Week of October 2nd - 5th 

Program of Inquiry

SHARING THE PLANET

Central Idea: Living things must change to meet the demands of their environment.

Lines of Inquiry:

• Animal adaptations
• Plant adaptations
• How humans adapt to their environment.

Teacher Questions:

• Why do some species survive while others become extinct?  (function)
• Why are there so many different kinds of plants and animals?  (form)
• What aspects in the environment would require humans to adapt? (change)

	Daily 5/CAFE  11:00-12:30
Reading: Daily 5/ CAFE	Daily 5/CAFE:  This week students will continue to choose 3 rounds daily.  They may choose from Read to Self, Read With Someone, Word Work, Writing, or Listen to Reading.  Students will be introduced to the CAFE fluency strategy of “Use punctuation to enhance phrasing and prosody” (end marks, commas, etc).”.  By “doing this, readers become more aware of their fluency.  During student conferences this week, teachers will check their book boxes to ensure IPICK Good Fit books are present, and to listen for punctuation phrasing while reading. How can you support these CAFE strategies at home?  Click each link below: https://www.thedailycafe.com/legacy/public/file/Parent+Pipeline+~+Use+Punctuation+to+Enhance+Phrasing+and+Prosody.pdf (Fluency-Punctuation and Prosody) Vocabulary: We encourage you to use Quizlet at home to review your weekly Wordly Wise words. 4th graders:  Students will start Lesson 15 in Book 3. Word list this week:  division, mental, outcome, pastime, promote, rate, regret, talent, theory 3rd graders: Students will start Lesson 4 in Book 3. Word list this week:  average, border, cocoon, flutter, moisture, nectar, process, span
Writing: VOICES 1:30-2:00	VOICES: Students will continue the 6+1 Traits of Writing. This is referred to as VOICES: voice, organization, ideas, conventions, expanded vocabulary, and sentence fluency. This week we will continue focusing on Conventions. Conventions refer to the mechanical correctness of the piece—spelling, indentation, grammar and usage, punctuation, and use of capitals. We will begin to review proper use of commas in our writing and follow the 6 comma rules.  We will read When The Comma Came to Town to help introduce students to the comma rules. Students will begin practicing each rule separately, and then progress into multiple comma uses within a sentence. We will begin with rules 4 and 5. The Comma Rules: Use a comma before or after a quotation in a sentence. Use a comma after common introductory words in a sentence (however, clearly well, finally.etc.) Use a comma before a conjunction when connecting two independent clauses. (Example: I love summertime, but I miss the snow.) Use a comma to separate a city and state and the day from the year in a date. Use a comma to separate things in a series (listing 3 or more things.) Use a comma to introduce someone in a sentence. Students will continue to organize their ideas and details for their free write. Students should begin their sloppy copy (rough draft) and continue to conference with a teacher. You can use these resources at home: http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/grammar/punctuation.htm http://www.savethecomma.com/game/ http://www.uwosh.edu/faculty_staff/maguirem/quiz.html.htm http://www.chompchomp.com/hotpotatoes/commas01.htm http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/adventure/grammar2.htm# http://literacyandict.wikispaces.com/Proofreading+games http://www.softschools.com/quizzes/language_arts/proofreading/quiz1634.html Grammar: Students will take an assessment on possessive singular and plural nouns on MONDAY. Students will review concrete and abstract nouns as a class. Students will demonstrate through activities in small groups and individually what they have learned about all types of nouns. Sudents may use the variety of activities at http://www.turtlediary.com/kids-games/ela/nouns.html to practice at home. Handwriting: Third grade will continue practicing the formation of their cursive letters. Their names should be written in cursive on all of their papers. Fourth grade will review the formation letters in cursive that they are constantly forming and/or connecting incorrectly. Fourth grade students are expected to write in cursive on all assignments unless otherwise indicated. For an animated demonstration of each letter, please use the links below: http://www.handwritingforkids.com/handwrite/cursive/animation/lowercase.htm http://www.handwritingforkids.com/handwrite/cursive/animation/uppercase.htm Words Their Way Spelling: Students will continue to work with their spelling sorts this week during Word Work as well as homework.  Students are responsible for spelling and sorting their words correctly. Students will receive a new list a spelling sorts this week.    As a reminder, 3 spelling homework jobs are due each Friday. Weekly Words Their Way lists can be found in your child’s agenda.

