Only one week left! I hope you parents are as excited as we are! Hopefully this week will fly by. Here is what I have planned for the week . . .
Reading - We will continue with Guided Reading and Stations at the beginning of the week and finish up working on Compare and Contrast. I plan to assess Compare and Contrast on Wednesday. The rest of the week we will be doing some fun and festive reading activities.
Math - In my math class this week we are working on Order of Operations as well as divisibility rules.
Health - Now that we are finished with Social Studies we are on to Health. In this unit we are going to be learning about cells, tissues, organs and organ systems.
Other Activities - On Tuesday we will be headed to the Library for book check out. We have Counselor on Wednesday. Friday is the last school day before Winter Break. There will be a party beginning at 2:45.
Shopping Idea - Before you head out shopping this week ask your student if they need dry erase markers for school. We go through a lot of markers during the year and many of your children are out of markers. If you ask before you go shopping you won't have to make an extra trip and they make great stocking stuffers!
Tuesday Homework - Study for the Spelling Test for tomorrow.
Wednesday's Homework - Sorry this is posted so late. There is no homework tonight unless students have homework from their respective math classes. My math students have no homework, however, after collaboration today it was evident through our discussions that each class is struggling with rounding numbers. This would be a great skill for parents to work on at home. If you have any questions let us know. Thanks for your support!
Thursday's Homework - Tonight only my math class has homework. The assignment is for the class to go over the rounding work sheet we did in class today with a parent. We graded the first side, but not the back side. I would like for parents to go over the back side of the rouding sheet with their child and sign the bottom that they did that. We will grade that sheet together tomorrow. Thanks!
Monday, December 15, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
A word about the party . . .
Parents,
I just wanted to take the time and let you know how much fun we had yesterday eating pancakes! Thanks so much to those of you who helped provide materials. I also wanted to let you know what amazingly polite kids you have. Several times through out the day I had different students say, "Thanks for making pancakes for us this morning." I was blown away that they recognized that it was something I took extra time to do. You have obviously done a great job of teaching your children to consider others feelings. Because of the student response I am looking forward to cooking for the next region! Thanks again!
I just wanted to take the time and let you know how much fun we had yesterday eating pancakes! Thanks so much to those of you who helped provide materials. I also wanted to let you know what amazingly polite kids you have. Several times through out the day I had different students say, "Thanks for making pancakes for us this morning." I was blown away that they recognized that it was something I took extra time to do. You have obviously done a great job of teaching your children to consider others feelings. Because of the student response I am looking forward to cooking for the next region! Thanks again!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Special Notice about Social Studies Test
Parents: Due to the length of the MAPS testing today we were unable to get our Social Studies test. I am going to give the test tomorrow morning and the spelling test will be pushed back a to Thursday. One more night to study! Thanks.
Week of Dec 8-12
Dear Parents, I apologize for my blogging absence. I was out yesterday dealing with a very persistent cough. But I am back today armed with an inhaler and some prescription cough medicine to help me sleep at night. Now if I could just figure out how to keep Olive asleep at night...?
Anyway, thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Taste the Northeast party we are having tomorrow. Please send your kiddos to school at least a little hungry.
Reading - We are continuing with lessons on compare and contrast this week. Students will have mini-lessons first thing in the morning, and then continue working on these skills in their Guided Reading lessons as well as at their literacy stations.
Math - In my math class we are finishing up our unit on Place Value and will soon move on to unit 7 on Patterns in Multiplication.
Social Studies - We are finishing up the Northeast Region this week with a test and then a small party. (See Taste of Northeast Blog entry)
Spelling - We will have one last list this week before break. Their test will be this week on Wednesday and then I will give the new list the same day. Here are the words for next week.
wiped
covered
mapped
pleasing
slipped
putting
traveled
seeking
visiting
mixed
shipped
phoning
offered
smelling
hiking
checking
fainted
landed
becoming
wandering
Challenge
• amusing
• entertained
• admitted
• stunning
• starving
Tuesday's Homework - One more night to study for Social Studies test. (See above blog entry).
Wednesday's Homework - Study for the spelling test, which has been moved to tomorrow due to the social studies test.
Thursday's Homework - My math class has page 182 in the book for homework if they did not finish it in class. They are working on order of operations. If they are struggling with the assignment remind them of PEMDAS - Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally.
