Hello Parents!
On Wednesday and Thursday we will be taking the COGAT test. It is an IQ test, so there really isn't anything you can do at home to prepare, other than to get a good night sleep on Tuesday and Wednesday nights and feed your child a big, hearty breakfast those mornings.
Monday - Thursday of next week will be the IOWA test. It is very important to get a good night's sleep all of next week (starting Sunday!). This is a long week of testing and is mentally very tiring for the students. There will not be homework next week- we want the students to go home and play, relax and unwind each day. It is important for students to eat a big breakfast in the mornings. We will test each day starting at 8:00am- so please be on time! We will finish by lunch each day. If your child is sick and misses a day, the makeup test will be done next Friday.
Here is an overview of the language arts portion of the IOWA test. This is a review of what students have learned in K, 1, and 2. Each skill on the IOWA has been taught and reviewed in class. We are spending today and tomorrow reviewing the skills. It would be a good idea to look in the green folder at the papers coming home this week. This will give you a better idea of the skills we are practicing. You can always review these skills at home with your children. IXL has also been an excellent source of practice for many of the grammar skills covered.
The following sections are covered for language arts:
Vocab- If your child has done the vocab packets for HW (especially the one assigned this week), this section should be a piece of cake!
Beginning Sounds (We practiced this today)
Middle Vowel Sounds and spelling patterns- Long and short vowels
Silent Letters (Practiced this today)
Suffixes (Practiced today)
Compound Words
Reading: Picture Stories (drawing conclusions and inferences)
Filling in a sentence with the correct word (Sight words and vocab words)
Reading Comprehension
Finding Spelling Mistakes
Finding Capitalization Mistakes
Finding Punctuation Mistakes
Subject/Verb Agreement
Verb Tenses
And that's it!
Again, I am confident that each student knows all of these skills and will do great! If you'd like to review any of these skills over the next week, be on the lookout for papers coming home this week, and IXL is always a great option for grammar practice. Please don't feel like you have to review at home because we have spent a lot of time in class reviewing. This is for those of you who have asked what you can do this week to help prepare your child. The most important part is getting plenty of rest, coming to school on time and with a full stomach!
Monday, February 29, 2016
Sunday, February 21, 2016
Peek at the Week!
The second trimester officially ended on Friday, so that means tomorrow starts the first day of our last trimester! I cannot believe it...
With the beginning of the third trimester comes the IOWA test, which is 2 weeks from tomorrow. We have covered all of the skills that the students will be tested on, but just to make sure they are ready, we will spend the next two weeks reviewing those specific skills that will be on the test. Be on the lookout for a more specific blog post about exactly which skills will be covered and what you can do at home to prepare!
This week in:
-Phonics: oi, oy / ow, ou (Spelling test on Friday!)
- Vocab: Review the words covered in the vocab packet last week
- Vocab Skill: Suffixes (Part of the IOWA prep)
- Grammar: Adjectives/ Monday: IOWA prep Commas in grouping ; Tuesday: IOWA prep Commas in a letter; Wednesday: IOWA prep Capitalization
- Comprehension: Asking and Answering Questions in a nonfiction text; Fact and Opinion
*Questioning is a tough strategy to teach! I introduced it last week as we read about the Arctic. Students had to ask questions before, during, and after reading. In small groups I had them practice writing a question from the story that a student would be able to answer based off of reading the text. This week, we will talk about the difference between "Thick" and "Thin" questions. Don't know the difference?
"Thick" questions are questions that require the reader to look beyond what is stated from the text. They often require the reader to infer or form an opinion. These questions would often need more than one sentence to answer them fully.
"Thin" questions are questions that are found easily right there in the text. They require little thinking from the reader and only need a sentence to answer.
As we read nonfiction text this week, we will work in pairs and small groups to brainstorm thick and thin questions.
During literacy centers last week the students started making a nonfiction text features book on the iPads. For each nonfiction text feature that we've studied, they have to do a page in Book Creator app that identifies the feature, gives the purpose, and take pictures of examples in various nonfiction books. This is a really fun project that also doubles as an alternative assessment! We will continue working on those in centers this week.
In Religion we will continue to discuss Lent, the parts of the mass, and First Communion. I have enjoyed hearing about the First Communion classes!
Lion King Kids was such a hit! I am so proud of all their hard work over the past few months as they prepared. And those costumes... wow! You guys really nailed it!
Have a great week!
With the beginning of the third trimester comes the IOWA test, which is 2 weeks from tomorrow. We have covered all of the skills that the students will be tested on, but just to make sure they are ready, we will spend the next two weeks reviewing those specific skills that will be on the test. Be on the lookout for a more specific blog post about exactly which skills will be covered and what you can do at home to prepare!
This week in:
-Phonics: oi, oy / ow, ou (Spelling test on Friday!)
- Vocab: Review the words covered in the vocab packet last week
- Vocab Skill: Suffixes (Part of the IOWA prep)
- Grammar: Adjectives/ Monday: IOWA prep Commas in grouping ; Tuesday: IOWA prep Commas in a letter; Wednesday: IOWA prep Capitalization
- Comprehension: Asking and Answering Questions in a nonfiction text; Fact and Opinion
*Questioning is a tough strategy to teach! I introduced it last week as we read about the Arctic. Students had to ask questions before, during, and after reading. In small groups I had them practice writing a question from the story that a student would be able to answer based off of reading the text. This week, we will talk about the difference between "Thick" and "Thin" questions. Don't know the difference?
"Thick" questions are questions that require the reader to look beyond what is stated from the text. They often require the reader to infer or form an opinion. These questions would often need more than one sentence to answer them fully.
"Thin" questions are questions that are found easily right there in the text. They require little thinking from the reader and only need a sentence to answer.
As we read nonfiction text this week, we will work in pairs and small groups to brainstorm thick and thin questions.
During literacy centers last week the students started making a nonfiction text features book on the iPads. For each nonfiction text feature that we've studied, they have to do a page in Book Creator app that identifies the feature, gives the purpose, and take pictures of examples in various nonfiction books. This is a really fun project that also doubles as an alternative assessment! We will continue working on those in centers this week.
In Religion we will continue to discuss Lent, the parts of the mass, and First Communion. I have enjoyed hearing about the First Communion classes!
Lion King Kids was such a hit! I am so proud of all their hard work over the past few months as they prepared. And those costumes... wow! You guys really nailed it!
Have a great week!
Monday, February 15, 2016
Field Day Fun!
Field Day was a total blast (and a total blur at the same time)! Field Day, Valentine's Day, 3 day weekend, and staff vs. student volleyball game... Oh My!
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