![]() In Math, we have begun our multiplication and division unit. We are discussing many strategies that will help us answer multiplication questions. Ask your child what is the BEST strategy for being able to quickly and accurately answer a multiplication question. I will regularly send home flashcards to help your child memorize multiplication tables. Please assist your child at home by encouraging them to take time to memorize these and to continue to practice regularly. Developing speed and accuracy will help them not just in this unit, in this grade, but throughout their school career. So, memorize those times tables!!!
Students are showing their work! Ask your child to tell you the multiples of a number between 1-10. They may need to use their agendas.
Students are investigating gear trains in Science! Ask your child:
If you turn a gear clockwise, which direction will the next gear turn? How can you get a gear to turn in the same direction as another gear? What does gearing up mean? What does gearing down mean? What is a rack and pinion? How does it work? Where would you see one? ![]() In writing, we are focusing on developing a main idea for a piece of writing and using solid details to support that main idea. We think of it like a table. The main idea is the table top. The details are the legs. One wobbly leg makes a wobbly table. Solid legs make for a solid table. Solid details make for a solid piece of writing! Ask your child to practising writing at home by choosing a main idea to write about and adding supporting details. Make sure they edit for capitals, punctuation, and spelling high-frequency words accurately as well!
Students work from their Science textbooks at school. Unfortunately, there is not enough textbooks to send each one home with a student for review or study. I will be adding the relevant pages of information from the texts here throughout the unit. Today, we read this page together and discussed what we learned. Students then answered questions about what they learned. Please see the previous post for some relevant questions to ask. Look through the attached textbook page to find and discuss the answers! ![]()
We have begun our new unit in Science on Pulleys and Gears! Ask your child: What do each of these pictures represent? What is a pulley? What is a belt drive? What is a gear? What is a gear train? Is a bicycle chain a pulley system or a gear system? How do you know? Laptops are used regularly throughout the year for various purposes. Here students are using the laptops to create comic strips using the site www.bitstripsforschools.com. Please feel free to allow your child, if you have access, to continue working on their Bitstrips assignments from home. Our class code is Merlo227!
![]() Reading assessments are a regular part of our planning and assessing in Language Arts. In primary years, students were assessed using a tool called the DRA. In the junior and intermediate years, students complete the CASI reading assessment throughout the year. During a CASI, students will be given a short story to read and then will answer a variety of questions based on the story. These types of questions are practiced in various ways throughout the school year. For example, in this recent CASI assessment, students were asked to summarize the story and also to write about the characteristics of a character using proof from the story. We have been practicing these kinds of questions lately! Reading assessments give teachers a snapshot of where the students are and where we need continued focus.
Our unit Science test is on Monday, Jan 13. Students will be studying the information we have discovered during our unit on Rocks and Minerals. How do we study? In class, we have specifically discussed ways to study effectively. The link below gives some suggestions. Feel free to add some ideas by adding a comment! Students will have an opportunity to pratise study skills in class as well. Thank you for making sure your children take the time to regularly review and study to be successful! ![]()
|