Weekly Update

We came back from spring break and got right back to the business of learning. In math we started a new unit on volume. Students started the week by learning that volume is the amount of space inside a solid object. After the students learned what volume is,  then the students found the volume for different rectangular prisms by seeing how many unit cubes it took to fill up the space. At the end of the week students learned the formula for finding volume, and used the formula to find the volume of rectangular prisms. (Some pictures are from the week before spring break when we were learning about line plots and finishing our unit on multiplying and dividing fractions.)

In reader's workshop we are continuing with our fantasy unit. This week we focused on theme or author's message. Using our read aloud book, The Thief of Always, I modeled determining a possible theme. Throughout the week we continued to look at theme in different ways. We looked at how the characters support the theme, how different events in the book support the theme, and we also looked for specific quotes from the book that support the theme. I would model the skill with the book The Thief of Always, and students would practice the skill using either their guided reading book or their independent reading book. We also started a new read aloud book this week, we are now reading Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbit.

In writer's workshop students continued writing their westward expansion informational piece of writing. Students learned how to write a strong introduction and conclusion.

In science we are learning about food chains and food webs. First students watched a Mystery Science video to learn what a food chain/ food web it. After watching the video students got in groups and played a food chain card game. Students also used Google Classroom to research an animal and create a food chain.