Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

River Research Presentations

Last week, the students chose and researched a river using information packets and the internet. This week, they wrote and gave presentations and created posters to show their classmates. 

This was their first formal presentation and they did a really great job! The posters looked great, too!

Here are the video recordings.

Rivers, Ecosystems, and Disney, Oh My!

Here is a great video we watched in class today that shows examples of lots of our spelling words like river, rapids, bends, and waterfall. 

Also, there are some great visuals of 2 ecosystems- the river and a forest. An ecosystem includes the animals, the plants, the shape of the land (hills, mountains, water), and the weather. 

What parts of an ecosystem can you see?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DE5a80I8EU 

December Newsletter

ACI 1 News Date: December 3rd - December 21st
Special Note: Dear parents, We just wrapped up Matsumura’s Ice Sculpture, during which our students became little artists of their own! They made murals as well as collages in class in order to learn how to express themselves and collaborate with others. In addition, we end our math unit on time, temperature, and money.  As mentioned in the letter sent last week, we will begin having monthly in-class presentations. I cannot stress to you enough to encourage your child to do his/her own work. Our goal is to teach your child to become an independent learner in our classroom. Thank you.	Science: Unit 4: Ecosystems Ecosystems are important aspects of the earth’s environment. They define entire areas and are essential for all living and non-living things! Week 1: Introduction * The students will learn what an ecosystem is, what it consists of, and why it is vital for plant and animals survival Week 2: Deserts, Tundra * We will be discussing desert and tundra ecosystems, the animals that live in these areas, and how they interact with their environment Week 3: Temperate, Rainforest * We will be discussing temperate and rainforests ecosystems, the animals that live in these areas, and how they interact with their environment
Math Unit 4: Exploring Addition and Subtraction This month we will be building the foundations for math by learning basic concepts of addition and subtraction. We will discuss number patterns as well as children learn how to add 10 to change the second digit in number. We will also be working on word problems and the students learn to turn math numbers into words to understand stories and problems in a mathematical way.	English Language Arts: Unit 4: Follow a River This month, we will be reading Follow a River, a look into what makes a river, where a river goes, and how it affects the earth and life around it.   Week 1: Introduction Topic: We will begin the book with a walk in order to get a clear understanding of the basic concepts covered Week 2: Famous Rivers Topic: We will discuss some famous rivers in the world and their importance Week 3: Presentation Topic: We will be working on our in-class presentations, creating research and writing our speeches

Winter Collaboration Murals

As a final project for this unit, the students collaborated to create winter-themed murals that now proudly hang outside our classroom. I'm very impressed by their artwork as well as their ability to work together to make them! ^^

This was made by Julie, Jared, Leo, Silver, and Esther

This was made by Amy, Sophia, Sara, Eileen, Tony, and Benjamin.

Water Cycle Experiment

We have also been learning about the water cycle over the past month. Today, we performed an experiment demonstrating how water vapor collects to become clouds (condensation) and eventually makes rain (precipitation) when clouds can't hold anymore water.

Here is a similar photo of the experiment we did in class.

We also see a similar reaction on the mirror after a hot shower or on a glass of ice water on a hot day!

Collaboration

This week, we've been learning about "collaboration"- working together as a group. Many times art, books, music, and dance are made through 2 or more people collaborating together.

Here are two videos that show how collaboration can really be great!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Icp92mV6XeU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JB5GNnWgs68&feature=fvst