April+Weekly+Wiki

April 29-May 3, 2013

This week was awesome!

This week in Math we started working on graphs. I know that you are probably thinking, what do graphs have to do with Math? Well, it’s because statistics and data are involved and they are Math. And I know that for a fact because I asked Mrs. Tomlin. On Monday, we took the pretest for Data and Measurement. Then on Tuesday we started working on line plots. On Wednesday we learned how to interpret line graphs, and then on Thursday we made our own line graphs. But on Friday, we reviewed adding fractions with unlike denominators. We reviewed it because some people still need help on it and also because NWEA is coming up. We had a very busy week in Math.

This week in Social Studies we learned about life in Colonial Williamsburg. African Americans were slaves back then. People wore wigs with ponytails back then. Cool, right? Because wigs were so popular wig-making was a big business. Behavior was different back then. You could not scare anyone at all. You could not tap you fingers either back then, so you could not beat to the music back then. Boys went to school to get an education, but girls stayed home to learn how to cook, clean, and sew. Schools for girls were called Dame Schools. The Governor of Williamsburg could pardon people in jail.

This week in Language Arts, we learned about supporting claims. Have you ever been watching T.V. and a commercial came on about a new drink and you really wanted it? Well, that’s called persuasion. They are saying opinions or using other tactics to try to persuade you to buy their product. So most of the stuff they tell you is probably opinions. This week we also started talking about point of view. There are three different points of view that we talked about. The first one is first person point of view. First person point of view is when the story is about the narrator and the narrator is telling the story. You can tell it is first person because they use I, me, and my. Next, there is 3rd person limited. That’s when a narrator is telling the story but only gets into one person’s mind. Last, but not least, is 3rd person omniscient. That’s when there is a narrator talking and the narrator gets into multiple people’s heads. Wasn’t Language Arts cool?

This week we had a lot of special events. They are the clicker system, Student of the Month, Books for Bikes, a fire drill, and Baily moving. First I will tell you about Student of the Month. Every teacher in kindergarten through 5th grade nominates a student who demonstrates the trait we are focusing on for the month. Our Student of the Month was Haven Bowers. The goal was caring for others. Next, I will tell you about Books for Bikes. That’s where you have to read four fiction books and four non-fiction books. If you do that, you get one coupon. Some people earned eight coupons. Then we had a drawing and a boy and a girl were chosen to get a bike. Then everybody else got to get a prize, too. On Thursday, we had a Fire Drill. We just had to go outside quietly and wait until the drill was over. Mrs. Davis walked by and said we were doing a great job. We also got to start using our clicker system this week. We each have our own clicker and Mrs. Tomlin asks a question and then we hit A, B, or C! Then we get to see how many people chose the right answer. That was the best special event in my book. Also, sadly this week, we found out that Baily is staying in Tennessee. We will miss his smile and his sense of humor.

This week was the best! I wish it never had to end.

By Morgan, Tyler, Melisa, and Parker

April 23-26, 2013

This week in Math on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we studied for our Math test. We had packets that we had to do to help us get 100% on the test! Mrs. Tomlin said that the test was easier than the packets! We also continued timed tests! People are doing really good on them. Another thing that we did was Morning Work that was supposed to help us. Do you know why? Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner! Just in case you did not hear, it was stuff that was on our Math test! As you can see, we practiced for our Math test, we did timed tests, and we did Morning Work practice.

Language Arts was superb this week! We started out by finishing our Special Place writings. Then we began working on a subject called Gathering Information. We learned about such things as atlases, dictionaries, almanacs, encyclopedias, and thesauruses. An atlas is a book of maps, and it show places and explains things like the population in an area which makes it pretty handy! Dictionaries give the correct definitions and spellings of words. Almanacs are pretty cool because they are full of recorded information from a particular year. For example, the Guinness World Book of Records in a type of almanac. Oh, and don’t forget about those encyclopedias, because they’re spilling over the top with facts and information on just about anything! And last, but not least, we have our good ole’ pal, the thesaurus. These informational books are full of extremely useful synonyms! Informational books are awesome, but we should move on, because on Thursday we did a partner edit on our Special Place writings! Now, with a little more work, they’ll be perfect, and I have a feeling next week will be too! This week was a blast in Language Arts!

