Word Study in Room 127

I'll mention this several times this year, but it is my mission to differentiate instruction as much as possible for all children every lesson of the day.  One area that is quite time-consuming in preparation, yet very worthwhile, is word study (more commonly referred to as "Spelling").

I'd like to extensively discuss how I plan on differentiating for your child in this area.  With successful implementation, not only will spelling in conjunction with writing improve, but decoding words, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension will also improve.

After administering a test called a Qualitative Spelling Inventory (QSI), I establish each child's developmental level on the spectrum on phonetic development.  From that point, I pair him/her up with other kids that have similar areas for growth.  Then we get to work!  Here's what we do in class and some suggestions as to how you can help your child at home.

Day 1 - Monday
At School:  The children discover patterns within their sets of words.  They write the words, sorting them according to these discovered patterns, then write a reflection statement based on what they've learned (see below).  Students also write their words in their agendas so they will always have a copy!
At Home:  Write or orally use these words in sentences.  Give them life!

Day 2 - Tuesday
At School:  Students will sort the words as quickly as possible.  They will do this three times.  After finishing, students will look through their books to find other words that match the same pattern.
At Home:  Sort these words as well, trying to beat the best time.  Also, continue looking for words within texts at home.


Day 3 - Wednesday

At School:  Students develop high-quality sentences and find synonyms for ten unknown or troubling words from their list (the left side of the picture).
At Home:  Look for words pertaining to the patterns in the paper, online, or in your conversation.

Day 4 - Thursday
At School:  Pairs will work with each other on a "No Peeking Sort".  One student will say the word, and the other student will write the word correctly, placing it in the correct column.  Both students will complete this, making changes in any errors (see the above picture, right side).
At Home:  Complete a No Peeking Sort in the same fashion.


Day 5 - Friday
At School:  Before being quizzed over ten of their words, they will glue their words into their notebook under the appropriate columns (see the picture below).  Students are expected to spell at least 8/10 of the words correct.  If one scores below 8/10, s/he will continue working with these works during the next week.
At Home:  Continue to promote words and patterns by reading and writing together!

Gross, Digusting, and Incredibly Educational

Over the past few days, the students have been learning about the skeleton.  Here are two key points they will be able to tell you:

1.  A typical, full-grown adult human skeleton has about ______ bones.
2.  The skeleton offers three main functions:  ________, _________, and ________.

With that being said, on Wednesday, the students were shown pictures of a variety of skeletons:  a horse, cow, chameleon, bird, and frog were a few of them.  Most were able to guess with a high accuracy what the animal was (due to the skeletal shape).  After establishing the importance of a skeleton and the implications for an animal's shape, the students were given owl pellets!

Writing detailed descriptions before dissection

After close inspection on Wednesday, the students FINALLY were able to dissect them today.  Tomorrow, the kids will reconstruct the skeletal remains, and we will hang them on display in the room during next week!  Stop in to see some skulls, vertebrae, jaws, and femur bones!

Woah!  Is this gross, cool, or both!?!

Geometric Concepts Through Song

Over the past few days, the kids have been exploring lines, line segments, rays, parallel and perpendicular lines, and a variety of polygonal shapes (i.e., rectangles, kites, squares).  To help reinforce some of these concepts, I have introduced the kids to some great songs about these concepts.  I've posted them below for their reference and your listening pleasure!

Lines, Rays, and Line Segments Video

Parallel and Perpendicular Lines Song

The 1st Day of School!

Welcome to the first posting for the 2012-13 school year!

Today, our main focus was on establishing table groups, building community within the groups as well as the class, and discussing class jobs and our mission statement.

The kids were randomly selected into their table groups.  This will allow them to build a core group of friends within the classroom.  They will set group goals together and be able to work comfortably with each other.  While several other opportunities exist for everyone to work with others in the class, these groups provide a solid foundation for each child.

After getting into groups, our next step was to start building community.  We started this by playing one of my favorite energizers:  Hot Lava.  Each group had to stand on two sheets of paper (easy) and then move onto one sheet of paper (much more difficult).  Afterwards, we discussed how teamwork, trust, and cooperation were vital to being successful, much like successfully completing everyday group activities.

Purple Popcorn on two sheets of paper

The groups also had time to create a group name and design a group flag.  I must say that their flags were very impressive!

The Green Leopards at work

The Yellow Highlights finalizing their flags

The kids also had a chance to write our mission statement, which was a whole class activity.  Students took their ideas around to other groups, making a master list of "keeper" ideas.  I will compile them and finalize the mission statement using this information.

Last, we finished by deciding what class jobs should be available to maintain a clean, organized, and smooth-running classroom.  Those will be determined tomorrow!

I hope your child returned home with lots of smiles and excitement.  This year will truly be a fantastic year!


*I should note that I plan on updating this blog about twice per week.  Pictures will be posted often but not always.  Also, I won't always update you with new postings.  I will, however, promptly inform you of major, necessary, pertinent information.*