cow’s calf is learning to stand.”

Writing:  At last week’s second grade meeting, we got some distressing news!  The elves are thinking about closing their workshop because they believe that kids only want technology and not toys for Christmas.  Second graders were challenged to write persuasive letters to the elves pleading their case about why the workshop should stay open.  This week, we brainstormed reasons for why the workshop should be open and then planned our writing like a double stuffed oreo!  

O:  opinion

R:  reason #1

E: explanation

R:  reason #2

E:  explanation

O:  opinion restated

We used this template to help us write our rough draft letters today.  On Thursday, the Team will read their drafts to two peers, asking for suggestions on how to make their letters stronger.  Then, they will edit and revise as needed.  On Friday, we will write our final draft letters in our neatest and best handwriting.  The most convincing letter will be selected to be read at our second grade meeting on December 18th.  If the second graders do a great job, the elves said we could host an Elf Workshop on the 18th!

Holidays Around the World:  This week, Scott will travel to India and learn all about Diwali.  He’ll also go to China and learn all about Chinese New Year.  He’ll also go to Israel to learn all about Hanukkah.  Finally, he’ll bring us to Sweden and Uganda to learn about how they celebrate Christmas.  Each day with Scott brings new learning and fun projects!  

Here are a couple videos Scott sent us to watch as we studied India and China.

Reader’s Theater:  This week, we will read three holiday stories:  Mooseltoe, Olive, the Other Reindeer, and The Gingerbread Boy.  These books are the inspiration for the three plays we plan to perform the week before vacation.  On Friday, students will be introduced to their individual parts.  These scripts will then become your child’s homework.  Next week, we will begin rehearsals.  In rehearsal, we will practice reading with fluency.  We’ll practice adjusting the volume and pace of our reading, reading accurately, and reading with expression.  We want to entertain our audience!  Then, we’ll have the chance to create a stage background for our plays as well as some props.  It’s going to be a lot of fun!

Math:  This week, we will focus on money.  We reviewed what the most common coins look like, their value, and their names.  Next, we searched for specific coins (heads and tails) in a sea of mixed up coins to help us learn the difference.  Then, we practiced adding nickels and pennies together and dimes and pennies together.  Later, we’ll practice adding quarters together.  We’ll also practice comparing coins and their values to each other.  For example, what would be greater?  Five pennies or one dime?  

Words to think about:  "You were made to... Make your dreams come true, make the impossible possible, be yourself, accomplish any goal, change the world, live a beautiful life.  Only YOU can make it happen."

November 30-December 4

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

Please help your child remember to bring their homework packet back to school every Monday!  When they turn in their homework, they receive 15 minutes of choice time as a reward.  For students who do not turn in their homework, they work on homework during this time instead.

The temperature has dropped quite a bit since the beginning of the year.  Please be sure to send your child to school with their coat, hat, and mittens every day.  Soon, when the snow gets here, they will also need their snow pants and boots.

The Winter Concert will be next Monday evening at GNG Middle School.  Hope to see you there!

This week in...

Spelling:  We are working on unit 6.  The words are:  into, has, more, her, and two.  Our test will be on Friday.

Phonics:  We are working on the long /a/ sound with the spelling patterns ai and ay.  Our focus words are:  main, wait, sail, tail, train, jay, pay, stay, hay, and may.

Vocabulary:  Our new words are:  serious, broken, personal, informs, and heals.  We’ll define these words, build connections to them, and then search for them in two short stories called “A Ride to Help” and “Time for an X-Ray.”

Comprehension:  We’ll continue to focus on identifying the sequence of events as we read A Trip to the Emergency Room.  We’ll look for clue words like first, next, then, and last to help us.  

Grammar:  This week, we will focus on proper nouns.  Proper nouns are words that name a special place, person, or thing.  For example:  Mrs. Howard, Mercy Hospital, and Gray Park are all proper nouns.  Proper nouns always start with a capital letter.  

Writing:  Now that we have built our writing stamina, we are going to focus on some of the nitty gritty parts of writing.  This week we’ll focus on what makes a sentence complete.  We’ll also compare phrases to sentences.  

Math:  This week, we will be concluding our fractions journey and moving onto new topics!  We’ll be unpacking and practicing our time and money standards for second grade.  These standards will be introduced now and practiced throughout the year.

