In ELA, we continued to read great books where the author's (or character's) purpose was to persuade. This, of course, ties in with our writing unit on persuasive writing, a type of writing to which our students are pretty new. Nonetheless, they are taking to it really well (being very opinionated 8-9 year olds helps, I think!). We've had scores of lessons both from Learnzillion.com, from books we have read, and PowerPoint presentations. I've provided the kids with graphic organizers, templates, and tools they can use to organize their thinking over the course of this unit.
We just wrapped up our first big assignment, our letter about Martin Luther King. This assignment has given the kids the opportunity to be self-reflective. I provided them with a rubric to follow to check their work and make an honest appraisal of how well they'd done. Then a fellow student filled out the rubric, providing constructive feedback (some of your kids are going to be teachers some day, I think), and finally, I filled in the rubric with my own comments.
We had a great time in math this week. I am really trying to make our Engage New York Common Core lessons as hands-on and fun for the children as possible. Students worked with rosters of the Super Bowl contenders, answering math related questions about them, and then made posters showing their data. As soon as every group is finished, I will have pictures to post on Edline. It's just taking us a bit to finish up given that we haven't been in school that much. Not only did the kids do a great job in their computation, they had fun designing creative ways in which to show their work.
We wrapped up Module 3 in math this week as well. Overall, everyone did a really good job. Our next unit on area began this week, too. The children had fun working with pattern block to discover the area of various shapes.
We took a one minute timed test on multiplication and division this week (our first was in November). Please make sure your child is going on Moby Max Math at least a few times a week even if it is not specifically assigned for homework. Students who go on Moby Max regularly have made dramatic increases in their scores. It really does help!
We celebrated the 100th Day of School this week by seeing what we could do in 100 seconds. Everyone had a great time clapping their hands, saying the ABC's, writing their names, hopping, blinking their eyes, and a whole bunch of other activities. Then we used the information we gathered to do some math problems!
On February 13, we will exchange Valentine's in our classroom. To make the distribution process easier, I ask that students sign their names to their cards but DO NOT put names of recipients on the envelopes. This makes handing them out much easier as children do not have to be wandering around the room trying to find which Valentine belongs where. Also, I have spoken to Mr. Lazar, and he indicated that it is OK for children to attach a "very small" candy to Valentines that can be eaten at home. So, lollipops, etc. would be the best choices. We do have peanut allergies in our classroom, so please be very mindful of that.
This coming week we will begin partner projects to learn more about a famous African American from US history of the present day in honor of Black History Month.
Enjoy your week and STAY WARM!!
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