Happy Holidays

I am compiling last week and this week in one post. 

As many of you are wondering, the FMI staff will not bring up the events, which took place in Newtown, Connecticut on Friday. We will gladly discuss our procedures and why we practice lockdown drills. However, many staff members and parents have voiced their opinion and they feel this discussion is one to have at home, as different children will react differently to details of the situation. I thought it would come up when they had a guidance lesson today with Mrs. Shields, but there was no mention of what happened on Friday. I thank you for having such meaningful conversations with your children. It is important. As a parent of a child with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, I see the need to discuss this and threat of more anxiety go in both directions. It is important for our students to know why we practice such things, but there are also the handful of children that do not know how to deal with the added anxiety and thought of a threat. It is a careful thread to be on. I am more than willing to discuss it with your child, if they would like. 

Here are a couple of links I was sent from Grant Wood AEA, which may be helpful for you. They also discuss the importance of conversation with their children. I have included them below, in case you are interested.

http://commonhealth.wbur.org/2012/12/experts-kids-school-shootings

http://commonhealth.wbur.org/2012/12/experts-kids-school-shootings
http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/aftermath.aspx

Please make sure any time you are entering the building, you enter through the front entrance and sign in at the office. Please do not be offended if someone asks why you are in the building. 

I hope you know I care very much about each and everyone of your children. Within the first week of school I talk about how our class becomes like a family and it is true. I spend a lot of time with your children and treat them as if they were my own. I can not imagine anything happening to them. I love being able to share in their excitement when they do something well and help when they struggle with a new concept or something that is bothering them. They are always free to come discuss anything with me and I will do everything in my power to keep their best interest front and center in my classroom. Thank you for raising some pretty remarkable children! I love seeing their smiling faces each and everyday!

Math- If you have not seen them yet, Multiplication Monsters, are starting to arrive home. These provided a great opportunity for all 3^rd grade students to use their listening to direction skills. Students can use these independently to quiz themselves over their multiplication facts. You could use the monsters to create a family game where the student and another person at home quiz each other. This year in math we have covered basic addition and subtraction skills. These were necessary to review as some students still struggle with the basic facts. In 3^rd grade we teach a wide variety in our math curriculum and these facts are very important for your child to have or be working on mastering. We are continuing to practice our multiplication skills. Today we even look at multiplying by 3 or more numbers. Some examples of these would be: (2x4)x4 or (3x3) x (7x1)

Last week we did a lot of work with our arrays, and even learned some new fun games! :) 

However, if you see your child struggling or know your child is struggling in math, building their basic facts can be a quick and fun way to help them achieve. Flashcards are great! I am in the process of creating some different sheets of flashcard games, which the whole family can play. These monsters are a tool for you to use at home; because I know you are all busy, but all teachers do appreciate any additional support you can give your child at home.

Reading-  Last week we did not have a story. We reviewed material covered in the last unit and took our unit quiz. We were also introduced to some new characters of Reciprocal teaching. A reading strategy your child will practice often in whole group and guided reading. Reciprocal teaching works on predicting, questioning, clarifying, and summarizing. We worked a lot on making predictions this week! This week we are enjoying some books and activities involving winter and the holidays.

Text Talk- Last week we read The Princess and the Pizza by Mary Jane and Herm Auch. This is a story about a princess named Paulina who thinks she wants to get back into princessing since her father has given up the throne. She undergoes a series of princess tests (pea under the mattresses, an essay, etc.) to prove she is fit to marry Prince Drupert. After accidentally inventing the pizza, she decides not to become a princess but to open a pizza palace instead. Words we discussed were: fragrant, gracious, humble, muttered, fret, and practical. There will not be a Text Talk book this week.

Science- A study guide went home with students on Thursday for their Ideas and Inventions unit assessment. This assessment will take place on Thursday. 

Last week, we finished up talking about Chromatography. We had a mystery pen where they had to determine which kind of marker would have their colors separate like the sample they were shown. They created snowflakes and used what they had learned from chromatography to add a lot of color to our room. Snowflakes can be seen under the student work tab.

Last week the students discussed being entrepreneurs and opened a restaurant in their groups. They had to determine how they would advertise, what they would charge for food, and create a budget to cover all costs. It was an eye opening experience for some kids. This week we will have our last two Junior Achievement lessons which will cover banking, and creating a newspaper article. A HUGE THANK YOU to Dru for volunteering in our room! 

From my family to yours- we hope you have a safe, happy, and wonderful holiday break! 

