Dear Parents,
Happy Thursday!!! We have had a pretty noisy week. I am not sure I am blaming the moon or Halloween, but the kids have been very busy, with each other! We are working hard even though they are finding time to visit with each other. I think things are very routine and they have officially settled in and know what is going to happen, so some of them get ahead. I am looking forward to next week when I can visit with each of you. If you haven't been able to sign up for a conference time, let me know. I sent an email last week that linked you to my conference schedule. If you are having trouble getting that to work let me know, or if you didn't receive the email, let me know. My schedule is filling up pretty quickly.
Language Arts - I have fallen behind!! You will see your child's scores for the last two Friday tests, today. I forgot to send home the first week. They were here on my desk but I didn't get them in the "go home" basket. They are both there today. This week we have had a more interesting story to read. It was a realistic fiction story called Me and Uncle Romie. It is a fun-loving story with some interesting facts filtered in about Harlem long ago and artists. The story was written with famous collage artist Romare Bearden in mind. His works can be found in galleries across the Unites States. His works reflect Harlem during the time of Segregation. In grammar this week we focused on Present, Past and Future Progressive Tense verbs. I don't ever remember learning these! It is a quick look at them, but I think they really get it. Plus this helps show them that when choosing the verb in a sentence it may be more than one word. Tomorrow is a end of week test day!! Hopefully that goes well with it being our "Halloween"! Just a reminder next week is conference week so it is a short school week. Spelling pretest will be Monday with a post test on Thursday instead of Friday. Also end of week test will be on Thursday instead of Friday.
Math - We have completely finished Chapter 1 and have dug into chapter 2. We have spent the week talking about multiplication comparison models. We are just learning to understand multiplication statements and equations. We are also focusing on drawing a picture of the multiplication problem to show we understand what it is telling us. We are now moving into lesson 2 which uses the model but in a different way. We will spend the end of the week focusing on this. We are not moving very quickly because I am not comfortable moving forward when I feel we don't have a good understanding of the concept. If I were moving quickly all would be struggling a lot! We are approaching those concepts that adults struggle with because they were not taught these. It is not changing how you do it, it is just digging deeper so your child knows exactly why they are doing what they are doing. I know I would have been a better math student if I would have learned "why's" of math. Please bear with us and if your child needs help and you can't give it, send them in early to work with me. I am here by 7:45. I have morning duty on Wednesdays but all other days I am available for help.
Social Studies - We are working on Chapter 3! We have begun filling out the next vocabulary packet. It is yellow, make sure they don't throw this away!! We have discussed a little about why people were choosing to move westward and what industries were important long ago. We finished lesson 1 today and will move into lesson 2 tomorrow. This one will be full of information!! The students are doing a great job working on vocabulary words and sharing their ideas in class with their peers. I think all students get more out of learning the vocabulary using this strategy but I also feel that on the last test they didn't review them because they felt they knew them well. They need to review them the night before so our scores are a little better in this section.
Halloween!! Tomorrow the students will be celebrating Halloween. We will only be doing this in the afternoon. They need to bring their costumes tomorrow for the parade in the afternoon. We will begin some activities put on by the Civics Club at 1:20 and back in the room by 2:00. I then usually have a snack and a drink for the kids to have as kind of a Halloween Party. I am working on getting someone to supply that. The parade will begin at 2:30. All are welcome to join and enjoy the school in costumes!!!
Next week is a short week!! Thursday the students get out at 11:50. We will not be providing lunch that day. There is NO school on Friday. Conferences run from 1-5 and again 6 - 9:30. We have a lot to accomplish even if it is a short week. Friday I will be going on our first college visit. Josie is visiting Iowa State. She has all ready decided on this college but we hadn't been on a visit there. The next week I go to UNO (University of Nebraska at Omaha) with Jami and then at the end of the week University of Iowa with Jami. She also has some interviews at Mercy. I am not sure I am ready for this part of life, but it is here!! I will be missing only 1 day Wednesday, November 11th for these visits.
