Monday, December 10, 2018
Friday, December 7, 2018
Take a Peek at Our Week!
In Lang & Lit, our group discussions focused on identifying the author's specific purpose in writing the article based on the evidence presented.
Later in the week, we used our RACCE strategy once again to write how the text structure reveals or supports the author's purpose. The students are becoming rock stars with this strategy and could effectively answer the question and connect text evidence to prove their answers. We will take a formative assessment on text structure and author's purpose on Monday and then revisit summarizing informational texts next week!
In Individuals & Society, we used the "see, think, wonder" strategy to analyze various artifacts representing exploration. After our artifact activity, students answered the debatable question-"Is all exploration positive?". We will revisit this question throughout the planner as we study different aspects of exploration. Next week we will focus on what motivated explorers and begin our expert explorer research!
Have a great weekend!!!
Later in the week, we used our RACCE strategy once again to write how the text structure reveals or supports the author's purpose. The students are becoming rock stars with this strategy and could effectively answer the question and connect text evidence to prove their answers. We will take a formative assessment on text structure and author's purpose on Monday and then revisit summarizing informational texts next week!
In Individuals & Society, we used the "see, think, wonder" strategy to analyze various artifacts representing exploration. After our artifact activity, students answered the debatable question-"Is all exploration positive?". We will revisit this question throughout the planner as we study different aspects of exploration. Next week we will focus on what motivated explorers and begin our expert explorer research!
Have a great weekend!!!
Tuesday, December 4, 2018
D.A.R.E. Essay Information
We discussed the information below in class today, and a paper version was sent home. I posted it here as well for your reference!
D.A.R.E Essay Homework: DUE DATE January 4th 2019
D.A.R.E Essay Homework: DUE DATE January 4th 2019
Dear
Families,
Our
D.A.R.E class is ending soon and with that comes the anticipated D.A.R.E essay.
Every year, fifth graders complete an essay before D.A.R.E graduation to show
how much each student learned over the past several weeks. We will choose a
winner from each class and they will have the privilege to read their essay at
graduation.
We are
asking that the essay is completed at home for homework. The due date for the
essay is January 4th. Unfortunately we do not have the time in our day
to work on the essay in school but we are happy to support students if needed.
Students should use the organizer attached and their D.A.R.E. book as a
resource. Students will choose three of the topics that they learned about in
D.A.R.E class. There should be no need to do research as they should use
what they learned and any information in their booklet. We also would encourage them to include some
personal stories and an inspirational quote at the end.
Please
make sure this is an independently written essay but we encourage you to assist
in editing (spelling, punctuation, grammar). Have your child reread their
own writing. The essays that are always
most enjoyable to read are clearly written by the child and also include
personal touches (examples from their own lives, for example). They can
type their essay on the Chromebook on Google Docs and then share it with us so
that we can print them if you need us to.
They can also hand write the essay but please be sure that it is
NEAT! Also, please keep the essay to
about one page typed (12-14 font).
We look
forward to seeing the end result! If you have any needs along the way, please
reach out. In order to partake in DARE graduation, they MUST complete the
essay. We would never want a child to be
left out for avoidable reasons. Please don’t hesitate to reach out. Happy writing!
Friday, November 30, 2018
Take a Peek at Our Week!
We had our early civilization "Wander & Wonder" and virtual museum last week! Students set up their Adobe Spark pages throughout the classroom for their peers to visit and explore. As students "wandered" to each exhibit, they recorded their new thinking and what they were still "wondering" about. This helped to identify our next step of researching the innovations and adaptations of each civilization that helped the group survive (see below for more on this topic!). Students submitted their projects and research and will receive a rubric score for each. I will send these home once they are completed for your review.
This week we started our next planner in Language & Literature-F.Y.I. For Your Information. This planner focuses on analyzing informational texts for form, purpose, and structure. We began by reading articles on a variety of topics (why leaves change color, how dogs became domesticated, the origins of food allergies, and the problem of plastic garbage in the oceans). As students read, they pulled out important evidence that the author included to help them understand the topic more clearly. Students then looked at the evidence more deeply to help them determine the author's specific purpose in writing the article and what text structure best supported that purpose.
In Individuals & Society we finished up our early civilizations planner by having a discussion about the innovations/adaptations that helped the Maya, Inca, and Aztec societies survive in their environments. We began by working on an example together and then students revisited their research to find examples on their own. At the end of the week, we took our summative assessment for the planner. Next, we will be studying exploration and the debatable question-Is all exploration positive?
In writing, we worked on adding transitional words and phrases to connect pieces of information in our Titanic essays. Students peer edited to "pump up the volume" on transitions using words and phrases that go beyond "first, next, then, and last". Next, we will work on elaboration-explaining facts to clarify the topic for the reader!
