Day 32

It's finally Friday!  I hope that you are not like the student in the meme!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will finish your narratives and turn them in.  You will also send your narrative to a special adult in your life, to see what they think.

RFotD: Many restaurants claim to have invented the cheeseburger, but it was Colorado resident Louis Ballast of the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In in Denver who named it. (He tried to trademark the term in 1935 but was denied.)  Read more about the cheeseburger's history here.

Homework: Finish your narrative.  If you are finished, you have no homework!

Day 31

Happy Thursday! Only two days until the weekend!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will discuss resolutions and begin the process of finishing your narratives.

RFotD: A lightning bolt generates temperatures five times hotter than those found at the sun's surface! Read about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 30

It's Wednesday! Happy halfway mark!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will talk about editing and proofreading your work. 

RFotD: Women have twice as many pain receptors on their body than men. But a much higher pain tolerance.  Read all about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 29

Welcome to Tuesday! Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will continue our work on narrative stories. Focusing on the scenes and episodes you create.

RFotD: Identical twins are not completely identical.  Their fingerprints differ.  Read more here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes. 

Day 28

Happy Monday number 5!  Only about 30 to go before summer :)
Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will pay a visit to the library and work on developing characters in our narratives.

RFotD: Kangaroos never stop growing until they die!  Read about the growth patterns of animals here.

Homework: Finish your probe and read for 30 minutes.

Day 27

Happy Friday and first day of Fall! Please work on any finishing touches to your probe while I take attendance.  If you have already finished, please read or write independently.

Today we will be working on constructing leads in your narrative writing.

Not so RFotD: The yellow and orange colors you see in Fall leaves actually always exist but they are overpowered by the abundance of green from chlorophyll. Read more fun Fall facts here.

Homework: Finish your probe (it's now late)!  Read for 30 minutes.

Day 26

Happy Thursday! Please work on your probes while I take attendance.  If you have finished, please read or write independently.

Today we will begin developing a narrative story that you will work on for the next week.

RFotD: The average human being can distinguish between 1 trillion different scents!  Read all about it here.

Homework:  Finish your probe and read for 30 minutes.

Day 25

It's Wednesday! We are halfway through the week!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will work on our probes.

RFotD: Whiskers of mice help them sense the rough edges, breeze and temperature change.  Read more here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 24

It's Tuesday! Please write independently while I take attendance.  

Today we will be doing a special lesson on figurative language.

RFotD: 1 Tablespoon of soil has more organisms in it than there are people on earth! Read more here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 23

Happy Monday! I hope that your weekend was phenomenal! Please write independently while the sub takes attendance.  You may choose to write to this prompt: 
A stray dog follows you home from school.  When you get there, you discover that it's actually your best friend who has been turned into a dog! Write about what happens.

Today you will be working on your probe. and reading independently.

RFotD: The Earth has more than one North Pole.  Read about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 22

It's finally Friday! Please write independently while I take attendance. 

Today we will continue our work on our probes.

RFotD: Your nails are likely to grow faster on your dominant hand—so if you’re right handed, the nails on your right hand will grow faster than the nails on your left. More fascinating facts about your nails can be found here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes and catch up on overdue assignments!

Day 21

It's already Thursday! Just two more days until the weekend! Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will finish our themes on All Summer in a Day and introduce our summative assessment for reading for this unit.

RFotD: Before toilet paper, people used hay, corncobs, sticks, stones, sand, moss, hemp, wool, husks, fruit peels, ferns, sponges, seashells, and broken pottery.  read more interesting facts about toilet paper here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 20

Happy Wednesday!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will continue our work on the theme of All Summer in a Day. 

RFotD: Wednesday is named after Woden, the most important God in the German pantheon.  Read about the origins of this day's name here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 19

It's already Tuesday! It's going to be a great day. Please write independently while I take attendance.  
You may choose to write to this prompt: You are on your way to school and find an unusual coin on the sidewalk.  When you hold it, you can see the future of everyone but yourself. Write about what happens.

Today we will be practicing more with theme and constructed responses.

RFotD:  The word "PEZ" comes from the German word for peppermint—PfeffErminZ. Failed PEZ flavors include coffee, eucalyptus, menthol, and flower. Read more PEZ history here.

Homework: Catch up on unfinished work and read for 30 minutes.

Day 18

I hope that you had a terrific weekend and are ready for a great week.  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will be working on citing text evidence to back up your thoughts.

RFotD: Apples belong to the rose family, as do pears and plums. Read about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 17

Happy Friday!  It sounds as though things went well while I was gone, so XP is in your near future :)  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will begin looking at theme in literary text.  It is challenging, but we'll get through with lots of practice.

RFotD: Most lipstick contains fish scales. Yes, it's true.  Read more here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 16

Be sure to work hard for the sub today.  Remember there is XP to be earned!  Please write independently.  You may choose to write to the following prompt:
You realize that your parents' closet is a portal to an alternate dimension where kids are in charge and adults need children to take care of them.  Write about what happens.

Today you will read Nadia the Willful on page 69 in your lit book and complete a summary and plot diagram.

RFotD: A blue whale's major arteries and veins are so large that small child can pass through them.  Read more about the blue whale here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 15

It's already Wednesday! Today is early release which means shortened classes!  Please write independently while I take attendance.  We will be randomly sharing, so make sure that you have something good to share :)

Today we will finish the summary and plot diagram for President Cleveland... We will also finally have some independent reading time.

RFotD: The original comic super hero Hulk was gray, not green. Read the history of Hulk's colors here.

Homework: Finish your President Cleveland summary and plot diagram and read for 30 minutes.

Day 14

Welcome back! I hope that you had an amazing three-day weekend. Please write independently in your Writing Journals.

Today we will be continuing our work with plot diagrams using a story called President Cleveland, Where Are You?  

RFotD: Every hour, humans shed about 600,000 particles of skin, or about 1.5 pounds every year. By the time a person is 70 years old, they will have lost about 105 pounds of skin. Read more here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 13

Happy Friday! No school on Monday which means three-day weekend! Please write in you Writing Journals.  You may free write or write from the prompt: You discover that you were kidnapped as an infant and that the parents you know are actually evil spies. Write a story about what happens.

Today we will be reading a new story, Tuesday of the Other June. we will also be changing seats and getting into teams.

RFotD: The Harry Potter epilogue takes place today, September 1, 2017.  It's the day  Harry and Ginny will put James and Albus on the Hogwarts Express, joining Hermione and Ron's daughter Rose, and Draco Malfoy's son Scorpius. Read about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.