Week 21

We had a great Family Friday! Helena's dad came in to talk to us about a career in publishing! We discovered that the work we did in Writing Workshop could be a career :) Thank you to Mr. Tipper and all the parents who attended this session!

Each child received an optional packet of test prep materials this Friday. There was also a letter explaining the purpose. Please take a moment to review the packet, then sign and return the tear off.

Here's what's coming up next week:

• In reading, we will begin our unit on Fantasy. This exciting unit will focus on the archetypes of the genres and through reading fantasy, our  children will explore themes and messages these stories present. We have begun a read aloud of the historical fantasy novel George Washington's Socks by Elvira Woodruff. This novel contains many elements of the genre: a flawed hero, sidekicks, magic and a quest. 
• In Math, we will shift our focus from Multiplication to Division. Students will learn two strategies for long division. Please continue to work with your child in mastering the multiplication/ division facts. 
• The Unit 5 math test will be return midweek. We are waiting for some absentees to take the test. Thanks for your patience!
• We are still waiting for a decision on our scheduled trip to the Armory. Due to the bus strike, we might walk over to the armory weather permits on Tuesday. 

There is a new video starring Lucas and Ryan. Please check it out!!!

ADDENDUM: Our annual Read-a-thon will start this week! This yearly fundraiser is a great way to help our school keep up its many enrichments. Please check your child's folder for the sponsor sheet.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Week 20

We are moving towards the start of test prep classes on Feb 9th. Thank you for your swift response! While the test prep program will help give tips on how to take the NYS tests, the best preparation is to have good reading and writing skills, which we work on daily.  Please encourage your child to keep up their independent reading books. At this point, your child should aim to read for 45 minutes every night.
If you haven't yet, please check out our new Kid Video featuring Chanique and Flavia!

Here's what is happening next week:

• We will have the Unit 5 math test on Thursday. Students will receive a study sheet on Tuesday to help guide their review. Since most of the test will focus on multiplication, it would be a good idea to practice multiplication facts and their extensions (i.e. 7 x 8= _____ so  70 X 80 = _____).

Have a warm weekend!

Week 19

We have a new video posted to our class Youtube channel starring Abigail Chanique and Flavia. Please check it out this weekend!

Our longhouse model is complete!

Here's what's happening next week:

• School is closed this Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
• We are starting our new social studies unit on Explorers. In this unit we will examine the reasons that drove explorers to seek out new routes and how it led to the discovery and settlement of America. We will also examine the interaction between the explorers and the Native Americans. 

Have a great weekend and enjoy these scenes from our long house!

Week 18

Every students received a form on Thursday regarding Saturday Test Prep. Please return this form indicating whether or not your child will attend as soon as possible.

We've been enjoying the great material sent in by our generous families for our Longhouse Project.  The students have been creating accurate scenes of life in an Iroquois home. The writing we've been doing from our research has been coming along so well, we are quickly publishing it as a museum guide book!

Here's what's coming next week:

• We are starting Unit 5 in math. The unit will revisit multiplication algorithms with amounts up to the thousands. Students will learn to use the lattice method and partial product method. There are short videos on the Everyday Math Algorithm link that will help familiarize you to the methods. We will also learn about the standard multiplication algorithm. Students will choose the method that best works for them. This unit will also revisit estimation and exponential notation.
• The unit 4 math test will be returned to your child on Monday.  
• Our Reading unit this month will be Nonfiction Research Book Clubs. Students will learn to drive their own reading progress by getting together with others to explore a topic of interest. Students will set goals for reading and gathering information and learn how to share information. We've been working on Nonfiction strategies for a while and students are expected use them as they teach themselves about Immigration, Modernization, Equal Rights Movements, or American Governments.
• Finally, we are leaving Native Americans and moving onto the Age of Exploration. We will examine the reasons that drove Europeans to seek out new lands and learn about some of the explorers of New York. 
• Mrs. David, our science teacher has prepared a test prep packet for the Statewide Science exam that will take place in June. Please keep an eye out for it when it is given out on Monday.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Week 17

Happy New Year to all!
We had a nice start to 2013 with many students coming back rested and ready for the new year. Many students have set goals to do even better this year.

Family Friday was exciting as we had professional actors (Bellamy's family) come share their craft with us. Students worked on skits based on one of the five rules in our school's community code. Many parents came and offered their sage advice as our students worked out the details of their skit. The skits will be performed for our buddy class and some students are choosing to present theirs to the rest of the school during a special assembly. There will be more details coming soon.

Here's what is happening next week:

• We are wrapping up our Native Americans of New York unit next week with our final project. Many families have stepped in to contribute materials in order for us to make models for our longhouse. The materials will be needed on Monday. Please check your child's homework folder for an update about the collection.
• In reading, you'll notice that students will write their response to nonfiction but read fiction at home. This is to help students review fiction skills for letter level testing. 
• We will return to essay writing this week when we write Research-based Argument Essays. These essays will require students to take a strong point of view and present researched evidence to debate their point. This unit will build on the work we did with five paragraph essays last fall. This week, we took the time to work on adding elaboration to our writing by adding description, explaining how, and why. Often our students have used the "for example" starter to elaborate and we are now adding in an explicit statement that further explains the example in our writing. Even though we've done essay before, our main objective is to do them even better!
• We are headed to the Armory this Tuesday. Please encourage your child to wear running shoes. 

Have a wonderful weekend!