Project Lead The Way - Structure and Function

Last week in math students used a tally chart to survey the class on their favorite color.

Hello, we have a busy two weeks before winter break begins:

Curriculum Overview

Science - We have begun our first Project Lead The Way (PLTW) module on structure and function.  As I wrote last week, structure refers to the way something is built, including shape, size, and the way the different parts work together (for example, a chair has four legs, a seat, and a back).  Function is what something does or is intended to do (the function of a chair is to give people a place to sit).   This week students will be challenged to build different things that have a specific structure and function.  After a reading Jack and the Beanstalk we will build a model of beanstalk that can stand on it’s own.  Similarly after reading The Three Little Pigs student will use different materials to build a model of a house that can withstand wind.

Math - This week we will work on breaking apart numbers to see addition and subtraction facts. We will also learn about the properties that make up hexagons (6 sides and 6 vertices).  After we learn to identify hexagons we will use different shaped blocks to see how we can divide hexagons into other shapes.  For example a hexagon can be divided into 6 triangles.

Literacy - For the next two weeks we will be reading different versions of the well-known Gingerbread Man story.  We will be studying the similarities and differences between the different versions.  We will also be reading some books covering different winter holidays.

Writing - Students will be writing about the different experiences they have with our Project Lead The Way unit on structure and function.  They will be sketching and writing about the beanstalk they build, as well as the house they construct.

Word Study - Identifying the beginning and ending sounds of words.  For example ‘dog’ begins with a /d/ and ends with a /g/.