News for the Week of September 21, 2015

Life Skill:  Perseverance

Quote:  Be like a postage stamp:  Stick with it till you get there.

Captain's Table of Stars

(STAR = Stop, Think, Act Responsibly)

                                                   Student                     Life Skill                           

1st Grade Math                           Dante                          Effort  
                             

2nd Grade LA                               Keith                    Perseverance
                                                     Bailey                    Perseverance                        

3rd Grade LA                               Rowyn                   Perseverance
3rd Grade Math                           Natalie                Resourcefulness                                      
4th Grade Math                             Nick                           Pride      

This Week In HA...

On Monday, all of the LA students continued to complete the LA pre-assessment measures.  We will continue to work on these assessments over the next couple of weeks to keep the test periods brief and enable us to engage in other LA activities as we work our way through the pre-assessments.

Therefore, on Tuesday...

1st Grade LA

First grade students moved into the first unit in our language arts series:  Signs and Symbols: Connections for Making Meaning.  We read the Graphic Alphabet by David Pelletier and discussed how the author used symbols and pictures to create meaning. Afterwards, we looked at signs and symbols used in our community.  Then, we began talking about the concept of connections and defined a connection as something that: 

• shows a relationship between objects, ideas, places and people,  
• can be physical, intellectual, social or emotional.
• may change or stay the same over time.

Ask your child to explain the concept of connection and give you an example.

2nd Grade LA 

In second grade, the students defined the term homograph.  Then, the students matched definitions of homographs.  Afterwards, they identified the homographs defined.  Ask your child to define the term homograph and then tell you 3 homographs.



3rd Grade LA

This week, third grade students began working in small groups to create a product to advertise using multiple meaning words.  Some examples we discussed were:

• a bat's bat - a baseball bat for bats
• a compressed compress - a bandage that folds up very small

Ask your child to tell you the products his/her group thought of and give you 2 words that have multiple meanings.

4th Grade LA

Fourth grade students defined the term antonym. Afterwards, each student created an antonym path by pairing sets of related antonyms.  To create the path, students took the last word of the initial pair of antonyms and created a new pair beginning with the last word of the initial pair. For the next step on the path, the students took the last word of the new pair of antonyms and created a new pair for the next step of the path.  They continued this process as far as they could.  Ask your child to define the term antonym and give you 2 antonym pairs.

Building Vocabulary

The "Words of the Day" for this week were hone and interrogative.  Ask your child to define these words and use them in a sentence. 
                                                                     

On Wednesday, all of the math students continued to complete the math pre-assessment measures. We were able to finish working on these assessments on Monday.  Therefore, on Tuesday, I introduced the students to the "Problem of the Day".  I presented a complex math problem to the students, which they attempted to solve independently.  Afterwards, we discussed and reviewed the problem solving steps as a class.  Afterwards, we began working on math facts and all of the math students completed a math maze/mosaic activity.  Ask your child to show you his/her maze/mosaic math puzzle.  Also, ask your child 3-4 math facts each day depending on his/her level of mastery as continued practice is beneficial.

Have a terrific weekend!  I hope everyone has time to get outdoors to enjoy nature and take in its beauty as it looks like it will be a gorgeous weekend!

Melissa Valtierra
High Ability Aide
Bailly Elementary School