Sunday, January 30, 2011

Word Study Sorts

Here are the word study sorts for this upcoming week (same as last week):











- Mr. B

Friday, January 28, 2011

Homework over the weekend?

Hello!

Normally there is absolutely no homework given over the weekend aside from enjoying a good book.  However, due to the snow day I feel that we're a little bit behind.  Students were given time to start a word study packet that will count for this week's quiz grade.  Please finish this packet for homework (due Monday) in addition to your normal reading routine.  Thank you for understanding.  We will keep our same sorts for next week.

Have a great weekend!

- Mr. B

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Homework

Tonight's Homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- Word Study:  Cut, Sort & Copy (into WS journal)
- Math:  "Peggy's Pets" worksheet

Word Study sorts will be posted this evening when I get home.

Have fun!

- Mr. B

Monday, January 24, 2011

Homework

Tonight's Homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- Math:  "Wheels, Apples & Days" worksheet
     *students are asked to solve basic multiplication problems using their own preferred strategy (skip counting, drawing a picture, repeated addition, knowing the fact, etc.)
- Social Studies:  Read and Color any three (3) pages from the new Rome packet

NO WORD STUDY HOMEWORK TONIGHT:  Sorts will go home tomorrow

Parents, please make sure to check your child's Monday Folder for important information regarding our class and the Brownsville community.

Current Focus (by subject):

- Language Arts:  We are working on distinguishing between "fat" and "skinny" questions (skinny questions are yes/no or easily answerable) related to new book group books.  We are also enjoying our study of Folk Literature which encompasses Fairy Tales, Fables, Pourquoi Tales, Trickster Tales, Myths and Legends. 

- Writing:  We are working on developing fictional stories - students recently came up with "What if..." stories that tapped into their impressive imaginations.

- Social Studies:  Continuing Ancient Greece and Rome.  Toga Day on February 2nd.

- Math:  Just starting multiplication - We have been working on finding equal "groups of" things to help introduce the concept.  Most of our focus has been on using pictures, skip counting and repeated addition to solve problems.

Thanks for reading!

- Mr. B

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Homework

Tonight's homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- Math:  Things that come in groups
     *Students are asked to think of items that can be found in groups of 2-12.  We brainstormed things that come in groups of 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, 6s, and 10s today in class.

Example:
Things that come in groups of 3
- sides on a triangle
- wheels on a tricycle
- tennis balls in a container
- periods in a hockey game
- etc.

Things that come in groups of 4
- quarters in a dollar
- quadruplets
- legs on a dog
- wheels on a car
- etc.


- Extra Credit:  Greek Class Roster (due tomorrow!)

Have fun!

- Mr. B

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Homework

Tonight's Homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- NO WORD STUDY HOMEWORK (short week)
- Science:  Finish the review packet we started in class and quiz somebody at home (parent, brother/sister, etc.)
   
The directions I gave were to ask 8-10 questions related to our science vocabulary.
   
Example:

Student:  "What's another word for sleeping during the winter?"
Mom:  "Hm...hibernation?"
Student:  "Correct!  Nice job, mom!"
Student:  "Okay, Dad, your turn.  What's the major source of energy for all living things?"
Dad:  "The sun?"
Student:  "Wow, you guys are good!"

My hope is that your child becomes more confident with the vocabulary words by teaching them to somebody else.  Thanks for taking the time to do this.

- **Extra Credit** (Due Friday, 1/21):  Translate the Greek version of our class roster back into English 
      "Greek" class rosters were passed out to each student today.  In order to complete this assignment just write down the correct spelling (English) next to each name on the list.  I provided a "key" (list of the Greek alphabet in capital/lowercase letters) attached to each roster that may be helpful.  The font I used is not an exact letter-by-letter conversion due to the fact that the Greek alphabet (see below) contains only 24 letters, or two letters less than our 26 letter alphabet.



Have fun!

- Mr. B

Friday, January 14, 2011

Have a great weekend!

Dear class,

I hope everyone has a fun and relaxing 4-day weekend!  Thanks to all of the students for giving your very best during a challenging week of review and midyear testing.  Your efforts do not go unnoticed.

