Showing posts with label absent. Show all posts
This morning, after Discovery Groups, we finished up the Caught Ya and reviewed Wordly Wise words. It was a fun game Mrs. Haneke led. The children had a type of bingo card filled with Wordly Wise clues/questions. Each student had to walk around the room, find a friend to ask a question from the bingo card, and have the friend answer the clue for you.
Mrs. Haneke also reviewed Verbs with the students. You can do the same by playing Verb Viper or by watching a fun video about verbs...it's a catchy song!
After we visited with Mr. Shane, we completed a math lesson.We reviewed the meaning of the word "polygon"...see below:
You can even click the picture above to explore polygons by drawing them...or even taking a polygon quiz.
Afterward, try the polygon sorting activity below.
So, do you think you can name a few polygons? Try this quiz.
Pages 138 and 139 were completed in the math journal. You may need to use your Student Reference Book for help.
This afternoon we will have rotation. Seatwork will include:
*Complete a second set of questions from the Gutman book you've read.
*Turn in the first set of questions from the Gutman book.
*Finish your glog
*Continue writing/editing your story (either the animal with super powers or the accident that happens at home- tub-boo-boo)
Since many students are not responding to their Gutman questions in complete sentences OR are not including enough detail in their answers, I presented a lesson on what kind of response I would really like to see:
In small groups, we read from our Explorer Booklet and took notes. I will send home your booklet and mark the pages you should read. You can put the appropriate notes on your web when you return to school. I'll share with you what we write.
I'm sending home a copy of some projects you are close to finishing, too. Work on what you can, but please make sure you get lots of rest. We miss you!
:)Mrs. Neal and Mrs. Haneke
This morning (as part of the morning work), the students completed page 135 in their math journals as well as the traditional daily Caught Ya entry and spelling review (ABC order).
MATH: The math lesson today focused on quadrilaterals. (four sided polygons)If you click the picture, you will be taken to a lesson on quadrilaterals. Click the "Step by Step" button to complete the lesson on your own. The hardest quadrilateral to understand is the trapezoid, so pay particular attention to her explanation of how a trapezoid is designed.
You can also click the interactive site below for a description of various quadrilaterals.
Once you have the hang of what quadrilaterals are, you can try the sorting activity found here. (Click the picture.)
Page 136 in the math journal was completed together in class, too.
SOCIAL STUDIES: This afternoon, instead of reading from our Dan Gutman books (because we're done) we started studying explorers. We will catch you up on this when you return. You are in a group studying Pedro Menendez de Aviles who was responsible for developing the city of St. Augustine. Your team read a page or two about him and learned a new way to take notes.
READING: Since we are now officially done with the books, you will have one more set of reading questions to answer. I will send these home for you.
LANGUAGE: We completed two activities today. Mrs. Haneke talked about how important it is to choose exciting verbs in your story writing. She provided a worksheet with an excerpt from Charlotte's Web with the verbs missing. It is your job to add in verbs (actions) that make the story easier to understand...and more colorful.
We also completed a "Caught Ya" test, which you can make up when you return tomorrow.
Also, if you've not completed your glog or story, you would have had time today to work on the computer to finish those up.
We hope you feel better soon and that you have a good book to read.
Take care!
Mrs. Neal and Mrs. Haneke
This morning, we reviewed our spelling words by completing a complicated story puzzle called "They're, Their, and There". We will send the story home to you. Try to fill in the blanks from the story with the appropriate they're, their, or there.
We also completed math boxes on page 129 before the math lesson on lines. Click each of the pictures below to learn about lines.
When you click the picture below, you can view a slideshow of lines
OR you can sing karaoke!
This afternoon, we will have rotation. Students were assigned a job to do while reading in their Dan Gutman books. The pages to read are:
Million Dollar Kick: pages 105-131
Babe and Me: pages 105-129
Get Rich Quick Club: pages 85-106
I will be sure to send home your literature circle job for the selection.
During Seatwork, students completed another Grandparents' Day project. You can work on that when you return to school.
When students worked with me, we wrote thank you letters to the author who visited us in the library yesterday, Robin Gonzalez.
