Back at it:-)

Welcome back from break! I hope everyone had a peaceful and relaxing few days off. It sounds like you had exciting holiday gatherings and special family time. It is good to be back in a routine and to see everyone again. December reading calendars were due today. Book reports were also passed back and graded. They were out of 50 points. I told the kids that I was a stickler when I was grading their reports. Many of them will be bringing home their reports to redo parts of them. I told the kids that all book reports and book report corrections are due to me no later than Friday. All book reports will be put in the students' portfolios to track individual growth in writing.

I also gave a book chat on our new book club books--our next unit will be on fantasy and fairy tales.

The book choices are MAYBIRD AND THE EVER AFTER by Jodi Lynn Anderson, HORNS AND WRINKLES by Joseph Helgerson and THE MISADVENTURES OF BENJAMIN BARTHOLOMEW PIFF: YOU WISH by Jason Lethcoe.

We also worked on reviewing the elements of a friendly letter. Students practiced writing friendly letters to their table partners in their reading response journals. Within each letter, students will be working on summarizing, making text to text and text to self connections and predictions. I hope this exchange of letters will foster a dialogue between students about what they are reading.

Homework tonight: Read for 30 minutes (yes, the minutes are upped in 2009), work on math, finish reading response letter, make changes to book reports if needed