First post of 2018!
I hope you all had a fantastic break and a great first week back to the routine of school! As much as I love the extra time to spend with my family and getting refreshed, I also enjoy getting back to those routines!
Here is a little glimpse of what we did during this past week of school…
-We started a new book! It is called Pax by Sarah Pennypacker. It is about a boy, Peter and his fox, Pax. I read this book over the summer and knew that I wanted to read it to the class. We are about 70 pages into the book and it seems that the class is pretty interested so far. Ask your child their first impressions of Pax!
-We started a new round of Words Their Way (WTW). We meet with Room 122 and 126 three times a cycle to work on sorting words following particular spelling patterns. After we have finished with the words they will be sent home to practice before having an assessment. *The exception is Ginny’s group. She runs her group a little differently and uses ongoing assessments.
-We’ve been doing some guided meditations during mindfulness time. Ask your child how they are liking that so far! I have used a mixture of mediations I’ve found online and also ones from an app I have called Insight Timer. Anyone use anything different and had success with it?
-In Math we continued working with Room 122 in our grade groups. We also spent some time reviewing basic facts for addition and subtraction as well as reviewing regrouping in addition and subtraction. We did another Number Talk with a focus on using ‘landmark’ or ‘friendly’ numbers.
For example: 38+55
We can think of this as 40+53 instead. We gave 2 from the 55 to the 38 making the new sentence 40+53. This is a lot easier to add using mental math. The landmark or friendly number in this example is 40. This kind of activity is easy to try at home!
Other things to do at home…(we brainstormed some ideas together at school)
*Basic facts for addition and subtraction are all the combinations of 1 digit numbers (2+2, 6+9, 7+3, etc.) and the corresponding subtraction facts.
-Use flashcards to build instant recall of basic facts (for addition, subtraction then move into multiplication and division when ready). Can you answer the questions in 3 seconds or less? The ones you can do using recall can be taken out of the package and then you can leave the ones you still need to practice
-Turn to two different pages in a book you’re reading and first add them to find the sum then subtract them to find the difference *Remember to start with the ‘whole’ (largest number) when doing subtraction
-Ask what time it is then ask how many minutes until the next hour (like doing compatible number to 60)
-Grab some coins and count them to find the value
-Use a deck of cards to create a game that helps with basic facts
-Play board games where you need to use your math skills
-Borrow some dice from a game you have and make up your own game! You could add two dice together and see if your sum is larger than your partner’s or you can roll the dice to make a 2,3,4 digit number and roll again to find another addend or a subtrahend to create your own math equation
-Have any other ideas? Let us know!!!
-We finished up our unit on Rocks and Minerals. We shared the reports we had written before the holidays and the kids were so impressed with each other. The list of “Things we learned about rocks and minerals” was crazy long! Next on the agenda for us is Habitats! We are going to begin by doing a group project on the white-tailed deer, then students can choose their own animal. We have an exciting plan to kickstart this inquiry…stay tuned for more details (to be sent home ASAP!)
-The library is looking BEAUTIFUL! Murray did Yoga in there on Thursday and the kids really loved it. If you haven’t had a chance to see how it looks make sure you take a peek when you can! Soon we can return to book exchange!
-We did 2 working periods for Genius Hour! This is what the “Ask Me” question was about this week. I sent you all a See Saw message about what you can talk to you kids about and what they can do for me. Please chat about their project and have them write me their next steps. If you haven’t already done so please total the minutes read for December and graph that data in the front of the Home Reading folder 🙂
What’s Up For This Week?!
-Another week…another 50-70 pages of Pax to read!
-We will be doing another round of writing samples to see where we go next as far as lessons go. We do a narrative, persuasive and informational sample each term and look for patterns in what students can do independently and what we can work on in either a whole class, small group or individual setting.
-We have outdoor education tomorrow (Monday, January 15)…weather permitting! If it’s too cold we will either use the gym or do some dance activities in the classroom. We will continue to go outside during the winter months when we are able, so please send your kids with the proper clothing!
-It is also Circle of Life choir day tomorrow! We will meet with Ms V twice tomorrow to continue working on the songs we are performing for the WSD Divisional Musical. A note will be sent home ASAP to fill you in on everything you need to know about this upcoming event.
-On Wednesday, January 17 the grades 1-6 will be participating in AAC Awareness week! AAC stands for Augmented and Alternative Communication. We will be participating in stations in the gym that help us learn more about how people in our school, community and life communicate in different ways.
-Our next Genius Hour session is on Wednesday as well. We will work on our projects from 2:30-3:30. Please make sure that your child has what they need to work on their project. There are many materials to use at school, however certain materials may need to come from home. If anyone would like to help out on Wednesday we could always use an extra set of hands during this busy time of day! Just let me know!
-The January Book Order has been sent out and is due on Friday, January 19!
-There is no school on Monday, January 22 🙂
Have a great week!!!
Until Next Time,
Danielle