Happy Leap Day!

So today we played a bunch of catch-up.  Having to catch-up from the previous week is not exactly where I would like to be, but that’s what happens when you have an ice-cream party on Friday!

We started our morning talking about our upcoming visual poems.  Students will be creating a poem that they form into the shape of something.  We looked at quite a few examples, and students got some time to start on theirs.  We are going to start with writing these out ourselves on paper, and then finally we are going to type these up.

Rough drafts (on paper) are due Wednesday.

We also got a new vocab list, and the first 3 vocab squares are due tomorrow.

abstract (as an adjective)

attract (as a verb)

contract (also as a verb)

Next we talked just a bit about the revolutionary war and the reasons leading up to it.  Tonight students have a short text to read and summarize, talking about this topic.  They should summarize the selection and answer this question:

What events prompted Jefferson to write the declaration of independence?

Declaration_Of_Independence

In Math today we took some very detailed notes on what exactly is going on when we are performing the standard algorithm for division.  Tonight students should follow these notes EXACTLY and write down what is going on for each line of the standard algorithm for these 4 problems:

64 ÷ 4 =

75 ÷ 2 =

1.5 ÷ 3 =

9.6 ÷ 4 =

They should notice we follow a pattern as we divide:

1.  divide up (hand out parts to each group)

2.  see what we have left

3.  break what we have left into smaller parts

And repeat from 1!

Here are the notes in case they need a reminder (Although this should be in their math journal)

Stand_Alg_Notes_Feb29

Students also received a folder chock-full of pamphlets, information, and order forms.  We have our class pictures this Thursday, the 3rd.  We also received our permission form for our field trip to East Wake Middle School on the 15th.  Please take a look at these, and return the permission form at your earliest convenience.

so, tl;dr

First three vocab squares:

abstract (as an adjective)

attract (as a verb)

contract (also as a verb)

Write a summary and answer what events prompted Jefferson to write the Declaration of Independence

Declaration_Of_Independence

Answer these 4 questions using the standard algorithm, using the example from their notes to state what is happening at each step of the process:

64 ÷ 4 =

75 ÷ 2 =

1.5 ÷ 3 =

9.6 ÷ 4 =

Stand_Alg_Notes_Feb29

And as always, read!

Have a good one,

-Mr. Potter

Very sorry about no update yesterday.  I had a wonderful day dealing with a kidney stone.  Every trip to the bathroom is going to be an adventure for a little bit.

 

Tomorrow is Friday!  This means quizzes!  it also means we have our multiplication/jewel celebration.  Students will get to have some goodies based on how well they have done on their multiplication fact quizzes.

 

This morning we started talking about the revolutionary war and the colonies’ road to independence.  This will bring us back eventually to talking about government and how the U.S. came by its current system.

We had to have quite a few side-conversations where we talked about how taxes are used and why governments need to tax their citizens in order to provide public services.  Most students didn’t know how schools, or roads, or the government was paid for.  It’s paid for by everybody!

Tonight students have a short reading about the causes leading up to the revolutionary war and some questions to answer about them. As always, I expect reasoning.

Revolutionary_War_Beginnings

 

In science we introduced the idea of wind patterns and how they can drive our understanding of how weather functions.  Tomorrow our quiz is on this, mixed with review from last week’s talk about clouds.  Make sure you know this stuff!

Tonight students have another reading on air patterns and some questions to answer.  Again – REASONING!

Air Patterns

 

Finally we did a little bit of review of the standard algorithm for division.  Students have another short set of problems to do tonight using the standard algorithm.  They should also check each problem using multiplication.  Tomorrow’s quiz is on this…

8 ÷ 5 =

6 ÷ 4 =

26 ÷ 5 =

79 ÷ 4 =

 

Finally we had students form Ms. Sweet’s 3rd grade class visit us.  They had been working on inferencing and made little poems that were quite similar to our kennings.  We got into pairs and shared our poems and tried to guess each other’s topics.  It was a lot of fun, and there was a good bit of head-scratching going on.

 

so, tl;dr

Revolutionary war questions

Revolutionary_War_Beginnings

Air pattern questions

Air Patterns

division using standard algorithm and CHECKED WITH MULTIPLICATION

8 ÷ 5 =

6 ÷ 4 =

26 ÷ 5 =

79 ÷ 4 =

and as always, read!

 

Quizzes tomorrow, so make sure you know your stuff, including your vocab.

Also jewel/multiplication celebration tomorrow, so make sure all of your homework is done so you can participate!

