Christopher, Volume 10: October 27, 2014

What a fabulous week! We have been learning a lot about SYSTEMS! Parts, or pieces work together to make the whole function. What better way to understand this concept than studying the human body. This week has not only been looking at how different body systems function and work together, but also about our community learning and having fun together. As JiSu put it during our Wednesday assembly, "Everyday we always feel like a community!"

We have also embraced our harvest stories, as we revised them by organizing them into correct paragraphs, using correct punctuation to fix run-on sentences, and adding sensory details to keep our reader's attention.

In math, we have worked hard to create a special video for student-led conferences. Using the app "Explain Everything" on iPad mini's, you will be impressed with our mastery of a certain property... I can't give the surprise away!

Scroll on to see this week's learning in pictures. Oh, wait. Don't forget TIS Spirit Week starts Monday, Oct  27. It kicks off with Pajama day!

Book Presentations continue on...

Right: Olga showing off her pot

during her book presentation.

    


 Junkie (left), Hassaan (right), and NaYeon (below-center) using their props to tell their summaries! Great Work:)

Anthony and Christopher researching the Skeletal system. Dem-bones!

Writing our harvest stories has been a blast! Topics range from scary stories to why Autumn is the best season ever... because school starts then:)

Left: Christopher revising for correct paragraphs.

Below: Olga and Sevinch revising for run-on sentences. They know when a full-stop is needed.

Left: Olga and Sevinch revising for run-on sentences. They know when a full-stop is needed.

Right: NaYeon and JiSu read each others piece for run-on sentences as well.






 Left: Junke and Hassaan feel researching the human body is serious work! More so with Hassaan:)

The Digestive system is always working for us. As you can tell, even when we swallow upside down!

Homework

Read for 30 minutes each night.  Keep up with your timeline for book presentations!

Monday:  Math minute worksheet

Tuesday:  Circulatory System:  Reading for comprehension

Wednesday:  IXL Math: Begin with Number Sense (odd and even numbers)

Thursday:  Respiratory System:  Reading for comprehension

Owl of the Week
More to come for Christopher...

Spirit Week is upon us! Be prepared to laugh and have more fun than usual:)
Oct 27^th Monday – Pajama Day

Oct 28^th Tuesday – Animal Day (Dress up as any animal)

Oct 29^th Wednesday – M&M Day (Dress up in all 1 color)

Oct 30^th Thursday – ABC Day (Create a costume that starts with the first letter of your name)

Oct 31^st Friday – Scary Day

Upcoming Events/Important Dates

October 27-31        Spirit Days

October 29              Half-day for students (Staff Professional Development)

October 31              Trick or Treat night

November 7             Student Led Conferences

November 10           Staff Professional Development - Half Day

November 27           American Thanksgiving - Half Day
December 4 - 5        Elementary Drama Production
December 8             Uzbekistan Constitution Day - NO SCHOOL
December 12           Secondary Winter Concert
December 16            Elementary Winter Concert
December 22 - January 11        Winter Break - NO SCHOOL

November Book Sharing!

Cup of Characters

Pick out a science fiction or fantasy book.  Have it OK’ by Ms. Panella or Mr. Mike.  Enjoy it!

When you finish, you can make your Cup of Characters.  You will need a large paper cup, construction paper, tape, and sticks.

Make a cut out drawing for each important character.  They must be small enough to fit inside your cup.  Tape each one onto a bamboo stick and poke the stick through the bottom of your cup.  On the back side of the cup, tape a scene from your book to act as a backdrop.  On the front of your cup, write the name of your book and its author.

On the day of your presentation, you will talk about your book.  Whenever you mention a character, you need to push his or her stick up from the bottom so that everyone can see that character.  How you tell about the book is up to you.  You may give a description of the book and its characters, maybe give a short summary, or you may even present a small play with your figures!  Remember, your presentation is limited to five minutes.

See your teachers for samples from last year’s cups of characters. 

Have fun!!!!

Here's an example of student work from the past.

Hassaan, Volume 9: October 20, 2014

What a wonderful week back! Because of the break, we have a lot of book sharers to celebrate. Check them out.

Book sharing! I love reading at home and sharing with friends at school! Can you tell?

Yes! I did use huge hand and body gestures to express my thoughts:)

Phew! I worked hard and I am proud of it!

See my drawing of the family from my book? So cool!

I did a great job presenting in a loud and clear voice!

We started our new unit of inquiry - Go Human Body! (Systems). Our central idea is Our bodies consist of systems that work together for us to remain healthy. We introduced the central idea by comparing our human body system with that of a bicycle. Ms. Sevara rode her heart out! Not really... she just sat on it:) 

I remember how to ride a bicycle?!

We also started our Harvest piece in writing. As the seasons change, there is so much to inspire us! Here we using inspiration around us, as we "hook" our readers into our drafts. We will also be crafting our writing skills by adding character dialogue or internal thoughts, making our writing sound smoooooth with great transitions, and ending our story with a BANG! We can't wait to show you our final pieces during student-led conferences.

