Week of 1/7/08 - 1/11/08

HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF 1/7/08 – 1/11/08

SPELLING

We will have a special list of words that coincide with our study of the skeletal system in science. There will be no "Words to Know" or menu work this week.

ENGLISH / WRITING

We will be taking a break from the English textbook to begin a unit on persuasive writing. We will begin by taking a look at the issue of whether schools should have soda machines. Can you guess which side of the argument the students will take?

READING

"Voices of the Revolution", a study of historical fiction in our reading textbook is our next unit in reading. Selections will focus on the study of author's viewpoint, cause and effect and genre.

“Bite into a Good Book” Program

Students must ALWAYS have a silent reading book with them at school!

SOCIAL STUDIES
Our examination of "No Taxation without Representation" continues with a project called The Patriot/Loyalist book. Students will be writing and illustrating paragraphs that represent the points of view of patriots and loyalists as the events leading up to the American Revolution unfold. The majority of this project will be completed in school, and will continue throughout chapter 8.

SCIENCE - "You & Your Body"

"The Big Story on Bones" will be our focus this week. Students will be assembling their own skeleton and become familiar with the names of the bones in the body.

MATH - Mrs. Bell's Class

Perimeter, Area & Volume will be our new unit this week.

FYI

Dont' forget our field trip to Naper Settlement on Tuesday, 1/8. Students must have a SACK LUNCH, and should dress for the weather, as we will be outside during this activity!

The children and I have just finished reading one of my favorite holiday stories, Gideon's Gift. The book tells the story of how people can touch each other's lives through kindness and generosity, even when they don't know each other. Ask your child about the red gloves, and the message that we shared by reading this book. For more information about Gideon's Gift, and the author, see the following link...

http://www.hachettebookgroupusa.com/authorslounge/articles/2003/october/article17879.html

I Wish You & Your Family A Wonderful
Holiday Season And a
Happy, Healthy New Year!

Mrs. Karen Bell

Week of 12/17/07 - 12/21/07

HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF 12/17/07 – 12/21/07

SPELLING
We will have a special holiday word list. There will be no "Words to Know" or “menu” work this week.

ENGLISH - Unit 2 - Nouns
The TEST for Unit 2, Nouns, will be on Tuesday, 12/18.

READING
ISAT practice will continue with a look at fact & opinion, graphs & charts, and analyzing instructions. Students will have a "mastery" TEST on the topics that have been covered in this unit on Thursday, 12/20.


“Bite into a Good Book” Program
Students must ALWAYS have a silent reading book with them at school!



SOCIAL STUDIES
Chapter 8 begins with a look at the colonists' reaction to unfair taxation by the British. Students will be able to experience this feeling firsthand when we have our "King's Gold" activity on Thursday.




MATH - Mrs. Bell's Class
A look at tangrams will conclude our study of plane geometry on Monday. We will finish out the week by completing a holiday math packet.

FYI
Please be sure that your student is dressed appropriately for the weather when he/she comes to school. The children do go outside for recess throughout the winter and must be prepared for snow and cold!

On Monday, 12/17, the Cadet Band and choir will be performing on Friday at 1:15 in the gym. You are invited to attend!

Don't forget...

The BOWLING field trip will be the morning of 12/20.

The "all school" trip to the private showing of POLAR EXPRESS will be on Friday, 12/21. Students must bring a SACK LUNCH on that day!

Mrs. Karen Bell

Week of 12/10/07 - 12/14/07

HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF 12/10/07 – 12/14/07


SPELLING
Lesson 13 - Negative Prefixes. Words to know: other - probably. Menu work is due on 12/14.

READING
We will be finishing our Polar Express story element unit with a comprehension QUIZ on Monday, 12/10. The quiz will cover vocabulary, story sequencing, and will contain short essay questions targeting comprehension. We will be doing ISAT practice on Tuesday and Wednesday, covering the topics of order of events, causes of events and making inferences. On Thursday and Friday, we will be focusing on Time for Kids, with QUIZ on this issue scheduled for 12/14.





“Bite into a Good Book” Program
Students must ALWAYS have a silent reading book with them at school!





ENGLISH
The nouns unit will come to a close with a look at writing with nouns and using exact nouns. The unit TEST is scheduled for Tuesday, 12/18.


SOCIAL STUDIES
The Chapter 7 TEST will be Wednesday, December 12th. Students should have their Chapter 7 note sheets and worksheets in the social studies folder of their binder until after the test is given.







SCIENCE - You & Your Body
We beginning a new unit in science titled, "You & Your Body", which is a study of the human body systems and related health issues. This week we will look at the relationships between various body systems.




MATH - Mrs. Bell's Class
The tessellation project will be due on 12/11. We will review Chapter 7, Geometry, on Tuesday, in preparation for the TEST which is scheduled for Wednesday, 12/12.






FYI
Please be sure that your student is dressed appropriately for the weather when he/she comes to school. The children do go outside for recess throughout the winter and must be prepared for snow and cold!






Thursday, December 13th is our field trip to see the ballet, The Nutcracker. Students have been studying this classic story and its music in our classroom and in music class. We are looking forward to an exciting performance!

THANK YOU to all of the families that participated in the PV Holiday Service project. Your donations will truly make a difference in the lives of families and children in need!


Enjoy your weekend!
Mrs. Karen Bell