Weekly Update March 23-27

Announcements:

-Math Study Group:  There will be study group this Thursday, March 26th from 3:30-4:30.

-Jump Rope Warrior - On Thursday, we are excited to welcome  Jump Rope Guinness Book Record Holder David Fischer to Gibraltar. He will be presenting at two assemblies to the whole Elementary School in the morning and afternoon. There will be a workshop our 6th graders will be able to attend from 9:30-10am. It is guaranteed to be a fun, active, and motivating time!

What are we learning???

Math:
This week, we will be covering the following topics in math class: finding reciprocals of fractions, dividing fractions, and finding computation rules with positive/negative numbers. Through the week we will be playing a few games to learn how this content can be applicable in everyday life. The Unit 6 test and written response will tentatively be scheduled for April 23-24.

Science:
We will be entering our next Science unit on Energy. Energy consumption is all around us in so many forms. Together, we will explore the types of energies and discuss the importance of energy conservation.

ELA:
Reading - The students did an excellent job facilitating their own discussions throughout Book Club. Their Artful Artist projects are due this Tuesday and presentations will be on Wednesday and Friday.

In our reading textbook, we will be reading a memoir titled “The Pigman and Me” by Paul Zindel. On Wednesday, I will introduce the reading response options that will be due on Friday.

Writing - This week the students will be finishing up their Weebly sites. I will have all of their site links available on the blog when they are completed. The students have worked incredibly hard on not only the content, but also making sure their design is purposeful. 

On Monday, I will introduce our next reading and writing unit. This is an exciting unit that will be very different from the previous ones. More to come next week! :)

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Sincerely,
Mrs. Ball

mball@gibraltar.k12.wi.us

Weekly Update March 16-20

Announcements:

-Welcome back: I hope you all had a restful and enjoyable Spring Break!

-Math Study Group:  We will NOT have math group this Thursday, March 19th due to a staff meeting. We will meet next Thursday, March 26th and review the skills taught for unit 6 thus far. 

-Lock-In: The lock-in is THIS Friday night. Permission forms are due TOMORROW, March 17th to Mrs. Moroney.

What are we learning???

Math:
This week, we will be doing a whole mix of things in Math! Monday, we will start with Pi Day activities since we weren't in school for the actual day (3/14). Tuesday, the students will have a chance to play the review math games Mr. Burress' students made before break. We will then begin Unit 6 with the pretest on Wednesday and begin our discovery of fraction multiplication and division.

Science:
Through our work with the body systems, several questions came up about diseases and disorders that occur in different organs and systems of our body. To help answer some of these questions and gain new understanding, we will be completing a mini-research projects on a disease/disorder of the body. They will be creating Prezi's to share their information. Presentations will be Friday, March, 20th.

ELA:
Reading - Book Club books should be completed by this Tuesday. There will be a brief discussion during Tuesday's book club and then students have the rest of the time to work on their Artful Artist projects. They will also have Friday to work on them as well. Artful Artist is due March 24th.

In our reading textbook, we will be reading a speech titled “There Is No Salvation for India” by Mohandas Gandhi. On Monday, I will introduce the reading response options that will be due on Friday.

Writing - This week the students will begin constructing their Weebly sites and inputting all of their wonderful writing! We will continue the revising process and offering feedback as we near completion of our sites.

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Sincerely,
Mrs. Ball

mball@gibraltar.k12.wi.us

Weekly Update March 2-6

Announcements:

-Read Across America week: This week, we will be celebrating Read Across America week. Throughout the week, we will be participating in various activities to encourage reading and to celebrate Dr. Seuss' birthday. There are also theme-based dress up days all week! Below are the descriptions for each day.

• Monday: Wear a crazy hat!
• Tuesday: Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss! Wear red and white!
• Wednesday: Wear wacky clothes (i.e. stripes, polka dots, etc.)!
• Thursday: Wear crazy socks!
• Friday: Mr. Grinch day! Wear green!

Math Study Group:  We will have math group this Thursday, March 5th. Depending on the need, we will either work on the math games or prepare students for the next unit on multiplying and dividing fractions. As a reminder, if your student will be attending the study group, please write a note or email confirming this and informing me of where your student will be going at 4:30pm. Thanks so much!

-Spring Break: If you are planning on leaving early for Spring Break, please call me or send me an email so I can send the work home that your child will be missing. Thank you in advance!

What are we learning???

Math:
The students will be creating games to review the 5 units we have covered this year. The directions and rubric were given out last Friday. This will be a partner project. This coming Friday, they will play each other's games. After Spring Break, they will have a chance to play the games Mr. Burress' students made. We will then begin Unit 6 with the pretest on March 17th.

Science:
We will be continuing our study of the circulatory system this week.  The test for the Digestive and Circulatory system will be Thursday, March 5th. They will be able to use their notes for the test.

ELA:
Reading - Book Club will continue to take place Tuesday and Friday. The students are encouraged to prepare for their discussions by doing some of the following: record interesting quotes, questions from the text, events in the story that are confusing, difficult vocabulary, predictions, etc. The book club project Artful Artist is due March 24th.

In our reading textbook, we will be reading a persuasive essay titled “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” by Robert Fulghum. On Monday, I will introduce the reading response options that will be due on Friday.

Writing - The students have begun crafting their paragraphs for an informational website on a teen activist. Our goal for this week is to craft, edit, and polish all writing required for their websites. When we return from Spring Break, we will begin constructing our Weebly sites and inputting all of their wonderful writing!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Sincerely,
Mrs. Ball

mball@gibraltar.k12.wi.us