This week we said good-bye to learning about Science and said hello to Social Studies! We started learning about the slavery trade. White European traders traveled to West Africa. They bought guns and other things that were important to African tribes. Leaders of tribes had a dilemma and had to make a choice. A dilemma is when you have to make a choice even if you don’t like either option. Well, the tribal leaders had to choose a very hard dilemma. Pretend you’re a West African tribal leader. You have to make a choice. Do you want to trade some of your people for guns and other goods? Your rival village has guns and is more powerful than your tribe. What would you do? There were three stages on a slave’s way to America. First, they were locked in chains and had to march hundreds of miles to shore. Then they were often thrown into cells until the next slave ship arrived. After that, slaves were put on a ship and were packed so tightly that they could hardly move. The heat was unbearable. Then, after their arrival in America, they were sold. One way they were sold was when all of the slaves were herded into a pen. All of them were marked at the same price. When the gate opened, the white men grabbed the slaves they wanted. This was called a Scramble. Another way was when each slave was sold one at a time on a stage at an auction.

This week was spectacular! We got to go to the Book Fair, ran a mile in Gym, and had the Art Show and Parent Teacher Conferences. We also did a fire drill. It sounds like our school was busy, which it was, but it wasn’t chaotic. The Book Fair had some very gross and cool books. Some were __Infested, Fantastic, Feats__ and __Ridiculous Records__, and more. The next thing was running a mile in Gym. We went outside on a beautiful day and ran a mile on the track. My time was 4 minutes and 51 seconds. After we ran a mile, we played I Hop. The Art Show was going on all week. Next on the list looks like Parent-Teacher Conferences. I didn’t go to that because my teacher didn’t need to talk to my parents. Last, but not least, was the fire drill. While we were sitting in class, we heard the fire siren, so we lined up and got outside, but Mrs. Davis was not happy because everybody was talking except a few people. Now do you know why this week was spectacular? Well, if you don’t, read my story again.

By Tara, Ashlyn, Ashleigh, and Sean

April 15-19, 2013

This was an amazing week.

In Science, we did a paper called “What a Journey”. It was awesome! We had a diagram at the side to tell the parts like: liver, stomach, large intestine, small intestine, mouth, and esophagus. We had to name the parts. At the other side of the paper there was a paragraph with missing words that we had to fill in. Tuesday, we did a body system cut and paste paper. We had two papers that had the systems and two papers that had facts about the body systems. So, we had to glue the facts under the body system that it went under. Then we glued the two papers together and we were done. Last, but not least, is our body system comic! So we had to pick two systems, then create a comic to tell how they are interdependent, or how they work together. Then we started making our comic online. That’s all that we did in a fun week of Science.

This week in Math was fantastic! First of all, we learned how to divide fractions. For example, if you have two fractions like 4/5 ÷ 8/9, you would have to switch the 8 and the 9 to make 9/8. Then you change the division sign to a multiplication sign. After that you either cross-reduce if you can or go ahead and multiply and get your answer. Next, we learned how to turn a fraction into a decimal. For example, if you had 2/5, you would divide the 2 by the 5. You would add a decimal and a zero after the 2 and make it 2.0. After that, you divide and get the answer .4. Last, but not least, we did a fraction study guide to get us ready for a test coming up. That’s all for this week in Math.

This week in Language Arts we started a writing. Can you guess what about? Yep, Special Places! You had to pick a place that holds a special place in your heart! We also did headings. Do you know what they are? Have you ever read a sentence that has a title above it? That’s the heading! The heading tells you what that sentence or paragraph is going to be about. So…now you know about headings! We have gone on one big trip, haven’t we? I told you about our special place writings, plus you learned about headings. Would you like to know more?

Wow! This week in Special Events was so amazing! First, on Monday, two people from Consumers Energy came to our school to give us tips on how to save energy. For example, when you’re brushing your teeth, shut the water off while you’re not using it. I bet you already knew that one though, so I’ll tell you a different one! Hmmm…Oh, I have the perfect one! If you go to a store, like Wal-Mart, you will probably see that there are packages you can get of bottled water. Sure, you might think it’s easier to buy that, but you shouldn’t! Buying that wastes plastic. Using a water bottle does not. Also, Consumers gave us a kit. Not any old kit though! Inside it was a few things. Let me tell you what those things are. Well, there was a shower head that doesn’t shoot out as much water, but you can’t tell the difference! Also we got a kitchen sink aerator that has a sensor on it so it only turns on when it’s dark. Oh, I almost forgot! There is a scratch and sniff sticker that smells like natural gas. P-U! Lastly, there is a book that tells you energy saving tips, but there is also a page in that book that you fill out. If you fill it out and bring it back to school, then guess what? Well, if 80% of the class brings that in, Mrs. Tomlin gets a check for $100.00 to buy stuff for our class! How cool is that? That’s all for the Consumer’s program, but there is one more amazing thing! On Friday, the 4th and 5th grade went to the Dawson Auditorium on the Adrian College Campus to hear the Symphony play! It was awesome! Can you guess why? Yep, it’s because the Symphony played beautifully, but there is another reason. A 20 year old girl named Caroline Goulding played a very old, but brilliant violin. When she was only 16, she was nominated for a Grammy Award.

