12/19-12/22

Happy Holidays!  Thank you all for helping us to put on a successful and fun winter party.  Our week was so busy while we finished stuff up before break.

Writing
This week in our Informational Article unit we...

• drafted our articles
• revised topic sentences
• elaborated upon our details

Reading
In our Nonfiction to Become Experts unit we...

• used glossaries to identify the meaning of unfamiliar words
• spotted clues in context to identify the meaning of unfamiliar words

Over break it will be very important to keep up the reading minutes!  Please have your child read 30 minutes at least five times a week!

Math
In our Multiplication and Division unit we...

• solved real world division problems by multiplying up and using partial products

Please remember to keep practicing math facts!

Upcoming Dates

• 12/22: Winter Break starts
• 1/9: Welcome Back Students
• 1/11: Late Start
• 1/16: No School; MLK Day

12/12-12/16

Good afternoon!  Here is what we've been learning in our classroom this week...

Reading
In our Nonfiction to Become Experts unit, we work to...

• identify first hand vs second hand accounts
• identify bias in sources
• write knowledgeably about a topic

Please remember to read 30 minutes nightly!

Writing
In our Informational Article unit, writers worked to...

• use pre-research strategies
• research what's important to their focus questions and subtopics
• plan our articles

Math
In our Multiplication and Division unit, mathematicians worked to...

• solve multi-step word problems and persevere when stuck
• assessed our learning
• started to think how to solve real-world division scenarios

Please remember to practice your math facts nightly!  The Online Practice Buddies are also avaliable as optional homework.

Science
This week we ended our Motion and Design unit by reflecting on our learning by identifying strengths and setting goals.

Upcoming Dates

• Next week is Spirit Week!
• Monday: Crazy Hair Day
• Tuesday: Crazy Sock Day
• Wednesday: PJ Day
• Thursday: Winter Wardrobe Day
• 12/20: Mrs. Nagy out
• 12/22: Half Day; Early Dismissal at 1:05
• 12/22: Winter Parties
• 12/23: Winter Break begins

12/5-12/9

It has been another productive week in our classroom.  Check out what we've been working on...

Reading

This week in our Navigating Nonfiction unit, readers worked on...

• paraphrasing research
• taking notes using the boxes and bullets strategy
• identifying facts vs opinions in research

Please remember to read 30 minutes nightly!

Writing

This week in our Informational Article unit, writers worked on...

• developing a focus question for their articles
• creating subtopics to go along with their focus questions

Math

In our Multiplication and division unit, mathematicians worked to...

• learn multiplication strategies to multiply 2-digit by 2-digit numbers
• strategies include:
• expanded algorithm
• open array
• traditional algorithm

Please remember to practice your math facts nightly!

Science

This week we wrapped up our Motion and Design unit by...

• designing a fair test
• reviewing for our assessment

Upcoming Dates

• 12/20: Mrs. Nagy out
• 12/22: Half Day/Early Dismissal; 1:05 & Winter Parties
• 12/23: Winter Break; No School

11/28-12/2

Happy Friday!  Check out what we've been working on this week...

Reading
This week we began our Nonfiction to Become Experts unit.  Students will choose topics they wish to become experts on.  This unit is aligned with our Informational Article unit.  Students will be writing an informational article about their nonfiction expert topics.

Remember to read 30 minutes nightly!

Writing
Before we begin our Informational Article unit, we went through grammar boot camp to prepare ourselves!  We focused on complex sentences and learned how to write:

• compound sentences
• prepositional phrases

Math 
This week in our Multiplication and Division unit we...

• estimated products for 2-digit by 2-digit multiplication
• used open arrays and the distributive property to help us solve 2-digit by 2-digit multiplication problems

Remember to practice your math facts nightly!

Science
In our Motion and Design unit we...

• observed the effects friction has on our vehicles
• observed the effects rubber band energy has on our vehicles

Upcoming Events

• 12/7: Late Start; 11:05
• 12/9: Motion and Design Assessment