It's hard to believe we only have one more week left in January. Winter is finally here. The weather has shown us that it’s that time of year. Remember to look at last week’s blog for information on how to find out about delays and closings.
We had a great week here at Brummitt even with the delay Monday. Students are making sure to spend their time inside having fun. This Friday January 22nd will be the PTO movie night from 6 pm to 8 pm. I know it will be a fun filled night and it’s a great movie filled with lots of emotion. Also don’t forget that Fridays are Spirit Days, so make sure you wear your Brummitt and Trojans gear.
This week we continued learning about our Life Skills with honesty. This is something that I felt tied into this week with Martin Luther King Jr. He was a man who believed in honesty and integrity. He knew if people were honest with their feelings and beliefs they could change the world.
He lived an honest life and did all he could to help all people and mankind to be treated equally. The students show honesty each day in the classroom. They make sure to be honest to themselves to do their best and give their all. I know that they want to make sure to give all they can each day in school. They all are very honest to each other and that is sometimes very hard. I am very proud of their honesty each day.
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 was …. Stop pulling my leg! The picture pretty much speaks for itself. I know I got a good laugh out of it. We discussed when you might hear this idiom and why. Lots of the students thought when someone might be telling a story that is so outrageous that it is hard to believe you would say it. I agreed. Still no takers on drawing, I am hoping maybe next week. Here is the hint: the next idiom involves what many students and children might be lacking and it involves four legged creatures known as horses.
Language Arts
First Grade:
This week we read a really cool book call Wumbers. The students loved this book because some of the words had numbers in them which helped the students figure out what to say. It was like deciphering the book as you go.
They really liked reading each page and figure out what the wumber was really trying to say. This book helped lead us into a discussion on acronyms. This is a new concept that once I explained it they were really excited to discover. We went back to the E-Mergency book to see if we could find any.
The students found several: ASAP, EMT, UV, CPR, ER, and TLC. They knew the concepts but couldn’t tell exactly what each stood for. Once I broke them down they got it. They had a great time discussing them and seeing if they knew any on their own.
We made connections between wumbers and acronyms. At the end of the class on Tuesday we reviewed the hamburger model for our next writing assignment. The students have to write a persuasive paragraph about if they think parents should buy first graders cell phones. We will work on it next week and I think they are leaning toward no, parents shouldn’t do it. But I will have to see if they have good reasons why. It will be lucky for the parents that they don’t, right?
Second Grade:
This week we continued with our novel The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo. Monday we finished reading chapters sixteen and seventeen. We discussed how the book is changing and how Edward is changing. We talked about how for a moment he lost all hope. The students also wrote in their journals. We talked about metaphors and making connections between words and the meanings. We watched a short video explaining the difference between metaphors and similes. They loved that one for sure.
On Tuesday we went over grammar. We took a sentence from chapter seventeen and dissected it using the four levels of analysis. The students are really working hard to figure out the parts of speech and knowing where each prepositional phrase is located. Next week we will continue working on metaphors and reading our novel.
Third Grade:
Monday we continued working on Fairy Tales. The students met back with their small groups to read their fairy tale and complete the reading analyzer on their story. On Tuesday the groups discussed their fairy tale and told us what they thought. We had some very interesting stories. Aladdin and the Magic Lamp which was very different from the movie that most of the students had seen gave a very different twist to the story. This fairy tale was written in the early 1700’s by Antoine Galland who was a
French orientalist and archaeologist, most famous as the first
European translator of
One Thousand and One Nights which he called Les mille et une nuits.
The students gave us their thoughts and feeling on this tale. We also had a group discuss The Hare and the Hedgehog. They found this story to be different from the turtle and the hare because the hedgehog tricked the rabbit in their story. The hare also races the hedgehog 74 times before giving up.
One group read The Golden Goose. This story was very long they said and had many twists and turns. They felt though it did contain a lesson to help those in need because they might be able to help you too. The last group will be going next week.
Next week the students will be making list of what they think a fairy tale needs to be great and in their small groups they will create their own fairy tales. I really look forward to reading what they generate.
Fourth Grade:
This week the students worked on their monologues. They asked some great questions on how and what to write. I let them know they need to write it as if they will be speaking it, because it is not just a printed report. On Tuesday I showed them the prezi.com website.
They all received the login information so they can get to it at home. I also had them each pick out their theme for their project. They all seem very excited to try to create their own prezi presentations.
