Mrs. Blankenship's News You Can Use
September 28, 2015
Curriculum Focus:
Reading- We will continue our work with summarizing. A daily grade will be administered Thursday, October 1st. We will also be practicing identifying and writing similes and metaphors. That daily grade will be given Wednesday, October 7th.
Grammar-While all grammar grades are finished for the marking period, we will continue working with compound , complex, and compound/complex sentences. The goal will be to properly incorporate a variety of sentences into writing.
Writing- The final test grade of the marking period will begin Monday, September 28th. It is an opinion writing piece. Students will be given a total of 2 hours to complete the work from a choice board of opinion prompts. A spelling grade will also be taken from the piece.
Greek/Latin roots- The “all roots” test grade for the marking period will be administered Tuesday, September 29th. There is a study set for the identified words on Quizlet.
Word Study-We will review antonyms, synonyms, and homographs. I have previewed all of the words that will be found on the daily grade covering this AKS. This grade will be administered Monday, October 5th.
Math- (Shaw) In math, the class will continue to work on computing with decimals in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. There is a daily grade on the 1st covering these skills. We are also learning about how patterns in products occur when multiplying by powers of ten and how in a number such as 4,444, the value of any of those given digits is ten times greater than the value of the digit on its right and 1/10 of the value of the digit to its left.
Social Studies- In social studies, we've touched on all of the standards with regard to the Civil War. Now the students will be given the opportunity to choose a topic relevant to the war and explore it more in depth through independent research. The week of the 5th, the students will participate in a "jigsaw" activity that allows them to share their new expertise with their peers. Brief presentations will be made in class to practice our public speaking skills.
A social studies study guide will be handed out Monday. There is a daily grade on Wednesday covering the chapter, with the final chapter test schedule for October 6th.
Science- In science, we are wrapping up our study of classification. A study guide on this will be given out midweek with the test scheduled for the 5th. We are also learning about inherited traits and learned behaviors. The daily grade on that is scheduled for the 8th.
Announcements:
·Thank you to all who were able to attend conferences this week! Thank you in advance for those who will be conferring with me next week. It has been wonderful sharing how bright and well behaved your child is. I am so blessed to be the teacher of such fine students.
· The students will be taking the end of the marking period District Assessments (DA) each day next week with the exception of Thursday. It is very important that students are in attendance for these assessments. The tests are given online, so if a student is absent, it will take creative scheduling to make sure that the test is covered. Each DA counts for 1% of the final grade in each subject. Study sets for social studies and science have been posted to your child's Quizlet account. Students should review the sets: social studies- Chapters 1 and 2 as well as the Amendments and science-Cells and Organisms, Classification of plants and animals, and Inherited/Acquired Traits.
· In today’s Friday Folder is the much anticipated “pink sheet!” This is the order form for the Father/Daughter Social. Historically, this dance is a hit, so please return the form and money as soon as possible if your daughter is hoping to attend!
· Please remember to remind your child to return his/her “Smart Goal” sheet. I will be conferencing with your child so that we are all on the same page and working together to support your son or daughter.
- From the PTA; Reflections entries are due September 29th at 7:45 (in the cafeteria). Forms are housed on my eClass Content page.
- From the JES Counselors: