Xtra Math Certificate!

I want to give a HUGE shout out to our very first kiddo who received a certificate for her practice on Xtra Math! She went through all of the practice questions for each of the multiplication facts and scored smiley faces on all of them! Way to go!!!

Snapshot 2-26-18

Here is this week's snapshot if  you are unable to get the e-mails. You can download the *.pdf file by clicking beneath the snapshot picture the below. All snapshots will be available in *.pdf form on the "Weekly Snapshots" page {here} once they are sent out and posted! Click {here} to download this week's snapshot! Week of: February 26, 2018

Dear Parents,

As we move into the 5th cycle, please help us to encourage your child to turn in their assignments by the due date. Due dates are listed in class as well as through snapshot to help in that communication between home and school. As a reminder, late work receives a 10 point deduction for each day it is late. After the 3rd late day (for a total of 30 points off of the final graded score), it is up to teacher discretion as to accept the assignment or not. You child works very hard to complete their assignments and keep track of their assignments. Please help remind them to turn their assignments in so their work can be acknowledged! Turning assignments in BEFORE the due date is always welcomed and encouraged! There were several students who received punches on their PRIDE cards today for buckling down during station time and completing quality work before that station was over! Way to go kiddos! J

Please see the list of dates below for what we have going on at school over the next few weeks.

Upcoming Dates
Monday, February 26	Tutorials
	Last Day of Explorers
Tuesday, February 27	Tutorials
Friday, March 2	Dr. Seuss Day
	PRIDE Parties
Monday, March 5	PTA Board meeting
Monday March 12 - Friday March 16	SPRING BREAK!!! Enjoy the week off!

Upcoming Assignment due dates
Monday, February 26	Social Studies Classwork: Ruby Bridges Flocabulary: Quiz and Read and Respond
Friday, March 2 *moved back 1 day	Math Classwork: Non-Magnet: Motivation Math pp. 49 Independent Practice over Fractions. Math Classwork: Magnet: Motivation Math pp. 49-50 Independent Practice and Assessment over Fractions.
Friday, March 2	Science Classwork: Soil Formation Stories
HOMEWORK: Wednesday, February 28	Math homework: Countdown to STAAR Series 3 p1 Mixed Math C-6 {front and back} Science homework: Bottle Terrarium {link on blog page}

*number of classwork assignments may change throughout the week based on classroom needs

THIS WEEK IN MATH:

We are continuing this unit with understanding how to compare fractions with either like numerators or like denominators and reasoning about their relative sizes.  Students will need to draw models or use tools to compare fraction amounts.  We will also be working on recognizing and creating equivalent fractions and representing these fractions with models and locating them on a number line.

We are learning the following concepts:

● when two fractions have the same denominator, the fraction with the greater numerator is the greater fraction.

● fractions are equivalent when they are represented by the same point on a number line.

Please see the new resources listed below to support your child’s mastery of these skills.

Math Resources to Help at Home

ABCya Equivalent Fractions Bingo– Choose the equivalent fractions and try to score BINGO!

Math Playground: Triplets - Sort the fractions and models into groups based on equivalence.

Free Training Tutorial - Fractions has plenty of games to hone your skills

Sheppard Softward - Equivalent Fractions Matching

Education Galaxy– Fractions would be a great practice.  This can be found under “My Study Plan”

Battleship Numberline - GameUp – BrainPOP - In this free online math game, students explore fractions, decimals, and other number concepts by estimating their place on a number line.

Math Playground Puzzle Pics– Match the fraction with its picture or location on the number line.

Place the puzzle piece on the fraction picture in the grid.  Watch as the mystery picture appears

Fractions on a Number Line -   Drag and drop the fractions in the correct order on number line.

IXL Fractions On a Number Line – What fraction does the number line show?

Fractions – In this game, your child will click on the fraction that shows how much pizza was left.

Fraction Games – Check out these 8 different games on fractions through Education.com’s website! There are even some of the games that look at converting proper and improper fractions that can be used as an extension at home.

Fraction Fling – This ABCYa game has you look at a fraction on the screen and match the correct corresponding numerical fraction. This is great for practicing matching models with the fractions.

Splash Math – Have you child practice identifying, modeling, comparing and showing equivalent fractions through different games on Splash Math.

