Calliope Weekly Update
December 14-18, 2009
Week Sixteen
Literacy: In Mr. Bolger’s Reading, four book groups are approaching the ends of their books this week. Ask your child about his or her book. Ms. Schoolcraft’s readers read a book entitled Fortunately, by Remy Charlip, and then published their own class book modeled after the pattern…fortunately/unfortunately. Ask your child what his or her “event” was! Students also continued to examine fiction and nonfiction text.
Math: Mr. Bolger’s math class was visited again by Master Math Teacher Claire Earley. She and Mr. Bolger taught the class together, and ten ABS and WCS teachers sat in and listened intently as our students grappled with the problems and explained their thinking. The class received a number of compliments for how earnestly they worked and how willing they were to take risks. A central question they debated was “What does subtraction mean?” (Hint: it doesn’t always mean taking away.) Third grade mathematicians wrapped up their unit of multi-digit addition and subtraction with an assessment on Thursday (with some very high scores!) and will round out the days before vacation with work on portfolio problems.
Writing: Two big things happened in Mr. Bolger’s Writing class this week. First, in the middle of a talk about what makes a good story, Mr. Bolger ripped off his shoe right in the middle of class, yelled, and hurled it across the room at a spider. Then he charged over, scooped up the shoe, dropped to his knees and hammered on the floor with it. The second big thing was that students got Pocket Pads – little flip pads to carry around with them for jotting down funny, sad, or interesting things they notice and might want to write about. Ms. Schoolcraft’s class did some creative writing for a treasured friend who will be leaving to student teach next semester…Ms. Landrigan.
Word Study: In Bolger spelling, the spelling bee concluded on Tuesday with Julia Neeld emerging as the winner! Beyond that, students studied high-frequency words this week. We will do the same for next week’s short week, and we’ll return to our regular sorting when we get back. Ms. Schoolcraft’s spelling group reviewed 1-1-1 words and v-e words with vowel and consonant suffixes, and did a Unit 4 assessment “retake” on Friday.
Social Studies: Students in both classes worked on independence, problem solving skills, and collaboration as they completed a map scale packet this week.
Responsive Classroom: In Mr. B’s class this week students shared “What color I am most like – and why.” Students in Ms. S’s class celebrated “tell someone they’re doing a good job week” by complimenting others.
Ask me about:
• H1N1 shots
• Crystals: In Mr. Bolger’s class, Jordan kindly shared her crystal-growing kit with the class. Everyone carefully mixed up the solution, and now they are watching anxiously as the crystals begin to form on the dangling yarn.
• Junior Great Books presentation
Other: Wow…what a whirlwind week! Just 3 more days until winter break! We will have our house cookie swap on Monday, December 21st. Please be sure to bring in 2 dozen cookies to share with the team. There will be no weekly update next week due to the short week and holiday. Have a restful, joyous, and safe winter break with family and friends. See you next year!
Mr. Bolger and Ms. Schoolcraft
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
December 11, 1009
Calliope Weekly Update
December 7-11, 2009
Week Fifteen
Dear Parents,
Literacy: In Mr. Bolger's reading, students have revisited this week what topics, what genres, and which authors really move them. Many kids are finally landing that book or that series that they can't put down. It has been exciting. Ms. Schoolcraft’s readers explored features of nonfiction text and noticed these features (captions, headings, bold words, etc) and how they enhance comprehension. Readers in both classes continue to write in their journals the thoughts they have about their reading.
Math: Fourth graders have focused on data collection and analysis with a particular focus on finding median and mean. Students measured heads of family members, and Megan reported getting her measuring tape wet measuring her fish's head. Third graders practiced partial sums addition, trade-first subtraction, and engaged in a variety of tasks manipulating numbers during group work and our games station. Third graders earned their 2nd popcorn party of the year by transitioning quietly from station to station during math.
Writing: Mr. Bolger's Writing this week has centered on students' developing their narrative stories. Ms. Schoolcraft’s authors will be finished with narratives and both classes will begin writing responses to text next week.
Word Study: Mr. B's spelling class earned the privilege of wearing pajamas for Friday's spelling bee when the group averaged an 85.9% on Thursday’s test -- a review of all their first semester words. Ms. S’s group has been hard at work with v-e words and the addition of vowel suffixes to both v-e words and 1-1-1 words. Students wore clothes backwards on Thursday, and drilled sounds backwards, spelled and wrote words backwards, and sat in chairs backwards!