Happy Holidays! 
Mrs. Jodie Yuska  

Time flies when you are having fun!

I can't believe it is  December already. If your house is like mine it is buzzing with planning and getting ready for the upcoming holidays. There is nothing like wrapping presents, grading papers, baking, hiding the elf that is currently living in my house (Elf on the Shelf), writing lesson plans, dance performances and practice, holiday musicals, enjoying holiday festivities (like the Fire and Ice parade, The Nutcraker, Winnie the Pooh's Christmas at Old Creamery, and a lot more!) and having that cycle around while still enjoying my two little ones! :) Life is hectic at times, but I love it and wouldn't change a thing! 

Starting today, when students receive a red ticket, they will be bringing home a slip with their name on it and why they received a red ticket. This way they can share all the wonderful things they are doing with you at home! 

Math- For the last month we have been working on multiplication. We have gone through all of our basic facts, and a lot of strategies. We will continue to work on multiplication facts up until winter break. The kids are going to be introduced to arrays today. THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HELPED CUT! You would not believe the days of math classes you have saved us!

Reading-  Last week we read On Granddaddy’s Farm by Thomas B. Allen. This is an autobiographical account of the author’s life as a child on his grandparents’ farm in the 1930s. He describes how life on the farm revolved around his grandfather’s job with the railroad. He also recalls the farm chores and playtime typical of the era. We worked on sequencing events and applying the text to the knowledge we had of farm life.

Text Talk- This week we read Grandpa's Teeth by Rod Clement. This is a story about a grandpa who wakes up to discover his teeth have been stolen. He suspects the whole town of stealing them. Everyone in town has to smile all the time to show they are innocent. The mystery is solved when it turns out that the dog had taken them. Words we discussed were: complain, description, mystery, suspect, conspiracy, and sleuth.

Science- This week students created and shared their Carbon printing inventions. I wrote their scores on the Chromatography page (oops, I didn't even notice till the next day!). So, needless to say our inventions next week will be on the carbon printing sheets. Sorry! The kids loved finger printing, some had a lot of fun taking prints of other areas of skin for their inventions too! :)

Today, students were introduced to chromatography. Chromatography uses water to cary pigments from one place to another. Today the kids learned chromatography separates a mixture of pigments in watercolor inks. The process of water moving through paper is called wicking. We marked cut stripes of coffee filters, marked them with a marker and let the water move and separate the pigment. Monday, the kids will have to guess which mystery pen made the mark on the coffee filter I will have on the board, on Tuesday, we will create our last invention. Our chromatography invention will be a colorful snowflake created by the students. These will hang proudly in our room.

Junior Achievement this week the students examined the role of a builder and became aware of how that job is interconnected with the job of a city planner. Students learned to understand the importance of the construction business in the city's economy and recognized some of the skills a builder needs. They reviewed the zones, worked on blueprints and why things are scaled down, last but not least, students created their own buildings and had to place it in the correct zone on the map. Next Wednesday, they will talk about what it takes to run a restaurant. 

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Jodie Yuska

Welcome December (almost!)!

News of the week:Thank you to everyone who attending their child's conference! :) It was great to have everyone show up and share in the success their child is having this year. I know it is not always at the most convenient times for you or there is a wait to be seen. However, ALL teacher's greatly appreciate your dedication to your child's education! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving break! A few short weeks and it will be time for another one!

Math- This week we multiplied by 6, 7, 8 and 9. We talked a lot about tricks for the 9's. On Thursday, a packet when home with a few tricks or ways to help your child start memorizing their multiplication facts. Although, we will make flashcards at school to practice, they may make a great stocking stuffer and can usually be found for around a dollar! :) We will continue practicing our basic facts. I hope to start introducing division by the end of the month.

 

Reading- This week we read Ramona Forever by Beverly Cleary. Ramona is showing a range of emotions as she gets ready for a new baby in her family. She is anxious about her mother's condition, then disappointed and humiliated when she is too young to see the infant in the hospital. In the end, an excited Ramona takes center stage, as she shares how intrigued she is by her new sister Roberta. During this story we analyzed Ramona and her wide range of feelings and behavior. We also made inferences about how Ramona was feeling different times in the story when the author did not come straight out and tell us.