In second grade, students must be able to:

-Tell time to the nearest five minutes and understand the difference between A.M. and P.M.

-Solve word problems involving money where students are asked to add money (coins and dollars) up to $2.00.  Students must use ¢ and $ appropriately.

Social Studies:  Today, we received a mysterious package that had maps all over it, with a note telling us not to open it until after recess.  When we did open it, we received a note from Scott Trot, a friend who decided he wanted to travel the world and learn all about the different holidays!  He left us suitcases and maps to help us keep track of his journey and all of the souvenirs he sends us.  A little birdie told me Scott Trot will be visiting England, France, Italy, and Germany this week to see how they celebrate winter holidays.  It sure is going to be fun!

Science:  We will be wrapping up our unit on landforms this week.  Today, we put some finishing touches on our dream islands and have been working hard to finish up our maps and postcards to Pete and Penelope.  Another little birdie told me they might be coming to Russell School this week to congratulate the team on all of their hard work!  

Words to Think About:  

“Go confident in the direction of your dreams.  Live the life you have imagined.”

-Henry David Thoreau

November 23-24

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

There is no school Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday this week as we have a teacher’s comp day and as we observe the Thanksgiving holiday.

This week’s homework packet will be a little different.  We like to switch things up during vacation weeks to keep things interesting.  Students will be expected to continue their reading and spelling practice.  Then, they are asked to complete a math and literacy worksheet in the packet.  This packet will be due when we return to school on Monday, November 30th.  Please let me know if you have any questions!

THIS WEEK IN...

Writing:  This week, we will be writing postcards to our pirate friends, Pete and Penelope, from our dream islands!  We’ll include information about the people, the weather, location, special features, and landforms.

Nonfiction Fun:  Turkeys, turkeys, turkeys!  We read all about turkeys and collected facts.  Then, we displayed our facts in a fun turkey design.

Feasting on Inferences:  This week, we’ll practice making inferences with some Thanksgiving flair.  First, we’ll help Sage and Max figure out what their mom needs from the grocery store by using recipe cards and clues from the story.  Then, we’ll practice making inferences after reading some short stories.  When we make inferences we use our schema and clues from the text to help us understand the story.

Thanksgiving Then and Now:  We’ll be reading a Thanksgiving themed article from Scholastic News all about Thanksgiving in the 1620s.  Next, we’ll use the text to answer questions.  Then, we’ll make comparisons between many of the ways our lives are different now compared to the lives of the people living in the 1620s.  

Read Aloud:  This week, we’ll read two short picture books.  First, we’ll read The Story of the Pilgrims  by Katherine Ross.  Then, we’ll read A Turkey for Thanksgiving by Diane de Groat.  

Math:  We continue our work with fractions!  We’ll focus on partitioning circles and rectangles into halves, thirds, and fourths and writing fractions to match the part of the shape that we shade.  We’ll be sure to use correct numerators and denominators.  We’ll also talk about fractions that represent one whole (i.e. 2/2, 3/3, and 4/4).  

Science:  We are working on completing our dream islands!  This week, we’ll complete our maps (including a compass rose and key) and paint our islands in life-like colors.  We’ll also finish labeling the landforms we included on our islands.  

Have a great week and a happy Thanksgiving!

November 16-20

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

We need ALL names and addresses for our flat kid exchange by TOMORROW!  We will be writing our letters on Wednesday.  If I have not received a name from your family yet, I’ve sent home another copy of the address request form with your child today.  You can fill the paper out or email me with the name and address of someone who would like to participate.  Please let me know if you have any questions.

Wednesday is an early release day.  Please plan accordingly.  It is also a school spirit day!  This month it is Wacky Wednesday!  Students are invited to dress in mismatched and/or backwards clothes to celebrate.

THIS WEEK IN...

Spelling:  We are working on unit 5.  The words are:  some, so, these, would, and other.   We’ll practice spelling these words and also how to use them correctly in a sentence.  Our spelling test will be this Friday.

Phonics:  This week we are working on consonant blends.  We’ll practice sl, dr, sk, st, and sp.  Our focus words will be:  slide, slips, dress, drop, skin, task, still, must, crisp, and spell.  

Vocabulary:  Our new words are:  rescued, mammal, young, hunger, examines, and normal.  We’ll define these words and build connections with them.  Then, we’ll search for them in the short story called “A Whale is Saved!” by Elizabeth Baker.

