Visualization, Connections and Community

Language Arts

Reading
I have been pulling your children in class to have them read for me.  I will be completing each child's reading assessment by the end of September. I am so thankful for the families who could meet with me last Saturday.  If your family did not meet with me last Saturday, then I will be pulling your child during class for him or her to read for me.
Our classes have been working on extending our ability to read independently during DEAR time (Drop Everything and Read)! 

Please know that your child's nightly homework is to read for 20 minutes. Then, he or she should write the title of the book and the book's genre in his or her planner.  I check everyday!  

In class we have started working on visualization.  Students have been asked to think about what images they see when they read or have words read to them.  We often refer to this as the movie in our mind.  They have been drawing their images for me and sharing them with the class.  These images that students create help solidify the meaning of the text.  If you can't picture it, you probably don't understand it!

We will review the idea of connects as the week closes, and work more closely with this next week.  Connections fall into three categories:  text-to-self, text-to-text, and text-to world.  We will begin this week to create text-to-self connections.  
We will read and then work together to think...
What about this story reminds me of something I have done?...something I have experienced?...someone I know?These connections draw us closer to the text while building comprehension.
Writing
Over the summer I kept a gratitude journal.  I would journal each day about something I was thankful for.  I've discussed my experience with my classes and we have taken on a gratitude challenge.  Our goal is to write down 300 things we are thankful for by the end of the year.  Each day during our journal time, students add to their gratitude list.  Then, they either select a topic, or I provide one for them to journal about.  Our journals are not a place where spelling, punctuation and capitalization are important.  They simply serve as a place for us to get our thoughts and ideas out of our heads and onto paper.  It's been a great experience watching your kids share their thinking and their thanks.

Spelling

This was our first week for students to receive spelling words.  
Starting next week (this is a practice week), they should practice spelling and sorting the words each night using the activities found in the menu.  We will write the words in the correct sort inside their spelling spirals for them to have as a reference tool all week. 
I will collect spelling homework on Thursday mornings.  Thursday night your child's only spelling homework is to prepare for the spelling test on Friday. 
During the spelling test on Friday, students will be asked to spell and sort the words correctly.
This process will become routine and familiar with time.  Take deep breaths, and feel free to email me with any questions.  REMEMBER, this week is practice and NEXT week is our first week... so we will GO SLOW! 
Social Studies

We are continuing to focus on citizenship.  This week we have talked about Jane Addams, Ruby Bridges, Helen Keller, and Clara Barton.  These women made HUGE contributions to their communities.  We also took some time this week to focus on community heroes in honor of 9/11.  Students will have lunch with these heroes on Friday and present them with thank you notes and bookmarks.

Mental Images, Connections, and Citizenship

Language Arts
Reading
In Reading this week we will be finishing our discussions on mental images, also called visualization.  Good readers create images in their minds as they read a text.  These images help us check for understanding of a text but also aide in our ability to remember what we have just read.  Look for some excellent mental images to come home in the Tuesday Newsday folder this week.

We will then be moving on to work on connections.  Connections fall into three categories:  text-to-self, text-to-text, and text-to world.  We will work this week to create text-to-self connections.  We will read and then work together to think...
What about this story reminds me of something I have done?
...something I have experienced?
...someone I know?
These connections draw us closer to the text while building comprehension   

Writing
We will be taking our work from Visualization and apply it to our writing.  We have been noticing in read the language that an author uses to create these beautiful images as we read.  Students will work this week to try their hand at the craft.  They will work on use sensory language and adjectives to help their readers create images as they read.  The pictures that you sent last week for homework will serve as our inspiration this week for writing.

Spelling
We did it!  We made it through our first Monday with new spelling words.  The groups did an excellent job of supporting one another and asking great questions.  The Spelling Homework Menu is due Thursday.  Students will need to complete 8pts. of spelling assignments.  We have only learned about 2pt. and 4pt. options on the menu, so bear with us this week.  The Spelling Menu is located in their green three ring notebook and should stay there all year long as a reference guide.

Social Studies
We have spent a good deal of time talking about how to make our classroom community successful.  We're now working on thinking about what makes someone a good citizen.  Our discussions will help students think about what others can do in our local and national communities to help make our world a better place.  We'll be talking specifically about volunteering this week.  If you or your child have volunteered for an organization, please use that experience as a springboard for discussion at the dinner or breakfast table.  

I am very thankful for your support at home!  I will begin testing each child's reading level soon using the DRA2.  I will be sending a sign-up genius sheet asking for some families to volunteer to bring their child before school, after school and on some Saturdays.  This extra time to tests kids helps me not take so much class and instruction time to administer 45+ reading assessments.  It takes a team, and I'm glad we are in this together! ~Omi Ford