Structure and Function

After a reading Jack and the Beanstalk we built a model of beanstalk that can hold up a golden egg.

I hope you had a wonderful and relaxing Thanksgiving break.

Boots
When your child wears rain boots or snow boots please also send a pair of shoes with them in their backpack.  If you would like to leave an extra pair of shoes at school permanently that is fine too.

Yellow Report Card Envelope
Thank you for getting those envelopes back to me.  If you haven't already please send back the yellow envelope that was used to send home the report card.  You keep the report card, just send back the envelope.

Book Fair
As I wrote last week, A2STEAM is having a book fair, it begins tomorrow November 29th.  The book fair will be set up in the Media Center.  Preview days are Tuesday and Wednesday; Room K-3 students will visit the media center and create a wish list of books on Tuesday, November 29th.  Purchase days are Thursday and Friday.  On Friday, December 2nd, Room K-3 students can bring in money and purchase books.  If you would rather purchase books on your own you can do so on Thursday afternoon.  On Thursday, December 1st the media center will stay open after school until 6 PM. All purchases help raise money for the school.

Online Book Fair Open Now
The physical book fair that starts next week has an online component that is open now!  If you order books online it helps our school just as much as buying books in person.  Here is the link to the online book fair.

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 built a model of beanstalk that can stand on it’s own and hold up a golden egg.  This week, after reading The Three Little Pigs student will use different materials to build a model of a house that can withstand wind.

Reading - This week we will begin reading books and stories, both fiction and non-fiction, to support our Project Lead The Way unit on structure and function.  This week students will read The Three Little Pigs, examine the structure of the houses in those books, and see if we can make a model of a house that can withstand severe wind.

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.

Math - We will play some games to help us learn the different ways to break up ten.  The students will also survey they class and make a graph showing the favorite colors of their classmates.

Word Study - We are learning how to read and write simple 3 letter words.  This week we will look at the -ed word family.