Friday's Homework - Homework for the weekend is to finish up any work they did not finish during the week at their Literacy Stations. Also they need to be studying for their spelling test.Also, students need to take their Windcatcher packets home and edit their spelling, capitalization, and punctuation errors. Windcatcher packets are due Monday. In my math class, we had some difficulty with rounding larger numbers ( like rounding to the nearest ten and hundred thousand), as well as place value behind the decimal point. These are things you can be practicing and working on at home.
Thanks and have a great weekend!
Anyway, thanks to those of you who have contributed to the Taste the Northeast party we are having tomorrow. Please send your kiddos to school at least a little hungry.
Reading - We are continuing with lessons on compare and contrast this week. Students will have mini-lessons first thing in the morning, and then continue working on these skills in their Guided Reading lessons as well as at their literacy stations.
Math - In my math class we are finishing up our unit on Place Value and will soon move on to unit 7 on Patterns in Multiplication.
Social Studies - We are finishing up the Northeast Region this week with a test and then a small party. (See Taste of Northeast Blog entry)
Spelling - We will have one last list this week before break. Their test will be this week on Wednesday and then I will give the new list the same day. Here are the words for next week.
wiped
covered
mapped
pleasing
slipped
putting
traveled
seeking
visiting
mixed
shipped
phoning
offered
smelling
hiking
checking
fainted
landed
becoming
wandering
Challenge
• amusing
• entertained
• admitted
• stunning
• starving
Tuesday's Homework - One more night to study for Social Studies test. (See above blog entry).
Wednesday's Homework - Study for the spelling test, which has been moved to tomorrow due to the social studies test.
Thursday's Homework - My math class has page 182 in the book for homework if they did not finish it in class. They are working on order of operations. If they are struggling with the assignment remind them of PEMDAS - Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally.
Friday's Homework - Homework for the weekend is to finish up any work they did not finish during the week at their Literacy Stations. Also they need to be studying for their spelling test.Also, students need to take their Windcatcher packets home and edit their spelling, capitalization, and punctuation errors. Windcatcher packets are due Monday. In my math class, we had some difficulty with rounding larger numbers ( like rounding to the nearest ten and hundred thousand), as well as place value behind the decimal point. These are things you can be practicing and working on at home.
Thanks and have a great weekend!
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Social Studies and Spelling Tests!
Spelling tests are back. We took the pre-test today and learned the lesson. I will hand out the new list tomorrow. I will also try and post the new list on the blog, but can't promise it will always get done.
rising
traced
stripped
slammed
dancing
striped
winning
snapping
bragging
handled
dripped
begged
dared
skipped
hitting
spotted
raced
dimmed
spinning
escaped
Challenge
• urged
• striving
• whipped
• breathing
• quizzed
Social Studies Test -The test will be next week! I am going to break the test into 2 days. On Monday I will give the states and capitals and on Tuesday I will give the multiple choice questions (taken from the study guides from Chapters 4 and 5) as well as the vocabulary, which will be matching.
rising
traced
stripped
slammed
dancing
striped
winning
snapping
bragging
handled
dripped
begged
dared
skipped
hitting
spotted
raced
dimmed
spinning
escaped
Challenge
• urged
• striving
• whipped
• breathing
• quizzed
Social Studies Test -The test will be next week! I am going to break the test into 2 days. On Monday I will give the states and capitals and on Tuesday I will give the multiple choice questions (taken from the study guides from Chapters 4 and 5) as well as the vocabulary, which will be matching.
Attention MAPS testing
Just wanted to let you know that we will be taking MAPS test Thursday, Dec. 4th (Reading) and Tuesday, Dec. 9th (Math). Please make sure that students get a good night's sleep and a good breakfast. These tests help us to see what progress your students are making this year, as well as those skills they are still struggling with. Talk to your students and remind them that these tests are important and that they need to do their best. Thanks so much for your support!
Monday, December 1, 2008
Taste the Northeast Party
Dear Parents,
Next Wednesday following the Northeast Region test I would like to have a "Taste the Northeast Party." This would give students a chance to sample cuisine from a different region of the country. The party will be Wednesday morning first thing, so please send your kids to school hungry! I will be cooking pancakes served with Maple Syrup and Cranberry Juice - we learned about the syrup making process and how cranberries are grown in Chapter 4.
Here's how you can help...