Comprehension:  This week, we’ll practice identifying the sequence of events.  That means, we’ll be looking at the order of events in the story.  We’ll look for key words like first, next, then, and last to help us.  When we practice this, it helps us understand the story better.  We’ll practice this skill while we read A Harbor Seal Pup Grows Up by Joan Hewett.

Grammar:  This week, we’ll practice plural nouns.  A plural noun names more than one person, place, or thing.  We add -s to form the plural of most nouns.  We’ll do several examples together and then the team will have an opportunity for independent practice.  

Writing:  This week, we will complete our turkey in disguise projects.  These will be on display in the hallway so if you’re ever at Russell School, come on down and check them out!  We’ll also work on some procedural writing.  After reading A Plump and Perky Turkey we will write all about how to catch a turkey.  These pieces are so much fun to read when they are complete!  Finally, we’ll work on our flat kid letters.  We’ll make a flat version of ourselves and then we will write a friendly letter to our friends and family members who are participating.  We’ll be sure to have all of the letter parts as well as good spelling and neat handwriting.  Our letters will share a little bit about our days at school, the weather, and also ask some friendly questions.  The goal is to have these letters out before the Thanksgiving holiday.

Later this week, we’ll also have the opportunity to show off all of our writing skills in a writing prompt.  We’ll be writing OUCH! stories where we tell about a time that we got hurt.  I’ll be looking for how each student communicates their ideas with others, how they organize their ideas, and how they demonstrate correct conventions.  

Read Aloud:  This week, we will complete Stanley, Flat Again!  We’ve been loving all of Stanley’s flat adventures.

Math:  We have completed our geometry journey.  You should see your child’s goal sleeve with their checklist inside.  The checklist shows the parts your child knows and is able to do.  The goal sleeve contains evidence of their progress.  Some of this work is graded and some is not.  Some work is complete and some is not.  This is because your child got choice in how they practiced each day.  Some days they may have chosen to do worksheets or activities with recording sheets.  Other days they may have chosen to practice on IXL or play a game with a friend.  Any unfinished pages in their goal sleeve can be used for extra practice at home.

Today, we began unpacking our fractions standard.  Here it is:

Partition circles and rectangles into two, three, and four equal shares and describe those shares as halves, thirds, or fourths.  Describe the whole as two halves, three thirds, or four fourths.  Recognize that the same share of a whole does not need to have the same shape.

We used our ninja chopping skills to “air partition” circles and rectangles into equal shares and our best ninja voices to describe those shares as halves, thirds, or fourths.  

The rest of the week will bring a check-in to see where each student will begin their fractions journey, some fun activities to learn the parts of a fraction, and our fun menu choices for how we can practice our individual goals.  

Science:  This is a BIG week in science!  Today, we had an erosion lab!  We made predictions and observed how waves, rain, and wind affected our landform (soil mountain).  We then talked about some ways to prevent erosion should that be something we don’t want.  We learned all about how plants are one of the best ways to prevent wind and water erosion.  More on soil preventions strategies next month.  We also created our very own glacier!  We’ll place the glacier on a dirt mound tomorrow morning and observe it in the afternoon to see how it affected the mountain.  

Later this week, Pete and Penelope might (wink wink) leave us another letter asking us about our very own dream islands!  The team will be given salt dough to create their very own island complete with five different (and labeled) landforms!  Then, we’ll paint our islands, create a map, and write a friendly postcard to Pete and Penelope from our dream islands.  This is definitely going to be a fun project!  

November 9-13

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

There is no school on Wednesday as we observe Veterans Day.  I, for one, will be spending the day thanking my sister (navy), uncle (marine corps), and grandad (navy) for their service!

I will have a substitute teacher in the classroom on Thursday.  I will be involved in a school tour for several teachers from Scarborough and Biddeford, showing them all of the great things we do here at Russell School!  If you have any notes regarding your child’s dismissal plans for the day, please send either a hand-written note or be sure to send an email to Connie Holland at cholland@sad15.org notifying the school of the change.  While I will still be in the school on Thursday, I cannot guarantee that I will be able to check my email throughout the day.

Mrs. Thibodeau will be visiting with us on Friday!  

