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.

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.