We are in full gear and are really digging in to learning how to be mathematicians as well as great readers and writers.
Over the past week we took a look at how we can use arrays and tape diagrams (see math section for details about those) to solve mathematical problems. Students are learning to skip count by 4's and 6's to help them with their multiplication facts! Ask your child about the videos they watched to help them learn skip counting. They really got into them! In reading, I spent time assessing each student to determine their current reading level. This year the majority of the teachers chose to do away with DRA's and instead use a new program called IRLA (Independent Reading Level Assessment Framework). The IRLA is requiring students to know more reading skills in order to further their reading level. Students should really be working on their reading skills at home as they do their nightly reading homework. We also learned about what writers do if they get stuck and do not have any ideas when they are asked to write. The first strategy they learned was to think of someone who matters to them and then to think of a small moment they've shared with that person. We are working on narrative writing and learning to write without stopping for a given amount of time. We have almost finished our study on genetics. Students created an adult alien and a baby alien to show how the baby inherited traits from the adult. After the students created their aliens we had an alien sighting. The students went around the room and looked at their classmate's aliens and identified the five inherited traits the baby possessed. They had a blast! We also discussed the PYP attitude, respect. We read books with characters who showed respect as well as had discussions about what respect looks like in our classroom, on the playground, or wherever we go. Please continue to work on multiplication and division facts at home as well as making sure your child is reading, reading, reading to enhance their vocabulary and reading skills this year. See you all at conferences next week, Miss Hodgkinson
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Sept. 14th- First Day of Online Learning
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