Medcalf Minutes
February 1st-5th
Anderson Grove's Purpose and Direction
Purpose: The purpose of Anderson Grove Elementary is to prepare all students to achieve their greatest potential and to positively impact the future.
Values & Beliefs:
Family Atmosphere
Collaboration and Communication
Integrity
Continuous Improvement
3 Be’s – Be Safe, Be Respectful, Be Responsible
Be Known...
Anderson Grove is Known for Being a . . .
Collaborative
Dedicated
Positive
Community
Expectation of the Week: Hallway
Be Respectful
Voices off
Walk up the stairs and down the ramp
Be Responsible
Go directly to your destination
Be Safe
Single file line
Face forward
Hands, feet, and objects to self
Social Skill of the Week: Listening
- Look at the person who is talking and remain quiet.
- Wait until the person is through talking before you speak.
- Show that you heard the person by nodding your head, saying 'Okay,' 'That's interesting,' etc.
A Note from Mrs. Medcalf
We are also looking for donations of Auction Day items. Auction Day will be a chance for students to bid on donated items with their profits from Market Day. If you have items that can be donated for our Auction Day, please send them to school with your child. Small notepads, colorful pens/pencils, small trinkets/toys are welcome. Thank you!
A Note from Mrs. Billquist
Students may need to use “fix-up” strategies when they come to a part in the text that they don’t understand. Below are a couple of strategies you can have your child try when they read at home.
1. Reread
Rereading can include rereading a sentence, a paragraph, or selectively going back to an earlier part of the text to resolve a misunderstanding. Rereading usually needs to be done at a slower rate.
2. Periodically Check for Understanding
Have your child stop and think about what is happening in the story. He or she may make predictions or confirm previous predictions. Other ways to check for understanding include summarizing and retelling.
3. Look at Pictures, Charts, and Graphs
Have your child pay attention to pictures and charts. The author includes these to help the reader understand. Pictures and illustrations help the reader visualize what is being read. Charts and graphs are used to present information in a visual manner. Paying attention to these can deepen your child’s level of understanding.
A Note from Mr. Becker
From the music zone!
Third Grade Music class is fun to teach. The 3rd grade music curriculum is full of rhythmic recognition development, music pitch competencies, body percussion, movement, instruments, and musical form. It's full of life! Additionally, I plan to soon set up academic music game stations to enhance their music learning enrichment.
I recently set up a school music Facebook page and have already posted a few photos and videos from the 3rd grade classes. I will now continue to post photos for the remainder of the semester. Please check it out at: www.facebook.com/AGelementaryMusic
Musically yours,
Mr. Becker
Upcoming Events
Feb. 1- Products/Services for Market Day are due to school
Feb. 2- Market Day
Feb. 3- Auction Day
Feb. 11- Spring Parties- 2:00- 3:00
Feb. 12- No School
Feb. 15- No School
Feb. 16- Conferences- 3:20- 7:40
Feb. 18- Conferences 3:20-7:40
Specials
Tuesday (Day 2) - Music
Wednesday (Day 3) - Art
Thursday (Day 4) - Guidance (Library Checkout Day)
Friday (Day 5) - PE
A Peek at our Week
Reading – This week students will answer the question, "Why is it important to take care of our environment?" We will read texts related to caring for our environment. Students will use the strategy of understanding how a story's structure (setting, characters, & plot) comes together to make the story come to life. Readers will also practice the skill of monitoring, or paying attention to, the parts of a story that they don't understand. Good readers clarify by rereading and looking for text evidence to understand confusing parts of a text. Vocabulary: recycle, project, dripping, carton, complicated, pollution, rubbish, hardly, shade, global.
At Home – Activities to Do Together:
Vocabulary - Talk with your child about different kinds of pollution you might encounter during a typical day. Use as many Target Vocabulary words as you can in your conversation.
Home Improvement - Walk through your home with your child. Discuss how your family can save and recycle resources. For example, turn off the water when brushing your teeth.
What’s the Problem? - Ask your child to identify a way to improve the environment in your community. Then have your child describe the problem and propose a solution in a letter to a local official.
Writing – Writing Focus: Informative writing— We continue with the process of writing an informative essay this week. Writers have organized details to support their ideas and will add to these ideas to create complete paragraphs. I look forward to sharing these writing pieces at conference time!
At Home - Check out these websites for informational paragraph samples, comprehension questions, and quizzes.
Burger Game
Main Idea/Details Video
Links to many more main idea/detail activities here.
Math – Mathematicians will use their array cards that they made last week to play several games that familiarize and reinforce using arrays. We will end our week with an introductory look at division symbols and how to read a division equation.
At Home – Visit these sites for practice with arrays and multiplication/division:
Multiplication with ArraysMultiplication Practice Scroll down to “Multiply It” or “Multiplication Rods” to review arrays.
Division Facts
Cool Math Multiplication and Division
Social Studies – Our students will learn first-hand the laws of supply and demand during our Market Day on Wednesday this week. Finished products/services are due to school on Tuesday. We will wrap up our week with an Auction Day where students can spend their profits from Market Day.
At Home – Students should work on completing their Market Day products. Please check out these web sites to find out more:
Managing Money
Needs vs. Wants
Spelling – This week students will study r-controlled vowels words with a focus on -air (pair), -ear (pear/fear), -are (share) sounds.
At Home – It is important that students practice sorting their words at home to understand the relationships of their words. Students can practice sorting activities at home as well as play games at http://www.spellingcity.com/BeckyMedcalf/ to have more practice with their words.
Thank you Families!