September 18, 2015

The students were really excited to meet their buddies in Mrs. Garza's class last Friday! You can see pictures of them below drawing portraits of each other.

Students did a great job on their times tables test test! Our next test will be on the 2s next Thursday (since we don't have school on Friday). We also have our spelling test on Thursday, this time on the word list that students will create themselves on Monday.

In science class, we have our chapter test on Wednesday. Study guides need to be filled out by Tuesday, when we'll play our review game. Remember, if you'd like me to check over your child's study guide earlier than that, I'm happy to do so!

In social studies next week, we'll be using the iPads and apps like SonicPics and Drawing Pad to help us review what we've learned about the United States and its landforms, regions, and climate. Our social studies test will be Tuesday, September 29. The study guide for that is actually on the back of the science study guide, so all the students already have it! That one will be due on Monday, September 28.

Students are almost done with their first writing piece. I've seen lots of topics, ranging from riding on the 606 to baseball games to hamsters. We discussed Wednesday how revising means making changes in your writing, like adding more details, taking out sentences that don't fit, and finding better words. Most students have already completed revising, but those that haven't will need to finish over the weekend.

Next week in reading, we're going to begin doing guided reading. I'll place the students into four groups based on reading ability, interests, and effort and give each group a different book. I'll meet with each group 2-3 times a week. If students don't finish reading the section assigned for them in the book during class, they will need to read it at home. They can read this book as part of their reading log so this shouldn't be extra homework.