December 8th Update!

Blog Entry – December 8^th

LANUAGE  

READING

Students are continuing to write letters on a bi-weekly basis to communicate their comprehension of the reading they do doing read to self-times. Over the next two weeks we will be looking at samples of letters and discussing ways we can bump up our letters to a level 3 or 4.

WRITING

Students have gone through the writing process from Prewrite-Draft- Revise/Edit and produced their first Recount for this year in Grade 4. The Grade 5’s went through the writing process and produced a persuasive piece. This week students are working on their second writing piece in their text form (Recount or Persuasive) they will be provided feedback on their first written piece to help them with their second.

The Grade 4’s were given a Robert Munsch story and in groups discussed the 5 W’s (who, what, where, when, why), the important events, and something they learned from the story. Then they were given time to fill out a prewrite organizer. As a class we wrote a recount of Stephanie’s Ponytail and used it as a sample students could refer to when writing their drafts of their Robert Munsch story.

Recount of Stephanie’s Ponytail

            In the book Stephanie’s Ponytail by Robert Munsch, Stephanie is a girl who enjoys having different styles of ponytails.

            The story starts off with Stephanie asking her mom for a ponytail coming right out of the back of her head. When Stephanie gets to school that day all the kids make fun of her new ponytail style. The following day all the girls have copied her ponytail style. Stephanie gets frustrated that her schoolmates are copying her hair after they have already made fun of her. The story continues with Stephanie coming to school with new ponytail styles. Some of them are on the side of her head, front of her head, and top of her head. Everyday students keep teasing her because of her new hairstyle then copy her the next day. Finally Stephanie tells everyone she is going to shave her head bald because she is tired of everyone just following what she does. The story ends when everyone (students, teachers, and animals) shaved their heads bald but Stephanie comes to school with a nice ponytail coming out the back of her head.

            Stephanie’s Ponytail taught me that it is important to make your own decisions and not just following along with what everyone else is doing.

The Grade 5’s co-created their assignment with me discussing the success criteria and outline for their project.

This was the outline we came up with as a class.

Persuasive Advertisement

Assignment

- persuade someone to buy your product, or an already existing product

- know your audience

- how is your product going to make someone else’s life better (“Making a Difference”)

- you may work in a group of 2 or independently

Success Criteria

- name of product

- your opinion

- colour/attract attention (for posters, brochure….)

- 3 reasons why someone should buy your product

- at least 3 examples/evidence

- evident use of persuasive writing techniques (slogan, bandwagon, testimonial , emotional appeal, expert opinion)

Topic Ideas

- type of cereal

- pet food

- sell a shoe

- toy

- book

- rainbow looms

- video game, board game

- action figure

- comic book

- car

- piece of technology

- sports equipment

- pencil sharpener

- art piece

- McDonalds

- a pet

- boat

- house (energy conservation)

- new materials for the classroom

- locks

- website

Forms

- Brochure

- Commercial

- Poster

- Billboard

- Slideshow

- Magazine/Newspaper Ad

- letter

- website

Students were given a prewrite organizer to ensure they cover the success criteria.

Name: ______________________

Product Persuasion

Product Information-

Product Name: ______________________ Purpose (what does it do?): _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ Who would need it (Audience – who are you selling it to?): _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ My product will make someone else’s life better because… _____________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________

    

The method of advertisment I will be using is… (poster, billboard, letter, newspaper ad etc.)

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

My advertisement will attract my audience because I will use _______ persuasive strategies.

(e.g. slogan, colour, emotional appeal, bandwagon, testimonial, expert opinion)

-

-

-

3 Reasons why someone should buy my product

Reason 1. _____________

Examples/Evidence

Reason 2. _____________

Examples/Evidence

Reason 3. ______________

Examples/Evidence

            Once students have finished their prewrite they will begin to create their advertisement using the form they choose. Students will be given work periods in class. Students were asked to choose a task they could do in class not always needing a computer, as the lab is booked for most of the periods in the remaining two weeks. Students are welcome to work at home but they will be provided time in class. Once the advertisements are created students will be presenting their ad in a oral presentation.

MATH

This week we have a Division/Multiplication Re-Quiz for students who needed more time to practice the concepts. It will be this Wednesday.