We also spent time working on a story of your choice. You could be finishing:
*The story about animals that have special powers after midnight...
OR
*The story about a household accident that goes horribly wrong (like Tub-boo-boo).
We will continue to write these (and edit) until they are polished and ready for scoring on the Ideas and Organization rubrics.
At the end of the day, we will visit Mrs. Driscoll in the lab. She has something new for us to learn today since our videos are finally all complete! Yahoo! We'll let you know tomorrow what it was she had in store for us.
We hope you are feeling better! Come back soon!
Mrs. Neal and Mrs. Haneke
Today was a fun-filled, busy day. :) I thought you might like a little support with our math lesson. These animations will help. Today, Mrs. Haneke taught the class the difference between rays, line segments, and lines.
Click each picture below to learn about them (and then press the play button in the bottom right hand corner of the screen):
Mrs. Haneke also introduced the newest Wordly Wise words. You can find them on BrainFlips here.
This afternoon, I assigned a set of reading questions for the Dan Gutman book you are reading. I will be happy to get that to you when you return.
We also had a visit from a local author, who shared her knowledge of the Henry B. Plant Museum. She even shared copies of her book with the entire class! Your copy is waiting for you in your mailbox.
We hope to see you at school tomorrow! We've missed you!
Today was a busy and fun day! This morning (after completing our Caught Ya and math boxes on page 120) we completed a science experiment. You can find the details of what we did by reading below. We wondered if a plant was strong enough to break through rock. So we placed a seed into plaster (our best "fake" rock) and will let it try to grow over the next seven days. Here's what we did:
- Place 2 tablespoons of plaster in each cup.
- Add 1 tablespoon of water to each cup and stir with the craft stick. Discard the stick.
- In one of the cups, stand the 4 beans as far apart as possible on the surface of the wet plaster. Push the beans into the plaster so that about three-fourths of each bean is below the surface of the plaster.
- Use the marking pen and tape to label the cup with the beans Test and the cup without beans Control.
- Record the appearance of the surface of the plaster in each cup.
- Fold each paper towel in half twice. Wet the folded towels with water so that they are moist but not dripping wet.
- Push 1 wet towel into each cup until it rests snugly against the surface of the plaster.
- Place the cups where they will not be disturbed for a week. Wet the towels occasionally to keep them moist.
- Remove the towels each day for 7 days and record the appearance of the surface of the plaster in each cup. Return the paper towels after each day's observation.
After placing the pinto beans into the plaster, we completed only the "Prediction" portion of our experiment form. What do you think will happen to the beans after they sit in the plaster for a week? Anything?
After Mr. Shane met with the class, we talked about decimals. We reviewed how to read decimals first and counted by tenths and hundredths. Then we looked at a map of precipitation levels for various cities in America. (See the power point below.) We used the rain gauge paper (it looks like a ruler) to plot the rain levels of four cities: Jacksonville, Asheville, Cleveland, and San Francisco. You may need Mom's help to do this. The map of rain levels can be found on page 121 of your Student Reference Book.
After we had practice plotting those rain levels, we completed page 121 in the math journal (question 6 is TOUGH). We will continue to review decimals when you come back, because we recently introduced the value of thousandTHS.
Oh...and don't forget those multiplication facts! :)
Oh...and don't forget those multiplication facts! :)
During rotation today, we shared our perspective on the section of the book we read from our Dan Gutman books. Please be sure to finish up the reading you missed and complete the literature circle form.
Seatwork included:
Complete your paragraph about the Timucua (tools)
Continue to work on your Timucua artwork
If ready...start your glog design.
Before we knew it, it was time to go to drama.
We hope you are feeling better and that you can come to school tomorrow. If you can't, be sure to check the blog for details about our day.
:)Mrs. Neal
Today went by very quickly. I thought you'd be interested in how our day went, so read below for the details.
LANGUAGE: I introduced pronouns to the class. (They are words that take the place of nouns like: he, she, they, them, his, her, our, it, I, this, that, these, those.) We played a few games with pronouns and you can check them out by viewing the post I made earlier in the day...here.