Text Talk- This week we read A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon. This is a story about a girl named Camila Cream who is too busy worrying about what everyone else thinks, to be her true self. She comes down with a case of stripes, which then changes into other things as she is easily influenced by others. Only when she is true to herself and honest about her love for lima beans does she go back to normal. The words we studied were: altered, contagious, distraction, remedies, perplexed, and vanished. On Thursday, students created a cause and effect from the story about Camilla Cream. If you are interested in hearing this story, it can be found at: http://www.storylineonline.net/stripes/fullscreen_yt.html

Science- Today students learned more about Ben Franklin and Thomas Edison various inventors and inventions. We also discussed carbon printing this week. Carbon Printing is when you transfer carbon (or graphite which is used in place of lead in current day #2 pencils) on a piece of scratch paper by scribbling. Then students rubbed their fingertips along the surface. The fingertip is now like a printing plate and can transfer the residue. We placed tape over their fingers to collect as much carbon as we could while leaving the finger print impression. After taking our fingerprints we looked at the finger patterns. Everyone's fingerprints are unique, but they usually have one of the three basic patterns known as arches, whorls, and loops. On Tuesday, we were detectives, we played a game called Mystery Prints. Students were placed in groups and took their index print and middle finger print. Then they selected one member of the group to be a "mystery person." This person added only one print to the Mystery Print card. As cards traveled to different groups, they had to solve who's print it was by looking at the patterns.

Whorls- go around and around like a spiral

Loops- start at one side, go up to the middle and back out the same side

Arch- goes up, through the middle, and out the other side. It looks like a hill.

On Wednesday and for the next four weeks, we will have a volunteer named Dru Bridges, come into our classroom and teach Junior Achievement.  Junior Achievement is about a community. So they have volunteers from the community teach lessons about what makes a community, and what types of communities do we live in. Our class will talk a lot about zones (business, residential, industrial, farming, and multipurpose zones). We will talk about how a city planner uses these zones to develop a city and determine what buildings will go where. This week, students were introduced to Dru, the zones, and then made our classrooms in different zones. These lessons are always a lot of fun. I will try to remember to write what we did that week in JA each week in the Science section! :)

Mrs. Jodie Yuska

Happy Early Thanksgiving!

With the short week next week I decided to combine last week and this week.

News of the week:

--Conferences were 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. tonight Thursday 11/15, and 1:45 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. on Monday (tonight) 11/19

--Early dismissal next Monday 11/19 (TODAY! )

--Tuesday- Big Blast Party *Students will need to wear socks! 

--No School November 21, 22, or 23

--School resumes on Monday, November 26

Happy Birthday to our November birthdays- Julian G., Patience, and Maggie

Math- The last two weeks we have been discussing and practicing multiplication. We discussed how multiplication  is really just repeated addition. We skip counted by 2s and 5s to solve problems with those two numbers as a factor. We will also created number lines to multiply by 3 and 4. Today we will introduce a multiplication table to solve various multiplication problems.

Reading- This week our story will be How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman. This story is about a girl, who's parents met while he was serving the country as an American sailor in Japan. Through trial and error, her mother a Japanese schoolgirl and her father, the American sailor learned to eat in each other's style, overcoming the feelings of insecurity in the process. 

Text Talk- This week we will read Everybody Cooks Rice by Peter J. Thorton. This is a story about a child who is sent to find a younger brother at dinnertime.  While walking into other people's houses the child is introduced to a variety of cultures and encounters the many different ways rice is prepared at the different households visited. The words we will study are: appetizing, boarder, community, diversity, grumbling, and gulped.We did not take a quiz over these words.

Science- We have been discussing using different rubbing techniques to create different textures. The students have performed rubbings on coins, fabric squares, and leaves. On Tuesday, they created a rubbing invention (it could have been ANYTHING!) I mainly want them to be creative and think of something other than what their friend is working on. Wednesday and Thursday provided time for students to present their inventions and get some practice public speaking, as well as being a good audience member. We will spend the next few days before Thanksgiving talking about some inventors and their inventions. After Thanksgiving we will move to the second section of our unit which is carbon printing, also known as fingerprints. :)

Writing-Last week we finished a "how-to" paragraph. We then used some time to create some fun Native American influenced writing. We created color poems (see Student work tab)  
and skin stories (will soon be uploaded to student work tab). We also made turkeys with things we were thankful for. These were sent home.  

*Our election writing has finally been uploaded. I am still working on Halloween images. I have really missed adding the pictures to the blog the last couple weeks.

 

I look forward to discussing your child's progress with you soon, if I haven't already! :)

Mrs. Jodie Yuska

Hope to see you within the next week!

