May 1-5

Reading and writing:
This week we're writing the final copies of our research papers. We are also going to begin the project portion, where we take what we learned about our animal and display it in some way. Students will bring materials from home to create a visual display of their animal.

Math:
We are learning about 4 digit place value. We will look at how many hundreds make up a thousand and we will also review all of the different number forms from the beginning of the year. We will write 4 digit numbers in expanded form, word form, standard form, and block form. We will also play a few games and complete a 4 digit I-spy activity.

Science:
This week we are going over characteristics of different animal families. We will look at reptiles, amphibians, insects, mammals, and birds. We will look at life cycles, distinguishing features, movement, and habitat.

Reminders:
Teacher Appreciation Week: May 1-5
STAAR (no visitors in the building): May 8-10

April 24-28

Reading and Writing:
Research continues this week. We're all done finding facts and organizing them and we are ready to start writing our papers. We're going to learn about introductions, topic sentences, and conclusions as we start forming paragraphs about our animals. We also will start planning the product that will accompany our paper.

Math:
We're wrapping up fractions with a few more activities, including building our own fraction neighborhood where all the residents are obsessed with fractions! Then we will review everything we've learned and take an assessment. Later in the week, we are beginning 4 digit place value. We will practice building numbers with base-ten blocks, put them into expanded form, and decide if the numbers are odd or even.

Science:
We're continuing our study of animals by learning about reptiles, amphibians, and insects. We will also look at different life cycles and food chains to see how ecosystems fit together.

Reminders:
Skate Night: Wednesday, April 26th- 5:30
RRISD STEM Fest: May 5th, 4-7

April 17-21

Writing and Reading: 

We're continuing our research projects. We have begun collecting facts and will check a few more sources before organizing and compiling everything into one place. Then we will use our facts to start writing our non-fiction stories. Later in the week, we will begin thinking about the product we want to make to accompany our essays. 

Math: 

Fractions are continuing this week as we dive into eighths, sixths, and fifths. We will make a "fractionpiller" to show what we have learned and play a fun game to identify different fractions. We will also explore fractional parts found in pattern blocks. If a triangle is one third of the shape, what does the whole look like? Last, we will look at what happens when we have more than one whole and how we can count the fractional parts. 

Science: 

We are still working on our study of animals. We will look at food chains, animal adaptations, and different habitats and migration patterns. We also will study different life cycles and see how different creatures vary in their reproduction cycle. 

Reminders: 

Spirit Night at Newks: April 19th

Principal's coffee: April 20th, 7:45am

Field Trip to Laguna Gloria: April 20th

Skate Night: April 26th

 

April 10-13

Reading and Writing:
After falling a few days behind last week, we're finally ready to start research this week. We will first pick our topic and figure what information we already know. We will then set goals for our learning and ask questions to guide our research. Then we will start researching using books and different websites.

Math:
We're starting fractions this week. We will first look at fair shares and equal parts. Then we will dive into halves, fourths, and eighths. We will solve problems, play games, and even make a fruit pizza!

Science:
We've wrapped up plants and are now ready to start animals. Along with our research projects, we will be focusing on animal adaptations and different habitats. We will look at several different life cycles and hopefully learn about Chubby, the hamster!

Reminders:
No school: April 14th
Field trip to Laguna Gloria: Thursday, April 20th. Please return your permission slip!