April 25, 2014

Reading Next week we will be reading two selections. The first one is Little Grunt and the Big Egg, and is fantasy.  It is about a boy who finds the biggest egg he has ever seen. The second one is Mighty Dinosaurs, and is nonfiction. Students will discover facts about dinosaurs that lived on earth millions of years ago. We will focus on the comprehension strategies cause and effect, and compare and contrast.

Reading Logs Please continue to log minutes with your child in their April log. April Reading logs are due Thursday, May 1st.

Language Arts Our grammar lesson will focus on pronouns, and possessive pronouns.

Spelling  This week in spelling the students were introduced to vocabulary activities. Next week your child will continue practicing the same words as last week, but the activities in class will focus on the spelling. Students should choose a different activity from the Weekly Spelling Activity Card to complete each night to help them master their spelling words. An assessment will be given on Friday. 

Math On Monday we will begin learning about plane figures and spatial sense. Students will identify and sort plane figures.

Flash Cards  Students should be practicing their addition facts with their flash cards and Rocket Math fact sheets. Weekly timed tests are given.

Click on the following link to print copies of the math facts worksheets:
http://www.ccsd66.org/wp-content/uploads/Teacher_Pages/Schultz/Math/

Science  We will begin the Chapter Natural Resources. Students will learn about some of the ways people can use natural resources. 

We will also begin a unit on Nutrition. Students will learn the basics of good nutrition and the importance of physical activity.  

Important Dates & Announcements

Thanks for attending our Open House. It was so nice to see so many of you last night! The students were so excited to show you what they've been learning.

I really appreciate the book gift certificates. I was able to buy some really great books for our classroom! Thanks to the following families: The Haiduc Family, The Kerfin Family, The Menoza Family, The Clair Family and the Norkus Family.

April Dates to Remember

30 - Feed My Starving Children 6-7:30pm @ the Aurora location

May Dates to Remember

 1 - April Reading Logs are due  
 1 - Prairieview Spring Open House 6:30-8pm
 9 - Gym Night
15 - PV Parent Meeting 6-7pm
16 - Early Dismissal @12pm
21 - DuPage Children's Museum Field Trip
23 - Wear red, white and blue in honor of Memorial Day
26 - Memorial Day - No School

June Dates to Remember

12- Last Day of School - 12pm dismissal

April 17, 2014

Reading Because we had OLSAT testing and it was a short week, next week we will continue reading Ant, by Rebecca Stefoff. We will also read If You Were an Ant by S. J. Calder. We will finish a graphic organizer on text organization.

Reading Logs Please continue to log minutes with your child in their April log.

Ozzie's Reading Club  All students who read and logged their minutes for the last 8 weeks earned a ticket to the Kane County Cougars minor league baseball game. Information on how to get your tickets went home on Tuesday. 

Spelling  Look for your child's word sort to come home on Monday. Students should choose a different activity from the Weekly Spelling Activity Card to complete each night to help them master their spelling words. Please help them complete an activity, fill out the spelling homework sheet, and initial it. This will help them prepare for the assessment. 

Math Next week we will be learning the attributes of 3 dimensional figures. Students will compare and contrast 3D figures and make plane figures from 3D figures.

Flash Cards  Students should be practicing their addition facts with their flash cards and Rocket Math fact sheets. Weekly timed tests are given.

Click on the following link to print copies of the math facts worksheets:
http://www.ccsd66.org/wp-content/uploads/Teacher_Pages/Schultz/Math/

Science  Our caterpillars went into their chrysalises this week. We are anxiously awaiting to see them transform into butterflies.  Next week we will learn about the products of the rain forest. 

Important Dates & Announcements

Please visit our classroom on Thursday, April 24th. We have been busy turning it into a rain forest. Come see what we've been learning!

April Dates to Remember

18 - No School
22 - Earth Day-Wear green, brown or blue
24 - Spring Open House/Book Fair 6:30-8:00pm

30 - Feed My Starving Children 6-7:30pm @ the Aurora location

May Dates to Remember

  9 - Gym Night
 16- Early Dismissal @12pm
26 - Memorial Day - No School

June Dates to Remember

12- Last Day of School - 12pm dismissal

Friday, April 11, 2014

Reading  Next week we will be reading Ant, by Rebecca Stefoff. It is a photo essay about the different kinds of ants that are found throughout the world. We will talk about how ants work together to get food, and about the kinds of things that ants eat. Our comprehension strategies and skills are text organization and question.

Reading Logs  April reading logs went home. Please continue to log minutes with your child in their April log.

Congratulations to those students who read for 21 days during the month of March. We celebrated with lunch in the classroom, freeze pops, and The Magic School Bus Movie, Butterfly Life Cycle. A coupon for a free personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut was also handed out. 