Very soon this week, you will be receiving a paper from me requesting the name and address of someone out of state who would be willing to participate in our flat kid exchange.  Please send the paper back ASAP!  We will be mailing our letters and flat kids before Thanksgiving.

This week in...

Spelling:  This is our challenge/review week.  Any words your child missed on last week’s summative spelling test automatically become words to practice for this week’s spelling test.  This week, students will practice a total of 10 words.  So, any remaining spaces after their words to review were filled by challenge words from the third grade priority word list.  Each student will be assessed on all 10 words on Friday.

Phonics:  We are working with the long and short /u/ sound.  Our focus words are:  sun, bud, duck, bump, cup rude, rude, fume, dude, and cube.

Vocabulary:  Our new focus words are:  drowns, drifts, desert, gently, burst, and neighbor.  We’ll define these words and build connections to them.  Then, we’ll search for them in the short story called “Plant Power!” by Bradley Roberts.

Comprehension:  This week we will work on drawing conclusions.  When we draw conclusions we think about what we know, clues in the story, and picture clues.  This helps us better understand the story.  We’ll practice this skill while we read The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle.

Grammar:  This week, we will work on adjectives.  Adjectives are words that describe a noun.  We’ll practice identifying the adjectives in a sentence as well as brainstorming adjectives for items found around the classroom.

Writing:  Continuing on our letter writing journey, we’ll read the story called The Day the Crayons Came Home.  This week, we’ll be writing woeful postcards as the crayons that were lost by Duncan.  We’ll tell him where we are and ask him kindly to come get us!  

For some added festive fun, we’ll also be reading the book called Turkey Trouble where poor Turkey knows what is going to happen soon so he tries to dress like other animals to throw the farmer off his trail.  To go along with the book, we’ll be creating our very own turkeys in disguise and writing all about how we are not, in fact, turkeys.  Instead, we might be ninjas or pirates, or ballerinas!  Anything but a turkey.  

Read Aloud:  This week, we join Stanley again in Stanley, Flat Again!  Poor Stanley is flat again but he is sure to go on some wonderful adventures!  

Math:  We are continuing to learn about the wonderful world of geometry.  Lessons this week will focus mainly on counting sides, angles, and faces.  We’ll also work on naming some 3D shapes.  As students show that they are ready to meet their goals, they will be given our final check-in.  Once they pass that check-in, they’ll participate in some geometry challenges.  Most of our challenge work will be with 3D shapes.  A popular choice is building a tower out of geoblocks and creating a 3D drawing of our creation.  

Scholastic News:  We’ll be reading an article this week called “My Mom, the Veteran”.  We’ll meet Kayla who is a mom who served in the armed forces.  We’ll read about her life as a solider and also as a veteran.  Then, we’ll use a diagram of a Humvee to answer questions.  

Science:  This week, we’ll be using “Shape It Up” to help us make inferences about how a landform could have changed over time.  We’ll have to use our schema to help us decide what caused the change and how long the change may have taken.  Want to check it out?  Here is the link:

http://sciencenetlinks.com/media/filer/2011/10/07/forces.swf

We’ll also be watching the episode of The Magic School Bus all about volcanoes!  In this episode, the class is trying to put together a giant globe of the world.  However, there is an island so new that it hasn’t been discovered yet!  The class will dive under the ocean’s surface and explore an underwater volcano.

November 2-5

ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REMINDERS:

Thank you so much to all of you who were able to donate items for our Monster Mash on Friday!  Team Howard had a blast!  We played a lot of fun games and had some delicious snacks to eat.  It was a day for the memory books!

I also wanted to remind everyone that students are allowed to bring water bottles to school with them.  We fill them up in the morning and at snack time.  It helps us stay hydrated throughout the day.  So if you have a water bottle at home, please feel free to send it in to school with your child.

Friendly Reminder:  Please do not send in any snacks that contain peanuts or tree nuts as we do have life threatening allergies in the classroom.  Pretzels, cheese and crackers, low sugar cereals, fresh fruit and/or veggies, and yogurts all make great, healthy snacks to help keep your child energized.  I appreciate your help in keeping our classroom safe for all students.

Spelling Tests:  Apologies for not getting your child's spelling test back today.  With all of the festivities on Friday, we didn't get a chance to take our spelling test.  You'll get their spelling test back tomorrow, instead.  Thank you for your patience!

