January 17, 2012

Math: This week you will see the Partial Quotients method of division in action. Don't forget to look at the Unit 6 Family Letter or the Student Reference book for more information on how this method works. If your student is struggling with this homework, or any homework, please let me know in the agenda, and I can give extra support at school.

Literacy: Our students are so excited about gmail and google-docs! Our media specialist, Ann Reise, has been working with our students to introduce these great tools. Students have been made aware of the importance of being safe online, and the importance of asking for permission from teachers and parents to use the internet. Please be involved in what your child is doing online.

One of the exciting features of gmail is google-docs. Students are able to create documents that can be shared, commented on, and/or edited by teachers and students. This allows students who have internet access at home, to work on writing projects and to give and get feedback on their projects right at home. We will be experimenting with this this week. One of your student's assignments is to type one paragraph of their author essay into google-docs. On Thursday, Mrs. Reise will show us how to effectively share, comment on, and edit the work.

In reading we are discussing how and why we form opinions of characters. Their actions, words, looks, and how other characters interact with them all play a part in building our opinions. We are learning that if we give an opinion, it is important to back it up with evidence from the text or our background knowledge. Students will also be thinking about how our opinions sometimes change as we get more information. We call this synthesizing.

Science: Students have presented their PowerPoint presentations on the invertebrate group they researched. They all did a great job! This week we will look into how organisms are formed by cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems. Students will gain a general understanding of some of the organ systems animals have. This will lead us right into our next science unit on the human body, where students will focus on how our various organ systems play a part in helping us move.

Note: Calling all parents! The PSC is looking for nominees for president and secretary. If you would like to be more involved in your child’s school please consider one of these positions. Currently there has been no interest. You could share the position with a friend if you don’t want to do it all alone. The PSC offers many great community building opportunities for students and families. Please talk with your neighbors or sign yourself up! Contact Mrs. G. or one of us if you are interested or want to know more.