Thursday, October 30th

Students took their Reconstruction assessment today and continued working on their informational papers.  About half of the students in each class presented their Reconstruction slides and I was very pleased with the the effort many students put into their work.

Wednesday, October 29th

Students continued working on their informational papers and they started  their Reconstruction presentations.  Tomorrow students will take the Reconstruction assessment and continue working on their presentations.

I passed back the Civil War assessments this afternoon and I want parents to review, sign, and return them tomorrow.  Students who earned 1s and 2s will be allowed to retake it on Friday so they review the correct information.

Tuesday, October 28th

Today students continued working on their informational papers and they completed a reference frame about Jim Crow.  Students first discussed prior knowledge they had about the topic and then read an attached document.  Then they connected the text to our central idea, identified which concept lens it was aligned to, and then selected up to five facts to include on their worksheets.  I'm quite pleased that most students are stepping up to the challenge of analyzing a document with multiple objectives to accomplish.

I also passed out the Reconstruction study guide.  It looks a little different because I accidentally copied the wrong quiz on the back.  Students were open-minded though and they just stapled the correct copy to the back of the paper.  As a reminder, the Reconstruction assessment is on Thursday.

Monday, October 27th

After we corrected our daily grammar, I gave students a resource that has lists of various transition words and phrases.  Then students continued working on their informational papers.  A parent from each homeroom came in to help with paper reviews and students worked on finishing their rough drafts.  Students who had already finished their rough drafts conducted peer reviews and worked on making revisions.

After we worked on their informational papers, we read Gathering Blue.

Homework:  Students should continue working on their informational papers if they have not completed their rough drafts yet.  In order to meet the Friday due date, students should have their rough drafts completed by Tuesday.   If they are done with the drafts by Tuesday, they can do their peer review and revisions in class on Wednesday and then write their final draft in class on Thursday. 

Students should also study for the Reconstruction test.  The quizlet is available and I'll be passing out a study guide tomorrow.

Friday, October 24th

We had a productive day today.  Students worked on their informational papers, took the vocabulary quiz, and added onto their sharecropping notes.  

On Monday students are going to continue working on their informational papers and I wanted to invite parents again to help.  Two parents came during my homeroom's writing time and that was extremely helpful.  I didn't have any parents from Ms. McFaddin's homeroom, and I was only able to conference with four students. 

It would be helpful to have two parents come during the 8:15am-9:00am time slot and one parent come during the 9:45am-10:30am time slot.  Please email me if you can help.

Homework:  I will not be giving homework during the week next week since I want students to use that time to work on their informational papers.  I also advised some students to work on their papers over the weekend.  I'm aware that many have weekday activities so getting some of the work done over the weekend would be wise.

My former student, Will, stopped by and answered some questions as part of his 8th grade experience.  One asked if the teachers at Renfroe were as mean as me.  Will just smiled... : )

Parent Volunteers - Friday, October 24th

A few days ago I asked for parent volunteers to come help with paper reviews on Friday, October 24th.  I have two parent volunteers for my homeroom; however, I could still use one or two parents for the time I'm with Ms. McFaddin's homeroom at 8:15am-9:30am.

Please email me and let me know if you can come help during that time.  Also, if you did email me and I overlooked it, please just forward your email to me. 

Thanks!

Spanish Assessment Announcement for Sra. Speed's students

Dear Falcon Families,

The 4/5 Academy assesses Speaking and Listening skills in Spanish during Term 2.  Our summative assessments will occur during the week of October 27th.  In order to practice the vocabulary to be covered on the tests your child should use our homework website, quizlet.com. Once inside quizlet please search using the following word:

fourfiveacademy 

(no capitals, no spaces) 

Our current unit is called, Episodio 8 Mini-Cuento A, B, y C and the assessment will be on Thursday, October 30th.

On the Speaking summative students will tell a story using the current vocabulary according to what they see in a series of cartoons.  On the Listening summative students will match what is being said with another set of cartoons to demonstrate comprehension.

Muchas gracias por todo su apoyo, 

Sra. Speed