Finally, Thursday is "positive quotes" day in our classroom....students use their morning transition time to look up an inspirational quote which they write on a post-it note and keep visible all day as a reminder. Below are some highlights from this week:
In Individuals & Society we finished up our early civilizations planner by having a discussion about the innovations/adaptations that helped the Maya, Inca, and Aztec societies survive in their environments. We began by working on an example together and then students revisited their research to find examples on their own. At the end of the week, we took our summative assessment for the planner. Next, we will be studying exploration and the debatable question-Is all exploration positive?
In writing, we worked on adding transitional words and phrases to connect pieces of information in our Titanic essays. Students peer edited to "pump up the volume" on transitions using words and phrases that go beyond "first, next, then, and last". Next, we will work on elaboration-explaining facts to clarify the topic for the reader!
Finally, Thursday is "positive quotes" day in our classroom....students use their morning transition time to look up an inspirational quote which they write on a post-it note and keep visible all day as a reminder. Below are some highlights from this week:
Thursday, November 29, 2018
Tuesday, November 20, 2018
Happy Thanksgiving!
I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your families!! I am thankful for my amazing, hard working students. They make each day an absolute pleasure!!
Friday, November 16, 2018
Report Card Information
Report cards will be available to families via Infinite Camps Backpack beginning Monday, November 19th. A message will be sent to all K-6 Village families to be sure they are aware of how to access this information. This information has also been posted to the Village parent blog.
Here’s a link to the post:
*Parents who requested paper copies of the report card will receive them next week! Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Thursday, November 15, 2018
Take a Peek at Our Week!
*Due to the two short weeks, we will not be sending home Weekly News until 11/30.
This week, we reflected on our first summative assessment for Language and Literature. Students worked with partners to discuss and retry three questions that were incorrect. I had them choose the questions that they felt needed the most attention (we didn't spend time on "right there" answers or questions that they made a silly mistake on, however, those types of errors were part of our reflection discussion).
After students worked with their partners, they recorded a Screencastify video to share their assessment score, areas of strength, and areas needing growth with you. The purpose of these videos is to place the responsibility on the students to share their performance on assessments and their progress throughout the year. This was our first time using Screencastify, so if your child's video has any issues, please let me know and I can share their score with you via Dojo.
In writing, we worked on conclusion paragraphs! We peer edited once again to help us become comfortable with the organization and structure. Our next step is adding transitional phrases and elaboration. Students have already recognized on their own that right now our essays feel like they are "missing something"....that helps to emphasize the importance of those two areas!
Our early civilization Adobe Spark pages are almost ready for our virtual museum! We will have our "wander & wonder" activity next week to explore the exhibits!!
We also learned about Sora. Sora ( https://soraapp.com )is an online library that allows students to find and read books right on their Chromebooks! This is a great resource if students can't find a book at our school library, or if they don't have a change to visit the library. Sora allows students to easily search for books and check the Lexile/reading level. They can even read sample pages to see if they are interested.
Don't forget that conferences are next week. You will receive a reminder from Signup Genius two days prior to your scheduled slot and time. I have also included the links below if you want to review your date and time sooner. Remember, you are only signing up for one conference with your child's homeroom teacher. Have a wonderful weekend!!
This week, we reflected on our first summative assessment for Language and Literature. Students worked with partners to discuss and retry three questions that were incorrect. I had them choose the questions that they felt needed the most attention (we didn't spend time on "right there" answers or questions that they made a silly mistake on, however, those types of errors were part of our reflection discussion).
After students worked with their partners, they recorded a Screencastify video to share their assessment score, areas of strength, and areas needing growth with you. The purpose of these videos is to place the responsibility on the students to share their performance on assessments and their progress throughout the year. This was our first time using Screencastify, so if your child's video has any issues, please let me know and I can share their score with you via Dojo.
In writing, we worked on conclusion paragraphs! We peer edited once again to help us become comfortable with the organization and structure. Our next step is adding transitional phrases and elaboration. Students have already recognized on their own that right now our essays feel like they are "missing something"....that helps to emphasize the importance of those two areas!
Our early civilization Adobe Spark pages are almost ready for our virtual museum! We will have our "wander & wonder" activity next week to explore the exhibits!!
We also learned about Sora. Sora ( https://soraapp.com )is an online library that allows students to find and read books right on their Chromebooks! This is a great resource if students can't find a book at our school library, or if they don't have a change to visit the library. Sora allows students to easily search for books and check the Lexile/reading level. They can even read sample pages to see if they are interested.
Don't forget that conferences are next week. You will receive a reminder from Signup Genius two days prior to your scheduled slot and time. I have also included the links below if you want to review your date and time sooner. Remember, you are only signing up for one conference with your child's homeroom teacher. Have a wonderful weekend!!
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