End of March

This last week before spring break we went to the computer lab and played two math games: Save The Whale and Shark Numbers. Both were a big hit and helped us practice important skills of finding numbers that add up to ten and understanding the place value in two and three digit numbers. We also practiced our typing skills.

We celebrated the writing we have been doing this year with a special celebration, too! Thanks to all the families who came to hear our authors read their work. We also enjoyed two birthdays this week!

In reading we continue to work on retelling what we have learned in nonfiction books and building up our stamina to read independently for ten minutes. In science we have been observing our bulbs growing and went outside to inspect crocus and daffodil bulbs planted in the ground. We have also been learning about how the seasons are based on the tilt of the Earth towards/away from the sun. We even learned about the perspective that makes it look like the sun is rising/setting up/down even though the Earth is revolving horizontally.

Have a great break! Regular school resumes on Tuesday, April 13.

The most recent pictures have been added to the slideshow in the last post:

late March

This month we have been working on retelling a story we have read without looking at the pictures in the book. Students took home a reading strategies card that had sequencing words like "first, next, then, finally..." on them to help them practice at home. We are just starting to use this strategy to organize the events/information in a book to help us remember what we have read in nonfiction books now.

Students have also been using laptops in the library to find information through online databases like go.grolier.com We have also been making comments about what we are learning in science and practicing reading our writing on this voicethread when we go to the computer lab:

March

We are studying light in science right now. Here are some links to websites we used this week:

What produces light?

Light and shadows:


Earth, sun and moon:

February

What a crazy month with many, many snow days and still snow on the ground! We celebrated the 100th day of school and learned a lot about retelling a story using details and telling things in order from the beginning to the end. We have also been learning a lot about shapes and weight.

I Heart Writing Day has been rescheduled for Thursday, March 25th. Families are invited to school that morning for coffee in the Parent Center and then a chance to hear their student read a story/poem they have been writing in the classroom. Invitations and reminders will go home soon.

Enjoy all the pictures of students who lost teeth, experiments with water, reading and math centers, and even the snow on the playground!