Xtra Math – I love the work I am seeing on some of these! Your child has their own account where they are able to log in and practice math facts at home! I currently have it set up to practice only multiplication facts as we work on the last few factors for our timed tests. It starts by giving a placement quiz and then working on the facts that your child struggles with. The goal is to get smiley faces (which means the question is answered in 3 seconds or less, close to the average amount of time it would take on our timed tests).

SKILL PRACTICE WEBSITES

Free Training Tutorial - Division - This link will take you to the division page. If you would like to practice other skills with your child, you can search through them on the website’s home page.

Regrouping is definitely a skill that needs to be reviewed often in addition and subtraction.  Many of our students are showing a need for this.  Under Subtraction, there is a two-digit with regrouping basketball game that would be a great practice if your child wants to strengthen this skill.

That Quiz  - Under Integers, click Arithmetic.  Adjust length, level, and time as needed.  Click the box for multiplication to let your child practice their facts.

Multiplication – Lots of free and entertaining games to practice multiplication facts.

Education Galaxy – Use the skills practice section for math to practice multiplication facts.

Turtle Diary Division Games - Use these games to practice division and multiplication facts. Change the topics or grade level to review different skills, or bump up to a more challenging level!

  

THIS WEEK IN SCIENCE:

In science this week, we will continue our Unit on Earth and its Resources. We will be looking at soil and how different materials decompose and make up parts of our soil.

RESOURCES FOR PRACTICE

Study Jams - Soil – View the slide show on soil and test yourself on what was discussed! This Study Jam talks extends on some of the concepts we will discuss in class and is great for looking ahead at what is to come in upper grades! You can also look at other Study Jams on landform, rock and mineral related topics {here}.

Discovery Education – There is a large supply of video, interactive learning, questions, and an interactive glossary for vocabulary that is always helpful for whatever we are learning in science.  All content in this resource is searchable.

SoilTris Game – 4^TH GRADE SKILL: Drag and drop blocks to create the ideal soil profile which is illustrated on the left hand side of the screen. Learn about the different elements that soil contains and the balance that is needed with these elements to generate the best result for soil.

A-Maze-ing Underground – The soil is alive with so many things that affect the health and strength of plants. Play this Pac Man® like game to create the perfect balance of nutrients for a acorn crop. While underground, take pictures of the things you see for bonus points. You can look at these photos and related information when the game ends.

Where in the Soil World Are You? – Look at different types of soil and guess the clues on each page. See if you can figure out what each kind of environments the soils support by reading the clues and investigating the different soil layers.

What's The Dirt On Soil - Put the soil layers in order and learn about each soil layer in this interactive Discovery Education game. This is one of the fun games that can be found in the Techbook on Discovery Education’s site.

Thank you so much for your dedication to helping your child learn.

 

Terrarium - Science Homework

This week's science homework is to make a bottle terrarium at home! Here is a link that we looked at in class with pictures and instructions that would be perfect to replicate at home.

Really, they just need to focus on the outdoor material (soil, leaves, twigs or sticks, creepy crawlers if they find them) and putting that material in a bottle. We are not planting seeds or growing plants inside of the bottles at this time.

This will help us so much as we view different types of soil from different parts of our community! It will be fun to compare what soil looks like around our area!

As always, if you have any questions, please let me know!

Soda Bottle Terrarium

Snapshot 2-19-2018

Here is this week's snapshot if  you are unable to get the e-mails. You can download the *.pdf file by clicking beneath the snapshot picture the below. All snapshots will be available in *.pdf form on the "Weekly Snapshots" page {here} once they are sent out and posted! Click {here} to download this week's snapshot!

Week of: February 19, 2018

Dear Parents,

We have a lot coming up these next few weeks of school! Please see the list of dates below for what we have going on at school over the next few weeks. The homework will be updated on our blog page this week.

