Reading - We will jump right into our Storytown series and explore many different genres. The first story will be the biography "Mighty Jackie: The Strike-Out Queen," followed by the historical fiction selection "Kai's Journey to Gold Mountain." Each reading lesson will include a vocabulary list and one or more comprehension focus skills. Some of the focus skills we will be exploring early in the year will be character traits and motivations, synonyms/antonyms, and compare/contrast. We will also continue to use the Daily 5 to promote independent literacy skills in the classroom. During Daily 5 time, students may choose Read to Self, Read to Someone, Work on Writing, Word Work, or Listen to Reading. Students will also be participating in small guided reading groups during this time.
English - The students will learn the different types of sentences, as well as the parts of a sentence. Our English skills will improve through grammar exercises and creative writing opportunities.
Science - The students will explore the concept of variables by creating pendulums and conducting experiments. They will also explore the concept of capacity through an engaging "lifeboat" experiment.
Social Studies - We will review the important geography skills of using globes and maps. The students will also be able to identify all of the continents and oceans. Then we will begin our study of Pennsylvania history and the PA river systems.
Math - We will begin the year by review place value and comparing/ordering numbers. Memorizing our multiplication facts will be a huge focus, and we will work on our facts both at school and for homework.