October 21th-October 25th

Here is a look at our curriculum next week!

Science: In Science, the students will be starting to create their marble coasters.  They will get strips of poster board and they have to make a track that will hold a marble from point A to B.  They will be working in groups to do this.  Towards the end of the week they will be working on roller coaster tycoon to build their own amusement park.

 

Reading: We are starting our Non-fiction unit in reading.  Everything that we read in class, for both reading and RtI reading will be entirely non-fiction.  We will spend Monday and Tuesday discussing what non-fiction is, the two types of non-fiction text (expository and narrative), and viewing multiple examples of each.  Wednesday during this time is our Tool of the Week for Zones of Regulation.  Thursday (a shortened schedule day) and Friday, we will be completing an in-class activity where students will be identifying non-fiction text features.

 

RtI Reading: Students will be reading a non-fiction text in RtI Reading all week.  Each day students will complete a different activity using this text, which ranges from comprehension questions to vocabulary matching, etc. 

 

LA: Students will receive new spelling words this week.  This will be the final week that spelling will be completed in school.  All spelling packets and sentences will be homework beginning on October 28th.

Math: Students will continue to work in their individual curriculum this week.

 

**Important Information**

-Our Bass Pro Shop fieldtrip has been rescheduled for Tuesday, October 22nd from 9:20-10:45.

-Early Dismissal: Thursday, October 24th

-Spirit Week

          Monday - Wear Sunglasses

          Tuesday - Twin Day 

          Wednesday - Pajama Day

          Thursday - Mismatched Clothes Day

          Friday - Wear Red

Have a great weekend!  Stay warm!

 

October 14th-October 18th

I hope that everyone had a wonderful week and is ready to enjoy this beautiful three day weekend!

Here is a look at next week's plans.

*Reading: The topics for reading this week will be about camping (related to the theme for our community trip to Bass Pro Shop on Thursday).  We will begin the week reading a fiction text, "When We Go Camping" by Margriet Ruurs.  The second story, for Wednesday, is a nonfiction text titled, "I'll Take Some More S'mores Please."   Due to the community trip on Thursday, there will not be reading or RtI reading on Thursday.   Friday, we will finish the week listening and answering comprehension questions to a story on storylineonline.net.  The story we will be reading/listening to is "Thank You Mr. Falker." 

*RtI Reading: The Crying Wolf readers theater play has actually been pushed back to Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.  Friday, students will be working in their phonics program, Lexia.

*Social Studies (7th & 8th grade only): As we finish up our unit on Ancient Greece, students will be completing a research project on a Greek God of their choice.  Students will be both researching and presenting their information to the class. 

All students will also be using some class time this week to prepare for our community trip to Bass Pro Shop on Thursday.  Students will be responsible for planning a camping trip and preparing a "shopping list" of material that they will need.  We will be researching necessary camping items and prioritizing what we will bring based on a budget that students will be assigned.

Have a wonderful extended weekend!

*Dates to Remember*
-No School Monday, October 14th for Columbus Day
-Community Trip to Bass Pro Shop: Thursday, October 17th (Students DO NOT need to bring money unless you wish they purchase a snack or small item.)

October 7th-October 11th

Here is a look at our curriculum for the next week.

*Reading:  Students will finish up their novels and begin their book report (which involves pulling out the five story elements-characters, setting, events, problem, and solution, as well as, understanding the components of a mystery)  Everyone should be finished by the end of the week.

*RtI Reading:  Students will be reading two more fables/readers theater plays: Les Lion and Moe Mouse & Crying Wolf.  We will review what fiction means and complete both writing and comprehension activities for each story.

*Social Studies:  We are starting to study Ancient Greece.  The focus this week will be on the geography, government, economics, and the Olympics.

*LA: The week, everyone will receive new spelling words and new Read Naturally stories.

*Math: All students will be working at their own pace on Place Value and money.

Have a great week!

September 30th-October 4th

As we welcome a new month and a new season, we are slightly changing up our daily schedule.

*Math: This week in math, some students will be finishing up the money, while others will begin place value.

*Reading: In addition to talking more about the Zones of Regulation and new tools that we can use to adjust our behavior to get us ready to learn, the students will continue to read their independent novels.  Students will be journaling, summarizing, identifying the five story elements, and character feelings from their novels, which will prepare them for the book report that will follow.