Should I ask a question, or begin with onomatopoeia (sound word) to hook my reader's attention?

In math, we are focusing on using the communicative and associative properties of addition and subtraction to help use solve, as well as create, multiplication and division word problems. We are creating a visual representation using our iPads to create a book. 

Owl of the Week

Hassaan is amazing! Here he is... living with his brother and two sisters in Uzbekistan. Basically, everything he learns is what excites him most about school. Outside of school, he plays games outside. If Hassaan could change the world, he would make everyone rich and make sure there was less pollution. People he admire most are teachers because he learns so much from them! (Thanks, Hassaan:)) Finally, his favorite dinner to eat is BBQ and his least favorite is vegetables with rice. 

Homework:

Monday: Math Worksheet- Place Value Patterns

Tuesday: Digestion Worksheet- Dealing with Digestion

Wednesday: Math Worksheet- Relating Multiplication and Division

Thursday: Digestion Worksheet- Tracking Digestion

Friday: Rest, Rejuvenate, & Read!

Spirit Week!

In October we have our first Spirit Week together with the Secondary School

Oct 27^th Monday – Pajama Day

Oct 28^th Tuesday – Animal Day (Dress up as any animal)

Oct 29^th Wednesday – M&M Day (Dress up in all 1 color)

Oct 30^th Thursday – ABC Day (Create a costume that starts with the first letter of your name)

Oct 31^st Friday – Scary Day

Upcoming Events/Important Dates

October 22               Parent Information Meeting with Kristen and Liz

October 23              Family Math Night

October 25              UN Day

October 27-31        Spirit Days

October 29              Half-day for students (Staff Professional Development)

October 31              Trick or Treat night

November 7             Student Led Conferences

November 10           Staff Professional Development - Half Day

November 27           American Thanksgiving - Half Day
December 4 - 5        Elementary Drama Production
December 8             Uzbekistan Constitution Day - NO SCHOOL
December 12           Secondary Winter Concert
December 16            Elementary Winter Concert
December 22 - January 11        Winter Break - NO SCHOOL

Junke, Volume 8: October 14, 2014

I think we all had a fun time and ate way too much! I know I did!

Thanks to all the parents who attended and/or helped set up our Potluck. Again, food is such a powerful thing and remind us of "home" and great times with friends and family. Moving on, thank you again for your support and kindness on Teacher's Appreciation Day!

Thanks so much! Is white my color?

As for this week, we have worked hard to complete and present our final projects on Food. The board games, videos, books, creative stories, power points, skits, and other projects are impressive demonstrations of how food is complex and how students have changed due to their new knowledge of the challenges providing food presents on a local and global level. 

Math has been spectacular this week as we formed "expert" groups and learned three new array games: multiplication pairs, count and compare, and big array/small array. Students then formed "jigsaw," or teaching groups and taught each other the game they learned the following day. These games are an interactive way to learn how multiplication and division are related and provide opportunities to represent multiplication in various ways. 

Book sharing presentations also began and they have been super so far! Keep up the great work and most importantly, keep enjoying the wonders of reading. 

Owl of the Week
Hi! My name is Junke and I live here with my mom, dad, and my sister. Our trip to Samarkand this spring is something I really am looking forward to. My favorite thing to do outside of school is play video games and soccer. If I could change one thing about the world, I would have everyone play soccer. So, of course, the person I admire most is Messi because he plays really well. My favorite dinner is pizza, spaghetti, apple juice, brownies, and meat (beef). My least favorite things to eat are rice and vegetables.

Homework
Tuesday: Complete multiplication table
Wednesday: Patterns with Multiplying worksheet
Thursday: Place Value worksheet
Friday: Rest and read 40 minutes:)

Spirit Week!

In October we have our first Spirit Week together with the Secondary School

Oct 27^th Monday – Pajama Day

Oct 28^th Tuesday – Animal Day (Dress up as any animal)

Oct 29^th Wednesday – M&M Day (Dress up in all 1 color)

Oct 30^th Thursday – ABC Day (Create a costume that starts with the first letter of your name)

Oct 31^st Friday – Scary Day

Upcoming Events/Important Dates

October 6- Monday, October 13 Fall Break

October 22               Parent Information Meeting with Kristen and Liz

October 23              Family Math Night

October 25              UN Day

October 27-31        Spirit Days

October 29              Half-day for students (Staff Professional Development)

October 31              Trick or Treat night

November 7             Student Led Conferences

November 10           Staff Professional Development - Half Day

November 27           American Thanksgiving - Half Day
December 4 - 5        Elementary Drama Production
December 8             Uzbekistan Constitution Day - NO SCHOOL
December 12           Secondary Winter Concert
December 16            Elementary Winter Concert
December 22 - January 11        Winter Break - NO SCHOOL