LANGUAGE ARTS: We will start changing classes for language arts and math on Friday, September 5. Students will be given their class assignments Thursday afternoon.
LANGUAGE ARTS: We will be self-selecting nonfiction books to read. The genre for this month is realistic fiction. These books reflect characters and situations that could happen in “real life.” Realistic fiction offers students an opportunity to relate the characters, problems, and solutions in the book to what is happening or has happened in their own lives. Good readers make connections to what they are reading. This process aids in comprehension. We’ll be focusing on the strategy of connecting text to self, text to world, and text to text.
WRITING: The focus for the beginning of our writing work will be exploring mentor texts for writing crafts. We will also be participating in a process that combines art with writing. More about that later!
MATH: Mathematical understanding, or numeration, is the key to success in algebra, geometry, and computation. For this reason, we’ll be spending the week making sure each student knows the why behind the computational strategies they use. Concepts include positional power (place value), mathematical properties (commutative, associative, distributive, identity, zero), positive and negative integers, and how these apply to their mathematical world.
THEME: Geology is our focus and “change” our theme as we explore the forces that shape, mold, and move the earth. Tectonic plates, earthquakes, volcanoes, rocks, and minerals will be investigated. The process of creating a hypothesis and structuring methods to prove or disprove it will be modeled, practiced, and discussed. Students will be using real time data about earthquakes and volcanoes to collect information to support their ideas.
They are participating in a simulation in which the president of the United States asks them to help figure out where earthquakes are occurring, when they will occur, why they occur, and if volcanoes have anything to do with their occurrence. The simulation and its links can be found at http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/musicalplates3/. I highly recommend going to the site and having your child walk you through some of the links. The maps are fascinating!
By the way, did you know that according to the USGS (United States Geological Survey), “Scientists vigorously debate the possible sources of magma: Is magma generated by the partial melting of the subducted oceanic slab, or the overlying continental lithosphere, or both?” Guess you could say we’re studying a really hot topic!