PARCC, Polygons, and Magnetic Poles!

As you all know, this week we started the infamous PARCC test!  Although this test will take-up lots of time for the next two weeks, we are still learning...I promise!  Here is what's going on this, and next week:

Language Arts
Reading
This week we are finishing up our poetry unit by analyzing the themes of poetry.  By reading poems by poets such as Robert Frost, Maya Angelou, and James Patrick Kinney, the students will be able to identify the "big idea" and compare that theme to other stories/poems.

This and next week our focus in Language Arts will shift to novel studies.  The first novel we will read as a class will be Who Is Malala Yousafzai? by Dinah Brown.  This biography tells the story of a young Pakistani girl who is currently fighting for education equality in her home country, and all over the world.  We will use this book as an anchor text to reinforce many Language Arts standards such as: characterization, text structure, making and supporting inferences, persuasion and informational writing, as well as linking this to current events.  Click on the book cover below for a preview of the book!

Writing
In preparation for upcoming research projects involving writing biographies, this week we are writing constructed responses revolving around Malala's fight for equal rights.  After reading the introduction of the novel, as well as watching an interview with Malala herself, the students are answering the question: Why and how did Malala fight for educational equality?  Use evidence from the text and the interview to support your ideas.

Next week we will focus on Malala's character traits and find evidence to support this in our writing.

Word Study
Last week we took a break from Word Study due to the test, but this week it's back!  This week's words focus on synonyms of whisper and yell.  Here is a list of the words.  The quiz will be on Friday, March 17th!

Math
This week we started Chapter 10: Two-Dimensional Figures.  This chapter will take us to Spring Break, and will focus on lines, angles, quadrilaterals, and symmetry.  As an exciting extension, the students will locate and research real-life examples of these geometric phenomena!

Science
Due to the PARCC schedule this week, Science will only be taught on Thursday.  But don't worry, next week we will delve back into the exciting world of electricity and magnetism!