We Had an Amazing First Day of School! I Can T Believe How Fast It Went By. It Was So

8/29/11

First Day! We had an amazing first day of school! I can’t believe how fast it went by. It was so much fun getting to know your children better and starting to build our classroom community. I had a blast eating lunch with the class. I’m so happy to be at Carderock Springs and I’m looking forward to a wonderful, productive year!

Today the students filled out a questionnaire all about themselves for me to read over and they wrote down their goals for this year. We visited the library to check out books after reviewing how to pick out a book that’s “just right” for us. We reviewed some of our classroom routines, expectations for behavior, and positive consequences (ask them about tickets!). We got to know each other (our fellow classmates and our fellow third graders) better by playing some games. We also began to unpack and organize our supplies. We were able to organize/label the dividers in our binders and label our homework folder.

Tomorrow we will continue doing community building activities to learn more about each other. We will also talk more about behavioral expectations and work as a class to develop a set of classroom rules. We will finish sorting through our supplies and will label our folders and composition/spiral notebooks. I do have extra folders and composition/spiral notebooks, but would greatly appreciate if your child had 4 of each.  Thank you! 8/30/11

Today we had another busy and fun-filled day! Our community building activities helped us to learn more about each other and helped to create a positive, welcoming classroom environment for everyone. After reading a book called How to Behave and Why, we talked more about behavioral expectations and worked as a class to develop a set of classroom rules (posted below). Tomorrow we will review the rules and finalize them before signing them to show that we agree with the rules and will follow them. We finished sorting through our supplies and labeled our folders and composition/spiral notebooks. Thank you for sending in supplies!! We also had a fire drill today. Our class did amazing!! Prior to the drill we reviewed how important drills are and talked about where to go and how to act during fire drills, code blues (now called Shelter in Place) and code red (now called Lockdown). I was so proud of how mature they were!!

Classroom Rules 1. Show good listening at ALL times 2. Do YOUR best 3. Respect others and their things by treating them the way you want to be treated 4. Follow directions and behave appropriately at all times 5. Have fun! 8/31/11 Today we started the day by decorating blank paper puzzle pieces. Then, the students cut out pictures I took of them on the first day of school and glued them to their decorated puzzle piece. After that, we put all of the pieces together at the front of the room to show how we all are important members or "pieces" of our classroom community. Tomorrow we will glue the pieces together on a big piece of paper and hang it in our classroom for all to see! We also reviewed and finalized our classroom rules/agreements before each student signed them. Take a look:

Even though we don't switch for math until tomorrow (a letter will come home tomorrow to let you know whose math class your child is in), we warmed up our brains and practiced our critical thinking skills by solving riddles/logic puzzles using the hundreds chart. We practiced reading the problem carefully and taking it step-by-step to solve it. The students did a great job working together in groups! I'm very proud of each student for participating and for treating each other with respect. You can see what we worked on by clicking here: http://www.mathwire.com/problemsolving/hblogic.pdf . Later, during reading, we talked about making connections to texts we are reading in order to help us to better understand what we are reading. I started off the lesson by explaining to students that they make connections all the time and might not even realize it. I gave some examples of how they make connections to what people are saying and what they are reading in books. Then, I modeled how to make connections to text while reading part of the first chapter of Ramona Quimby Age 8 by Beverly Cleary. I emphasized how important it is to not only be able to tell me their connection, but to explain how their connection helped them to understand the story better. Tomorrow we will read another story and students will practice making their own connections and explaining how their connection helped them to better understand the story.

I sent the binders home with the students today. Please take a look at it with them. Here is the order of the items I want in the binder from front to back:

1. Pencil bag (the kind that clips into the binder rings)-This should hold a few necessary items (i.e. 2 pencils, a blue or black pen, a red correcting pen or pencil, etc). Remember, we are trying to keep the binder as light as possible. Please remind your child that there is no need for them to carry unnecessary or bulky supplies (crayon boxes, markers, colored pencils, glue sticks, etc) in their pencil holder because those can be stored in the student's desk or will be provided by their teacher.   2. Homework Agenda-This is where the students write down their homework everyday and it must stay in their binder so they don't lose it or forget it. I expect it here at school everyday!   3. Five dividers in this order from top to bottom: Math, Reading, Language Arts/Daily Oral Language, Science, Social Studies. We abbreviated the longer subjects, so you might see LA/DOL, Sci, SS.   4. Loose-leaf notebook paper right-side up (with red margin line on the left)- Students should have their loose-leaf paper at the very back of their binder. A couple of students wanted to divide up the paper and put some in each section of their binder, which I said was ok too. Students do not need more than one package of paper in their binder. Any extra paper packages they have should be kept at home so they can refill their binder as their paper supply is depleted.

 This took a lot of time to organize over the past three days, so it will be something that will need to be reinforced at school and at home. I really appreciate your support. Thank you!

Your children have been earning a lot of tickets in my class! I am so impressed with their behavior in our classroom and in the hallways. YAY Mrs. Talvac's class! :-) Homework Please look in your child's blue homework folder tonight. Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Some forms might have gotten lost in translation between home and school or might still be sitting in your child's homework folder, so please check their folder. Talvac Forms Check List

Please don't forget to pack a healthy mid-morning snack for your child!

Wednesday's Homework: Students need to complete questions 7, 8, 9, and 10 in their Who Are You and What Makes You Tick? packet. This should be returned to school tomorrow so I can check their progress. Students also need to continue thinking about 5 different objects that represent their personality, their interests, and/or what's important to them to put in their Artifact Bag. Remember, the objects cannot have their name on it and should not contain pictures of them. The 5 objects should be put in a plain brown paper bag (like the ones used for lunch) and brought to school this Friday 9/2. Their name should not be on the bag either! On Friday I will collect all of the bags and then distribute them randomly throughout the class. The students will then look through the bag and use the objects as clues to try to figure out whose Artifact Bag it is. After that, students will share out the objects in their bag. This is a great way to learn more about each other and to see our common interests! As always, this should be written down in their agenda book and the packet/Artifact Bag assignment sheet should be in their blue homework folder.

9/1/11 Today we started the day by gluing our decorated puzzle pieces to a big piece of p aper. I'm going to hang it in our classroom this afternoon! We all are important members or "pieces" of our classroom community. After that, we switched for math for the first time! Students are bringing home a letter with them today to let you know who their math teacher will be for this year.

In my math class, we did some community building activities to help get to know each other better and to learn each other's names. For the rest of class we worked on a math inventory so I can see what math skills/concepts each student already has/knows. We will finish this up tomorrow and will review our classroom rules.

Once the students got back from math we had our mid-morning snack break. Everyone said they had a good time in math class. After our snack break, we talked about what the MAP-R is, why students take it, and how to take it. Then we went to the computer lab to take the assessment. The Measures of Academic Progress in Reading (MAP-R) is a formative assessment that all students in Grades 3, 4, and 5 take on the computer to measure reading progress. It is given in the fall, in the winter, and in the spring so we can monitor how each student is improving in reading throughout the year.

In writing, we did an activator called Round Robin Writing in our table groups. The purpose of this activity is to have the students participate and work together as a table to write a creative story sentence by sentence. Each table was given a piece of chart paper with the following story starter at the top,"It was a normal day at recess. The sun was shining brightly and everyone was running around playing. But then I looked off into the distance and saw....." One person at each table group finished that sentence and then passed the marker to the next person at their table group who wrote the next sentence. This continued on around and around the table group with each person only writing one sentence before passing on the marker. We had a lot of fun! Some of the topics from the stories include: monsters, flying pigs, zombies, fairies, giant pickles, clowns, and finding a million dollars which is then eaten by a bunny. Such creative ideas! Later in writing we talked about how many writers keep a collection of things they know or care about to refer to whenever they want to write so that they never suffer writer’s block. We talked about how writers use the people, places, things, experiences, and ideas that are important to them as a person to help them write. Then, we did an activity called Heart Mapping. I did an example for the students and mapped my heart. After that, everyone received a blank heart on a piece of paper to start mapping their own heart. Starting from the center of the heart, the students wrote the most important people/place/thing/experience/idea and worked their way outward-filling their heart with things that mean something to them (this included things that upset them or scare them). We will finish Heart Mapping tomorrow!

9/2/11 In my math class we discussed our classroom rules and agreements. Then, we did a community building activity to get to know each other better. After that, I distributed Student Reference Books and Student Math Journals. I reviewed some of the important features of each. These should both be brought to class each day and should stay in the students locker unless they are needed for homework, in which case they should be brought home. Later, students did an activity to familiarize themselves with both the reference book and the math journal. This included exploring the Table of Contents, the index, and the glossary. At the end of class each student received an Introduction Letter about me for you to read and a Student Contact Information card. Please fill the Student Contact Information card out and return it to school as soon as you can. Thank you for filling out the surveys about your child and getting them back to me! I appreciate it.

Once the students got back from math we had our mid-morning snack break. Then I distributed the Artifact Bags randomly throughout the class. The students looked through the bags and used the 5 objects as clues to try to figure out whose Artifact Bag it was. Most of our students guessed correctly! We had so much fun sharing out all of the cool objects we brought in. From this activity we were able to learn even more about each other and realized our common interests!

In reading, we reviewed what we had learned on Wednesday about making connections. We talked about how important it is to not only be able to make a connection, but to explain how the connection helps us to understand the story better. We read two different books. The first book was The Pain and the Great One by Judy Blume and the second book was A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon. On our follow-up work, the students did a great job making connections to the story, but they had some difficulty explaining how their connection helped them to better understand the story. You can help your child at home by asking them questions about books they are reading. Include questions about if they can relate to a character in the story and make a connection to something the character is feeling or thinking. Discuss with them how it is easier to understand a story when you have felt the way the character is feeling or have experienced something they are experiencing.

In Science, we completed a KWL chart on plants(K=What we already know about plants, W=What we want to know about plants, and L=What we learned about plants by the end of the unit). Our first unit is Plant Growth and Development! After we completed our KWL chart, we went outside on a Nature Walk to search for seeds. We talked about observing our surroundings and using what we already know about plants/seeds to decide whether or not an item we were picking up might or might not be a seed. By the end of our walk my bag was completely full of items! We will look at the items on Tuesday and try to sort them into categories by their characteristics. Take a look at our KWL chart below:

I sent the binders home with the students for the first time on Wednesday. If you haven't already done so, please take a look at it with them. Here is the order of the items I want in the binder from front to back:

1. Pencil bag (the kind that clips into the binder rings)-This should hold a few necessary items (i.e. 2 pencils, a blue or black pen, a red correcting pen or pencil, etc). Remember, we are trying to keep the binder as light as possible. Please remind your child that there is no need for them to carry unnecessary or bulky supplies (crayon boxes, markers, colored pencils, glue sticks, etc) in their pencil holder because those can be stored in the student's desk or will be provided by their teacher.   2. Homework Agenda-This is where the students write down their homework everyday and it must stay in their binder so they don't lose it or forget it. I expect it here at school everyday!   3. Five dividers in this order from top to bottom: Math, Reading, Language Arts/Daily Oral Language, Science, Social Studies. We abbreviated the longer subjects, so you might see LA/DOL, Sci, SS.   4. Loose-leaf notebook paper right-side up (with red margin line on the left)- Students should have their loose-leaf paper at the very back of their binder. A couple of students wanted to divide up the paper and put some in each section of their binder, which I said was ok too. Students do not need more than one package of paper in their binder. Any extra paper packages they have should be kept at home so they can refill their binder as their paper supply is depleted.

 This took a lot of time to organize over the past three days, so it will be something that will need to be reinforced at school and at home. I really appreciate your support. Thank you!

