Next Week

Tech Integration:

Tomorrow, we will be using http://scribblemaps.com  to create a map of the routes of your Great Explorer. Check it out

Week 7 Day 5 Ten Years of Technology

This is a little video to share with your parents. Oh! how life has changed...


What will tomorrow bring?

Student of the Week - GEORGE

Feel free to do any geometry section B exercises of ixl.com over the w/end. Purely optional
Many of the topics will be new to you, so don't worry if you don't know  some of the questions on them yet.

Tech Integration for Next Week

Set yourself up with free accounts with:
http://www.box.net/ (virtual storage of your resources).
http://www.vocaroo.com/ (podcast recorder)

Week 7 Day 4

Narratives
Complete the narrative proof-reading sheet. Change your work as needed as you progress through each category on the proof reading patch. 

Tomorrow you will be putting your narratives into a photopeach slideshow. You will need to select images that epitomize each individual paragraph. Start looking at your paragraphs now - What images might go with each one? If you can answer that question clearly, then your narrative is probably a precise seed idea, with a clear opening, a strong character, etc. Which image will you use at the end of your narrative as a metaphor for your message? Begin collecting these images on your USB for tomorrow's session

Math
Finish study link 3.2
You are welcome to use http://www.ixl.com/ and earn more rewards if you would like.

Week 7 Day 3 - Effective Endings

RLA
Often, stories end where they began. Read the mentor text again from today that is inside your Writing Package titled, 'Life By the Sea' - Notice the full circle ending the author created.

How can you create writing that ends with the type of emotion displayed at the end of these classic movies?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8UL_9R_W-Y
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZ7ZpLgkVxA

Remember E.T.C.C.
Describe a lasting EMOTION
Write a TRIBUTE to somebody
Talk about CHANGE
Go full CIRCLE with your story

Book Clubs - Be ready to effectively deliver your  section of  you book club tomorrow\

Social Studies:
People who did not print out their popplets - Please make sure you have them  printed for tomorrow. This video shows you have to save  your popplet so it will print in landscape.


Math - No H/W tonight

Week 7 Day 2

How will your make your narrative piece the best you have ever written?

show me...don't tell me!

Remember the 'Showing not Telling' Database  below
http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/2008/01/introducing-thesaurus-thursdays.html

Week 7 Day 2

will your narrative be unique?

Week 7 Day 1

H/W

RLA

Spend 30-45mins on your narrative pre-write or draft. Make sure you have plenty of ideas on your index cards for each section

Use this link to inspire you to get ideas for settings and showing not telling index cards

http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/2008/01/introducing-thesaurus-thursdays.html

Try to make a good start on this  narrative tonight. You should have strong ideas or mini paragraphs on 3-4 of your index cards by tomorrow.

Book Club - Make sure your contribution is ready for tomorrow's discussions

Great Explorer Research - THIS IS NOT A PRIORITY TONIGHT! (save for Tuesday night)

Spend 15-20 minutes collecting research for your famous explorer Nota.
Remember: Use www.qwiki.com & wikipeadia

Next Week

Week 6 Day 5

Next week we will begin our final narrative piece. Make sure you have a concrete seed idea for Monday's class. You might want to bring in any photos or other images that will help you write abbout this dea.


Personification recap



Student of the Week: Maddy

Week 6 Day 4

Showing not Telling - Day 4: IT WAS A GREAT PARTY

Blood-sucking vampires and tiny pink fairies scarfed down scary ghost and goblin cookies. Witches and ghosts appeared bobbing apples in the dark, spooky night. Creepy spider legs filled the loud back yard. Other scrary hunchbacks were strolling all around. Lingering, chatting, and having fun, many other unknown creatures started making a mess.  Though tons of noise could be heard, it was absurb that they could barely see a spot in front of them, causing big collisions. But they shouted helping each other out. Soon it was time to go and the backyard was turned upside down. Everyone tried to plead to stay but they were way too exhausted.  That was a party they would never forget.  By Sabine and Caroline

For Fun - Bring a dollar word to class for a bonus plus point.

Math

Finish the Math Races sheet and look at the topics from unit 2 on the sheet.

Make sure you read that sheet carefully and are prepared to talk about whether or not your feel secure on each area.

Book clubs - Teacher Directed Activity

Setting (MOOD) - Collect at least 10 words or phrases from your Book club book that helped capture the mood of your story. Write a couple of brief sentences based on the words that you have collected that describes the mood of your story.

