In Science, we are deep into our Earth Science study of rocks! We are focusing on rock as an earth material that changes over time because of weathering and erosion. The children have been extremely engaged in the activities and we have easily integrated our learning with our writing and reading curriculums. For example, students were asked to read The Story of Sand from their science text and then retell the story in writing in their science journals. For more information and activities you and your child can visit our class page. The username and password is the same: stratton7. This is our second year with this new curriculum and we expect to dive into two other integrated units, Solids and Liquids and Insects and Plants, before the end of the year.
In Math, we have assessed our learning of math facts for plus one and plus two as well as tens partners (two digits that total ten). We have also generated the steps we think are important to solving story problems. Please continue to practice math fact fluency by playing the card games that were sent home. Remember to differentiate by using different target numbers. Also, look for math problem solving scenarios in your daily routines. I recently heard a parent standing in line at the deli ask his son how many people needed to be served before it was their turn. Most importantly, you want to ask your child how their brain figured it out...step by step. All strategies should be celebrated. We will continue to share problem solving strategies in class and work towards efficient and organized representations. A new packet of unit letters will be coming home this week as we dive in to a study of geometry.
In Writing, we celebrated our narrative writing with our kindergarten reading buddies. Students will write one of their stories on demand next week. Then they will look at the first on demand piece they did and see all the progress they have made. This is a critical part of developing reflective learners. Our inquiry into narrative writing focused on using authors as mentors. We dug into the story Owl Moon by Jane Yolen and practiced the many craft moves she uses in her writing. These included; comparisons, sound words, alliteration, beautiful language and dialogue. The children are pulling words from word banks, word walls and a thesaurus. This supports increased vocabulary and spelling accuracy. Students are now using many of their favorite authors as mentors for their own writing.
In Reading, we are using a new Unit of Study Series by Lucy Calkins. Why is this FANTASTIC? It aligns with the Lucy Calkins Writing Units of Study we have been working with for the last five years. Using a consistent language and predictable structure for lessons helps facilitate the safe and structured learning community we continually build. Also, the line is less fine between reading and writing and students at Stratton see there really is no line. Instead, readers are writers and writers are readers. Something we do now before we read any book is to make a prediction about the lesson that will be learned. What is the intent of this author? What do they want us to know? Ask your child to look at the front cover and back page 'blurb' to make a prediction the next time you read together.
In Social Studies, we have sent symbolic butterflies to Mexico and made connections to where we live in this world. The symbolic butterflies connect to our study of the continents and the science we will explore in the spring. We used Google Earth to find Stratton school and our own homes. We will be traveling across the continents throughout the year!