~ SHARING SUNDAY ~

AROUND THE SCHOOL

November 22nd - 24th: Thanksgiving Break

December 7th: Early Dismissal Day at 1:45

December 22nd: End of 2nd Quarter

December 25th - January 7th: Winter Recess

LANGUAGE ARTS

1st Grade: Persuasive Writing: This week we focused on two things: writing to persuade a reader and forming a paragraph using the hamburger model.

First, the students were asked to form their own opinion to the question: Should all first graders learn Pig Latin? Our class was split and could not convince the other side to write about their opinion. So we split into two groups and began to write our opinions.

Before writing our paragraphs, each group wrote down a list of details to convince the reader of their opinion. Then we looked back over our hamburger model of composing a paragraph. Each group came up with their introduction sentence. Then they took their details to form the "pieces" of the hamburger: the lettuce, tomato and burger. We will finish our persuasive writing next week.

2nd Grade: Text-to-Text Connections: This week we took a step away from Edward to read the Velveteen Rabbit. Our focus was on a text-to-text connection. This will help them develop another way to connect to a story and ultimately develop a deeper meaning to the text they are reading. Our focus this year is on connections and how a good reader develops different connections to their story:

Throughout our novel story, we will focus on these one at a time to develop a better meaning to our reading.  We then made a Venn Diagram to compare our two stories together.  We compared the main character, the setting and the plot.  We will examine our Venn diagram further next week.

3rd Grade:  Beatrix Potter:  This week we compared the different stories of Beatrix Potter we have heard so far.  We looked back at her biography to discuss how her interactions, especially with her pet bunnies, influenced her writing.  Then we read her first two short stories as a group:  The Tale of Peter Rabbit and The Tail of Squirrel Nutkin.  

They were able to make great connections between Peter Rabbit and Nutkin.  Her characters in her writings are mainly animals.  We also shared how the settings of her stories were usually in nature.  The students did a great job seeing how Beatrix Potter connected most of her stories together.  They became focused on her references of her characters and how she included them in her other stories.  We found an image of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle buying soap in Ginger & Pickles shop.  

They also found what looked like an image of Peter Rabbit within that same story.  We heard a reference to a lot of her characters in The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle. 

 This week they also shared their stories about the interactions in nature.  Some students had a few questions about interacting with nature, so we glanced back at our 3 requirements of an interaction. 

 I told them to think of their examples and answer our 3 questions: 

 Was it an accident or on purpose?  

Was it negative or positive?

Was it fleeting or deep and lasting?

I will add a model of this going forward with their homework to allow them to see if it qualifies as an interaction.  We will start a new lesson next week.

4th Grade:  Change Maker:  The students are pushing on with their research.  We are approaching the end of our class time for this step and I have encouraged them to work on finishing touches at home.  After next week, the research portion will become assigned as homework.  

MATH

1st Grade:  What Happened???:  Welcome Back!  A few of my friends needed to finalize their Think Deeply.  As children completed their Think Deeply, they were allowed to work on a matching game of our polygons.  They completed a puzzle by identifying a polygon name with the definition and a picture.  

They were encouraged to use the word wall to help them with this game. Our friends Imi and Zani also sent us another game they would like for us to test! This time we are playing the game What Happened.  The object of the game is determine how a shape changed and if it is a new shape.  Our shapes change by spinning one of three choices:  MOVE one shape, TAKE OFF one shape, or Do nothing.  The teams take turn as the spinning team and the guessing team.  

The guessing team draws a card from Grupo and recreates the shape.  They have about a minute to memorize the shape and then turn the card over.  Now the spinning team takes over.  They spin to decide how they must change the shape.  Our guessing team comes back and must answer two things:  What did the spinning team do and how did the shape change?  

This week we did a practice round for each group to learn the rules.  Each team completed their turn successfully!  Next week we test the game What Happened for our friends and share our results.

2nd Grade:  Transformers:  We had a quick review of the terms we learned to transform our shapes.  I was happy to see they remembered all of our terms!  This week we were introduced to the next part of our concept - tiling.  They had a strong background knowledge on the idea of this concept.  

They made a great references to tiling a floor.  Our focus was going to be on the transformation we use while tiling a surface.  To practice identifying the transformation, we completed a worksheet identifying the movement of the triangle.  They had to identify whether the triangle transformed by a flip, turn or slide as it was moved around the page.  We will continue to work with tiling next week.

3rd Grade:  Patterns:  This week the students were introduced to our Think Deeply. 

 We looked at what the question was asking and discussed what they should include in the answer.  They were given information to a pattern including only the first 4 numbers.  It was going to be their job to find the 10th number and explain their thinking.  We referred back to our investigation phase.  We decided that in order to answer the question properly the students should identify both the pattern and the function. 

 They should also think about and explain the magic calculator number for their pattern.  It is important for a students to identify the calculator number because it may be needed to solve the function rule.  This is not always the case, as we have seen in the past, but it allowed them to understand the importance of identifying this number.  As a class, talked about the first step to solving the problem.  They decided to draw our chart to display the term and number.  Organizing our information in this way will allow us to identify the function rule.  Next week, they will write their response to their Think Deeply question.  

  

4th Grade:  Converting Fractions:  We are quickly approaching our Think Deeply for this lesson.  The students defined some of our important vocabulary: a proper fraction, mixed number and improper fraction.  Before our wrap-up, I wanted to have the students work on the skills of converting mixed numbers to improper fractions and improper fractions to mixed numbers.  