Please spend time with your nose buried in a good book.  Your only homework is to read each day and recharge so that you're ready for school on Wednesday, January 19th.

We will be continuing our studies of Ancient Greece and Rome in Social Studies.  In Math we will be starting a new unit on Multiplication - a parent information packet will be sent home via "Monday (Wednesday?) Folders" next week.

Best wishes,

Mr. Balnave

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Homework

Tonight's homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- Math:  Place Value Packet (review)

- Mr. B

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Homework

Tonight's homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- Math:  Rounding Review
- Language Arts:  Finish Packet

Please remember to get plenty of sleep & eat a healthy breakfast in the morning!

- Mr. B

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Homework

Tonight's homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes with a good book
- Math:  "Monster Math" worksheet (addition & subtraction review)
- Social Studies:  Finish the "Ancient Greece Picture Vocabulary" we started in class today (draw and label activity in the Greece packet).


Also, our Reading Midyear Test has been changed from Wednesday & Thursday (this week) to just Thursday (this week).  In other words, there will be no test tomorrow.

Stay warm!

- Mr. B

Monday, January 10, 2011

Homework

Tonight's homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- NO WORD STUDY THIS WEEK
- Math:  Time worksheet, Time & Money Quiz tomorrow!
- Social Studies:  Geography Not-A-Test (Review)

This week we will begin taking Midyear Tests in the four core subject areas (Reading, Math, Science, Social Studies).  These tests are cumulative up to this point, meaning they will cover material from the beginning of the school year.  Please don't worry about "studying" for these tests, we will be reviewing some in school and homework will reflect this.  The tests are helpful for me as a teacher since they show which subjects/units I may have taught well and which subjects I may need to revisit before the end of the year.  Our schedule is below:

Reading - Wednesday & Thursday of this week (1/12, 1/13)
Math - Friday of this week (1/14)
Science - Thursday of next week (1/20)
Social Studies - Thursday of this week (1/13)

This week we will be substituting review activities for Word Study homework.  Parents, the best thing you can do to help your child is to make sure they get enough sleep at night and that they have a nutritious breakfast in the morning before school.  Thanks for all of your help!

- Mr. B

Friday, January 7, 2011

Homework

The only homework over the weekend (per usual) is to read 20-30 minutes each night.  I do want to let parents know that there will be a short quiz on Time & Money next Tuesday, January 11th.

The quiz will cover:
- Adding up dollars/coins
- Identifying dollars/coins 
- Making change
- Reading time (analog) to the nearest minute
- Matching digital/analog times
- Days of the week (Calendar)
- Minutes in an hour, months in a year

Have a great weekend!

- Mr. B

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Homework

Tonight's Homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- Word Study:  Practice Quiz
- Social Studies:  Read & Color 3 (more) pages from the Ancient Greece Packet
- Math:  Finish Time worksheet (I'll scan the page when I get home)

Have fun!

- Mr. B

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Homework

Tonight's Homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes
- Word Study:  Menu Item
- Social Studies:  Read and Color any three (3) pages from your Ancient Greece packet.

Example:  I might choose the page on the Trireme (boat), the page on Weaving and the page on Masks.  For each page, I read the paragraph at the bottom and then spend a reasonable amount of time (< 5 minutes) coloring the picture.  The picture does not have to have every space colored in, it's meant to be fun, not torture!

Enjoy!

- Mr. B

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Word Study Sorts

 Here you go:



- Mr. B

Homework

Happy New Year!!

Tonight's homework:

- Read 20-30 minutes with a good book
- Word Study:  Menu Item (sorts will be posted this afternoon)
- Math Worksheet:  "It's About Time"


We are beginning units on Ancient Greece & Rome (Social Studies) and Time (Math).  Feel free to ask your children what they've been learning about related to these new topics!  Today we looked at the physical geography of Greece using Google Earth and practiced telling time to the minute (also learning the terms "half past" and "quarter past"; e.g., "half past 4 = 4:30").

Have fun!

- Mr. B