Upcoming Dates
Monday, February 19	STAFF DEVELOPMENT NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, February 20	Science Unit 5 Curriculum Assessment *Sun and Planets; Sun, Earth, Moon System; Weather changes
	Spirit Night McDonald’s
Friday, February 23	4th Grading Cycle Ends
Thursday, February 22	PTA Association Meeting in cafeteria @ 6:00
	5th Grade Program in cafeteria @ 6:30
Monday, February 26	Tutorials
	Last Day of Explorers
Tuesday, February 27	Tutorials
Friday, March 2	Dr. Seuss Day
	PRIDE Parties

Upcoming Assignment due dates
Tuesday, February 20	Math Classwork: Non-Magnet: Envision Workbook page 568 Math Classwork: Magnet: Motivation Math Workbook pages 39 - 40
Wednesday, February 21	Math Classwork: Non-Magnet: Motivation Math pp. 41 Independent Practice over Fractions. Math Classwork: Magnet: Motivation Math pp. 41-42 Independent Practice and Assessment over Fractions.
Thursday, March 1	Math Classwork: Non-Magnet: Motivation Math pp. 49 Independent Practice over Fractions. Math Classwork: Magnet: Motivation Math pp. 49-50 Independent Practice and Assessment over Fractions.
HOMEWORK: Tuesday, February 20	Math homework: Countdown to STAAR Series 2 p7 Mixed Math C-5 {front and back} Science/Social Studies homework: Unit 12 and Unit 10 {front and back}

*number of classwork assignments may change throughout the week based on classroom needs

THIS WEEK IN MATH:

We are continuing this unit with understanding how to locate, represent and name fractions on a number line and match a fraction with a given point.  We will also review concepts from last week to insure understanding.

We are learning the following concepts:

● a fraction describes the division of a whole into equal parts.

● the numerator tells how many equal parts of the whole are being considered and the denominator tells how many equal parts the whole is divided into.

● fractions are shown on number lines as points between two whole numbers.

● when two fractions have the same denominator, the fraction with the greater numerator is the greater fraction.

● fractions are equivalent when they are represented by the same point on a number line.

Please see the new resources listed below to support your child’s mastery of these skills.

Key to Success - Mastery of multiplication facts is very important, as we are using this skill extensively and in more complicated ways.  Students who do not know their facts are losing their place in problems. 

Please consider setting aside time to practice multiplication facts if you aren’t already.

Math Resources to Help at Home

Education Galaxy– Fractions would be a great practice.  This can be found under “My Study Plan”

Battleship Numberline - GameUp – BrainPOP - In this free online math game, students explore fractions, decimals, and other number concepts by estimating their place on a number line.

Math Playground Puzzle Pics– Match the fraction with its picture or location on the number line.
Place the puzzle piece on the fraction picture in the grid.  Watch as the mystery picture appears

Fractions on a Number Line -   Drag and drop the fractions in the correct order on number line.

IXL Fractions On a Number Line – What fraction does the number line show?

Fractions – In this game, your child will click on the fraction that shows how much pizza was left.

Fraction Games – Check out these 8 different games on fractions through Education.com’s website! There are even some of the games that look at converting proper and improper fractions that can be used as an extension at home.

Fraction Fling – This ABCYa game has you look at a fraction on the screen and match the correct corresponding numerical fraction. This is great for practicing matching models with the fractions.

Splash Math – Have you child practice identifying, modeling, comparing and showing equivalent fractions through different games on Splash Math.

Xtra Math – I love the work I am seeing on some of these! Your child has their own account where they are able to log in and practice math facts at home! I currently have it set up to practice only multiplication facts as we work on the last few factors for our timed tests. It starts by giving a placement quiz and then working on the facts that your child struggles with. The goal is to get smiley faces (which means the question is answered in 3 seconds or less, close to the average amount of time it would take on our timed tests).

Free Apps:

SKILL PRACTICE WEBSITES

Free Training Tutorial - Division - This link will take you to the division page. If you would like to practice other skills with your child, you can search through them on the website’s home page.

Regrouping is definitely a skill that needs to be reviewed often in addition and subtraction.  Many of our students are showing a need for this.  Under Subtraction, there is a two-digit with regrouping basketball game that would be a great practice if your child wants to strengthen this skill.

That Quiz  - Under Integers, click Arithmetic.  Adjust length, level, and time as needed.  Click the box for multiplication to let your child practice their facts.

Multiplication – Lots of free and entertaining games to practice multiplication facts.

Education Galaxy – Use the skills practice section for math to practice multiplication facts.

Turtle Diary Division Games - Use these games to practice division and multiplication facts. Change the topics or grade level to review different skills, or bump up to a more challenging level!

