It's been a great week!

Hello Families,

As we approach the end of another full week, I'm happy to say we are back on track and making great strides.  This week's lessons included the following:

Math - We continued our long division work this week.  Each lesson took the students one step farther in the long division process.  After today, I am confident that every student is comfortable with the process.  Next Tuesday there will be a Unit Test.  Each unit test is a cumulative test that includes all information from the current unit as well as a few questions from any previous units.  I will be reviewing with the class on Monday, but I have told the students they can bring home their math textbooks to look at the review on pages 49-50 in advance.

Spelling/Vocabulary/ELA - The first word list for our spelling and vocabulary work was handed out on Monday.  We reviewed the words together in class and played some great games to study them together.  Your children were also supposed to have made index cards for use at home.  It appears they did because everyone scored really high on the crossword puzzle "test."  Next week we will focus on punctuation and apply what we learn to our writing.  We are also working on editing our stories in hopes to have them published within the next two weeks.

Social Studies - We had a great time learning more about the Crusades and the spices that were discovered as a result.  This week we even had a chance to smell several of them as we learned about how they were used and why there were so valuable.  Next week, we will study the many inventions that made navigation possible.  We already know the Astrolabe because we made one together for Science.

Science - This week we spent some time talking about how the angle of Earth in relation to the sun causes variations in the length of day and night and how that relates to the seasons.  We also learned why the sun and stars appear to rise and fall because of the earth's counter-clockwise rotation.  Next week we will take a closer look at the moon after having observed it for two weeks.

Have a wonderful weekend and Shabbat Shalom!

Debby

Weekly Blog 10/15/12

Hello Families,

We finally have a five-day week!  This week includes the following curriculum:

Reading - This week we are focusing on perspective in our read aloud, Sahara Special.  Students will look at the various characters in the book and explore how their "experience" would differ from that of the main character's.  We will also use this skill as we begin our new Social Studies unit, Early Explorers.

Social Studies - Now that we have finished our Cartographer's Challenge project, we are moving on to start our unit about early exploration.  This unit begins with a look at how the Crusades influenced exploration as more and more people desired the spices and other riches that were coming back from Asia.  We will be looking at some short video clips together to enhance the learning experience.  Here's one you can check out:   http://www.history.com/topics/crusades/videos#roots-of-the-crusades

Science - We are continuing our Moon observations and will begin our lessons and activities next week, once the results are in.

Writing - As we work to revise our first drafts, we are learning new skills as writers, such as using smooth transition words and sensory details to bring our stories to life.  We are also continuing to use our capitalization packets to sharpen our editing skills.

Math - We are continuing Unit 2, More Calculations with Whole Numbers.  This week we're focusing on word problems and multiplying and dividing with two-digit whole numbers.  Some of your children will struggle with the division at first.  The only way they can improve is to practice.  Homework is a great way for them to take the time to work out their difficulties.  Additionally,  it helps me to tailor my lessons to fit their needs.

Have a terrific week!
Debby

Hello Families,

Here are a few pictures from our trip to Chabot.  Unfortunately, my MS Duo card is not working in my card reader, so I can only share the photos from my iphone.  

Below these pictures are the travel brochures I mentioned last week.

Thanks,

Debby

Dana got to check out a simulated cockpit
on a space shuttle!!!

Ari communicated with the astronauts in outer space!

Students were able to look directly at the sun
to see some cool markings. 

Liam K. checked out a HUGE telescope.

Here are the Planet Travel Brochures!!!