Social Studies: Students finished world and North America maps this week, and started working on map scales. We will continue this work next week.
Responsive Classroom: Over the past several weeks, we have noticed many students working more efficiently, effectively, and independently. Also, we're seeing students in much of our cross-classroom work cooperate readily and productively. We've got a good head of steam going as we arrive soon at our Winter Break. Snowflake Bentley "saw beauty where others did not," and reading his story this week reminded us that we don't need more beautiful things. We just need to better see the beauty in the world, the people, and even the snowflakes around us.
Cookies! Just a reminder that Calliope house will be having our cookie swap on Monday, December 21st. We hope this experience will be a positive one for you and your child, as you select a recipe and prepare it together. Not only will we be able to share tasty treats on Monday, but we’ll hopefully learn a little more about Calliope family traditions, as well. December 15th is a half-day for students; please plan accordingly. Enjoy the chilly, snowy weekend!
December 7-11, 2009
Week Fifteen
Dear Parents,
Literacy: In Mr. Bolger's reading, students have revisited this week what topics, what genres, and which authors really move them. Many kids are finally landing that book or that series that they can't put down. It has been exciting. Ms. Schoolcraft’s readers explored features of nonfiction text and noticed these features (captions, headings, bold words, etc) and how they enhance comprehension. Readers in both classes continue to write in their journals the thoughts they have about their reading.
Math: Fourth graders have focused on data collection and analysis with a particular focus on finding median and mean. Students measured heads of family members, and Megan reported getting her measuring tape wet measuring her fish's head. Third graders practiced partial sums addition, trade-first subtraction, and engaged in a variety of tasks manipulating numbers during group work and our games station. Third graders earned their 2nd popcorn party of the year by transitioning quietly from station to station during math.
Writing: Mr. Bolger's Writing this week has centered on students' developing their narrative stories. Ms. Schoolcraft’s authors will be finished with narratives and both classes will begin writing responses to text next week.
Word Study: Mr. B's spelling class earned the privilege of wearing pajamas for Friday's spelling bee when the group averaged an 85.9% on Thursday’s test -- a review of all their first semester words. Ms. S’s group has been hard at work with v-e words and the addition of vowel suffixes to both v-e words and 1-1-1 words. Students wore clothes backwards on Thursday, and drilled sounds backwards, spelled and wrote words backwards, and sat in chairs backwards!
Social Studies: Students finished world and North America maps this week, and started working on map scales. We will continue this work next week.
Responsive Classroom: Over the past several weeks, we have noticed many students working more efficiently, effectively, and independently. Also, we're seeing students in much of our cross-classroom work cooperate readily and productively. We've got a good head of steam going as we arrive soon at our Winter Break. Snowflake Bentley "saw beauty where others did not," and reading his story this week reminded us that we don't need more beautiful things. We just need to better see the beauty in the world, the people, and even the snowflakes around us.
Cookies! Just a reminder that Calliope house will be having our cookie swap on Monday, December 21st. We hope this experience will be a positive one for you and your child, as you select a recipe and prepare it together. Not only will we be able to share tasty treats on Monday, but we’ll hopefully learn a little more about Calliope family traditions, as well. December 15th is a half-day for students; please plan accordingly. Enjoy the chilly, snowy weekend!
Friday, December 4, 2009
December 4, 2009
Calliope Weekly Update
November 30-December 4, 2009
Week Fourteen
Happy December, Parents and Kids!
Literacy: Readers and writers are working on responding to text in guided reading groups. Many groups have finished up some longer selections, and vocabulary, fluency and comprehension continue to be a focus. All students continue to work in reading response journals and are reviewing how to write letters about our reading to our teachers.
Math: Fourth graders used raisins to study landmark data terms (mean, median, mode, range). Students predicted how many raisins would be in the box and compared predictions to data. Fourth graders also explored decimals to the hundredths place. Third graders have started a unit on operations, specifically multi-digit addition and subtraction. Students worked intensely to find $1.00 words...ask your child what this means!
Writing: Both classes are working on narrative writing. We are working on building stamina during writing, and how to add on and revise to make our writing stronger.
