We have had a busy second week of
school. Our class is still working on
school expectations and classroom routines.
Early in the week we worked together to establish classroom rules. The children were very thoughtful as they
discussed what will be needed to have a safe, respectful and responsible class
this year.
In Literacy, we have had several mini
lessons, beginning with how to pick “just right” books. We have also discussed that good readers
“make connections,” connecting what they know with what they are reading. Frequently during the mini lesson we will use
a picture book for modeling. For this
lesson, we read Cynthia Rylant’s The
Relatives Came to make a text to self connection. We also learned about visualizing and how a
good reader pictures what is happening while reading.
The last mini lesson this week was on
“check for understanding.” This
comprehension strategy teaches children to stop frequently and check whether
they understand what they are reading. We
practiced each of these strategies with
our read aloud and our independent reading books.
In Math, we have worked this week to
complete assessments. These assessments
covered fact fluency and other math skills.
Next week, we will begin a unit on place value that includes decimals.
I explained last week that fifth
grade will participate in nature journaling this year. Students created a nature watercolor for their
journal covers, learned 5 basic colored pencil techniques, went over
expectations for the nature journal, and learned about the basic cloud types on
Friday. We learned about the
characteristics of each cloud type and the symbols used by meteorologists. On
Tuesday, weather permitting, we will go outside with our journals for the first
time. Be sure to check our class blog
next week to see some of the beautiful watercolors from our journals.
Have a wonderful holiday weekend!
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