Sunday, November 24, 2013

Pep Rally and Thanksgiving break

We've made it through the first trimester and all the way to Thanksgiving break! Wow, it's been a quick year so far.
Friday we had a PEP RALLY to cheer on the USC Trojans! They won last night and play again next Saturday the 30th.
Have a wonderful break and Thanksgiving!


Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Wednesday

It feels like it has been a very long time since I posted!
Today we started Theme 3 in Language Arts (Growing Up). The first story is one of my favorites, Where the Red Fern Grows. We worked on making generalizations and vocabulary, then took the spelling pretest. I borrowed these words from Mrs. Neuman's blog; she did not put the challenge words.
In math, we worked on 8-3 (Improper fractions and mixed numbers).

Spelling Words
balance
lawyer
sheriff
author
minus
method
item
require
supply
whisper
spirit
tennis
adopt
instant
poison
deserve
rescue
journey
relief
laundry
enhance
delete
precious
structure
decade

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Tuesday of a VERY short week

I cannot get over how fast this year is flying by. Tomorrow is the end of the first trimester. Wow! It feels like we have not been in school that long.
Today we read the career link called Dr. Dinosaur and took notes on the main ideas and details. Then we worked again with Dinosaur Ghosts. There are seven theories presented in the selection.
In math we worked on fractions in simplest form. There will be a Topic 7 math test tomorrow. Be ready!
Tomorrow is a full day even though it's Wednesday. This is because you don't have school Thursday or Friday due to parent conferences.
We are going to the library tomorrow with Miss Keisling's class. That means no 100 Mile Club tomorrow morning.

Homework: (the only night of homework this week!)

  • Reading Log
  • No fluency
  • Spelling choice
  • Math -- practice 7-5 and half sheet of notes for test
  • Writing -- write about a turtle crossing Arlington Ave.

Friday, November 8, 2013

Friday before a 3 day weekend!

Happy Friday!
Today we finished reading Dinosaur Ghosts. We took our notes from yesterday and shared them with four peers. We also worked on transitive and intransitive verbs.
We went over Rights and Responsibilities. You need to make a chart using the research from your History Day project. Next step is to find pictures to match the Rights/Responsibilities you've written down. Remember this is a visual presentation and not a lot of words.
In math we skipped lesson 7-3 and went straight into 7-4, equivalent fractions. Math test will be next Wednesday.
Today was the final day of the third round of Egyptian rotations. We will start the next round on Tuesday.
No school Monday! And -- no school Thursday and Friday due to parent conferences.
Enjoy your weekend!

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Thursday

Thursday is library day, which makes it FLY BY!
We read part of Dinosaur Ghosts and took notes on factual information about the dig and the dinosaurs. We are just getting into the theories of what might have happened to this specific group of dinosaurs. Have your notes ready for tomorrow! We also did a close reading on The Search for the Monsters of Mystery. You will need that selection to complete the Must Do Must Do.
In math we learned about Greatest Common Factor (GCF). You also received a preview of Least Common Multiple (LCM).
We continued our Ancient Egyptian rotations today. Tomorrow is the last day of the third round of rotations.
Remember that next Wednesday is a full day of school.

Homework:

  • reading log
  • fluency (Egyptian numbers)
  • spelling -- choice
  • math -- practice 7-2
  • Studies Weekly due tomorrow
  • Writing:  write about the life of a washing machine

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Wednesday

Good evening! Today was a super quick day, being early release and all.
We started a new selection, Dinosaur Ghosts. This story is nonfiction.  We will be working on text organization and practicing how to monitor/clarify. We took a pretest in spelling (some of those words were difficult!) and started talking about transitive and intransitive verbs.
In math, we started Topic 7. We are going to skip a couple of lessons in this topic. We worked on prime factorization today, which I really like.
Tomorrow is library. And Egyptian rotations continue.
See you then!

Homework:

  • reading log
  • fluency
  • studies weekly worksheet due tomorrow
  • spelling -- missed words on pretest 5x each
  • math -- practice 7-1
  • writing: write a scene involving a long hallway

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Tuesday!!

Happy Tuesday! I was at a meeting in the morning. It felt like a very short day since I didn't get to class until 11:30. Wait until you hear the plans we have in the works! Keep that AR goal where it should be!
Today was pretty much an assessment day. We had a test over The Girl Who Married the Moon as well as Topic 6 in math. We continued with our Egyptian rotations.
Since we were on an inclement weather schedule do to wind, we didn't play outside today. I didn't put the sarcophagi out to dry; hopefully they will dry in the classroom overnight.
Reminder -- no school Monday.

Homework:

  • reading log
  • fluency (Egyptian numbers)
  • no spelling
  • Studies Weekly due Friday
  • math -- enrichment 7-1
  • writing -- "you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with." Who are your five people? Do you agree with this quote? Why or why not?

Monday, November 4, 2013

Back in the Routine...

It felt good to be back in our regular routine today!
We worked on making inferences, main verbs/auxiliary verbs, and read poems about the moon. We discussed imagery in poetry. My favorite poem was the Langston Hughes one. Love!
In math, we discussed how to describe circles. Again, this lesson was full of vocabulary! How many degrees in a circle?
Today started our third round of Egyptian rotations. I am enjoying myself in these rotations! I like seeing how each group is different.
Remember -- tomorrow I will be in a meeting until 11:30. See you then!

Homework:

  • reading log
  • fluency (Say No to Drugs quiz)
  • spelling -- take a practice test
  • my math group -- practice 6-6 and make a notecard
  • Studies Weekly due Friday
  • writing -- invent a new sport

Friday, November 1, 2013

Too Good for Drugs and DANCE PARTY!

Today was AMAZING!
We did all ten Too Good for Drugs lessons. Now you have strategies for dealing with peer pressure, for making good decisions, and setting goals. It was a GREAT day!
In the afternoon, we had a DANCE PARTY for students who had 25% of their AR goal. Whoo hoo! We saved the treats left from yesterday and had those as snacks. That disco ball was snazzy!
Have a wonderful weekend!