Thursday

In math we worked on identifying elapsed time. Based on our warm up and whole group lesson I thought the children had a good grasp of this topic. Therefore, while they worked independently on a worksheet, I pulled a small group to work on long division. Unfortunately, after reviewing the student's worksheets I see there is a need for more practice. We will work more on elapsed time tomorrow. There will not be a quiz. There is a worksheet for homework.

We began reading by discussing real needs for previewing text such as when adults go to borrow or purchase a book from the library or book store. Then we used a graphic organizer to help us preview a book called Busy as a Bee.

After that, I read the book aloud and the children took some notes. I stopped a few times to model how to take notes. At one point I showed the children how the information could be put into a diagram. Another time I showed information in a chart format. I think this introduced an important life skill to the students!

While the students used their notes to answer question about the book, I met with small groups.

Mouse: Read chapter 8.
Onion Tears: We shared interesting information they discovered about their animal during their research. I also assigned a poem that is due tomorrow.
Pooh: WE had an AMAZING discussion about why Eeyore was happy with an empty pot and a popped balloon as birthday gifts.

Following lunch and recess I will provide questions for the students to use with each other when conferencing on their writing. Then the students will have time to write realistic fiction.

We will end the day with a social studies activity where students will read non-fiction text about taxes and the services they provide.