WRITING: We talked a little about story organization by listening to a picture book called Tops and Bottoms. It was a clever story about how a hare outsmarted a bear, but I pointed out to them how well organized the plot was. (The hare makes a deal with the bear and outsmarts him. The bear demands a new deal...the hare outsmarts him. The bear gets really angry and demands a new deal...and yet the hare still outsmarts him.) It was fun trying to predict how the hare would win in the end.
MATH: We worked on a math problem from page 93 in your math journal. Essentially, this was it:
Mrs. Neal is setting up chairs for Parent Night. She wants them to be in rows with the same number of chairs in each row. Use the clues to find out how many chairs are in the room.*When she tried to set up the chairs in rows of 2, there was 1 leftover chair.
*She also had 1 leftover chair when she tried to set them up in rows of 3.
*One of her students suggested that she try rows of 4. There was STILL 1 leftover chair.
*Finally, she tried rows of 5. This worked fine. There were no leftover chairs.
*The number of chairs in the room was the smallest possible number that fits all of these clues.
When you have found the answer, record it in your journal on page 93
Next, circle dots to show the chairs in rows of 2, 3, and 4, each with 1 chair left over. (Here is an example...I tried 11 chairs to see if it fit the clues. It didn't work.)
This afternoon, we answered questions about the Judy Blume books we are reading. If I did not give you a copy yesterday, there will be one waiting for you when you return.
We had a Thanksgiving All School Convo this afternoon before we headed to the music room for fine arts.
I hope you are enjoying your trip...and that you took a bunch of books to read!
Take care,
Mrs. Neal
We’re so sad you were unable to come to school today! Below, you’ll find a summary of our day:
MORNING WORK: Math boxes page 22
Math money sheet (which will be sent home with you)
READING: I will share a few more genre descriptions with the students today. We’ve already discussed Realistic Fiction and Mysteries. Please check out the power point below to see which genres we will discuss today.
MATH: We completed pages 20-21 in the Math Journal with partners. It was fun practicing with the fake coins and dollars. Maybe your parents will let you use real money!
You can use the poster below to help you solve the problems.
You can use the poster below to help you solve the problems.
SCIENCE: This afternoon we learned about the different zones in the ocean. I realize you are already knowledgeable of these zones and the creatures that live in them. The power point you see below is one we will share after we watch a couple of videos on Brain Pop. Tim and Moby will be talking to us about the Ocean Floor and Underwater Creatures. To view these at home, however, you would need a subscription to Brain Pop. I can show them to you at school when you return next week.
After we view these, the students will make a subviewer. The directions will be on the subviewer itself. The creatures labeled on the subviewer are described, but their colors are not. If you click here, here, and here, you can see pictures of the creatures so you’ll know what colors to use.
Today is also individual picture day. Don’t worry, we’ll have make-ups in October. You will also miss Spanish, PE, and Music.
We have missed you today! Enjoy your trip, read a bit, and we’ll see you Monday!
For those of you who will be absent tomorrow, here is a brief overview of how we will spend our day.
LANGUAGE ARTS:
In the morning, we will check our Wordly Wise homework, parts C & D. I will also help the students prepare for part E. (Uh, oh!) We will read the story together and then follow these somewhat complicated directions.Since part E is meant to be challenging, most of the responses to the questions are meant to be answered using a vocabulary word from the lesson we've been studying. Each of the 15 Wordly Wise vocabulary words should be used only once throughout part E. Also, if you see a vocabulary word used in any of the questions, no vocabulary word is necessary in the respective answer. This is hard for the children to grasp, so here is how I will help them.
1. Use a yellow highlighter to highlight every vocabulary word (marked in bold) that you find written in the questions. This week, you will find these words to highlight:
PATRIOTIC
UTTER
DEVELOP
SUFFICIENT
PROJECT
HAILED
REMARKABLE
BENEFIT
2. Now, go back to the story about Sequoya and highlight these same words located in the paragraphs in yellow.
3. There now should be some vocabulary words remaining in the story that are in bold print, but not highlighted.
DISMAY
LACK
COMPLETE
REPRESENT
RECOMMEND
MASTER
EASE
4. Highlight these words in a different color.
5. These remaining vocabulary words will be utilized in the answers to questions # 3,4,6,8,10,11, and 13.
I know this is confusing, but I will help the children out by providing them with a document they can answer all of part E on. They will not need to answer the questions in the book, but rather on the document located here.