Week 6 Day 3

Showing Not Telling - Day 3 WINTER

A chill ran  through Amanda's bones as she slowly shuffled through the heavy piles of snow.  Everything was covered in white.  The apple trees that flourished in spring were only branches.  There was no color anywhere. Finally,  Amanda spotted her brick house in the distance.  Smoke was pouring out of the chimney, and Amanda could only imagine the feeling of sitting next  to the fire with her parents and siblings all snuggled under a blanket drinking hot chocolate.  The thought made her quickly pick up her pace, and she shortly opened her big black steel door. 

RLA

Write briefly about an event that happens/happened today in slow motion. Can you capture those small details? (Due: Thur) - Approx. 100 words.

Math
Study Link 2.10
Not enough focus in class today on the magnitude extimate problem hence this addtional H/W task. How many times can you flipping/tossing a coin in a year? Be prepared to explain your strategy.

Reading:
Book Club: complete your assigned book club taks for Friday. (This task will be the task that your indivdual group assigned to you)

Saving Images - For Photovisi and Popplet

Watch this video below. This will help you save images from the internet to your computer.

Week 6 Day 2

Showing Not Telling -Day 2  ENVY

Katie's feeling spread across the room as she looked at all the boys and girls wit htheir fancy suits and dresses for photo day. A purple sparkled dress flourished in the room and out of Katie's ears came steam. Katie had a plain white skirt with stains and faded demin denim shorts. With curled hair and a sparkled dress, Katie tried to keep it together. Katie pleaded with Mrs. Bellshaw to take her out of the photograph. Katie wanted that dress so badly.

As the people walked by, they stopped and stared at the dark, fudge chocolate cake. Adults and kids made pandemonium all around the cashier. Molly, the cute girl with bouncy pigtails noticed the crowd and scurried to see what was happening. Seeing the fudged chocolate cake, she pleaded with big kitty eyes, but her father refused to buy her even one piece.


Use this video to review lattice multiplication


Use this video to practice lattice using decimals
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tP06KwoWknM



FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE EXERCISES AND PRACTICE. Tackle at least 3 of the exercises below.

Simile

http://library.thinkquest.org/J0112392/similepractice.html
http://www.worsleyschool.net/socialarts/simile/page2.html

Personification Practice

http://library.thinkquest.org/J0112392/personificationpractice.html

Metaphor
http://library.thinkquest.org/J0112392/metaphorpractice.html
http://www.quia.com/quiz/234882.html

Examples of Figurative Language

http://www.beavton.k12.or.us/jacob_wismer/leahy/2006/flb/flb.htm

Week 6 Day 1

Showing Not Telling - Day 1 Loneliness

Enjoy the two strongest pieces below:

Sabine and Caroline, two BBF's, sat eating lunch while I sit far away staring at them out of the corner of my eye. Many other 10-11 year old boys and girls were buzzing around, making pandemonium fill the cafeteria. Nibbling on my Ritz crackers, I anxiously wait for someone, anyone to come and sit next to me, but not a single person came close. I deeply sigh as the bell rings for the end of lunch. Soon not a sound can be heard in the big room

Pandemonium spread across the playground like butter spread on bread. Everyone was playing widely accept me. I was standing near the aqua swings. I thought I was invisible. People looked through me like a clear glass window. I winced. "This was the worst 15 minutes recess of my life. What was I to do?" I started pacing around the swings. People brushed past my petite body. I felt like my body was in a different dimension, but my senses were still on earth.

Watch this video again to review partial products multiplication.



Social Studies
Complete your photovisi and note taking from Ch. 4 for Wednesday's session.

RLA
Do your Book Club reading assignment. (Due: Wed)

Next Week

Tech Integration Tools Coming Next Week - Check these out

www.photopeach.com
http://notaland.com/

and for fun

http://www.shinysearch.com/
(but ask your parents' permission before creating your custom google search homepage)

Week 5 Day 5

• Enjoy Maddy's excellent Book Talk below. Listen to how well she uses BEVES and PEX to make her presentation both informative and engaging.

Enjoy some of the most engaging narrative stories. Listen carefully to see if team's accomplished the WILF..

• Strong lead
• Description of a place
• Description of a person
• Use of 4 appostives
• Use of 5 advanced vocabulary words

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBPJkU1yLFU


Student of the Week - Anisha

Week 5 Day 4

Complex Sentences

Watch this video and tackle the exercises below:



When trying these exercises - think about how many independent clauses (sentences) there are in the sentence. Tackle any three from the list below.
http://eslbee.com/cgi-bin/quiztest.cgi?simplecompoundorcomplex
http://eslbee.com/cgi-bin/quiztest.cgi?helenkeller
http://www.csus.edu/owl/index/sent/clause_quiz.htm
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/sensort/index.html

 We will do ALOT more work over the year on these types of sentences. Do not worry if you do not completely understand all these questions at this time. We needed to cover the material quickly so we had a basic idea of  what types of sentences we can create. We will now spend most of the year mastering these sentence types (and more)!

