Thursday, November 30th

Announcements and Reminders:

• Roo Hop is Friday night!  I hope to see you all there.  Remember it is not too late to donate.
• Grandparent's Day is Friday morning.
• Picture Retake is Friday as well.

Math
Focus Standards:

•  Use parentheses, brackets, or braces in numerical expressions, and evaluate expressions with these symbols.
• Add, subtract, multiply, and divide decimals to hundredths, using concrete models or drawings and strategies based on place value, properties of operations, and/or the relationship between addition and subtraction; relate the strategy to a written method and explain the reasoning used.

We will continue to review the order of operations in small groups as needed.  As a whole class we will begin to learn how to multiply decimals.  For students who are ready, I will introduce the algorithm. For those who are still working on place value, we will stick to concrete models as the standard states.

Order of Operations
Multiplying a Decimal by a Whole Number
Multiplying a Decimal by a Decimal


Writing
Focus Standard:

• Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.

Before starting informational writing, we are taking some time to improve our response writing.  Students are asked to explain/justify math thinking and reading understandings in writing on a regular basis.  We are using rubrics and sample writing to help us see what a proficient response looks like.

Reading
Focus Standards:

• Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
• By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4–5 text complexity band independently and proficiently.

We will finish our novel, Sign of the Beaver, on Tuesday.  Ask your kiddo about the novel; it has been a great read.  In small groups we have been reading short informational texts.

A Reading Announcement:  I am trying something new.  We are starting book clubs in our class.  Students had an opportunity to sign up for a novel of their choice.  Groups will meet once a week during Silent Reading Time after recess.  This round of novels includes Hoot, The Magician's Elephant, Miss Spitfire, and Stormbreaker.  Students can bring their novels home to read there.  They will also have time during class.


Science/Social Studies
We will be studying the Biosphere and creating our own sustainable biosphere (Send those 2 liter bottles in soon!).  We will also be looking at interactions between all four spheres as we wrap up this science unit.  Our study of Native Americans is in the final stages as well.  Soon, we will create a museum to share what we have learned about interactions between the spheres and Native Americans.