Room 132

Go to Arcademic Skill Builders. Click on the space that says “Add and Subtract” then play some games!

Today you have two options, as we reviewed in class yesterday for a new counting money game, an easy version, which only goes up to 99 cents, and a harder version which goes up to $100! Pick which one you’re going to practice below, then see how high of a score you can get! You get 10 points for every one you solve correctly, but you LOSE 10 points every time you put in too much money and then you have to start all over, so be careful!

Play this game in order to practice your ability to count coins! Drag the coins to the chute, and they’ll add up to the correct amount.

We had a great first time in the computer lab. Once we got everybody logged in, they worked diligently on those problems. They had 20 minutes to see how many problems they could solve. The big winner for the day was Terrance, who solved 132 problems! I was extremely pleased with how well they behaved and how hard they worked, so we’re definitely going to take more trips to the computer lab in the future.

Tomorrow we’re going to the computer lab for the first time. We’re going to practice our calculator skills with this math flash card program. Here’s how to start playing:

1. Select expert mode. You’ve been practicing those calculator skills, time to show these problems who’s boss!
2. Make sure all of these are clicked. You can do any kind of problem!
3. Click on New Player and type in your name!
4. Click Start Game to have the problems show up.
5. Try to solve as many problems as you can as quickly as you can without making mistakes!

Tonight is Back to School Night! I’m very excited to have a chance to meet with the parents of my students.  We’re going to talk a little bit about some of my plans for this year, the purpose of the classroom, and some of the new ideas I learned over the Summer and plan to implement. For parents who can’t make it, here’s the slideshow I’ll be showing. A lot of the presentation I’ll be talking about what’s on the screen, so I’d be glad to discuss whatever you’re missing by not hearing me speak.

We started to study maps in class yesterday by talking about Google Maps. Her’s a fun map for you, it shows where  all of the visitors to our class website came from last year.

Today was the first day of school for students! Unfortunately, they didn’t quite make it to my classroom just yet. To tide you over, here’s a picture of the calm before the storm. Click it to see a bigger version.

We just finished our school year.  We learned a lot of different things over the school year, and I just know that the kids are looking for something to do in order to keep their skills sharp.  So, parents, here are things you can direct your children to do whenever they are foolish enough to tell you that they’re bored.

Language Arts:

• Find any of this year’s Spelling City lists here
• Kerpoof! Create a picture, then make up a story about it!
• Grammar Ninja

Math:

• Math Games at Arcademic Skill Builders
• Math Games at TutPup
• Online math flashcards
• Practice telling time on an analog clock
• Print out tons of different kinds of math worksheets at Superkids

Science:

• Wellhead Willy’s Water Cycle Arcade
• Virtual Forest Challenge

Social Studies:

• Learn about the states and their capitals

Reading:

• Go to the library or bookstore and read a book! Read books together with your parents, read them alone, have your parents read some to you.  I suggest you try out something new, but if you liked the books we read this year, Sharon Draper wrote Ziggy and the Black Dinosaurs, Caroline B. Cooney wrote Wanted!, and Christopher Paul Curtis wrote The Watsons Got to  Birmingham, 1963.

Have a great Summer, everybody!  See you in September!

Blue Group