Class Wishlist:  We are a class that LOVES to engineer things... often!  That usually includes using a lot of tape.  If you would like to donate some tape to our classroom, it would be greatly appreciated!

THIS WEEK IN:

Phonics:  We are working with the long and short "o" sound.  Our focus words are:  box, fox, lock, pot, dog, cone, hope, rose, poke, and rope.  

Spelling:  We are working on unit 4 words.  The words are:  out, them, she, many, and then.  This week's spelling test will be the last one before our summative spelling test and the first four units.  Any words that are missed on the summative test will be added to your child's individual spelling review list for next week.  Each student will practice a total of 10 words.  If they missed fewer than 10 words or received 100%, they will be able to pick words from the third grade priority word list to practice.  

Vocabulary:  Our focus words are:  settled, wrinkled, practiced, cuddle, favorite, and patient.  We'll define these words, build connections to them, and then search for them in the short story called "My New Home" by Miguel Vasquez.

Comprehension:  This week we will practice making and confirming predictions.  A prediction is a reasonable guess about what will happen in a story.  We use the pictures, words, and our schema to help us make predictions.  When we confirm a prediction, we read on in the story to find out whether the prediction was correct or not.  We'll practice this skill while we read My Name is Yoon by Helen Recorvits.

Grammar:  This week, we will practice combining sentences that have the same predicate using the word "and."  For example, we could take "Nina came from Mexico" and "Marcos came from Mexico" and combine them to say "Nina and Marcos came from Mexico."

Scholastic News:  To continue our study on bats, we'll read an article titled "Bats in Blankets" that is all about special hospitals that help bats when they are in trouble.  Then, we'll use a diagram of a flying fox to answer questions.

Read Aloud:  We finished Chocolate Fever and our now learning all about Flat Stanley!  Today, we learned that he was flattened by a bulletin board.  We are so excited to learn more about his flat adventures.

Writing:  This week, we'll introduce the parts of a friendly letter.  This is a precursor to our Flat Stanley projects that we will be beginning shortly.  Here are the parts below:

We'll read Messages in the Mailbox: How to Write a Letter by Loreen Leedy to help us get started.  The book tells us all about the parts of a letter, different reasons for writing a letter, who we might write letters to, and also gives us some examples.  Then, Team Howard will have some practice writing a letter of their very own.  They'll be asked to write a short letter to me telling me something about themselves that I don't already know.  I'm excited to see what they say!

We'll also read The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt.  This story is a collection of friendly letters from the crayons explaining why they quit.  Some feel like they are bored, some feel like they are used too often or too little.  Then, the team will get the chance to take on the point of view of one of the crayons and also write a friendly letter explaining their point of view.

Math:  This week, we will be spending a lot of time working on our individual goals with the use of menus.  Students will have some voice and choice in how they practice their goals.  Their choices are:  worksheets, activities, games, or IXL.  They'll use their checklists to see what they still need to work on and what they already know.  For students who have already mastered the standard, they will be completing various challenge activities.

We also spent some time today practicing different strategies for being able to add or subtract 1 or 2 from a number in a snap.  Then, we put those skills to the test after we learning how to play +/- 1 or 2 bingo!  We also had some mixed review practice on Xtra Math today to keep our skills fresh.

Science:  This week, I have a feeling Pete and Penelope are going to be writing us another letter.  A little birdie (probably a parrot) told me that they have made a troubling discovery on one of the islands they have found.  The island is not looking the same and they want to know why.  I'll be challenging Team Howard in a few investigations next week, but first we'll do some research.  We'll be reading a book called Cracking Up:  A Story About Erosion and watching fun videos like the one below:

From these resources, students should gather that Earth's surface changes slowly and quickly.  Rain, wind, ice, and sun all cause slow changes to Earth's surface.  Floods, earthquakes, and volcanoes all cause quick changes to Earth's surface.


That's it for this week!  Have a fantastic week!

October 26-30

ANNOUNCMENTS AND REMINDERS:

Tomorrow is an early release day!  Please plan accordingly.

Conferences are continuing this week!  I have a few of you scheduled tonight and also on Thursday.  Looking forward to meeting with all of you.  Remember, if you have any specific questions you would like me to answer, please send them ahead of time.  I want to make sure I designate time to answer your questions and also be able to gather the appropriate resources to answer your question.