Word Study: Mr. B’s spelling groups are publishing silly spelling stories on a new class writing blog, stay tuned! There will be a spelling bee for Mr. B’s spellers next week (spelling test Thursday, bee on Friday). Fundations spellers worked on vowel-consonant-e syllable exceptions: /ive/ has a short vowel sound instead of a long vowel sound. Students are really seeing improvements in their spelling when they tap each word!
Social Studies: All 3-4 students worked cooperatively on a global address project: students worked in small groups to identify and map each section of our global address: 3-4 classrooms, Calliope House, Allen Brook School, Williston, Chittenden County, Vermont, New England, United States, North America, The World, The Solar System, and the Galaxy. Wow! This week, we worked in pairs to locate and label continents and oceans on a world map and countries, major cities and bodies of water on maps of North America.
Responsive Classroom: As we transition back and forth between the two classrooms many times each day, some students have raised concern over their property and school supplies while away from their desks. We had a conversation about the role of school supplies as tools for learning, and not collections (ex: fooeys and pencil cap erasers)—meaning no hoarding. Please encourage your child to keep any collections at home and tools for learning at school. Thanks.
Ask me about:
• Emma’s Birthday
• My new table-group mates
• Friday morning meeting with Ms. Schoolcraft’s class
• TCT: snowflakes, knitting, board games
• Our class pets (our worms in our worm bin working day and night to compost for us)
Other: FUN NIGHT IS SATURDAY NIGHT! We hope to see you and your families at this exciting annual Calliope event. And yes, Ms S. and Mr. B. will be there! The WSD/Cochran’s ski & ride program begins 1/8. Please see the online edition of the School Bell for details. Tuesday, December 15th is a half day for students, please plan accordingly. Have a fantastic first December weekend…and hope to see you Saturday!
Mr. Bolger and Ms. Schoolcraft
November 30-December 4, 2009
Week Fourteen
Happy December, Parents and Kids!
Literacy: Readers and writers are working on responding to text in guided reading groups. Many groups have finished up some longer selections, and vocabulary, fluency and comprehension continue to be a focus. All students continue to work in reading response journals and are reviewing how to write letters about our reading to our teachers.
Math: Fourth graders used raisins to study landmark data terms (mean, median, mode, range). Students predicted how many raisins would be in the box and compared predictions to data. Fourth graders also explored decimals to the hundredths place. Third graders have started a unit on operations, specifically multi-digit addition and subtraction. Students worked intensely to find $1.00 words...ask your child what this means!
Writing: Both classes are working on narrative writing. We are working on building stamina during writing, and how to add on and revise to make our writing stronger.
Word Study: Mr. B’s spelling groups are publishing silly spelling stories on a new class writing blog, stay tuned! There will be a spelling bee for Mr. B’s spellers next week (spelling test Thursday, bee on Friday). Fundations spellers worked on vowel-consonant-e syllable exceptions: /ive/ has a short vowel sound instead of a long vowel sound. Students are really seeing improvements in their spelling when they tap each word!
Social Studies: All 3-4 students worked cooperatively on a global address project: students worked in small groups to identify and map each section of our global address: 3-4 classrooms, Calliope House, Allen Brook School, Williston, Chittenden County, Vermont, New England, United States, North America, The World, The Solar System, and the Galaxy. Wow! This week, we worked in pairs to locate and label continents and oceans on a world map and countries, major cities and bodies of water on maps of North America.
Responsive Classroom: As we transition back and forth between the two classrooms many times each day, some students have raised concern over their property and school supplies while away from their desks. We had a conversation about the role of school supplies as tools for learning, and not collections (ex: fooeys and pencil cap erasers)—meaning no hoarding. Please encourage your child to keep any collections at home and tools for learning at school. Thanks.
Ask me about:
• Emma’s Birthday
• My new table-group mates
• Friday morning meeting with Ms. Schoolcraft’s class
• TCT: snowflakes, knitting, board games
• Our class pets (our worms in our worm bin working day and night to compost for us)
Other: FUN NIGHT IS SATURDAY NIGHT! We hope to see you and your families at this exciting annual Calliope event. And yes, Ms S. and Mr. B. will be there! The WSD/Cochran’s ski & ride program begins 1/8. Please see the online edition of the School Bell for details. Tuesday, December 15th is a half day for students, please plan accordingly. Have a fantastic first December weekend…and hope to see you Saturday!
