January 4, 2010

2010! What an odd feeling! I remember being in 3rd grade and thinking the year 2000 was a long way off - but 2010! Incredible! I hope you all had a wonderful winter break and enjoyed time with your families.

In math, we will continue working dividing. Friday will be our test on chapter 6. Some students have been struggling to remember homework. Last chapter, I saw this dramatically effected test scores. Please make sure your child is completing nightly math homework and returning it to school the following day.

In reading, we are continuing with our Money unit. Our story this week is Madam CJ Walker: Self Made Millionaire. I also told students that IF they make their trimester reading goal BY February 12th, they can earn a ticket to go to the Tri-City Americans game with me. There will be more information to follow if you would like to purchase tickets for your family we can get a group rate. This game is also a special game for me - it is breast cancer awareness night. My grandmother passed away from this. The Americans will be wearing pink, the ice is pink, and pink t-shirts are for sale. So encourage your child to be reading and find your pink!

Spelling paragraph:

A philanthropist helps others by giving their time or money. Madam CJ Walker helped African-American women get jobs selling her hair products. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his time giving speeches and protesting equal rights for all. Now, Bill Gates donates money and computers to schools all over Washington state. Helping others with time or money can benefit everyone!

The spelling test will be on Friday this week since the students didn't get it to study until today.

December 4th

This week we will be finishing up our math unit in multiplication and starting Unit 6 - division.

In reading, the story this week will be "The Go Around Dollar". This story tells how money is passed around and explains the different parts of a dollar. We will be working on text components and sequencing a story. We are also reading several versions of the Gingerbread Boy story. We will be comparing and contrasting these stories.

In Food Is Elementary, we will be cooking our first dish from Egypt. Please ask your student about the fabulous food they tasted.

To go along with our reading of gingerbread boy versions, our spelling paragraph is:
Gingerbread cookies can be very tricky! Gingerbread men and babies can be extremely sly as they are running very fast across the countryside. They run and they run but nobody can every catch them. These clever cookies can run away from people and animals like the devious fox and the gentle old man and lady. Apparently, gingerbread cookies are resourceful and quick thinkers.