Mock Math MSA Monday

This morning we had a practice session for the math section of the MSA.  Each year we take the time to do mock practice sessions to familiarize the students with the format of the test and take time to teach good test taking strategies.

This morning I took time to discuss the importance of using strategies and working out all problems on scratch paper.  I also explained the necessity of making sure answers made sense...especially when suing a calculator.  Finally, I introduced the idea of a distractor (the most often chosen WRONG answer).

Then the students completed the two parts of the practice math assessment.

Then we went over both sections so I could model strategies for solving problems correctly.

These test booklets will be coming home in the next two weeks (most likely next week) with feedback and information attached.  I urge you to look them over and discus them with your child!

Since our MSA practice session focused on math, we had reading/language arts during our regular math time.

We began reading a new historical fiction novel title, Lily and Miss Liberty, by Carla Stevens (she wrote Anna, Grandpa and the Big Storm, too!).  Prior to reading the first chapter, we watched a video clip about the Statue of Liberty.  This gave us background knowledge to aid our comprehension of the novel.

After reading the first chapter and identifying the problem and the historical facts, we headed to the gym to visit our school's science fair.  The children and I had a great time seeing all of the fabulous experiments and presentations.

After the science fair, we revisited the model character analysis paper and identified what information the author included in the body.  We realized that the next paragraph will need to include how the main character solved the problem using the character trait identified in our opinion statement.

Following lunch and indoor recess the children will draft their body paragraph.  They will also reread portions of chapter 1 of Lily and Miss Liberty to help them complete a comprehension worksheet involving both multiple choice and short answer questions.

We will end the day by defining friction and identifying examples of friction which produce heat.

For homework there is a short quiz on Edmodo about Lily and Miss Liberty, chapter 1.