Dear Parents, Thanksgiving is past and it is finally socially acceptable to start quietly humming Christmas songs. It also means we are coming to the end of our quarter, but we have a lot of learning left to do. As we close out the last three weeks we will be covering a lot of different content, but the most important things to focus on are fundamentals. Students should be making sure they are paying attention in class and getting their homework done. We have had a mini homework epidemic in the past two weeks, in Math in particular. Please remind your students that it is their responsibility to get their homework fully completed and turned in! Their final grade will reflect their diligence directly in this manner. This WeekIn Spalding we will continue to practice our Spalding tools using words in list R. We will also be learning a spelling rule that tells us how to spell words that have an ending that starts with a vowel and a final syllable that looks like a one-one-one word. Something your students will be hearing a lot of is: "My base word is begin, my ending is ing. I must write begin and double the 'n' because my the second syllable of my base word begin looks like a one-one-one word and my ending ing starts with a vowel." That might seem like a lot, but it really does make sense, and it is rules like these that help students make sense of the English language. In ELA we are going to be working with historical texts and learning how to summarize a story that may not have a 'problem' in the strictest sense of the word. What is a story about if it is (a) non-fiction and (b) doesn't focus around any particular conflict? We will be discussing this throughout the week, so feel free to ask your student about their ideas. In Math we are continuing our exploration of fractions. Monday and Tuesday should be fairly simple. we are learning that when we add and subtract like fractions, that it is just like adding or subtracting wholes, just the name of the things we are adding or subtracting are different. On Thursday and Friday we will be getting into mixed numbers and improper fractions, which may take a bit more thought, but we will get through it. In Literature we are continuing to prepare our play, Twelfth Night, for you to see on December 15th! Make sure to get there and see your student perform! In History we will be learning about how Islam spread throughout the Middle East and as far as Spain in the West and the Malaysian islands in the east. Feel free to ask your students questions about what they are learning. In Science we are learning about the function of the Human Circulatory system. This week we are focusing on the human heart. We will have a quiz on Thursday, so make sure your students are studying their notes! Upcoming Assessments1) Math Quiz on adding and subtracting like fractions. Wednesday (29th)
2) Science Quiz on the human circulatory system. Thursday (30th) 3) Spelling Test on Friday (Dec 1st) 4) We have a Math test coming up next week! Students should be practicing and explaining fractions every day to make sure they understand the concept. Get them teaching others! That is what will solidify the content! fDear Parents, We have an exciting week ahead of us! On Monday we get to take our annual trip to the Musical Instrument Museum, which should be a lot of fun. We will experience the musical contributions of cultures from across the globe. Make sure you remember to pack your student a lunch for the field trip! We are also introducing fractions this week, and that can be a stressful topic for some students. We are going to be working on simplifying the concept and showing them that understanding fractions is actually quite simple. Make sure you keep encouraging them to push themselves hard, and remind them that no concept is beyond their grasp or ability. This WeekIn Spalding we will be finishing list Q and moving into list R in our Spalding blue books. This means harder words, but your students are more than ready. Keep encouraging to practice their Spalding tools at home. In Literature we will be rehearsing our play, Twelfth Night, pretty much every day from now until we perform it! It is Reader's Theater, so your students do not have to memorize lines, but they should work hard to become familiar with them. I will let you know ASAP when the performance date is so you can block out time to come see it. In ELA we will be learning about how to use quotation marks this week. Ask your student about it and see if they can explain when you put a sentence in quotes and when you don't. We will also continue working on keyword outline building. Being able to create a keyword outline is an important skill that will be used on the AZmerit test. In Math we are diving into fractions! They may seem scary, but fractions are actually one of the easiest concepts in math to get. Basically, whenever you break a whole into parts...you can name the parts! That is the only fundamental concept, everything else is a convention. If your students get frustrated, always bring it back to that simple concept and remind them that they are capable. Upcoming Assessments1) Spalding
- Spelling Test on Friday 2) Math - Fractions quiz next Monday (the 19th). Dear Parents, We are officially beginning Twelfth Night this week! Your students will learn a (abridged) Shakespeare play and perform it on stage for the school and for you in a Reader's Theater. They will be practicing every day for the next five weeks, so make sure you are encouraging them to do well! We are also wrapping up a unit in math. They may feel some stress leading up to our test on Thursday, but keep encouraging them. They are ready, some of them just need to be reminded of it. This WeekIn Spalding we are going to be doing 15 words a day this week, since we are going to be missing Friday. Please make sure to dictate your student’s words each night they have homework! It only takes a half hour or so and helps them understand the fundamentals of the English language better every time they practice. In ELA we are going to be practicing fixing broken sentences this week. Students will learn how to identify a bad sentence, and then practice fixing it as a class. This will help develop their ability to create beautiful sentences of their own. We will also be creating key word outlines, which is a key skill in analyzing a piece of literature or an informational text and writing about it. In Mathematics we will be finishing up unit 2 and testing on Thursday! You should help your students by reviewing the four operations with them. Show them how you learned to solve it! There is no wrong method so long as it consistently works. Have them show you how to do the methods they have been learning in school. Get them to explore and experiment. This experience, and reflection on experience, is what will help them cement both concepts and methods. In History we are learning about the Crusades. Ask your student what started the war between Christian Europe and the Muslim Middle East. The period had many long lasting effects, some of which still extend into today. Much of the animosity that can still be found between the Western and Muslim worlds has its roots in this period. That can be something your family discusses if you are comfortable with it. In Science we will be making our own paper circuits! Hopefully the materials all arrive by Thursday, but if not your students will be mapping out the path of their circuits in preparation to get things lit up. They should have a lot of fun and get to experience current electricity firsthand. Upcoming AssessmentsMath
1) Test on Thursday covering the 4 operations. Students are preparing in class and being sent home with work specific to the test. Please email me if you believe your student does not get a key concept regarding one of the four operations. Spalding 1) Spelling test on Thursday |
AuthorBurk Ohbayashi is a husband, a father, and an educator. Archives
March 2018
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