That's a Wrap Thursday

That's an idiom that basically means: done! Thanks to all of the kids and parents who made week one in the CAC a great one.

Check out the new CAC tab on this blog to find lyrics, scripts, music, and notes about out City Kitties performance. Bring your dance ideas to school on Monday.

This weekend:
-Don't forget that there is no school for kids tomorrow.
-Please make sure that you are finished with Phase 1 of the Geometrocity
-Complete any two plan pages from Phase 2. Remember, these pages will go on your final board, so they should be neat!
-Any child who wants to work ahead on Phase 2 will be that much closer to Phase 3: building!
-Practice your lines! It's time to memorize!


GTK

• February 7 is the big day! Doors open at 9:00 and the show begins at 9:15
• All students should wear pants, black jeans, black sweatpants or black leggings on the Performance Day
• Sunglasses: we don't have quite enough for our performance. If your child has a pair of sunglasses or can get some, please bring them in! 

Here is a sample of a "Phase Two" grid.

Mathematical Monday

This evening at home....
-Finish Math 10.5 and color
Read for 20 minutes or more
-Look over the City Kitty

Snowy Saturday

Hello, Team 201 and 202 Families,

This weekend at home, a few students need to finish their Opinion Writing final Drafts. All students should have their drafts and the final draft paper.

Some students also need to finish the vocabulary window panes.

Don't forget about IXL!

Yes, we will take a spelling test on Monday morning.


CAC Notes
-Dress for the occasion, which means be prepared to get messy. There is a chance that we will be working with messy materials every day. Oil pastels stain, and paint, glue and glitter are a pain to wash.
-Wear comfortable shoes. The CAC floors are hard!
-Bring a hoodie or sweater. We will be facing the east windows, and the temperatures could be chilly.
-Don't forget to bring in the 20 x 30 foam board. They are available at Dollar Tree and other vendors.
-Please bring in a protractor.
-There will not be "interest groups" this year. Each child will play a part in the homeroom performance.

Get ready to build a Geometrocity! Our learning in the CAC will be immersed in the arts. We will be singing, speaking, and creating as we learn about  area, perimeter, polygons, solid figures, symmetry, transformations, and graphing on the coordinate grid.  Literacy skills will be woven into our learning. We will be ready texts about math in the "real world."

Thankful Thursday

This evening at home....
-Complete the Jose "Characters Changing Over Time" graphic organizer.
-Study your vocabulary words and reread Jose. We have a test tomorrow.
***Extra time? If you have time, you may work on/finish the Vocabulary Windows. If not, no biggie. We will work on it tomorrow.

GTK:
-We will take a spelling test on Monday morning.
-Don't forget about the CAC foam board. A note went home last week.
-Parents, please contact me if you will be able to help in the CAC.

Jose's Way Wednesday

Thank you, Elizabeth, for today's titlspiration.   Yes, we spent most of our time today talking about Jose.


This evening at home....
-201, don't forget to pack your reusable mug. Tomorrow is the day!
-finish the Jose questions that we started in class today.
-Complete the Analyze Similes and Metaphors activity found on p. 302 of Journeys. Here it is:  Page through the biography and find examples of figurative language. List three similes and three metaphors the author uses to describe Jose and his dancing. What is the meaning of each example?

Too Bad No Tacos Tuesday

This evening at home...

• In the Readers Notebook/workbook, complete pages 111 and 112. One side covers vocabulary concepts and the other focuses on spelling.
• We will take a spelling test on these words next Monday. * The Lesson 10 Study Guide can be viewed from this blog. Click on the Journeys Study Guide tab. They can also be found on page 112 of tonight's homework.
• Don't forget that  I will be checking IXL again next Sunday evening. 

Mugs: Please bring in your reusable mug on Thursday!

Fun Friday

Hey 201 and 202 Families,


Please check out the CAC note that is going home today.
Our first day is Monday, January 27.
There is no school this Monday.

This weekend at home...

-Catch up: Vocabulary flap book, Allusion Billboard, Allusion Trading Card, Percy Jackson Chapters 9 and 10
*Tuesday: Spelling Test

*I will be checking IXL on Sunday evening, after dinner. Please make sure that you have done your 30 minutes of practice before 7 p.m.

*Let's shoot for having our Hot Chocolate Read In next Thursday. Each child should bring in a reusable mug. We will not be using any disposable cups.

Thrilling Theme Theseus Thursday

This evening at home...
-finish the chapter 9 side of the Percy Jackson sheet
-reread My Brother Martin and study the vocabulary words. We have a test tomorrow.
*Students in 202 will need to finish reading the last few pages of Chapter 9 and first two pages of chapter 10. Do the side with the suitcases. Write down the EXACT words of each prophecy. 
The text can be accessed from this blog.

If you don't know who Theseus is, look it up. Or, ask Alina or Lincoln. They know!

(birthday)Wishes Wednesday

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Happy Birthday Dr. King

Check out some the Kingspiration.  In class, we are learning about this great man's life and legacy. Our study will continue  these next few weeks. We are talking about how his words and actions play a part in our lives today.  If you scroll down, you will find a video of the memorable I Have a Dream Speech. 

Kids, which of these quotes speaks to you? 

This evening at home...
-complete the My Brother Martin sheet/activities
-in Journeys, read the companion selection about Langston Hughes.
**The vocabulary flap book is due on Friday. We will have some class time to work on it tomorrow. It should include: word art, a definition, a picture, and a caption that uses the word correctly.

