Learning Objectives - Week 31

Reading: 

Review Poetry, Drama, and Paired Passages

STAAR Test on Tuesday

Folktales

Writing:  

I can write an imaginative story that includes a plot that builds to a climax and details about the characters and setting.

Social Studies:
I can identify how Texas transformed from an agricultural economy to a diversified, industrialized, and urbanized one. Scholars will explore the cattle, oil, and transportation industries that provided great resources of growth.

This week:

• Reading log - Read 20 minutes each night (excluding STAAR testing days)
• No Spelling homework

STAAR Rally

Our scholars' hard work and effort preparing for the STAAR Tests were celebrated today at a STAAR Rally! Our Cannon staff put together a video to wish our students the best of luck on the upcoming tests. 

STAAR Video - Firework

In addition, each scholar enjoyed a frozen ICEE treat. They had a blast!

Learning Objectives - Week 30

Reading: 

I can make inferences to understand what I am reading. 

I can draw conclusions about the causes and effects of a character's actions.

Review Poetry, Drama, and Paired Passages

Social Studies:
I can identify how Texas transformed from an agricultural economy to a diversified, industrialized, and urbanized one. Scholars will explore the cattle, oil, and transportation industries that provided great resources of growth.

This week:

• Reading log - Read 20 minutes each night
• Reading homework - Drama - Due on Friday
• Spelling words - Practice on SpellingCity App - Test on Friday
• Prefixes and Suffixes Practice

Week 29 Update

The past two weeks, our scholars have reviewed their reading skills, including understanding figurative language and using context clues, by playing Riddle of the Sphynx and Fishing for Clues.

This week, they've interpreted poems, including butterfly poetry, and made inferences to determine the subjects of animal poems and other riddles.

Students have also practiced completing plot diagrams (including the exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution) for Athlete vs. Mathlete by W.C. Mack, Adios Oscar!: A Butterfly Fable by Peter Elwell, and Strega Nona by Tomie dePaola. 

Last but not least, a special thanks to Watch D.O.G.S. volunteer, Mr. Chapuis, for visiting our class this morning to play Prefix and Suffix Bingo! Our scholars had a blast!

Guidance Lesson - Positive Reputation

Today Mrs. Coburn talked with our scholars about how positive and negative reputations are formed. First, Mrs. Coburn introduced a wolf puppet and asked students what they thought about him. Next, they discussed student characters, such as Goofy Gordon, Bonnie Bad Sport, Helpful Holly, Cooperative Clyde, and Listening Louise. Finally, students thought about the questions: "Who are you?," "What are you doing?," and "How do you want people to remember you?" They then designed personal pizzas that show the character traits that they want others to notice about them. What a great lesson to help students to reflect on how their actions are perceived by others!

Learning Objectives - Week 29

Reading: 

I can make inferences to understand what I am reading. 

I can draw conclusions about the causes and effects of a character's actions.

Writing:  

I can write an imaginative story that includes a plot that builds to a climax and details about the characters and setting. 

Social Studies:
I can identify how Texas transformed from an agricultural economy to a diversified, industrialized, and urbanized one. Scholars will explore the cattle, oil, and transportation industries that provided great resources of growth.

This week:

• Reading log - Read 20 minutes each night
• Reading homework - Poetry - Due on Friday
• Spelling words - Practice on SpellingCity App - Test on Friday
• Prefixes and Suffixes Practice

Mind Mission: Borden’s Boiler

Background

Gail Borden came to Texas as a colonist of Stephen F. Austin. He and his brother stated the first permanent newspaper in Texas and eventually became interested in making food for frontier families. He invented a method for making condensed milk that was pure and long-lasting by using a vacuum pan to heat the milk at a lower temperature.

Source: Mind Missions: Fourth Grade

Mission

In order to make condensed milk, Borden needed an airtight container known as a vacuum pan. It helped him remove water from the milk without burning it. Can you make something that is airtight? It must be able to hold 1 cotton ball and keep it dry when it is submerged in water for 30 seconds.

Materials

12 inches of tape, 3 cotton balls, 6 notecards, 4 paper clips, 1 paper plate, 4 rubber bands