News of the week: 
Just a reminder conferences are this Thursday, November 15th and next Monday, November 19th. Please try to show up on time as conferences are scheduled every 15 minutes. I will do my best to stay on time also! :) 

A conference slip with the day and time to meet with me will be in report card envelopes going home on Tuesday. If you didn't get one, please let me know. I also marked the planners that are turned in on Monday. 

--Early dismissal next Monday 11/19

--No School November 21, 22, or 23

--School resumes on Monday, November 26

 

Report card rubrics:

Reading-  Understands 3^rd Grade Vocabulary & Comprehension

90% and above 4

80%-89% 3

70%-79% 2

69% or below 1  

On Grade level in a Guided Reading text

Independently Reads a 3^rd Grade Passage  - uses DIBELS score

Writing- 

* Able to develop number notes, simple statements, and a question statement

* Uses correct grammar

* Capitalizes beginning of sentences 

* Capitalizes proper nouns  

  * Uses correct punctuation at end of statements, exclamations, and questions

* Use conventional spelling for high-frequency words  

 

Math-

• Compare and order numbers through the hundred’s place
• Ordinal numbers and estimation 
• Rounding to the ten’s place and the hundred’s place 
• Addition and subtraction story problems with 1-2 steps 
• Fluency on an addition time test
  o   95 + facts in five minutes = 4
  o   85-94 facts = 3
  o   75-84 facts = 2
         o    74 or less facts = 1   
• Fluency on a subtraction time test
  o   95 + facts in five minutes = 4
  o   85-94 facts = 3
  o   75-84 facts = 2
        o 74 or less facts = 1
• 2 and 3 digit addition with and without regrouping
• 2 and 3 digit subtraction with and without regrouping

 

 

Math- If you have heard yet, we are making Multiplication Monsters, when we are finished these will head home. These provided a great opportunity for all 3^rd grade students to use their listening to direction skills. Students can use these independently to quiz themselves over their multiplication facts. You could use the monsters to create a family game where the student and another person at home quiz each other. This year in math we have covered basic addition and subtraction skills. These were necessary to review as some students still struggle with the basic facts. In 3^rd grade we teach a wide variety in our math curriculum and these facts are very important for your child to have or be working on mastering.On top of that, we have reviewed and practiced place value, comparing, ordering, rounding, as well as adding and subtracting 2 and 3 digit numbers. Packets from your child’s workbook should be coming home soon. 

All of these skills build. We are currently learning multiplication. As the students found out multiplication is actually the same as repeated addition. 3x4= 3+3+3+3=12.  We have practice multiplying by 0's and 1's. We will keep moving up in numbers this week.

We will continue to practice basic facts of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and soon division all year in third grade.

However, if you see your child struggling or know your child is struggling in math, building their basic facts can be a quick and fun way to help them achieve. Flashcards are great! I am in the process of creating some different sheets of flashcard games, which the whole family can play. These monsters are a tool for you to use at home; because I know you are all busy, but all teachers do appreciate any additional support you can give your child at home.

 

Reading and Text Talk-  Last week we read The Patchwork Quilt by Valerie Flournoy. This is a story about a girl named Tanya. Her grandmother is making a patchwork quilt from scraps of clothing. Each scrap holds a special memory of their family. When the grandmother becomes ill, Tanya is the one who decides to finish the quilt. She inspires the rest of the family to help reach this task. This story was also our Text Talk book last week. The vocabulary words discussed were: anxious, compassion, dreaded, masterpiece, nurturing, and ruin. 

Social Studies and Science- This week we wrapped up the short week and a half of election lessons. We also started our Ideas and Inventions unit. This unit is all about using different ways to see things that you may not notice by just looking at it. Students will discuss rubbings, carbon printing (fingerprints), chromatography (color writing), and reflections. Last week we took a look at coin and fabric rubbings. We will also incorporate Social Studies and learn about some inventors in the process! 

 

Writing-This week students a paragraph about their favorite Halloween snacks as well as a organizer for a "How-to" paragraph.

*My computer is still struggling uploading pictures. I have a few ideas and will let you know as soon as I get them posted this week. 

 

Mrs. Jodie Yuska

Welcome to November

News of the week: 
We have had a very busy week. 

We celebrated my birthday, had a pizza party for our reward goal, had a fantastic Halloween party, and participated in a mock election. The weeks to come with also be very busy, but with not as many tasty activities! :) 

Thank you Kim, Lori, Kristina, and everyone who donated items to make our Halloween party fantastic. Pictures will be posted on a tab above for the next month. 
 

