Hello Families,
We hope that your transition back from the Spring Break has been a smooth one.
We jumped right into fractions this week. We talked about the numerator as parts that are taken and the denominator as all the parts that are there. We also talked about how fractions are “fair shares” where each part is the same size.
We started by trying to fold sheets of paper into parts and labeling those parts. We folded paper into 2 parts, 4 parts, & 8 parts. Temescalians noticed that when you tried to fold the sheet into 4 parts, you were basically folding it into two parts, and then once more to “double it”. Same thing when kids were folding the paper into 8 parts. They folded the parts into 4 parts, and then once more to “double it”. We also folded paper into 3 parts and then 6 parts.
Once we folded each sheet, we labeled each part.
As we were folding and labeling, we noticed that there can be different configurations of fractions, and while they did not look like their neighbors, the paper is still equally split into two equal parts so whether it’s folded horizontally or vertically, they are both examples of one sheet of paper split into halves.
We cut out one part of each sheet and started comparing them to each other to find equivalence. 1/2 = 2/4 = 4/8. 2/6 = 1/3. 3/6 = 1/2.
We are in the note taking stages of our local animal research writing. I have shared links to the articles for each individual animal on Google Classroom, and I have also printed out articles so that the kids don’t get distracted by the videos and focus on gathering information. Temescalians took highlighters to paper and took down information on their animal’s appearance, habitat, food, and offspring.
We’ll also be taking a walking field trip to the West Branch of the Berkeley Public Library next Thursday, April 20 from 9:15 – 10:45am. I have already sent out the link to the library card application, if you still need to fill one out, you can find the link here: https://www.berkeleypubliclibrary.org/sites/default/files/files/inline/allageslibcard2017.2.pdf
I’ll bring the applications to the library on Monday so if you forgot today, please send one in by Monday! (The librarian asked for a few days’ lead time to prepare the cards for the kids.)
A note about library cards: the librarian specifically shared that students should only use their own cards to check out their own cards so I cannot borrow books on Temescalians’ behalf, and they cannot use parents’ cards to check out books.
If students do not have their own card on Thursday, no worries. They’ll still have time with us in the library, and see how the dewey decimal system works and how books are organized, but they will not be able to independently check books out that day and bring them home with them.
Our monthly buddies activities had 7th graders creating monster “self portraits” for our Temescalians, and vice versa. It was a nice experience of seeing kids learn more about one another and continue to connect with each other.
The 7th grade buddies and the Temescalians also did a “PE Challenge”. On the surface, it looked like an amalgamation of kids doing a flurry of activity, but when you looked more closely, you could see pairs of students working together to do different activities on the checklist. It was a perfect example of organized chaos – everyone knew what they were doing and they were all doing their own thing.
We celebrated a Temescalian’s birthday! We loved seeing pictures and hearing stories of this friend’s childhood, growing up in Hawaii. It involved having poi as her first food, picking guava off of trees on walks, and catching shrimp in streams for her birthday party.
Upcoming events:
April
16 – Day of Service and Fun Fest in Strawberry Creek Park (10am – 2pm)
Come join TBS as we clean up Strawberry Creek Park, have a chili and cornbread cook-off, and a cupcake baking contest!
I will be at a conference this weekend, but look out for Addie! She’ll be there with my partner Ryan!
20 – Walking trip to West Branch of the Berkeley Public Library (9:15 – 10:45am)
21 – Family Reading in Temescal Creek (8:30 – 9:00am)
24 – 28 Readathon Week!
– Please bring in gently used books for the book swap! You can drop books off at the office or in the classroom until Wednesday, April 27
– Transformation Tuesday, 4/25: Come dressed as your favorite book character! (Remember that there should be no masks, no weapons, or gore.)
– Book Swap on Thursday, 4/27: We’ll have time to peruse the selection and bring a book or two home!
– Readathon, Friday, 4/28: Wear PJs, bring pillows and stuffies (you need to be able to carry everything independently from the gate to Temescal Creek!), and BOOKS! We’ll read all day! Look for a signup for guest readers!