The Beacons have been hard at work this second week back in school!
In Language Arts, the students have been reading about Martin Luther King, Jr. We have had some really good discussions about what he stood for and how things have changed since his death. We also read his I Had a Dream speech to the students. The students will begin reading new novels next week. They can choose from 3 titles, The Cabin Faced West, A Lion to Guard Us, and Sees Behind Trees. The first 2 of these books are stories about life for children in the Colonial Times. The last book is about a Native American boy who has very poor eyesight and must rely on his other senses to live. The students will once again be working on vocabulary building, writing summaries, and answering comprehension questions.
The Beacons have been working hard in math. The Math Magicians group is learning the basics of multiplication and some tricks for solving basic facts. The Math Magicals group is delving into division, with an emphasis on how it relates to multiplication. We are finishing up the chapters this week and will be testing next week. Look for a study guide to come home on Tuesday.
The new year has brought us to a huge project in Writers' Workshop. Students worked for a few days last week on how to create a picture in the reader's mind using words. They are now applying this idea to writing stories that we will turn into hard backed books. We have lots of great story ideas out there, so be sure to ask your Beacon about his or her story.
In Science, we have begun our new theme of the human body. We brainstormed what we knew and what we were hoping to learn. We are currently working our way through the senses and how they work. The students have made a brain hat that shows what part of the brain is responsible for each sense. Favorite quote about the brain hat..."I know why I am having trouble thinking of something to write. My brain is on the outside of my skull, instead of the inside!" We used our sense of smell to try to differentiate between different aromas and discussed how amazing the nerves in the nose are, telling our brains what we think of a smell. Cayenne pepper was the best one, everyone's brain told them to stay away from it! We also conducted an experiement to see how the taste buds on the tongue work. We predicted what would happen if we put different foods on different parts of our tongues. We certainly have a few kids who can taste sweet in anything! More fun experiements and models to come in the next few months!
In Social Studies, the students are learning about life in Colonial Times. They read about the lost colony at Roanoke, discussing what could have happened to the settlers there. They are creating a book of information about these times and will be creating 3-D maps soon to show what life was like in Roanoke and Jamestown.
As always, we love having your Beacons in our classroom. Here's to another great week!