Mr. Bolger and Ms. Schoolcraft
Friday, November 20, 2009
Nov. 20, 2009
Calliope Weekly Update
November 16-20, 2009
Week Twelve
Dear Parents,
Literacy: Both third and fourth grade readers have been working on gaining stamina during independent reading. We are also working on writing thoughtful responses to our reading, and journaling back and forth with our teachers. Students working with both Mr. B. and Ms. S for reading learned a comprehension strategy called “Read-Write-Think,” which prompts readers to interact with the text (underline, write in the margins—or use stickies if it’s not your copy!) when asked to read to find out, and answer questions about the text.
Math: Third graders continue their work with place value and worked with reading, writing, and ordering numbers to the ten-thousands place. Third graders created books, showing 8 ways to represent a large number. Next week we’ll wrap-up our study of place value and number sense. Fourth grade mathematicians explored algebra through in/out boxes. Clare Earley, a master teacher Mr. B is working with as part of a professional development experience, taught a lesson to fourth graders on Tuesday. Computational fluency continues to be a focus for fourth graders, as they set and reach for weekly goals on timed multiplication tests.
Writing: With Ms. Schoolcraft, students worked to develop their seed stories this week, revising to add “lively leads.” They shared “first sentences” of many of their favorite books, and compared action, question, thoughts & feelings, sound effects, and dialogue leads. Language arts this week focused on editing practice, as well as analogies and commonly misspelled words. Students in Mr. Bolger’s class did several “seven-minute writes” this week to build their bank of “seed stories.”
Word Study: Mr. B’s spelling groups ran the gamut of vowel teams, /dge/ vs. /ge/, and vocabulary word work, as well as, cursive handwriting! Fundations spellers worked with v-e syllable types, specifically in multisyllabic words, and reviewed closed, v-e, and closed syllable exception syllable types.
Social Studies: In Mr. B’s class, students learned that land maps are proportional pictures on paper of land and important things on that land (like cities or mountains or natural resources). They used the book Zoom and a Youtube video (check it out) called “The Powers of Ten” to learn how you can map everything from a square inch of soil to our town to our state to the continents --- all the way to a map of our known universe!
Four Winds: Students explored cones & conifers as part of the November 4-Winds lesson. We learned about designs in nature. We especially learned about how the Fibonacci sequence is all over the place in nature! We looked closely at how it appears even on a pinecone! Look it up on Google!
Ask me about:
• Male & Female cones
• Soda Pop, Don’t throw your junk in my backyard, Fish & Chips…Round Singing!
. The Youtube movie "The Powers of Ten."
. The nesting dolls.
. My reading chain.
Other: There will be no weekly update next week due to the Thanksgiving break. Please encourage your child to read over the long weekend. Have a peaceful, relaxing, and joyous holiday! Watch out…here comes December!
Take Care, Everyone!
David and Sarah
Parent/Guardian Signature & Comments: ___________________________________________________________
November 16-20, 2009
Week Twelve
Dear Parents,
Literacy: Both third and fourth grade readers have been working on gaining stamina during independent reading. We are also working on writing thoughtful responses to our reading, and journaling back and forth with our teachers. Students working with both Mr. B. and Ms. S for reading learned a comprehension strategy called “Read-Write-Think,” which prompts readers to interact with the text (underline, write in the margins—or use stickies if it’s not your copy!) when asked to read to find out, and answer questions about the text.
Math: Third graders continue their work with place value and worked with reading, writing, and ordering numbers to the ten-thousands place. Third graders created books, showing 8 ways to represent a large number. Next week we’ll wrap-up our study of place value and number sense. Fourth grade mathematicians explored algebra through in/out boxes. Clare Earley, a master teacher Mr. B is working with as part of a professional development experience, taught a lesson to fourth graders on Tuesday. Computational fluency continues to be a focus for fourth graders, as they set and reach for weekly goals on timed multiplication tests.
Writing: With Ms. Schoolcraft, students worked to develop their seed stories this week, revising to add “lively leads.” They shared “first sentences” of many of their favorite books, and compared action, question, thoughts & feelings, sound effects, and dialogue leads. Language arts this week focused on editing practice, as well as analogies and commonly misspelled words. Students in Mr. Bolger’s class did several “seven-minute writes” this week to build their bank of “seed stories.”
Word Study: Mr. B’s spelling groups ran the gamut of vowel teams, /dge/ vs. /ge/, and vocabulary word work, as well as, cursive handwriting! Fundations spellers worked with v-e syllable types, specifically in multisyllabic words, and reviewed closed, v-e, and closed syllable exception syllable types.
