Three’s the Charm!

September 18, 2015

 

Greetings from Room 116!

It was wonderful to see so many of you at the EHBi Open House on Wednesday. What an amazing group of families we have this year!

Our classroom is now in full swing, and we are settling in nicely. Thank you so much for your help in this endeavor. Below is a short summary of our third week of school:

ELA: We read several nonfiction books to accompany our life cycles science unit, concentrating on headings, captions, diagrams, and vocabulary. We also began our study of the mystery genre in our book groups. In Spelling, we continued our review of short vowels with a look at the short e and short o. During Writer’s Workshop, we worked on autobiographical poems.

Math: We continued our study of multiplication concepts, focusing on the commutative property and related multiplication/division facts.

Science/SS: We worked in small groups to examine the life cycles of different living organisms and created posters to teach the rest of the class what we learned. We also learned about the life cycle of the forest and the different ways in which forest animals adapt to this changing environment.

Other: We practiced keyboarding skills during our Technology period.

Best wishes to all for a fun-filled fall weekend!!

Sincerely,

 

Ms. Feeney

Back to School!!

September 11, 2015
Greetings from Room 116!
Our second week of school was very productive! We are starting to internalize our daily routines, which in turn will help us to maximize our time on learning. This week, we set group goals for our classroom and laid the foundation for a safe learning environment through the creation of a classroom constitution. Following is a brief review of our busy week:
ELA: We discussed the key elements of non-fiction and started reading non-fiction books in our reading groups. We also started writing “I am the One” poems during Writer’s Workshop, and reviewed the “short a/i” vowel patterns in Spelling.
Math: We explored the basic concepts of multiplication, focusing on the number of equal groups, the size of the group, and the total number of items. (Factor x factor = product.)
Science: We started our science unit on life cycles, learning about how different plants and animals mature. We worked in small groups to study the life cycles of individual species.
Other: We read a number of stories around the concepts of friendship and community, including Friendship According to Humphrey, 14 Cows for America, Name Jar, and Chrysanthemum.
The EHBi Open House will take place on Wednesday, September 16th from 6:00 to 7:30 pm, immediately followed by the Book Fair from 7:30 to 8:00 pm. I will hold an informal question and answer session that evening to provide a brief overview of the coming year. For those families who are unable to attend this event, I will send home a parent handbook along with other important handouts. I have also posted information on our blog.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Sincerely,

Ms. Feeney