Lightning Learners
December 8, 2011
How to Reach the Teachers
Rebecca Giles: [email protected]
651-702-5712
Michelle Ginther: [email protected]
651-702-5797
Stacy Peikert: [email protected]
651-702-5744
Linda Rodgers: [email protected]
651-702-5731
News to Share
Technology- The students continue to use
Glogster as a way to show their learning. They
are making a glog using information they
learned about bones. They also included
questions about bones they still have. Make
sure to check out your child’s glog at home.
They have their username and password in
their assignment notebook.
Math Fluency- This week’s fluency focus was
doubles +/- 2. The vocabulary words that
your child is practicing to use are
perpendicular, intersect, parallel, and angle.
They continue to have test taking skills
practice and problem solving practice.
(k-2 resources)
http://smart.hcpss.wikispaces.net/Grade+12+Learning+Links
(3-4 resources)
http://smart.hcpss.wikispaces.net/Grade+34+Learning+Links
(Also, check out the VCCS website. Go to Teacher
Pages, Math, find online tutorials in the four basic
operations.)
December 21
Neighborhood C Musical
December 22
Winter Celebration
Dec. 23-Jan. 2
Winter Break
January 3
School resumes
January 27
Climb Theater
Math
Giles- We are beginning geometry with a study of polygons: flat, closed 2-­‐dimensional shapes with at least 3 sides. We sorted a bag full of polygons, took a geometry vocabulary survey and are learning many vocabulary words, i.e., equilateral, equiangular, congruent, vertices, etc. We also know that polygons are named by the number of sides they have. Math Rocks! J Ginther/Peikert- As we continue in our geometry
unit, the next area of study is quadrilaterals and
their properties. We will spend time focusing on
rectangles by sorting, ordering, and describing their
properties. The students are also spending time
working on their +10 facts. Rodgers- We have started our Geometry Unit. We
have been using five different tetromino shapes to
see if it will cover an 8 x 10 rectangle. They have
explored the terms reflection (flip), translation
(slide), and rotate (turn). We will start with
reviewing the names of 2-D shapes and discussing
faces, edges, and vertices with 3-D shapes.
Cereal Boxes and Contact Paper
We are collecting empty cereal boxes as we
use them to make our literacy books.
Your child can start to bring them in if you have
any. The bottoms can be pulled open so that it
can lay flat.
Spelling
Spelling patterns for this week:
Giles: Orange – (sp blends); Pink - /s/ or /z/ to /sh/or /zh/
Ginther: qu pattern
Peikert: y ending words with –ed and -ing
Rodgers: long e (ee, ea, ie)
We are also taking any donations of white (not
clear) contact paper for these literacy books.
On tests, 2nd graders will get letters/words circled (but not
counted as incorrect) if there are any capitals and/or backward
letters in their words. For 3rd graders, we will start counting
those as incorrect.
Theme
Students are having a great time experimenting
with owl pellets. They are finding the bones
and remains of what are in the owl pellets and
trying to identify specific bones and piecing the
bones together to find out what animal was
eaten by the owl.
We will move on to joints next.
Writing
Ginther-Giles: We began our Realistic Fiction
Unit by studying the book Thank You, Mr. Falker
by Patricia Polacco. We are using this book to
help us generate ideas about problems that
students could have at school and home. We
discussed how authors might use events from
their life to help them come up with ideas for
their stories. We will work to develop characters
and solutions to these problems.
Peikert- To begin our Realistic Fiction unit,
students have generated real life story ideas, but
added an unreal (but could be true) component.
For example, real-I put up my Christmas tree;
unreal-my cat climbed the tree and tipped it over
and broke the ornaments. Next, students will
create a character deciding on its internal and
external qualities.
Rodgers- For our Realistic Fiction Unit, students
are generating possible problems, solutions, and
characters for their stories. At the beginning of
every unit, students receive a grading rubric.
Please ask your child if you would like to see it.
Our next step will be to use story mountains to
plan out our stories paying close attention that
there is a clear problem and solution included and
that there story follows the story mountain
format of rising action, climax, and falling action.
Reading
Giles- We used The Relatives Came as our kickoff to
reading realistic fiction. We noticed how Cynthia
Rylant tied the beginning and the end of the story
together with some repeated phrases, i.e., references
to the grapes ripening on the vine, thinking of their
relatives and missing them, noticing the tall
mountains, the windy roads and the strange houses.
We also used a book based on a true story about a
librarian in the oldest library in Texas. This genre
takes place in modern times and has a story line that
could happen to any of us but may not have actually
taken place. Please continue to read with and to your
child every day. They are getting much better at
bringing their red folders back to be signed. J
Ginther- December marks the beginning of our
author study of Cynthia Rylant. The students loved
The Relatives Came and are excited to listen to more
of her books. We are discussing characters, setting,
problem, and solution. We are using this information
to help us retell the story.
Peikert- Students continue to synthesize new
learning while listening to Dexter the Tough. We
also read Cynthia Rylant books and discuss the story
elements of the book. These include characters,
setting, plot, movement through time, and change.
In the plot we will also discuss the type of problemperson vs. nature, person vs. self, person vs. person,
and person vs. society. The theme of the story will
be identified too (ie. Friendship, family, death, etc).
Rodgers- Students are enjoying listening to many
different realistic fiction stories written by author
Cynthia Rylant. Ask your child what their favorite
story has been so far. Also ask them to tell you the
five different story elements (characters, setting, plot,
movement through time, and change) of that book.