Social Studies: In Mr. B’s class, students learned that land maps are proportional pictures on paper of land and important things on that land (like cities or mountains or natural resources). They used the book Zoom and a Youtube video (check it out) called “The Powers of Ten” to learn how you can map everything from a square inch of soil to our town to our state to the continents --- all the way to a map of our known universe!
Four Winds: Students explored cones & conifers as part of the November 4-Winds lesson. We learned about designs in nature. We especially learned about how the Fibonacci sequence is all over the place in nature! We looked closely at how it appears even on a pinecone! Look it up on Google!
Ask me about:
• Male & Female cones
• Soda Pop, Don’t throw your junk in my backyard, Fish & Chips…Round Singing!
. The Youtube movie "The Powers of Ten."
. The nesting dolls.
. My reading chain.
Other: There will be no weekly update next week due to the Thanksgiving break. Please encourage your child to read over the long weekend. Have a peaceful, relaxing, and joyous holiday! Watch out…here comes December!
Take Care, Everyone!
David and Sarah
Parent/Guardian Signature & Comments: ___________________________________________________________
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Nov. 7 2009
Calliope Weekly Update
November 2-6, 2009
Week Ten
Literacy: Reading groups are underway! Students are establishing solid routines for reading in groups and responding to text in their reading response journals (rrj). Students are able to practice new strategies for reading in small guided groups, as well as, independently with self-selected “just right” texts. In Journey to the Center of the Earth, our explorers continue their trek beneath the Atlantic Ocean.
Math: Fourth graders are working hard on multiplication math facts, and students have set personal goals as to where they’d like to be for next Wednesday’s fact check. They also completed an end-of-the-unit test that will be coming home on Monday. Third graders used part-part-total and start-change-end diagrams to aid in solving addition and subtraction problems. These models especially help students to understand how to solve problems that have missing addends or subtrahends.
Writing: Students have completed some “quick writes” this week, practicing responding to prompts. Students also have been completing daily language review as morning work, which provides opportunities for students to practice editing skills, as well as basic grammar and language work. We made a list of things we Know About (like being a sister or having a pet run away) to build a pool of possibilities for our upcoming narratives.
Word Study: Students in Ms. S’s Fundations group did a third week in unit 2, reviewing the rules for adding vowel and consonant suffixes, as well as how to mark these words. Students did a “retake” of the Unit 2 assessment on Friday, with much better outcomes! Mr. B’s spelling groups are working hard (and having a lot of fun) writing “silly stories” with their spelling words each week. This is a great opportunity for students to apply spelling rules in the context of a written piece.
Science: On Friday, we wrapped up our rocks & minerals study with a collaborative lesson between both classes modeled after the “alphabet guessing game” book: Q is for Duck by Mary Elting & Michael Folsom. Students worked in pairs to make pages for a class book, Q is for Rocks & Minerals. It should be ready for publication next week . We are looking forward to our next social sciences theme: maps and globes.
Responsive Classroom: Ms. Schoolcraft was out half-day on Wednesday and all day Thursday. Mrs. Wissel was our substitute. We were able to earn 2 stickers on our “stickers for substitute” team chart for expected behavior during Ms. S’s absence. Ask your child what we will earn when all nine boxes on the grid are complete!
Ask me about:
• My reading group book
• My Friday spelling assessment
• Mr.Isham’s visit on Thursday
Other: Thank you for supporting your child’s homework routines. We have had better and better participation in Team Choice Time (TCT) each Friday because student work is complete.
We hope you have a nice weekend.
Sarah and David
November 2-6, 2009
Week Ten
Literacy: Reading groups are underway! Students are establishing solid routines for reading in groups and responding to text in their reading response journals (rrj). Students are able to practice new strategies for reading in small guided groups, as well as, independently with self-selected “just right” texts. In Journey to the Center of the Earth, our explorers continue their trek beneath the Atlantic Ocean.
Math: Fourth graders are working hard on multiplication math facts, and students have set personal goals as to where they’d like to be for next Wednesday’s fact check. They also completed an end-of-the-unit test that will be coming home on Monday. Third graders used part-part-total and start-change-end diagrams to aid in solving addition and subtraction problems. These models especially help students to understand how to solve problems that have missing addends or subtrahends.