*If you have not yet let me know a preference for when you can come to conferences please do so as soon as possible. I will start plugging in the people I have not yet heard from soon and hope you can make it in to meet with me and discuss your child's progress. 

**Book orders for October and November were sent home on Friday. Please take a look and either order online (a how to is located on a page link above) or send in your child's order and a check written out to Scholastic by Wednesday, November 7th. To see the October books click on the flyer link on the parent page. 

***I hope you remembered to turn your clocks back today and got an extra hour of relaxation this morning.  

Monday, November 5th- Conference scheduling sheet due
Tuesday, November 6th- ELECTION DAY! Picture retake day
Wednesday, November 7th- wear red FMI shirt, book orders due
Friday, November 9th- No School- work day for teachers. I will be writing report cards. 

Math- We had a few days of discussing things that come in groups and how when we multiply it is a matter of determining how many groups x how many in each group. Another way to solve until we get some facts memorized is repeated addition. This week we will took a look at equal groups, using the repeated addition strategy, and started multiplying by 0 and 1. When students finish their work in class, they will have a chance to create a multiplication monster, to help them review and self check their facts. Once all 12 monsters are made, they will be able to take them home to use for additional practice.

Reading- This week we did not have a story, so we took the time to review and take our unit 8 Level 2 assessment.

Text Talk- This week we read Montezuma's Revenge by Cari Best. In the book, Montezuma is left at home when his owners go on vacation. He is a good dog who always sits and stays when told to. He reflects on how awful his dog-sitter is and how much he'll miss his family. He goes out through the "doggie door," runs off to the park, meets a scruffy stray named "Wild Bill," and hatches a plan. When his family returns, Montezuma is missing and Wild Bill shows them just what a disobedient dog can do; he splashes in the toilet, swings on the drapes, puts on lipstick, and skateboards through the house. Needless to say, when Monty reappears, he is showered with affection and is taken along on the next trip.. Vocabulary words we discussed this week are revenge, mesmerized, misery, coaxed, frustrated, and regret.

Social Studies- This week we took the opportunity to discuss citizenship, what it means to be a citizen and how it is linked to our right to vote. We discussed the presidential candidates, participated in a mock election, discovered more about the election process and its importance, as well as some fun information on the White House. We will continue election information for Social Studies through Wednesday, then begin on our new science unit Ideas and Inventions. This unit will intermix the science of experiments to help produce things your eyes can't see, however, I am planning on incorporating a lot of social studies with the history of some inventions and the inventors who came up with the inventions.  

Writing-This week students created stories about their Frankenstein friend and a persuasive piece about why they should be elected president. Most of these can be seen under the student work tab. We also created a number note sheet about the best Halloween treats. We will turn our number notes into a paragraph on Monday. 

Mrs. Jodie Yuska

Happy Early Halloween

With the short week last week and spending all my free time gearing up for my daughter's birthday party over the weekend (oh my goodness, she turns 5 today, where does the time go?!?!?!? Next year I will have a Kindergartener!) I completely forgot about updating our class blog. Anyway, here is a brief overview of our week. Hope everyone has a fun and safe Halloween and hopefully no tummy aches!

News of the week:

Wednesday, October 31st- HAPPY HALLOWEEN! RED FMI shirt day has been moved to Friday due to Halloween!

Timeline for Halloween activities:

1:55-2:05 Last Recess

2:05  Students into classrooms to change into costumes

Parents welcome to the playground area or gym if raining

2:20  Start parade around the track

2:40  All classes should be done

Parents who are staying are welcome to come to the workroom

3:00  Students who need to change will do so

3:15  Dismissal

Friday, November 2nd- Wear RED FMI shirt (moved this week only due to Halloween)

Sunday, November 4th- Daylight Savings Time, you get an extra hour, please remember to reset your clocks and change the batteries in your smoke detectors! 

Upcoming dates: 

November 6th    Picture retake day.  If you are going to retake your picture you will need to send the 

                        previous pictures back. 

November 9th    No School.  Teacher Workday.

November 14th   Early Out day  1:25 PM

Parent/Teacher Conferences are coming up.  You should be receiving a time request form home this week  If you have questions, please call or email me.  November 15th and 19th are the dates.

November 21st-23rd No School.  Thanksgiving Break.

  

Math- We just wrapped up our unit on subtraction and took a few assessments for report cards. We will continue to visit these skills and facts throughout the entire year. Today we started talking about things that come in groups to kick off our multiplication unit.

