Here's what we're up to this week:
This week, December 4-8, we will learn about story structure (fictional literature), text structure (non-fiction), and text features (non-fiction). This is an important tool that students can use to improve reading comprehension. Our spelling skill is suffixes -ful, -ness, -less, and -ly. We will discuss not only how to spell these words but how the suffixes change the meaning of the words to which they are attached. In grammar, we will explore subject/verb agreement. Because of our Southern dialect, this skill is often difficult for students to 'hear'. We will continue working on multiplication. While students are exploring different ways to express multiplication (arrays, repeated addition) it is still vital that they memorize multiplication facts. We will also continue working on math word problems that use addition, subtraction, and multiplication. We will continue our unit on plant life. We did not get to the test last week, I never give tests on Monday if I can help it so I plan to give the science test Wednesday. Your child should have notes (vocabulary words) in their science and social studies notebook and I will also instruct them to take their books home. The test will be open note but not open book so please make sure your child understands how important it is to bring their science/social studies notebook to school every day. In Social Studies, we will discuss financial responsibility, supply and demand, and the manufacturing process. To help your child at home this week:
*Read with your child daily. If you have a struggling reader, let him/her read one paragraph and you read one.
Encourage fluent reading; reading with expression as opposed to monotone, flat reading. When reading, be sure to ask your child questions about what was read. Try to avoid questions that simply ask your child to recall facts from the text and focus on questions that ask your child to make inferences or draw conclusions. For example, instead of, "What did Charlie do?" ask "Why do you think Charlie did that? How do you know? (evidence from the text) How did Charlie's actions effect the plot of the story?" Additionally, to go along with our skills this week try to provide several different kinds of text sources including, but not limited to, newspapers, magazines, and comic books. Talk about features of non fiction text and how they help the reader understand what's being said in the text (illustrations, captions, charts and graphs, etc...). Whenever students are answering questions based on text they MUST use evidence from the text to support their answer (unless you are asking them to make an inference/draw a conclusion which is also a great skill to practice). If a student can support their answer with evidence from the text that makes sense, I can't count it wrong.
** Your child now has a tool that he or she can use at home that will be a great help in guiding you to know what kind of questions to ask. It's called the "Crooked Finger Spinner." I have encouraged all of the students to use it at home and we will use it at school as well.
*Have your child choose a subject that he or she is interested in, and search the internet for grade level appropriate passages/articles about the subject. Readingworks.org is a great resource for this; have your child read two or three articles about the same subject and discuss how the articles are similar and different. Also have your child point out the differences between their own point of view and that of the author/narrator of the article or passage.
* Review your child's reading, math, and science/social studies notebooks with them. These have notes and activities that began the first day of school, and they are a great glimpse into what your child does in class. They are the perfect tool to use as a study guide with your child and also provide an opportunity for you to give your child some note taking tips.
*Math facts, math facts, math facts! We called them 'times tables' when i was in school. Students need to spend 5-8 minutes each night reviewing math facts. We have made flash cards for the 3 and 4 families but I am running low on index cards. Reviewing is as simple as giving your child a problem and having them answer it. If your child doesn't answer in 5 seconds, give them the problem again and provide them with the correct answer, then have your child repeat the entire fact 3 times. For example, if you ask "3x4" and your child doesn't know the answer, say "3x4=12," and your child should repeat the fact and answer 3 times.
*Practice word problems-one per night- that require students to first decide what operation they should use, then determine an answer. Two step math problems are even better. For example, "Timmy earned 4 dollars on Saturday and 6 dollars on Sunday. If he needs $15, how much more does he have to earn?"
*Discuss economics with your child, including supply and demand, the cost of items and how manufacturers determine the cost, and the process which items undergo before they are placed on store shelves for us to purchase.
*Practice spelling words daily. Have your student spell words aloud while riding in the car, shopping at the grocery store, or helping clean the kitchen. Discuss the meaning of the words with your child. Have your child break the word into syllables. You can write the words on index cards, then cut each card into 2-3 pieces and let your child put the puzzles together. Spelling words aloud is a great way to enhance retention of material.
