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Thursday, December 20, 2018

Happy Holidays!

I hope everyone has a great New Year!  Teaching your children these past few months has been a wonderful experience.  I'm looking forward to our time together in 2019.  Last Friday Room 12 joined their kindergarten book buddies in Kristina Christie's room to make non-edible gingerbread men and houses.  Here are some pictures from the event!









In math, our focus this month has been on advanced multiplication.  The children have learned how to multiply using the array and partial products methods. They have also learned how to multiply using area models.  If you have not checked out Seesaw lately you will find some of their great work there!

In language arts we continue to practice using our Keys to Literacy strategies when generating questions about the literature we are reading. Mr. Murphy kicked off the MCBA program in the Learning Commons and each student is actively engaged in reading at least 5 MCBA books by April.  This allows students to officially vote for the book that they believe should win this school year's award.

In writing we are writing poetry.  Each student has created a poem that they have published in Seesaw.  Each poem is complete with the poet reading their work!   Please check out Seesaw if you haven't already.

We recently completed our study of maps with a special map activity in the cafeteria.  Below are some pictures of the children locating cities and states on a giant map!




















Monday, November 19, 2018

Happy Thanksgiving and November Update!

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday recess. It will soon be time for Parent-Teacher Conferences.  If you are unsure of your day and time please let me know and I will be in touch.

In math we are completing Topic 3 in our enVision program.  This unit covers the multiplication of 2, 3, and 4 digit numbers by a 1 digit number.  We began by applying the commutative, associative and distributive properties  of multiplication to equations.  We learned how to group numbers to estimate answers to problems in our heads before engaging in paper and pencil tasks. An important understanding in this unit is that the grouping of numbers by 10s makes them more manageable and easier to compute.  Being able to break numbers down by place value, multiply them and then add up the parts is a skill that helps children take ownership of mathematical tasks and to develop a deeper conceptual understanding of numbers. Example: 3x418= 3x8 + 3x10 + 3x400

Guided reading lessons have focused on theme and point of view.  We have learned to look at the elements of fiction (setting, plot, and character) to see what they reveal about theme. We also continue to work on building our vocabulary through research of unknown vocabulary words and  i-Ready instruction.

We have learned how to revise and edit our completed personal narratives. We have also continued to develop our writing fluency through the use of our writing journals.

We are nearing the end of our Immigration Unit in Social Studies. In this unit we have learned some basic note taking skills as we read about and took notes on various immigrant groups who came to the United States in the early 20th Century.  We also learned to interpret photographs based on the immigration experience.  We did an Immigration Webquest that through pictures, videos and audio allowed the children to take the perspective of an immigrant coming through Ellis Island in the early 20th Century.

Thursday, October 18, 2018

October Update!

Hi Everyone,

It's hard to believe we have less than two weeks left in October.  I wanted to give you a brief review of the exciting happenings in Room 12!

Reading-  In guided reading we are studying the elements of fiction- setting, plot, character and theme.  We are doing this through the use of high interest picture books that are rich in literary details.  The children have been learning how to identify the elements of fiction in a story, use post-it notes to mark key points in the text and then to take notes in a two-column note format.  They are then taking those notes and creating summaries of what they've read. 

Writing- Our Writer's Workshop is well underway.  Daily writing instruction focuses on a mini-lesson (crafting leads, conclusions, adding describing words to our writing etc.) followed by independent writing time and a brief reflection at the end of instruction.  We are currently in the middle of a unit on writing Personal Narratives.  We have been studying mentor texts to learn about the features of a great personal narrative and then learning how to include those features in our own writing.

Math- We completed our work on addition and subtraction of multi-digit whole numbers.  We learned how to round numbers and estimate in order to check our answers for accuracy.  We are now learning about factors and multiples as a precursor to learning how to multiply by 1 digit numbers. 

Science- Our unit on Plant and Animal Structures is coming to a close.  The children have built pollinators and will test them to see how well they pick up pollen (baking soda) from one model flower and deliver it to another.  This unit has involved the children in research, note taking, investigation, cooperative learning and the engineering-design process.

The pictures below show students testing materials that will be used to create their pollinators.  Which material is best at picking up pollen and dropping it off?  Ask you child!





Monday, October 8, 2018

Land's Sake Field Trip Photos!


Hi Everyone,

Below is a link to a folder of pictures from our Land Sake Field Trip which took place on Monday, October 1st!

Land's Sake Field Trip

Saturday, September 22, 2018

Book Buddies!

Friday we met our Book Buddies in Ms. Kristie's kindergarten class.  The boys and girls were very excited to get started.  Below are some pictures from the event!








Saturday, September 15, 2018

Our First Two Weeks!

It was great meeting so many parents at our Back to School Conferences.  If we have not yet met I look forward to meeting with you in the near future.

