Manning's Message

Wish List

We need wipes (Clorox type), hand sanitizer and tissues.

Any donations are greatly appreciated!

Subject Update

Language Arts

Students are finishing up their opinion pieces and will working on writing a strong conclusion this week.  I’m looking forward to reading their completed pieces.  We will continue our study of opinion writing after vacation. 

Students continue to practice reading and note taking while reading fiction and non-fiction texts.  They continue to practice using strategies to help them understand text and determine important information.  Most are able to use these strategies in a small group and are striving to use them independently.

Learning to Type

All students have been set up with an account on typing.com.  They have a user name and a password.  They should begin practicing typing at home each night. We will also be practicing at school during Daily 5 and the students will begin typing and composing  their writing on the iPad in the near future.   If your student does not have access to a keyboard at home, please let me know.  It is important that the students learn to type fluently this year as it will help them in their future education and as mentioned during curriculum night, they will be taking the MCAS on the iPad this year.

Mathematics

We have completed Chapter 3 and the students have corrected their errors and reflected on their mistakes. Although we have completed Chapter 3, we will continue to work on multi-digit multiplication and division as we move onto the next chapter.  Students will begin working on Chapter 6, Fractions and Mixed Numbers.  In this chapter, the students will learn to add and subtract unlike fractions with and without renaming.  Students will learn to convert mixed numbers to improper fractions and improper to mixed. They will also learn how to find fractions of a set, and will apply this knowledge to multiply a fraction by a whole number and to solve real-world problems. When solving real-world problems, bar models will be used to illustrate adding and subtracting fractions, so the students can visualize the problems to help solve them.

It is important that students practice their multiplication and division facts daily.  Knowing these facts will be crucial to their success in future concepts.  For practice, they can use links from the blog to various game sites, flash cards, XtraMath and Freckle which will be introduced next week. 

Social Studies

Students have been taking East map, states and capitals tests over the past two weeks.  In order to receive a “meeting expectations” grade of 3 on the report card, they must know the location of the state on a map and the capital for each state in the region. The students have had 3 opportunities to take this test over the past weeks.  Many students will be taking a retake map, states and capitals test on Tuesday 11/26.  Students who have already achieved the requirement, will have the opportunity to earn a score of 4 by also learning the major cities, state nicknames, and location of the capitals.  It is important your student study for these quizzes for about 10 minutes each night.  I have sent home study guides and flash cards that they can cut up and use as a study game.  Students are also learning how the culture of the eastern region is affected by its land, climate and resources.  Students are working with partners to present their knowledge in a Keynote.

Science

The past weeks students have continued to learn about weathering, erosion and deposition.  We took a walk around the school grounds to see if we could observe signs of weather, erosion and deposition. Students took pictures with their partners and identified many instances of weathering and erosion.  When we returned to the class, the student chose on picture to make a Claim, Evidence and Reasoning book using the app Book Creator.  These short books are currently being uploaded to their Google Drive folders.  Ask your student to log into the Drive account to view their work.