1. You could donate pancake mix, butter, paper plates, plastic ware, paper cups, cranberry juice or maple syrup. You could also donate a Dillons or HyVee gift card and I will do the shopping.
2. If you would like to make other treats from the Northeast to share here are some suggestions.
Connecticut - New England squash pie
Delaware - watermelon and chicken
Maine - lobster and blueberries
Maryland - crab cakes
Massachusetts - clam chowder, baked beans, or codfish
New Hampshire - frappe (type of milk shake)
New Jersey - tomatoes
New York - buffalo wings, thin crust pizza, bagels
Pennsylvania - shoofly pie, funnel cakes, perogies
Vermont - maple syrup
Let me know as soon as possible how you would like to contribute. If you have any other suggestions for food just let me know. Thanks so much for your awesome support!
Mrs. Minor
jminor@usd497.org
Next Wednesday following the Northeast Region test I would like to have a "Taste the Northeast Party." This would give students a chance to sample cuisine from a different region of the country. The party will be Wednesday morning first thing, so please send your kids to school hungry! I will be cooking pancakes served with Maple Syrup and Cranberry Juice - we learned about the syrup making process and how cranberries are grown in Chapter 4.
Here's how you can help...
1. You could donate pancake mix, butter, paper plates, plastic ware, paper cups, cranberry juice or maple syrup. You could also donate a Dillons or HyVee gift card and I will do the shopping.
2. If you would like to make other treats from the Northeast to share here are some suggestions.
Connecticut - New England squash pie
Delaware - watermelon and chicken
Maine - lobster and blueberries
Maryland - crab cakes
Massachusetts - clam chowder, baked beans, or codfish
New Hampshire - frappe (type of milk shake)
New Jersey - tomatoes
New York - buffalo wings, thin crust pizza, bagels
Pennsylvania - shoofly pie, funnel cakes, perogies
Vermont - maple syrup
Let me know as soon as possible how you would like to contribute. If you have any other suggestions for food just let me know. Thanks so much for your awesome support!
Mrs. Minor
jminor@usd497.org
Week of Dec 1- 5
I hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving and have rested up! Only 3 weeks to go until the winter holiday. It will be very important that students are here everyday, as we will be trying to get as much into these three weeks as we can before the 2 week break.
Reading - Students will continue going to guided reading groups this week, as well as independently working at literacy stations. The focus this week continues with sequencing, which we will be wrapping up and getting started on Compare and Contrast.
Math - Students are still working on place value and estimation in their respective math classes. Keep working on those facts at home!
Social Studies - This week we will cover Chapter 5 in Social Studies. Students will be completing a study guide to go along with the chapter. Look for this at home at night. You should be studying the studying guide in addition to those states and capitals, as well as the vocabulary words. I anticipate give the test on Monday or Tuesday of next week. I will let students know as soon as possible so they can write it down in their planners. We are also continuing to extend our Social Studies unit through the reading of Windcatcher by Avi. Please take the time to talk to students about the book, particularly the setting.
Monday's Homework - Students need to finish their Chapter 5, lesson 1 study guide and study tonight for their test.
Tuesday's Homework - Tonight students will need to finish their study guide for Chapter 5, lesson 2. The test will be given next week. I am going to break the test into 2 days. On Monday I will give the states and capitals and on Tuesday I will give the multiple choice questions (taken from the study guides from Chapters 4 and 5) as well as the vocabulary, which will be matching.
Wednesday's Homework - Study for that Social Studies Test.
Reading - Students will continue going to guided reading groups this week, as well as independently working at literacy stations. The focus this week continues with sequencing, which we will be wrapping up and getting started on Compare and Contrast.
Math - Students are still working on place value and estimation in their respective math classes. Keep working on those facts at home!
Social Studies - This week we will cover Chapter 5 in Social Studies. Students will be completing a study guide to go along with the chapter. Look for this at home at night. You should be studying the studying guide in addition to those states and capitals, as well as the vocabulary words. I anticipate give the test on Monday or Tuesday of next week. I will let students know as soon as possible so they can write it down in their planners. We are also continuing to extend our Social Studies unit through the reading of Windcatcher by Avi. Please take the time to talk to students about the book, particularly the setting.
Monday's Homework - Students need to finish their Chapter 5, lesson 1 study guide and study tonight for their test.
