February 2nd - 4th Update

We had a short, but very productive week!

Language Arts

This week I used Robert Munsch's "Andrew's Loose Tooth" as a mentor text during read aloud time.  This is an excellent book to model the comprehension strategy of "using prior knowledge to connect with texts."

Have you ever read a story and been able to connect on a personal level with a character or storyline? Do you notice that it is easier to read and comprehend something that you have background knowledge of? This is because readers bring information from what they already know or what they have previously read about a topic and connect it with what they are reading. This increases their understanding of the text and helps them remember what they have read. Using prior knowledge can help students connect their own experiences with the text to better understand and make sense of what they are reading.  The students really enjoyed reading "Andrew's Loose Tooth" and sharing their personal experiences with losing teeth.

During Writer's Workshop we continued to work on varying sentence starters using the last two question words:  who and what?  The students have been so excited to share their sentences with class.  They are so proud and are starting to feel like real writers.  Next week we will focus on writing vivid settings in preparation of putting together our first class story.

Math

This week we focused on using the open number line to add double and triple digits.  The open number line is just one of the many personal strategies that students can use for addition and subtraction.

Science

This week in science we used a decibel meter to measure and graph the loudness of different sounds.  We also discussed how loud sounds pose a danger to the ear.  Miss K's scream was loud enough to measure 110 decibels!  Luckily, the rest of the class had their ears plugged!

To finish off our Hearing and Sound Unit, the students did a mini research project to compare the range of hearing in humans to that of various animals.  In pairs, the students researched an animal of their choice to find out how that animal uses sound to hear and communicate.  They identified unique features that help these animals hear and communicate and learned how animals use their hearing to capture prey as well as for protection.  The students enjoyed presenting their findings to the rest of the class.

Social Studies

This week the students started working on the cover page for their Tunisian lapbook.  Next week we will start learning about the Tunisian culture.