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!! Enjoy sounds like the weather is going to warm up again.
God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels
Thursday, October 29, 2015
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Dear Parents,
Happy Thursday!! What a week have had. It has been a fun one. Yesterday was "Back to The Future"Day. We did some activities yesterday surrounding the movie. We started with a bullying discussion. I showed a clip of Classic Bullying by Biff on George McFly. It had all the components: Bully, bystanders, and followers. It had people or adults that could have stopped the encounter. It showed George respond in a joking manner, and when Biff directed his attention to Marty, George then became a follower. We discussed everything that was wrong and how things could have been different. It was a great discussion. Some kids were just plain appalled at the scene. We saw a video clip of 11 things Back to the Future gave to us before 2015. It talked about 11 things in the "movie 2015" that we actually have now. It was interesting. We also compared the 1950's hair and music to the 1980's and present time. They enjoyed that. We visited the "futuristic" room which was full of technology. Kids played with robots, created their own, played games on ipads and used goggles to view apps on phones. The virtual reality rooms on goggles was a lot of fun. You could see kids falling over and spinning around to look at everything. I did it and had to hang on to something as I looked. I felt unstable on my feet. We ended the day by getting into groups or partners and creating Hoverboards, cars, and buildings in a futuristic town. Those that finished are all ready hanging in the hall. As the others complete theirs it will be in the hall also. Some were very detailed and some serious effort was put into them. Some were simple. All of them are great. They did a nice job working together.
Language Arts - This week we are reading a story called :Coming Distractions Questioning Movie". I find this interesting but dry. It points of part of movies that are very "unreal" things and that we should catch them and wonder "why". Like in Action Films, women fight or run in high heels, and car accidents that normally people are trapped or very injured and people in movies get out and run away. It's interesting stuff by story is not presenting it in an interesting manner. We have spent the week talking about verb tenses in grammar, we worked on fact and opinions, and summarizing. This story couldn't have come at a better time. Discussing movies and special effects and having Back to Future Day in the same week really worked out well. The two complimented each other.
Math - We finished chapter 1! We spent Monday and Tuesday working on correcting the tests and starting a prior knowledge page on chapter 2. They worked on multiplication flash cards and played around the world. We need to start pushing the flash cards at home. When a person knows their facts with no problem, learning strategies in multiplication is so much easier. We will be learning several ways to multiply numbers. They are not strategies you learned as a kid. They are very good and helpful. It makes the students understand why they are doing it and why it works. We will take this section at a pace the students can handle. I make sure the students are mastering each lesson before moving on. This is actually my favorite content area in Math to teach. Be patient with them and let me know if there are any problems.
Social Studies - We finished reviewing chapter 2 today and will have a test tomorrow. Please make sure your child is studying the vocabulary on their Peach packet, and their yellow study guide. They will test first thing in the morning. If they review their items right before bed and again as soon as they get up, that will help them perform well on their 8:30 test! We will begin Chapter 3 next week. It is on the United States Economy. Full of great things students need to know but the key word is "full", there is a lot. After Chapter 3 we start discussing each region separately. That is when social studies becomes a lot of fun.
Tomorrow is Spirit Day. Remember your child can pay a dollar to wear sweats if they would like with their jersey or team shirt. The money is used to create baskets for families who go through a tragic time, like when a school has a student die, we send a basket of snacks and water bottles to them for their lounge. We also made a basket for Ms. McKasson and her family when her father was in the hospital. We sent one with Mrs. Levine when she was to spend time in the hospital. If your child doesn't wear sweats and just wants to donate a dollar, we will accept that too. I hope everyone has a great weekend!!
God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels
Thursday, October 15, 2015
Dear Parents,
Happy Thursday!! I am very proud of the 4th grade students. I feel that they are learning to work hard during their study halls and work time. I feel like they are finally realizing that working hard gets things done and I don't take as much work home to complete. This makes our day run so much smoother. All students seem to be very chatty when they arrive in the morning and it takes a little bit to settle down, but that will come with a little more time. I hope not too much longer. I think they just have so much to tell each other when they arrive they can't seem to get it all in! Oh the exciting lives kids lead!!
