October 8, 2014

Students are going to have a chance to retake their math test this Friday, October 10. Many of the students did not do as well as I expected, especially since they forgot the difference between factors and multiples. This was especially disappointing since I knew this was a new concept and so we made a poster defining each, and I pointed out where it was in the classroom immediately before the test and told students they could come look at it if they needed to. We went over the test today, discussing how to read the problem carefully to figure out what it's asking and how to use the resources in the room. The test will have the same format, but with different numbers in the problems. Students should get their original test signed in order to retake it on Friday.

We also have tests coming up in social studies on Tuesday, October 14, and in religion on Thursday, October 16. In social studies, we've been talking about the economy. The students created business plans that explained the resources they'd need to start a business, who their investors would be, and the supply and demand they would have. We've also been working on posters for the UIC Economics contest. In religion, the test will cover the first three commandments and the covenant God made with Abraham.

For Hispanic Heritage month, students have been learning a song with Ms. Fox that comes from Ecuador. We'll share the song, the Ecuador flag, and some facts about the country with the school on Thursday, October 16. We are also learning about Day of the Dead. To celebrate this day, students are interviewing two people about a person who died that they would like to honor. We'll be writing paragraphs and creating shoebox ofrendas (or altars) for this person. We'll have time in class to create the altars on October 24, so please make sure your child brings in his or her shoebox and anything they'd like to put inside it on that day.

I sent home a Scholastic book order form on Friday. This one will be due on Tuesday, October 14. If you'd like to order online, simply click the link below. Scholastic is also having a promotion, where if students spend $10 they can get another book ($5 or under) for free. Students who wish to get a free book should let me know which one, as I need to enter that information from the teacher order page.


Finally, in science we are learning about forces that shape the Earth. We discovered how the Grand Canyon was formed by completing investigations about weathering and erosion. You can see those pictures below.