Lincoln's February Newsletter
Leading The Pack In Kingsport
Congratulations to our Roaring Readers
Our brain is a muscle. If we want students to get better at reading they must read. Similar to any skill, like baseball, basketball, chess, anything! If we want to get better at something we must practice. Reading is no exception. Please read with your child, encourage them to read, and make reading a daily occurance in your house. February is another month that students can practice reading what they love and get credit towards our monthly celebration. Happy reading everyone! We are looking forward to more students at our next celebration!
Thank You To Our Community Partners
News from the PTO
Grade Level Updates
Literacy:
We are finishing up our unit on winter weather and beginning a new unit on needs and wants/ community helpers. Students will learn about different jobs that community helpers have. Please continue reading each night for 20 minutes and signing the reading calendar in your child's folder.
Math:
Students are working hard to identify, compose, and decompose teen numbers. We are continuing to use various tools to measure length and weight. Please continue practicing adding/subtracting fluently within 5. Students also need to be able to count to 75 by 1s, and by 5s and 10s to 100.
First Grade
First graders will learn how the state government functions through interdependent relationships between citizens and leaders. Also, we will explore how our state economy functions interdependent relationships between consumers and producers.
For phonics, we are focusing on final y as a vowel and r-controlled vowel patterns. Our language focus will be a review of all concepts taught this year (capitalization, punctuation, what makes a good sentence, nouns, verbs, articles, and adjectives).
In math, students will understand, represent, and solve problems involving addition and subtraction. We will understand equivalence and place value. This unit has several math games for homework practice. Students need to practice reading analog clocks to the hour and half hour. First graders must be fluent with addition facts up to 10.
In social studies, students will focus on Black History month. They will learn about many amazing accomplishments from various African-Americans. We will read about Presidents Lincoln and Washington. This work will end with an informational writing about a famous American. Students will use the TIDE plan for the informational piece.
Second Grade
Please see link at end of newsletter
Third Grade
During February, we will be continuing our unit on Man-made Disasters. We will finish our story on the Boston Molasses Flood and start reading about the Peshtigo Fires. As we read, the students are working with vocabulary, comprehension, and writing to texts. We are also practicing time management in our work ~ students need to be mastering getting tasks done in a specified amount of time. Don't forget that we do not have traditional spelling tests, but rather work with a word and/or letter pattern all week, with a Quick Check on Fridays.
Math
In math we will be looking at Unit 6- Fractions. Students will understand the meaning of fractions as equal parts of a whole, the meaning of fractions as numbers, comparing fractions and reasoning about fraction equivalencies with representations, and modeling with fraction notation.
Science
In science students will be looking at the interaction between two magnets, recognize materials that are magnetic and how magnets can change motion or position of objects, and solve real-world problems by using the properties of a magnet and interaction between magnets.
Fourth Grade
Fourth grade is the only grade level in elementary school that learns about angle measurement using a protractor! Be sure to talk about this at home and look for and estimate angles you see and use in your life. Also in this measurement unit, students will take a look at solving problems involving metric and customary lengths and distances. They will describe and classify shapes based on the types of angles (acute, obtuse, reflex, straight, and right) and lines (parallel, perpendicular, and intersecting) present. Finally, we will revisit finding the area and perimeter of rectangles.
During Science class, we are still deep into physical science. Some of the things we are exploring include the relationship between the speed and energy of an object; the difference between potential and kinetic energy; and some energy transformations that take place. Again, this is a topic that is great to explore while you are at home or out and about! Take a look at the playground. There are endless potential/kinetic energy "experiments." Later on, we will continue talking about different energy sources on earth that come from natural resources which are considered renewable or non-renewable.
In Literacy, we will continue to explore the ideas of theme, character, setting, and summarizing in narrative texts. We will also explore more about main idea and text structures in non-fiction texts. Please continue to encourage your child to read at home and complete their homework each week!
In Social Studies, we will be exploring abolitionists, slavery, and the causes of the Civil War. We will continue and talk about major battles and people during the Civil War as well.
Fifth Grade
Literacy/Social Studies: We are working through our unit on immigration. We are focusing on what sources inform historical fiction, and using historical texts about some of the cultural aspects of Chinese-Americans and their immigrant experiences. In social studies, we have completed our study of Tennessee history from the first semester and are now covering world history topics.
Math/Science: In math, we just started our work with decimals. We are beginning with simply identifying decimals, their place values, and their equivalencies to fractions. During our unit, we will use decimals with all four operations. In science, we are working on our unit about fossils which will include a trip to the Gray Fossil Site!
Fall In Love With Literacy
Staying Well In The Season Of Illness
- If you child has a fever (over 100 degrees), they cannot go to school. They must be 24 hours fever free without medication. Please do not give your child Tylenol/Advil knowing that they have a fever (or have a temperature of 99.9) and send them to school. You will be likely infecting your child's classmates and sending a miserable child to school who should be resting at home.
- This is the same for vomit. If you child has thrown up, they must be 24 hours--not the next morning--vomit free. The flu, strep, and stomach bug (all things that we have in the building right now) are not to be taken lightly and we need your commitment to keep your child home when they are contagious and not well.
We are encouraging more frequent hand washing of all students and our custodians are wiping down all handrails, desks, and doorknobs with disinfectant two times a day. Together we can keep the sickness to as much of a minimum as we can in a building with close to 450 people in it on a daily basis.
If you have questions regarding your child's ability to come to school you can always call the nurse, Nurse Brandy, or come with your child between 7:45 and 8:15 in the morning to her office. She can do an assessment of your child and make a decision if they are able to stay at school. Our goal is always to have students in school, but we truly don't want them here if they are sick and contagious.