Language Arts - We are back to a normal week. We are reading Invasion From Mars this week. It is a fun story. It is actually a play, or drama. This has a funny story of its own. Back in the 1930's before we had television and everyone listened to the radio for entertainment, Orson Welles had a radio program where they dramatized the book War of the Worlds. There is a section in this book where an extraterrestrial object land in New Jersey and people are panicking. This portion of the book aired on October 30, 1938. People who joined after the program started thought it to be real and were scared. This actually set about panic because they thought an alien had really arrived. We read the story and I have shared the actual broadcast of this with them. They have found it to be very entertaining! This week we have also worked on action verbs, linking verbs and helping verbs. We understand what an action verb is but sometimes still struggle picking them out of a sentence. We have memorized the main linking verbs ( am, is, are, was, were) and we have discussed what a helping verb is, what it does and how it is usually always followed by an action verb. I hope they can remember this and keep them straight for tomorrow's test. We will review right before the test to help them.
Math - We are finishing up correcting their review over chapter 1. They will be taking a test over chapter 1 tomorrow. They will have the whole class time to complete this test. We will correct it on Monday and start chapter 2 on Tuesday. This is a great chapter to review items needed for the rest of the year. We introduce some of the same concepts but at a higher level. Kids have been taught how to round numbers by the time they get to me, but I get to teach the skill with larger numbers! Sometimes we really struggle with this. This is also a time we review adding and subtracting large numbers. Remembering to regroup in subtraction can still be a struggle. You can help your child study for the Math test tonight by looking at the review and giving them similar problems to solve. This review is set up just like the test they will take, it will just not be the exact same problems, but same concepts. If #4 is a subtraction problem than #4 on the test will be also but with different numbers. I suggest focusing on rounding numbers, knowing place value, and renaming numbers!! These are areas of difficulty.
Social Studies - We discussed the three levels of Government and the 3 branches. I gave the students a chart over it. They were to study the chart and had quiz over it. Most did pretty well. Some mixed up the branches of Government. We are now moving onto rights and responsibilities of a U. S. Citizen. We will discuss things that are our rights and then also to talk about what are responsibilities are. This chapter covers 2 benchmarks that we are required to report on. One being knowing the 3 branches and that we have 3 levels of Government. The other is knowing the difference between responsibilities and rights as a citizen. This is all important stuff for us to know!
Halloween is coming!! That is an exciting time for us. We have a fun day on the 30th with Halloween activities put on by the Civics Club and ending the day with our Annual Halloween Parade in the gym at 2:30! All parents are welcome to attend. I hope you realize that once Halloween is here the rest of the year flies by!! After Halloween is conferences, then Thanksgiving, Advent begins, Christmas is here and BOOM the end of the year is here!! We are then halfway done. Conference schedules are being discussed and will be out sometime soon for you to sign up. Our website is struggling and is down more than it is up, so we are working on another way to get you signed up for a time. I will keep you updated and will most likely be sharing a link on my blog to get you signed up. I will be anxious to meet with each of you about your student.
Have a great weekend!!!
God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels
Happy Thursday!! I am very proud of the 4th grade students. I feel that they are learning to work hard during their study halls and work time. I feel like they are finally realizing that working hard gets things done and I don't take as much work home to complete. This makes our day run so much smoother. All students seem to be very chatty when they arrive in the morning and it takes a little bit to settle down, but that will come with a little more time. I hope not too much longer. I think they just have so much to tell each other when they arrive they can't seem to get it all in! Oh the exciting lives kids lead!!