So, that’s our week! Do you wish you could have done this with us?

By Parker, Brendan, Tara, and Brooke

April 8-12, 2013

This week was stunning!

Ding, ding, dong! Guuuuuuueeeesss what time it is? Come on, say it with me! This week’s MATH-O-MANIA!!! Our contestants are Division, Multiplication, Addition, and Subtraction. Let’s start with…Dividing Fractions! Before we start, I’ll teach you how. Ha-ha! It’s easy! So, let’s say you have…1/3 divided by 2/9. First, you will always flip the second fraction. In this case, you would flip 2/9 and make it 9/2. Now, you do any cross reducing. We have 3 and 9 to help you. Come on down 3 and 9! Ok, they say cross out 3 and make him a 1, and cross out 9 and make her a 3. So, now that our cross-reduction is done, we will multiply. So, I times 3 times 1…Bzzzt! Yes, Multiplication? Three, you say? Correct! One times 2 is…Bzzt! Multiplication? You think it’s 2? Right again! You are on a roll! But does anyone see something wrong with 3/2? Yep, it’s improper! Some problems come out like this, but that’s no __problem__! We divide the numerator by the denominator! So, how many times does 2 go into 3? Bzzt! Yes, Division? That’s right! One time! Two times 1 is…Bzzt! Multiplication? Right! Two! Now subtract 2 from 3. Bzzt. Subtraction? You say 1? Correct! Now, put the one on top and make it ½, and your final answer is 1 ½! Thanks for playing! We’ll be right back. What else did we do this week? Timed test! Most people can get all 50 in less than a minute! We also still do morning work, of course. But since we are doing our fraction unit, we usually have fraction stuff. Mrs. Tomlin says we should practice because things will keep coming back, like on morning work. Now, back to MATH-O-MANIA! Hi, folks. Before we leave, let’s do our last problem just to make sure you don’t forget how to do it. Plus, we will see what contestant wins! The final round--here we go. Six-ninths divided by 6/10. That should keep you going for a while. Bzzzt! Division, show us your work! Six-ninths…six-twelfths…cross-reduce 9 to 3…12 to 4…6 to 3…16 to 8…12/24…reduce to ½. Ladies and gentlemen, our winner is Division! Thanks for watching! See you next time on MATH-O-MANIA!

Language Arts was just wonderful this week! We have been studying summarizing and headings. When you summarize, it means you give a brief summary of the story or passage you read. You list the main events in order from beginning to end, but remember, you’re not retelling the story, or else that would take forever. Now, let me tell you about headings. Headings are like the titles of articles and stories, and sometimes they even have sub-headings, so you don’t have to read the whole entire article, (which most people find helpful). Sub-headings are found above the paragraph that goes with it. Say I had an article on grizzly bears, and I don’t want to read the whole thing. Fact is, I’m looking for what they eat. Suddenly, I notice a subtitle for a paragraph and it says: __What Do Grizzle Bears Eat?__ That is where I would look. Now, I’m moving on. We started a new story on Thursday. It’s about our special places and why they are special (we haven’t started writing yet, we only started a 5 square organizer). Our stories will be amazing, I’m sure of it. The class also worked a little on Study Island (personal NWEA goals), and the people who didn’t finish their stories on StoryJumper got to work on those. So, what do you think? Was it a wonderful week in Language Arts?

This week in Science was great. On Monday, we learned about our circulatory system. It was really cool. On Tuesday, we learned more about the circulatory system. On Wednesday, we talked about the respiratory system. The respiratory system was really cool, but now I’m going to tell you about the coolest one of all—the lungs. Did you know that your left lung is smaller than your right lung? Well, that is because your left lung is by the heart and your heart needs room to fit in your chest. Your right lung has three sections and your left has two sections because of the heart. On Friday, we learned about the digestive system. Your digestive system is what breaks down your food. That’s all for this week in Science.

This week on Monday, Mrs. Upp came in and talked about what to say or do in a bad situation. Then, on Friday, we had an assembly and the people that do the greeting in the morning got to say the Pledge. Also, the Student of the Month was announced. I would like to congratulate (Drum roll, please) Ashlyn! Can you guess what the goal was she won for? Yep, you got it. It was Resistance! Well, that pretty much raps it up this time.

P.S.—If you did not hear me, well, this week was stunning! By Vivian, Ashlyn, Brendan, and Tara