Well, another four-day week had the students working hard all week.
In math, the class did some activities to introduce them to the concept of multiplication. Multiplication is important because it helps to add equal groups, or repeated numbers, quickly. For example, 2+2+2+2+2+2+2+2=16 OR 8 X 2 =16. The students also learned how to look at "arrays" or arrangements of objects into rows and columns creating rectangles or squares. At this stage, students are asked to read the equation 3 X 4 = 12 as "three groups of four equals twelve" to help their understanding of what is happening. (Later, the same equations can be read as "three times four equals twelve".) The children discovered all the multiplication facts up to six (using dice) and practiced solving word problems featuring multiplication.
For the next two weeks, our guided reading groups will be book club groups. The students looked at six different books and decided which one they would like to read. They now are reading the books and will start to meet as groups next week to discuss the books and to answer comprehension and extension questions.
The class did a short practice each day of our "touch math" strategy for increasing the speed of answering multi-digit addition questions. (Next week we will focus on subtraction.)
In science, the children begun to look at plants more closely. As a class, over the last few months, we have been discussing plants everyday as we watch our amaryllis, paper whites and pussy willow plants grow and change. The children worked in groups to write down what they already know about plants and what questions they have to help construct what they want to know about plants. The students learned the difference between a drawing (art) and a diagram (an information picture usually with words and arrows). The children drew a diagram of a plant and labelled the different parts of the plant. On Friday, the class examined navy beans with magnifying glasses, drew diagrams of them and described how they look. They learned the Latin or science name for a navy bean is Phaseolus vulgaris. Did you know that these white beans are called "navy beans" because they were served at meals often in the US Navy? Then each child set up an experiment to see if/when the beans will turn into plants. Right now, the seeds do not look anything like plants! The beans are small, smooth, hard, off-white, dry seeds. We will see next week what happens when just water is added.
On Thursday, the last day of March, the class calendar pattern ended with a number that was over one billion! Using the doubling patterns that were in the King's Chessboard and other books, the students realized the power of doubling numbers each day in March. The first day was 1, then 2, then 4,8,16 and so on. But on the last day it was 1,067,741,824. The growing pattern went from one to over one billion in just 30 days!
On Friday, the class began to learn about the famous artist Pablo Picasso. We are looking at how he made some of his art using ordinary things or recycled materials. We looked at how he constructed faces too. Next week, the students will begin to make art inspired by Picasso's work.
Books read aloud this week:
Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers
Six Dinner Sid by Inga Moore
My Best Friend is as Sharp as a Pencil by Hanoch Piven
Faces by Zoe Miller and David Goodman
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