Language Arts Next week our grammar lesson will review singular possessive nouns. Also, we will finish writing the final copy of our animal report.

Spelling  Your child will continue practicing the same words as last week. Students should choose a different activity from the Weekly Spelling Activity Card to complete each night to help them master their spelling words. An assessment will be given on Thursday. 

Math Students will be given an assessment on time, on Monday. Tuesday we will begin a chapter on Solid Figures. Students will identify and sort three-dimensional figures.

Flash Cards  Students should be practicing their addition facts with their flash cards and Rocket Math fact sheets. Weekly timed tests are given.

Here is a website where you can make fact timed tests:
  http://www.mathfactcafe.com/build/

Science  This week, we learned about the 4 layers of the rain forest. Students created a mini rain forest in a container. They are observing the process of transpiration, condensation and precipitation. Our caterpillars also arrived this week. We are learning about the life cycle of a butterfly. Next week we will discuss the people of the rain forest.

Thanks parents for helping your child complete the animal information sheet. We were able to begin writing our animal reports on Tuesday!

Rain Forest Poster due TUESDAY, APRIL 15TH

Important Dates & Announcements

April Dates to Remember

15 - Rain Forest Poster due
15 - OLSAT Testing
16 - OLSAT Testing
17 - Early Dismissal @12pm
18 - No School
24 - Spring Open House/Book Fair 

30 - Feed My Starving Children 6-7:30pm @ the Aurora location

May Dates to Remember

  9 - Gym Night
 16- Early Dismissal @12pm
26 - Memorial Day - No School

June Dates to Remember

12- Last Day of School - 12pm dismissal

Friday, March 28, 2014

Reading and Language Arts When we come back from break we will have a writing workshop. We will be discussing informational writing. Students will be writing about the animal they researched that lives in the rain forest.

Reading Logs  Please continue to log minutes with your child in their March reading log. Logs are due Monday, April 7th.

Ozzie's Reading Club  All students are official members of the Ozzie Reading Club. If they continue to read and log their minutes for the next 8 weeks they will receive a ticket to the Kane County Cougars minor league baseball game. Make sure to send in the log when it is complete.

Spelling  Look for your child's word sort to come home on Monday, April 7th. Students should choose a different activity from the Weekly Spelling Activity Card to complete each night to help them master their spelling words for the week. Once your child has completed the activity, please fill out the spelling homework sheet, indicating which activity they chose, initial it, and have them return it the following day. This will help them prepare for the assessment. Students will study these words for 2 weeks. An assessment will not be given until Thurs, April 17th.

Math Students will continue the chapter on Time. They will describe times of events as A.M. or P.M., determine how time has passed from start to finish, practice telling time to the nearest 5 minutes, and understand relationships of units of time (weeks, months, years).

Flash Cards  Students should be practicing their addition facts with their flash cards and Rocket Math fact sheets. Weekly timed tests are given.

Here is a website where you can make fact timed tests:
  http://www.mathfactcafe.com/build/

Science  We began a unit on the Rain Forest. The students played a game which introduced them to words that will be used in our discussions of the rain forest. We also identified and labeled the different parts of a map and where most of the rain forests are located. Next we will discuss what a rain forest is and identify the different layers.

Animal Information Sheet due TUESDAY, APRIL 8TH
Poster due TUESDAY, APRIL 15TH

Important Dates & Announcements

March Dates to Remember

31 - Spring Break begins

April Dates to Remember

  7 - Classes Resume

17 - Early Dismissal @12pm
18 - No School 

30 - Feed My Starving Children 6-7:30pm @ the Aurora location. More info to           follow after break

Friday, March 21, 2014

Reading Next week we will read a fable about how the birds and animals play ball to decide who is better. The birds don't allow the bat on their team, but he ends up winning the game for the animals. The comprehension strategies and skills are cause and effect and summarize.

Reading Logs  Please continue to log minutes with your child in their March reading log. Logs are due Monday, April 7th.

Ozzie's Reading Club  All students are official members of the Ozzie Reading Club. If they continue to read and log their minutes for the next 8 weeks they will receive a ticket to the Kane County Cougars minor league baseball game. Make sure to send in the log when it is complete.

Language Arts Next week students will finish their narratives and then we will focus on plural possessive nouns.

Spelling Look for your child's word sort to come home on Monday. Please keep the Weekly Spelling Activity Card in your child's green folder once they have completed the nightly activity. Students are being asked to choose a different activity from the Weekly Spelling Activity Card to complete each night (Mon-Thurs) to help them master their spelling words for the week. Once your child has completed the activity, please fill out the spelling homework sheet, indicating which activity they chose, initial it, and have them return it the following day. This will help them prepare for the assessment on Friday.

Math Next week we will begin a chapter on Time. Students will tell and write time to the hour, half hour, quarter hour, and to the nearest 5 minutes.

