Hard to believe next week is Thanksgiving! Don't forget, the kids get the WHOLE week off this year. Enjoy your time together.
This week in Reading we are continuing to work with realistic fiction, understanding plot summary, character development, theme, problem and solution. Students are reading and comprehending passages together and independently. We are starting our first book study on Wednesday, which will be done as a whole class, just to get the hang of it. Soon thereafter, students will begin book study groups where they will share books that align better to individual interests. We will be applying all skills learned so far as we read as well as learn how to have deep discussions about elements of the book. It' fun hearing others' perspectives.
In Writing, we finished up our revising and editing practice yesterday, and the students took the BOY writing benchmark today. The benchmark comes from an older, released STAAR test, which means the material tests the knowledge of the entire fourth grade year. Obviously not all TEKS have been taught yet, so we really look at this as an instrument for further planning and designing lessons. Scores will be reported when they are available. The remainder of this week will be dedicated to creative writing.
In Social Studies, students will be creating a book on a European explorer who traveled through or affected Texas in some way. This will be completed in class. Those books not finished before Friday, will go home for completion, with a due date of November 30th. Our next topic in Texas History is the beginning of Spanish settlements, specifically missions, and how they affected the lives of Native Americans in Texas.