I also let them know they don’t have to use it during their monologue but they can if they want. They will have next week to work on their presentations and create their prezi. Here are the instructions which are also in the google docs for the students to view:
People Who Made a Difference Instructions
Step Four: Synthesize information to list at least ten of the most significant events in the person’s life. Everyone is complete. Awesome
Step Five: Create a timeline of the famous person’s life. Everyone is done with this!
Step Six: Consider change in the person’s life and how he/she made a difference. Write a monologue including events, changes, and differences made in regard to his/her life. Due January 22nd. I have most the students still working on this because they needed to change how they were writing it.
Step Seven: Create a Prezi that includes the person’s name, a photo, years lived, and contributions. (The students should have their log in information to work on at home.) Due January 29th
Step Eight: Memorize your monologue and dress as your character. You are now ready for the People Who Made a Difference presentation. The students will be presenting on February 1st and 2nd. I will ask the students next week what order they want to work in.
Monologue Criteria
-Monologue describes events in the person’s life with detail and clarity.
-Monologue includes insight to changes in the person’s life.
-Monologue explores how the person made a difference.
-Speaker confidently presents monologue using good eye contact, posture, and voice.
-Speaker engages audience with appropriate words, facial expressions, and gestures.
-The presentation is supported with appropriate costume and props
Math
First Grade:
This week we continued working on and learning about logic with the Math Maven. We solved three math mysteries this week and started a fourth. The Golden Bat Bandit was a mystery to find which seat the bat was hidden behind. The students did a great job using their math skills and logic to narrow down the choices to find the correct one. Then we moved on to The Big Top Carnival Caper. This one took much longer because the students had to complete multiple steps to find the correct number of winners and how much the balloons would cost. They took their time and broke it into pieces they could solve and came up with the correct number of winners (360) and then figured out how much the balloons would cost ($36.00).
They were very hesitant as first to start this one but once we talked it over and they broke everything into smaller pieces they could do the math and solve the problem. I think these mysteries are really helping them understand word problems and logic.
They are getting comfortable with stopping and thinking about each step before solving the problem to make sure they are doing it right. I am very proud of their efforts these past few weeks and they are gaining so much confidence in themselves.
The last was The Case of the Hatcher Hotel Heist. This one was awesome because they had to figure out the pattern the thief was using to give us the clues to find the last room they were in. The students rocked through each step and found the pattern and solved that mystery. Next week we will continue with logic and problem solving.
Second Grade:
This week we continued working on sequences with the Binary Sequence. We had a discussion on the binary sequence and how it is used in computers and software to write script. We also created Fibonacci numbers using combinations of binary numbers. Finally we completed a binary chart thinking like the computer and only used 0’s and 1’s. I also have a binary math joke: There are 1 0 kinds of people in this world: those who can read binary and those who can't. Next week we will learn about patterns in multiplication.
Third and Fourth Grade: Math Vocabulary Comic Relief
This year I am starting something new we will be doing each week on Wednesdays. I have the Math Vocabulary Comic Relief board. Each week when the students come in on Wednesday they will go to look at the board and grab their problem. They will have five minutes to read and solve it. This week was Product. Product, in math, is the answer when two or more numbers are multiplied together. The students rocked this one out very fast. They all understood the problem and solved it super-fast. They didn’t need any help in either class. The picture was pretty funny too this week so they all got a good laugh.
Third Grade:
This week we continued with the Sweet Multiplication and students did a great job.The students are really trying hard each time they take a test. Some students have already passed 11’s. They are rocking it. And now all our students are at 5’s and higher.
After we completed those we started on our next chapter. This chapter is on logic and thinking. It is called Can I Answer that Question? The students were really excited to see if they could figure out the answers. They learned that you really have to stop and listen to each question and think before you answer because there are clues in each problem. Next week we will continue with logic in this chapter.
Fourth Grade:
This week we continued working on our unit about fractions. The students had to convert mixed numbers into fractions and they did an awesome job. I am glad they did these so fast. I didn’t have to assist any of them. Then they were given their next project where they had to really use their math skills and a ruler to divide brownies, pies and cookies into equal pieces. They really worked hard to make sure each section was equal. Then they completed Cookie Craziness where they drew and labeled the cookies for the bake sale and figured out the fractions in lowest terms.
Next week we will continue with the next lesson on fractions and some problems about doubling pie recipes and how fractions work into baking for the bake sale.
Have a Great Weekend!
Mrs. Lutterman
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.