Language Arts - We are back to a normal week. We are reading Invasion From Mars this week. It is a fun story. It is actually a play, or drama. This has a funny story of its own. Back in the 1930's before we had television and everyone listened to the radio for entertainment, Orson Welles had a radio program where they dramatized the book War of the Worlds. There is a section in this book where an extraterrestrial object land in New Jersey and people are panicking. This portion of the book aired on October 30, 1938. People who joined after the program started thought it to be real and were scared. This actually set about panic because they thought an alien had really arrived. We read the story and I have shared the actual broadcast of this with them. They have found it to be very entertaining! This week we have also worked on action verbs, linking verbs and helping verbs. We understand what an action verb is but sometimes still struggle picking them out of a sentence. We have memorized the main linking verbs ( am, is, are, was, were) and we have discussed what a helping verb is, what it does and how it is usually always followed by an action verb. I hope they can remember this and keep them straight for tomorrow's test. We will review right before the test to help them.
Math - We are finishing up correcting their review over chapter 1. They will be taking a test over chapter 1 tomorrow. They will have the whole class time to complete this test. We will correct it on Monday and start chapter 2 on Tuesday. This is a great chapter to review items needed for the rest of the year. We introduce some of the same concepts but at a higher level. Kids have been taught how to round numbers by the time they get to me, but I get to teach the skill with larger numbers! Sometimes we really struggle with this. This is also a time we review adding and subtracting large numbers. Remembering to regroup in subtraction can still be a struggle. You can help your child study for the Math test tonight by looking at the review and giving them similar problems to solve. This review is set up just like the test they will take, it will just not be the exact same problems, but same concepts. If #4 is a subtraction problem than #4 on the test will be also but with different numbers. I suggest focusing on rounding numbers, knowing place value, and renaming numbers!! These are areas of difficulty.
Social Studies - We discussed the three levels of Government and the 3 branches. I gave the students a chart over it. They were to study the chart and had quiz over it. Most did pretty well. Some mixed up the branches of Government. We are now moving onto rights and responsibilities of a U. S. Citizen. We will discuss things that are our rights and then also to talk about what are responsibilities are. This chapter covers 2 benchmarks that we are required to report on. One being knowing the 3 branches and that we have 3 levels of Government. The other is knowing the difference between responsibilities and rights as a citizen. This is all important stuff for us to know!
Halloween is coming!! That is an exciting time for us. We have a fun day on the 30th with Halloween activities put on by the Civics Club and ending the day with our Annual Halloween Parade in the gym at 2:30! All parents are welcome to attend. I hope you realize that once Halloween is here the rest of the year flies by!! After Halloween is conferences, then Thanksgiving, Advent begins, Christmas is here and BOOM the end of the year is here!! We are then halfway done. Conference schedules are being discussed and will be out sometime soon for you to sign up. Our website is struggling and is down more than it is up, so we are working on another way to get you signed up for a time. I will keep you updated and will most likely be sharing a link on my blog to get you signed up. I will be anxious to meet with each of you about your student.
Have a great weekend!!!
God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels
Thursday, October 8, 2015
Dear Parents,
Hello Thursday!! I feel like the weeks fly by! It must be because we are so busy. We are getting into cold and flu season!! I have had people missing this week due to illness and 2 have left school with a fever! If your child is sick please keep them home. A big class like this will spread it like crazy. I had mine a couple weeks ago but I didn't have a fever with it, just coughed a lot. The rule of thumb is your child must be fever free for 24 hours without medicine before returning to school. So, if your child leaves school at 11:00 one day,then the next day I should not see your child till after lunch, if following the 24 hour rule. We are just trying stop the spread of illness and lessen the amount of students absent. I will follow this same rule myself.
Book It!! I am pumped about the enthusiasm I am seeing in this class for reading!! I have a couple who are true competitor's and wanting to beat me!!! I love it!! Keep them reading at home. They have book report books now that they should be reading. I am fine if you read with them but make sure they are reading to you, not vice versa. Just to let you know as of today I have read 1,486 minutes in October. I have student in the 800's right now trying to catch me!
Language Arts - This has been a unit test week. We spend a part of everyday taking a section of this test. We have also discussed the first book report they will be completing. They are all hunting for a book to read. The book must be 130 pages or more and not have any pictures. Books that have been made into movies can not be done. It makes them branch out and read other things. We are also working on Halloween stories. They are to choose a fairy tale or short story to follow, and create their own Halloween Story. We talked about this in full on Wednesday. They created titles of stories for today. We will go over them and then begin writing. They may need to find a copy of the book they are choosing to follow. These stories are always lots of fun.