Enjoy Rachel's and Anisha's  Sammy Snake winning Book Talks below:

Week 5 Day 3

Book Talks
Due Thur. How will your talk be unique? Have you followed the specific requirements given in the directions? Are you using BEVES and PEX to deliver your presentation in an engaigng way?
IF YOU ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH TECHNOLOGY, JUST DO YOUR PRESENTATION  IN THE OLD FASHION WAY BY STANDING UP AND TALKING ABOUT YOUR BOOK.

Math
Study Link 2.5 & Math Box 2.5

Narrative Movies
 We will now begin filming Friday. You should spent at least 20mins on your section tomight. Tomorrow, you should just need 30 mins as a team to put the finishing touches together. Make sure the story is told passionately using BEVES and PEX

Coming Tomorrow - (Optional)
Complex Sentences - Why not try doing some background research yourself before the session. How are compound and complex sentences different?

BELOW: POSTPONED UNTIL NEXT WEEK -Idea for final narrative paper -

Next week we will begin working on our final narrative paper for this unit. Use some time tonight to look at some old family movies and/or photographs and begin thinking about your seed topic for this paper. You will need an idea by next Thur. (This is a change to the information on the Week at a Glance Sheet)

Week 5 Day 2

Tonight is a thinking about the end of the week night. Each of you needs to priortize what you need to do first.

Math
Study Link 2.4

Choose what you need to do from below based on your individual progress so far:

• Work on your Book talk
• Work on your portion of the narrative movie. I hope to begin filming these by Thur or Fri afternoon.
• Remember the specific WILF for this assignment.

Optional
For those students volunterring to  participate on the student council, work on what you will say to the class to get people to vote for you.

Week 5 Day 1

Homework
Finish the Appostives worksheets. Consolidate your understanding by practicing with these exercises below.
http://www.eslbee.com/appositives.htm

http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/appositive.htm 
Also watch the video.


Social Studies:

Based on our session on quality questioning today, i don't think you'll ever think about questions again the same way. Think about questioning techniques ever time you hear or ask a question in the future. Bonus plus points if you can response to a parent's question tonight by identifying explaining to them the type of question they asked and why they asked it. e.g.  mom- did you have a good day at school today? child-mom, I can tell you are asking an inference question because you can see a big smile on my face and you already know what I'm goning ot say. To earn the +1 you must write about your Q+A exchange. It must  be a real situation and not just set up to earn you +1

Math

Lesson 2.2 & 2.3 Study Link

RLA
Work on your Book Talk

Week at a Glance

Week 4 Day 5

Main Idea and Details Practice

http://www.quia.com/quiz/1169917.html?AP_rand=2066982452

http://www.studyzone.org/testprep/ela4/h/suppoertingdetailsp2.cfm

Today's Core Value focus should be an important reminder to all of us of how important it is to make sure we are treating each other with RESPECT, DIGNITY, CIVILITY, and COMPASSION.

"Be the change you want to see in the world" - Ghandi.

Feel free to add your thoughts on today's session to the voicethread below or as a comment to this post


Watch these videos again for reminders of the message from today's session

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Addition Algorithm

Recap the partial sums method below


Study Link 2.2 and 2.3 will be H/W monday night. Feel free to work ahead if on these if you want to do so over the w/end.

Student of the Week: Breann

Week 4 Day 4

RLA


Think about the book you will be doing for your Book Talk recommendation on
http://www.fotobabble.com/  (Due: next Tue)

Finish your Reading Response (Due: Thur)
Many of you have already finished this...but Are you willing to go back and now improve it by adding an engaging LEAD based on our class discussions today?
e.g. Bold Statement, Quote, Dialogue, Description of a Place, Person, Event, Action Statement

Description of a place: Feedback

Click to listen to my comment on Han's descriptive writing. You may record your voice too. Be sure to focus on ONLY positive comments. Why was Han's piece chosen  for the blog? What can you learn from this piece?


Math H/W
Estimation Study Link 2.1

Have you created an effective popplet? Look at the example below:




Ignore the youpublish H/W
Do not use http://www.youpublish/. The site is unreliable and students' work gets lost. I will find a better digital portfolio for the future.

