Hi Parents,

This week we will focus on:

Writing: reviewing writing strategies for personal narratives (strong leads, powerful endings, paragraphs, punctuation, and sentences). They will also do another writing prompt. We will also continue to work on revising/editing passages.

Reading: continuing figurative language by continuing similes and metaphors and introducing idioms. Book Clubs continue; students are becoming more adept at discussing and staying on topic. It is exciting to watch them grow as group leaders.

Math: Monday is the Middle of Year assessment (not for a grade) which will aid in determining what needs to be revisited. Tuesday we will begin division. Later in the week will be another basic multiplication facts test. Division will be much easier if multiplication facts are automatic.

Science: Ecosystems and Habitats. Vocabulary for the week includes: organisms, populations, community, ecosystem, habitats, food chain, food web, producers, and consumers. It is a bit complicated so we will work through it together.

Social Studies: Continuing with government. Another complex topic that we are working on together. Last week we learned about the makeup of the Constitution and this week we will continue to focus on the 3 branches of govt., their roles, and the concept of checks and balances.

Reminder: Field trip forms and money for Austin are due on January 31.

Have a great week!