Foux's Footprints

January 26-30

Writing:  

This week we will be using our 5 senses to enrich our writing with sensory language.  We will use a Venn diagram to compare different senses and then by the end of the week we will write a poem about a color using sensory language.  It is always neat to see how our writing can give human-like characteristics to a color.  We will need 1 jar of hamburger dill pickles, 1 jar of applesauce, 1 small bag of potato chips, and 1 bag of small marshmallows to do one of our activities. If you can donate anything please let me know.   

Reading

This week we will understand that the authors use sensory language in their stories to help their readers create mental images in their head. Students will be able to identify and categorize words according to their 5 senses.

Math

This week we are finishing up our regrouping unit. We will review everything we learned on Monday and assess on Tuesday. Then, we will go back to geometry to explore 2-dimensional shapes! We will start off by building shapes with gummies and learn all about the attributes of different figures and polygons. We will identify and discuss 2-dimensional shapes we see in real life, and create and examine art from a geometric perspective. The week will end with a fun "Guess Who?" game with shapes!

Spelling

We will continue to practice the spelling rule of the week each day.  On Fridays we will assess how well they know the spelling pattern.  If you would like additional "at home" practice there are some links on the blog under "websites".  A great site to visit is Go-Noodle.  There is a game called Body Spell that would be neat to use!

The spelling list will come home on Monday and we will assess their knowledge of the spelling pattern on Friday.   

Science

This week in science we will continue observing objects in the sky.  We have discussed the sun and moon and now we will discuss clouds. We'll read several books about clouds and discuss the different types of clouds.  Hopefully we will have nice weather and be able to explore clouds outside with our cloud viewers.  We'll describe what we see when we look at clouds.  At the end of the week we will review and assess for this unit.

***Remember to add to the moon chart for the of Moon shapes that was sent home last week. Students go outside (for just a few minutes supervised) and observe the moon, then record what they see on the chart.

At-Home Enrichment (optional homework):

Research: research the "question of the week" and bring what you find out to school.  It can be any type of presentation such as a poster, powerpoint, game, etc.

Question of the week: What causes some people to feel sea sick or car sick?

Math enrichment:

Here are a few fun games that will put kids' addition and subtraction skills to work:

Weight the wangdoodles- focuses on beginning algebra skills: http://www.mathplayground.com/mathgames/SL_WeighWangdoodles_secure.swf

Puzzle Pics Subtraction: http://www.mathplayground.com/puzzle_pics_subtraction.html

Puzzle Pics Addition: http://www.mathplayground.com/puzzle_pics_addition.html

Grand slam math- focuses on word problems: http://www.mathplayground.com/GrandSlamMath1.html

Science Enrichment :

Solar Flip Book (to do on a nice sunny weekend):

Record how the Sun appears to change position at different times of the day by creating a mini flip book.

Materials: Package of sticky notes (at least 15 sheets), pencil

1. Record the Sun's position each hour from sunrise to sunset.

2. Drawing a tiny person on the bottom center of each page.

3. Create a cover for a flipbook with a title, illustration and your name as the author.

Make 3D Clouds

Materials:  glue shaving cream (not gel), construction paper

1. Combine shaving cream and glue in a bowl. About a 1-1 ration of glue and shaving cream. Mix together.

2. Let your child start "painting" clouds.  This is a fun sensory activity so just globbing the shaving cream mixture on with hands or a spoon works.

3. Your child can also draw an animal or shape like they have observed in the sky.

Reminders

January 29th: International festival

February 4th, Early Release Day- 12:45 dismissal

Foux's Footprints

January 20-23

Writing:  

We will continue our unit on persuasive writing this week. Our guiding question will be "How can we persuade our parents to have our own dream bedroom?"   We will use our OREO graphic organizer (opinions, reason, examples, opinions) to put our sentences into paragraph form.  We will take our writing through the writing process to create a persuasive letter to our parents about our bedroom.  

Reading

We're wrapping up researching our class topic on turtles. This week we will work on presenting our research as a class. Students will work in pairs and groups of three to organize the information we collected by category, such as habitat, food, characteristics, life cycle, etc. Towards the end of the week, each group will present their part to the class.