We've had an excellent start in Room 12.  In math we've worked on becoming strong independent problem solvers through the use of the 4 4s number challenge and through our work connecting visual patterns to the number system. We began our enVision math program and are currently working on understanding place value concepts. We started Writers' Workshop by sharing our life stories. Each day, we gather on the rug for a brief mini-lesson about writing and then practice our learning in our Writing Journals.  I am pleased with our efforts.  Reading instruction has focused on learning to categorize objects and words as a precursor for learning how to identify main ideas and details in a piece of non-fiction text. We are also learning how to become strong independent readers by learning to choose age appropriate books and apply ourselves to reading those books on a consistent basis.  We discussed our histories as readers and wrote about them in our Reader's Notebooks. In science we are studying plant structures and began the unit with flower dissection.  We are learning to be good observers and learning how to reflect on our observations in our digital science journals.


Plant dissection in Room 12!


Friday, August 31, 2018

Welcome Back Everyone!

Welcome back to a new and exciting year at Fox Hill School.  I'm looking forward to our time together and look forward to meeting you in the near future. Parents, it is my hope that I can meet with each homeroom family for a brief 10 minute conference to learn about your child and any concerns you might have as we begin our year together in the fourth grade.  I will be sending out a conference sign up form in the near future. See you soon!

Tuesday, June 26, 2018

Happy Summer!

Parents, it was great seeing so many of you at the 5th Grade Graduation Ceremony last Thursday.  If you are wondering about ways for your child to keep their mind sharp over the summer the following links are a big step in the right direction.

Burlington Summer Math Fun

The above link includes information about the ST Math Summer Break Challenge.  There is a paper for recording work done on the challenge in the progress report folder.

Summer Reading Information

The above link lists websites, apps, and board games that develop and promote literacy.

Thank you for a wonderful year! 

Monday, June 11, 2018

Thank You Parents!

Thanks to our parent volunteers; Mrs. Spreadbury, Mrs. Kane, Mrs. Shah, Mrs. Rumsey, Mrs. Silva, Mrs. Fine, and Mrs. Young.  And thank you to our wonderful 5th graders!  Below are some pictures of our students working to make our school grounds beautiful on our first Fox Hill Spring Clean Up Day!











Tuesday, May 8, 2018

May

This is more like it! Now it's spring.

In math we covered the most important concepts in several different units in order to best prepare for the math MCAS.  After MCAS we will return to many of these topics to cover them in more depth.  Topics include classifying 2d figures, analyzing patterns and relationships, algebra, graphing points on the coordinate plane, and representing and interpreting data and measurement.  

In language arts we completed reading Hatchet by Gary Paulsen.  Some of the activities we are involved in include : writing book reviews, answering essential questions about the text, and writing scripts about what might have happened between different characters in the story.  We wrote healthy eating commercials and made infomercials that we shared in class. Look for these in Seesaw!  We are also working on our narrative writing skills and are actively planning stories through the use of two-column notes.

In science we completed our animal enclosure projects.  Last Friday we presented our enclosures to the 2nd grade.  They were eager to visit and ask us questions about the design process since they are working on a habitat unit in science.  Now we are preparing for the Science MCAS test which will take place next Wednesday and Friday, May 16-17.
5th graders explain how they designed their animal
enclosure to meet the needs of its inhabitant.


Monday, April 2, 2018

March Madness and April Reminders!

What about that amazing March weather!  4 snow days in two weeks!  Even with all the disruptions we found our way through Topic 8 in math.  Multiplication of fractions (including mixed numbers) was challenging for many students.  I am available for morning support in math on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at 8 am.  We are currently learning how to divide fractions, both whole numbers by fractions and fractions by whole numbers.  In our daily Solve and Share portion of our math lessons we create visual models that help us understand fraction concepts at a deeper level.  Still, continued and consistent practice is necessary to solve problems with accuracy.  It helps to keep multiplication and division facts fresh also.  ST Math is a great resource for working on math fluency and is available to all students as a supplement to regular math homework assignments.

In language arts we have focused our attention on preparing for MCAS testing.  We've used the "Two-Column Note" strategy to gather information related to the stories we are reading and then turned our notes into written responses to the text.  We've studied poetry, plays, essays and fiction.  Some of our note taking work involves gathering information from a story that allows us to write a continuation to that story. The story continuations are fantastic!  Our vocabulary work is focused on preparing for the science MCAS in May.  Each week students are given 7 words.  Their assignment paper gives them a task to perform with the words each night of the week.  If you are not connected to Seesaw please consider getting connected.  If you need support with getting connected let me know.  You will be able to see your child's finished Planet Book and leave them an encouraging comment!

In science we are studying Classification.  Mr. Musselman has presented to all the fifth graders on the Design Process and students are ready to begin planning and designing animal habitats.

Thursday, March 29th Kali Flanagan visited Fox Hill School!  Kali talked about her dream of becoming an olympic athlete and the work it took to make that dream come true. The fifth graders asked great questions and were great hosts.

Wednesday, April 4 and Thursday April 5 are the dates for MCAS testing in ELA.  Our 5th grade field trip to the Concord Museum is on Tuesday, April 24th.  Permission slips were sent home on Monday, April 2nd.

Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Room 12 Happenings!

We recently completed our study of the Earth and its place in the Universe.  Students completed digital notebooks in which they recorded videos, took pictures and made reflections.  They also took an assessment that asked them to edit a short book on the earth, moon, sun, and stars.  This has been an exciting unit that has made use of models and motion to demonstrate basic earth science principles. On the playground we created a model of the solar system to help us understand the relative distances of the planets from each other and the sun.  On a different day, students, representing the Earth, rotated and revolved around a light source in the center of our classroom. These are just two examples of the many interactive science lessons in which the children participated.

In language arts we completed our research on planets and learned how to craft our own sentences from research notes.  We drafted paragraphs that will be published as book creator projects.  We also began our preparation for MCAS by comparing and contrasting poetry through essay writing.  Additionally, we are studying point of view in non-fiction and fiction writing.  We wrote brief research reports on the flu, writing about the causes of the flu and how to prevent it.  This is a timely topic!

Students doing research on the planets using the two column note method.

A student uses a white board to turn research notes into running text.

In math we completed the addition and subtraction of fractions and are now learning how to multiply fractions. An important component to understanding fractions is being able to demonstrate your math thinking through pictures.  We are actively engaged in this effort on a daily basis through the use of class presentations. During the Solve and Share each table group solves a real world math problem and sketches their work on the white board. Group members then explain their thinking to the class. 

Students prepare math thinking to share during the Solve and Share.

Thursday, February 1, 2018

Groundhog Day!

Hi Everyone,

Here's hoping for a quick end to winter no matter what the groundhog happens to predict!

In math we have completed our work on decimals.  This was a difficult test and if needed your son or daughter is welcome to retake the test.  We are now learning addition and subtraction of fractions with unlike denominators.  An important concept in this unit is equivalency.   This is the understanding that 1/2 equals 2/4 equals 3/6 etc.  Understanding that there are more pieces but that the fractional amount remains the same is difficult to grasp .  I am available for extra math help as usual on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at 8 am.

In language arts we are learning to apply Keys to Literacy comprehension strategies in both the reading of our core book Number the Stars and in our research on the planets.  We are using Two-Column Notes to compare and contrast the main characters in Number the Stars: Annemarie, Ellen, Mama, Papa, Kirsti and Uncle Henrik. We have broken our research on the planets down into categories such as Special Features, Interesting Facts, Moons etc.  We have accumulated research in each of these areas.  Next we will turn our notes into running text and draft our reports.  We have also written question poems based on space science.  Each poem begins with a question and the poem answers that question. We presented these in class.  They are fantastic!  Some of these will be shared Friday at our Curiosity and Creativity Assembly.

We continue our study of Earth and its Place in Our Universe in science.  Our current work has focused on creating kinesthetic models of the earth demonstrating its rotation and revolution.  With a light bulb in the center of the room (the sun) the children rotated with a sundial in their hands as they revolved around the sun.  We are currently looking at a scaled down size of the solar system and the stars studying the immense size of space and the relationship of our earth to the universe.

Saturday, January 6, 2018

Happy New Year! Don't forget Seesaw!

I hope everyone had a nice holiday season.  I am writing to update you on the many exciting learning initiatives going on in our classroom!

In language arts we began our core book Number the Stars by Lois Lowry.  We are using the powerful learning tool Seesaw to document and share our learning about this book.  I hope you will take the time to set up Seesaw if you have not already done so. Once you are set up you will receive notifications when your child posts work to their digital journal. I have added a tab on the front page of this blog with a slide presentation on Seesaw.  Before the holiday break we created multimedia presentations about family traditions and recorded book reviews of Gossamer by Lois Lowry. Both published projects can be found in Seesaw. In writing, we have also been focusing on revision strategies and free writing.  The children have been revisiting older pieces of writing and color coding their digital writing to note changes in sentence structure, verbs, beginnings, and endings.  We are also beginning the study of persuasive writing and using a mentor text, Martha's Letter as our guide.  In this unit we will be identifying the key features of a good piece of persuasive writing and applying what we learn to our own writing.

In Math we completed our study of advanced division of whole numbers and are now learning how to divide decimals.  A strong understanding of place value as well as good recall of number facts are important requirements for being successful in this work.

As part of our continuing study of Earth's Place in the Universe, before the winter break, we enjoyed a class in the Burlington StarLab with Mr. Musselman as our guide.  The StarLab is equipped with enhanced software since its last tour of duty! This allowed us to view, using a protractor overlay on the sky, the sun's angle in the sky during different seasons of the year.  In science class we also used the Star Chart app to simulate a stargazing experience and to help us to make observations of the patterns we see in the sky throughout the course of the year.  We wrote down our observations in our digital science notebooks. We also created birthday bracelets based on the number of hours of light and darkness that occurred on the day we were each born.  Using the bracelets we studied the patterns of daylight vs. darkness that take place over the course of a year.  We currently constructed sundials to help us understand the sun's apparent motion in the sky over the course of a day.