This week it feels a lot more like Fall. It was really busy here at Brummitt. We had school pictures on Wednesday and all the kids looked awesome. I hope they all smiled for the camera. October is on its way and I am getting ready for my favorite time of year.
The Brummitt Bash will be October 16th and I am really excited to see what the PTO has planned this year. I am sure it will be filled with spooky, creepy, and scary things.
This week we started the Life Skill of Respect. Every morning Mr. Cammarata gives great advice on the announcements of how you can use this life skill in your everyday life. He said something that is true for all students, “You must give respect to earn respect” and I couldn’t agree more.
Respect is so important for our students to learn and show each day they are here at school. I think that many of our students are so respectful to each other and everyone around them.
I want them to understand that they need to be respectful when they are in class so that that when they are asked to complete assignments and tasks that we know they got it. I don’t want to be repeating information over and over when they didn’t listen the first time.
This is also important when they are in all areas of the school during the day. Respect is one of the most important life skills to learn in order to be a successful student and person.
Idiom of the Week
An Idiom is an expression whose meaning is not predictable
from the usual meanings of its constituent elements. This week’s idiom was …. We see eye to eye. The students had a
blast looking at the poster and trying to think of examples they could use. I
also am letting them know that I will put the new idiom up on Thursday
afternoons if they want to submit a drawing showing an example for next week. I
look forward to seeing if some of them can come up with clever drawings for
each idiom. I will talk to the students each week about them and they will get
to make their own drawing of how they think they would be used. I look forward
to seeing how they interpret each saying.
Language Arts
First Grade:
On Monday we discussed connections and went over what we talked about last week. We also made a list of things that are connected. It was fun to come up with things that are connected. The students really racked their brains to think of things. Then we made a list of things that are non-connections which was really funny. We listed things that couldn’t be connected in anyway like movie and globe and car and mouse. It made us laugh at all the funny things we could think of. I also discussed our first project which is all about signs.
I showed them signs and symbols and they had to decode what they meant. It was like a puzzle for them to figure out what each sign meant. They loved it.
On Tuesday we finished up the signs and symbols and then they got to work. They started to create patches that represent themselves.
They got to use signs and symbols to create a drawing/ patch that is some aspect of who they are. They worked really hard on them for the rest of class and will continue to work on them next week. They will also write what each one means. We don’t get to see what they mean until they make their presentations to us.
I will help them make a shield out of all the patches and then they will present them to the class. I can’t wait to hear about each patch and what it means to them. I also sent them home with a little homework to complete for next week. They need to look around their house and find four connections and write them down. We will use it for a discussion topic later on.
Second Grade:
This week was all about connections. We started Monday out with a discussion on what connections are and where we see them. They did great because they all knew that connections are all around us. We see them everywhere. They also knew that connections can change or stay the same over time. We then created a list of connections on a huge sheet of paper. They each wrote down all the connections they could think of. It was a long elaborate list. They worked really hard. I then asked them to create non-connections list. This is where things got way silly.
The list had some really crazy and funny things on it. You might want to ask them what they came up with. On Tuesday I gave them a list of connections and they had to create categories for them. They got to create their own categories based on how they connected them all. They had three solid categories: outside, home, and school. They found that a few of the connections could fit into more than one category which was excellent. I quickly printed there ideas out so they could put the whole list together and I hung the list up so they can refer back to it later if they need to. Next week we will discuss generalizations about connections and they will work on their first writing project. I look forward to seeing what they write on connections.
Third Grade:
This week I introduced our
first concept lesson on change. We discussed change and what it means. I then
had them break up into groups and create a list of things that change. They
worked on their lists together and some groups had long lists while others had
shorter list because they took more time to discuss the idea of change. It was
very interesting to see them work as teams to complete a common goal. Once they
had their list of things that change, I gave them another sheet to create a
list of things that don’t change and this is where things got really
complicated. They were very intense trying to think of things that don’t change
and it was a real brain crusher. They all came up with ideas and then would
discuss them and someone in the groups would think of how it could change and
they would be back to the drawing board. It was amazing how hard they tried to
think of things. Let’s just say this list was really short and I knew it would
be. I think that they did a great job working as a team to come up with real
ideas and help each other to find a solution. On Tuesday we got back to
finishing the pre-assessments. They worked really hard to write a persuasive
paragraph. I think that some were a little lost to have to write independently
which is common for this being the first time in this class. I hope that by the
end of the year they will feel comfortable writing about anything and
everything. I will make sure to give them projects to complete where they will
need to put their feeling and emotions down on paper. Next week we will
continue with change. I will have each group get up and talk about their list
and their thoughts about change.
Fourth Grade:
This week we started on the overall theme of the year, change. The students broke into small groups and got to discuss change and how it affects us every day. They created lists of things that change and they used huge sheets of colored paper to create their lists. They worked well as teams creating a detailed list of all the things that change. It was great to see them work together to bounce ideas off each other to increase their lists. Next I gave them another sheet and told them to come up with a list of things that don’t change. This was much more complicated. They started talking and found that it was hard to think of things that don’t change. It was great to see them work to come up with some ideas and then decide whether it could even work.
On Tuesday some students were out for testing with their regular class. So I had the others complete their last part of the assessment. They were very excited to write their persuasive paragraph and give their opinion. After they finished we played story dice which was fun because they used both sets to come up with elaborate storylines which went in several imaginative directions. Next week we will complete the change / non change lists and we will discuss them. I will also have the last remaining student complete their pre-assessments. The students will also have a cool little project that they will need to complete by interviewing someone.
Math
First Grade:
This week we started a new book with all the grades where they will learn as we read a story about math and then figure out how to solve each problem on what they have learned. They will start at a certain level and move up as they understand and learn from each problem.
Wednesday was excellent. We read the story together and started at level 1 and rocked through it with some ease after the first question. They were so excited at the thought that they could keep moving up once they understood it.
On Thursday we moved on to the level 2 questions where they did great working with me on each problem to come up with a solution that answers the question asked. We even went further and answered what would come after that.
They loved getting to work on the second level and I sent home the level three questions just in case they want to really challenge themselves and maybe you. After we completed level two they had just enough time to play a few games on the IPad.
I had them ready so they could play for a few minutes before the end of class as a reward for all their hard work these last two days. They have all completed the leveling section so they will get to the questions that will challenge them and keep them on their toes.
Next week we will move on to the next chapter of our next book called “Don’t Let it Break!” I look forward to the challenge and I think they do too.
Second Grade:
This week we started a new book with all the grades where they will learn as we read a story about math and then figure out how to solve each problem on what they have learned. They will start at a certain level and move up as they understand and learn from each problem. On Wednesday we read the packet and decided we would start with level 2 and got through it with ease. Once we figured out it was based on sequencing we knew what to do.
On Thursday we rocked through level 3, and decided we were up for the challenge and moved on to the genius level. There were some much harder problems, but with my help we got through all of them except the last one. I hope parents will look and see if they can help figure out the last one about the magic worm and the platypus. Next week we will start the next chapter called “Don’t Let It Break!” I can’t wait to see what that is all about.
Third Grade:
This week we started a new book with all the grades where they will learn as we read a story about math and then figure out how to solve each problem on what they have learned. They will start at a certain level and move up as they understand and learn from each problem.
On Wednesday, I randomly (by picking a mahjong tile) had them find a partner and work together to read the story and figure out the level 3 questions. I wanted to test out how well they work together to solve something without me leading them through it.
For most part this worked out pretty well, but I had a few that still needed more guidance which was ok too. They worked really hard to get done and most started working on the genius level before I even could check their level 3.
On Thursday, I checked out all the level 3 questions and gave a few hints to some that needed them. We had a few students finish genius level and did quite well without any help. I gave some clues and help to those that needed it. We also completed the problem of the day which they all could figure out in their heads which was awesome.
At the end of class we went through the genius level and it was so cool to watch them figure out each part and realize what step they might have missed. They did such a great job this week solving and working hard. I look forward to next week when we start the next chapter “Don’t Let it Break!”
Fourth Grade:
This week is all about logic problems. They students have started the section on logic and they are really being challenged. For some this is their first time working on logic problems so it is kind of confusing. I have been guiding them through it if they need my help. Others are flying through each step and racking their brains to find the solution.
This will be difficult and fun all in one. I look forward to next week to see if they can solve the next logic problem. It isn’t for the weak that is for sure, but I know they will rock it like they always do once they stop panicking. I have a few that just love them and are so excited to try each one. Next week the Frozen Cabbage Band……
Math Websites
Here are a few websites you
might want to check out to challenge your children and help them with their
math facts:
Have a great weekend.
Mrs. Lutterman
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.