It's been an amazing week! Thank you for everything you do to help support your child and our class! I'm so happy to be at Carderock Springs! Homework Please look in your child's blue homework folder. Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Some forms might have gotten lost in translation between home and school or might still be sitting in your child's homework folder, so please check their folder. Updated Forms Checklist-Talvac Updated 9/2

Friday's Homework: None! Have a GREAT 3 day weekend! I can't wait to see all of the students on Monday! :-)

9/6/11 Announcements Today we started the day by checking to see what our new weekly class jobs are and continued to put the finishing touches on our All About Me worksheets. Then, we switched for math!

In my math class we continued working on the activity we started last Friday to help familiarize ourselves with the Student Reference Books and Student Math Journals. When we finished the activity, we worked on page 3 in our Math Journal as a warm-up. This page helped us to review basic computation and conversion skills. Then, we stood up and did some Geoaerobics to help us to review important geometry vocabulary terms from last year. Geoaerobics involves using our arms to make different examples of vocabulary terms (see below for examples). We reviewed line, line segment, ray, right angle, acute angle, and obtuse angle. We also talked about different shapes that we know have right angles in them, such as squares and rectangles. After that, we talked about how math is all around us and you can find examples of many of the different vocabulary terms we had reviewed during Geoaerobics all around our classroom. We spotted right angles in the ceiling tiles, floor tiles, on our books, on the stripes on the American flag, and on the squares on our rug. We spotted acute and obtuse angles on the clock (depending on what time it is), on the stars on the American flag, on different letters of the alphabet, and on some numbers too. Check the Homework section below for tonight's math homework! If you haven't already done so, please fill out the Student Contact Information card out and return it to school as soon as you can.

In reading, we reviewed what we had learned on Wednesday and Friday about making connections. We talked about how important it is to not only be able to make a connection, but to explain how the connection helps us to understand the story better. I talked with the students about their follow-up work from Friday's lesson and how they could improve their explanations of how their connection helped them to understand the story better. Then we read the book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst. Once we had finished reading the story we talked about various parts of the book that we could possibly make connections to. On our follow-up work, I saw a lot of improvement from last week! The students did a great job making connections to the story and were able to explain how their connection helped them to better understand the story. You can help your child at home by asking them questions about books they are reading. Include questions about if they can relate to a character in the story and make a connection to something the character is feeling or thinking. Discuss with them how it is easier to understand a story when you have felt the way the character is feeling or have experienced something they are experiencing.

In writing, we finished our heart maps. Once we were finished with our heart maps, we chose one of three story starters to help get us started with writing a story. We practiced writing independently for at least 10 minutes, depending on how quickly we finished our heart maps. After that, we got into a Writer's Circle and had volunteers share what they had written so far. Tomorrow in writing we will work on Supersizing our sentences. Supersizing is a strategy that students will learn to use to add more details (adjectives, adverbs, etc) to their sentences to give more vivid descriptions in their writing. Check out some of the story starters below:

1. I was walking home from school one day when I heard a weird sound behind me. I turned around, but nothing was there. All of a sudden, something grabbed me. I turned around and saw….

2. It was midnight when I woke up to a loud noise outside. I ran to my window and looked up into the sky. I couldn’t believe it when I saw…….

3. I came to school and all of my teachers were monkeys! My day was very different….(tell me how your day was)

Our class is so creative! Some of the imaginative ideas the students included in their stories were: huge ants, being eaten alive by and living in the belly of a giant minion, talking horses, monsters, and talking chimps from Hawaii. :-) In science we looked through the bag we used to collect items on our Nature Walk on Friday. We took the items out and made observations to help us try to figure out if it was a seed, a plant, something else, or we weren't sure. We were able to categorize most of the items. We actually had a seed pod that had seeds in it in our bag, which was an exciting find! We also looked closely at an acorn and smashed it open to figure out what was inside. We talked about how seeds often have some sort of protection to help keep it safe and to help it grow (example: a special coat or a hard shell around the seed). Some of the other items we had in our bag were mushrooms, flowers, and berries. We talked about how a lot of the berries we eat have seeds in them or on them (example: strawberries, watermelons, kiwis). Homework Please look in your child's blue homework folder every night. Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Some forms might have gotten lost in translation between home and school or might still be sitting in your child's homework folder, so please check their folder. formschecklisttalvac Updated 9/6

Tuesday's Homework Math: Bring home reference book and journal. Complete pages 4 and 5 in your journal, using the reference book as needed. Reading: Read for 20 minutes every night Science: Look in and around your house for seeds and bring them into class tomorrow

9/7/11 Announcements Today we started the day with a Grammar Cop warm-up that helped us to practice our capitalization skills. The students reviewed the rules for capitalization and then read a passage where they circled capitalization errors. Then, we switched for math!

In math we took a hands-on approach to practicing the geometry vocabulary terms we reviewed in class yesterday. I brought in uncooked spaghetti noodles to help us create a vocabulary sheet. We used the noodles to show lines, line segments, rays, parallel lines, intersecting lines, perpendicular lines, and different types of angles. Many of us didn't get to finish, so we will be finishing the activity tomorrow. Check out the pictures of our works in progress below! (The first picture is the example I made for the students to reference throughout the activity)

In reading we began talking about the realistic fiction genre. We talked about what the word realistic means and what the word fiction means. We completed a Frayer model to help us think about the word realistic. Once we put the two words together, we discussed what we thought the characteristics of a realistic fiction book could be. Then we read summaries of six different books and discussed why we thought the book was a realistic fiction book or not. After that, the students explained why or why not they thought their favorite book or a book they have read recently is/is not an example of realistic fiction.

In writing we practiced super-sizing our sentences. We started with the sentence "The child played." We talked about how boring that sentence is and how, as a reader, it would put us to sleep if we were reading a writing piece that had a bunch of regular-size sentences like that one. I explained to the students that adjectives and details can help super-size our sentences. For this particular sentence, I asked the students to think of adjectives to describe the child and to think of a place where the child was playing. After that, the students paired up and started brain-storming adjectives and places. The students had so much fun sharing out their ideas. Later we tried to super-size this sentence: The girl went running. Together we were able to create some amazing SUPER-SIZED sentences! :-)

In science we shared out the seeds we brought from home. I LOVED everything the students brought in! (Check out the picture below) We talked about how we knew what we brought in was a seed (or had a seed in it) and what the seeds have in common. Then, we partnered up and began reading a booklet titled All About Plants. In the booklet we read about the different parts of plants (roots, stems, leaves) and flowers (stamen, pistil). We also found out that some foods we eat, like carrots, are actually roots! We will continue reading the booklet tomorrow and will examine lima beans.

The students have been doing a great job following rules during indoor recess! I can't wait for it to get sunny again so we all have a chance to get outside and run around. :-) Homework

Please look in your child's blue homework folder every night. Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Some forms might have gotten lost in translation between home and school or might still be sitting in your child's homework folder, so please check their folder. formschecklisttalvac Updated 9/7

Wednesday's Homework Math: Bring home reference book and journal. Complete page 6 in your journal, using the reference book as needed. Reading: Read for 20 minutes every night Science: None 9/8/11 Announcements Today we started the day by finishing the Grammar Cop warm-up from yesterday that helped us to practice our capitalization skills. The students reviewed the rules for capitalization and then read a passage where they circled capitalization errors. Then, we switched for math!

In math we started with a warm up that gave us more practice with drawing and labeling points, lines, line segments, and rays. We also answered some critical thinking questions such as "Is it possible to draw all of a line?" We discussed how that isn't possible because a line goes on forever in both directions and we would not be able to draw a line that goes on forever. After we reviewed the warm-up, we finished making our geometry vocabulary sheet with the uncooked spaghetti noodles I brought in. Check out the pictures of our geometry noodle vocabulary sheets below! (The first picture is the example I made for the students to reference throughout the activity) Once we completed our geometry noodle vocabulary sheets, we worked on an activity that involved identifying and naming different types of angles.

In reading we reviewed the characteristics of realistic fiction. Then we read the book Hurricane by Corinne Demas. After we finished reading, we talked about whether or not we thought the book was realistic fiction. The class agreed that it was realistic fiction. After that we talked about the important elements of the story which are: characters, setting, problem, and solution. We will review these elements all year. Later, we talked about how important characters are to the story and how we use character traits to describe characters. We determine the character traits of a character by paying close attention to the actions of the character and what the character says. We also discussed how character traits are different than physical traits.

In writing we continued to practice super-sizing our sentences! We also began to work on a small group project. After we split up into groups, each group was given a character trait. No other group is allowed to know the character trait. The groups have to work together to develop a simple script for a skit they will act out to demonstrate the character trait that their group was given. The other groups have to watch every other group's skit and try to determine the character trait they are acting out by looking at what the characters say and what the characters do. We reviewed what working in a group should look like and sound like. We want everyone to participate, feel that their ideas are valued, and feel included.

In science we dissected a watermelon that one of our students brought in from her garden to see what was inside! We talked about the different parts of the watermelon and each got to feel a watermelon seed and the skin of the watermelon. After that, we used magnifying glasses to observe lima beans. We recorded their size, shape, color, texture, and smell. Then we created a hypothesis for what will happen when we put the beans in water and let them sit overnight. We will make more observations tomorrow to determine whether or not our hypotheses were correct! Some of our hypotheses were: the lima bean will get wrinkly and change color from white/beige to green; the lima bean will shrink in size; the skin/outer shell of the lima bean will soak away/come off; the lima bean will become mushy and slippery/slimey.

The students have been doing a great job following rules during indoor recess! I can't wait for it to get sunny again so we all have a chance to get outside and run around. :-) Homework

Thursday's Homework Math: Complete Ordered Pairs worksheet. Reading: Read for 20 minutes every night Science: None

9/9/11 Announcements

Today we started the day with a new Grammar Cop warm-up. The students read what the differences are between your and you're. Then they filled in the blanks of a story using the word (your or you're) that made the most sense within the context of the sentence. Then, we switched for math!

In math we started with a warm up that gave us more practice with identifying points, angles, lines, line segments, and rays. After we went over the warm-up, we reviewed the definition of a polygon that we learned in math last year. Once we had the definition written down, a student posed a question that we had a great class discussion about. The student asked if a triangle inside a square or a square inside a triangle would be considered a polygon. The student explained their thinking further by talking about how since a square and a triangle are both polygons, when one is put inside the other, the new shape should be a polygon too. I love having students talk about math and think critically about math, so I decided to draw the figures the student described and have the class vote on whether or not they thought the figures should be considered polygons. From our wonderful math discussion, we were able to discover that we should add one more important item to our definition of polygon: A polygon cannot have shapes overlapping or one shape inside another shape. I'm so proud of our class!!! Check out our final definition of polygon below!

A polygon:  is a shape that has 3 or more sides  is closed  has no intersecting sides  has all straight sides  cannot have shapes overlapping or one shape inside another shape

Later, we used tangram pieces to complete a chart to help the students notice the relationship between the number of sides and the number of angles a polygon has. It also gave students more practice in identifying and naming acute, obtuse, and right angles. Students had to write the name of the polygon (square, hexagon, rhombus, etc), record the number of sides it has, record the number of angles it has, record what types of angles it has, and then name the angles. They also had to outline each angle in a different color to help them to see that, when naming an angle, the vertex has to be in the middle. Look at the angle below to see an example. B is the vertex, so B has to be in the middle when naming it. So the appropriate names for the angle below would be Angle ABC or Angle CBA.

