Hello 401 Families,

Happy Friday! This was an exciting week as we launched new units in reading, writing and math. We'll continue all of these units in the coming weeks using recorded mini-lessons and live, small-group sessions to make sure students are engaged with new content.

Weekly Workload and Expectations

Reading: read daily, two reading responses a week
Writing: follow along with writing lessons and aim for 20 minutes a day of independent writing
Math: weekly fluency packet, two math problem sets and Word Problem Wednesday

You will notice that most assignments do not have due dates. This is purposeful, and I am hoping this helps families work at their own pace. Some family's have requested a preview of the upcoming week's work to look through with their child over the weekend. I am attaching this week's fluency packet for this purpose. I will also leave up all of this week's assignments on Google Classroom throughout the weekend so that family's can review work with their child.

I am also re-attaching the Sample Weekly Schedule as a guideline! Students who have been following this schedule shared that they've been able to get through most of their work for 401 by noon each day, and have gotten to do Specials and Office Hours in the afternoon.

Reading

In reading this week students will continue reading and thinking deeply about historical fiction. Any historifical fiction book is fine whether you find it in your home library, a digital eLibrary, Amazon, or Epic! It does not have to be a book recommended on the Padlet I shared last week. Over the course of the unit, students should aim to read about 3-5 historical fiction novels (so about 1 book a week.).

Students should be doing independent reading every day and writing two reading responses a week.

Writing

To compliment our reading unit of historical fiction, students will also be writing historical fiction stories. This unit returns to the skills we learned at the beginning of the year during our realistic fiction unit. By the end of this unit students will publish a fictional short story set in a time period of their choice.

While following along with the posted mini-lessons and assignments isn't mandatory and shouldn't be a source of stress, they are highly recommended and will keep students on track as they work to brainstorm, draft, revise, and edit their stories.

Math

This week in math, students were introduced to decimals, specifically tenths. This coming week, we'll continue our study of decimals by exploring hundredths.

During our weekly Math Small Groups I will be giving more explicit instruction about new math topics and answering any questions students may have about concepts or assignments.

Small Groups/Office Hours

Your child has been scheduled for a Reading and Math Small Group once a week. Please check their calendar for specifics on when their groups will meet. These live small groups allow students to socialize, share ideas and ask any questions they may have.The more the merrier, and I encourage your child to join if possible!

It would also be awesome for every child to sign-up for Office Hours, even if it's just to say hello and chat. The sign-up sheet is available on Google Classroom. If your child can't make it the day they sign-up, please delete their name from the sign-up sheet so another child can attend during that time slot.

Please continue to reach out with any questions or concerns, though I want to share a mantra I hope will help: Do the best you can. Do what's best for you. Health and happiness are what matter most.

My goal as your child's teacher is to support you and your family in whatever way possible. I want to enliven your child's day, and of course teach them new academic content, but most of all I wish to provide as much comfort and support as I can during these trying times.

To make sure that we're all feeling the community spirit and to open up a space for live communication for families our class parents, Liz and Runa, and I will be co-hosting a Google Hangout/Meet on Thursday, April 30 @ 8 p.m. I will join for the first half to answer any questions you may have, and then will leave the space open for families to connect and share. Please keep an eye out for an invite coming soon!

Have a wonderful weekend,

Kati