Wonderful Wednesday--Walk to School Day

The day started in such a fun way!!!  I had the chance to meet with many families on their walk to school in celebration of National Walk to School Day.  :-)

When we finally got to the classroom the students read quietly or practiced their keyboarding.  After that we began our math rotations.

During the small group instruction we measured the area of rectangles using square inches.  The focus is that area can be measured using any unit but the unit must be in squares.  We also practiced writing equations to show the area of the rectangles.

During math with a a partner the students could choose between the Area Dice game, to practice measuring the are of rectangles, or Subtraction War, to practice basic subtraction facts fluency.

Finally, during the technology rotation the students first watched a lesson  about partitioning rectangles into same size squares to identify the area.  Then they used the Virtual Manipulative site to construct rectangles and write equations to determine the area.

For HOMEWORK the students should go to Sumdog and practice their subtraction skills for 10 minutes.

After math we conducted our SGA classroom representative elections.  First, the two candidates read their speeches.  Then the students took part in a secret ballot election by writing the name of one candidate on an index card.  I took time to praise both candidates for their risk taking!!

Following lunch and outdoor recess the students had 25 minutes before MAP-M testing.  So, they had time to catch up on unfinished literacy tasks, including their root word charts and writing their informative paragraph for the inquiry project.

I did not meet with reading groups.  Instead I worked with a small group of students helping them write their hooks and informative paragraphs.

At 12:30 the students went to take the MAP-M.  This is the self-adjusting computerized math assessment that all MCPS students in grades 3-8 take 3 times each year.  The purpose of this assessment is to indicate students' strengths and weaknesses and help driving planning and instruction.

After testing, the students will end their day in PE with Mr. Benco.

There is no formal reading homework this evening.  I would encourage students reading for 15 minutes, though, and/or visiting the third grade web site to rewatch  any of the following lessons; Brain Pop Jr - main idea, Brain Pop Jr - cause and effect, or Educreations rough draft of common good inquiry informative paragraph.