Math - We are finishing up Math chapter 1. We will start reviewing for a test starting tomorrow. The test will happen next week. It is a multiple choice test. They will be given a day to make corrections and then we will begin chapter 2. We have worked hard in this chapter and everything we learned we will use for the rest of the year but I know everyone is ready to move on and get on to bigger and better things. That includes me. I look forward to moving forward.
Social Studies - We are working on learning about out Government. We are learning that there are 3 levels of Government: local, State, and National. We will also be talking about the 3 branches of Government. We will discuss the purpose of each. We will be looking at studying for a test the end of next week for a test in the week following. I am very happy with the vocabulary model we used this chapter and the discussions the kids had about them. I feel they are definitely getting a better understanding of what the words really means!!
I hope everyone has a great weekend!!
God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels
Hello Thursday!! I feel like the weeks fly by! It must be because we are so busy. We are getting into cold and flu season!! I have had people missing this week due to illness and 2 have left school with a fever! If your child is sick please keep them home. A big class like this will spread it like crazy. I had mine a couple weeks ago but I didn't have a fever with it, just coughed a lot. The rule of thumb is your child must be fever free for 24 hours without medicine before returning to school. So, if your child leaves school at 11:00 one day,then the next day I should not see your child till after lunch, if following the 24 hour rule. We are just trying stop the spread of illness and lessen the amount of students absent. I will follow this same rule myself.
Book It!! I am pumped about the enthusiasm I am seeing in this class for reading!! I have a couple who are true competitor's and wanting to beat me!!! I love it!! Keep them reading at home. They have book report books now that they should be reading. I am fine if you read with them but make sure they are reading to you, not vice versa. Just to let you know as of today I have read 1,486 minutes in October. I have student in the 800's right now trying to catch me!
Language Arts - This has been a unit test week. We spend a part of everyday taking a section of this test. We have also discussed the first book report they will be completing. They are all hunting for a book to read. The book must be 130 pages or more and not have any pictures. Books that have been made into movies can not be done. It makes them branch out and read other things. We are also working on Halloween stories. They are to choose a fairy tale or short story to follow, and create their own Halloween Story. We talked about this in full on Wednesday. They created titles of stories for today. We will go over them and then begin writing. They may need to find a copy of the book they are choosing to follow. These stories are always lots of fun.
Math - We are finishing up Math chapter 1. We will start reviewing for a test starting tomorrow. The test will happen next week. It is a multiple choice test. They will be given a day to make corrections and then we will begin chapter 2. We have worked hard in this chapter and everything we learned we will use for the rest of the year but I know everyone is ready to move on and get on to bigger and better things. That includes me. I look forward to moving forward.
Social Studies - We are working on learning about out Government. We are learning that there are 3 levels of Government: local, State, and National. We will also be talking about the 3 branches of Government. We will discuss the purpose of each. We will be looking at studying for a test the end of next week for a test in the week following. I am very happy with the vocabulary model we used this chapter and the discussions the kids had about them. I feel they are definitely getting a better understanding of what the words really means!!
I hope everyone has a great weekend!!
God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels
Thursday, October 1, 2015
Dear Parents,
Happy Thursday!! For the kids it is the end of the week!!! Teachers will be participating in a Professional Development day at the High School with surrounding schools. It is called 21st Century Learner. It is an all day event about bringing technology into our classrooms. I find this day very interesting because it is "real" teachers who put o the seminars showing what they are doing in their classrooms with technology. It is very informational. Sometimes there are great things we bring back and attempt to implement. A lot of things require more research before we attempt them. It is also a great day for us to interact with other teachers from other schools. I hope your kids enjoy a long weekend!!