Math Help

Wednesdays (1^st break)  and Fridays (2^nd break)

We will be starting a new unit in math. We will be looking at Data Management. Here are the expectations for the Grade 4’s and Grade 5’s.

Grade 4

 *collect data by conducting a survey (e.g., “Choose your favourite meal from the following list: breakfast, lunch, dinner, other.”) or an experiment to do with themselves, their environment, issues in their school or the community, or content from another subject, and record observations or measurements;

*collect and organize discrete primary data and display the data in charts, tables, and graphs (including stem-and-leaf plots and double bar graphs) that have appropriate titles, labels (e.g., appropriate units marked on the axes), and scales (e.g., with appropriate increments) that suit the range and distribution of the data, using a variety of tools (e.g., graph paper, simple spread- sheets, dynamic statistical software).

*read, interpret, and draw conclusions from primary data (e.g., survey results, measurements, observations) and from secondary data (e.g., temperature data in the newspaper, data from the Internet about endangered species), presented in charts, tables, and graphs (including stem-and-leaf plots and double bar graphs);

*demonstrate, through investigation, an understanding of median (e.g.,” The median is the value in the middle of the data. If there are two middle values, you have to calculate the middle of those two values.”), and determine the median of a set of data (e.g.,” I used a stem-and-leaf plot to help me find the median.”);

*describe the shape of a set of data across its range of values, using charts, tables, and graphs (e.g. “The data values are spread out evenly.”; “The set of data bunches up around the median.”);

*compare similarities and differences between two related sets of data, using a variety of strategies (e.g., by representing the data using tally charts, stem-and-leaf plots, or double bar graphs; by determining the mode or the median; by describing the shape of a data set across its range of values).

Grade 5

* read, interpret from primary data and from secondary data, presented in charts, tables, and graphs (including broken-line graphs);

* distinguish between discrete data and continuous data

*compare similarities and differences between two related sets of data, using a variety of strategies

*draw conclusions from data in charts, tables, and graphs

*describe, through investigation, how a set of data is collected and explain whether the collection method is appropriate

*describe, through investigation, how a set of data is collected and explain whether the collection method is appropriate

*collect data by conducting a survey

* demonstrate an understanding that sets of data can be samples of larger populations

*collect and organize data and display the data in charts, tables, and graphs

*calculate the mean

Great Math Website!

Check out this new website! Go to the Patterning and Algebra section and take a look.

http://cemc2.math.uwaterloo.ca/mathfrog/

Week of November 25th

LANGUAGE

READING

Students are continuing to write letters on a bi-weekly basis to communicate their comprehension of the reading they do doing read to self times.

A sample letter students wrote as a class.

Grade 4

                                                                                    Wednesday            October 23, 2013

Dear: Mr. Mayotte,

We are reading a realistic fiction book called No Talking  by Andrew Clements. As we were reading we made some predictions and asked ourselves questions as we read to ensure we understood what we were reading.

In Chapter 10 we predicted that in science class Mrs. Marlow would ask a lot of questions, and when the students only responded using three words she will probably figure out what is going on. Adults tend to pick up on changes in student behaviour and since the Grade 5’s typically are loud and chatty the fact that they are only responding using three words will most likely stand out to the teachers. As we read further into Chapter 10 we discovered our prediction was correct that Mrs. Marlow would ask her students questions to get them to respond however she has not figured out why they are being so quiet. She seems to be enjoying figuring out why probably because she is a science teacher and she mentioned experiments are one of her favourite things to do.

Whistling, farting noises, burping, and screaming was all teachers could hear at recess in Chapter 9. As we read we wondered if the teachers were going to get annoyed with the sounds that the kids were making because they can make sounds just not say words.  We think that if we were out on that playground we would be getting annoyed by all of the screams and whistling and random sounds that the fifth graders were making. We find it difficult to focus in class when noises are being made if the kids are making noises and sounds for a few days in a row student’s might start to get frustrated with each other.

So far we thoroughly enjoy reading No Talking by Andrew Clements. We are curious to find out if the girls or the boys will win in the competition or if it will be a tie.

Sincerely,

4-1 FI

Grade 5

                                                                                    Wednesday October 16^th, 2013

Dear: Mr. Mayotte,

The book we have been reading in class is called The Top Ten Ways to Ruin the First Day of School by Ken Derby. As we were reading we made predictions, connections and asked ourselves questions.