Math

This week we are putting our regrouping skills to work as we practice both addition and subtraction problems along with games, word problems and a fun a project! Our project is called "Figure Me Out" and students will need to come up with math problems to match numbers in their lives, such as shoe size, age, numbers of siblings, etc. We will learn more about our classmates as we try to figure them out!

Spelling

We will continue to practice the spelling rule of the week each day.  On Fridays we will assess how well they know the spelling pattern.  If you would like additional "at home" practice there are some links on the blog under "websites".  A great site to visit is Go-Noodle.  There is a game called Body Spell that would be neat to use!

The spelling list will come home on Monday and we will assess their knowledge of the spelling pattern on Friday.   

Science

This week in Science we will be observing objects in the sky and looking for patterns.  Students will learn that there are recognizable patterns in the natural world and among objects in the sky. We will observe, describe, and record patterns of objects in the sky, including the appearance of the Moon. Students will know objects in the sky include the Moon, the Sun and the clouds.  We will discuss how the appearance of objects in the sky change over time.

At-Home Enrichment (optional homework):

Research: research the "question of the week" and bring what you find out to school.  It can be any type of presentation such as a poster, powerpoint, game, etc.

Question of the week: What causes some people to feel sea sick or car sick?

Math enrichment:

Here are a few fun games that will put kids' addition and subtraction skills to work:

Weight the wangdoodles- focuses on beginning algebra skills: http://www.mathplayground.com/mathgames/SL_WeighWangdoodles_secure.swf

Puzzle Pics Subtraction: http://www.mathplayground.com/puzzle_pics_subtraction.html

Puzzle Pics Addition: http://www.mathplayground.com/puzzle_pics_addition.html

Grand slam math- focuses on word problems: http://www.mathplayground.com/GrandSlamMath1.html

Science Enrichment :

At Home Moon Masks Project: Create a Moon mask!

Materials: White paper plate, black marker/crayons, ribbon (2 pieces), Glue

Directions:

You will make a Moon mask using a paper plate.

1. First, decide what appearance your Moon will have. You can make a Full Moon, Half Moon, New Moon or even a Crescent Moon.

2. Gather your black marker or crayon and a white paper plate. Cut out two eye holes.

3. Draw craters on your moon mask. Color the Moon black where the

craters would be casting shadows.

4. Turn the mask over. Glue one piece of ribbon to each side of the mask.

You will use the ribbon to tie your mask in place.

5. Let the glue dry and then wear your Moon Mask! Tell others about the

features of the Moon you drew on your mask.

Reminders

January 19th: No school- Martin Luther King day

January 21st: Science Fair

January 29th: International festival

Foux's Footprints

January 12th-16th
Writing:
We will begin our unit on persuasive writing this week. We will be incorporating some project-based learning into this unit. Our guiding question will be "How can we persuade our parents to have our own dream bedroom?" We will use OREO (opinions, reason, examples, opinions) to generate ideas for our writing. We will take our writing through the writing process.

Reading
This week the class will be researching all about turtles! We'll come up with some questions that we have about turtles and then develop a plan for answering them. We will decide what sources of information might help us answer our questions. Throughout the week, we'll read nonfiction and fiction books, explore PebbleGo on the library website, etc. to research our topic.

Math
Subtraction is our focus this week as we learn how to borrow from our tens place. We will practice with base-ten blocks before moving into the traditional algorithm. After a few days of practice, we will put our skills to work with word problems.

Spelling
We will continue to practice the spelling rule of the week each day. On Fridays we will assess how well they know the spelling pattern. If you would like additional "at home" practice there are some links on the blog under "websites". A great site to visit is Go-Noodle. There is a game called Body Spell that would be neat to use!

The spelling list will come home on Monday and we will assess their knowledge of the spelling pattern on Friday.

Science
We are continuing to talk about the water cycle in Science this week. We will have several fun experiments early in the week and then review and test over patterns in weather and water cycle. At the end of the week we will have a fun visit from Dowser Dan over water conservation and the water cycle.


Reminders
January 19th: No school- Martin Luther King day
January 21st: Science Fair
January 29th: International festival