Meet the Author - Ida Siegal "Emma on the Air!"

This guy was lucky enough to have lunch with Ida Siegal too!

This guy was holding my book - that somehow became his book when he got it signed by author Ida Siegal!

Fun Friday

• First thing this morning the kids had science.  In science they worked with volume and measurement of various items.
• 2nd period - we did our spelling test and 12 people got 100% today.  Then we worked on Math.  We did number talks and then we moved into lesson 4.3 on 3's and 6's. 
• 3rd period - We went to listen to Ida Siegal read from her book Emma is on the Air and her new book Emma Party Drama!.  This took all of third period and some of 4th.
• 4th - What was left of 4th we spent looking at the interactive lesson for 4.3.
• 5th - Lunch/Recess
• 6th - Recess/ Finished lesson 4.3 by looking at the text and working together.
• 7th - Science - Chapter 1 - Using the Glossary to find out the meaning of words we don't know.  Next week we will start reading about plants in science.

Homework:

• Reading: 45 minutes IR book so you can QUIZ on AR on Monday
• Math - Lesson 4.3 pp. 207/208

This Guy Had a Great Day!!

Open School Afternoon

Wow!  We had the entire afternoon scheduled and only two parents from that group were no shows! We didn't have a free moment!  The time flew by!  I hope that tonight's conferences are as successful and as well attended! For the rest of you, we will see you starting at 4:45!

Short Day Thursday

• Today was a FAST PACED day...   We started getting ready for ReadyGen when ... BING BING BING we had a FIRE DRILL!  When we finally got back in the building we got to our lesson 1B.10.  Today we used the text to find information on three topics.  It was nice working together as a class to find information from our text to add to our class 3 column chart.
• We broke into independent reading groups and the kids read for 14 minutes silently.  If they had finished a book, they were allowed to take their AR test and get a new book.  After finishing their reading, they were supposed to take 10 minutes to write their summary reflection, but it took more like 20-25 minutes. (TOO LONG!)

• We had lunch from 10:30 - 11:00
• From 11:00 - 11:30 we read our class read aloud novel, passed out homework, and wrote down homework.  

Homework:

1. Math Handout: Practice 5's
2. Spelling: Practice Sheet 
3. Reading:  If you didn't finish your summary response, due tomorrow

Wednesday Wackiness

• 1st and 2nd period we had math.  We started the day by writing down the I Can statement for math and the new vocabulary.  Today's focus was "I can multiply by 5 and 10".  Our new vocabulary word was MULTIPLE.  
• The students had their first quiz on 2's and 4's today.  They took a little longer than expected so I think they let us know they are not practicing at home!   We then did the On the Spot Math video for lesson 4.2.  We did the problem of the day looking at information on a graph.  Then we watched the animated Math Lesson on counting 5's and 10's.  We worked through unlocking both problems and coming up with as many ways to solve it as possible.  Lots of good turn and talk discussions.  After watching the animated interactive lesson, we opened the student books and worked through the similar problems with great ease.   Finally, students were released to work independently to practice the skills they learned.  It was one of the first times in a long long time when people didn't move to small group for extra support.  I guess 5's and 10's are pretty easy when multiplying!
• We went a little over today because the math quiz that we thought would take 10 minutes took closer to 25.  Live and learn right!  We also spent some time going over how to find websites using the class blog.  Tomorrow we will try and do some classwork on the ThinkCentral website to see how the students do following directions.
• 3rd/4th - Today our focus was looking for literal vs. non-literal in our text. 

• We discussed the different learning tasks and then I had three questions that students had to go back to the text and find the answers.  Today, they worked in pairs to go back and answer the questions.  It was nice to see them work so hard and really pull together and find the answers and struggle to say the answer the correct way.  My little guys are starting to grow!
• After we practiced the skill enough, we passed out T-Charts and students broke into Independent Reading areas and read their book of choice and worked on finding Literal and Non-Literal expressions and explaining them.  Today we tried for just 12 minutes of independent reading work.  It worked really well so tomorrow we will try for 13 minutes until we build up to 20!
• We had to cut literacy short because we had to go to the BOOK FAIR for 30 minutes to sample and buy.  Students who brought money could buy books, students who didn't were able to browse so they could see what they wanted.   Remember, the book fair is open during Open School tomorrow so bring your $$$!  Mr. McDougall spent $44 bucks buying new books for the class library today.  
• 5th - Lunch / Recess
• 6th - Gym
• 7th - We finished our lesson from ReadyGen 1B.9 which was about why authors pick certain pictures and graphics.  We looked at several samples from the book to model why they put a graphic in a certain place (TO HELP YOU UNDERSTAND THE INFORMATION!).  We then passed out homework, went over how to do the Math and Spelling, and then wrote down our homework.  Finally, we ended the day reading our class novel.

