Schaffer's Snippets
April Newsletter
Dive in to Learing!
Did you know that we know less about some parts of the ocean than we do about the moon? Amazing but true. The ocean is an amazing place. The learning we did in the classroom really prepared us for our trip. We learned so much at the New Jersey Aquarium. We had a great time and got to touch a shark, and stingrays too. The exhibits were a great way to finish up the learning we started in class. We think the ocean is a special place filled with incredible habitats and animals.
Ocean Experiment
What do eggs and salt water have to do with teaching about buoyancy? Plenty! The students were shone and got to predict what an egg would do when placed in water. Then we did the experiment. The students got to see that the salt water was denser and the egg was able to float.
Our experiment
We made a prediction.
Sink or Float?
Then we tested our prediction.
Results
The salt in the water helped the egg to float.
The boys at lunch
We had lunch outside.
The girls
We made a silly face!
Shark pool
The shark pool is soooo cool!
Open House
We are sure excited for you to see our jellyfish, sharks, and seahorses to name a few. Did you ever wonder who would win a fight a shark or a killer whale? No, you won't discover all that at the aquarium but right here at Tatem on Thursday, April 10th for Open House. There will be so much to see! Please stop by the classroom...just look for some familiar divers.
Ocean Research
We each were assigned an animal to research. We found out what each animal needs, has or can do. We really loved learning and writing out this great knowledge so you can learn about these animals too!
Ocean research
We loved learning so much and enjoyed sharing really cool facts with our table mates. The room was buzzing with all this great learning.
Final Projects
Want to see who this animal belongs to? You have to come and see us for Open House!
Books 1 Schaffer Loves
We have read Nate The Great and think he is hysterical! We read Owl Moon and love the poetic way Jane Yolen writes. We read Lulu Walks the Dog and think she is so smart and funny. Now we are reading Charlotte's Web and can't imagine a more exciting Barnyard.
Math Work and Fun!
We have been working quite a bit on our addition and subtraction facts to acquire FACT POWER! To do this we have been writing out problems, playing games, and quizzing one another with our fact triangles. We have also been doing quite a bit of problem solving as well. We now know how many raisins come in a 1/2 ounce box and predicted how many would come in a 1 ounce box. We have also been practicing different strategies to solve word problems and are becoming aces at solving problems.
Penny Plate
This game helps students practice addition and missing addend addition facts to ten.
What's under the plate?
By playing this game the students can reinforce their problem solving skills.
Script
By following the script the students incorporate reading with math and reinforce the idea that the reason they know what is under the plate is because of their knowledge of addition facts.
Our Fifth Grade Buddies
We met with Mrs. Dugan's class to share our stories. We felt so proud reading to them and it was good practice too! The said our stories were interesting and fun to hear. This has been such a meaningful relationship for Mrs. Dugan's class and ours. The students can't wait to get together with their buddies and are always asking when we will get together again!
Bernadette and her Buddies
Reading together.
Buddies
To read out loud to our buddies builds our fluency and confidence.
Fun!
We really love getting together with our buddies.