Flash Cards  Students should be practicing their addition facts with their flash cards and Rocket Math fact sheets. Weekly timed tests are given.

Here is a website where you can make fact timed tests:
  http://www.mathfactcafe.com/build/

Science  We will finish up studying Our Earth with a chapter test on Tuesday. A study guide will go home on Monday. Please help your child review this and all lesson worksheets and vocabulary cards. Our next unit of study is the Rain Forest.

Important Dates & Announcements

March Dates to Remember

28 - School Wide Reading Reward Day - Springing Books to Life Day - Wear bright        colors.
31 - Spring Break begins

April Dates to Remember

  7 - Classes Resume

17 - Early Dismissal @12pm

Friday, March 14, 2014

Reading and Language Arts We began discussing personal narrative writing this week. We are writing about a special place. To activate prior knowledge, we read Arthur in New York by Marc Brown and Froggy Goes to Hawaii, by Jonathon London.We used a brainstorming web to generate ideas for different kinds of places. They began filling out a graphic organizer. Next week, students will focus on writing an introduction, beginning, middle, end, and a conclusion. Students will work on adding details and choosing words that show how they feel. We will edit our narratives and write a final copy.

Reading Logs  Please continue to log minutes with your child in their March reading log. 

Ozzie's Reading Club  All students are official members of the Ozzie Reading Club. If they continue to read and log their minutes for the next 8 weeks they will receive a ticket to the Kane County Cougars minor league baseball game. Make sure to send in the log when it is complete.

Spelling No spelling next week due to the short week.

Math Students will find and record the total value for money amounts greater than $1.00, and solve word problems involving money by using the strategy act it out. A chapter test on Money Use will be at the end of next week. Check your child's assgnment notebook next week for the exact date.

Flash Cards  Students should be practicing their addition facts with their flash cards and Rocket Math fact sheets. Weekly timed tests are given.

Here is a website where you can make fact timed tests:
  http://www.mathfactcafe.com/build/

Social Studies: We will begin the unit, Our Country Today. Students will explore how local government works to make communities better and safer places to live.

Science  We will continue learning about Our Earth. Students will read and learn about fossils. They will communicate how tools can help people obtain information and make work easier  by participating in the lab Uncovering Fossils.

Important Dates & Announcements

March Dates to Remember

17 - No School

18 - Teacher Institute/Election Day

31 - Spring Break

April Dates to Remember

  7 - Classes Resume

17 - Early Dismissal @12pm

Friday, March 7, 2014

Reading Next week we will read aloud Officer Buckle and Gloria, by Peggy Rathmann. This is a story about Napville Elementary School's students who ignore Officer Buckle's safety tips. Then one day a police dog named Gloria accompanies him when he gives safety speeches.The comprehension strategies and skills are drawing conclusions, and monitor/clarify.

Language Arts Our grammar lesson will focus on pronouns. We will also revisit dictionary skills, specifically looking at guide words to determine where words belong.

Reading Logs  Please continue to log minutes with your child in their March reading log. 

Congratulations to those students who read for 21 days during the month of February. We celebrated with lunch in the classroom, popsicles and The Magic School Bus Movie, In The City. A coupon for a free personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut was also handed out. 

Ozzie's Reading Club  All students are official members of the Ozzie Reading Club. If they continue to read and log their minutes for the next 8 weeks they will receive a ticket to the Kane County Cougars minor league baseball game. Make sure to send in the log when it is complete.

Math Students will add and subtract money, problem solve using the strategy predict and test, use coins to show a dollar in a variety of ways,and make change.

Flash Cards  Students should be practicing their addition facts with their flash cards and Rocket Math fact sheets. Weekly timed tests are given.

Here is a website where you can make fact timed tests:
  http://www.mathfactcafe.com/build/

Social Studies:  Students will learn about Robert Fulton and his work as an inventor. We will review Unit 6, People and Places in History and a test will be given on Tuesday. A review sheet will be sent home on Monday. Please look over the review sheet and workbook pages with your child to prepare for the test.

Science  We will continue learning about Our Earth. Students will read and learn about rocks, sand and soil. They will draw conclusions about the harness of rocks and recognize the Earth's surface is made up of different solid materials.

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Star Student of the Week  Julianna was our star student of the week. When she is at school she enjoys reading and recess. When she is at home she likes to play video games, do gymnastics and read. When she grows up she would like to be a doctor for soldiers. Julianna is a star because she is awesome. Thanks for sharing Julianna!

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Important Dates & Announcements

March Dates to Remember

12 - Parent/Teacher Conferences

13 - Parent/Teacher Conferences

17 - No School

18 - Teacher Institute/Election Day

31 - Spring Break

April Dates to Remember

  7 - Classes Resume

17 - Early Dismissal @12pm