READING:
I will also spend some time introducing the fluency rubric they will be expected to follow for their Poetry Project. (Click here to see it.) The students have selected their poems to recite and will be working on their artwork to complement their poems as well. The children will be given the choice of creating their artwork on Kid Pix or Kerpoof, or they may hand draw their art if they prefer. Kerpoof is a new Web 2.0 program they will need to learn how to use. You can find the link to Kerpoof here (near the top part of the page). Students will need a username and password that I can email you individually if your child would like to try it at home. Directions for Kerpoof can be located here. The children are already familiar with Kid Pix, but they won't be able to access the program at home. Our biggest challenge is to get the students to save their work in the appropriate folder. :)
MATH:
We will be talking about probability. Please view the slides from the lesson below:
We will complete pages 10 and 11 in the Student Math Journal, too.
SCIENCE:
We will be reading from our Sea Monsters book in small groups and practicing taking notes using "caveman speak". We might have time to start illustrating in our flipbooks as well.
Please read over pages 30-34 if you have selected the Giant Squid to research. Read over pages 38-43 if you have selected the Octopus to research.
ROTATION:
During rotation this is what the students will work on:
Small Group Instruction: Taking notes on the Sea Monster creatures
Seatwork: Beginning your poem artwork (hand-drawn, Kid Pix, or KerPoof)
DEAR time: Read, read, read!
This just about summarizes our day. You will miss visiting Mr. Shane, Mrs. Hershman, and Senora Maldonado. I'm sure they'll help you catch up where necessary.
We will miss you!
SCIENCE:
Please read over pages 30-34 if you have selected the Giant Squid to research. Read over pages 38-43 if you have selected the Octopus to research.
ROTATION:
During rotation this is what the students will work on:
Small Group Instruction: Taking notes on the Sea Monster creatures
Seatwork: Beginning your poem artwork (hand-drawn, Kid Pix, or KerPoof)
DEAR time: Read, read, read!
This just about summarizes our day. You will miss visiting Mr. Shane, Mrs. Hershman, and Senora Maldonado. I'm sure they'll help you catch up where necessary.
We will miss you!
Today, we had a lot of fun. There was an extra long convo due to the last Hat ceremony, (Yay, Griffin!) so afterward, we barely had time to complete the Caught Ya and math boxes (page 234) before we went to keyboarding.
After Spanish, I gave the class a multiplication quiz. It is the same test you took in the fall: 90 problems in five minutes. We are going to see how much more efficient we are now. My guess is that you'll be surprised at how many more you could answer today!
We played with Oobleck this morning, too, which is a colloidal suspension. (Only a TEENY bit messy, I promise!) See the posts below that show you how it works. We also learned that Oobleck is a polymer and talked about the difference between polymers and monomers...good stuff. :)
After giving a resounding cheer to the graduating seniors and an exhausting PE, we held rotation. This included reviewing our literature circle questions from yesterday and making progress on our National Park studies.
We have missed you today and look forward to your return on Monday!
:)Mrs. Neal
After we met in our Discovery Groups today, we finalized all of our Mother's Day projects. I sent home your book to you so you could work on it. Just don't let Mom get a peek!
I shared with the students the rubrics for our National Parks today. You can find the rubric specific to note-taking here and the rubric for your blog entries here. I also talked to them about the importance of writing articles that are interesting, but not hokey...full of information, but not list-like...and I mentioned that we must figure out how to connect ideas. See below for a little help:
National Park Writing Sample
After we spent time with Mr. Shane in the lab, we completed a math lesson. I'd post the power point below, but all the animations wouldn't work that way. We basically talked about how to share lots and lots of money. It involved breaking $100 bills into $20 bills...and $20 bills into $10 bills...and $10 bills into fives...you get the point. We completed page 222 in our math journals using fake bills. The children loved the Benjamins!View more presentations from Kelly Neal.
During rotation today, we had fun baking cookies for our Mother's Day tea tomorrow. Seatwork included finishing the advertisement for the Roald Dahl invention you started (Wonka Candy). I sent home the rubric and directions with your brother.
I hope you feel better soon! We miss you!
:)Mrs. Neal
It's Cinco de Mayo, but we've been busy thinking ahead to Mother's Day!
So, we've been work, work, working on our books...
And creating cards for our moms...
And finishing our gifts.
This morning, we also talked about factors in math. You might not be aware that you already know about factors. We've played Factor Capture a few times. Do you remember how? You need to find numbers for the opposing team that have very few factors. 21, for instance, has the factors of 7,3,1, and 21. Hmmm...that's a lot of factors. A number like 31 only has two factors: 1 and 31. We'll play a few more rounds this week.
Please complete page 220 in your math journal as well.
This afternoon, during rotation, we will read in our Matter Splatter books (pages: 20-27 ) and write our advertisement for the Roald Dahl art project. I'll send home the rubric for you.
The last part of the day will be spent in the lab, reading and taking notes on your National Park project.
We can't wait for you to get back!
:)Mrs. Neal
This morning, we diligently worked on finishing our Mother's Day projects. Not everyone is finished, but we will need to be done by Thursday, for sure.
I also reviewed the Wordly Wise words for lesson 15. There is homework (parts A and B) tonight, so please review the power point in one of the previous posts or play the Kubbu crossword to refresh your memory.
During Math today, we reviewed how to multiply larger numbers using the Partial Products Algorithm. Go ahead....say that again...Partial Products Algorithm...sounds fascinating doesn't it?! (We talked about what that meant exactly: Partial (portion) Product (answer to a multiplication problem) Algorithm (formula). I love using big words...you should, too!)
Please look at the power point below for a review and complete page 217 in your math journal, using page 217 in your Student Reference Book- which is where the menu is located.
Monday math
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This afternoon, we will talk about Roald Dahl and his hilarious books. The class is starting an art project in his honor. Everyone will invent a new product, based on the book read in class. See below:
Matilda: Create a new itching powder to use against your enemies. (Much like the one Hortensia used on the Trunchbull.)
James and the Giant Peach: Create a new artistic label for Aunt Sponge and Aunt Spiker's latest Get-Rich-Quick-Scheme- GIANT PEACH SEEDS!
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Create a new and improved chocolate bar. Yours can do ANYTHING, much like the gum Violet Beauregarde chewed or the Square Candies that Look Round.
During Seatwork today, the students will design and color their newest creation. Not only will your invention have a creative name but a slogan as well. Tomorrow, we'll discuss how to write an advertisement for your newest invention so that they will sell like hotcakes. For now, all we'll do is design and color the labels.
In small groups, we will be reading in our Matter Splatter books, pages 4-7. My intent is to help the students identify what important information we should highlight as we read.
This afternoon, we will discuss the National Park trip. Teams will decide which research job each person will have. I also intend to share with them the "menu" of items you have to choose from in your research. I will have your menu ready once you let me know which research job you prefer (Biologist, Tour Guide, Park Ranger, Historian). Any teams who have not finished their "roadtrip" must try to do so this afternoon. I believe your team is missing some information on the purple ledger...and your travel log needs to be returned to me once everything is up to date.
We miss you and are looking forward to seeing you tomorrow!
:)Mrs. Neal
This morning we completed our usual Caught Ya entry and added the five new words to our Spelling Dictionaries (they're all contractions this week). Afterward, we worked on our Mother's Day books. I would send this home with your brother, but I don't want Mom to sneak a peek!
For math, we worked on something rather complicated. We used base 10 blocks to work out complicated multiplication problems.
In the problem 8 x 14, we built 8 rows of 14 blocks (one long and four cubes), starting in the bottom left hand corner of the grid paper. See below:
Multiplication, Lesson 9-3
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If you look at the blue longs, you can calculate their total: 8 x 10 = 80.