In reading we reviewed how important characters are to the story and how we use character traits to describe characters. We also talked about how we determine the character traits of a character by paying close attention to the actions of the character and what the character says. We discussed how character traits are different than physical traits and emotions. Then we read Sachiko Means Happiness by Kimiko Sakai. This story involved a girl whose grandmother developed Alzheimer's disease, so we had a great discussion about what Alzheimer's is and why the grandmother was acting the way she was in the story. After that, we identified two character traits of the main character Sachiko. I reminded students that not only is it important to be able to identify a character's traits, but that is important to be able to explain how you knew the character had those traits. We explained the two traits we decided on by using examples from the text to support our answer. This is an important skill that we will be practicing all year. Giving examples from the text to support your answer is very important! While discussing character traits, we talked about synonyms and antonyms. We came up with class examples to help us review what a synonym is and what an antonym is. Then the students paired up and were given a thesaurus to flip through and explore. First, I asked them to pick a word they like and find at least one synonym for it. We shared out and then I asked them to pick another word they like and find at least one antonym for it. The students really enjoyed flipping through the thesaurus and using the synonyms/antonyms to try to figure out the meanings of words they didn't know before.

In writing we finished our small group project. The groups finished working together to develop the simple script for their skit to demonstrate the character trait their group was assigned. 3 groups had a chance to present their skit to the class. The other 2 groups will go on Monday. The skits were so well done and creative! The groups did a great job using the actions and words of the characters in the skit to demonstrate their assigned character trait. Out of the three groups who presented today, the class guessed the character trait correctly for two of the groups. I'm looking forward to Monday!

After we got back from special, we had our first class meeting! We talked about what a class meeting is and why we have one. We also talked about how to use the issue bin and how the issue bin will help to guide our class meetings.

In science we observed the lima beans after they had soaked in water overnight to see if the hypotheses we made yesterday were correct! We used magnifying glasses to help us make our observations and recorded the size, shape, color, texture, and smell of the soaked lima bean. We will compare the observations of the soaked bean to the dry bean on Monday and then write a conclusion based on our observations.

I'm so proud of the students for working so hard this week! We were all so excited when the sun started coming out in the late afternoon. I hope everyone has a GREAT weekend! See you Monday! :-) Homework

Friday's Homework: None! 9/12/11 Announcements Today we started the day by finishing the Grammar Cop warm-up we started on Friday. The students read what the differences are between your and you're. Then they filled in the blanks of a story using the word (your or you're) that made the most sense within the context of the sentence. Then, we switched for math!

In math we started with an entrance card to assess the students on their understanding of identifying types of angles (obtuse, acute, right), naming angles, and polygons (examples of polygons and non-polygons). I will use the entrance cards to decide what we need to review before we move on to studying different types of polygons. After that, students continued working on the chart we began on Friday. To complet the chart, we used tangram pieces to help the students notice the relationship between the number of sides and the number of angles a polygon has. It also gave students more practice in identifying and naming acute, obtuse, and right angles. Students had to write the name of the polygon (square, hexagon, rhombus, etc), record the number of sides it has, record the number of angles it has, record what types of angles it has, and then name the angles. They also had to outline each angle in a different color to help them to see that, when naming an angle, the vertex has to be in the middle. Students who finished early played Geometry Bingo with a partner. Then, we reviewed the chart together as a class. See an example below.

In reading we reviewed how we use character traits to describe characters. We also talked about how we determine the character traits of a character by paying close attention to the actions of the character and what the character says. We discussed how character traits are different than physical traits and emotions. Then we read The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister. After reading, I asked the students to think about a character trait they would use to describe the Rainbow Fish. Immediately, many of the students asked me if I wanted them to find a character trait to describe Rainbow Fish during the begining of the book or during the end of the book. I was so proud of them for noticing this! The point of the lesson was for students to realize that characters often change during the story. The students decided that at the beginning of the book Rainbow Fish was selfish because he wouldn't share any of his scales with the little blue fish. At the end of the book Rainbow Fish was friendly because he played with the other fish when they invited him to play and he gave every fish one scale. I reminded students that not only is it important to be able to identify a character's traits, but that is important to be able to explain how you knew the character had those traits. We explained the two traits we decided on by using examples from the text to support our answer. This is an important skill that we will be practicing all year. Giving examples from the text to support your answer is very important!

In writing we finished presenting our character trait skits. The remaining two groups who presented today had very creative skits! All of the groups did a great job using the actions and words of the characters in the skit to demonstrate their assigned character trait. Out of the five groups who presented, the class guessed the character trait correctly for three of the groups. I'm so proud of everyone! After we finished the skits, we learned the format of writing a friendly letter. Then, we practiced writing a friendly letter by writing rough drafts of friendly letters to parents for Back to School Night!

In spelling we read a book called Badger's Bad Mood by Hiawyn Oram. While reading I told the students to listen for words that make the ee sound (the long e sound). Look at the great list of words we created! Words with the ee Sound in Badger's Bad Mood field he speaks see be leave me scurried everything seemed anything heaved sorry worry easy we keep weasel reason cleaning meanwhile clearing speeches ready

In science we began to watch the Magic School Bus Goes to Seed video. It's a

I'm so proud of the students for working so hard this week! ! :-) Homework

Please look in your child's blue homework folder every night. Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Some forms might have gotten lost in translation between home and school or might still be sitting in your child's homework folder, so please check their folder. Forms Talvac Updated 9/12

Monday's Homework: Math: pg 10 and pg 11 in Student Math Journal. Use Student Reference Book as needed Spelling: Use a "just right" book to find 15 words that make the "ee" sound. Parents should please review the 3rd Grade Spelling Flow Chart I sent home. Back to School Night is tomorrow (Tuesday, 9/13) from 7pm-9pm. I'm really looking forward to it and I hope to see all of you there!

9/13/11 and 9/14/11 Announcements When the students came in this morning they were so excited to read the letters that were left by their parents at Back to School Night. They loved them and it was such a great way to start off the day! Again, thank you so much parents for coming to Back to School Night. I had a great time and I really appreciate all of your support. Then, we switched for math!

Yesterday in math we reviewed acute angles, obtuse angles, right angles, parallel lines, perpendicular lines, and intersecting lines. We also talked about different types of quadrilaterals and what they have in common (opposite sides are equal, two sets of parallel sides, opposite angles are equal, etc). From our warm-up, we realized that trapezoids and parallelograms are similar because they're both quadrilaterals, but they're different because trapezoids only have one set of parallel sides while parallelograms have two sets of parallel sides. To better help us visualize the different quadrilaterals we are studying, we used pipe-cleaners/twist-ties and straws of varying lengths to make quadrilaterals. We made a square by using straws that were all the same length. We knew it was a square because there were 4 right angles and all the sides were equal. Then, we pulled gently on opposite vertices of the square. We realized that we had just made a different quadrilateral; a rhombus! All sides were still equal, but there were now 2 acute angles opposite each other and 2 obtuse angles opposite each other, so we knew it was a rhombus. We did the same exploration with a rectangle. When we pulled on the opposite vertices of the rectangle, we realized that we could make a parallelogram. We finished with an exit card that will help me to evaluate their understanding of vertices and labeling angles.

Today in math we started with a warm-up that reviewed parallel lines, perpendicular lines, and intersecting lines. After the warm-up, I made a statement to the class that we evaluated and discussed, "All intersecting lines are perpendicular lines". We voted on whether or not we thought the statement was true or false and drew examples to help us figure it out. After a class discussion, we realized that perpendicular lines are always intersecting lines, but intersecting lines are not always perpendicular lines because intersecting lines don't always form right angles. Then, I handed out a checklist that had a bunch of statements about dogs that the students had to discuss to determine if they were true or false. See below:

Every dog is.....a mammal True

Every dog is.....a living thing True

Every dog is.....a poodle False

Every dog is.....a Saint Bernard False

After we reviewed our answers, I asked the students why we were doing an activity about dogs in math class and how it could be related to what we have been studying with quadrilaterals. After talking with our table groups, we realized that it all has to do with classification. We classify living things by putting them into more specific categories based on their properties and we classify polygons by putting them into more specific categories based on their properties. Then we played a game as a class where students had to figure out what I was thinking by eliminating possibilities based on my clues. For example, I started with "I'm thinking of a polygon" "I'm thinking of a quadrilateral" "I'm thinking of a quadrilateral that has all right angles" "I'm thinking of a quadrilateral that has all sides equal" Each statement I made was more specific and more 'narrow'. Polygon is a broad term/definition, while a square has a very specific definition. I drew diagrams to help the students to visualize starting out with a broad term and then narrowing it down more when given specific criteria. See below:

Students were then given a sheet that lists specific properties of quadrilaterals and includes a diagram of how they're all related. They used this sheet along with cut-outs of different quadrilaterals to give their partners clues in order to help figure out which quadrilateral they had in their hand. The students had a great time! At the end of class, the students completed an exit card so I could assess their understanding of classifying polygons.

Yesterday and today in reading we reviewed character traits and how we use what a character says and does to figure out what a character's trait is. We also reviewed how important it is to give an example to support our answer when we're explaining it. Today in reading we read the book Brave Margaret by Robert D. San Souci. The students all did a great job helping me to make sounds for parts of the story (knocking on the door, chanting "Fee fi fo fum!" like the giant, making wind noises, etc.) After we finished reading, we discussed character traits that we thought described the main character Margaret. We made sure to use examples to help us to explain our answer. We also did a character mapping activity for one of the three main characters to help us understand the character better.

In writing yesterday we completed our final drafts for the Back to School Night letters to parents! Today we focused on writing a catchy introductory sentence, which we call a "hook". There are many different types of hooks (question, capital letters, riddle, etc) and the students got to write one of each type of hook for a topic of their choice. There were some really creative ones that would definitely grab the attention of the readers!

In spelling yesterday I typed up all of the words the students found in their just right books that make the "ee" sound. The words were displayed on the Promethean and the students created their own individualized spelling lists by picking 15 words from the list. We discussed patterns we noticed in the words and developed categories that we could sort the words into. We discovered the following categories that all make the "ee" sound and gave an example of a word from each: ea=beach ee=tree ie=cookie y=really i=Swahili In spelling today I returned the students' approved spelling lists. I modeled for them how to do the Say It, Cover It, Check It worksheet and we did the first 2 words of our spelling lists. Then, we took a spelling inventory assessment. The spelling inventory assessment tests the students on their ability to spell 25 words that are of varying difficulty. The inventory results will help me to determine where each student is developmentally in spelling. This will help me to help them improve their spelling throughout the year. If you would like more information about the different developmental spelling stages, visit this link: http://www.education.com/reference/article/stages-spelling-development Homework Today is Wednesday...and you know what that means!! Students should have come home with notices in their homework folder and graded work in their Weekly Graded Work folders. As I said last night, Weekly Graded Work folders will be sent home every Wednesday night with the Wednesday folder notices. We did not get a chance to put a "communication log sheet" on the Weekly Graded Work folders today (so you could sign it to let me know you have seen the weekly graded work), but it will be on there next Wednesday. Please take all of the graded work out of the folder once you have reviewed it. All of the students should be coming home with a graded Making Connections sheet from me. Mrs. Barna's math class students should be coming home with a graded place value assignment. The two notices the students should be coming home with are about playing the recorder in music and about our school rules.

Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Forms Talvac Updated 9/12

Wednesday's Homework: Math: pg 8 and pg 9 in Student Math Journal Spelling: Study spelling words. Say It, Cover It, Check It worksheet is due on Friday Science: None Reading: Read 20 minutes every night!

9/15/11 Announcements We started the day today with some DEAR time. Then, we switched for math!

