Phonics
To continue our study of vowel teams, we have been utilizing our reading program Lively Letters. So far the students have learned the sounds of ai, ay, and oo. This week they will learn the sounds of oi and oy. The silly characters and songs are most enjoyable!
Writer's Workshop
In writer's workshop we are becoming insect experts who will write to teach others all about our bugs! We began our informational writing unit by becoming more familiar with nonfiction texts. We examined various types of nonfiction texts including books, magazines, posters, etc. We then discussed the differences between fictional texts and the nonfiction texts we were viewing and brainstormed why an author would choose to write nonfiction versus fiction. The students discovered that nonfiction books are “teaching books” because we read them for the purpose of gaining new information.
As part of our exploration of nonfiction texts, we learned all about nonfiction text features. When readers read nonfiction, they gain information from the visual and text features as well as from the words themselves. Nonfiction is chock-full of visuals, such as photographs, illustrations, diagrams, graphs, and charts. It is also packed with text features, such as bold print, table of contents, captions, titles, headings, and more. These features make nonfiction more accessible for our younger readers. By explicitly teaching the features as well as their purposes, we help kids gain a more complete understanding of the information in the text.
Can your child identify the nonfiction text features below and tell the purpose of each?
As part of our exploration of nonfiction texts, we learned all about nonfiction text features. When readers read nonfiction, they gain information from the visual and text features as well as from the words themselves. Nonfiction is chock-full of visuals, such as photographs, illustrations, diagrams, graphs, and charts. It is also packed with text features, such as bold print, table of contents, captions, titles, headings, and more. These features make nonfiction more accessible for our younger readers. By explicitly teaching the features as well as their purposes, we help kids gain a more complete understanding of the information in the text.
Can your child identify the nonfiction text features below and tell the purpose of each?
As the students research their insects, they will utilize the nonfiction features to help them gather more information. They will read and write about what their insect looks like, where they live, what they eat, how they protect themselves, their life cycle, and other interesting facts they come across. After completing their research, the students will create a final report to display their findings!
*Stay tuned for our insects arriving this week*
*Stay tuned for our insects arriving this week*
Math
In math, we are currently on Topic 11: Subtracting with Tens and Ones. In this topic the students will continue to develop and strengthen their number sense. The students will discover:
- Subtracting groups of 10 is similar to subtracting numbers less than 10
- When subtracting tens from a two-digit number, only the tens digit changes
- There is more than one way to do a mental calculation
- When subtracting a one-digit number from a two-digit number, first we subtract the ones and then the tens. Sometimes 1 ten needs to be renamed as 10 ones before subtracting (i.e. regrouping or borrowing).
- Information in a problem can often be shown using a picture or diagram and can be used to understand and solve a problem
Science
Our painted lady caterpillars arrived last Wednesday! The students have begun making careful observations. They have already noticed in the matter of three days just how quickly their caterpillar is growing and changing. In addition, the students have discovered what caterpillars eat, what resources they need to survive and how they obtain those resources, and what body parts a caterpillar has and where they are located.
Last week we received a visit from Mrs. Scranton, a science curriculum specialist in our building. Mrs. S brought in live specimen to allow the kids to observe and learn about the life cycle of mealworms. The students closely observed a mealworm, a pupa, and an adult darkling beetle. After learning about the life cycle, the students placed the specimen in the correct order. Ask your child to name the four main stages of the mealworm life cycle.