*Dictate sentences to your child. Say the sentence aloud and have your student write the sentences. Use spelling words in these sentences; you may even want to go back several weeks and use former spelling words. Including proper nouns/names as well as questions and exclamations are great practice.
*Take a nature walk with your child; look at the different kinds of plant life. Talk about what plants need to grow and stay healthy. Encourage your children to use a search engine to find out information about their favorite plants or to explore different types of plants that are not native to our area.
*Read with your child daily. If you have a struggling reader, let him/her read one paragraph and you read one.
Encourage fluent reading; reading with expression as opposed to monotone, flat reading. When reading, be sure to ask your child questions about what was read. Try to avoid questions that simply ask your child to recall facts from the text and focus on questions that ask your child to make inferences or draw conclusions. For example, instead of, "What did Charlie do?" ask "Why do you think Charlie did that? How do you know? (evidence from the text) How did Charlie's actions effect the plot of the story?" Additionally, to go along with our skills this week try to provide several different kinds of text sources including, but not limited to, newspapers, magazines, and comic books. Talk about features of non fiction text and how they help the reader understand what's being said in the text (illustrations, captions, charts and graphs, etc...). Whenever students are answering questions based on text they MUST use evidence from the text to support their answer (unless you are asking them to make an inference/draw a conclusion which is also a great skill to practice). If a student can support their answer with evidence from the text that makes sense, I can't count it wrong.
** Your child now has a tool that he or she can use at home that will be a great help in guiding you to know what kind of questions to ask. It's called the "Crooked Finger Spinner." I have encouraged all of the students to use it at home and we will use it at school as well.
*Have your child choose a subject that he or she is interested in, and search the internet for grade level appropriate passages/articles about the subject. Readingworks.org is a great resource for this; have your child read two or three articles about the same subject and discuss how the articles are similar and different. Also have your child point out the differences between their own point of view and that of the author/narrator of the article or passage.
* Review your child's reading, math, and science/social studies notebooks with them. These have notes and activities that began the first day of school, and they are a great glimpse into what your child does in class. They are the perfect tool to use as a study guide with your child and also provide an opportunity for you to give your child some note taking tips.
*Math facts, math facts, math facts! We called them 'times tables' when i was in school. Students need to spend 5-8 minutes each night reviewing math facts. We have made flash cards for the 3 and 4 families but I am running low on index cards. Reviewing is as simple as giving your child a problem and having them answer it. If your child doesn't answer in 5 seconds, give them the problem again and provide them with the correct answer, then have your child repeat the entire fact 3 times. For example, if you ask "3x4" and your child doesn't know the answer, say "3x4=12," and your child should repeat the fact and answer 3 times.
*Practice word problems-one per night- that require students to first decide what operation they should use, then determine an answer. Two step math problems are even better. For example, "Timmy earned 4 dollars on Saturday and 6 dollars on Sunday. If he needs $15, how much more does he have to earn?"
*Discuss economics with your child, including supply and demand, the cost of items and how manufacturers determine the cost, and the process which items undergo before they are placed on store shelves for us to purchase.
*Practice spelling words daily. Have your student spell words aloud while riding in the car, shopping at the grocery store, or helping clean the kitchen. Discuss the meaning of the words with your child. Have your child break the word into syllables. You can write the words on index cards, then cut each card into 2-3 pieces and let your child put the puzzles together. Spelling words aloud is a great way to enhance retention of material.
*Dictate sentences to your child. Say the sentence aloud and have your student write the sentences. Use spelling words in these sentences; you may even want to go back several weeks and use former spelling words. Including proper nouns/names as well as questions and exclamations are great practice.
*Take a nature walk with your child; look at the different kinds of plant life. Talk about what plants need to grow and stay healthy. Encourage your children to use a search engine to find out information about their favorite plants or to explore different types of plants that are not native to our area.