 

Have a good one,

 

-Mr. Potter

I am very sorry about no update yesterday.  The FTP server for the website went down and I couldn’t actually upload anything.

 

So today we had this FANTASTIC discussion about government.  We talked about the different types of government, and who is ‘in charge’ in the different types.

This led us to a discussion of laws, and who really makes the laws in our country.  We also did a neat little thought experiment where we talked about whether it is ever ok to break a rule, or break a law.  We imagined we were young adults with kids of our own, and what we would do for them.  Ask your student about it!

 

Tonight students have a small passage to re-read, and a few questions to answer.  Yes, I expect reasoning!

Types_Of_Government

 

Students should also do vocabulary squares for the next 3 words on our vocabulary list.  Our list so far is:

accessible

accessory

concede

exceed

intercede

precede

 

 

In math today we took a good amount of notes, and talked again about the standard algorithm for dividing.

Stand_Alg_Notes

It is extremely important that students are thinking about what they are doing in their heads as they perform this algorithm.  Not only will this deepen their understanding of the process and  division in general, it will also help them avoid simple mistakes.  If they are saying in their head “Next I divide my 20 tenths into 4 equal groups” they aren’t going to put your answer into the hundredths place.

We also talked about how every division problem is just a fraction waiting to happen.  For instance…

2 ÷10  =  2/10

3 ÷ 10 = 3/10

9 ÷ 10 = 9/10

We then proved this with some of the standard algorithm.

Tonight students have 4 division problems to do.  They should attempt these using the standard algorithm.  However if they feel more comfortable doing them with money, that is a fine place to start.

19 ÷ 5 =

31 ÷ 4 =

3 ÷ 4 =

9 ÷ 10 =

No remainders here!  We know how to work with decimals!

 

so, tl;dr

Types of government:

Types_Of_Government

Next 3 words on vocab list

Four division problems using the standard algorithm

19 ÷ 5 =

31 ÷ 4 =

3 ÷ 4 =

9 ÷ 10 =

And read!

 

Have a good one,

 

-Mr. Potter

 

 

 

Tomorrow is the last day to turn in pictures or picture money.  (The multi-year pictures that were sent home two weeks ago)

 

Today was a bit of an odd day.  We were extremely talkative.  This isn’t too out of the ordinary, but no amount of reminders seemed to get us back down to Earth.  We just couldn’t be trusted to follow directions.  It was pretty bizarre honestly!

 

In Language Arts today we finished up work on our Kenning poems and also took a look at our vocab squares.  Tonight students should FINISH their Kenning, and also finish the last five vocab squares.

They should be getting the definition, synonym, antonym, and sentences from a book, dictionary, thesaurus, the internet, or from parents.  They should not be coming up with these on their own.  The only thing that is their original thought is the picture they draw depicting the vocabulary word.

The next five words are:

disruption

erupt

interrupt

interruption

rupture

 

In Science we talked a good deal about clouds, and how clouds are named.  We discovered there are three ‘main’ types of clouds:

stratus clouds: low clouds that form long layers

cumulus clouds: puffy, cartoon-like clouds that are also low

cirrus clouds: wispy, thin clouds that usually occur much higher in the atmosphere

 

We took some cotton balls and made our own clouds on paper today.  We also somehow got into a discussion about how the sky is or is not blue.  Yeah, that discussion was just as confusing as it sounds.

 

In Math we began discussing the standard algorithm for performing long division.  Essentially the standard algorithm is simply a short cut for everything we have been doing with the banker and boss game.  It isn’t Earth-shattering, but it will take a bit of practice for students to get down exactly what is going on without using the manipulatives.

Students got a print-out and they took some notes on it as well.

DIV_Stand_Alg_Notes

Tonight students have a single division problem to do.  They should do this with their play money (with an adult!) and then also do it using the standard algorithm.

The problem they should do is:

56 ÷ 4

Again, they should do this two different ways – with play money, and then using the standard algorithm.  Students should have their helper adult sign the bottom of their math page.

 

 

so, tl;dr

Tomorrow is quiz day, so be ready for them!

Finish vocab squares for entire vocab list

Finish Kenning poem

Do a single division problem TWO ways – with play money with an adult helper, and then also using the standard algorithm.  Get adult to sign the paper please

 

And as always, read!

 

Have a good one,

 

-Mr. Potter

I have an appointment, so I’m sorry but this is going to be rather rushed….

