First Two Weeks!

First Two Weeks

Phew!!!!  These last two weeks have flown by!  We have really been working hard in math and science class.

In Math, we took a pretest last Friday on Multiplication and Division.  On Monday, I place students into small groups, based on where they tested/their knowledge of the content.  I explained that we would be working on multiplication (one x one, two x one, two x two, three x two, three x three, and decimals) for the next week or so.  Students have a menu of activities to complete for each level and take an exit slip at the end of class each day, in hopes to advance to the next level for the next day.  I have also been working with small groups to provide them with direct instruction on their particular area.  We will continue this next week and then advance in to division.  Please make sure that your child is studying their basic facts!!!  

Our Math Logs are due EVERY Monday!

In Science class, we worked in small groups to create a design challenge.  Students were to design a car that was built only out of edible items (THANK YOU to all of the wonderful families that donated supplies! We had extras items, and we will keep these for a reward for the students at the end of the trimester.)  The students realized with my rules, this challenge was not as easy as they thought it was going to be!  They could only place a total of 3 supply orders, and any supplies they took, MUST be placed on their car (this was the most challenging part!).  Students did a great a job working together during this challenge and never gave up!  On Wednesday, we "raced" our cars down a ramp outside of our classroom.  Many students were surprised that in the end, the car actually was able to make it down the ramp....some not all in one piece!  I was so proud of all of the students.  We finished out the week by learning about the various tools that we will be using in science class this year and now they are creating a tool poster to provide what the particular tool is and safety features for the tool.  

I am looking forward to another great week! 

Here are some pics of our completed cars!!!          

Welcome Back to School!

Welcome Back to 2015-2016 School Year!

Wow!  It has been a busy start back to school!  The students have been setteling in to their new space in the 2-8, with their new SLC (Smaller Learning Community) B.  We have been working on how to S.O.A.R (Self control, Operate Safely, Act Responsibly, and Respect myself and others) in our classroom, our new learning facility, the playground, etc.  We have also completed a few team challenges (the first one, students were asking to quit!).  We have discussed what it means to be a part of a team, how we should handle ourselves during any challenge that would be presented to us in our daily lives.  Additionally, we have also completed several activities on simply, following directions-hopefully, your child shared these activities with you tonight!  

The last two nights, I have asked the students to prepare an All About Me Page...however, the trick was to use equations to communicate their facts. For example, I shared that I have 2 children.  Instead of simply stating that I have 2 children, I could write this using an equation:

4 x 5 - 3 x 6 = the number of children I have.  

This was a great way to see what the students are familiar with in math!  I also suggested, to make sure they were on the right track, to share these equations with a family member!

Finally, we completed a challenge in class today to Save Fred the Worm.  Fred (gummie worm) and his boat (a paper cup) got caught in a terrible storm.  Fred's boat tipped over and trapped his life preserver (gummie life saver) under the boat.  The students were then provided with 4 paper clips.  The object was to get the life preserver on Fred and the students could only use the paper clips to touch Fred, the life preserver, and the boat.  They also could not hurt (poke Fred with the paper clips!) Fred.  The students were partnered with students that I chose, and in the end, they were shaking hands, saying good job, etc.  They really worked well on this group challenge.  

 

Next up...we are going to job in to multiplication and division facts  for math, and working on an edible car challenge in science.  Thank you to all of our families who contributed to our edible cars!!  I will post pictures when they are created!