Classroom News for the Week of September 28th

News and Upcoming Events: 

• Congratulations to Sienna and Renee, our Student Council representatives! We had 10 students run for the positions, and I am very proud of them all! Each of them displayed their maturity, sense of responsibility, and poise in running. Great job, Students!
• Thank you Volunteers! We appreciate your time and effort in helping with the Pancake Breakfast and Friday's art project. :)
• 10/16/15 FIELD TRIP - We can take up to 7 chaperones (5 would be sufficient) for our field trip to Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Gardens. Currently, we have 1 chaperone confirmed. Please email me (slc5001@lausd.net) if you are able to come and supervise a small group of students. This trip involves lots of walking/standing outdoors and chaperones will need to drive themselves or carpool. 8:30 a.m. to 2:30p.m. Volunteers will be assigned on a first-come/first-serve basis.
• No social studies homework this week.

Volunteers Needed- 

• GARDEN - Renee Frisbie has generously offered her time as our class garden representative. She will be coordinating with me to provide your child with hands-on activities in our school garden. If you are interested in assisting, we'd love to hear from you. Please email Renee at renee.frisbie@monarchd.com

Please click on the link to view my Amazon wish list.Ms. Convey's Amazon Wish List

What's Going On This Week In Class:

Math: 

This week we will be wrapping up the addition and subtraction unit. This week's work will continue to include multi-step word problems, tape diagrams, and estimation to determine reasonableness. Students will have an end of unit assessment on Friday.

Using the CUBES* strategy to unlock word problems:

• C - circle the numbers
• U - underline the question
• B - Box key words
• E - Eliminate unnecessary information
• S - Solve (lots of strategies to choose from)
• * Check!

Multiplication Madness (Fact Practice) 

Reading:

This week students will be working on final "Beyond the Book" projects individually and with partners. Projects are being completed in class. Ask your child about the project s/he chose and his or her progress. Projects due Friday.

Genre Blackout: Students have been challenged to read books from 9 different genres in the first reporting period. Ask your child about his/her progress.

Spelling & Vocabulary:

This week's prefixes are mono, uni (one); bi, du (two); co, col (with together) 

Our words are:

1. condense
2. companion
3. confer
4. collide
5. conspire
6. monopoly
7. unicorn
8. unify
9. dual
10. bisect

Tip: Spend 10 minutes verbally studying the words each day. Research suggests that studying for small periods regularly is more effective than cramming. In addition to having your child spell the word aloud, ask your child to use the word in an imaginative sentence. You can pick a "theme" for the sentences, such as Halloween or the Desert…"Give me a sentence with 'collide' that has to do with Halloween." This can provide some challenge and novelty to a routine task.

Writing:

Unit 1 of Writer's Workshop: Realistic Fiction continues. 
This week's lessons continue to emphasize how to show, not tell, what our characters are like, drafting the heart of our story, and writing strong leads.

Social Studies/Science:

Social Studies: Geography of California

Science: Rocks and Minerals

Reminders:

Tardies:

 Please make sure your child is at school and in line by the 8:06 bell. We try to start the school day at 8:11 promptly. Thank you for your help!

Homework:

Please check your child's Homework Log nightly and sign or initial after the work has been completed. Remind your child that completed homework and the HW log are due in class daily.

Classroom News for the Week of September 21

News and Upcoming Events: 

• 9/23 Unassigned Day - School Closed
• 9/24 Focus Fish PE Program Begins
• 9/24 Bridge to Terabithia (movie)
• 9/26 Pancake Breakfast

Volunteers Needed- 

• GARDEN - Renee Frisbie has generously offered her time as our class garden representative. She will be coordinating with me to provide your child with hands-on activities in our school garden. If you are interested in assisting, we'd love to hear from you. Please email Renee at renee.frisbie@monarchd.com

• ART PROJECT - It would be great to have 3 or 4 volunteers for an art project Friday 9/25 from 1:00-2:30. Please email me at slc5001@lausd.net if you can help out. We will be doing some basic printmaking.

• FIELD TRIP - We can take up to 7 chaperones for our field trip to Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Gardens on 10/16. Please email me if you are able to come and supervise a small group of students. This trip involves lots of walking/standing outdoors and chaperones will need to drive themselves or carpool. 8:30 a.m. to 2:30p.m. Volunteers will be assigned on a first-come/first-serve basis.

Please click on the link below to view my Amazon wish list.

Ms. Convey's Amazon Wish List

What's Going On This Week In Class:

Math: 

Subtracting Whole Numbers continues - Modeling with a Tape Diagram & the Using the Standard Algorithm; Performance Task Problem Solving

Using the CUBES* strategy to unlock word problems

• C - circle the numbers
• U - underline the question
• B - Box key words
• E - Eliminate unnecessary information
• S - Solve (lots of strategies to choose from)
• * Check!

Multiplication Madness (Fact Practice) 

Reading:

This week we will finish Bridge to Terabithia (realistic fiction). Students will look at how Jess changes throughout the course of the novel and doing final reviews before taking a multiple choice/ short answer quiz.

Genre Blackout: Students have been challenged to read books from 9 different genres in the first reporting period. Ask your child about his/her progress.

Spelling & Vocabulary:

This week's prefixes are ex (out of, outside, from) and anti, contra (against)

Our words are:

1. export
2. expel
3. exhale
4. extract
5. exempt
6. antiseptic
7. antibacterial
8. antonym
9. contradict
10. counterfeit

Writing:

Unit 1 of Writer's Workshop: Realistic Fiction continues. 
This week's lessons include how to show, not tell, what our characters are like, drafting the heart of our story, and writing strong leads.