 

*RtI Reading: Beginning Monday, students will be having Read Naturally during this time.  They will receive their new stories and will continue to practice them throughout the week.  We then will read two reader's theaters plays during the rest of the week.  "Who is Stronger?" and "Fiddle-Diddle".  Our focus will be on fluency and comprehension.

*Language Arts: Writer's Notebook has been moved to our Language Arts time.  We will be writing each day before practicing our spelling.

Have a wonderful week!

September 23-September 27th

I hope that everyone had a wonderful week!

Here is a look at next week's curriculum.

*Math: This week will be our last week of this semester practicing money skills.  Students will be adding multiple prices together, determining change, and even using checkbook skills to "pay bills".

*Reading: We will continue the Genre unit that we began last week.  We will talk specifically about fiction genres and begin reading our first fiction novels of the year by Friday.

*RtI Reading: We will begin our final book in our world culture unit: Breakfast Around the World.  Students will be learning about traditional breakfast foods in seven different areas of the world.  They will also be comparing and contrasting our breakfast traditions with those in other countries.  We will even be sampling a few of these new foods! :)

*Language Arts:  Students will receive a new set of spelling words and choosing a new Read Naturally story for the week.  The goal is both fluency and comprehension with both the text and vocabulary.

*Social Studies: (7/8th Only) We are beginning our mini-unit on Ancient Egypt this week!  We will be learning facts about their culture, architecture, geography, pharaohs, mummies, and additional contributions that still affect our lives today.

Here is a picture of our Ancient Mesopotamian catapult that we recreated in class today!  How fun!

**Dates to Remember**

-11:30am dismissal on Friday, September 27th

Have a wonderful weekend!

September 16th-September 20th

We have an exciting week ahead in Room 117!

This week, we will begin to introduce the Zones Of Regulation!  This is a program designed to help students to independently recognize and regulate their emotions.  The four zones where our emotions fall are the Blue Zone (where students may feel tired, bored, sad, sick, hurt, etc.); the Green Zone (where students are ready to learn, happy, relaxed, focused, etc.); the Yellow Zone (where students may feel nervous, overwhelmed, annoyed, silly, confused, etc.); and the Red Zone (where students may feel angry, mad, terrified, elated, out of control, etc.).  The goal for all students is to regulate their emotions into the Green Zone where they are the most ready to learn.  We will be teaching students strategies and tools for regulating their emotions where they are in each zone and practice using these "tools" in daily situations.  In each weekly blog, I will include our "Tool of the Week" and any other important information about this program.

*Reading:  In reading this week, we will begin discussing the purposes of writing and learn about the genres towards the end of the week.  We will talk about each of these genres and view/read examples of each: historical fiction, fable, legend, fiction, biography, fantasy, science fiction, myth, and nonfiction.
*RtI Reading:  In continuation with our non-fiction unit, we will read Games Around the World this week and compare/contrast the various traditions around with world.
*Math: This week, we are focusing on the $1, $5, $10, and $20 bills.  We will practice determining how much money to pay for example purchases and continue to add and subtract money.
*Language Arts: Students will receive both a new Read Naturally story and new spelling words this week.
*Social Studies (7-8th grades only):  We are starting our Ancient Civilizations unit on Monday.  This unit will take us into the month on October.  We will begin discussing Mesopotamia and complete several hands-on activities to display what it was like to get water, food, and shelter in ancient times.

*Reminders*
-Thursday, September 19th: Walking trip to CVS pharmacy (Students can bring money with them if they would like to purchase a snack at the store.)

Have a wonderful weekend!

September 9th-September 13th

Students have all worked really hard this week to begin the MAPs testing!  Some students will still be finishing up the first two days of the week so be sure to eat a healthy breakfast and get a good nights rest!

Here is a look at next week's lessons...
*Math: Students will begin to complete their Daily Oral Math first thing each morning.  This will continue to be the routine for the remainder of the school year.  We will continue to focus on money this week and practice adding and subtracting decimals/money values.
*Reading: This week we will be incorporating the story elements into our writing.  Students will begin using a graphic organizer to create the characters, setting, plot, problem, and solution for their own stories.  They will use class time during the remainder of the week to write their stories in paragraph form.  Students will have the option to write either a fiction or nonfiction story.
*Language Arts: Students will choose a new story for Read Naturally and work using this story all week.  Students will also receive a new set of spelling words.
*7/8 Social Studies:  We will be putting the map skills we learned last week into practice this coming week.  Using a map of the school, we will be completing, and then creating our own, scavenger hunt!

*Reminders*
Wednesday, September 11th from 7-9pm


Have a great weekend!