And of course we'll be writing and working on our x2s and x5s as well. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy your time with family! See you in December!
Saturday, November 23, 2013
Happy Thanksgiving!
And of course we'll be writing and working on our x2s and x5s as well. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy your time with family! See you in December!
Sunday, November 17, 2013
Everyone Does Everything!
So once again, we had one of these weeks where I find myself thinking, "I really do have the best class ever!" We are all working hard to push ourselves to think, stretch, learn, and refine. Not just a few, but all of us. In fact our new class theme is "Everyone Does Everything". We're working hard to use every minute of the day in a productive way, and to use our conversation and thinking in team, and classroom building. So we're working hard but we're having fun along the way. Did I mention, "I really do have the best class ever"?
Last week I submitted a grant request from Donor's Choice to fund 2 Ipad minis for our classroom. You would think with 2 mobile labs and a creativity lab inside our school there would be enough technology for all our needs. Unfortunately that's just not the case. With the push for keyboarding and writing wrapped up in our assessments, there are times we just don't have access to what is needed. Everyone else in the school needs the same thing. I am asking for funding for 2 minis so that all students can touch technology more frequently. We already have 2 laptops and with the 2 minis, that would allow 4 students at a time to either assess or practice reading fluency, comprehension, math fluency and facts, or think, write, and publish. Right now through Tuesday, November 19, an anonymous donor will match all donations up to $100. I know this is close to the holidays and all of our purse strings are tight, but even a $1 donations gets us 1 step closer. You can scroll down to the previous post for more information. If you're interested and can help out, here is a quick link that will get you there- Minis To The Max! Thank you for all your support and generosity!
This week in math we will be finishing our multiplication meanings and will be starting our fluency with x 10s, x5s, and x2s.
In Language Arts this week we will be reading the story How Do You Raise A Raisins? Did you ever wonder where raisins come from, or why they are in so many foods? Just about every question you might have about raisins is answered in this selection. One reason the author knows a lot about this snack is because she grew up in central California, where most of America’s raisins are grown. From the history of raisin-growing and raisin-eating to a discussion of how raisins get from grapevines to your plate, this story and its illustrations give you lots of information about this sweet, dried fruit. Our focus on comprehension this week is Drawing Conclusions. This seems to be quite tricky for our kids. A conclusion is a decision or an opinion that makes sense based on facts and important ideas. We are also working on action and linking verbs for our conventions. An action verb tells what someone or something does. A linking verb tells what someone or something is. Examples are: Action verbs: run, plays, laughs and Linking verbs: am, is, are, was, were. And last but not least our spelling pattern we are studying this week is contractions.
I am also sending home a fluency passage for students to read this week. Please set the timer for 1 minute, have your student begin reading and then stop the timer at 1 minute. Please write down the words correct per minute on the log at the bottom of the passage. Hopefully this will increase as the week progresses and mistakes decrease. Note any inserted words and deleted words and discuss with your student. Repeated readings is a research based strategy that not only improves fluency, but it also improves comprehension and vocabulary as well.
Thanks to Mr. Davis who was our 1st dad to share a story for Thanksgiving! We were so excited to hear some of his favorite stories. We all agree- we recommend Boss Baby!
Have a great week!
Last week I submitted a grant request from Donor's Choice to fund 2 Ipad minis for our classroom. You would think with 2 mobile labs and a creativity lab inside our school there would be enough technology for all our needs. Unfortunately that's just not the case. With the push for keyboarding and writing wrapped up in our assessments, there are times we just don't have access to what is needed. Everyone else in the school needs the same thing. I am asking for funding for 2 minis so that all students can touch technology more frequently. We already have 2 laptops and with the 2 minis, that would allow 4 students at a time to either assess or practice reading fluency, comprehension, math fluency and facts, or think, write, and publish. Right now through Tuesday, November 19, an anonymous donor will match all donations up to $100. I know this is close to the holidays and all of our purse strings are tight, but even a $1 donations gets us 1 step closer. You can scroll down to the previous post for more information. If you're interested and can help out, here is a quick link that will get you there- Minis To The Max! Thank you for all your support and generosity!
This week in math we will be finishing our multiplication meanings and will be starting our fluency with x 10s, x5s, and x2s.
In Language Arts this week we will be reading the story How Do You Raise A Raisins? Did you ever wonder where raisins come from, or why they are in so many foods? Just about every question you might have about raisins is answered in this selection. One reason the author knows a lot about this snack is because she grew up in central California, where most of America’s raisins are grown. From the history of raisin-growing and raisin-eating to a discussion of how raisins get from grapevines to your plate, this story and its illustrations give you lots of information about this sweet, dried fruit. Our focus on comprehension this week is Drawing Conclusions. This seems to be quite tricky for our kids. A conclusion is a decision or an opinion that makes sense based on facts and important ideas. We are also working on action and linking verbs for our conventions. An action verb tells what someone or something does. A linking verb tells what someone or something is. Examples are: Action verbs: run, plays, laughs and Linking verbs: am, is, are, was, were. And last but not least our spelling pattern we are studying this week is contractions.
I am also sending home a fluency passage for students to read this week. Please set the timer for 1 minute, have your student begin reading and then stop the timer at 1 minute. Please write down the words correct per minute on the log at the bottom of the passage. Hopefully this will increase as the week progresses and mistakes decrease. Note any inserted words and deleted words and discuss with your student. Repeated readings is a research based strategy that not only improves fluency, but it also improves comprehension and vocabulary as well.
Thanks to Mr. Davis who was our 1st dad to share a story for Thanksgiving! We were so excited to hear some of his favorite stories. We all agree- we recommend Boss Baby!