  

THIS WEEK IN SCIENCE:

As noted in our upcoming dates at the top of the Snapshot, we will have our Unit 5 Curriculum assessment over the Sun and Planets; the Sun, Earth, Moon system; and weather changes on Tuesday, February 20. We will begin a new Unit after our curriculum assessment this Tuesday.

In science this week, we will begin our Unit on Earth and its Resources. We will be looking at soil and how different materials decompose and make up parts of our soil.

RESOURCES FOR PRACTICE

Study Jams - Soil – View the slide show on soil and test yourself on what was discussed! This Study Jam talks extends on some of the concepts we will discuss in class and is great for looking ahead at what is to come in upper grades! You can also look at other Study Jams on landform, rock and mineral related topics {here}.

Discovery Education – There is a large supply of video, interactive learning, questions, and an interactive glossary for vocabulary that is always helpful for whatever we are learning in science.  All content in this resource is searchable.

SoilTris Game – 4^TH GRADE SKILL: Drag and drop blocks to create the ideal soil profile which is illustrated on the left hand side of the screen. Learn about the different elements that soil contains and the balance that is needed with these elements to generate the best result for soil.

A-Maze-ing Underground – The soil is alive with so many things that affect the health and strength of plants. Play this Pac Man® like game to create the perfect balance of nutrients for a acorn crop. While underground, take pictures of the things you see for bonus points. You can look at these photos and related information when the game ends.

Where in the Soil World Are You? – Look at different types of soil and guess the clues on each page. See if you can figure out what each kind of environments the soils support by reading the clues and investigating the different soil layers.

Thank you so much for your dedication to helping your child learn.

Snapshot for the Week of 2-12-18

Here is this week's snapshot if  you are unable to get the e-mails. You can download the *.pdf file by clicking beneath the snapshot picture the below. All snapshots will be available in *.pdf form on the "Weekly Snapshots" page {here} once they are sent out and posted!

Click {here} to direct download this week's snapshot!

Week of: February 12, 2018

Dear Parents,

We have a lot coming up these next few weeks of school! Please see the list of dates below for what we have going on at school over the next few weeks as well as dues dates for next week’s scheduled homework.

Upcoming Dates
Monday, February 12	Tutorials
	Explorers
Tuesday, February 13	College Shirt Day
	Parent/Teacher Conferences (for those who signed up on this day)
	Timed Test – Mixed Facts
Wednesday, February 14	Spring Pictures
	Holiday Parties 1:35 – 2:25
Thursday, February 15	Parent/Teacher Conferences (for those who signed up on this day)
Friday, February 16	Father/Daughter Dance 7:00 – 9:00pm
Monday, February 19	STAFF DEVELOPMENT NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, February 20	Science Unit 5 Curriculum Assessment *Sun and Planets; Sun, Earth, Moon System; Weather changes

Upcoming Assignment due dates
Thursday, February 15	Math Classwork: Non-Magnet: Envision Workbook page 551 Math Classwork: Magnet: Envision Workbook page 551 & 552
Tuesday, February 20	Math Classwork: Non-Magnet: Envision Workbook page 568 Math Classwork: Magnet: Motivation Math Workbook pages 39 - 40
Wednesday, February 21	Math Classwork: Non-Magnet: Motivation Math pp. 41 Independent Practice over Fractions. Math Classwork: Magnet: Motivation Math pp. 41-42 Independent Practice and Assessment over Fractions.
HOMEWORK: Monday, February 19	Math homework: Countdown to STAAR Series 2 p7 Mixed Math C-5 {front and back} Science/Social Studies homework: Unit 12 and Unit 10 {front and back}

*number of classwork assignments may change throughout the week based on classroom needs

 

THIS WEEK IN MATH:

Fractions, fractions, everywhere you look!  We are beginning this unit with understanding how to read fractions and how to represent fractional parts using fractions, models, and pictures.

Your child will be learning the following concepts:

● a fraction describes the division of a whole into equal parts.

● the numerator tells how many equal parts of the whole are being considered and the denominator tells how many equal parts the whole is divided into.

● fractions are shown on number lines as points between two whole numbers.

● when two fractions have the same denominator, the fraction with the greater numerator is the greater fraction.

