Compound Words

Today we learned about compound words. First, we discussed what a compound word is and completed this chart together as a class. 

Next, we played a compound word game. I passed a little word to each student. The students had to walk around and find their buddy with a word that could be put together with theirs to make a new compound word. Then, we put our new compound words in the pocket chart and did a check!

Finally, the students each made their own little raindrop books. Each raindrop page showed a compound word. 

We will be practicing more with compound words in the Word Work center for the rest of the week!

What We've Been Up To...

Reader's Workshop: In reader's workshop, we have been working with our nonfiction book clubs. Everyone has enjoyed reading and researching a new topic of interest. I am so impressed to hear group members asking meaningful questions and engaging in thoughtful conversations. Yesterday, each book club started creating their posters to show what they have learned. The posters are getting filled with diagrams, interesting facts, food webs, and so much more! We will continue working on these for the rest of the week and each group will present and share what they have learned to the class next week.

Writer's Workshop: In writer's workshop, we have been working on opinion and persuasive writing. I can't even begin to tell you how much we are loving this unit! The students have completely knocked my socks off with some fantastic writing! We learned about how we can turn our opinions into letters and try to persuade or convince someone to either do something, see our point of view, or give us something. At first, most students were writing about something they wanted or needed, like asking for their own room or a tree house in the backyard. This week, we talked about how sometimes our words can make bigger changes too. Many students have realized they can also think about what changes could help a community, the school, or even the world. As our unit comes to an end, I hope to take some pictures or record some students reading their pieces to share with you all the wonderful writing that's been going on. :)

Math Workshop: In math workshop, we have moved on from counting coins, although we will still practice this skill throughout the year. This week, we started our new unit on measurement. We talked about nonstandard units of measurement, like paper clips, cubes, or straws, and discussed how we can use these units to measure different objects. The students have been doing a great job using these units to measure classroom objects with "no gaps or overlaps" during their Hands On center. Next week, we will focus more on using a ruler to measure objects with standard units like inches and feet.

Report Cards

Hi Parents!

Just a few things about the report cards:

• Your child's report card will be coming home on Friday. Please review the report card, sign the envelope and send it back empty. The actual report card is yours to keep.
• It is important to note that some standards and the skills they entail increase in difficulty throughout the year. If you notice your child went from an M to a P in one area, don't be alarmed! All this indicates is that your child is now progressing towards new goals since the expectations have increased. I try to provide some explanation in the comment section if you see this happen.
• Finally, you will notice on the report card envelope the option to check yes or no for a conference. This can lead to confusion about if conferences are mandatory like December, or if some kind of sign-up schedule went unseen. Don't worry! You do not need to set up a conference or check the box unless there is a concern you would like to discuss with me in person. Otherwise, you can always reach me through phone or email. :)

World Series Trophy

What a neat experience it was for us to see the World Series trophy up close!! The staff was so nice to snap a quick picture for me, so here's a little sneak peek. The real professional picture should be coming our way in a few weeks. :)

Family Math Night

Here are some pictures from Family Math Night I kept meaning to post. I was so happy to see so many families there! I hope everyone had a great time. :)

Kites

This burst of warm weather inspired me to do a little kite learning this week! On Monday, we made this schema chart to show what we already knew.

After reading some informational books about kites, we wrote down what we learned and added it to the chart. 

We took advantage of the beautiful weather yesterday to make and fly our own kites outside! We also did some interactive writing and then wrote our own books about how to fly a kite. 

Today we learned all about Benjamin Franklin and how he used a kite to make an important discovery. Stay tuned for more pictures from our kite week! 

Book Club Update!

We finished up our nonfiction book club posters and presented them to the class on Monday. Each group shared information they learned or found interesting when they researched. The other students listened and responded by asking questions to the group members. Here's some pictures of groups finishing up their posters and presenting them. I was really proud of all the hard work the clubs did to showcase their learning!

This week, we chose new topics we would like to research about. The students will be put into a different nonfiction book club to start researching a new topic they want to know more about!

Thank You

Thank you to everyone for the sweet messages and notes last week. We had a death in the family, which is why I was out Friday for the services. It really means a lot to know you were thinking of me.

Because I was not there on Friday, we will have our gumball quiz tomorrow. I explained this to the kids on Thursday so they should already know! I will also catch up on any emails tonight if anyone sent one over the weekend. I apologize for not getting back to you sooner and just want to thank everyone for being so understanding.

Nonfiction Book Clubs

Last week we started our nonfiction book clubs. I introduced the book club topics: Dinosaurs, The Ocean, The Rainforest, Butterflies, Transportation, and Birds. The students chose two topics they would be interested in learning and researching more about. Then, I put together groups and we got started! Throughout the week, our mini lessons were focused on making a plan and reflecting on what the group wanted to learn more about, comparing and contrasting books, and jotting down important or interesting facts while researching. The students got together with their book clubs each day to read and discuss their topics. 

This week, the book clubs are each making a poster to showcase all they have learned. I will post some pictures of these posters and the book clubs working on them later this week. :)

NMES News Show

Here's the link to our school's first TV news show. Our class was featured in a few of the segments. Just copy and paste the link below into a new window to watch! 

http://vimeo.com/87699967