Friday Notes - 9/16/11

Parents:

This week was certainly a busy one!  Hopefully you've all had a chance to review the tests and graded papers that have come home in today's Friday Folder.  Please keep in mind that a student's grade does not have to be solely based or derived from written tests; we are constantly making documented observations, giving informal assessments, etc., and use them to also formulate the children's grades. 

The children got a kick out of our air pressure demonstration today (I think they just liked the fact that we used half a box of matches!) using a soda bottle.  Ask your child which type of pressure (high or low) brings clouds and which type brings clear weather.  Next week we'll have our Map Skills assessment on Thursday.  Please help your child study nightly and initial in the labeled area on his/her study guide. 

Our Fact Pack (as we are affectionately calling it) is doing well on the memorization of the multiplication facts, and Mrs. Armour and I are eager to see these skills improve in the students that didn't master them in 3rd grade.  In other math news, we've been differentiating (as you know) for several weeks now by grouping the students based on their needs.  Today the children were given a four-problem "formative assessment," and Monday will mark yet another division of the groups as we narrow down which children still require practice on 2x2 digit multiplication, and which have mastered the standard and are ready to move on to some enrichment challenge activities.  As in the past, your child may have one of three different homework activities each night next week, depending on which group he or she fits into.  This weekend, ask your child to demonstrate two DIFFERENT ways to solve a multiplication problem - the traditional algorithm (like WE learned!) and the less-traditional area model (or, as the kids like to call it, the rectangle, the "keyboard," or the "plate.")

This week in reading we focused on main idea and details, and next week we'll be working on the 5 types of context clues and how to use them to figure out the meanings of unfamiliar words in text.  Don't panic when you see words whited-out of some assignments next week, or "nonsense" words thrown into stories!  :)   They're all a part of the activities we'll work on to increase these context clue skills.

In other reading news, Literature Circles are beginning to take shape for students whose fluency and comprehension skills exceed our expectations for this point in the school year.  The students have been learning effective discussion/argument techniques, have been creating rubrics for being graded on their usage of the techniques, and early next week will be choosing the books they would like to read first.  More information will come home about this next week to those parents whose children are involved!  For those groups with students requiring rehearsal of fluency skills, practice on comprehension techniques, or a review of some basic skills, this is underway in a guided reading setting and the students have been working hard on finding main ideas, inferring, predicting, and answering questions by finding "proof" in the reading.

As always, should you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to email!  Have a wonderful weekend.  :)