Week 4 Day 3

Watch this video again to recap our discussions today on main idea and supporting details.
What is the difference between speaking 'subjectively' and speaking 'objectively?'

http://www.brainpop.com/english/writing/mainidea/

Tips on how to use popplet below:


No Math H/W tonight. We start Unit 2 tomorrow

Reading Response:
You need to have 2 categories and x3 pieces of evidence per category (approx. 6 sticky notes in total). Try to write using a variety of sentence openers and integrate compound sentences for bonus points (or even Sammy Snakes)

Impressive writing today from EMMA and CAROLINE.. .not bad for just 30mins! Shows what you guys can do when truly focused

Week 4 Day 2

Science:  Mixtures sheet from Mrs. Clayton (Due: Wed)

 

Congratulations on turning in your very engaging writing assignemnts. Watch the blog for samples of work from our class posted for comments.

 

We began working on developing our sentence fluency today. It is imperative that you start ot use a variety of different sentence techniques as you write. the easiest of these are the different ways to create the compound sentence. Watch these videos below that recap the lesson and do the online exercises that follow. Then tackle the worksheets

 

http://www.quia.com/quiz/242899.html?AP_rand=563668244
http://webschool.wash.k12.ut.us/language/lessons/compoundsentences.html questions 1-8
http://www.quia.com/pop/37751.html?AP_rand=2069798505
Do you remember the key characteristics of Compound Sentences?

 

 

Four Key Rules to make an effective COMPOUND SENTENCE

 

1) The two halves could stand alone as individual sentences.
e.g. Peter likes tennis, but Mark likes pizza.

 

2) Two halves are joined by a comma and conjunction
e.g. Claire and Mary enjoy watching television, but their children prefer the internet.

 

3) Information in two halves of sentences must be linked in some way
e.g. Bolognaise is made of tomatoes and pasta, and it contains shredded meat.

 

4) A semi colon can replace the comma and conjunction
e.g. Peter likes tennis; Mark likes pizza.

We learned  some scary words today:

• Independent Clause
• Conjunction

 Who's afraid of them?

Will you know what they mean tomorrow?

 

Optional

Look back at your writing on a description of a place. Did you create any compound snetences?

 

Math

Reflect on your Math Assessment today. Which questions were the hardest? Why?

 

Tonight - There is no officical Math H/W. Use this evening to work on your popplet or your Current Events (first presentations -  Fri 16th)

Week 4 Day 1

Hand in your piece of writing tomorrow! Make sure your work follows the Presentation Policy demonstrated in this piece of writing below. Did you follow the WILF for this piece of work?  Did you follow each step of the editing sheet to help you improve your piece?  Will your work be posted on the blog tomorrow as an example of excellence? Will you win a Sammy Snake for your work due to extraordinary effort?

Math - Review the topics we covered in Unit 1.

http://www.mathplayground.com/factortrees.html  
http://www.quia.com/cm/26221.html
http://www.quia.com/cb/8436.html

Optional:
Write 10 questions to test a family member on these topics:

• Prime Factorization
• Factor Trees
• Divisibility Rules
• Prime -v- Composite numbers
• Exponents

IF YOU PRACTICE, YOU WILL BE SUCCESSFUL - If you don't ...you know the rest!
e.g. Can you write  the prime factorization of 36 using exponents?

I am postponing the first Current Event presentations until NEXT FRI 16th

Next Week

Current Events Presentations - The first three groups go this Friday. Make sure you are ready. Use these links below for ideas:
http://www.flocabulary.com/week-in-rap-september-2-2011/

http://edition.cnn.com/studentnews/

Print your 'Week at a Glance' sheet here



Check out these websites we will be using this week. If you have time, set your self up with accounts on these sites:
http://www.youpublish.com/
http://www.fotobabble.com/

I recommend that you use the same email and password each time. You should keep a list of all the sites we are using in class in your favorites. In the 2nd quarter, we will begin with personal blogs for each student, and each of you will be able to add links to these sites on YOUR  own blog!

Week 3 Day 5

What a fantastic day  we had. Enjoy the slideshow below!




How are you doing so far? Don't forget to try doing the Review and Revise sheet with your parents. Check back later to see next week's Week at a Glance sheet.

Win +point if you can write a brief evaluation of this last week as a comment.  Minimum 2 categories  and three pieces of evidence per category.

Week 3 Day 4

Tomorrow's Field Trip
Read through the Field Trip guidelines again. These were sent to your parents a week or so ago.


RLA - Writing
You should reach the 'conferencing' stage of  for your writing by Monday at the latest. This means that you have written at least two drafts of your description of a place before that date.  Monday night you will be given an editing sheet for your work.



Homework - Study link 1.9 and Concept Review Sheet
Use this  sheet and the sheet I gave in class to review the topics that we have covered so far this year. When do you think you will have you test?

Math Review Sheet