Arts:

"Art is much less important than life, but what a poor life without it.”

- Jasper Johns

We will be looking at the work of Jasper Johns http://www.jasper-johns.org to make American flags. Students will be using paper, ink and brayers, tempera paint to make versions of the U.S. flag. They will incorporate the Preamble to the Constitution they typed in the lab last week.

Social Studies/Science:

Social Studies: Geography of California

Science: Rocks and Minerals

Reminders:

Tardies:

 Please make sure your child is at school and in line by the 8:06 bell. We try to start the school day at 8:11 promptly. Thank you for your help!

Homework:

Please check your child's Homework Log nightly and sign or initial after the work has been completed. Remind your child that completed homework and the HW log are due in class daily.

Classroom News for the Week of September 14th

News and Upcoming Events: 

If you haven't already done so, please send in your $50 field trip donation & T-shirt order form as soon as possible. We are still short ten families.

• 9/14 Unassigned Day - School Closed
• 9/15 Book Orders Due
• 9/23 Unassigned Day - School Closed
• 9/24 Focus Fish PE Program Begins
• 
  

Please click on the link below to view my Amazon wish list.

Ms. Convey's Amazon Wish List

What's Going On This Week In Class:

Math: 

Subtracting Whole Numbers - Modeling with a Tape Diagram & the Using the Standard Algorithm; Performance Task Problem Solving

Using the CUBES strategy to unlock word problems

Multiplication Madness (Fact Practice) 

Reading:

This week we will read chapters 8-11 of Bridge to Terabithia (realistic fiction). Our lessons will be on analyzing character relationships and looking at the author's use of foreshadowing.

This week students will be reading and discussing the birthday of the U.S. Constitution with Mr. Fauth.

Genre Blackout: Students have been challenged to read books from 9 different genres in the first reporting period. Ask your child about his/her progress.

Spelling & Vocabulary:

This week's prefixes are re (back, again) and cir, circum (around). 

Our words are:

1. circulate
2. circulatory
3. circumference
4. circumstance
5. circumscribe
6. restrict
7. reimburse
8. reassure
9. regain
10. recede

Students should study both the meanings and spellings of these words. They will bring a study guide home at the beginning of the week. We will also complete activities and a pre-test in class to help them prepare for the quiz. Students will be tested on Friday.

Writing:

Unit 1 of Writer's Workshop: Realistic Fiction continues. This week's lessons include how to give our characters struggles and motivations and plotting our stories with a story arc.

Computer Lab:

As part of the federal government's "Every Child In a Park" initiative, our students will complete online activities and will print and bring home a FREE family pass to all U.S. National Parks! Ask your child for the pass Wednesday evening.

Social Studies/Science:

Social Studies: Geography: Identifying Hemispheres

Science: Rocks and Minerals

Reminders:

Tardies:

 Please make sure your child is at school and in line by the 8:06 bell. We try to start the school day at 8:11 promptly. Thank you for your help!

Homework:

Please check your child's Homework Log nightly and sign or initial after the work has been completed. Remind your child that completed homework and the HW log are due in class daily.

Classroom News for the Week of September 7th

News and Upcoming Events: 

9/7 Labor Day - School Closed
9/11 Please send in $50 field trip donation &T-shirt order form

9/14 Unassigned Day - School Closed

9/23 Unassigned Day - School Closed

Items Needed:

Thank you for all of the supplies! I think we are all stocked up on kleenex, paper towels, post-its, and copy paper. 

Please click on the link below to view my Amazon wish list.

Ms. Convey's Amazon Wish List

What's Going On This Week In Class:

Math: 

Adding and Subtracting Whole Numbers; Performance Task Problem Solving

Multiplication Madness (Fact Practice) 

Reading:

This week we will chapters 6-9 of Bridge to Terabithia (realistic fiction). Our focus will be on drawing conclusions and making inferences about characters based on their thoughts and actions. We will also identify conflicts in the plot.

This week students will be reading and discussing Hurricane Katrina and comparing articles about the catastrophe with Mr. Fauth.

Genre Blackout: Students will be challenged to read books from 9 different genres in the first reporting period. Ask your child about his/her progress.

Spelling & Vocabulary:

This week's prefixes are super, supr, sur (above, over, more) and pre (before). 

Our words are:

superhuman

superabundant

superb

supervise

surplus

prehistoric

predict

prejudge

precaution

premier

Students should study both the meanings and spellings of these words. They will bring a study guide home on Monday. We will also complete activities and a pre-test in class to help them prepare for the quiz. Students will be tested on Friday.

Writing:

Unit 1 of Writer's Workshop: Realistic Fiction continues. Our focus will be on writing stories and characters we want to see as readers.

PE:

Students have been working in pairs to create an "Never-Before-Seen (NBS) Dance". Students will work with a criteria chart over the next two weeks to develop an original 2 minute dance to perform for their classmates.

Social Studies/Science:

Rotations begin this week.

Social Studies: Geography of California

Science: Rocks and Minerals

Arts:

Reminders:

Tardies:

 Please make sure your child is at school and in line by the 8:06 bell. We try to start the school day at 8:11 promptly. Thank you for your help!

Homework:

Please check your child's Homework Log nightly and sign or initial after the work has been completed. Remind your child that completed homework and the HW log are due in class daily.