The Monday After...

It was a quiet morning, as the students and myself seemed to be recovering from the long Thanksgiving weekend.  We began with a class meeting.  First, we had a group share where each child "shared" one or two things about their Thanksgiving holiday weekend.  Then we exchanged a few compliments.

After that, we read through the play, "The Hidden One: A Native American Tale".  Then we identified setting as where and when a story takes place.  I explained that scenes in plays change as the setting changes.  So we revisited the play to begin identifying the different scenes.  Then the children worked in small groups to identify the remaining scenes.  Finally, we shared our results.

Next, we reviewed the technology tools research project that we are beginning.  I reminded the children how to access Live Binder and explained that they would be choosing a topic group today.  Unfortunately, after the lesson, I discovered that the Internet was down and we would need to move on to plan B.  So, students will visit Live Binder and choose their topic groups tomorrow.

While I met with small groups the children worked on individual reading group assignments and illustrated one of the scene from the play, "The Hidden One".

Sharks:  We read "The Package" in group and discussed how Sarah Ida has changed and the symbolism of Al giving her his medal.  For homework they need to reread the chapter and draw the beginning, middle and end in their RRJ.

In math we reviewed identifying the knowns and unknowns in word problems and then writing equations to solve them, during our warm up.  Then the students completed a multiplication chart, to practice their basic facts, while Mrs. Head and I met with small groups.  My group reviewed identifying multiples of a given number and then identified the LCM of numbers.  We also reviewed factorization.  Everyone has a basic facts practice worksheet for homework.

After enjoying lunch and outdoor recess, Mrs. Howard visited us to do a lesson about personal safety.  Ask your child about the ABC's of Personal Safety!

Reading Group Homework
Sharks:  Listed above
Snakes: reread pages 12-16 (fluency!!)
Cheetahs:  Reread pages 12-14 write main idea statement on sticky note
Yellow Jackets:  Reread page 20 write main idea statement on sticky note

We ended the day by "visiting", via Power Point presentation,  some of the human made "wonders" of the United States.  These included the Brooklyn Bridge, The Golden Gate Bridge, Mount Rushmore and The Hoover Dam.