Feeling Fine Friday!!

It is officially fall, but it still feels like summer. So make sure to get out there this weekend and enjoy that weather.

 This week Brummitt was bubbling with excitement because of the Read-a-Thon. The students are doing an awesome job. I am very excited that they are all enjoying their  reading. This fundraiser is a great way to have kids do something they love and help the school at the same time. The total so far as of Thursday afternoon was over 9,000 minutes read and  over $5,000 raised. Great job Brummitt! Keep up the great work and good luck reading this weekend.

Next month will be the annual Brummitt Bash. So get those ideas flowing on what you are going to create.

Important dates:

September

30th PTO Fall Fundraiser ends

October

6th Picture Day

14th Brummitt Bash

This week we started the Life Skill of Respect. I think respect is so important for our students to learn and show each day they are here at school. I know 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 when they are asked to complete assignments and tasks that we know they understood us. 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 was …. I’m feeling under the weather. This one was pretty funny to most of the younger students because they love the cloud sitting on the kid. They did understand it and could all share a time when they felt yucky. Each week I offer a chance for the students to draw or illustrate the idiom. I told them they can be as creative as they want. If they do it and bring it in, they will get to pick a prize out of the prize box. This week I had no takers, but I am confident that someone will do one soon. So students and parents get those creative ideas going. Here is a hint to help them out: Kermit the frog can really relate to this one. I posted the picture for the next week on Thursday afternoon so students can stop by and see it before the weekend.

Language Arts

First Grade:

This week we continued our journey with connections, The students were really excited to start to put together their shields. Everyone brought in their stuff and we got started.

They took their patches and created their shields. They also got to create a booklet with all their information about each patch that way they could use it if they wanted to during their presentations.

 We had to cut class short because the whole first grade had to attend the information kick off for the Read-a-Thon. On Tuesday we picked up where we left off. Some students got their designs completed very quickly. I let them play story cubes until everyone finished. They love that game. They take the special picture dice and roll them.

 Then they tell a story they create using the pictures they rolled on the dice. They told some great stories on Tuesday. Once everyone was ready we got started on reviewing the shields and the students started their presentations. We only got two completed, but they did a great job. Each student will get to take their shield home after everyone has completed their presentations and we have all had a chance to see their excellent work. Next week we will pick up with the presentations and working on making connections. I can’t wait to hear all the students talk about their shields and the connections they made creating their patches.

Second Grade:

This week we continued to talk about connections. We reviewed the generalizations about connections first thing on Monday. I wanted the students to have it fresh in their minds when they started writing.

 Each student got to pick one generalization about connections and write a paragraph on why think they it is true.  This activity gives me a chance to see who loves to write and who still struggles a little to get down on paper what they think and feel. They got to use the remaining time on Monday and almost the whole class period on Tuesday. I had a few students who couldn’t finish and I let them take it home to complete over the weekend. I want the students to feel comfortable in writing and we will be working on it throughout the whole year.

 We will be reading a novel and the students will be writing in their journals about the experience.They will write about how the story makes them feel, they will make predictions, and they will write about connections with characters within the story. I know it will be hard for some students at first, but by the end of the year they will find a love of writing I am sure. Next week we will read and discuss a poem by Edgar Allan Poe. It is another chance for students to make connections and to have a class discussion on how they found those connections.   

Third Grade:

On Monday we reviewed all the generalizations about change. Then the students got to choose one to write about. They brought their Chromebooks to use to write a paragraph arguing why theirs is true. They got to use google docs to write it and they also learned how to share their work with me via google. They all got to work. On Tuesday we reviewed what they needed to write a great paragraph and I answered any questions. Then they were off typing away. They were very excited to share their thoughts and feelings on why their generalization is true. If they didn’t have enough time in  class to finish they have the weekend to go on google docs to complete it. I really look forward to reading their paragraphs. They all seemed very passionate about this assignment.

  Next week we will start to learn about our first genre of literature. I think they will find this one very interesting and will be eager to read their first stories. This will also tie into change and how the student’s will find it throughout their story. They will get to share what they read with the class and how it was created.

Fourth Grade:

 This week the students got to use their Chromebooks to work on their interviews. I went over what they needed to write in their interviews and different styles they could use.

  I also showed them how to share their google document. They were all really excited to get to writing. I also made sure to let them know that they needed to make sure to add lots of details about their interview. I want them to feel comfortable writing about real people since we will be working on biographies this year.

 Most students finished their write-up by the end of the class on Tuesday, but I have a few that will finish up over the weekend and turn it in on Monday. Next week the students will share their interviews with the class and talk about change. I really can’t wait to see how they did with writing about people they know and care about.