If you look at the red cubes, you can calculate their total: 8 x 4 = 32.
If you look at the red cubes, you can calculate their total: 8 x 4 = 32.
If you add the totals of the blocks together (80 + 32), you find the answer...112!
We recorded our work by coloring in blocks and cubes with blue and red crayons in our math journal on page 211. If you need help, please let me know!
This afternoon, you missed a lot of fun! I'm so sorry you weren't here! The National Park teams started their journey by traveling from Florida using several mysterious clues! Where did they end up after their first part of the journey? You'll have to ask tomorrow when you get here. They did a great job following the directions, highlighting the interstates traveled on, and outlining each of the four states they journeyed through today. We should have time tomorrow to answer the questions about your first stop.
Seatwork included finishing up your Matter Puzzle. I will send home the directions and the puzzle with your brother today.
This afternoon, I assigned reading for the Dahl book. Your group read chapters 27-31 (including chapter 31) and answered the question on the Literature Circle sheet. Remember to develop two FAT questions of your own, too.
We hope you make it back to school tomorrow!
:)Mrs. Neal
Fridays are always busy, busy! This morning, we completed the math boxes on page 210, took the Spelling Test and then visited the lab for keyboarding.
After Spanish, I shared this power point:
National Park Road Trip
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Which got the children very excited. They are already talking about what job they hope to get when put into their teams. Next week, we will start the actual journey by following mysterious driving clues. You'll use a fold-out map to help you figure out which way to go. I'm excited!
During rotation today, the seatwork included the Matter Puzzle discussed in the blog entry yesterday. Review the sites and you should be good to go! The rubric and directions can be found here. I have the puzzle waiting for you when you return.
In small groups, we continued to work on our Mother's Day stories. I haven't seen yours yet...I'm anxious to read it! :)
I sent home your math journal with your brother, so you can complete a few of the pages you've missed. I also sent home the Matter Splatter book so you can read pages 8, 9, and 10.
Get lots of rest. We hope to see you Monday!
:)Mrs. Neal
Which got the children very excited. They are already talking about what job they hope to get when put into their teams. Next week, we will start the actual journey by following mysterious driving clues. You'll use a fold-out map to help you figure out which way to go. I'm excited!
During rotation today, the seatwork included the Matter Puzzle discussed in the blog entry yesterday. Review the sites and you should be good to go! The rubric and directions can be found here. I have the puzzle waiting for you when you return.
In small groups, we continued to work on our Mother's Day stories. I haven't seen yours yet...I'm anxious to read it! :)
I sent home your math journal with your brother, so you can complete a few of the pages you've missed. I also sent home the Matter Splatter book so you can read pages 8, 9, and 10.
Get lots of rest. We hope to see you Monday!
:)Mrs. Neal
This morning we read from a new science book called Matter Splatter. (pages 8, 9, 10) While we read about solids, liquids, and gases, we highlighted important facts about each state of matter. Tomorrow, we will begin an art project on the different states. You can click the pictures below to practice identifying a few key terms.
We started an art project for Mother's Day, too. I will give all the supplies to you tomorrow...we hope you come back!
Mr. Shane let the children attempt to build another boat out of foil and test it out on the water, too. I never did ask whose boat held the most mass...
During Math today, we talked about how to solve larger math problems like:
15 x 6, 6 x 45, 9 x 49, etc.
There was more than one strategy, of course. Here is what I showed the class, using 6 x 45 as an example...
Split the number 45 into two separate numbers: 40 and 5.
Multiply:
6 x 40 = 240
6 x 5 = 30
Add the products together (240 + 30) and you get 270!
Try another:
9 x 49
Split 49 into 40 and 9.
Multiply:
9 x 40 = 360
9 x 9 = 81
Add: 360 + 81 = 441
We will try more in the weeks to come. In the meantime, we completed pages 207 and 208 in the math journals today.
This afternoon we went to the fourth grade play (which was hilarious!) and finished the day by reviewing the matter sites listed above.