Tuesday's Homework - Tonight students will need to finish their study guide for Chapter 5, lesson 2. The test will be given next week. I am going to break the test into 2 days. On Monday I will give the states and capitals and on Tuesday I will give the multiple choice questions (taken from the study guides from Chapters 4 and 5) as well as the vocabulary, which will be matching.
Wednesday's Homework - Study for that Social Studies Test.
Monday, November 24, 2008
The Week of Nov 24-25.
While it is a short week, there is still a lot going on in Mrs. Minor's classroom. This week we are continuing with our guided reading groups, having mini-lesson on the different formats of sequencing, and then applying those formats in our guided reading groups.
Due to the holiday and short we there will not be a spelling list again this week. Next we will resume with spelling.
My math class has begun unit 6 and this week's lesson is on power of 2 and exponential graphs.
In social studies we are finishing up Chapter 4 and working on applying our sequencing skills to the Social Studies content.
Last week we finished a fantastic read aloud, Shiloh by Phyllis Naylor Reynolds. The students loved it! This week I will start reading aloud The Indian in the Cupboard.
Monday's Homework - Students need to finish the study guide for the lesson we did today in Social Studies (Chapter 4, Lesson 3).
Due to the holiday and short we there will not be a spelling list again this week. Next we will resume with spelling.
My math class has begun unit 6 and this week's lesson is on power of 2 and exponential graphs.
In social studies we are finishing up Chapter 4 and working on applying our sequencing skills to the Social Studies content.
Last week we finished a fantastic read aloud, Shiloh by Phyllis Naylor Reynolds. The students loved it! This week I will start reading aloud The Indian in the Cupboard.
Monday's Homework - Students need to finish the study guide for the lesson we did today in Social Studies (Chapter 4, Lesson 3).
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
The Week of Nov 17 -21
Finally, a full week of school. However, we are not without our special events this week. Tuesday we have the Women's KU Basketball field trip to Allen Field House as well as our music program Thursday night at 7:30. Students will need to be down in the pod by 7:15. If you are planning on being gone next week, make sure you let the office know!
Reading - This week in reading we are starting our guided reading groups again. Students will be in smaller groups working on learning text structures at their own pace. We will also be using literacy stations during this time. We will also be reading Windcatcher by Avi, which is book about sailing off the coast of Connecticut.
Math - In my math class we are finishing up our unit on making predictions using graphs and ready to begin the next unit on Place Value Patterns. We are also working on our goal of having all students pass their timed tests before Winter Break, so keep working on those facts at home.
Social Studies - We have officially kicked off the Northeast Unit. Lessons this week will cover Niagara Falls, Hydroelectricity, the Appalachian Mountain Range, the Northeast Coastline, Grape, Cranberries, and Maple Syrup. If you have knowledge about these subjects, please share them with your students. The more they hear the better connections they will make.
Monday's Homework - Study Social Studies 10-15 minutes.
Tuesday's Homework - Study Social Studies 10-15 minutes, Complete the Death Valley Work Sheet from National Geographic.
Wednesday's Homework - Student's in my math class need to finish several DPP problems. I also sent home the unit test for Chapter 5 in math, so look for that tonight. Students also need to finish answering the questions for Chapters 1 and 2 of Windcatcher.Don't forget to study social studies.
Thursday's Homework - Students need to complete the Social Studies Study Guide for Chapter 4, Lesson 1.
Friday's Homework - Students need to finish the Chapter 4, lesson 2 portion of the Social Studies study guide. Also, spend some time this weekend reviewing for the test. My math class also needs to complete DAB sheet 69-70 (excluding part 7) and Homework page 153. Keep working of flash cards at home.
Reading - This week in reading we are starting our guided reading groups again. Students will be in smaller groups working on learning text structures at their own pace. We will also be using literacy stations during this time. We will also be reading Windcatcher by Avi, which is book about sailing off the coast of Connecticut.
Math - In my math class we are finishing up our unit on making predictions using graphs and ready to begin the next unit on Place Value Patterns. We are also working on our goal of having all students pass their timed tests before Winter Break, so keep working on those facts at home.
Social Studies - We have officially kicked off the Northeast Unit. Lessons this week will cover Niagara Falls, Hydroelectricity, the Appalachian Mountain Range, the Northeast Coastline, Grape, Cranberries, and Maple Syrup. If you have knowledge about these subjects, please share them with your students. The more they hear the better connections they will make.
Monday's Homework - Study Social Studies 10-15 minutes.
