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.