Math: We are going to be working on some objectives that are not covered in our Go Math program, but will be on the AIMS test. This week we will be working on determining equivalence by converting between benchmark fractions, decimals, and percents. There will be one page of homework assigned nightly in addition to any work not completed during class.
Language Arts Centers: Students are now working on literacy centers. Students will work in these centers in their reading groups. They cover a variety of language arts skills. This week we will be working on the following: commas and quotation marks, Students will be expected to turn in their work for each center and they will be graded.
Reading groups: I have revised reading groups. Each group will be reading a novel and working on various common core reading skills. The novels we will be reading are: The Whipping Boy, Radio Fifth Grade, The Tiger Rising, and Frindle.
Reading homework: There will be one page of reading homework assigned nightly. This week we will be focusing on concept webs and main idea.
Reading Skill Practice: We will be working a variety of reading skills. Students will read a short passage and then answer questions about the passage. We will be taking periodic comprehension tests on the reading passages. I will also be testing students on reading fluency. This week we will be focusing on quoting accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
Spelling and Grammar: We will be working to spell grade-appropriate words correctly. Students will complete a packet practicing the week's spelling and grammar skills in class. They may take it home to study as well. Students will take a test on Friday over the week's spelling words as well as the grammar skill. This week we will be working on words with ie and ei; suffixes -ly and -ness and naming yourself last (I and me). The spelling words are: biologist, hurried, darkness, angrily, pieces, weigh, worried, happiness, their, fierce, pollution, exactly.
Social Studies: We have started a unit on the American Revolution. We have started a mock trial relating to the events that occurred during the Boston Massacre. Students are looking at what happened from different points of view and determining who was really at fault. We will then discuss the political propaganda that resulted from the event. Students are currently working on drawing a more accurate picture of the events of the Boston Massacre. This picture is due Tuesday. Students will present their pictures to the class. We will also begin working on a author study of Jean Fritz. Students will be working in groups to read a short nonfiction book by Jean Fritz. Each group will be reading a different book about a revolutionary figure. Students will then present information about their book to the rest of the class.
Science: We will begin a new unit on insects. Students will be studying the anatomy of insects as well as doing inquiry investigations on insects.
Writing and Grammar: Each day students will complete a writing warm-up which will cover many writing and grammar skills. This week, our focus will be on using precise and specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic. Students will also write a quickwrite each day on a given prompt. Students should be writing at least a paragraph each day.