Happy New Year! We hope you had an enjoyable and restful winter break. Our students came back ready for new units and new work. We were busy giving lessons in all subjects.
In geography, we’ve started our first continent study of Australia. Students are able to learn the names of the states and territories, the biomes, animals, and other cultural information.
Our new science unit is on the Skeletal System. Students are learning that our bones have three main jobs: to move, to protect delicate vital organs and to produce blood cells in bone marrow. Other activities on the shelf include learning the common and scientific names of bones, where the bones are located and what their function is in the body.
In history, students will learn the names of the months and their origin. They will also divide a year into parts. With this work, students will discover that a year’s time can be thought of in fractions.
With that being said, we are exploring fractions in math. Students are discovering that a fraction is part of a whole. With the materials they are able to see equivalencies, compare fractions, and add or subtract fractions with like denominators. Our fraction materials help the concepts become more concrete.
We’ve introduced alphabetizing on the word study shelf. Alphabetizing is an essential skill that will help students in many day-to-day tasks at home and at school. Knowing how to alphabetize will make it easier for children to locate and use commonly sought information.
In grammar, we are learning about prepositions. Prepositions are words that show a relationship between two words in a sentence. With the work on the shelf, students will become familiar with prepositions and to understand their function.
The new units help keep the students happy and busy!