Today, we started our new unit on peer pressure. I explained the guidelines for the unit, passed out planning calendars and did book talks on the books being offered. Students learned who their partners are and picked books. They planned out how they will spend their class times and began to read. They seemed very excited about the book choices! Of course, that makes me happy! The focal points of the unit are fictional conflicts, fluency, making connections, and recognizing how an author writes using figurative language. I handed out the new log which is due on Wednesday of next week. If students have not brought back their portfolios, they should be sure to do that tomorrow.
In writing, we did a lesson called "Dig Up Your Own Stories". I had students draw a map of a special place in their writers' notebooks. Then they put "X"'s where they had special memories. Next, I asked students to write about a special memory. We are collecting entries in our notebooks so that we may choose one to write about for the next published piece. I will collect notebooks at the end of the week for a fluency grade.
In science today, we did the same lesson as yesterday. We ended our day with silent sustained reading.