While we were reading we stopped and jotted a prediction that Tony and Mo would try to make a run for it after they made the photocopies of Tony’s hinder. While they were making an escape they would run into Mr. Gore. We made this prediction because Mr. Gore has caught Tony and Mo in every other situation so far and they always knock him down.  Mr. Gore gets covered in some type of liquid, for example Mr. Gore has already been covered in toilet water, coffee and jello. As we read on our prediction was correct Mr. Gore got knocked down by the boys and covered in paint this time.

 As we were reading we also made some connections. One of our text to self connections was about Tony while he was in the photocopy room. We put ourselves in Tony’s shoes. If we were Tony we would pull up our pants and flip over the photocopies so that if we got caught we could pretend that we were photocopying for another teacher. Hopefully the teacher would believe us or else we would be in a lot of trouble!

As we continue to read we wonder if Mo will continue to get in trouble with Tony or if he will stand up to Tony and say enough is enough. Mo seems to just go along with what Tony wants however gets frustrated when he gets into trouble. That reminds us of how in school we are constantly reflecting on the choices we make and have to remember that we decide what we do. Following along with a friend even when we know it is wrong is a choice that we can decide to say no, and choose a different path. We cannot wait to find out what happens next!!!

Sincerely,

Class 5-1 FI

As a class we will focus on mini lessons this week to continue to get students to stop and jot their thinking (inner conversations) but also to find examples and evidence in the text to support our ideas.

WRITING

We have started our first writing form. For Grade 4 we are focusing on Recount in Grade 5 we are looking at persuasive writing. Last week students were given exemplars (samples) of the writing form they are learning. In groups they pulled out the success criteria and we discussed as a class what a Recount/Persuasive Writing Piece needs to have in it.

MATH

We have finished Division and Multiplication for now but will be using those skills through out the whole year and will continue to offer math help to refresh the skills.

Math Help

Wednesdays (1^st break)  and Fridays (2^nd break)

We started a new unit in math. We will be looking at Number Patterns. Here are the expectations for the Grade 4’s and Grade 5’s.

Grade 4

 * extend, describe, repeating, growing, and shrinking number patterns (e.g., “I created the pattern 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, .... I started at 1, then added 2, then added 1, then added 2, then added 1, and I kept repeating this.”);

*connect each term in a growing or shrinking pattern with its term number (e.g., in the sequence 1, 4, 7, 10,

record the patterns in a table of values that shows the term number and the term;

*extend repeating patterns that result from reflections, through investigation using a variety of tools (e.g., pattern blocks, dynamic geometry software, dot paper).

*make predictions related to repeating geo- metric and numeric patterns (Sample problem: Create a pattern block train by alternating one green triangle with one red trapezoid. Predict which block will be in the 30th place.);

*create a number pattern involving addition, subtraction, or multiplication, given a pattern rule expressed in words (e.g., the pattern rule “start at 1 and multiply each term by 2 to get the next term” generates the sequence 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, ...);

* create repeating patterns that result from reflections, through investigation using a variety of tools (e.g., pattern blocks, dynamic geometry software, dot paper).

Grade 5

*identify, and extend numeric and geometric patterns, using a variety of tools (e.g., concrete materials, paper and pencil, calculators, spreadsheets);

*extend repeating patterns that result from translations, through investigation using a variety of tools (e.g., pattern blocks, dynamic geometry software, dot paper).

*build a model to represent a number pattern presented in a table of values that shows the term number and the term

*make predictions related to growing and shrinking geometric and numeric patterns (Sample problem: Create growing L’s using tiles. The first L has 3 tiles, the second L has 5 Predict the number of tiles you would need to build the 10th L in the pattern.)

*create geometric patterns, using a variety of tools (e.g., concrete materials, paper and pencil, calculators, spreadsheets)

*make a table of values for a pattern that is generated by adding or subtracting a number (i.e., a constant) to get the next term, or by multiplying or dividing by a constant to get the next term, given either the sequence 

Math Makes Sense E-Text Resource

Steps to Use Math Makes Sense E-Text

1. Follow this link http://www.pearsoned.ca/school/product/pearsonetext/

2. Using your given username and password (written in your agenda, or emailed to them on Chatt) login in.

3. Search for course using the course name. 

Grade 5: 

COURSE NAME: Grade 5 Math Makes Sense (you should see my name by the course).