Book It!!! - Yeah, Book It is back!!! This program went away for a few years but now we are bringing it back. I am very excited about it and so are a lot of the students. The parents I have talked to about it are happy it is back also. If you are wondering what it is or how it works, here you go: Book It is a program for reading that Pizza Hut sponsors. The teachers in each classroom set a reasonable goal for kids to reach. They spend the month keeping track of their minutes or books they read they help them reach whatever the goal is. At the end of the month they turn their calendars in and the teacher keeps track if they met the goal. if they meet the goal they get a certificate for a free personal pan pizza. In my classroom I give them a certain amount of minutes to read in a month. They have a calendar that they will write down their minutes on. They keep track of any reading they do in school or outside school. I collect calendars at the beginning of the next month. I will add up the minutes and keep a chart in classroom so students can keep track of how they are doing. In my classroom you have a choice between the Pizza Hut personal pan pizza or a coupon for $4.00 off a buffet at Pizza Ranch. Pizza Ranch also supports kids in their reading. The students must make a choice and mark the box of the prize they want. I tally the reading minutes for the 6 months we do this program. I give a prize to the people who meet my goal for all 6 months and I give a prize to the top three reader's in my classroom. Meaning the three students who read the most minutes. I read all the time, so I am also on the reading chart and I will also keep track of my minutes. The kids are pumped to be competing with me. I will give an even bigger prize to the student who reads more than I do at the end of 6 months!! It's quite a challenge and they love it! Please help your student keep track of their calendars so they can turn them in. A lost calendar is lost minutes. Here are the goals I have set for the 6 months:
October 350 min.
November 400 min.
December 450 min.
January 500 min.
February 550 min.
March 600 min.
Language Arts: This week we read a Tall Tale called Stormalong. It is about Alfred Bulltop Stormalong. He is a sailor. He is a giant of a man and can't find a place to call home because he is so big. This is about his journey to find a place where he fits in and friends. The spelling list was on Homophones this week. This is words that sound the same but are spelled differently. This is always a fun list. They learn a few new words like feat, and vain. They also begin to learn that the meanings of the words are very important to the spelling. Examples would be sent, cent, and scent and vain, vane, and vein. Grammar focused on capitalization. We talked about capitalizing historical documents, historical events, titles, nationalities, and languages. This was a short week so I felt like we really whipped through some of this, but I also feel it was a good week to push through quickly. Capitalization should be review. This was the last story of Unit 1 so next week will be a test week. During this week they will also begin a writing project and get their first book report assigned to them!!! It will still be a busy week!
Math - In math this week we have been reviewing whole number addition with numbers in the hundred thousands and subtracting whole numbers in the hundred thousands. These subtraction problems also require you to regroup. Both of these lesson are a review except they have probably not used numbers this large. Next week we will work on problem-solving and then gear up for our chapter 1 test. This chapter focuses on number sense and can tend to be difficult for some. I feel the students have grasped the main ideas in this lesson and we are going to be ready to move forward.
Social Studies - We have finished the first lesson in chapter 2 and moving into lesson 2. We are doing a great job on vocabulary words. I am enjoying their illustrations and examples. I love this new way of doing the vocabulary because it really makes them understand the meaning of the word in order to complete the model. I hope that means less studying for them at the end of the chapter because they will all ready understand the meaning of the words and not just memorize them. Next lesson will focus on Government. We will have a brief overview of each branch in the government and what their job requires. We will talk about the three levels of government also.
Please check out this Spaghetti Supper site:
.https://stmalachy.bringit.bz/
I hope everyone has a great weekend. Reminder: Students are allowed to wear shorts through October but please, just because they can doesn't always mean they should. Pay attention to the weather and if a cold day please dress appropriately. We all ready have sicknesses going around. My house has had strep and mono like symptoms. Let's be as safe as we can.
God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels
Happy Thursday!! For the kids it is the end of the week!!! Teachers will be participating in a Professional Development day at the High School with surrounding schools. It is called 21st Century Learner. It is an all day event about bringing technology into our classrooms. I find this day very interesting because it is "real" teachers who put o the seminars showing what they are doing in their classrooms with technology. It is very informational. Sometimes there are great things we bring back and attempt to implement. A lot of things require more research before we attempt them. It is also a great day for us to interact with other teachers from other schools. I hope your kids enjoy a long weekend!!
Book It!!! - Yeah, Book It is back!!! This program went away for a few years but now we are bringing it back. I am very excited about it and so are a lot of the students. The parents I have talked to about it are happy it is back also. If you are wondering what it is or how it works, here you go: Book It is a program for reading that Pizza Hut sponsors. The teachers in each classroom set a reasonable goal for kids to reach. They spend the month keeping track of their minutes or books they read they help them reach whatever the goal is. At the end of the month they turn their calendars in and the teacher keeps track if they met the goal. if they meet the goal they get a certificate for a free personal pan pizza. In my classroom I give them a certain amount of minutes to read in a month. They have a calendar that they will write down their minutes on. They keep track of any reading they do in school or outside school. I collect calendars at the beginning of the next month. I will add up the minutes and keep a chart in classroom so students can keep track of how they are doing. In my classroom you have a choice between the Pizza Hut personal pan pizza or a coupon for $4.00 off a buffet at Pizza Ranch. Pizza Ranch also supports kids in their reading. The students must make a choice and mark the box of the prize they want. I tally the reading minutes for the 6 months we do this program. I give a prize to the people who meet my goal for all 6 months and I give a prize to the top three reader's in my classroom. Meaning the three students who read the most minutes. I read all the time, so I am also on the reading chart and I will also keep track of my minutes. The kids are pumped to be competing with me. I will give an even bigger prize to the student who reads more than I do at the end of 6 months!! It's quite a challenge and they love it! Please help your student keep track of their calendars so they can turn them in. A lost calendar is lost minutes. Here are the goals I have set for the 6 months:
October 350 min.
November 400 min.
December 450 min.
January 500 min.
February 550 min.
March 600 min.
Language Arts: This week we read a Tall Tale called Stormalong. It is about Alfred Bulltop Stormalong. He is a sailor. He is a giant of a man and can't find a place to call home because he is so big. This is about his journey to find a place where he fits in and friends. The spelling list was on Homophones this week. This is words that sound the same but are spelled differently. This is always a fun list. They learn a few new words like feat, and vain. They also begin to learn that the meanings of the words are very important to the spelling. Examples would be sent, cent, and scent and vain, vane, and vein. Grammar focused on capitalization. We talked about capitalizing historical documents, historical events, titles, nationalities, and languages. This was a short week so I felt like we really whipped through some of this, but I also feel it was a good week to push through quickly. Capitalization should be review. This was the last story of Unit 1 so next week will be a test week. During this week they will also begin a writing project and get their first book report assigned to them!!! It will still be a busy week!
Math - In math this week we have been reviewing whole number addition with numbers in the hundred thousands and subtracting whole numbers in the hundred thousands. These subtraction problems also require you to regroup. Both of these lesson are a review except they have probably not used numbers this large. Next week we will work on problem-solving and then gear up for our chapter 1 test. This chapter focuses on number sense and can tend to be difficult for some. I feel the students have grasped the main ideas in this lesson and we are going to be ready to move forward.
Social Studies - We have finished the first lesson in chapter 2 and moving into lesson 2. We are doing a great job on vocabulary words. I am enjoying their illustrations and examples. I love this new way of doing the vocabulary because it really makes them understand the meaning of the word in order to complete the model. I hope that means less studying for them at the end of the chapter because they will all ready understand the meaning of the words and not just memorize them. Next lesson will focus on Government. We will have a brief overview of each branch in the government and what their job requires. We will talk about the three levels of government also.
Please check out this Spaghetti Supper site:
.https://stmalachy.bringit.bz/
I hope everyone has a great weekend. Reminder: Students are allowed to wear shorts through October but please, just because they can doesn't always mean they should. Pay attention to the weather and if a cold day please dress appropriately. We all ready have sicknesses going around. My house has had strep and mono like symptoms. Let's be as safe as we can.
God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels
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