Bynagle Bulletin
April 27, 2015
Dates to Remember
April 27 - May 1 - Art in Schools with Debbi Harris
April 29 (Wednesday) - Field Trip to Islands and Oceans - WWII in the Aleutians 9-10:30am.
May 1 - Writers Fair - First Friday Event - 5-7PM at WHE
May 1 - Early Release (1:45pm)
May 7 - Book Report Due
May 12 - Spring Concert - Homer High School 6:30PM. (THIS IS A DATE CHANGE)
May 20 - Last day of School!!
Classroom Happenings
We made a great deal of progress in our understanding of multiplying and dividing fractions this week. Students continued to draw models as well as use formulas to solve fraction situations. The fact that your answer gets bigger when dividing by a fraction is a challenging concept to wrap your mind around when dividing whole numbers is all you have ever known. The fifth graders of room 319 worked hard to deepen their understanding of fractions this week. I was so impressed by the new understandings they developed! Multiplying and dividing fractions is no easy task.
In writing this week students are continuing to develop their ability to write on demand. We have been practicing reading articles and writing responses to those articles. Students are making tremendous progress.
A HUGE THANK YOU
Writers Fair First Friday Event
5:00-7:00 PM: West Homer Elementary FIRST FRIDAY EXHIBIT
Please join us on Friday, May 1, 2015 as we celebrate student authors at this year’s WHE Writers’ Fair! Every student will display a work they have penned with accompanying art in the gym. Light refreshments will be served. PLEASE JOIN US!
Final 5th Grade Project
We have one project currently in the works. The quarter 4 book report is due on May 7th. In an attempt to prevent students from waiting until the last minute, I will be talking about this project frequently in class. I would greatly appreciate your support with this project. The Cereal Box Book Report is a home project that students have had available to them for several weeks now.
Library News
What a great year in the library. Your children have read so many book: we have checked out 19,000 books so far this year!
With only 4 more weeks of school, we are starting the process of getting all the books back into the library.
Students will be able to check out books one at a time for the rest of the year as long as they have their overdue books returned.
Please help your students return their library books –I will send home overdue notices this week.
Thank you for all your support!
Your librarians,
Lisa Whip
Cheryl Illg
Cereal Box Book Report
Cereal Box Report
This week students will select a teacher-approved realistic fiction chapter book from the library. Over the next few weeks, students will read their self-selected book and create a cereal book report at home. Students will decorate a real cereal box with illustrations and information related to the book they read using the directions below.
Front of Box: Use apiece of white or light colored paper to cover the front of your cereal box. (You will probably want to create the cover before gluing it on our box.) Include the name of the cereal and a picture. Invent a name for the cereal that is related to the title of the book and sounds like a cereal. Do not use the exact title of the book. You may want to look at the attached page of real cereal boxes to get some ideas. Choose a shape for the cereal as well as colors and ingredients that all relate to the book. For example, for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, you might invent a cereal called Wizard Wands, a toasted oat cereal I the shape of miniature lightning bolts.
Right Side of Box: Make a list of ingredients that includes the story elements Character and Setting. Under the heading “Ingredients,” list the main characters and write a sentence about each one. Then describe the setting. You can use the template on the attached sheet or cover the side with white or light colored paper and do it in our own way. Just make sure you include the main characters and the setting.
Left Side of Box: Write a summary that describes the main problem and the solution of the book. Try to use words that will “grab” readers’ attention and make them want to buy your cereal. You can use the attached template or do this your own way.
Back of Box: Design a game that is based on the story. It can be a puzzle, a word search, a word scramble, a maze, a crossword puzzle, a hidden pictures illustration, or any other fun activity that might be found on the back of a cereal box. Make sure it includes information from the book.
Top of Box: Include the title, author, number of pages, and number of stars you would give this book if you were a book critic. The maximum number of stars would be 5. You can use the template or create the top of the box yourself as long as you include all of the things listed above.
Prize: Cereal boxes often include a prize. Your prize must be something the main character could have used in the book or something that reminds you of the main character. You can even include a picture of the prize on the front of your box to let the reader know what is inside the box.
YOUR CEREALBOX BOOK REPORT IS DUE AT SCHOOL ON THURSDAY MAY 7TH