Today in math we started with a warm-up that reviewed classification and asked questions that gave us practice with reading classification diagrams related to living things. We talked about how we connected this to math and polygons in class yesterday. We classify living things by putting them into more specific categories based on their properties and we classify polygons by putting them into more specific categories based on their properties. After that we talked about how important it is to use resources available to us to help us while doing classwork and homework. The students completed a worksheet that gave them practice referencing their cheat sheet/quadrilateral diagram and practice using it as a check-list to help complete a worksheet called "I'm Thinking Of..." The worksheet challenges students to figure out what all of the possible mystery quadrilaterals could be based on the clues given. The language used to write the clues helped them to see the relationship between the quadrilaterals. Some example clues are (answers are underlined):

1. I’m thinking of…a quadrilateral What could I be thinking of? A trapezoid, a parallelogram, a rhombus, a square, or a rectangle. 2. I’m thinking of….a quadrilateral that has all equal sides What could I be thinking of? A square or a rhombus 3. I’m thinking of….a parallelogram with all equal sides. What could I be thinking of? A square or a rhombus 4. I’m thinking of….a quadrilateral that has no right angles. What could I be thinking of? A parallelogram, a rhombus, or a trapezoid 5. I’m thinking of….a parallelogram with opposite sides equal and opposite angles equal. What could I be thinking of? A rectangle, a square, or a rhombus. 6. I’m thinking of….a rectangle that has all equal sides. What could I be thinking of? A square 7. I’m thinking of….a quadrilateral with all right angles. What could I be thinking of? A rectangle or a square

Students also used the quadrilateral diagram to help them answer critical thinking questions such as: Are all squares considered rectangles? Are all rectangles considered squares? Are all quadrilaterals considered trapezoids? We discussed these questions as a class and have become much more familiar with understanding/using the quadrilateral diagram.

I'm so proud of the students for working so hard!

We spent a lot of time working on writing today! We started by talking about the Writing Process. We discussed how authors don't just start writing a book without doing any planning for their writing. Writers brainstorm ideas by doing pre-writing activities (such as webbing) and use graphic organizers to organize their thoughts before they start writing. We discussed what a good writer should include when brainstorming before they begin writing. After that we talked about what a personal narrative is and I explained that we will be working on a personal narrative writing piece over the next couple of weeks. I modeled how to create a web of ideas for what they could write their personal narrative about. Then the students webbed ideas for their own personal narratives. We shared out our ideas as a class before I met with each student to approve their idea. I explained that I want them to pick a "narrow" topic. Many of the students are writing about trips they have been on, but I explained and modeled for them how I want them to pick a specific "snapshot" from that trip to write their personal narrative about. Then, the students started completing a graphic organizer that included all of the information below. We also reviewed super-sizing sentences! The students are getting better at adding more details to their sentences to make them more exciting for the reader to read.

I'm so proud of our wonderful class of writers!

Personal Narrative-a non-fiction (REAL) story about something that has happened in your life

Who was there? Where did it happen? What were you doing? When was it? Why were you doing it?

Sensory Details-help to form an image in the reader's mind! Sight-what do I see? Hear-what do I hear? Smell-what do I smell? Feel-what do I feel (touching)? Taste-what are you tasting? Homework Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Forms Talvac Updated 9/12

Please don't forget to pack a healthy mid-morning snack for your child! It really helps to keep them energized and able to focus for our long morning.

Thursday's Homework: Math: Getting in Shape worksheet Spelling: Study spelling words. Say It, Cover It, Check It worksheet is due tomorrow! Science: None Reading: Read 20 minutes every night!

Tomorrow is the Back to School Picnic! I hope to see you all there!

9/16/11 Announcements We started the day today with some DEAR time. Then, we switched for math!

Today in math we started with a warm-up that had students look at different shapes and use vocabulary terms and properties they know to help them to identify the shapes as being quadrilaterals, polygons, having at least two acute angles, having two sets of parallel lines, etc. The warm-up also had the students evaluate statements as being true or false. Then the students had to correct any statements they thought were false by rewriting the statement to make it true. For the rest of class we played Geometry Bingo (called GEOMY). It was a lot of fun and gave the students practice with using geometry vocabulary and the properties of quadrilaterals to determine what they could cover up.

In reading we reviewed how we use character traits to describe characters. We also reviewed how to determine a character's traits (what they say, what they do, and why they are saying/doing something). Then we thought back to the book The Rainbow Fish and talked about how a character's traits can change during the story. We discussed how character traits are different than physical traits and emotions. Some students have trouble differentiating an emotion from a character trait. One of our students used a great example to help. The student explained that a character trait to describe Eeyore (from Winnie the Pooh) could be sad or gloomy because Eeyore is always down and upset about constantly losing his tail. Then I explained how you can experience the emotion of sadness without that being a character trait to describe you. We thought of an example where a character's trait is cheerful, but they experience the emotion of being sad because their pet died. This doesn't mean that a character trait to describe them is sad, it means that their emotion is sad. Then we read Stevie by John Steptoe. After we read the book the students completed independent follow-up work that asked them to identify a character trait of the main character at the beginning of the story and at the end of the story. To help them to get an "A" response on the BCR, the students had the following checklist displayed on the Promethean Board. -Using your character trait list, choose a character trait that describes Robert/Bobby at the beginning of the story -Explain how your character trait describes the character at the beginning of the story by giving an example of what the character said/did to support your answer -Tell me how Robert/Bobby changed during the story -Using your character trait list, choose a character trait that describes Robert/bobby at the ending of the story -Explain how your character trait describes the character at the ending of the story by giving an example of what the character said/did to support your answer

In writing we practiced using a thesaurus by finding the synonyms and antonyms for 15 words that were given to us. After that we reviewed what a personal narrative is. Then, I read the students two personal narratives to give them an idea of what I expect. One personal narrative was written by a student I taught last year and one was written by a teacher. We evaluated the personal narratives and discussed what the student/teacher did well and what they could have improved. We spent the rest of class working on our personal narrative graphic organizers or rough drafts.

In science we colored and cut out pictures of a plant's growth cycle. The pieces were out of order so we had to put them in the correct order to find out the secret code. We found out that the secret code is Germinate. Germinate means to begin to sprout or grow!

Attention Parents of 3rd Grade Students: You should have received information about the Elementary Center Program for the Highly Gifted (HGC). Applications and information for the HGC will is posted on the MCPS website at ww.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/curriculum/specialprograms /admissions/applications/documents.aspx. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Veihmeyer, Carderock Springs Staff Development Teacher. Homework Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Talvac Forms Updated 9/16

Friday's Homework: None! Have a great weekend! Can't wait to see all of the students on Monday! I hope to see you all at the Back to School Picnic tonight!

9/19/11

We started the day today with a DOL (Daily Oral Language) activity to practice our grammar skills. Then, we switched for math!

Today in math we started with a warm-up that had students use an index card to help them identify angles as being acute, obtuse, or right. They also had to name the angle correctly. We reviewed the symbols we use when labeling angles, lines, line segments, rays, and points. Then we did an activity where the students had to look at pictures of polygons, write down the number of sides/angles each polygon had, and write the name for the polygon. We named polygons all the way up to 12 sided polygons! See the names below. After that we learned about concave and convex polygons. We talked about how the polygons we work with are usually convex polygons. That means that if you draw a line from one vertex to another, it doesn’t cross any sides or lie on the exterior (outside) of the polygon. When a polygon is not convex we say it is concave. The example below shows a red line drawn from one vertex of the polygon to another. The red line passes on the outside of the polygon, so we know it is concave. A trick to help us remember concave is to focus on the word cave in concave. After showing the students a couple of examples similar to the ones below, the students drew their own concave and convex polygons. They had someone at their table group check to make sure that the polygons they had drawn were correct.

Triangle-3 sides and 3 angles Quadrilateral-4 sides and 4 angles Pentagon-5 sides and 5 angles Hexagon-6 sides and 6 angles Heptagon-7 sides and 7 angles Octagon-8 sides and 8 angles Nonagon-9 sides and 9 angles Decagon-10 sides and 10 angles Undecagon/Hendecagon-11 sides and 11 angles Dodecagon-12 sides and 12 angles

In reading we reviewed how characters can change or grow throughout a story. Then we read Island Boy by Barbara Cooney. After we read the book the students completed independent follow-up work that asked them to describe the character at the beginning of the story and then explain how the character changed throughout the story.

In writing we reviewed the DOL activity which gave us practice with contractions, using commas in lists, capitalization, and end punctuation.

In spelling we talked about and reviewed how to complete all of the spelling activities that the students get to choose from to help them practice their spelling words.

In the afternoon Ms. Zeitlin stopped by for a visit. She talked about how successful the summer reading postcard program was and introduced the new reading program for this year.

Attention Parents of 3rd Grade Students: You should have received information about the Elementary Center Program for the Highly Gifted (HGC). Applications and information for the HGC will is posted on the MCPS website at ww.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/curriculum/specialprograms /admissions/applications/documents.aspx. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Veihmeyer, Carderock Springs Staff Development Teacher. Homework Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Talvac Forms Updated 9/16

Monday's Homework: Math: Read pages 82 and 83 in the Student Reference Book. Complete #1, 2, 3 (in the yellow Checking Understanding box) at the bottom of page 83 on a piece of notebook paper. Spelling: We are in Week 2 of our spelling cycle. Pick 2 spelling activities (listed on the back of the spelling list) and complete them in your Spelling notebook. Return by Thursday.

9/20/11 Announcements We started the day with a DOL (Daily Oral Language) activity to practice our grammar skills. Then, we switched for math!

In math we started with an entrance card to assess the students ability to: name an angle; identify the type of angle it is; identify the vertex; identify the two rays that make the angle; and use symbols to label a point, a line, a line segment, and a ray. Then, students began working on a circle exploration sheet. On the exploration sheet there were 4 circles drawn. Each circle had a line segment drawn from the center of the circle to the outside of the circle and a line segment drawn from one side of the circle to the other that passed through the centerpoint. The students had to measure each line segment on the 4 circles and try to determine the relationship between them. We had a great discussion about the relationship between the two line segments. We discovered that the line segment that went from one side of the circle to the other that passed through the centerpoint was two times the length of the line segment that went from the centerpoint of the circle to the outside of the circle. After that we discussed the names for these two line segments. The radius and the diameter. We talked about the basic formula (d=diameter and r=radius) d=2r and r=d/2. We read a math adventure book called Sir Cumference and the First Round Table by Cindy Neuschwander. It was an exciting book that reinforced the vocabulary terms we had just learned. We also learned the word circumference which is the distance around the circle. We spent the rest of class practicing how to use a compass to draw a circle given the length of the radius.

We spent a lot of time writing today! We have started working on our personal narratives in class, but a lot of our ideas for personal narratives are too broad or too 'wide'. We practiced using the funnel strategy to narrow down a broad idea into a specific one. Narrow ideas are easier to write about because we can focus more on the details and vivid descriptions we've been practicing. After having time to work on our personal narratives, we had free writing time. I was proud of the way the students went back to their personal narratives and worked to narrow down their topic. We finished writing class with a Writer's Circle where students shared out what they have been working on. I love how respectful our class was when listening to other students share their writing. Great job!! I'm also impressed with how creative the students are with their writing.

In reading we reviewed how characters can change or grow throughout a story and how a book can influence the way we (the readers) feel. Then we read the book Angel Child, Dragon Child by Michele Maria Surat. Tomorrow we will talk more about how the main characters, Ut and Raymond, changed throughout the story and how we felt during the story.

In science we read a book called The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle. We talked about what a seed needs to survive and grow into a plant. We also realized the impact humans can have on a plants ability to grow. Then we had time in class to study for our seed quiz tomorrow! Students need to know the three main parts of the seed that we have studied: the seed coat, the embryo, and the cotyledon. The students need to be able to label the parts on a diagram and explain what each part is/does. A review sheet was given to them today in class and should be in their blue homework folder. See diagram below for the parts of the seed.

Homework Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Talvac Forms Updated 9/16

Tuesday's Homework: Math: Complete the Radius and Diameter worksheet Spelling: We are in Week 2 of our spelling cycle. Pick 2 spelling activities (listed on the back of the spelling list) and complete them in your Spelling notebook. Return by Thursday. Science: Study for our Parts of a Seed Quiz tomorrow!

In math we started with an entrance card to assess the students' ability to identify perpendicular, parallel, and intersecting lines. Then, students began working on a circle exploration sheet. On the exploration sheet there was one circle drawn. The students had to use a ruler to measure the radius and the diameter. After that the students used a piece of string to go around the outside of the circle. Then the students used their ruler to measure the string in order to determine the circumference of the circle. The students also had to use their compass to draw their own circle on the back. Using the circle they drew, they had to measure the radius, the diameter, and use the string to help determine the circumference. We had a great class discussion trying to determine the relationship between the diameter and the circumference. I plotted the students data points on grid paper on the Promethean Board to create a scatter plot (see below) in order to help them to better visualize the relationship. I used the points we plotted to draw a line of best fit. Even though we will not be learning scatter plots and how to draw lines of best fit this year in math, I thought it was important vocabulary to introduce/explain to the students. Once I had drawn an approximate line of best fit, I put yellow points on the line of best fit to get coordinates. We used the coordinates to create a table to help guide us in exploring the relationship between diameter and circumference (see below). We realized that the circumference is about 3 times the diameter. I told students it's not exactly 3 times the diameter, but it's very close. I explained that in math, the relationship between the diameter and the circumference is represented by a symbol (which I drew for them) called pi. I explained that pi is really 3.14 (and goes on forever) and represents the exact relationship between the diameter and the circumference. I told them that in this class we won't be using pi and that we will say that the Circumference=3 X Diameter because that gets us very close to the actual answer. So we will be finding an approximate circumference, not an exact circumference. I did a couple of calculations on the Promethean to show them how close the answers are (2 X 3= 6 and 2 X 3.14=6.28..answers are very close). We reviewed the basic formulas (d=diameter and r=radius and c=circumference) d=2r and r=d/2 and c=3d. Then we practiced drawing circles, rectangles, and triangles when given certain measurements.

Diameter Circumference 1 3 2 6 3 9 4 12 6 18

In writing we wrote an entry in our Writer's Notebook in response to the following prompt: If you could meet any person (alive or dead), who would it be? Why would you choose to meet them? What would you ask them or talk to them about? What would you do with them? After that we had a Writer's Circle to share our entries. I asked all students to at least share who they said they'd like to meet. Here are some of the responses: Amelia Earhart, General Patton, God, Abraham Lincoln, Clay Matthews, Derek Jeter, and Taylor Swift. Many of the students said they would like to meet their great great great great great grandma/grandpa or another ancestor of theirs. I was so interested in hearing who the students chose to meet!

In reading we reviewed how characters can change throughout the story and how books can influence how we feel while reading them. Then the students completed an independent follow-up sheet based on the book we read in class yesterday, Angel Child, Dragon Child by Michele Maria Surat. The students had to explain how the main character in the story changed throughout the story and how they felt during the story. After that, students read independently and answered comprehension questions to check their understanding of what they were reading. They also used the dictionary and thesaurus to look up important vocabulary words while they were reading.

In science we took our seed quiz. We are all excited about planting seeds tomorrow! Thank you to the parents who have volunteered to come in and help!! Homework Today is Wednesday...and you know what that means!! Students should have come home with notices in their homework folder and graded work in their Weekly Graded Work folders. Please take all of the graded work out of the folder once you have reviewed it and be sure to sign the Communication Sheet that is stapled to the back of the folder. Some weeks there may not be any graded work in your child's folder. The two notices the students should be coming home with are the Parent Academy booklet and a school picture form.

Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Talvac Forms Updated 9/16

Wednesday's Homework: Math: Complete the Alphabet Polygons worksheet Spelling: We are in Week 2 of our spelling cycle. Pick 2 spelling activities (listed on the back of the spelling list) and complete them in your Spelling notebook. Return by tomorrow! Reading: Read 20 minutes every night!

In math we started with a warm-up to give students practice calculating the radius, diameter, and circumference of circles. Then, we did a couple of problems together as a class where I would give them one part of the circle, such as the circumference, and they would have to work together to calculate the other parts of the circle. We also reviewed the formulas: d=2r and r=d/2 and c=3d. We talked about how divison and multiplication are considered opposite operations. For example, if I am given the circumference and I have to solve to find the diameter, then I have to divide the circumference by 3 to solve for the diameter. For the rest of class we practiced drawing circles (using a compass), rectangles, and triangles when given certain measurements.

In writing we reviewed our DOL warm-up. This week we have learned a lot about end punctuation, capitalization, homophones (ex: to, too, two), contractions (ex: I'm, won't), apostrophe use to show possession (ex: Those are Joe's books), and more! The students do a great job of finding and correcting all the mistakes.

In science we finally were able to plant our seeds today!! Our class did an AMAZING job!! I'm so proud of them. They followed the directions carefully and we didn't have any spills. Before we started planting we reviewed the rules and behavioral expectations we have in science. Then, we reviewed the procedures for planting the seeds and I did a demonstration. Once our parent volunteers arrived, we began planting! Our amazing parent volunteers were so helpful! They were such an important part in ensuring that the planting went smoothly. I can't thank them enough for taking the time to come in and help our class today!! After we were done cleaning up we read an article about the type of seed we planted. We are using Wisconsin Fast Plant seeds. The Wisconsin Fast Plant was developed by Dr. Paul Williams from the University of Wisconsin. He studies plant diseases and developed the Wisconsin Fast Plant by studying and cross-breeding many different types of plants until he was able to develop one that would help him conduct his research quicker. The Wisconsin Fast Plant is unique because it goes through the entire life cycle in just 5 weeks! As our seeds grow I will post pictures everyday so parents can follow our progress!

In the afternoon we had a visit from our new counselor Ms. Klotzman. She read us a great book that helped explain all about a counselor's job and how counselors can help students. We did a really fun activity called "The Fish Bowl" Be sure to ask your child about it! All of them enjoyed it and were eager to participate. After that, the students worked together to complete a series of fun activities that reviewed what we had read about in the book. Homework Don't forget to send in the Parent Surveys, Emergency Dismissal Form, Emergency Information Form, and Computer Use Form. I posted a checklist below so you can see what forms I have received and what forms I'm missing from you. I used the first three letters of your child's last name. An X means I have received it and a blank space means that I'm missing it. I can send home additional copies if needed! Just email me and let me know. Talvac Forms Updated 9/16

Thursday's Homework: Math: None Spelling: Bring your spelling list and spelling notebook home. Take a practice test tonight. Study for the spelling test tomorrow! Reading: Read 20 minutes every night

9/23 Announcements I posted a class website archive below for parents to reference in case they ever miss an entry or would like to look back at everything we've done so far this year! It is posted below the homework heading.

We started the day with a DOL (Daily Oral Language) activity to practice our grammar skills. Then, we switched for math!

In math we started with a pre-assessment so I could see what the students already know about place value and 3D shapes. After the pre-assessment, the students worked together to use blocks to help them complete a chart where they had to identify the 3D shape and write down the number of faces it has, the number of edges it has, the number of vertices it has, and any 2D shapes they see that make up the shape (for example: a square based pyramid has 4 triangle faces and a square base). The shapes we explored today are below.

In reading we reviewed the important story elements that we have been focusing on so far this year: characters, setting, problem, events, and solution. I told them that today we would be focusing on the setting. We reviewed that the setting is when and where the story is taking place. Then, I had the students close their eyes while I read them a part of Charlotte's Web by E.B. White that had a detailed description of the barn (the setting). While their eyes were closed I had them listen closely for descriptive words and sensory details that the author used in order to help the reader create an image in their mind of the setting. Once I finished reading we sorted the words and details into categories depending on what sense the word/detail appealed to (sight, hearing, taste, touch, or smell). We talked about how much easier it is for the reader to envision the setting when lots of descriptive words and sensory details are used. It makes the story more interesting and can help the reader better understand the story. After that, I told the students that we were going to work together to describe the setting of a story that takes place in the desert. I told them to think for a minute about what comes to mind when they think of the desert. As they shared what they thought of when they imagined a desert, I used the computer to draw a picture to make it more visual. The students really enjoyed my drawings! Then we looked at the picture to help us describe the desert setting in detail.

In writing we looked at three different pictures of settings. One picture was of a messy bedroom, one was of the beach, and one was of a busy theater. We discussed the pictures together as a class, then the students got their writing notebooks and wrote their own vivid description of the setting using descriptive words and sensory details.

After reading and writing, we had a visit from Mr. Palmisano. He read us the book The Lemonade Ripple by Paul Reichert. Mr. Reichert's daughter is a student at Carderock! The book shows how easily a simple act of generosity can start a 'ripple' and lead to larger acts of generosity. The story was written to engage and inspire kids in philanthropy and to inspire them to find easy, creative, and fun ways to better their own communities. We really enjoyed the story and the students had such wonderful ideas to share about how they can get involved (or how they already are involved) in their community and help others. We also talked about how there are many people who are less fortunate than us and that it is rewarding to give back. Mr. Palmisano complimented us on how well our class listened during the reading of the book. I'm so proud of them!

Here's a picture of the set-up for science! All the plants are underneath a lamp to help them grow. Each student received their own planter quad. In each section of the quad, the students planted two seeds and put 3 fertilizer pellets. The quads are sitting on the lids of containers filled with water. On the lids there is a piece of water absorbent cloth that is soaked with water. There are wicks that stick out of the bottom of the planter quads that help to soak up water from the absorbent cloth. We check the quads daily to make sure they are receiving enough water.

Friday's Homework: Have a great weekend! Remember that next week we have a 1/2 day on Wednesday (dismissal at 12:50pm) and no school on Thursday for Rosh Hashanah.

9/26 Announcements We started off the day by writing in our Writer's Notebook about what we did this weekend. We made sure to write at least 4 sentences using correct grammar. Then, we switched for math!

In math the students started with a warm-up. The warm-up had the students write a number that goes up to the millions place (ex: 6, 548, 123). We shared out our numbers and practiced reading them correctly (ex: six million five hundred forty eight thousand one hundred twenty three). Then, we reviewed place values up to the hundred millions place. After that, we reviewed place value concepts that we learned last year. For the rest of class the students worked together to review these concepts by answering place value riddles, creating and reading their own numbers by rolling dice, writing numbers in expanded form, and identifying the value of a number given the place value it's in.

Here are some examples of the place value concepts we reviewed today:

Number: 128, 364, 927 Expanded Form: 100,000,000+20,000,000+8,000,000+300,000+60,000+4,000+900+20+7 The 1 is in the hundred millions place The 2 is in the ten millions place The 8 is in the millions place The 3 is in the hundred thousands place The 6 is in the ten thousands place The 4 is in the thousands place The 9 is in the hundreds place The 2 is in the tens place The 7 is in the ones place The value of the 6 in the ten thousands place is 60,000 The value of the 2 in the tens place is 20 The value of the 3 is in the hundred thousands place is 300,000

In spelling we talked about our new spelling pattern that we will be focusing on for the next 2 week spelling cycle. We are studying the 'ea' visual spelling pattern. We read the book Owl Moon by Jane Yolen and identified all of the words in the book that had the 'ea' visual spelling pattern. Some of the words we found were: heat, meadow, threading, read, and ready. While reading, we also focused on the setting of the book and the descriptive words and sensory details the author uses to help us picture the setting.

