May 13th, 2009
Class activities for Wednesday, May 13
Spelling: None today. Students completed a science assessment during this time.
Cursive: Ten cursive sentences, seven or more words each, are due Fridays.
Reading: Today was a reading day in Literature Circles.
Writing: We learned that a poem can have a double-focus. For example, a poem about grandpa’s old, big, dirty, scuffed, worn shoes could also tell about how grandpa is big, getting old and worn, ready to do what is necessary, even if he gets dirty.
Our next portfolio piece will be a collection of poems, due Friday, May 22.
Math: We spent another day reviewing the partial-quotients method of division. Only 12 students were able to get more than one out of three divisions problems correct on a quiz. Some common mistakes:
- Incorrect multiplication facts. Again, students are having problems due to not having their basic math facts memorized.
- Incorrect subtraction. Some students are struggling with subtracting correctly, including trading or borrowing.
- Arithmetic mistakes. Some students understand the math, but are making basic math mistakes. More practice is needed here.
Homework tonight is to finish a division practice sheet. I asked students to do the division with a parent and “talk it out” as they were working, thinking aloud so a parent could see the mental processes. I also asked students to get a parent signature on the math. With only a month left of school, fifth grade is looming large; some students just need a little more practice to be ready for next year.
Science: We learned about the movements of the earth and moon. Homework is to complete a crossword puzzle review page.
Social Studies: None due to library.
- Yellow magnets: 0
- Orange magnets: 0
- Red magnets: 0
- STAR Awards: 0
- Magnets moved this week (goal: 10): 1
- Hours with no yellow magnets (record: 58): 17
- Days with no orange magnets (record: 39; previous score: 3): 5
Check your student’s Personal and Social Growth grade at SnapGrades to see if your student moved their magnet.
Notes:
- View grades, assignments, attendance and even the report card at SnapGrades.
- Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
- This week’s juice volunteers: Tyler, Morgan
