Dear Parents,
We finished our mentor text, Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo. As we continue to study characters and story elements, I would like to show the movie to this book over a course of 2-3 days. Because of Winn-Dixie is rated PG. Due to the rating of PG, rather than G, If you prefer your child to not watch this movie, please send me a note and I will arrange alternative plans for your child during that time.
These past 2 weeks, students have been studying characters with a book club, or book partnership. It has been a way to share their thinking and take part in discussions about their stories. Because of Winn-Dixie has led to many thoughtful discussions in our class as well.
In writing, we are attempting to incorporate new strategies into our fairy tale writing. This week we learned ways to add personal style to our writing. I am encouraging students to add style by inserting adjectives, similes, using a balance dialogue with action, and varying sentence length. We have many creative writers in our class!
In math we began a unit on fractions. Basic concepts we are exploring are where the numerator and denominator are and their role in a fraction, unit fractions, fractions on a number line, and measuring to the nearest 1/4 inch. As we move along in math, we continue to master our multiplication and division facts on timed tests Tuesday-Friday. We have made a great deal of progress this year!
Recently, conference sign up sheets went home. All sign ups are online, as they were in the fall. If you have difficulty with the sign up, please let me know and I can sign up for you. Thank you!