In reading we reviewed what the setting of a story is. The setting is where and when the story takes place. Then, we read the book Where the River Begins by Thomas Locker. While reading the book, I did not let the students see any of the illustrations because I wanted them to focus on the words the author used to describe the setting and how effective those words were at helping them to create an image of the story in their mind. After reading, I gave the students a photocopied page of the book with just text on it. The students had to read the text and use the descriptions the author gave to draw the setting. Then, they had to explain what words the author used that helped them to figure out what to draw. Later, we looked at the illustrations of the book and compared them to what we had drawn.

In the afternoon we had a fire drill. I'm so proud of our class and how well they followed directions!! They took the drill seriously, walked in a straight line, and didn't talk.

In science we observed our plants to see how much they've grown! The students became scientists and recorded how many days the plant has been growing, measured how tall their tallest plant is (in centimeters), drew a scientific drawing, and recorded 5 scientific observations of the plant. Check out the picture below!

Monday's Homework: Math: pg 32 in your Student Math Journal Spelling: Read a book that is "just right" for you and find 15 spelling words that have the 'ea' visual pattern Reading: Read at least 20 minutes every night!

Remember that this week we have a 1/2 day on Wednesday (dismissal at 12:50pm) and no school on Thursday for Rosh Hashanah. 9/27 Announcements We started off the day with some DEAR time. Then, we switched for math!

In math the students started with an entrance card to assess their ability to count the faces, edges, and vertices of two 3D shapes. Then, the students completed a warm-up activity that had them 'name' numbers in different ways. For example, 24 can be written as 8x3 or 48/2 or 20+4 or 30-6. The students were very creative with the different ways they used the four operations to 'name' each number. After that, the students met Mr. Fuddle. Mr. Fuddle is my math friend who loves math, but often finds himself making silly mistakes. Mr. Fuddle completed a packet of 7 math problems related to the place value and geometry concepts we have been learning about. I asked the students to pretend that they are the teacher and go through Mr. Fuddle's work to correct it. The students had to write detailed explanations for Mr. Fuddle as to why he was incorrect and then had to fix his answer. Once the students finished that, they practiced more place value concepts.

**Students should be reviewing their basic facts every night at home!! Basic facts are very important and will only be learned with lots of practice. 10 minutes of review a night can make a huge difference! There are some great free educational apps that can be downloaded on smartphones and other electronic devices such as iPads and iTouches that give the students practice with basic facts. If you'd like to get an idea of some of the educational apps there are out there, please visit the following link. The link includes apps that are created by the publisher of our math program, Everyday Mathematics. http://www.padgadget.com/2011/04/15/mcgraw-hill-education-offers-free-ipad-math- apps/**

Here are some examples of the place value concepts students should be familiar with:

Standard Form: 128, 364, 927 Expanded Form: 100,000,000+20,000,000+8,000,000+300,000+60,000+4,000+900+20+7 The 1 is in the hundred millions place The 2 is in the ten millions place The 8 is in the millions place The 3 is in the hundred thousands place The 6 is in the ten thousands place The 4 is in the thousands place The 9 is in the hundreds place The 2 is in the tens place The 7 is in the ones place The value of the 6 in the ten thousands place is 60,000 The value of the 2 in the tens place is 20 The value of the 3 is in the hundred thousands place is 300,000 Word Form: Three hundred six thousand two hundred forty one=Standard Form: 306, 241

In spelling I returned the students' approved spelling lists. Each student should have at least one challenge word on their list! In keeping up with our two week spelling cycle schedule, the Say it, Cover it, Check it worksheet is due Friday. I told students that today is a half day and they should manage their time wisely, but if they are unable to complete it because of Rosh Hashanah, then I would accept it on Monday.

In reading we reviewed the important story elements that we have been talking about a lot this year: characters, setting, problem, events, and solution. We have already learned a lot about the characters and setting of a story, and today we focused on the problem, events, and solution of a story. We read the book The Empty Pot by Demi. While I was reading, I asked the students to listen and try to identify what character has the problem, what the problem is, what actions were taken to solve the problem, and what the solution is. We recorded all of the story elements in a chart on the Promethean. Then, the students worked independently to identify the problem, events, and the solution of their reading group books.

Check back later this evening for an updated picture of our plants! Homework Today is Wednesday...and you know what that means!! Students should have come home with graded work in their Weekly Graded Work folders. Please take all of the graded work out of the folder once you have reviewed it and be sure to sign the Communication Sheet that is stapled to the back of the folder.

Wednesday's Homework: None because it's a Jewish holiday tonight and tomorrow

No school tomorrow! Archive Class Website Archive Updated 9/27 Upcoming Events Wednesday 9/28 Early Release Day

Thursday 9/29 Rosh Hashanah -- No School for Students & Teachers

Monday 10/10 Columbus Day -- Open House

Friday 10/21 Maryland State Teachers' Association Conference -- No School for Students & Teachers

Friday 10/28 First Marking Period Ends

Monday 10/31 Professional Day for Teachers -- No School for Students

Thursday 11/10 and Friday 11/11 Early Release Days -- Parent/Teacher Conferences

Schedules To find out when we will be celebrating your child's birthday, click here: talvacbirthdayschedule2011

9/28 Announcements We started off the day with some DEAR time. Then, we switched for math!

In math the students started with an entrance card to assess their ability to count the faces, edges, and vertices of two 3D shapes. Then, the students completed a warm-up activity that had them 'name' numbers in different ways. For example, 24 can be written as 8x3 or 48/2 or 20+4 or 30-6. The students were very creative with the different ways they used the four operations to 'name' each number. After that, the students met Mr. Fuddle. Mr. Fuddle is my math friend who loves math, but often finds himself making silly mistakes. Mr. Fuddle completed a packet of 7 math problems related to the place value and geometry concepts we have been learning about. I asked the students to pretend that they are the teacher and go through Mr. Fuddle's work to correct it. The students had to write detailed explanations for Mr. Fuddle as to why he was incorrect and then had to fix his answer. Once the students finished that, they practiced more place value concepts.

In spelling I returned the students' approved spelling lists. Each student should have at least one challenge word on their list! In keeping up with our two week spelling cycle schedule, the Say it, Cover it, Check it worksheet is due Friday. I told students that today is a half day and they should manage their time wisely, but if they are unable to complete it because of Rosh Hashanah, then I would accept it on Monday.

In reading we reviewed the important story elements that we have been talking about a lot this year: characters, setting, problem, events, and solution. We have already learned a lot about the characters and setting of a story, and today we focused on the problem, events, and solution of a story. We read the book The Empty Pot by Demi. While I was reading, I asked the students to listen and try to identify what character has the problem, what the problem is, what actions were taken to solve the problem, and what the solution is. We recorded all of the story elements in a chart on the Promethean. Then, the students worked independently to identify the problem, events, and the solution of their reading group books. Sorry for the delay in posting the pictures of our plants! These were taken on 9/28.

Homework Today is Wednesday...and you know what that means!! Students should have come home with graded work in their Weekly Graded Work folders. Please take all of the graded work out of the folder once you have reviewed it and be sure to sign the Communication Sheet that is stapled to the back of the folder.

Wednesday's Homework: None because it's a Jewish holiday tonight and tomorrow

No school tomorrow! Archive Class Website Archive Updated 9/27 Upcoming Events Wednesday 9/28 Early Release Day

Thursday 9/29 Rosh Hashanah -- No School for Students & Teachers

Monday 10/10 Columbus Day -- Open House

Friday 10/21 Maryland State Teachers' Association Conference -- No School for Students & Teachers

Friday 10/28 First Marking Period Ends

Monday 10/31 Professional Day for Teachers -- No School for Students

Thursday 11/10 and Friday 11/11 Early Release Days -- Parent/Teacher Conferences

Schedules To find out when we will be celebrating your child's birthday, click here: talvacbirthdayschedule2011

9/30 Announcements We started off the day by completing a DOL (Daily Oral Language) worksheet that helps us practice our grammar skills. Then, we switched for math!

In math the students started with a warm-up that gave them practice with identifying the value of a digit and practice with subtraction/addition with regrouping. Students were given 4 different numbers (see below for an example). The students were asked what the value of the 7 was in each number. This helped us to review the concept that the value of a digit depends on the place value that it's in. 23,790 Value of the 7 is 700 125,607 Value of the 7 is 7 1,278, 892 Value of the 7 is 70,000 3, 457, 921 Value of the 7 is 7,000

After that, the students wrote the numbers in word worm. We talked about how you should not say the word 'and' when reading numbers and shouldn't write the word 'and' when writing a number in word form. For example, the number 3, 457, 921 should be written as: three million four hundred fifty seven thousand nine hundred twenty one. It is not correct to write three million and four hundred fifty seven thousand nine hundred and twenty one. I noticed that some of the students were getting overwhelmed when reading a number that goes into the millions place because they were looking at the whole number/all the commas, so we focused on starting from the left and reading the number one part at a time by covering up parts of the number you aren't reading. It's much easier when broken down into pieces. I taught them that you read the numbers normally and then replace the commas with words (million, thousand, etc). See the diagram below for the step-by-step process the students should be using when reading a number.

The students also practiced their computation skills by completing subtraction and addition problems with regrouping. See below for an example of what we practiced.

After that we did an activity with the calculator where the students had to change the digit in a certain place value by adding or subtracting. This gave the students practice with their problem solving skills and helped to reinforce the fact that a digit's value is determined by which place value it is in.

Example 1 • Enter 54,463 • Use the + key to change the digit in the thousands place to 9 • How did you do that? Added 5,000 • What is the new number? 59,463

Example 2 • Enter 760,837 • Use the – key to change the digit in the tens place to 0. • How did you do that? Subtracted 30• What is the new number? 760,807

In reading we started with a warm-up activity that gave us practice with creating a title for a piece of writing. We talked about how the title of a story, a poem, or any other piece of writing helps the reader to know what they will be reading about. Then we read a poem with the title covered up. After reading the poem, I had the students come up with some ideas for what they thought a good title might be. We had a class vote and decided on the title we thought was the best. I was so proud of our class because the title that most students voted as the best title was the ACTUAL title of the poem! The students were really excited about this too. We talked about why the title we voted for was better than the other titles that were suggested. This activity helped prepare us for what we did for the rest of class and will be continuing to work on in class on Monday. Later, we read the book Brave Irene by William Steig. I told the students that while we were reading, I wanted them to focus on whether or not they thought Brave Irene was a good title for the story. When we finished reading the story we recorded the characters, setting, problem, events, and solution on the board. Then we discussed what the word "brave" means and what it means to be brave. Some students even gave examples of how Irene was brave in the story during our discussion! This helped us transition to talking about whether or not it was a good title for the book. We will continue this discussion on Monday before they write a BCR response explaining their opinion on the title. For the rest of class, the students practiced evaluating and creating titles for different writing pieces while I met with our reading groups. I'm very proud of how quietly they worked and how they worked together to answer their own questions while I was meeting with our reading groups!

In writing the students wrote down what they think of when they think of fall and when they think of October. I had them focus on sensory details/images by having them think about the following questions while writing. What does fall look like? What does fall taste like? What does fall sound like? What does fall feel like? What does fall smell like?

What does October look like? What does October taste like? What does October sound like? What does October feel like? What does October smell like?

Here are updated pictures of our plants from today (9/30)!

Homework Friday's Homework: None. Have a great weekend! :-) 10/3 Announcements We started the day with some DEAR time. Then, we switched for math!