 

This morning we talked about how we will be doing vocabulary four squares with our vocab lists.  Basically they are going to fill a page for each word.  They should split each page into 4 equal parts and fill them as follows:

Top left: The word, it’s definition, a synonym, and an antonym

Top right: Three sentences using the word.  These must be taken from a dictionary/book/internet/parents, etc.  This is because we want them to be used correctly

Bottom Left: nothing yet!

Bottom right: a simple picture that helps define the word

 

Here’s the first example we did of abrupt: Vocab Square Example

Tonight students should do the next 4 words in our list…..

Vocab list:

abrupt

bankrupt

corrupt

corruptible

disrupt

 

In Mathematics we did a good amount of review and took some more multiplication quizzes.

Tonight students have 3 more problems to do just like last night.  They should get these done with a parent/guardian/older brother/sister, etc.  And they should use their play  money!  Also if you would, please sign the bottom of the page saying you did them.

$10 paid to 4 employees

$12 paid to 5 employees

$3 paid to 6 employees

 

 

So, tl;dr

vocab squares for first 5 words on the vocab list

3 problems to be done with play money with an adult:

$10 paid to 4 employees

$12 paid to 5 employees

$3 paid to 6 employees

and read!!

 

Sorry to be so rushed today,

-Mr. Potter

Reminder:  Thanks to yesterday’s ice we do have school this Saturday, the 20th.  school will start at the normal time, and run until 12:00.  

 

Today was SO BUSY.  We were rushing rushing rushing all day.

 

We started our day talking about the weather, and clouds.  We ended up talking about how molecules are constantly moving between states (solid, liquid, gas, etc).

We also talked about Fahrenheit, and Celsius.  It is sometimes hard for students to understand that 32 degrees Fahrenheit is EQUAL to 0 degrees Celsius.  These both measure the same amount of heat.  0 degrees Celsius is NOT colder than 32 degrees Fahrenheit.  They are just different scales of measure!

Tonight students have a short passage about clouds to re-read.  Then there are some questions to answer.  Before you ask, yes I expect reasoning!

 

In Language Arts students got a new vocabulary list.  I would like to try something new this time around – I am asking students to FIND a sentence using the first word on the list tonight.   They should NOT write this sentence themselves.  We are going to try to make a collection of found sentences so we can use them to help us write our own sentences later on.  Places they might find a sentence using the word (abrupt):

By asking their parents

Looking in the dictionary

Looking in another book

On the internet

Again, this is not cheating.  Students should find a sentence using the word, and NOT come up with one on their own.

 

In Math today we talked about division, and played a game I like to call ‘banker and boss’.  Students are split into pairs, and one player is the banker, and the other is the boss.  The banker keeps track of the money, and the boss is responsible for paying his/her employees.   The boss has to pay his employees equally with the money he/she makes.

We will use this exercise to help us understand the standard algorithm for long division later, so it is very important that students internalize the process for dividing numbers in this way.

 

Tonight students should do this problem WITH A PARENT OR OLDER SIBLING:

divide $17 among 4 people

 

The parent or older sibling should be the banker, and the student is the boss.  The banker gives them $17, and then makes change as they need it to divide the money equally.  The student takes the money and divides it equally into 4 groups.

 

so, tl;dr

Short packet on Clouds (WITH REASONING)

 

Find one sentence using the word abrupt (do NOT come up with this on your own – get it from a reputable source)

 

divide $17 into 4 equal groups using your play money and with your parent/older sibling.

 

And read!

 

Have a good one,

 

-Mr. Potter

 

Tomorrow is a half day! Please be aware that school ends at 12:30 tomorrow.

 

SOOOO MUCH MATH!!!

 

This week has been a lot of fun.  Being able to really focus on something like our math has allowed us to get a lot done!

I apologize for no update yesterday.  Unfortunately my hosting provider had some problems and a number of sites were down for a good part of the day.

 

Today we did our last burst of math review bootcamp.

We talked about mental strategies for adding and subtracting simple numbers:

8 + 7 = 8 + (2+5) = 10 + 5 = 15

12 – 5 = 12 – (2+3) = 10 – 3 = 7

We talked about multiplying powers of ten

10 * 1/100 = 10/100 = 1/10 = .1

We talked about breaking numbers down into parts in order to multiply them

40 x 0.03 = 4 x 10 x 3 x 1/100 = 4 x 3 x 10 x 1/100 = 12 x 10 x 1/10 = 120 x 1/10  = 120/10 = 12.0

We talked about how there are many different ways to name a number, and how these can help us:

300 can be…..

300 ones

30 tens

3 hundreds

3000 tenths

and so on!