Friday is our Monster Mash!  Thank you in advance to anyone who is able to donate snacks or volunteer to help with games and/or food.  If you are sending something in, please send it to school by Thursday.  That way, I will be able to pick up anything else we need after school.

Your child's fundraiser paper went home yesterday.  You should be able to see a picture of their artwork as well as a price listing for the items you may purchase with their art on it.  The team really did work hard on creating pieces they thought were special and that you and your friends and family would enjoy!

THIS WEEK IN...

Phonics:  We are working with the short and long /i/ sounds.  Our focus words are:  did, rip, fin, mix, pick, five, nine, side, pipe, and hike.  

Spelling:  We are working on unit 3.  Our new words are:  will, each, about, how, and up.

Vocabulary:  Our new words are:  deaf, language, signing, cultures, relatives, and celebrate.  We'll define these words, build connnections to them, and then search for them in the short story "A Special Camp" by Kate Jones.

Comprehension:  We will talk about main idea and supporting details again.  The main idea is what the story is mostly about and the supporting details give us more information about the main idea.  We will practice this skill while we read Meet Rosina by George Ancona.

Grammar:  Last week, we focused on the subject of a sentence.  This week, we will focus on the predicate.  The predicate tells what the subject does or is.  

Math:  We are continuing to explore the world of shapes through many different activities.  First, we played "Swat-a-Shape" where we used fly swatters to "swat" the shape that was described.  Then, we played "Spin-a-Shape" where we spun a spinner 10-20 times and selected pattern blocks to use.  We used these pattern blocks to create a picture.  Some of us made cats, some of us made cars, and some of us chose to make a pattern.  When we finished creating our picture, we wrote how many of each shape we used.  We'll also use triangles, squares, rhombuses, trapezoids, and hexagons to create a geometric Jack-O-Lantern.

We also introduced some math fact games and practice ideas.  Everyone was introduced to a great program called XtraMath.  You should have received a paper describing the program yesterday.  It is a web-based program that gives targeted math fact practice for each student and keeps track of their progress.  We also played a fun math game where we rolled two dice and added the two numbers together.  It was important for us to check our answers with our partner and practice appropriate ways to agree or disagree with them.  

Science:  Pete and Penelope have to us again and have requested that we make them a guide to help their crew!  The crew is confused by all of the different landforms and bodies of water they are seeing.  So, we are creating a flip book to help them out!

We also received some healthy choice bracelets.  These bracelets help us keep track of the fruits and vegetables we are eating every day.  To go along with the PEP grant that GNG received, we'll be recording the data.

Read Aloud:  We are loving Chocolate Fever!

Words to Think About:  When life hands you lemons, make some lemonade!

Festive and Spooky Fun:  We have a LOT of fun projects we'll be doing this week!  Here is a quick glimpse at the fun.

Crankenstein:  We read a great story about Crankenstein and how he is cranky much of the time.  The story made us smile and giggle.  Then, we had the chance to create Crankenstein pudding cups out of green pudding and oreo cookies.  We had to take special notice of how we did it though, because we wrote how-to stories that can be shared with someone else so they can make Crankenstein pudding too!

Spiders:  We read a great nonfiction story about Spiders from National Geographic.  As we read, we collected a ton of facts.  Then, we began creating colorful webs and spiders to help us display some "facts that will make you crawl!"

Monsters:  Starting on Wednesday, we are going to read a fabulous book called The Little Shop of Monsters.  It's an amazing book I recently purchased at the book fair.  After reading the story, we will fill out Monster Adoption Applications to see if we are able to adopt a monster of our very own.  Once our applications are approved, we'll then design the monster we would like to adopt and write about how we plan to take care of it.  Later this week, our poor monsters will go missing! A friend in the classroom will have to write a description well enough for everyone to know exactly what our missing monster looks like so that they can be returned to the correct student.

Bats:  We will watch an episode of The Magic School Bus that is all about bats!  Then, we'll create a sunset picture of a bat to help us display some "Wing Flappin'"  facts that we have learned.

Monster Mash:  As you know, we'll be having a Monster Mash on Friday.  Students are invited to dress like non-scary monsters (think Monsters Inc.) to help us celebrate our monster projects!  We'll play some fun minute to win it games and enjoy some festive fall snacks.