In math we started with a warm-up that reviewed our place value skills. For the rest of class we rotated through centers. The centers gave students practice with place value, basic facts, addition/subtraction with regrouping, and geometry (angles, lines, polygons, etc). Some students were playing educational games while others were using the computers to go to interactive math websites to test their skills. We will continue these center rotations tomorrow! The students did a great job following directions and staying on-task.

Here are some examples of the place value concepts students should be familiar with: Standard Form: 128, 364, 927 Expanded Form: 100,000,000+20,000,000+8,000,000+300,000+60,000+4,000+900+20+7 The 1 is in the hundred millions place The 2 is in the ten millions place The 8 is in the millions place The 3 is in the hundred thousands place The 6 is in the ten thousands place The 4 is in the thousands place The 9 is in the hundreds place The 2 is in the tens place The 7 is in the ones place The value of the 6 in the ten thousands place is 60,000 The value of the 2 in the tens place is 20 The value of the 3 is in the hundred thousands place is 300,000 Word Form: Three hundred six thousand two hundred forty one=Standard Form: 306, 241

In reading we started with an activity that I got from the MSA (Maryland School Assessment) website (you can visit it here: http://www.mdk12.org/assessments/k_8/index_c.html). On the website you can find past test items, rubrics, and practice test items. I printed a past test item and we used that as a warm-up. We read the poem When You Can Read by Bobbi Katz. Then, we read the question that students were asked to respond to on the MSA. The question was "Do you think When You Can Read is a good title for this poem? Make sure to explain your answer using examples and details from the story." The students then had to read 4 student responses to the MSA question and evaluate them by giving them a grade. After we all talked and agreed upon what grades we would give each student response, we had a great class discussion in which we developed the criteria needed to get an A on our BCR's. To get an A we need to answer the question, give an example to support our answer, and explain how our example supports our answer. After that, we reread the book that we read last Friday, Brave Irene by William Steig. I told the students that while we were reading, I wanted them to focus on whether or not they thought Brave Irene was a good title for the story. Once we finished the story, the students had the rest of class to answer the following BCR question, "Do you think Brave Irene is a good title for this book? Make sure to explain your answer using examples and details from the story."

In science we observed our plants. Each day we will record how many days the plant has been growing, how tall their tallest plant is (in centimeters), draw a scientific drawing, and record 5 scientific observations of the plant. We all noticed that a lot of our plants are still growing tall, but are starting to droop. We discussed that this is a natural part of the plants growing and that, as the leaves of our plants get larger, the plant gets heavier and the stem might not be able to support the weight. After our observations, we thinned our plants. We talked about how important it is for the plants to have space to grow and that if two plants are growing too close together, then they are competing for what they need to survive (light, water, nutrients). We gently removed plants from each section of our planter quad until there was just one (instead of two) in each section. We also transplanted some plants from one person's planter quad to another person's planter quad(whose plants might not have been growing). Please check back later this evening for updated pictures!

Homework Monday's Homework Math: pg 18 and 19 in student math journal #1 Reading: Show parents the October Language Arts Project sheet. You can view it electronically here: October LA Project Spelling: Complete 2 spelling activities in your spelling journal. Due Thursday! 10/4 Announcements We started the day with some DEAR time. Then, we switched for math!

In math we started by reviewing our warm-up from yesterday that helped us practice our place value skills. I also gave them an entrance card to assess their understanding of place value and addition/subtraction with regrouping. I'm very happy with the results!! I have seen a lot of improvement since last week in the students' understanding of the concepts that were assessed. After that, we learned about place value periods. Each place value period has three place values. See the image and table below.

Period Place Values in that Period

Ones/Units 1. Ones 2. Tens 3. Hundreds

Thousand 1. Thousands 2. Ten Thousands 3. Hundred Thousands

Million 1. Millions 2. Ten Millions 3. Hundred Millions

Billion 1. Billions 2. Ten Billions 3. Hundred Billions

Trillion 1. Trillions 2. Ten Trillions 3. Hundred Trillions

Later, we practiced answering questions about how many place value periods different numbers have. For example: 1,456 has 2 place value periods 21, 382 has 2 place value periods 1, 273, 927 has 3 place value periods

Then, the students used their knowledge of place value, place value periods, and their basic facts to solve number riddles. See an example below. The students also had a chance to write their own riddles that we will be exchanging in class tomorrow!

Riddle: I am a 9 digit number.  The digit in the thousands place is the result of dividing 9 by 3  The digit in the millions place is the result of 10-3  The digit in the ten millions place is a 0  The digit in the ten thousands place is any number divided by itself (5 divided by 5)  The digit in the hundred thousands place is an even number that’s less than 4  The digits in the ones place value period are 0  The digit in the hundred millions place is 36 divided by 6 For the rest of class we continued to rotate through the centers that we started working on yesterday. The centers gave students practice with place value, basic facts, addition/subtraction with regrouping, and geometry (angles, lines, polygons, etc). Some students were playing educational games while others were using the computers to go to interactive math websites to test their skills. We will finish these center rotations tomorrow! The students did a great job following directions and staying on-task.

Standard Form: 128, 364, 927

Expanded Form: 100,000,000+20,000,000+8,000,000+300,000+60,000+4,000+900+20+7 The 1 is in the hundred millions place The 2 is in the ten millions place The 8 is in the millions place The 3 is in the hundred thousands place The 6 is in the ten thousands place The 4 is in the thousands place The 9 is in the hundreds place The 2 is in the tens place The 7 is in the ones place The value of the 6 in the ten thousands place is 60,000 The value of the 2 in the tens place is 20 The value of the 3 is in the hundred thousands place is 300,000 Word Form: Three hundred six thousand two hundred forty one=Standard Form: 306, 241

In reading we read the book Strega Nona by Tomi dePaola. As I was reading, the students had to listen carefully for the story elements and they took notes/filled out a Story Map. The Story Map includes: the characters, setting, problem, events, and solution. The students learned that PLOT refers to the problem, events, and solution of the story. After we read the book, I played a short video of the story from the Discovery Education website. Then, we had a discussion and filled out the Story Map on the Promethean Board together. After that, the students worked independently on their reading group work and had some free writing time.

In writing we talked about descriptive writing and how good writers use details, sensory images, and vivid decriptio ns to help the reader to create an image in their mind of what they're reading about. We read some samples of descriptive writing and realized that descriptive writing is really painting a picture with words. Then, I displayed a picture on the Promethean Board (see below).

The students had 10 minutes to write a description of the picture. After that, we shared out sentences from our descriptions. We worked together as a class to super-size the descriptive sentences to make them even more descriptive! I was so impressed with their creativity! See examples below. Before: I hear the wind blowing through the trees. After: I hear the strong wind roaring as it blows through the trees. The leaves make a rustling sound as they rub against each other.

Before: I touched the warm water and the breeze smelled so sweet like yellow flowers. After: The warm water rippled as I touched it. The breeze smells so sweet with the fragrance of yellow flowers. My nose tingles and my nostrils whisper to me. The fragrance reminds me of the holiday season when mom makes sugar cookies.

Before: The rocky mountain was huge. It was like a skyscraper. After: The rocky mountain was huge like a skyscraper. The top of the mountain was covered with snow like vanilla icing spread on the top of a chocolate cupcake.

In science we talked about the observations we made of our plants from yesterday. We made a bar graph using Excel to show how tall our plants were. We found out that the tallest plant in our class was 10 cm and the shortest plant was 5 cm. We also found out that most students have plants that are 8-9cm tall. Then, we observed our plants again to see how much they've grown!

Homework Tuesday's Homework Math: Bring home your Student Reference Book. You will need it to complete pg 26 and 27 in student math journal #1 Reading: Work on the October Language Arts Project which is due 10/24. You can view it electronically here: October LA Project Spelling: Complete 2 spelling activities in your spelling journal. Due Thursday!

10/5 Announcements We started the day with some DEAR time. Then, we switched for math!

In math, we started with an entrance card to assess the students' understanding of the place value concepts we have been learning/reviewing. After that, we finished up the center rotations we have been doing for the past couple of days. The centers gave students practice with place value, basic facts, addition/subtraction with regrouping, and geometry (angles, lines, polygons, etc). Some students played educational games while others were using the computers to go to interactive math websites to test their skills.

So far in Unit 1, we have learned geometrical and place value concepts. We are now moving to the data analysis part of our unit!

Once we finished the rotations, I passed out a box of raisins to each student. I asked the students to guess how many raisins were in their box without opening it. Some students shook the box to see how tightly the raisins were packed in the box. After sharing out some of their guesses, I told the students they could open the lid of their box to just look at the raisins, but they couldn't touch the raisins, move them, or dump them out of the box. I asked them to estimate how many raisins were in their box now. Many of the students used a great estimation strategy. They counted all of the raisins they could see on the top layer of the box when they opened the lid. Then they counted how many layers of raisins they thought could fit in the rest of the box. For example, one student counted 8 raisins on the top layer of the box when they opened the lid. The student thought about 5 layers of raisins could fit in the box, so 8x5=40 raisins. After other students shared their estimates, we discussed how a guess is different from an estimate. We realized that a guess isn't really based on any factual information and could be a random number, while an estimate is when you use a strategy and any information you can gather to help you make a reasonable, educated guess. Finally, the students emptied their boxes and counted all of the raisins. We recorded our results using a tally chart (see below). Using the tally chart, we talked about the minimum, the maximum, the range (range=maximum-minimum), and the mode (most frequently occurring number). Minimum: 23 Maximum: 38 Range: 15 Mode: 32 We also discussed what we noticed about the data displayed on our tally chart. We realized that most of our data was in a 'clump' around 30, 31, and 32 raisins. We also realized that there was a data point (23 raisins) that didn't really 'fit in' with the rest of our data. When we were finished, I let the students take the box of raisins with them to eat!

In reading, we started by reviewing our DOL (Daily Oral Language) worksheet. I used equity sticks to call students in pairs up to the Promethean Board. The students became the 'teachers' and explained the corrections they were making. Then, we reviewed the Story Map we completed yesterday in class. We talked about the important story elements: characters, setting, problem, events, and solution. I explained that it is easy to forget another important part of the story-the ending. Many people think that the solution is the ending of the story, but this is not always true. I used Cinderella as an example. The problem in Cinderella is that the Prince can't find the girl he danced with at the ball. The solution to that problem was when he slid the glass slipper on Cinderella's foot and it fit-he knew this was the girl he had danced with at the ball. The story doesn't end there! The ending of the story is when the Prince takes Cinderella back to his castle and they get married. Then, we reread the book that we read in class yesterday-Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola. We talked about how the problem in the story was that Big Anthony used Strega Nona's magic pasta pot when he shouldn't have and he couldn't get the pasta to stop because he didn't know the 'three kisses' part of the spell. The solution was when Strega Nona came home from her trip and did the spell correctly and stopped the pasta. The ending of the story was when Big Anthony had to eat all of the pasta as a punishment for his actions. After that, the students went back to their seats to read a short book. When they finished the book, they completed a Story Map for it and wrote down the ending of the book. Then, the students practiced spelling words that make the 'ee' sound (ea, ie, ee).

In Social Studies, (while we continue to observe our plants growing and wait for them to complete their life cycle, we are going to being working on some Social Studies) we began with an introduction to the important elements of maps. I gave each table group a map of the United States and asked them to discuss what they saw on the map with their table groups. We noticed a lot of great things like the equator, the latitude/longitude lines, the compass rose, the key/legend, and the scale. We used the scale and rulers to determine the distance between two places on the map. We talked about the important parts of a map that we remember by using the acronym BGKTOADS or Blue Green Kissing TOADS. Border Grid Key Title Orientation Author Date Scale

Homework

Today is Wednesday..and you know what that means!! Students should have come home with their Weekly Graded Work folders. Please take all of the graded work out of the folder once you have reviewed it and be sure to sign the Communication Sheet that is stapled to the back of the folder. Thank you!