Have a great week!
Thursday, November 14, 2013
Subject: Our students need your help!
I want to make sure our students have the materials they need to succeed. So I've created a classroom project request at DonorsChoose.org, an award-winning charity.
I'm asking for donations of any size to help our kids. For the next week, any donation you make to my project will be doubled by Anonymous Donor (up to $100). If you know anyone who is passionate about education, please pass this along. Your donation will brighten our students' school year, and you'll get photos and thank yous from our class.
Here's my classroom request:
Minis To The Max!
To have your donation matched dollar for dollar, enter the promo code CHEER on the payment screen. This awesome match offer lasts through November 19, 2013.
We greatly appreciate your support,
Mrs. Denning
Monday, November 11, 2013
Information Cube Book Reports
This week in our language block we will be reviewing spelling patterns and comprehension strategies that we have learned the last six weeks. Our homework this week is two comprehension passages highlighting some of these strategies. This task will help prepare us for our end of unit test this Friday.
We are also continuing on with our multiplication meanings topic, taking a better look at repeated addition, arrays, skip counting, and jumps on a number line. All of these strategies show equal grouping to help solidify multiplication meanings. Today we learned the ancient secrets of 1s and 0s in multiplication. Shh...You can ask your student if you dare (that is if you can keep a secret).
This month we will be reading information books (expository text). Our book report project is a 3 dimensional information cube. Because the cubes are so small, students may choose to type their text and then glue this information to the sides of the cubes. Cubes are due Thursday, Nov. 21. We will be sharing what we learned from this project in small groups. Rubric and cube template are found inside homework folders. Good luck- I can hardly wait to see our amazing work!
Thank you for attending Parent/Teacher Conferences last week. It was wonderful to be able to speak with you about successes and goals chosen by your student. Thank you for your support and willingness to create a partnership where your student's needs are the common focus.
We are also continuing on with our multiplication meanings topic, taking a better look at repeated addition, arrays, skip counting, and jumps on a number line. All of these strategies show equal grouping to help solidify multiplication meanings. Today we learned the ancient secrets of 1s and 0s in multiplication. Shh...You can ask your student if you dare (that is if you can keep a secret).
This month we will be reading information books (expository text). Our book report project is a 3 dimensional information cube. Because the cubes are so small, students may choose to type their text and then glue this information to the sides of the cubes. Cubes are due Thursday, Nov. 21. We will be sharing what we learned from this project in small groups. Rubric and cube template are found inside homework folders. Good luck- I can hardly wait to see our amazing work!
Monday, November 4, 2013
Welcome To Parent Teacher Conferences
I look forward to meeting with you this week for Parent/ Teacher Conferences. For those who didn't have the chance to sign up, I assigned times that I had that were still available. Hopefully this will work for you and your family. Appointment slips as well as an informational letter from Canyons district explaining our new report card will be coming home today in your student's homework folder. Please look for both. See you Wednesday or Thursday!
This week in Language we will be reading the story Amazing Bird Nests. There are many kinds of birds, and each variety builds a different nest. This selection discusses how, where, and why birds build nests. It tells about the unusual places they build, and the materials they use. It focuses on
some unusual nests, including one of the smallest—the hummingbird’s nest, barely an inch across—and one of the largest—the eagle’s nest, which can weigh as much as a car! This story is a great springboard for our question of the week: How do animals and plants adapt to find solutions?
We will be focusing on main idea and details this week. The topic is what a piece of writing is all about. The main idea is the most important idea about the topic. Details are small pieces of information or facts. They tell more about the main idea.
We are also learning about plural possessive nouns. If two or more people share or own
something, use a plural possessive noun. Add an apostrophe (’) to plural nouns that end in -s, -es, or -ies to make them possessive (boys’, ladies’, canvases’). Add an apostrophe and an -s to make irregular plural nouns possessive (the men’s coats).
And exciting news... WE are starting multiplication meanings this week. We will be learning that multiplication actually means "groups of" when thinking about how to use manipulatives and draw visuals. WE ARE SO EXCITED!
Thanks again to our wonderful, fabulous, caring moms who came and spent part of their Thursday morning providing an incredibly fun Halloween party. Thanks moms! We couldn't do it without your creativity and time!
This week in Language we will be reading the story Amazing Bird Nests. There are many kinds of birds, and each variety builds a different nest. This selection discusses how, where, and why birds build nests. It tells about the unusual places they build, and the materials they use. It focuses on
some unusual nests, including one of the smallest—the hummingbird’s nest, barely an inch across—and one of the largest—the eagle’s nest, which can weigh as much as a car! This story is a great springboard for our question of the week: How do animals and plants adapt to find solutions?
We will be focusing on main idea and details this week. The topic is what a piece of writing is all about. The main idea is the most important idea about the topic. Details are small pieces of information or facts. They tell more about the main idea.
We are also learning about plural possessive nouns. If two or more people share or own
something, use a plural possessive noun. Add an apostrophe (’) to plural nouns that end in -s, -es, or -ies to make them possessive (boys’, ladies’, canvases’). Add an apostrophe and an -s to make irregular plural nouns possessive (the men’s coats).
And exciting news... WE are starting multiplication meanings this week. We will be learning that multiplication actually means "groups of" when thinking about how to use manipulatives and draw visuals. WE ARE SO EXCITED!
Thanks again to our wonderful, fabulous, caring moms who came and spent part of their Thursday morning providing an incredibly fun Halloween party. Thanks moms! We couldn't do it without your creativity and time!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)