Week of October 14-18

Hi Families,

We had a great week! Students seem to be settling into our routines and our classroom community feels enjoyable to be a part of each day. We had a fun meeting with our buddy class where buddies shared preferences about Fall activities and completed a game of Fall-themed Scattergories together.

Here is what we’ve been learning about this week:

Math 
Unit 2: Fractions as Quotients and Fraction Multiplication. 
  We dug into the relationship between division, fractions, and fraction multiplication, really trying to solidify students’ conceptual understanding and their ability to explain the relationship between fractions and division clearly. For example, we learned that 3 ÷ 5,   ⅗,  (⅕ + ⅕ + ⅕),  and  (3 x ⅕)  all show the same amount. We practiced explaining how those expressions are represented in a diagram that has 3 rectangles split into 5 equal parts and ⅕ of each rectangle is shaded. The nuances in meaning and language are important for the future work we will do with fractions in grade 5.

• Ask your child to explain how 4 ÷ 3 is related to ⅓ x 4. Ask them to draw a diagram to represent this relationship and explain it. (Answer: your child should draw 4 rectangles, each split equally into thirds, ⅓ of each rectangle is shaded).

English Language Arts
Science Fiction novel study of My Teacher is an Alien by Bruce Coville.
  We finished reading the book! Throughout the story, we learned so many new vocabulary words, such as “withering,” “belligerent,” “crucial,” and “agony.” We discussed how the characters made decisions (ex. Susan and Peter sneaking into Mr. Smith’s house) and how their actions affected the plot. We also made inferences as we read and discussed how the text supported or didn’t support them (Ex. Why were Susan’s classmates acting so unexpectedly? What clues were in the text?) Students also wrote short responses about the story to deepen their thinking of the relationships between characters and the cause/effect relationship of plot developments. We wrapped things up with a comprehension check (a.k.a. “a quizzipoo” ).

• Ask your child if they think the alien Broxholm was hostile to humankind. Why or why not?

Science 
  Students enjoyed their visit from Science from Scientists, which focused on Engineering and modeling. We learned about criteria and constraints, and how engineers weigh a variety of criteria and constraints when designing solutions. Students tested vehicles to transport boxes 15 miles using mini cardboard models on wheels. So fun!

Community Building
We discussed listening attentively this week. We highlighted “full body listening,” especially using your brain and heart to think and care about what is being said. Students had fun listening to each other describe their Halloween costumes for the Monster Mash! 

Homework
I continue to assign two things –a math sheet and out-of-school reading. Please please please help your child make a habit out of reading at home. If your child is not a fan of chapter books, consider finding magazines, news articles, audio books, picture books, or short story collections as an alternative. Also, consider reading aloud nonfiction articles together about mutually interesting topics. I’m a big fan of eyes on text, but I also love building listening comprehension. 

Don’t forget to check your child’s reading log in their planner each week, have them total their minutes for the week, and sign your name next to the total by Monday morning. Homework Assignment Log 

Important Dates: 

• Friday, October 25: Term 1 ends
• Friday, November 1: Student Council application due (elections Nov 4)
• Tuesday, November 5: No school for students, teacher in-service day
• Thursday, November 7:  Project Adventure Field Trip for Grade 5
• Monday, November 11: Veterans Day, no school
• Thursday, November 14: Early release for parent teacher conferences
• Friday, November 15: No school for parent teacher conferences

Thank you for reading! Have a great weekend!

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