We have a new digital resource for kids interested in nonfiction topics. Chapman now has a membership to PebbleGo! Students can read about animals, Earth science topics or biographies about important people who changed the world. Enjoy!
Our Learning Community
Welcome to "Our Learning Community." Our class blog is a way to share information with our students' families and the community. We hope you enjoy hearing about our learning adventures throughout the year.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Friday, September 28, 2012
September 28: News From IMA
Reading OAA Test for 3rd Graders on
October 2:
On Tuesday, the third
graders will take the Fall OAA Reading Test.
We will begin testing at 9:30 and finish at 12:00. Please be sure that your child arrives on
time that day or he/she will not be admitted to our room and will need to make
up the test on Wednesday, October 3rd. The third graders will test with Mrs.
Smith. Fourth graders will spend the
morning with Mrs. Marlatt since they are not taking the reading test until
May. Thank you in advance to all of the
families who volunteered to send in water, cheese sticks and hard candies to
have as snacks during testing. The
reminders of home are very uplifting!
Third grade students will
receive their Fall test scores in December or January. If students do not pass
the test in the fall, they have another chance to take the test and pass in the
spring. All third graders will take
another, more difficult version of the OAA Reading test in May.
Math Homework:
Due Every Thursday
Student will add math
homework to their weekly homework routine.
We started keeping our reading logs last week and will now add
individualized math packets. Each
child’s packet includes work that he/she needs to correct and practice work
based on the current unit of study. If
your child completes his/her work, they can use the resources on our Math
Resource Pages:
Students have used the math
resources on our Symbaloo pages and they should be able to explain how to
access the resources. The activities
have been carefully selected to match the current unit of study. They may look fun, but they are important practice
resources.
At this time, the on-line
Pearson Math resources are experiencing technical difficulties so we will not
assign any work on that site until the company corrects the problems. You will see plenty of math activities on our
Symbaloo site! Students should also
continue to study their math facts if they are still working to pass their
weekly fact tests. Math homework is due
every Thursday. Please let us know if
you have any questions.
Reading Log:
Due Every Thursday
Independent reading is
critical to a child’s reading development.
Time to read, selecting books of interest, and enthusiasm make a
tremendous difference in a child’s learning.
Please help your child set aside time throughout the week to read and
discuss his/her reading and learning.
Your child is expected to keep a reading log that shows 120 minutes of
reading time. They are asked to record
the titles so we can help them find materials of interest. Please visit our website (http://www.dublinschools.net/andreasmith.aspx)
or blog if you need to make paper copies of our reading log. Students can also submit reading logs through
our class blog or email. During the
first week, 85% of our kids submitted their homework electronically! Please let us know if you have any questions.
Cursive Homework:
Parents received a cursive
writing packet at Curriculum Night for home practice. If you did not attend the meeting, your child
is bringing home a yellow packet today.
Students are asked to complete 3 pages a week to practice cursive letter
formation. The basic letter skills are
then used to write cursive words. Please
return the packet when it is completed.
Your child will receive the next packet for home practice. Work should be completed in pencil.
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Reading Homework
Starting
this week, the IMA kids will officially begin reading homework.
How
long should my child read? How often
should my child read?
Students
are expected to read for a total of 120 minutes each week. Students need to record their reading work on
a book log. Some students read for 30 minutes on 4 different occasions over the
week. Some kids read for six 20-minute
sessions. Set up a reading schedule that
works for your family’s schedule. Be flexible. Reading time should add up to
120 minutes.
What
should my child read? How should they
read?
Students
can self-select books that they can read independently, understand and
enjoy. Students can read aloud to
parents or siblings. Students can listen
to parents read aloud if you have a family reading time. Reading time can vary throughout the week.
What does
the reading log look like?
Choice
A: If your child wants to submit his/her
reading log on our classroom blog, you can see an example here:
Choice
B: Your child can email me a reading blog that
looks like this:
Choice
C: Your child can turn in a hard copy of his or her log. I have a basket with copies of our log available in our classroom. Your child can pick up a copy from Room 137. You can also find a file to copy our reading log here: http://www.dublinschools.net/andreasmith.aspx. You can use the file to make a copy of the log at home.
Thank you
so much for your support! Our first official reading log will be due on September 27. In two weeks, we will add cursive handwriting and math homework. Let us know if you have
any questions.
Andrea and
Flora
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Sample Reading Log
Name: _________________________________________________________________
IMA Reading Log
Date
|
Title
Website
(List chapter numbers if you are reading a chapter
book)
|
Fiction
Nonfiction
Poetry
|
Who
Read?
|
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Welcome to the 2012-2013 School Year!
Dear IMA Families:
It has
been quite a whirlwind these past three weeks.
The third graders have settled into their new classrooms and we are so
impressed with this group! They are
eager to learn and such a friendly, cooperative team of kids. We are VERY proud of our fourth graders and
the ways they have served as great role models and leaders for our third
graders. The first three weeks hold
great promise for a happy, productive and exciting year of learning.
Our
assessments are FINISHED and we are ready to dive into our studies with 100% of
our class time. We look forward to busy and productive workshops!
Students will turn in a reading log and math log next Thursday (9/20) Please look for homework information and a sample reading and math log in your child's backpack on Monday. Logs can be turned in 3 different ways. Kids can submit their work:
- on our blog
- with an email
- on a paper
Talk to the IMA kids about:
Math
Talks
Where’s The Math?
Poetry
Friday
The IMA Kids-Our Class Blog
Read Aloud Time:
Each day at 11:45, our groups gather together and share a novel before lunch. Novels are presented with traditional books or Kindle versions on the Smart Board. Read Aloud is a special time of day for us!
The Boys Start The War,
by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor is the first read aloud of the year for the third
graders. Our conversations focus on plot
development, point of view, and the excitement that conflict adds to a
story. This is a fun book that leaves
you wondering what will happen next! Naylor has published over 135 books, so
look for other books by this prolific writer.
The fourth
graders are enjoying the book, Hatchet, by Gary Paulsen. A tense plot, character development and the
integration of mapping skills all add up to great conversations and wonders
about how a character can survive tough challenges. If your child likes adventures, look for more
Gary Paulsen books at the library!
Thanks to all of the support and enthusiasm from our families. We look forward to a great school year together!
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