Thursday, January 5, 2012

Behind the Scenes - Week of January 9

Weekly Spotlight:
*Final classroom spelling bee on Tuesday. Top two winners from our class will go to the grade level spell-off.
*Reading MAP test on Tuesday at 1:00.
*Spelling/Vocabulary test on Friday.
*Math MAP test on Friday at 1:00.

Coming Attractions:
*No school on Monday, January 16 - Martin Luther King Day.
*TGIFridays District Fundraiser on Monday, January 16.
*Fourth Grade spell-off on Tuesday, January 17.
*District spelling bee on Tuesday, January 24, at 1:00 in PV Gym.
*Early Dismissal on Wednesday, January 25, 11:00.
*Bingo Night on Friday, January 27, 7:00-8:30 in PV Multipurpose room.

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - We will continue our study of the human body by exploring different systems in the body. Notes will be taken in class. Students will now be taking quizzes at the end of each lesson. The quizzes will be open book (no notes).

Social Studies - On Tuesday, January 24, the children will be taking the Midwest test. They will need to correctly locate and identify all the states in the Midwest. The children will also have to label the Great Lakes (in the Midwest) and the Mississippi River. Spelling will count! Your child can earn bonus points by identifying the capitals. They will earn 1/4 point for each correct capital.

English - We will continue to take a break from our normal English units to practice Extended Response writing. This past week, we went over our recipe for writing an Extended Response.
Our recipe includes: Turning the question around, Text proof, Interpretation, Text Proof, Interpretation, and What I learned statement. The Interpretation is the most important part of the response. This is where we can put our own thoughts, feelings, and opinions. The last statement of the response should state what you learned from the reading selection that you can take with you as a life lesson.

Spelling - I was thrilled with the excitement from the students about our spelling change. The addition of vocabulary words to our list will be beneficial to their reading, speaking, and writing. I even had a few students show me that one of our vocabulary words was used in the book they were reading. We will continue the same procedure this week. Our vocabulary words are: undulate, modest, immune, stately, encumbered, placid, whimsical, and endearing. Start using and discussing these words this weekend. The test will be on Friday. They will need to spell the 10 spelling words, 8 vocabulary words, and understand the meaning of the 8 vocabulary words.

Reading - This week, we will be working on the reading target of identifying the problem and the solution. Most stories involve a problem for the character to solve, and the solution to the problem may come after others have been tried.

Mrs. Sulima's Math Class:
Monday - Angles & using a protractor.
Tuesday - No math due to MAP testing.
Wednesday - Polygons.
Thursday - Trivia Challenge.
Friday - No math due to MAP testing.

MAP Practice Games:
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