Hello, parents!
Research shows that daily homework has little to no effect on elementary-age students. For the most part, the only daily work your child will have at home is reading. Because students have choice in what they read, they should be more than willing to complete this daily assignment. Here is what is expected of students each day for their reading homework:
- Bring independent reading book to and from school and home each day.
- Read for at least 20 minutes outside of school.
- Record reading on the reading log calendar, which students keep in their take home folders.
I encourage you to talk with your child about what he or she is reading. Visit this page for some ideas about talking to kids about books, or start with one or more of these questions:
- What “signposts” are you seeing as you read your book? (Have them explain the 6 different types of signposts readers may encounter!)
- Who are the characters in your book? What problem are they facing?
- When and where does the story take place?
- Is there a character in the story to whom you can relate? Why?
- Who is your least favorite character in the story? Why?
Although reading will be the main homework, there will be times when students need to study, finish projects, or practice skills for mastery. You can keep up with what we’re working on in class as well as with any work that may be assigned by checking your child’s weekly planner sheet. We fill this out together daily, and you can also find a copy that is updated daily on the “Agenda” tab of the blog.
Math:
- We are working our first math unit, Addition & Subtraction with Fractions!
- As this unit unfolds, a focus will be to master our multiplication and division math facts. Please practice these at home and look for MobyMax homework to come soon!
ELA:
- We’re working on establishing strong independent reading lives and writing narrative pieces.
- Students should be reading for 20 minutes each night and filling out the reading log.
Science:
- We’ll begin discussing collaborative work practices and scientific understanding prior to our first unit.
Social Studies:
- We are reviewing the structure of our government.
Important Reminders:
- Early Release day next Friday, September 20th!
- Popcorn Friday on Sept 20th.
- Walk-a-thon on September 27th!
Picture This…Our Class at Work!
We collaborated as we reviewed the 3 branches of our government.
We split the class into 3 groups and each focused on one branch to become experts! It was a great first attempt at larger group work! 😉
In math we practiced converting mixed numbers into improper fractions and back again. We did this “Oprah style” with different examples under our chairs. I think I was more excited than students were when I could say, “You get a mixed number! And you get an improper fraction!”
Students practicing converting mixed numbers and fractions!