Don't forget..Picture Day is October 11th!

Wednesday's Homework Math: Data Collection Worksheet Reading: Work on the October Language Arts Project which is due 10/24. You can view it electronically here: October LA Project Spelling: Complete 2 spelling activities in your spelling journal. Due Thursday! 10/6 Announcements We started the day with some DEAR time! Then, we switched for math!

In math we started with an entrance card to assess the students' understanding of place value concepts. Then, we made a line plot to display how many people are in our families (from their homework last night) on the Promethean Board using sticky notes. A line plot is a graph that shows frequency of data along a number line (see below). It is best to use a line plot when comparing fewer than 25 numbers. It is a quick, simple way to organize data! In the line plot below, the number line represents the number of pets and each X represents a person that has that number of pets. For example, there are 4 people that own 3 pets because there are 4 X's over the number 3 on the number line. Example of a line plot:

Minimum: 0 Maximum: 14 Range: 14-0=14 Mode: 1 The data set used for the line plot above would look like this written out in a list: 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4, 6, 8, 10, 13, 14

We reviewed and determined the minimum, maximum, range, and mode of the data set and also analyzed the shape of the data. After that, I pulled the stickies off of the line plot and lined them up from least to greatest across the Promethean. Then, I asked the students to think about a way they could figure out the number that was in the middle of our data set. I explained that the number in the middle is called the median and you can remember that by thinking of the word medium because medium is in the middle of small and large. Once we discussed different ideas for how to find the median, I had two volunteers come up to the Promethean. I had one volunteer start at the minimum and one volunteer started at the maximum. One by one they each removed a sticky from each side until they reached the middle and one sticky was left. I explained that this was the median because it is the number in the middle of our data set. A student raised their hand and asked what would happen if two numbers were left in the middle (meaning that the data set would be an even number). I explained that since our data set was an odd number (23 students), the median was one number, but if the data set was an even number and there were two numbers left, you add the two numbers together and divide by 2 to find the median. After that, we went to the computer lab and explored an interactive math website that let the students practice their skills in place value, geometry, number sense, and data analysis. The students had a lot of fun and did a great job following directions!

After math, we had an awesome assembly in the APR! It was game show themed (similar to the show Minute to Win It) and covered lots of math and science topics like estimation, the solar system, the water cycle, and rounding. It even had some test-taking tips! Our class was SO well-behaved!! They walked silently in the hallways to and from the assembly and followed directions throughout the entire assembly. I'm so proud of all of them! :-)

In writing, we looked at the picture below. I told the students they would have about 15 minutes to write at least 5 descriptive sentences using sensory details and vivid descriptions. I told them I would be grading their descriptions. Before we started writing, we discussed all of the things in the picture we could write about and describe. We talked about the water, the sand, the palm trees, the shadows of the palm trees, the seaweed that's washed up on the beach, the sky, the clouds, the coral in the water, and the beach in the distance. After the students finished, we had a Writer's Circle to share out our writing. I was very impressed with the students' creativity!

In the afternoon, we had a visit from our counselor Ms. Klotzman and a mother of a student in the Autism program. Ms. Klotzman read a great book that taught us a lot about autism and what it's like to live with autism. Ms. Klotzman explained the Best Buddies program to the students and the process for signing up. The mother of the student in the Autism program answered all of the students' questions about autism. It was such an amazing lesson and we appreciated the mother for taking the time to come in! She had a lot of patience and shared a unique parent perspective. The students were engaged and had a lot of great questions. I'm proud of how respectful they were!

In Social Studies, we learned about the location of the continents and oceans. The students then practiced labeling a map of the world. They also used the map to answer questions that involve directions (is North America east or west of Europe?). I'm impressed with how well the students already know the continents and oceans!

Homework A Note from Our Class Party Planner: If you haven't already, please send in your $15 contribution to our class parties. The money will be used to help fund crafts, games, decorations, and other items for Halloween, Valentine's Day, and End-of-Year parties. **We are in need of more parent party planners (we only have one). If you are willing and able, please email me! Thank you** Don't forget..Picture Day is October 11th!

Thursday'sHomework Math: Line Plot Worksheet Reading: Work on the October Language Arts Project which is due 10/24. You can view it electronically here: October LA Project Spelling: Have someone give you a practice spelling test at home. Our spelling test is tomorrow!

10/7 Announcements We started the day with a quick write (a short writing prompt). Then, we switched for math!

In math, we started with an entrance card to assess our understanding of the parts of a circle that we learned last week (radius, diameter, circumference). Then, we collected data to help us create a line plot with the following question, "How many pets do you currently have?" The students wrote how many pets they had on a sticky note and then put it up in the correct place on the number line on the Promethean Board to make a line plot. We reviewed the important parts of a line plot: the title, the label for the number line, the X's need to all be the same size so they are lined up making it easy to read and interpret the data, and there has to be arrows on both ends of the number line. After that, the students used candy and construction paper to make a line plot to show how many pets the students in our class have. They also had to calculate and write down the minimum, maximum, range, mode, and median on the line plot. I'm so proud of how hard the students worked! The line plots look great! It was an excellent practice activity. See the pictures below:

When the students finished, I had them get in groups and sit in a circle. I gave each student in each group a random number of snap cubes . Then I gave the students a simple direction: they had to find a way to share the snap cubes equally. I loved watching the strategies the students used! One group had everyone put their snap cubes in the middle and then everyone took one cube at a time until none were left and everyone had the same amount. Another group started redistributing their snap cubes around until everyone had the same amount (for example: a person who had five snap cubes would give some of their cubes to a person who only had one snap cube, this process was repeated until everyone had the same amount). Once the students had shared the snap cubes equally, I told them that they had just calculated the mean! I explained that the number of snap cubes they each had to start with was their data set. I told them that by putting their blocks into the middle, they were basically adding up all of their snap cubes. When they distributed their snap cubes equally to each other, they were dividing by the number of people in the group. Therefore, the process for finding the mean is: add up all of the numbers in the data set and then divide that sum by the number of data points. For example, if the data set was 2, 3, 3, 4 you would add 2+3+3+4=12. There are 4 data points in our data set, so you divide 12 by 4 to get the mean. 12 divided by 4=3.

In reading, we talked about how good readers are always asking questions as they're reading. While they read, good readers try to use the text to answer their questions. Asking questions helps us to focus and understand the text better because we have a purpose for reading-we're trying to answer our questions. We started the lesson by looking at the cover of the book we read today and then we took a picture walk. Based on the title, the cover page, and the pictures we saw during our picture walk, the students had a lot of questions already! We recorded the questions on our chart. Then, we read the book When Jo Louis Won the Title by Belinda Rochelle. As we read, we checked off questions that were answered and wrote down any additional questions we had. Not all questions will always be answered in the book, sometimes we have to make inferences to figure out the answer. After that, the students practiced the questioning strategy while completing their reading group work. Later, we had our spelling tests!

In the afternoon, we had our weekly class meeting followed by Show and Tell (one of the students saved up their tickets and bought the show and tell coupon). Although we didn't get a chance to make observations of our plants today, you can check out the updated pictures below! We noticed that some of our plants are starting to have buds.

Homework A Note from Our Class Party Planner: If you haven't already, please send in your $15 contribution to our class parties. The money will be used to help fund crafts, games, decorations, and other items for Halloween, Valentine's Day, and End-of-Year parties.

**We are in need of more parent party planners (we only have one). If you are willing and able, please email me! Thank you**

Don't forget..Picture Day is October 11th!

Friday's Homework: None. Have a great weekend!

Students should be working on their October Language Arts Project which is due 10/24. You can view it electronically here: October LA Project

10/10 Announcements Thank you so much to all of the parents for coming to our Open House today!! The students and I really enjoyed having you visit our classroom to see what we do everyday! As always, please feel free to email me if you have any questions, comments, or concerns.

Parent/Teacher Conference times have been posted on our class's Volunteer Spot calendar. If you haven't already done so, please sign up for a conference.

We started the day by writing about our weekend. Then, we switched for math!

In math, we began class with a warm-up to help us review how line plots are related to tally charts and how you can make a line plot using a tally chart. The students were given a data set and had to organize the data into a tally chart and then use the tally chart to make a line plot. After the warm-up, we reviewed how to make a line plot (including all the important parts) and how to determine/calculate the median, mode, minimum, maximum, and range of a data set. The students really enjoyed getting to use their ActiVotes throughout the lesson today! They did an excellent job following directions and using the ActiVotes appropriately. ActiVotes are little remotes that each student gets to use to answer questions (by pushing buttons) that were asked throughout the lesson in order to check their understanding of median, mode, etc. The ActiVotes are connected to the computer and, immediately after the students answer the question, we can view and analyze the results to see if there are any misunderstandings or a need for further discussion/clarification of a concept. After we reviewed making line plots and how to analyze the data the line plots display, each student was given a fun-size bag of Skittles. Students guessed how many Skittles were in their bag before opening the bag and actually counting out the Skittles. Some parents joined us in counting Skittles! Once the students had double-checked that they had counted their Skittles right, they came up to the Promethean and put a tally in the correct area of the tally chart to show how many Skittles were in their bag. Check out our tally chart below! After everyone had put a tally mark, the students made a line plot using the data.

In reading, we started learning about non-fiction text features. Non-fiction text features help the reader to better understand the text. After reviewing some important text features (title, heading, caption, photograph, etc), their purpose, and examples of the text features, the students worked at their table groups to find the text features in a recent Time for Kids issue. Then, the students had to sort the text features into categories that are used to describe text features. The four categories are: print features, illustrations, organizational aids, and graphic features. Each category has a different purpose.  Print features help an author to organize their writing and draw attention to important details and vocabulary. An example of a print feature would be bold print or italics.  Graphic features help organize and explain difficult information in a text and are seen throughout the text. An example of a graphic feature would be diagrams, figures, charts/tables, or maps.  Organizational aids help the reader find information and are usually located at the beginning or end of the text. An example of an organizational aid would be the table of contents, glossary, or index.  Illustrations are visuals that are often labeled or have captions to help the reader better understand what they're reading. An example of an illustration would be a picture or photograph.

In writing, I introduced the students to the fall writing piece we will be working on. The students have to pick an event related to fall (going to the pumpkin patch, going trick-or- treating, raking leaves, etc) and then write a paragraph describing the setting of that event. Today, the students picked their event (I provided them with a list to choose from) and started to web their ideas.

In social studies, students practiced their map reading skills by using a compass rose to answer questions about how to get to different locations on a map. We are having a quiz tomorrow on the directions of the compass rose. Students should be familiar with: north, northeast, east, southeast, south, southwest, west, and northwest. We remember the cardinal directions with Never Eat Soggy Waffles=North East South West

Homework A Note from Our Class Party Planner: If you haven't already, please send in your $15 contribution to our class parties. The money will be used to help fund crafts, games, decorations, and other items for Halloween, Valentine's Day, and End-of-Year parties.

**We are in need of more parent party planners (we only have one). If you are willing and able, please email me! Thank you**

Don't forget..Picture Day is TOMORROW October 11th!

Please sign and return the learning skills interim that was sent home on Friday!

Monday's Homework Math: None Spelling: Read a book that is 'just right' for you. Write down 15 words that have the visual er, ir, or ur spelling pattern Reading: Students should be working on their October Language Arts Project which is due 10/24. You can view it electronically here: October LA Project Social Studies: Study for the compass rose quiz tomorrow!