Notes:
-There is no school this Monday, in honor of Dr. King's birthday.
-We will take the spelling test on ALL 20 words next Tuesday.Students may earn extra points on the challenge words.
-Next's week's story is Jose, Born to Dance.
-January 27 is our first day in the CAC. We will be immersing ourselves in the study of Geometry, as we explore city planning. Our working title is Mathtopia.  Parents, we need your help. Please reach out if you are able to volunteer.

Martin Monday

Today we read My Brother Martin in Journeys. We discussed the elements of the genre, biography, and the author's dual purpose in writing: to inform us about Dr. King's early life, and to show us her opinion about how his childhood influenced his life's work.

This evening at home...

• complete pages 15 and 16 in the Readers Notebook.
• On page 60 in Journeys, answer the Analyze Text question. You may answer in a notebook.

Field Trip Friday

We had a blast today! Thank you so much to all of the parents who were able to join us. You made our day!



Learn about the Achilles Tang. Do you get the allusion?


This weekend at home....

• Study for the Math test
• Make sure that you have done 30 minutes of IXL- Grade 4 or higher. Work on your target skill. If you score more than 90%, try the same skill in the next grade level. I will be checking for ACTIVE time and putting your Smart Score in Gradebook.
• These items are due for me, by Monday. Most kids finished the work in class: The Allusion Billboard, one Mythology Trading Card, and the Aquarium Reflection paragraph.

 * MAPS math testing is on Tuesday!

*My Brother Martin, lesson 2, is our next Journeys text.

*Ask your child to show you Common Lit, our new source for reading !

Thursday Thinkings

This evening
-Math Chapter Review- Do the Odds
-Reading Packet- read passages and answer questions.

Field Trip Tomorrow!
Bring a bag lunch. We will eat at school upon our return.
Chaperones, please arrive at about 9:15. We hope to be on the bus at about 9:20-9:30

 201 Homework
Read the Myth, annotate, and complete the back.
*Don't forget that I will be checking for thirty minutes of Reading IXL on Sunday night.


202- Achilles Heel- Annotate and take notes. Then, answer the questions. The following students finished the Achilles work in class today: Ariel, Taylor, Alex, Lincoln, Joshua, Jaylee and Chris.
These students should read and do IXL tonight.

Parents, if your child is having trouble completing homework, or if you have questions, please contact me! Students who have missing work, but no communication, will be receiving blue slips. I can be reached at mport@cps.edu and often check email in the afternoons and evenings.

Below, you will find some examples of how and why we annotate text.

Trojan Horse Tuesday

Today we......
-took the Reading MAPS test. Students now have new target areas. We will be talking about prescriptions for growth next week.
-went to gym, math and lunch.
-read and discussed PJATLT

This evening at home....
-read and annotate myths: Perseus and Medusa and Pandora's Box. 
*Field Trip volunteers should arrive at school at 9:15. We will leave at 9:30

We need to begin our class Spelling Bee Thursday afternoon. Participation is optional.

Mythologically Midas Monday

This evening at home....
-Use the guide: finish annotating King Midas.
-Complete the King Midas activities on the back.
-read!
-Don't forget that tomorrow is the last day to turn in Field Trip money!
-201 takes the Reading MAPS test tomorrow at 8:30
-Our class Spelling Bee will be this Friday. The list is going home today.

Spelling Bee

This Just In!

I have just learned that the Disney Spelling Bee will take place on January 13 at 8:30 a.m.. This means that we need to select a 201 representative this week!  201 will hold an in-class Spelling Bee this Friday, January 10. Lists will go home tomorrow. Click here to see this year's word list

Frosty Friday

The weather isn't so frosty, but we are embracing winter words as we compose descriptive, wintry poetry. They will be up on the big bulletin board by Monday.

Good to Know...
-MAPS testing, reading, is next Tuesday at 8:30.
-Field trip forms and money are due on Tuesday. If you do not have the form, just write a note that states " My child,______, has permission to go to the Shedd Aquarium on Friday, January 10" Please sign the note and include your emergency contact information. The cost of the trip is $6.00.
-We will not read a Journeys story next week. We will be busy working on Common Lit and Percy Jackson activities.

There is no regular homework this weekend. Next week, I will be entering grades for IXL. It won't hurt to get a head start.

As always, I will tell you that the best way to become a better reader is to read. So, read!

Thirteen Thursday

Thirteen is the number of students who joined us in 201 today. I know that many of you made plans in advance, before the work stoppage and calendar change. We will look forward to greeting the whole team on Monday. Perhaps we will see some of you tomorrow.

Today we...

• began our day with Common Lit and read the story of Athena and the Dandelions.
• a few kids were able to read a short poem by Robert Frost.
• held a Morning Meeting and shared some winter break stories. Mr. Riskus was a surprise guest.
• went to Gym with Ms. Howe.
• read about King Midas and his golden touch.
• watched a short cartoon version of the story. I hope that we will finish tomorrow.

There is no regular homework this evening. I hope that all are working toward finishing the Winter Reading Challenge. Please cut and decorate at home!

Tomorrow we will...

• read some poetry on Common Lit
• write Wintery "Color" poems, painting pictures with words
• talk more about King Midas and allusion. Watch the video to get a sneak peek!

If you were not at school today...

• try to get the Athena and the Dandelions assignment done before you come back. 
• we can't wait to see you!

Notes:

• Field Trip money and forms are due 1/7
• The trip is next Friday!
• We take the Winter MAPS Reading test next Tuesday at 8:30
• I have added two new videos in the Mythology section.