Reading- Last week we read OPT:An Ilusionary Tale by Arline and Joseph Baum. This selection is a royal fantasy of optical illusions, a jester leads readers through the kingdom of OPT. Often in rhyme, the jester's comments, directions, and questions guide the reader to discover the illusions hidden in the illustrations. Today we will review vocabulary and take our unit test. Which is good because we have a busy week, tomorrow we are celebrating my birthday and enjoying our Brownie Point reward- a PIZZA PARTY! and Wednesday is our Halloween party. The rest of the week will be used for a lot of comprehension skill review.

Text Talk- Last week week we read Porkenstein by Kathryn Lasky. In the book, Dr. Smart Pig is tired of being lonely after the Big Bad Wolf has eaten his two brothers so he decides to invent a friend. After a few mistakes, he ends up with a large friend who helps him out. At the end they dress up and go trick-or-treating. Words we discussed are: creation, incredible, colossal, disbelief, creaky, and isolated.

Social Studies- Last week we talked a lot about maps. We discussed what view does a map show?, How are colors used as map symbols?, How do maps show natural features?,  and How do maps show cultural features? 

Today we discussed What is a globe? Starting tomorrow we are going to step away from our atlases, and start talking about the election process. Then on November 9th, I am planning on starting our new science unit, Ideas and Inventions. We will jump back into our atlases between science units again. 

Mrs. Jodie Yuska

Books, books, and more books.... we had a TON of reading adventures this week.

News of the week: On Thursday, we had America Reads Day. Thank you to the outstanding readers and incredible behavior of the kids.  Since we had so much reading this week, each child took home a Pizza Hut Book-it certificate (pictured below). 

Here is a run down from our busy day of reading.
Kim Woods-  Mrs. Toggle's Zipper by Robin Pulver
             When Charlie McButtons Lost Power by Suzanne Collins
Carri Redondo- The Boy Who Changed the World by Andy Andrews
Corey Petrash (#15 for the Roughriders)- Smelly Socks by Robert Munsch
Jess Maple- Wreck-It Ralph by Disney Press (Movie comes out in theatres November 2nd)
Amy Diers- Multiple poems from Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein 
Mary Kinkead- Thank You Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco
Jo Hepner- My Sister Ate One Hare by Bill Grossman
Doug Paulson- Monsters Eat Whiny Children by Bruce Eric Kaplan

Thank you again, we appreciated it very much and enjoyed being read to by you all! :)

Sunday, October 21st- Happy Birthday Brayden and Zander!
Monday, October 22nd- NO SCHOOL (Professional Development for teachers)
Wednesday, October 24th- 1st round of football playoffs
Thursday, October 25th- Fall Fling 5:30-8:00 PM
Sunday, October 27th- Happy Birthday Declan!

Math- This week we worked on 2-digit and 3-digit subtraction with regrouping. We also worked on how to regroup and subtract across zeros. The kids were excited to hear we will continue practicing subtraction with regrouping Tuesday through Friday, then start multiplication on Monday, October 29th!

Reading- This week we are reading Science Magic by Alison Alexander and Susie Bower. This selection presents five step-by-step scientific experiments that have a sense of wonder. Each experiment is accompanied by photographs, illustrations, and diagrams. All of these are followed by an explanation of what makes them "magic." Strategies we have used with this text are how to follow steps in a process as well as how diagrams and illustrations can help us understand the text better. This was a hard story to test over as students were asked to remember specifics steps of an experiment when there were multiple experiments we read about.

Text Talk- This week we read Picnic at Mudsock Meadow by Patricia Polacco. In the book, no mater what William does, there is a girl named Hester who makes fun of him. When he is able to prove that Quicksand Bottoms is not haunted, but just has glowing swamp gas, Hester realizes that William is not so bad after all. Vocabulary words we discussed this week are bleak, eerie, legend, mortified, mischievous, and reveal.

Writing- This week we worked on creating number notes and turning them into paragraphs. We will continue this skill this week before having fun with some Halloween writing prompts. 

Social Studies- This week the students begun working in their Map Champ Atlas. In this atlas they will be completing a series of lessons involving maps, globes, history timelines, and the branches of government. The majority of the lessons will involve informing and comparing the 7 continents and major oceans. You will even be informed about an ocean you may not have already heard of, the Southern Ocean. It was something new to me when I started teaching these lessons 8 years ago! :) So far we have learned about different kinds of communities, what kind of places are located in a community, and what goods are produced in some communities. We also read the book Me on the Map and talked about where our place is on multiple maps.