We all hope you are feeling better so you can come back to see us tomorrow!
:)Mrs. Neal
This morning, we read a story written by a student and scored it using the Word Choice rubric found here. It was the first time we scored a story using the rubric...what score do you think it deserves?
Afterward, we practiced handwriting (shocker, I know)...the letter f!
We reviewed multiplication with a timed test (YIKES) and took a quiz on fractions. You can make that up when you return.
This afternoon, I reviewed Solids, Liquids, and Gases and introduced Conduction. See the power point below. There are hyperlinks embedded in the Slide Show, including a video, so be sure to let your mouse hover over the images to check for links. Slide 5 and Slide 6 will take you to a menu of cartoons. Choose cartoon numbers 4 and 8.
Simple changes of state
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After viewing the presentation, we started a simple experiment: What Container Will Water Evaporate Fastest From? I poured 60 mL of water into four containers: a graduated cylinder, a cup, a saucer, and a plate. They were all set under the window...so that the warm sun can help turn that water into a gas. Which container do you think will evaporate the quickest?
Mrs. Hillmer also took our class on a surprise trip to the computer lab to visit some online art sites. They had lots of fun!
Lastly, we read in our Dahl books (Matilda pages 90-116) and completed a set of comprehension questions about the book. I'll send those home to you today.
We worked here and there on our Mother's Day stories, too. We will do that more intently tomorrow.
Hope you will be feeling 100% better tomorrow so that you may join us!
:)Mrs. Neal
After viewing the presentation, we started a simple experiment: What Container Will Water Evaporate Fastest From? I poured 60 mL of water into four containers: a graduated cylinder, a cup, a saucer, and a plate. They were all set under the window...so that the warm sun can help turn that water into a gas. Which container do you think will evaporate the quickest?
Mrs. Hillmer also took our class on a surprise trip to the computer lab to visit some online art sites. They had lots of fun!
Lastly, we read in our Dahl books (Matilda pages 90-116) and completed a set of comprehension questions about the book. I'll send those home to you today.
We worked here and there on our Mother's Day stories, too. We will do that more intently tomorrow.
Hope you will be feeling 100% better tomorrow so that you may join us!
:)Mrs. Neal
Today's been a bit topsy-turvy! We switched schedules with fourth grade, so it's been hard to remember whether we are coming or going today!
This morning we...
*Added five new words to our spelling dictionaries. (Check the pink sheet on the board when you return.)
*Started brainstorming ideas for our next story. (I'll catch you up on that one.)
*Completed math boxes on page 193.
During math, we continued to discuss fractions. Looking at the pictures below, can you identify the name of each piece? I'll give you a hint on the first one...use the fractions 1/2, 1/3, 1/3, 1/6, 1/6. Try the second rectangle on your own.
We decided it was easiest to name the biggest pieces first and then work our way down to the smallest ones.
We also cut apart fraction cards (I did this for you) and compared them. For instance:
*Find the 1/2 card. Now find as many other cards in the deck as you can that have exactly half shaded. List the fractions that equal one half on page 194 of your journal.
*Find the 2/3 card. Now find as many other cards in the deck as you can that have exactly the same as 2/3 shaded and record on page 194 of your journal.
*Work with a friend to complete the table of equivalent fractions on page 194.
If we have time this afternoon we will play the Equivalent Fractions game on page 283 of your student reference book.
We also talked about what good readers do. (See below)
What Good Readers Do
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Afterward, I explained our new Literature Circle format. (Please review the form sent home.) The pages you should read will be indicated on the form.
If there is time this afternoon, we will work in teams to glue together a puzzle of equivalent fractions. Pairs of students will receive fraction cards to cut out and pair together if they match. We'll see if we have time. Often times we don't!
We hope you are feeling better and that you can come back to school tomorrow.
Miss you!
Mrs. Neal
This morning started off with a very long convo. Many students earned their hats today, which was exciting! Celine also shared an Irish dance with Lower Division. She was fantastic!