A mastery of this concept will help them when answering their Think Deeply question.  We walked through the steps for each of these conversions.  Then they used the remainder of class to practice this skill.  We will finish this lesson next week.

Ms. Losinski

~ THANKFUL THURSDAY ~

We are quickly approaching one of my favorite times of the year.  I am going to challenge the students during the month of November to fill up leaves with something they are thankful for... I hope we can fill up the wall with our
  Leaves of Thanks!

AROUND THE SCHOOL

November 1st & 2nd: Parent Teacher Conferences

November 3rd: No School

November 22nd - 24th: Thanksgiving Break
December 7th: Early Dismissal Day at 1:45
December 22nd: End of 2nd Quarter
December 25th - January 7th: Winter Recess

HALLOWEEN
FUN

TRICK 
OR 
TREAT 

 

LANGUAGE ARTS

1st Grade: Silly Speak: We started with a few practice words in Pig Latin to review our rules. Then, the students went right back to work on encoding a sentence from English to Pig Latin. For some added practice, the students translated Lead Belly's Pig Latin Song from English to Pig Latin.

Then, we listened and sang along to his song. They had lots of laughs with this activity. For some independent practice, the students took one of their connections they spotted from outside and turned it into Pig Latin. They presented them to the class, as the rest of them tried to guess their connection.


Next, the students were introduced to persuasive writing using the Hamburger Model. 2 students shared their thoughts on Pig Latin - 1 who thought it was easy and another who thought it was difficult. This introduced us to the term opinion.

In persuasive writing it will be the students job to convince the reader of their opinion. We will continue to walk through the steps of persuasive writing while answering the question: Should all first graders learn to speak Pig Latin?

Extra, Extra...

Some extra photographs this week when they shared their connections in Pig Latin. This is where the students are working on their presentation skills. I hope to see their confidence grow from our coat of arms projects in the beginning of the year. I will try to share some of these moments throughout the year.

2nd Grade: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane: This week we began with our discussion on their assigned reading. As we discussed the chapters they read, we added the information to our chart.

As a class we, looked at different points of view from some characters on a scenario: Edward being lost at the bottom of the ocean.

Next week we will shift our focus to a text-to-text connection as we begin to listen to the story of the Velveteen Rabbit.

There is no homework this week! Enjoy the 3 day weekend!

3rd Grade: Beatrix Potter: They finished working with their partners completing their reading analyzer. Then, we came back together as a class to share our stories.

Each group gave us a summary of what their story was about and talked about the main idea from the story. They were allowed to use their reading analyzer to help them present their story. One group read the classic The Tale of Peter Rabbit and our other group shared The
Tale of Ginger and Pickles.







Next week, we will look at all of the stories we explored from Beatrix Potter and look at what they have in common.  

4th Grade: Change Maker: This week they added in their secondary sources. We had a discussion on selecting credible sources on the Internet. Then it was back to more research. The students have down a great job on finishing their reading! They are now beginning the process of filling in the information. If they complete this packet properly, the rest of the project will be easy moving forward. They will receive plenty of class time to work on it - the goal is 1 day per question. If they don't finish it with the allotted class time the rest of it will become homework.

MATH

1st Grade: Polygons: Due to early dismissal this week, we did not have our weekly groups. Our schedule will be back to normal next week.

2nd Grade:  Transformers:  This week the students were introduced to the concept of transforming a shape.  They were introduced to our 3 movements:  flip = reflection, slide = translation, and turn = rotation.  They were introduced to both terms, however at this point they may use either term for the movement.  

We moved our books around our desk using the different transformations.  They were introduced to the line of reflection for a flip.  Immediately, some of my friends quickly identified our new line as a line of symmetry.  

We looked at this line and distinguished the differences between the purpose of it verse our line of symmetry. We also created a hint for a flip - we are making pancakes and need to "flip" it over!  To practice our new math terms we completed some worksheets together identifying the different movements.

3rd Grade:  Patterns:  We started the investigation phase for our patterns.  For this unit, we are combining our last two lessons to look at the bigger picture while exploring  the pattern.  The children completed a series of questions while evaluating patterns by completing  What's Next.

  

First, they finished the table by filling in the missing numbers.  This hopefully allowed them to identify the pattern they saw with their answers.  Then they needed to think of our Magic Calculator Rule and decide what number we would start the pattern with on the calculator.  This made them start to think of the function rule the table was following.  

To finish a problem they solved for the 15th number without extending the chart.  By this time, they could hopefully answer the last part of the question by explaining the function rule.  They also saw the importance of the calculator rule - sometimes the starting number is needed for our function rule.  They are doing a much better job solving these patterns algebraically rather then using a picture.  

This week they did a great job of thinking like mathematicians and solving our problem the algebraic way.  They seem to have a better understanding of the pattern verse the function rule.  It helped that they were identifying both the pattern and the function rule in their answers.  We will wrap up patterns next week.

4th Grade:  Frog Jumping Contest:  This week they finished the first part of the investigation phase.  For independent practice, they completed Frisky Frog Leaps.  This sheet focused on them continuing a fraction strip while renaming a mixed number and locating the improper fraction for that number on a number line.  

The challenge to the worksheet is on one number line they were working with eighths and fourths or thirds and ninths.  They had to find equivalent fractions with 1/4 = 2/8 and 1/3 = 3/9 to properly label the fraction strip.  Next week we will begin our Think Deeply with this lesson.

Have  Great Weekend,

Ms. Losinski