Weekly update

Assalamu Alykom dear parents,

We had a wonderful week alhamdulillah,

Reading/Writing

We are still reading biographies from our Nelson Literacy books.

Students are also doing an amazing job on storybird, I have been reading the stories they wrote and I am really proud of having some very good writers masha’Allah. Please give the chance to your kids to go on storybird and to write their stories by themselves. They can also enjoy reading stories on the same site.

In reading comprehension I introduced making inferences. Students know now that they have to read using their detective skills to understand.

Making inferences is basically using information that we already know as well as clues in the text to help us understand.

Please do not forget to do the second assignment on storybird: Tell about a time when you went grocery shopping with your mom or dad.

Math

This week we have been working on Linear Measurement, Area and Perimeter.

·         Students worked on finding the perimeter of several large figures on the classroom floor.

• They have measured distances around pictures
• They have selected a non-standard unit to tile a rectangular area.
• They used materials to measure the area of surfaces in the classroom.
•  Using 5 snap-cubes, students and their math buddies made different arrangements           and recorded them on grid papers.
• Using 5 Pattern Block triangles, they made different arrangements and recorded them on grid papers.

Spelling

    The spelling words for this week are contraction words:  you’ll   they’re   it’s   we’ve   isn’t   let’s   aren’t   I’m   can’t   we’re.

Science

 I have finished conferencing all the student. Masha’Allah, they are very knowledgeable. Most of them did very well!

Social Studies

Students wrote floor maps for their rooms and their kitchens. They have also made legends for these rooms.

Islamic Studies

We have talked about the importance of remembering Allah and calling upon Him before doing anything. We read the story of prophet Younes alayhi Assalaam.

Students recognize the lesson that Allah taught to prophet Younes and the importance of turning back to Allah after making a mistake.

Jazakom Allah khairan and have a peaceful and restful long weekend!

Tr. Hajer

Math Home Connection

Assalaamu Alykom dear parents,

Students took their math books home today to do home connection p 207.
Have your child find the area of a tabletop or counter using index cards. Use the measurement to create a paper cover for the table or to make placemats.

Jazakom Allah khairan
Tr. Hajer

Reading and Writing assignment

Assalamu Alaykom dear parents,

Today in our lab class, I have introduced the online student writing program known as Storybird. 

Storybird is a way for students to use professional illustrations from thousands of artists as a starting point for story writing. Each student in the class has an account that is registered under my name as the classroom teacher. When they publish stories, they are able to share them within the class and leave feedback for one another. I will also ask students to complete storybird assignments.

Some of my second graders found illustrations and started writing their own stories. There were a few glitches with some of the computers that need to be fixed, but it was wonderful to see everyone using this program for its intended purpose!

You can help your kids login and do their first assignment (read and retell Looking for Hope story). 

This assignment is due in 6 days in sha'Allah.

Their usernames and passwords are attached in the front page of their agendas. I have also asked them to choose a new password and to mark it on the same page.

https://storybird.com/accounts/login/

Jazakom Allah khairan for your cooperation,

Tr. Hajer

New Science Unit

Assalmu Alykom dear parents,

As you know we had our science workshop yesterday (Monday, April 7th, 2014.) 

Students have really enjoyed it, Alhamdulillah. They have also learned many things while doing some hands-on activities. They rotated through the five centers trying and taking notes of 5 different simple machines.

The scientist was really satisfied with their good level, and said that they are "very knowledgeable" Mashallah!

I will be conferencing with students this week in shallah. You might ask them questions about simple machines. (How many simple machines are there? what are they? what is an inclined plane? what is a pulley? what is a lever? what is a screw? what are wheels and axles? what is a wedge? can you give me some examples of tools that use some of these simple machines?...)

As soon as we're done from conferences, we'll start a new unit in sha'Allah: Matter; (Solids, liquids, and gases)

Students will identify the properties of matter. They will also be able to identify the different types of matter in their environment. They will gain knowledge through explanation and exploration.This is important to students to incorporate scientific terms and knowledge into their daily independent explorations. Students will also be able to understand that everything in their environment is a type of matter and possess specific properties. Students will be able to build on this basic knowledge to gain more understanding in science as they continue to learn. 

Jazakom Allah khairan,

Tr. Hajer