Once we got back to the classroom, believe it or not, we only had time to complete math boxes before it was snack time. (I'm sure you're disappointed we didn't do more.) -page 172
During math, I helped the class understand that...
ten x ten = hundred
Okay, I know that seems too simple. But if you change it to:
4 tens x 8 tens = 32 hundred
It makes this problem easier: 40 x 80 = 3,200
Please see the modified power point below.
7 8 Lesson
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After completing several examples, we completed page 173 in our math journals.
This afternoon, I introduced similes...well, actually, we had a guest teacher today! Mrs. Carpenter came to visit! She taught the lesson on similes and when I wasn't looking, she had the students create an amazing book about similes.
Similes
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The document each child completed looked like this:
A Simile Art
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The children spent some time in the library today catching up on Reading Counts and checking out books for the long break.
Mrs. Driscoll allowed them to complete their driver's licenses, too, so it was a fun afternoon!
I do hope you can come back to school tomorrow! We missed you!
Mrs. Neal
So sorry you couldn't make it today! We've been working hard and having fun. :)
This morning, we completed the Caught Ya as well as the math boxes on page 147 (they were challenging). We also finished the symmetry problems on page 146. We reviewed the Wordly Wise words (Lesson 10), and you can find the same power point on the blog.
The new spelling words are listed on the board. You can add them to your Spelling Dictionary when you come back.
During math, we discussed the difference between congruent and similar shapes. (Please see the power point below.) We reviewed by playing the sorting game located here. After the children had a solid understanding of the concept, we practiced by playing a matching game. It was funny to watch the children move around the room with different sized triangles, trying to find congruent or similar matches.
Congruent Or Similar
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This afternoon, Mrs. McCracken read a few books to us from the author Tony Buzzeo, who will be visiting us tomorrow. She writes quite a bit about librarians!
We held rotation this afternoon. The seatwork was fun! The children designed a robot that could do whatever it is you like! (clean a room, complete homework, print money, etc.) Students could either hand draw (and color) their robot, or they could use the robot builder website located in the post below. If the robot was designed on the website, students had to use the "snippet" tool in order to save a copy of it. We will work with these robots in our study of adverbs later in the week.
Those working with me were able to continue to write their stories about a fractured fairy tale. They are coming along nicely! During DEAR time, students were assigned chapters from their Dan Gutman book to read. You should finish the book and complete the literature circle form I will send home with you tomorrow.
We hope you are feeling better and can come back to school tomorrow!
:)Mrs. Neal
So many of you were out today! It just wasn't the same without you. Here is a brief summary of our day...
Language: After the International Parade, we wrote our own individual endings to The Frog Prince Continued. Most children opted to write from the prince's point of view...I chose to be the princess. :)
Math: Together, we practiced how to create angles using AngLegs. I demonstrated by first putting two AngLegs together, fixing them at the 12 o'clock position. I gave directions, such as:
Rotate counterclockwise a half turn. One AngLeg stayed put at the 12 o'clock position while I rotated the other AngLeg a half turn (counterclockwise). Together with a student, I drew the ending position of the AngLegs as well as an arrow, indicating which direction the AngLeg moved. This is sort of what it looked like...but this animation does not start at the 12 o'clock position as we did. You can also try this site (click "Make the Angle").
I gave several of these directions:
*Start at the 12 o'clock position.
*Rotate 3/4 turn clockwise.
*Mark and draw the rays.
*Label the end points of the rays
*Draw the arrow, indicating which way the ray rotated
This was done in the math workbook. I'll be happy to catch you up when you return! I know it sounds confusing!
You can review angle measurements playing this game or click the icon below for another fun game.
Library Skills: After lunch, we spent an hour in the library learning how to read an atlas. Many of the maps we looked at identified the National Parks in our country.
Fun: We started painting our own Explorer Trunks! We'll put finishing touches on them tomorrow.
Lab: We visited Mrs. Driscoll this afternoon. She showed us how to create an Excel Spreadsheet. It was fun to learn the ins and outs of how to use the tricks in Excel so that we plan our own budgets! (Tim and Moby gave us some inspiration.)
We are so sad you missed the day! I hope to see you tomorrow!
:)Mrs. Neal