Grade 4: 

COURSE NAME: Grade 4 Math Makes Sense (you will see Mr. Boag's name beside the course).

4. Select and join the course. You know have access to our class textbook online. It is a good resource to review concepts or practice questions from.

5. At the top you can search for topics we are focusing on and it will bring up all the pages that relate to that topic. Enjoy exploring!!!

Practicing our Multiplication and Division Facts!

It is very important to practice and know the multiplication and division facts it makes it easier to do more difficult multiplication and division questions.

Here are a very websites (there are lots online) in which you can practice your skills while playing a game.

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/mathgames/popup/popup_division.htm

http://www.fun4thebrain.com/division.html

Week of November 4th

Math

We are continuing with Number Sense in math starting Division this week. Students are reminded to continue to practice their multiplication skills.

Grade 4:            – up to their 9 times tables

                        - multiply a 2 digit by a 1 digit number

Grade 5:             - up to their 12 times tables

                        - multiply a 2 digit by a 2 digit number

In Division we will come up with a variety of strategies that I will post later that students can use to help them solve word problems and division questions.

Grade 4:             - divide up to 81

                        - divide a 2 digit number by a 1 digit number

Grade 5:              - divide up to 144

                        - divide a 3 digit number by a 1 digit number

Language

This week in writing students will be using the traits that I modeled and they practiced in a writing piece. Looking at Harris Burdick photos students will be writing a story about a picture using all of the traits outlined in the rubric below. Students will be provided the rubric and reminded to check their work to ensure all aspects of the writing traits are met. 

Friday October 25th

What a fantastic Open House! The students were excited and eager to show their families around the school Tuesday night. I enjoyed getting to speak with parents and I am looking forward to Interviews in November where we can have more in depth conversations. For those parents not able to make the open house, I will be sending a note home next week with available interview times. 

Language

Students are starting to take their stop and jots now and will be using their thought, connections, questions, and predictions about the books they are reading during Read to Self to a letter. Every other week students will write a letter in their Readers’ Notebook to communicate their comprehension/understanding of the books they are reading. Students have practiced writing a letter as a class with me and have sentence starters/ideas in their Readers Notebook to help them.

Looking for…

- proper letter format

- write a variety of ideas from relate, retell, reflect

- effectively communicates their ideas

- uses examples from the texts and explains their thoughts

Qualities	Level 4	Level 3	Level 2	Level 1
Ideas	Responses consistently include ideas from all comprehension strategies (relate, retell, and reflect) in every letter Shows evidence of critical thinking by demonstrating an understanding of characters and reflecting on the structure of the book	Responses includes ideas from a variety of comprehension strategies (relate, retell, and reflect) in most letters Includes thoughts opinions and feelings about what he/she has read in detail	Responses include ideas from a few comprehension strategies (relate, retell, and reflect) in most letters Includes some thoughts opinions and feelings about what he/she has read	Responses include limited ideas in letters Includes minimal thoughts and opinions about what he/she has read
Communication	Informative and original responses that demonstrate a high level of understanding Ideas and information are communicated in a clear and concise manner	Responses are well written and detailed Ideas and information from the text are communicated clearly	Responses written with some detail Ideas and information from the text are communicated with some clarity	Responses are brief or carelessly written Ideas and information from the text are communicated with minimal clarity
Explanation	Skillfully demonstrates an understanding of what is read by using specific examples and/or quotes from the book to support ideas	Demonstrates an understanding of what is read by using specific examples and/or quotes from the book to support ideas	Demonstrates some understanding of what is read by using simple examples from the book	Demonstrates a lack of understanding by including a few examples from the book

Next week the Grade 5 letters will be due. The following week November 4^th the Grade 4 letters will be due.

Math

In math we have been reviewing our multiplication facts. It is important students are practicing their times tables at home to reinforce what we are doing at school. We spent some time this week on word problems along with creating a bank of strategies we could use to help us solve multiplication problems (Gr. 4 2 digit by 1 digit, Gr. 5 2 digit by 2 digit) 

Grade 5 Anchor Charts 

                                                                  

Grade 4 Anchor Charts