Math

First Grade:

 This week was just full of surprises in our first grade class. I received a package in the mail from the Amazon Rainforest and two Mathematicians named Zani and Imi. They are birds that work for the Amazon Birds Consulting and they need our help. The students were so excited to open the package and learn all about these birds and where they come from. We got out the globe and searched for their home. It took them a little while to find it, but they got it. Zani and Imi will be with us throughout the year asking for our help and guiding us through this journey. The students were really happy to receive a letter from so far away. Their box contained the letter, but it also had some scrolls and a book for the students to read. We read the book and learned about these two birds. We also learned about how to be a great listener and speaker. The book helped us see what we should do to be a great listener and speaker.

 On Thursday we reviewed the roles of a great listener and speaker and the students showed what those roles should be in our classroom. We also had a great class discussion about attributes and how we can find those in math classroom. The students created a list of math attributes compared to not math attributes when we look at one of our boxes in our classroom. Next week we will help Zani and Imi with our first mission to decide what measuring tools they should use in their boxes that they are mailing out to schools all around the world. Wish us luck to find the right combination with the best cost to mail.  

Second Grade:

 This week was very exciting for our students. We received a package in the mail from Africa. The students were shocked to see that there was a package waiting for them. We opened it and found a letter from two Meerkats who live in the Kalahari Desert. They are known to all as the “Detective Duo”. They need our class’s help investigating and solving problems. The students got to find Botswana in Southern Africa and see how far it is from Indiana. We then learned all about what it takes to be a great listener and speaker when we are in math. We read a book about the Detective Duo and learned about their travels and how they use math.

 The book showed us great examples of good listening and speaking skills. They loved learning about the duo. On Thursday we showed each other examples of how to be great speakers and listeners and the students got to learn about partner talk and what all the cool signs in class mean. We also started our first activity with a sheet called Think Deeply. Next week we will continue our first adventure with the Duo when we finish our first Think Deeply sheet.  Throughout the year, theses sheets will give us a problem to solve and we will need to take all the steps we learn to solve it. The students will learn what tools they need to learn to be great mathematicians.  

Third and Fourth Grade: Math Vocabulary Comic Relief

 This year we will continue to complete these 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. Once they have their answer they can turn over their paper and raise their hand and I will check it. This week was all about the right triangle. a triangle with a right angle. The students rocked this one out quite quickly. They all took the time to read the board and went straight over and circled the right answers. I am very proud of all them. This will also help with everything we will be studying this year. The first lesson has this as one of the math vocabulary words so that is an added bonus.

Third Grade:

 On Wednesday we started our first lesson. We reviewed the parts of a ruler and everything about centimeters and millimeters. We also added our first words to the mathematicians word wall. This wall will help us use the correct mathematical language when we write and solve problems. We took time to complete an activity on measuring things around the room. This gave us a refresher on measurement.On Thursday we started our first activity. We needed to think about all the parts of our body we could measure.

 We listed the parts that we could measure then we figured out what measuring device we could use. Last we discussed how we could measure each part and what way could work best. Then we started to measure. The lesson gave us a great idea to get the most accurate measurements. We could use adding machine tape to get a length then we could look at it to estimate how long the part would be in centimeters. We only got through a few before it was time to go. Next week we will finish out estimating and then measure to see how close we were. I can’t wait to see if we came close with our estimating skills.

Fourth Grade:

This week The students learned all about the new curriculum and unit we will be starting.  The learned about what they need to do for all classroom discussions. We went over the rights and obligations. The students know now what they are expected to do when someone is sharing an idea. They now have the tools to be great listeners and speakers. This will help us throughout the year to have very fulfilling classroom discussions. The students need to make sure they control these discussions to get the most out of them. We also went over what it takes to think like a mathematician. This will be very helpful for them this year as we embark on this new and exciting math adventure.  

On Thursday we got right to it, I took the first few minutes asking the students about the shapes I had and if they knew the terminology used to describe them. They did excellent. They all had their hands up and were ready to tell me what each shape was. After we reviewed it, they were ready for their first assignment. It was called, The Hunt for Shapes in My World. This worksheet gives the students a chance to show me they see theses shapes all around them and can identify them. I had them open their Chromebooks and look around the room to find the shapes on the sheet.  They had to search for real world items and not the shapes when they did google searches. If they knew that dice were cubes they could search for dice and find a picture and show me and I would sign off that they found it. They were having so much fun investigating and looking for each shape. I was running around from student to student seeing what they found and signing off on it. They did awesome. They have the chance to complete it at home and find things at home. I told them if they complete all eleven by next week I will let them pick a prize out of the treasure chest. I know that some students will be working hard to finish before then. Next week we will continue our adventure with shapes and we will start to review our math vocabulary and terms we will use throughout the year.

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Lutterman