Skip to main content

Winter? It's 70 degrees?

We have certainly enjoyed our sunshine this week!


In project, we have been steadily progressing through our keyboarding lessons, and have all made gains in our finger positioning and WPM!

In town meeting, we have been dovetailing morning assemblies' message about kindness, and the differences between someone being "annoying" or "bullying." We've talked extensively about our choices and responsibilities. Our kids know that top priority for the SBLC is everyone's safety, physically and emotionally. Please support us in having the kids come to us immediately when they are having a problem.

Second Graders have completed inference and summary statements about various books about Martin Luther King Jr. and Segregation. We are back on board full force with spelling, word work, and writing centers as well. This week we began brainstorming a sensory descriptive narrative piece about an activity we enjoy.

Third Graders have delved deeply into nonfiction, analyzing and understanding an article on an adventure into a volcano. They are now applying those skills to a new article independently about learning languages. Our writing and spelling centers are keeping us on our toes as well.

Our Fourth Grade writers have been working hard on elaboration in our expository pieces. In fact, we have found that we can really spend A LOT of time planning, expanding, and describing in detail each and every example. We have continued with Joe Rantz and the boys in the U of Washington rowing team...what a fabulous example of a person with GRIT and DETERMINATION! Finally, we have been using writing centers as practice for editing and revision -- as well as getting spelling back underway.

Fourth graders used dot plots and stem and leaf plots to answer questions this week in math. Third graders used bar graphs and dot plots to display and interpret data. Both fourth and third graders ended the week with an assessment over graphs. Second graders made pictographs and bar graphs to show data. We ended the week with Sunshine math.

We wrapped up our Force & Motion unit this week with some team problem-solving, hands-on experiments, and virtual investigations. All three grade levels identified forces in our world (pushes and pulls) and described simple machines that we use to make work easier.

Fourth grade worked together to review some key concepts and prove their answers. They also logged into STEMScopes to conduct some online experiments with friction and force.

Third grade tested out simple machines on the Museum of Science and Industry's site (see the Simple Machines link under Academic Extensions).


Then, they made some simple machines of their own using materials we had right in our classroom!

Second grade added Twirlers and Twirly Birds to their list of things that spin and also explored objects that slide and roll. Each type of motion has unique characteristics!

Enjoy the last January weekend!
The SBLC Team

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Texas Regions

*Parents, this is an in-class assignment. Hello, SBLC Super Stars! Today, you are explorers of the four Texas regions. If you get finished--AND your have double checked your work--please make a comment that includes your name and something you enjoyed learning today! Directions : Carefully read below and use the links to investigate the characteristics and history of each region. Remember to write neatly and double check spelling...everything you do deserves your best effort! :) 1. A  sub-region  is a smaller part of a region or area. What are the sub-regions within each Texas region? Look at the picture below to see how to record your findings in your notebook. Now, click here to find your answers:  http://bookbuilder.cast.org/view_print.php?book=41216 2. On the next two pages in your notebook, create a half-page "fact sheet" for each region. Set your pages up first! Use a ruler to make straight lines and create a half page for each region. ...

Making Change -- Online Games

http://www.mathplayground.com/making_change.html   Math Game - Making Change www.mathplayground.com Making Change Click and drag the correct change to the counter. More Math Games Money and Time : Making Change supports Grade 2 Common Core Math Standards in ... http://www.funbrain.com/cashreg/     Money Games for Kids | FunBrain www.funbrain.com Calculate the change required from purchases and fill your piggy bank! The more you get right, the more you have. Play FunBrain's Money games for Kids now! http://mrnussbaum.com/cashd/   Cash Out – A Money Game mrnussbaum.com Age Appropriateness: Cash Out is appropriate for kids ages 7 – 12. There are three skill levels and various options to customize the game for the aforementioned ages. http://www.abcya.com/counting_money.htm   Learn to Count Money | ABCya! www.abcya.com Learn to Count Money | Children practice counting money by clicking and dragging bills and...

Reaching Out, Learning about Each Other and the World

This week our focus has challenged us to "be the world to one," rather than just "one in the world." Discussions have run deep with how our actions and words truly have an impact on everyone around us. We also talked about how all of us: humanity and nature make the music of this world, and without our unique voice, that music is missing something. Discover what you want to add to the music. Speak up. Say something. We wrestled with big history this week. We celebrated  Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and The Little Rock 5, Ruby Bridges, and the thousands of others who took a stand during the Civil Rights Era. To understand this better, we looked at primary source pictures -- these leaders, their actions, their speeches, their marches -- which brought them to life. We examined timelines and asked powerful questions. Again, another opportunity to look at the world -- right now -- and ask, "How can I be the world to one? What do I want to say that makes...