 

We then talked about how we put all of this together to do something like multiplying decimals.  Tonight part of their math packet involves this.

 

Tonight students have another packet of ….MATH! to do. YAY!

They should finish this entire packet EXCEPT for the last page.  I made it very clear that they should not touch this last page.

MathPacketFeb11

 

 

no real need for one, but here is the tl;dr anyway:

read!

12:00 dismissal tomorrow!

Math packet (don’t do last page!)

MathPacketFeb11

 

Also it is not allowed to snow tomorrow or Monday or Tuesday.  I have decided this.

 

Have a good one,

 

-Mr. Potter

Another intensive day of math!

So today we spent time in pairs and individually practicing our multiplication facts.  We also worked on mental math problems, and breaking numbers apart in our head to help us add and subtract.

 

We talked today about how we would break apart numbers in order to aid us when subtracting.  For example something like

13 – 7

We could think of as:

13 – (3+4)

Because 13 – 3 is obviously 10.  Then we can subtract 4, and we get 6.

Tonight students have another packet of math problems to work on.  Again some of this might seem overly simplistic, but we are practicing these things so that we have a strong foundation.

MathPacketFeb9

 

In Science we talked a good deal about clouds, and how they are clumps of water droplets or ice.  We also looked at the weather forecast for the week and discussed how meteorologists predict the weather using things like radar and measurements of wind speed, direction, and knowledge of pressure systems.

 

At the end of the day we got so into The Night Gardener (well, I guess *I* got so into it…) that we read for 30 minutes.  Things are going totally crazy in that book.

 

so, tl;dr

New math packet!

MathPacketFeb9

Practice your math facts!!

 

And read!

 

Have a good one,

 

-Mr. Potter

 

 

This week is Math fill-in-the-gaps Week!

 

We are spending this week doing some intensive math training.  We have a few gaps that we honestly *must* fill in before we can move on and be successful.

 

We will be working quite a bit on mental math and strategies for adding and subtracting numbers quickly and without the use of our fingers.

For example, it is much easier to think of something like 9 + 7 as 9 + (1 + 6).  This is because 9 + 1 = 10, and then 10 + 6 = 16.  We will be doing mental math exercises like this all week.

 

We will also be doing a *lot*  of work on multiplication facts.  We have work to do with division, and it will make very little sense if students don’t have a very solid grasp of their multiplication facts.

 

Tonight students have a small math packet to complete.  Most of these may seem deceptively simple, but we are trying to build a solid foundation of skills so that things become more manageable and understandable for students.

Math_Packet_Feb8

 

We also read a lot of “The Night Gardener” and things are getting pretty crazy there as well.  Ask your student what they think is in the tree……..

 

so, tl;dr

LOTS of math this week!  Finish this short packet:

Math_Packet_Feb8

 

and read!

 

Have a good one,

 

-Mr. Potter

It’s Thursday!!  Which means tomorrow is Friday, which means….

QUIZZES TOMORROW!!

 

This morning we discussed another type of ‘compacted’ metaphor: a kenning.  A kenning is a much-compressed form of metaphor, originally used in Anglo-Saxon and Norse poetry. In a kenning, an object is described in a two-word phrase, such as ‘whale-road’ for ‘sea’.  We made a little kenning poem about teachers by listing things that teachers do/how they act/what they look like/what they sound like.  This was VERY telling by the way – yikes!  Ask your student how they decided to describe teachers.

This was our example kenning poem.  Can you tell what it is?

Egg layer
Insect betrayer
People scarer
Trap preparer
Silent creeper
Death reaper
Meal storer
Fly adorer
Duster hater
Web creator
Corner hider

 

Tonight students are to write their own kennings.  We will be putting these together to make a short little riddle poem tomorrow.

Kennings

Students also have left over work from their LA centers.  There are a total of two sheets.  In one, they identify the figurative language used in lines from poems.  In the second they read a poem and find figurative language inside of it as well as answer some questions about the poems tone and mood.

figurative-language-worksheet-07

The Black Land

 

We also read a good bit more of “Love That Dog” and a LOT of “The Night Gardener”.

 

In math we spent a good amount of time reviewing.  Students picked a set of math problems to do based on what they have to practice with.  Tonight students should study either addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division with decimals.  They should do the set of problems they were given and even make up their own problems if need be.

 

 

so, tl;dr

Write some kennings:

Kennings

Find some figurative language:

The Black Land

identify some figurative language:

figurative-language-worksheet-07

Practice whatever you need to practice concerning operations with decimals.

 

And read!

 

Have a good one,

 

-Mr. Potter