Highlights of November/December

Language Arts
We finished the novel Holes by Louis Sachar. An ending assignment was to write to Mr. Sachar and tell him what they loved about the novel and any questions they were left wondering. We are waiting to see if he responds - fingers crossed!

We began our new novel, The City of Ember, a science fiction novel that might or might not take place on a future Earth. We are focusing on the main characters, Lina and Doon, making inferences about them and thinking about the sci-fi genre and comparing their world to modern day Kensington.

After lunch we enjoyed hearing 100 Cupboards by NH Wilson. Thank you for making this year's Book Fair and success and for adding to Room 22's library!

Room 22 finished a memoir writing unit. Mentor texts were read (this one being the start of the unit). Students were encouraged to write about such things as: a favorite room, a special object, a turning point moment, a time they learned a lesson, etc. After choosing one to publish, students began the typing and editing process in Google docs.

Math
Room 22 has been busy with adding/subtracting and multiplying/dividing decimals. We have been using our knowledge of multiplying/dividing whole numbers and applying that process to decimals.

Science
We began a unit on Earth's Systems. We have discussed the four spheres of Earth: geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. We will dive deeper into each sphere.

Social Studies
Room 22 learned about different different theories on how people came to the Americas, we learned about the first civilizations in the Americas, and focused on the Native People by region who lived in the United States. Students have been working on a specific tribe from a region by creating a group poster detailing the tribe.

The postcard race is going well! Keep those cards coming! To date we need the following: North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, South Carolina, Indiana, Michigan, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.