Highlights for the Week of 9/26/11 - 9/30/11 in Mrs. Bell's Classroom! Spelling - Short & Long "i" and "u"
The final test for this lesson will be on Friday, 9/30. Cursive and workbook pages and/or contract work will also be collected that day.
Reading - Author's Viewpoint
This week we will be focusing on the reading strategy of determining author's viewpoint. Author's viewpoint refers to the author's opinion, ideas of what is important or attitude. The author might give his/her opinion directly, or the reader might have to infer the information by finding clues or other information that the author provides. Students will be reading various stories consistent with our "Journeys" unit theme.
English - What is a Sentence?
The TEST for chapter 1 is scheduled for Wednesday, 9/28. Students should prepare by reviewing the textbook, practice pages, and workbook pages for the unit. There is also a chapter review section in the textbook (p. 56-62) that covers all of the topics on the test. At the end of the week we will revisit the concept of how to write a friendly letter. Students will be writing a letter to my nephew, who is in the Army & stationed in Afghanistan. I will be setting up a pen pal relationship with him and his unit.
Social Stu
dies - Land & Water in the NortheastA BIG thank you to Jordan's mom for coming to school to share the story of how she became a citizen of the United States. Her story captivated the children, and was a perfect tie-in to the chapter that we just finished in Social Studies. The last lesson in our new chapter takes a look at the "plentiful sea", and how people that live in the Northeast make a living from the oceans. We will also focus on how pollution effects the fishing industry and the ecosystem of the Chesapeake Bay.
Science - How are Animals Classified?
The worm races last week were a huge success. I was very impressed with the creativity & effort that students showed with their racetracks. The actual races were a little chaotic, but, we had a "blast" (please see the pictures from the race at the end of the blog). For me, the best part of the afternoon was when students told me that they didn't care if they won or lost, they just had fun racing! I'm so proud of their great sportsmanship. We have moved on to the study of classification of animals. Students will be taking an open note/book QUIZ on this topic on Tuesday, 9/27.
Math - Mrs. Bell's Math Class
The TEST on Chapter 2 is scheduled for Monday, 9/26. Reviewing the note packet and workbook pages should be sufficient in preparing for this test. We will begin chapter 3, which focuses on using addition and subtraction in algebra, on Tuesday. The chapter begins with the concepts of the properties of addition and how to write addition expressions and equations.
FYI...
Picture Day is on Thursday, 9/29. Magazine turn in days are 9/27 & 9/29.
WORM RACE PICTURES...
