The Week Ahead 2/6-2/10

Updates
First off, please let your child know that we will reschedule our "read in" reward party. We'll have a class discussion to figure out when the best time to reschedule will be. 
Reading
Students have had the expectation of reading at home for two hours each week. As things got going we started getting worse and worse at recording those hours. As a class we are making a renewed commitment to document our reading at home. Students were given reading logs on Tuesday. They are expected to record the reading they do at home, a minimum of two hours. In addition, the student who reads the most will go on the Wall of Fame. The reading logs will be handed out on Tuesday and returned the following Tuesday. 

Vocab
The new vocabulary words were sent home Tuesday. Students will be tested on those words next Tuesday. 

Idiom of the Week: sit on the fence


 Migration 
The final drafts of our migration papers will be due Friday, 2/10. We will be working on these papers each day in class, but as we get closer to the due date students may need to spend some time working on the paper at home if they are feeling behind. Check in with your student and see how they are feeling about getting their paper done by the 10th. 

 Math  
We are off and running with our fractions unit. Last week we focused on comparing fractions. Students reasoned with benchmark fractions to determine the comparison between two fractions. For example, if they had the fraction 5/12 and 2/3, they would use the benchmark fraction of 1/2 to explain that 2/3 must be greater than 5/12, because it is larger than 1/2, and 5/12 is less than 1/2. Next week we will start adding and subtracting fractions with the same denominator. Either late in the week, or early the following week, we will begin adding and subtracting fractions with unlike denominators.   

Field Trip
Students came home on Thursday with information about our upcoming field trip to the State Capitol Building. The permission slip and lunch information need to be returned by Monday, 2/13. If you are interested in volunteering as a chaperone send me an email letting me know. Each class is able to bring six chaperones. If we have more than six volunteers we will draw six names out of a hat on Friday, 2/10. 

 Planners
To go along with our renewed commitment to document our reading outside of school, we have also made a commitment to write in our planners everyday. Have your student show you their planner.

Upcoming Dates
-Tuesday, February 7th - Reading Log Due/Vocab Test  
-Thursday, February 9th - Buddies  
-Friday, February 10th - Migration paper due - Field Trip Chaperone Drawing  
-Tuesday, February 14th - Valentine's Day Party 2-3  
-Monday, February 20th - No School - President's Day 
-Tuesday, February 21st - Field Trip to State Capitol Building  
-Wednesday, February 22nd - Continent Club

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