Writing: Students have completed some “quick writes” this week, practicing responding to prompts. Students also have been completing daily language review as morning work, which provides opportunities for students to practice editing skills, as well as basic grammar and language work. We made a list of things we Know About (like being a sister or having a pet run away) to build a pool of possibilities for our upcoming narratives.
Word Study: Students in Ms. S’s Fundations group did a third week in unit 2, reviewing the rules for adding vowel and consonant suffixes, as well as how to mark these words. Students did a “retake” of the Unit 2 assessment on Friday, with much better outcomes! Mr. B’s spelling groups are working hard (and having a lot of fun) writing “silly stories” with their spelling words each week. This is a great opportunity for students to apply spelling rules in the context of a written piece.
Science: On Friday, we wrapped up our rocks & minerals study with a collaborative lesson between both classes modeled after the “alphabet guessing game” book: Q is for Duck by Mary Elting & Michael Folsom. Students worked in pairs to make pages for a class book, Q is for Rocks & Minerals. It should be ready for publication next week . We are looking forward to our next social sciences theme: maps and globes.
Responsive Classroom: Ms. Schoolcraft was out half-day on Wednesday and all day Thursday. Mrs. Wissel was our substitute. We were able to earn 2 stickers on our “stickers for substitute” team chart for expected behavior during Ms. S’s absence. Ask your child what we will earn when all nine boxes on the grid are complete!
Ask me about:
• My reading group book
• My Friday spelling assessment
• Mr.Isham’s visit on Thursday
Other: Thank you for supporting your child’s homework routines. We have had better and better participation in Team Choice Time (TCT) each Friday because student work is complete.
We hope you have a nice weekend.
Sarah and David
Friday, October 30, 2009
October 30, 2009
Calliope Weekly Update
October 26-30, 2009
Week Nine
Dear Parents,
Literacy: Wow! What a couple of weeks it has been! We have been using our Reading Response Journals to write down what topics we like, what genres we like, and which authors we like. This kind of self-reflection is helping kids take responsibility for finding books they can love. Thursday was the first time we met in guided reading groups, and students will be working to establish guided reading routines and expectations with Mr. B and Ms. S in the upcoming weeks.
Math: Third graders explored extended facts (6 + 9 = 15 and 60 + 90 = 150), fact families, fact triangles, and “what’s my rule?” problems this week. Fourth graders are finishing up with geometry and will begin, next week, studying data collection and graphing. They will also move into a more focused study of multiplication, division, number sentences, and algebra.
We also practiced figuring out area without drawing out and counting up the squares.
Instead, you can just trust that an 8'x9' will have 72 square feet in it. Speaking of multiplication, Mr. B's class is also setting goals for their math-facts speed. Everyone is graphing their results each week on a timed one-minute test. Many students are hoping to go from fifteen to thirty random problems correct by Thanksgiving. The goal for the end of the year is to be able to finish fifty facts in a minute. Kids, put a set of flashcards in the car and quiz each other on rides. You'll see your speed improve in no time.
Writing: With NECAP testing behind us, we have shifted our writer’s workshop focus to personal narrative writing. For the time being, our minilessons will provide strategies for generating ideas for writing in this new genre.
Word Study: Students in Ms. S’s Fundations group continued to work with vowel and consonant suffixes this week. We learned the 1-1-1 rule for vowel suffixes; a 1-1-1 word has one vowel, one syllable, and one consonant following the vowel. When adding a vowel suffix to a 1-1-1 word, double the final consonant before adding the suffix. For example, cup becomes cupped. Groups in Mr. B’s spelling class explored many different patterns. “Remember, my clothes are drier than your clothes because I put them in the clothes dryer.” It helps to pretend that the Y in dryer is like an open clothes hamper receiving the laundry! We also studied the many spellings of the /er/ sound: worth, nerve, search, spur,
And horse. Wow.
Science: Our field trip to the Rock of Ages quarry in Barre was exciting and enlightening. We learned about the “famous” granite color Barre gray, the secret to the turquoise water, and were able to witness some of the dirks in action, lifting granite blocks! All week we have On Wednesday, we observed minerals and recorded luster, texture, and color. We introduced Mohs’ Hardness scale and will be experimenting with scratch tests next week!
Responsive Classroom: For sharing this week, we have talked about who we admire and why. That is a challenging question for this age group, but it has helped the kids think about what qualities in a person each of them most values. We talked about how if you know who you are, you will have a greater chance at becoming who you hope to be.
