This Week:
December 13th, 2009
*This will be the last newsletter of the calendar year.
Field Trip
We will be going on our first field trip to Palo Alto Art Center on Tuesday, December 15th. I would encourage all students to bring lunch from home, especially students who order hot lunch. Our field trip begins at 12:30 so we will be having lunch before 12:00 in class.
Holiday Pajama Party
On Friday Room 19 will have a holiday pajama party. Students will be allowed to wear pajamas/sweatpants and bring in sleeping bags, bedsheets, etc. It will be a big slumber party! Snacks and hot chocolate will be provided, but please send lunches from home.
Gold Rush Information
If you are interested in visiting the Coloma area on your own, we would advise you to visit the State Parks of Coloma and Sutter's Fort. You can also go to the Railroad Museum in Sacramento. You can pan anywhere on the American River, and equipment is sold in local stores. The following websites can be helpful:
http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=485
http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=484
http://www.csrmf.org/
Mission Field Trip
The Mission Trip is set for January 28th. We will be needing parent drivers for this trip. More information will follow in January.
Report Cards
I will be mailing report cards this week. Please let me know if there are any questions.
Curriculum Notes
Writers' Workshop
This week students worked on choice pieces. Students also wrote two poems. The first poem was a diamante poem on city life. A diamante poem is a seven line poem that looks like a diamond and follows a specific pattern. There will be a related art project and soon you will be able to read and enjoy their work in class!
Social Studies
Students continued working on Explorers trading cards.
Math
This week students dealt with large numbers and exponents. Students learned what " to the power of 10" means and how to round large numbers. We ended the week with taking the unit test.
This Week:
December 5th, 2009
Library
Please make sure your child turns in any overdue books this week.
Lice Check
A big thanks to Peggy and Khanh for helping out with lice checks this year!
Report Cards/Conferences
It was wonderful meeting with all the parents and discussing the progress students have made so far. If you have any additional questions or comments, e-mail me or drop by. Report cards will be mailed
before winter break.
Curriculum Notes
Writers' Workshop
This week students typed their fairy tales. Please stop by the classroom to read them. They are quite entertaining!
Math
This week students focused on alternative algorithms for multiplication-partial products and lattice method. The partial products focuses on place value while the lattice method depends on the recall of multiplication facts. We ended the week with dealing with numbers in the billions place value and exponents.
Social Studies
Students continued learning about the European explorers that came to California. We started the next project-creating Explorer Trading Cards. Each student picked two explorers to research and used their textbooks to start their research. Next week, they will use internet resources and supplementary packets to find additional information.
Reading
We continued reading about the adventures of Karana in Island of the Blue Dolphin.
Science
Students observed the evaporating dishes that were left out for the last two weeks. The rocks were placed in a vial filled with vinegar. Rocks containing calcite left a white residue after the vinegar evaporated. From that observation, students could tell which rocks contained calcite.