	3rd Grade Math 9:15-10:15 Looking for extra practice at home?  Use these links below! www.multiplication.com http://www.mathplayground.com/PartyDesigner/PartyDesigner.html (area and perimeter) http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/mathgames/geometry/shapeshoot/PerimeterShapesShoot.htm (perimeter) http://www.internet4classrooms.com/grade_level_help/calculate_perimeter_polygon_geometry_math_third_3rd_grade.htm
Monday	Students will explore area and perimeter with rectangles and triangles.  Students will approach finding area by “tiling” a given space. IXL practice at home: Geometry V.8, V.9, V.10, V.11, V.12 (At this point, students should be fluent with all addition and subtraction facts through 12.  Nightly practice is encouraged if mastery is not yet achieved. Weekly timed quizzes will be each Friday. Personal goals will be set after each quiz. Please encourage your child to reach their goal!)
Tuesday	Students will develop the concept of area, measure an area by using 1-foot and 1-yard squares, and find area by counting squares. IXL practice at home: Geometry V.8, V.9, V.10, V.11, V.12
Wednesday	Students will develop the concept of area by measuring with identical squares.  Students will calculate how to find the area of rectangles using number models.   IXL practice at home: Geometry V.8, V.9, V.10, V.11, V.12
Thursday	Students will relate circumference and diameter through the about 3 times rule.
Friday	Students will review concepts for Unit 3 in preparation for the Unit test. IXL practice at home: *Math facts quiz today*

	4th Grade Math 8:15-9:15 Looking for extra practice at home?  Use these links below! www.multiplication.com http://www.free-training-tutorial.com/decimal/place-value-decimal-ducks.html http://www.free-training-tutorial.com/decimal/place-value-decimal-ships.html http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/mathgames/decimals.htm http://www.softschools.com/quizzes/math/compare_and_order_decimals/quiz1373.html http://www.math-play.com/decimal-math-games.html http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/mathgames/decimals/matchingDecimalsAdd.htm http://www.mathplayground.com/ASB_Hungry_Puppies_Decimals.html http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/mathgames/decimals/matchingDecimalsMinus.htm http://mrnussbaum.com/hotel/
Monday	Students will extend their knowledge of the base-ten place value system to decimals (tenths 0.1, hundredths 0.01, and thousandths 0.001).   IXL practice at home: Decimals U.1, U.2, U.3, and U.4
Tuesday	Students will review basic decimal concepts and notation.  Students will use base ten blocks to gain a concrete understanding of decimals.  Students will write them in both decimal and fraction form. IXL practice at home: Decimals U.1, U.2, U.3, and U.4
Wednesday	Students will compare and order decimals in the tenths and hundredths. IXL practice at home: Decimals U.6 and U.7
Thursday	Students will explain why and how decimals are useful.  They will also estimate the sums and differences of decimals. IXL practice at home: Decimals u>9, U.10, U.13, and U.14
Friday	Students will add and subtract decimals up to the thousandths place. IXL practice at home: Adding and Subtracting Decimals V.1, and V.2

	Science/Social Studies 2:00-3:00
Monday	Sharing the Planet:  Students will take a pre assessment to demonstrate their prior knowledge about adaptations. Students will participate in an exploration activity to introduce this new topic. Students will make observations.
Tuesday	Sharing the Planet:  Students will observe various animals from eduplace.com.
Wednesday	Sharing the Planet:  Students will read Adaptations, a Science A-Z Life Series. Students will analyze different bird beaks, make predictions, collect the data found, and model the function of various beak adaptations by exploring how different tools manipulate various objects.
Thursday	Sharing the Planet:   Students will continue and complete their bird adaptation activity.
Friday	Sharing the Planet: Students will  watch DisneyNature’s EARTH. This film provides students with insight to three different species of animals who live in three very different habitats. Students will discuss facts about the African elephant, polar bear, and humpback whale. Students will then write a short response to the question, “Could these animals swap habitats? Why or why not?”

Extra! Extra! Chavura News

Students should be using Quizlet at home several times each week to practice their Wordly Wise vocabulary words. Remember to check your child’s “Keep at Home” folder each Monday!