● fractions are equivalent when they are represented by the same point on a number line.

Please see the new resources listed below to support your child’s mastery of these skills.

Key to Success - Mastery of multiplication facts is very important, as we are using this skill extensively and in more complicated ways.  Students who do not know their facts are losing their place in problems. 

Please consider setting aside time to practice multiplication facts if you aren’t already.

Math Resources to Help at Home

Fractions – In this game, your child will click on the fraction that shows how much pizza was left.

Fraction Games – Check out these 8 different games on fractions through Education.com’s website! There are even some of the games that look at converting proper and improper fractions that can be used as an extension at home.

Fraction Fling – This ABCYa game has you look at a fraction on the screen and match the correct corresponding numerical fraction. This is great for practicing matching models with the fractions.

Splash Math – Have you child practice identifying, modeling, comparing and showing equivalent fractions through different games on Splash Math.

Xtra Math – I love the work I am seeing on some of these! Your child has their own account where they are able to log in and practice math facts at home! I currently have it set up to practice only multiplication facts as we work on the last few factors for our timed tests. It starts by giving a placement quiz and then working on the facts that your child struggles with. The goal is to get smiley faces (which means the question is answered in 3 seconds or less, close to the average amount of time it would take on our timed tests).

Students in third grade must master their multiplication facts with automaticity.  This means they are to recall these facts quickly.  Each Tuesday, we have a two minute test over the facts we have studied for the previous week. We will have our timed multiplication test Tuesday, February 13 over mixed facts.  Thatquiz.org is a great resource to study for this cumulative test.

SKILL PRACTICE WEBSITES

Free Training Tutorial - Division - This link will take you to the division page. If you would like to practice other skills with your child, you can search through them on the website’s home page.

Regrouping is definitely a skill that needs to be reviewed often in addition and subtraction.  Many of our students are showing a need for this.  Under Subtraction, there is a two-digit with regrouping basketball game that would be a great practice if your child wants to strengthen this skill.

That Quiz  - Under Integers, click Arithmetic.  Adjust length, level, and time as needed.  Click the box for multiplication to let your child practice their facts.

Multiplication – Lots of free and entertaining games to practice multiplication facts.

Education Galaxy – Use the skills practice section for math to practice multiplication facts.

Turtle Diary Division Games - Use these games to practice division and multiplication facts. Change the topics or grade level to review different skills, or bump up to a more challenging level!

THIS WEEK IN SCIENCE:

In science this week, we will be looking at weather and changes in weather that occurs in different parts of Texas. The kids will be using iPads and computers as they work with their groups to look up weather data for cities in different regions around the state of Texas. They will be using this data to compare the high temperatures of the day, precipitation levels and wind direction of those cities, and answering questions based on those comparisons.

As noted in our upcoming dates at the top of the Snapshot, we will have our Unit 5 Curriculum assessment over the Sun and Planets; the Sun, Earth, Moon system; and weather changes on Tuesday, February 20.

The Planets Flocabulary is assigned to students and is open from now through Thursday, February 15. The Sun Flocabulary is also assigned. Any students who complete these assignments before the due date will receive a punch on their PRIDE card for any area they complete (up to 3 punches!) Way to go those of you who have already worked through this!

RESOURCES FOR PRACTICE

Study Jams - Weather and Climate – View the 4 minute video on weather and climate and test yourself on what was discussed! This Study Jam talks extends on some of the concepts we will discuss in class and is great for looking ahead at what is to come in upper grades! You can also look at other Study Jams on solar system related topics {here}.

Discovery Education – There is a large supply of video, interactive learning, questions, and an interactive glossary for vocabulary that is always helpful for whatever we are learning in science.  All content in this resource is searchable.

PBS Kids - Weather Transformer – Change the weather and see how different objects are affected by the weather with this game starring Dr. Seuss characters from the Cat in the Hat!

Weather Report – You get to be the weather forecaster! In this game, match the types of weather and temperature with the forecast at the top of the screen. See how many checks you can get correct and try not to get any x’s!

Climate Kids – NASA has SEVERAL different games, articles and photos about weather and climate. Visit the main Weather and Climate page by clicking the link. At the bottom of the page you can find links to games, activities, videos and people that all have the do with weather and climate!

Thank you so much for your dedication to helping your child learn.