Just a reminder, Thursday is 1/2 day due to Open School afternoon and night.  Everyone has an assigned meeting time so we will see you then.  We encourage you to bring your child because the conference is about them.  They need to be a part of the conversation!

Homework:

• Math - Practice Homework 201/202
• Facts - Practice your 2's, 4's, 5's and 10's
• Reading - Finish filling out your T-Chart using your IR Book
• Read - 35-40 minutes (reading log)
• Spelling - practice sheet (test Friday)

Independent Reading Practice - After Lunch Recess

NYC Reads 365 Website Launched

NYCREADS365

We believe reading is something you should do Everyday!  365 Days of the Year!!!

2nd Grade Recommendations

3rd Grade Recommendations

4th Grade Recommendations

Please visit the website for suggested activities to do with your child to help them improve their reading comprehension and fluency.  Let's get our kids reading!

Election Day

Hey Parents!

Just wanted to remind you that Tuesday is Election Day and school is closed for students.  Teachers will be busy with professional development.

I am traveling to the East Side for a Professional Development called  Independent Reading in ReadyGen - Presented by Pam Allyn.  

Pam Allyn is an expert in the field of literacy, so I can't wait to hear her thoughts about independent reading being incorporated into our ReadyGen coursework.

Ok, enjoy your day off by studying your 2's and 4's multiplication facts and by reading your IR book.  Wish me luck, I have to take the A to the C to the M79 and then find my way through the UES.  FINGERS CROSSED!

Monday in Room 304

I have to admit, I think I am coming down with something.  My body is feeling yucky and my head hurts.  I usually get sick when the weather starts to change, so I am sure my body is confused because it has been going back and forth the past few weeks.  Regardless, I am here and we are learning!

• 1st period we looked at each question on the Chapter 3 Performance Task.  It is my belief that the students know how to do the processes being asked, they just get bogged down with reading and understanding the questions.  So for the first half of the year, we slow down and read it question by question, underline important words, circle what they are being asked to do, and then they go and solve it on their own.  This is critical for them!  They have to be able to break down the questions.  This modeling and buddy work will lead them to being able to understand how to do this on their own.  I call it my gradual release method.  I will gradually release them and let them do more and more independently when they are ready and capable.  Right now, we share it!
• 2nd period - We went over the "Show What You Know" from homework and then watched the Math on the Spot video to introduce lesson 4.1 to the students.  The I can statement today was, "I can multiply by 2 and 4".  This method centered around the fact that if you didn't know what a number times 4 was, you probably know what the number times 2 was.. do that and then double it to get the times 4.  For example, 4 x 9 might be an unknown.. but if you know 2 x 9 = 18... just double it 18+18 is 36, so 4 x 9 is 36.  We then filled out a 2's and 4' multiplication table and students worked on practice problems and learning these facts.

• 3rd - We went back over the lesson for 1B.8 since we rushed on Friday due to the length of time it took for testing and then lack of attention after lunch.  But that is neither here nor there, we needed to go back , so we did.  We read pages 20-22 with a focus of "I can closely read text for key ideas and details."  We read the last section of the book and then looked at key questions that required them to look back for evidence, but also to make inferences.  They had to decide why roots were important to just not plants, but also animals and humans based on the information presented in the section.  
• 4th - We did some shared writing. The focus today was " I can develop a topic with facts, details, and definitions."  In lesson 5 we started a 3 column chart and have read several articles about Sea Stars.  They have compiled information from the text into their three column charts under the headings "What They Look Like", "What They Eat",and "How They Eat".  They practiced putting information in groups by adding it to the correct column.  They practiced copying just key words and details.  Today, we co-wrote an introduction including a HOOK (to get us interested), an interesting fact or detail (to get them interested and focused), and then a what we will be discussing sentence (THESIS) to inform the reader of the topic.  We color coded it so they could see each part.  Then we co-wrote the first paragraph.  I broke it down so they could see the introductory sentence was the main idea.  How the next 3 sentences gave facts to support that main idea, and the last sentence reworded the first sentence to sum it up. The students had to work on the next  paragraphs on their own.

These last two are the ones they have to do independently.  I gave them the introductory sentence, they have to use their facts to create the paragraph with supporting details from their 3 column chart research.

• 5th - Lunch
• 6th - Dance
• 7th - Spelling Pre-Test!  With a big portion of the class out during 3rd and 4th for pull out, we had to move the spelling test to the end of the day when everyone was here.   We then read from our class novel "Emma Is On the Air" before writing down homework and packing up for the day. 

Homework:

• Math - Lesson 4.1 Practice pp.195-196
• Spelling - Practice 2x each
• Writing - Write your independent paragraphs we started in class
• Reading - Independent Reading (IR) for 30-45 minutes