Tuesday's Homework - Study Social Studies 10-15 minutes, Complete the Death Valley Work Sheet from National Geographic.
Wednesday's Homework - Student's in my math class need to finish several DPP problems. I also sent home the unit test for Chapter 5 in math, so look for that tonight. Students also need to finish answering the questions for Chapters 1 and 2 of Windcatcher.Don't forget to study social studies.
Thursday's Homework - Students need to complete the Social Studies Study Guide for Chapter 4, Lesson 1.
Friday's Homework - Students need to finish the Chapter 4, lesson 2 portion of the Social Studies study guide. Also, spend some time this weekend reviewing for the test. My math class also needs to complete DAB sheet 69-70 (excluding part 7) and Homework page 153. Keep working of flash cards at home.
Monday, November 10, 2008
The Week of Nov10-12
This week is a short week! Parent teacher conferences are Wednesday and Thursday, so double check your calendars for you times. If you are not sure when your conference is scheduled, call into the office and Ms. Schwein can help you.
Social Studies - Last week our election activities were a huge success. In social studies this week we are kicking off our first region of the United States - The Northeast. Students will be making a study folder that they should be bringing home DAILY to study from. Please don't let your child get behind on learning their states and capitals.
Reading/Language Arts - This week we are learning about the purpose of text structures. Students have made a poster to help them understand what a text structure and the definition of each one. I have been reading books aloud to students and they are having group discussions on which text structure the book follows. Understanding the text structure the author used is beneficial for students comprehension skills.
Math - As we have explained before, students are in a math group that best meets their skill needs. My math group is currently finishing Unit 5. We have been working on using data to make predictions. We have just finished up an experiment where we have compared the bouncing of tennis balls with super balls and charted the data on a graph. The students used a line of best fit to make predictions.
Special Events - On Wednesday, during our regular counseling time, Mrs. Jennings will have a group of high school students speaking to the 4th graders about smoking. On Wednesday we will also have a guest speaker, Senator Brungardt, who will talk to the students about his job, how he was elected, and what types of duties he has. Next Tuesday, all 3rd - 6th graders will be attending a basketball game at Allen Field House.
Monday's Homework - Study your spelling words, Spelling Test Wednesday. (There will be no new list this week.)Also, if you did not finish gluing in all your vocabulary words for the Social Studies study guide do so tonight.
Tuesday Homework - There is a note about next week's field trip to Allen Field House coming home tonight - be sure and read it! Please have students study for the spelling test tomorrow (there will be no new list of words this week). Also, make sure they take some time to work on their Northeast Region packet.
Wednesday Homework - Have your children study their Northeast Region packet this weekend. Shoot for 10-15 minutes daily.
Social Studies - Last week our election activities were a huge success. In social studies this week we are kicking off our first region of the United States - The Northeast. Students will be making a study folder that they should be bringing home DAILY to study from. Please don't let your child get behind on learning their states and capitals.
Reading/Language Arts - This week we are learning about the purpose of text structures. Students have made a poster to help them understand what a text structure and the definition of each one. I have been reading books aloud to students and they are having group discussions on which text structure the book follows. Understanding the text structure the author used is beneficial for students comprehension skills.
Math - As we have explained before, students are in a math group that best meets their skill needs. My math group is currently finishing Unit 5. We have been working on using data to make predictions. We have just finished up an experiment where we have compared the bouncing of tennis balls with super balls and charted the data on a graph. The students used a line of best fit to make predictions.
Special Events - On Wednesday, during our regular counseling time, Mrs. Jennings will have a group of high school students speaking to the 4th graders about smoking. On Wednesday we will also have a guest speaker, Senator Brungardt, who will talk to the students about his job, how he was elected, and what types of duties he has. Next Tuesday, all 3rd - 6th graders will be attending a basketball game at Allen Field House.
Monday's Homework - Study your spelling words, Spelling Test Wednesday. (There will be no new list this week.)Also, if you did not finish gluing in all your vocabulary words for the Social Studies study guide do so tonight.
Tuesday Homework - There is a note about next week's field trip to Allen Field House coming home tonight - be sure and read it! Please have students study for the spelling test tomorrow (there will be no new list of words this week). Also, make sure they take some time to work on their Northeast Region packet.
Wednesday Homework - Have your children study their Northeast Region packet this weekend. Shoot for 10-15 minutes daily.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
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