Important Dates:
Wednesday, September 19 – Discovery Lab
Oct. 4, 5, & 8- No school for students
Technology Reminders: BYOT forms went home last week. Please let me know if you need another copy. Students may bring their devices to school starting tomorrow, IF they have returned their forms. When devices are brought to school, the same rules for cell phones apply. If you require them to bring their cell phone for safety reasons, please email and let me know. If a child has a cell phone, it should be off in their lockers. No phones should be ringing during class instruction. Please help us to remind students that cell phones should be off, and they should not be using their cell phones during class, especially for texting or calling.
Lunch Reminders: As a reminder, when you come to eat lunch with your child, other students are not permitted to join them on the stage. We will remind your students of this rule as well. Thank you for helping to keep our students safe!
Grammar: This week we will finish our commas and quotes unit. The unit test will be on Thursday, September 20th. The test will cover all the comma rules (items in a series, direct address, in an address, in friendly letters, in dates, between city/state, compound sentences, with an appositive, and after introductory word/phrase). The test will also cover the rules for writing quotations different ways (whether direct quote or divided quote). Students should bring home their grammar notebooks to study. Next week we will begin a unit on conjunctions and interjections.
Spelling: Students will take the list 2 spelling quiz on Wednesday, Sept. 19th. List 3 will be passed out at the end of this week.Their lists should stay in their binders through the school year. Remember to study both the spelling and the definitions. If you would like for your child to have extra practice with their spelling words, they may use Spelling City website. https://www.spellingcity.com/pratta
Writing: We are currently studying the narrative genre. This week we will conclude this unit by using all the tools we have learned to write a narrative story. Students should include the strategies we learned for good beginnings, plot techniques, and good endings. They will also work with adding transitions words, vivid verbs, specific nouns and descriptive language into their writing.
Reading: This week we are continuing our novel study on either Old Yeller or Island of the Blue Dolphin depending on your child’s reading level. We will continue to learn about the story elements including the following: protagonist/antagonist, characterization, point of view (1st person, 2nd person, 3rd limited, and 3rd omniscient), setting, and identifying types of conflict (person vs. person, person vs. self, person vs. nature, and person vs. society). We will also work with figurative language and applying it to our novels. Students will have notes in their novel folder, reading notebook, and reading section of their binder.
-Students are responsible for creating a HOTS question for each chapter they read. They will use their HOTS questions to have meaningful discussions with their book clubs. We created flipbooks with HOTS question stems last week. There is also a color coded wheel of question stems on the back of their agenda as well.
-Students will be defining vocabulary related to their novel. They need to be studying this vocab, because words will be on comprehension checks as well as the novel quiz/test.
-Students have constructed response questions for their books in their novel folder. Students will work on these questions both in class and for homework. We are working with using the TEACH strategy to answer questions correctly and thoroughly.
Please monitor your child’s monthly Book Log. Students are required to read two, 150 page books in September. Students may use their classroom novel as one of their books for the month. We will finish these novels in time to write the review. The second book needs to be a personal choice book on their reading level. The Book Log should be signed by a parent, and it, along with the completed book review, are due Friday, September 28. It will only be accepted if signed by parent so we can make sure the book was read and finished at home.
Wednesday, September 19 – Discovery Lab
Oct. 4, 5, & 8- No school for students
Technology Reminders: BYOT forms went home last week. Please let me know if you need another copy. Students may bring their devices to school starting tomorrow, IF they have returned their forms. When devices are brought to school, the same rules for cell phones apply. If you require them to bring their cell phone for safety reasons, please email and let me know. If a child has a cell phone, it should be off in their lockers. No phones should be ringing during class instruction. Please help us to remind students that cell phones should be off, and they should not be using their cell phones during class, especially for texting or calling.
Lunch Reminders: As a reminder, when you come to eat lunch with your child, other students are not permitted to join them on the stage. We will remind your students of this rule as well. Thank you for helping to keep our students safe!
Grammar: This week we will finish our commas and quotes unit. The unit test will be on Thursday, September 20th. The test will cover all the comma rules (items in a series, direct address, in an address, in friendly letters, in dates, between city/state, compound sentences, with an appositive, and after introductory word/phrase). The test will also cover the rules for writing quotations different ways (whether direct quote or divided quote). Students should bring home their grammar notebooks to study. Next week we will begin a unit on conjunctions and interjections.
Spelling: Students will take the list 2 spelling quiz on Wednesday, Sept. 19th. List 3 will be passed out at the end of this week.Their lists should stay in their binders through the school year. Remember to study both the spelling and the definitions. If you would like for your child to have extra practice with their spelling words, they may use Spelling City website. https://www.spellingcity.com/pratta
Writing: We are currently studying the narrative genre. This week we will conclude this unit by using all the tools we have learned to write a narrative story. Students should include the strategies we learned for good beginnings, plot techniques, and good endings. They will also work with adding transitions words, vivid verbs, specific nouns and descriptive language into their writing.
Reading: This week we are continuing our novel study on either Old Yeller or Island of the Blue Dolphin depending on your child’s reading level. We will continue to learn about the story elements including the following: protagonist/antagonist, characterization, point of view (1st person, 2nd person, 3rd limited, and 3rd omniscient), setting, and identifying types of conflict (person vs. person, person vs. self, person vs. nature, and person vs. society). We will also work with figurative language and applying it to our novels. Students will have notes in their novel folder, reading notebook, and reading section of their binder.
-Students are responsible for creating a HOTS question for each chapter they read. They will use their HOTS questions to have meaningful discussions with their book clubs. We created flipbooks with HOTS question stems last week. There is also a color coded wheel of question stems on the back of their agenda as well.
-Students will be defining vocabulary related to their novel. They need to be studying this vocab, because words will be on comprehension checks as well as the novel quiz/test.
-Students have constructed response questions for their books in their novel folder. Students will work on these questions both in class and for homework. We are working with using the TEACH strategy to answer questions correctly and thoroughly.
Please monitor your child’s monthly Book Log. Students are required to read two, 150 page books in September. Students may use their classroom novel as one of their books for the month. We will finish these novels in time to write the review. The second book needs to be a personal choice book on their reading level. The Book Log should be signed by a parent, and it, along with the completed book review, are due Friday, September 28. It will only be accepted if signed by parent so we can make sure the book was read and finished at home.