Ask me about:
• Thursday’s Harvest Festival (including singing to Esprit and inviting them
to lunch with us in Calliope.)
• Friday’s Harvest celebration in the field behind the school.
Students stood up and publicly thanked each other for what they feel they
have gained over the first 8 weeks of school.
• My favorite mineral.
• Our Four-winds lesson on leaves: leaf rubbings and leaf drawings. What
does a “palmate” leaf look like? (Hint: look at the root word in palmate.
Think Maple leaf)
Thank you for your donations of food and supplies for stone soup and our class Harvest Party. Students had a wonderful time at both! Many children have been out this week in our class, school, and county…please encourage your child to wash hands, eat healthily, get plenty of rest, and, please keep your child home if s/he is sick! Have a safe, spooky, super weekend!
David and Sarah
October 26-30, 2009
Week Nine
Dear Parents,
Literacy: Wow! What a couple of weeks it has been! We have been using our Reading Response Journals to write down what topics we like, what genres we like, and which authors we like. This kind of self-reflection is helping kids take responsibility for finding books they can love. Thursday was the first time we met in guided reading groups, and students will be working to establish guided reading routines and expectations with Mr. B and Ms. S in the upcoming weeks.
Math: Third graders explored extended facts (6 + 9 = 15 and 60 + 90 = 150), fact families, fact triangles, and “what’s my rule?” problems this week. Fourth graders are finishing up with geometry and will begin, next week, studying data collection and graphing. They will also move into a more focused study of multiplication, division, number sentences, and algebra.
We also practiced figuring out area without drawing out and counting up the squares.
Instead, you can just trust that an 8'x9' will have 72 square feet in it. Speaking of multiplication, Mr. B's class is also setting goals for their math-facts speed. Everyone is graphing their results each week on a timed one-minute test. Many students are hoping to go from fifteen to thirty random problems correct by Thanksgiving. The goal for the end of the year is to be able to finish fifty facts in a minute. Kids, put a set of flashcards in the car and quiz each other on rides. You'll see your speed improve in no time.
Writing: With NECAP testing behind us, we have shifted our writer’s workshop focus to personal narrative writing. For the time being, our minilessons will provide strategies for generating ideas for writing in this new genre.
Word Study: Students in Ms. S’s Fundations group continued to work with vowel and consonant suffixes this week. We learned the 1-1-1 rule for vowel suffixes; a 1-1-1 word has one vowel, one syllable, and one consonant following the vowel. When adding a vowel suffix to a 1-1-1 word, double the final consonant before adding the suffix. For example, cup becomes cupped. Groups in Mr. B’s spelling class explored many different patterns. “Remember, my clothes are drier than your clothes because I put them in the clothes dryer.” It helps to pretend that the Y in dryer is like an open clothes hamper receiving the laundry! We also studied the many spellings of the /er/ sound: worth, nerve, search, spur,
And horse. Wow.
Science: Our field trip to the Rock of Ages quarry in Barre was exciting and enlightening. We learned about the “famous” granite color Barre gray, the secret to the turquoise water, and were able to witness some of the dirks in action, lifting granite blocks! All week we have On Wednesday, we observed minerals and recorded luster, texture, and color. We introduced Mohs’ Hardness scale and will be experimenting with scratch tests next week!
Responsive Classroom: For sharing this week, we have talked about who we admire and why. That is a challenging question for this age group, but it has helped the kids think about what qualities in a person each of them most values. We talked about how if you know who you are, you will have a greater chance at becoming who you hope to be.
Ask me about:
• Thursday’s Harvest Festival (including singing to Esprit and inviting them
to lunch with us in Calliope.)
• Friday’s Harvest celebration in the field behind the school.
Students stood up and publicly thanked each other for what they feel they
have gained over the first 8 weeks of school.
• My favorite mineral.
• Our Four-winds lesson on leaves: leaf rubbings and leaf drawings. What
does a “palmate” leaf look like? (Hint: look at the root word in palmate.
Think Maple leaf)
Thank you for your donations of food and supplies for stone soup and our class Harvest Party. Students had a wonderful time at both! Many children have been out this week in our class, school, and county…please encourage your child to wash hands, eat healthily, get plenty of rest, and, please keep your child home if s/he is sick! Have a safe, spooky, super weekend!
David and Sarah
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