I am so thankful for all my students!

LANGUAGE ARTS

1^st Grade: Using an app called pages, the kids recorded themselves reading their persuasive paragraphs.  Pages comes pre-loaded on the school iPads.  Once in the app, each kid picked out a picture of a pig to add to the page and then wrote Pig Latin in Pig Latin (igpay atinlay).  Next, they recorded their voices reading the paragraph.  Ask them to get into the app so you can hear the adorable recording! The second day we jumped into a new cipher.  This one is called The Over Under Substitution Cipher.  We started class by doing a worksheet together that asked the kids to change one letter in a word to make another word.  They were given clues. For instance, with the word cat, they were asked to change one letter and the clue was (a baseball hat).  Thus, cat became cap.  Once we finished this worksheet, we worked together to solve The Over Under Substitution Cipher.  This cipher places the alphabet into two rows of thirteen, with one row on top of the other.  To read the cipher the kids had to understand that the row on top was directly related to the row on the bottom.  They caught on very quickly and breezed through deciphering a sentence.       

 

2nd Grade: We started the week with a quick check on the reading.  We then read two chapters together and discussed our reading.  I had to banish one girl to the dungeon (classroom) so please remind your child to read.  Thank you again parents for all your help!  On Tuesday we discussed Monday’s reading and then the girls were asked to rotate around the room and answer five questions placed on butcher paper.   These questions all related to holding a grudge.  They were asked; what brings you comfort, what does it mean to hold a grudge, ect.  It was super fun to read their thoughts.  I asked the girls to read through chapter 46 for the Monday after turkey day.  If they, however, want to read ahead I am super okay with that.  At the end, the book gets exciting!

 

3rd Grade:  This week the kids read a fairy tale that they had never heard before, Billy Beg and his Bull.  When I gave the five-sheet tale to the kids I asked them to figure out the genre of Folklore.  I set the kids free to find a spot around the room and they spent the entire class reading.  The next day those that had not finished quickly completed and we began to discuss the tale.  Most kids thought it was weird and a little confusing.  A couple said that it was a Tall Tale.  However, when one girl made the connection between Billy Beg and Cinderella, they quickly figured out it was a fairy tale.  The kids also had an aha moment when I reminded them that the story started out by saying, once upon a time.  We talked about the elements of a fairy tale and then started working on our preposition song.  The preposition song is a song about, you guessed it, prepositions!  It is sung to the tune of Yankee Doodle Dandy. The boys were not thrilled to be singing a song but quickly got on board when I explained that as they continue through school, they will be expected to diagram parts of a sentence and learning this song will help.  I am hoping that by Christmas they have the entire song memorized. 

 

4th Grade: My fourth graders continued with the biography study.  This week they began to fill out a biography summary.  They will use this to come up with their timeline.  Some of the kids found timelines in books, however, I explained to them that our timeline is a little different.  The questions on the biography summery asked them to find times in the person’s life where they faced obstacles and how that challenged or changed the person.  They needed to find challenges and characteristics that allowed them to make these contributions.  It asked how the time period was important to the person’s contributions and how others contributed to the person’s success.  The final question was, how did this person’s life,  the changes they faced, and how they used change to become an empowered person, connect with the kids own life.  These are hard questions. I have been roaming the room to gently nudge them in the right direction.  They are starting to get that this is more than your typical timeline pulled from a book.  We will continue with our biography summaries next week.    

 MATH

1st Grade:   We started the week by playing another game using the Grupo cards and our knowledge of shapes.  The kids were asked to pick a Grupo card and recreate the shape on the card using the exact same smaller shapes.  Next, they were given a spinner with three possibilities to land on; remove a shape, move a shape, or do nothing.  Once the shape was constructed, one player needed to memorize the shape and what it was made of before they turn around.  The other player spins the wheel and completes the action that it landed on.  The first player turns back around and guesses which action the wheel landed on.  It took a little while before they fully understood the rules but once they got how the game worked, they paired up with a button buddy and I sent them off and running.  The next day we began an activity using hundred charts.  Each child was given a hundred chart and a list of steps that they had to follow.  The steps told them which shape to color.  For example: step one was 2 more than 72.  The kids need to figure out the answer, color the box, and then move on to the next step.  When all the steps have been completed a picture will appear.  Not only does this help in understanding the hundreds chart, it also displays the importance of following directions.      

 

2nd Grade:  We began our week with a think deeply.  This one asked the kids to analyze a mural similar to the ones they created last week.  We walked through the questions together.  They were asked to decide on the shapes used to create the basic unit.  They were asked how the basic unit was put together.  Finally, they needed to figure out how they moved the basic unit to create the wall mural.  We also began an activity using hundred charts. Each child was given a hundred chart and a list of steps that they had to follow.  The steps told them which numbers to color.  For example: step one was color the number 2 more than 72.  The kids needed to figure out the answer, color the box, and then move on to the next step.  When all the steps were completed, a picture appeared on the chart.  Not only does this help in understanding the hundreds chart, but it also displays the importance of following directions.  I also wanted my parents to know that these kids are awesome!  They always follow directions, behave and answer questions.  

 

3rd Grade: We started the week by completing a think frame that tested their knowledge on hundred charts.  They were asked to color the multiples of 3s and 6s on a chart.  They were then asked to explain what they saw in the charts.  What discoveries were specific to each multiple individually?  Finally, how did the two overlap?  The next day the boys were given a hundred chart and a list of steps that they had to follow.  The steps told them which numbers to color on the chart.  For example: step one was color the number 2 more than 72.  The kids needed to figure out the answer, color the box, and then move on to the next step.  When all the steps were completed, a picture appeared on the chart.  

 

4th Grade: I passed out another algebraic equation worksheet.  This one, however, was different as it consisted of word problems.  In order to solve the problem, the kids needed to use their knowledge of algebraic equations.  Each problem required the kids to use variables.  The first 5 story problems helped them figure out how to set up the equations.  I had to explain that they needed to use the same variable for the entire problem.  For instance: if n = snakes and there are 5 more birds than snakes, birds = n+5.  Some took off and only needed a little guidance while others struggled.  I broke the kids up into button buddies on day one.  A couple kids completed the worksheet, and a few came close.  The rest needed a little more guidance.  On day two I split the kids up depending on where they had stopped in the worksheet.  Those that had completed the day before were given a Think Beyond that asked them to create a Variable Puzzle using multiplication.  Those that completed it in class were asked to do a worksheet solving algebraic problems that used fractions.  I went between the groups that had not finished and offered support.  I feel like the kids are making great progress in understanding algebra.  Their enthusiasm towards it is awesome and it makes class a joy to instruct!