Weekly Update 5/8/2017

Updates/Reminders - Mark Your Calendars!! 

• Single Subject Acceleration (SSA) is the practice of assigning a student to a higher-grade level than is typical, given the student's age, for the purpose of providing access to appropriately challenging learning opportunities.  SSA is an accelerative practice that allows students to show mastery of the content of a course without having taken the course.  If you want to learn more about SSA, there are a number of upcoming Parent Information Sessions that you can attend.  You can view the schedule here: http://bit.ly/2m0U7pC or by visiting the WCPSS Accelerative Practices website at http://wakeacceleration.weebly.com/.                                            *The Nomination Window for Track Four is May 5th to May 18th  (All forms MUST be received by the end of the school day on May 18th.  Late nomination forms will not be accepted.)
  *Morrisville's Anticipated Testing Dates: Wednesday, May 31st or Thursday, June 1st
• Mark your calendars for Morrisville's Got Talent!  Tracks 3 & 4 will perform on Friday, May 12th at 6:30PM.  Online registration will be open until April 28th.  Please check the MES website for more information. 
• Track Four Field Day is Friday, May 19th.  More information will follow closer to the date. 
• It is time to CELEBRATE!!!!   Morrisville Elementary School is celebrating it's 25th Year as well as our newest National Blue Ribbon Award distinction.  On Monday, May 22nd at 10 AM all students, staff, and parents are going to physically encircle the school building with a blue ribbon in honor of our continued success. BE SURE TO COME DRESSED in royal blue in honor of our award!  We would love to have as many parents as possible join us.  
• Reading EOGs are scheduled for Wednesday, June 21st and the Math EOGs are scheduled for Thursday, June 22nd.  If you know that your child will be absent for this assessment, please let me know as soon as possible, so a make-up day can be planned. 
• Meet the Teacher for the 2017-2018 school year will be on Tuesday, June 27th from 5:30-6:15PM.  

What We Are Learning This Week:
Reading: 

This week the students will continue to study the genre of informational texts.  The students will learn to apply the following strategies when reading informational texts:     

         •Readers identify the text structure to help them determine the main idea, or the “so what?”

         •Readers think about the author’s purpose or intent for writing the text.

•Readers pay close attention to the type of question it is and indentify the question type before answering: Main Idea, Inference, Right There, Vocabulary, or Author’s Purpose

         •Readers use the strategies “read around the word” and “fill in the blank” to gain information about the meaning of an unknown word.

Next Wednesday, the students will take a common assessment on the genre of informational texts.  The students will be expected to create a roadmap of their thinking and answer multiple choice style questions.  Students will also continue to have two reading passages to complete for homework each week that coincides with the genre we are currently focusing on.  Students are required to roadmap their thinking by showing their thought process as they are reading, as well as applying the strategies they have learned thus far.  

Questions You Can Ask You Child At Home:

*What are the characteristics of the nonfiction genre?

*What reading strategies do good readers use when reading nonfiction texts?

*What should you do when you come across an unfamiliar word when reading?

*Show me how to “map out your thinking” when reading nonfiction texts. 

Writing: 

This week in writing, the students will continue to work on drafting their persuasive writing.  They will work on writing three strong body paragraphs, and a complete conclusion this week.  As they draft their writing, below are some important guidelines to remember:

•The body paragraphs should include three reasons, each supported by three facts and/or details.

•The ideas should be linked with several  transition words or phrases, and  use a variety of transition words and phrases.

•Their writing should be wrapped up with concluding sentences in each  paragraph , and a concluding paragraph which clearly  restates their opinion and the reasons their opinion.

Near the end of the week, many of them will work on revising and editing their own writing independently and with a peer.  

Questions You Can Ask You Child At Home:

*Who is your intended audience?

*What ideas do you have that support your topic?

*What techniques did you use to conclude your persuasive writing? 

Math: 

In math this week, the students will be learning all about the metric system.  They will be investigating meters, liters, and grams.  They will learn about all of the metric system prefixes (kilo, hecto, deca, deci, centi, and mili), the value that they hold, and how to apply it to the different forms of metric measurement. The students will practice converting metric numbers (2,000 meters = 2 kilometers) and solving word problems involving metric measurements.  The students will take on assessment on these concepts next Tuesday.  Below are some helpful instructional videos that your child can watch at home:

•http://learnzillion.com/lessons/2631-compare-and-convert-metric-units-of-weight

•http://learnzillion.com/student/lessons/2571

•http://learnzillion.com/student/lessons/2498

Questions You Can Ask Your Child At Home: 

*What types of things would you measure in meters? Grams? Liters?

*1,000mg = ____g?

*250m = _____km?

*12L = _____mL?

Social Studies: 

This week in social studies the students will be starting a research project where they will be working in small groups to investigate how a geographic area in North Carolina has changed over time and whether people have had had a positive and negative impact on it.

Questions You Can Ask Your Child At Home: 

*How has people impacted NC’s natural resources?

*How have people adapted to the changes in NC’s environment?