Monday, November 3, 2008

11/3/08

Monday mornings are always hard, but today was extremely difficult!

We were all a little tired this morning but enthusiasm showed as many students shared their 4 day weekend experiences. I was more than surprised to hear all the things they were able to get accomplished in just 4 short days! The accelerated reader tests were definitely put to good use this morning. I was thrilled to see the number of students who took advantage of the extra reading time and were able to take an accelerated reading test this morning. (Please remember to record every minute that your child reads on the calendar in their planner.)

Language Arts: This morning in Language Arts, we took our Spelling pre-test. This week we will learn words that have the /ar/ and /or/ spellings. Be sure to spend a little extra time studying them since many of the words are a little tricky. We also listened to our new story How Ben Franklin stole the lightening. This story is filled with many interesting facts about Mr. Franklin. You may ask your child to list them on a piece of paper as they read the story aloud to you this week. Be sure to help them differentiate between facts and opinions.

In Grammar, we started to discuss singular possessive nouns. We will continue discussing plural possessive nouns tomorrow and the rules that apply to both. This will be the skill that is tested on the Grammar test this week.

During our writing block this morning, we worked on writing a concrete poem using figurative language and alliterations. So far, these are turning our quite nicely. The students are using similes and some are getting really good at using detailed alliterations while describing their object. I am looking forward to hanging these up for all to see!

Finally, we met for a brief time with our reading/writing buddies. The students always look forward to meeting with their second grade friend and helping them. Next week we will begin a Fall project together.

Homework:
Fluency and Flow is due on Friday as well as the Spelling test. The students have a Student Evaluation Chart that needs to be signed and returned tomorrow.Read 20-30 minutes

In Math, we worked on computation and started Unit 10. Today we worked with transparent mirrors for the very first time. The students were excited to see how they can draw an exact duplication of a figure by using this type of mirror.
Homework:
Math Boxes: 9.9, 9.10. 10.1

In Social Studies the students were handed back their Chapter 2 test for a parent signature. We also started our in-class project. It is a timeline of 8 important events in their lives. This will be completed in class.

Homework:
None

Until tomorrow...