Math Test Coming Home Today - January 28th

Last Thursday, students wrote a math test based on Patterns and Equations.  They will be bringing this test home today. 

On the test you will see a mark out of 58, and the percentage that this relates to.  The percentages break down as follows:

less than 50% - 1 (continuing to develop a grade level understanding of concept)
50 - 69% - 2 (good understanding of concept)
70 - 85% - 3 (very good understanding of concept)
86 - 100% - 4 (excellent understanding of concept)

I have asked any student who got below 50% to have their parents sign the test and return it to me.

To prepare for the test, I gave students sample questions that were similar to what would be on the test, so that they would know what to expect, and we discussed them as a class.  Students were also given the opportunity to study in class using practice sheets and IXL.  They were also given time to ask me any questions before the test.

In marking the tests, I found that many students lost marks because they did not take the time to carefully read the instructions.  This is something that we have been working on, and will continue to work on, in class.  I have told the students that reading comprehension is an important part of solving math problems.

Lastly, this math test accounts for a small percentage of what I use to calculate a student's math mark, and is just a snapshot of their understanding of one particular concept.  I believe that it is beneficial for them to have practice writing a test, as test taking is a skill, and it assesses their ability to apply their knowledge in a new way.  I also look at their daily math work, our daily Number Talks, their use of IXL, and projects that we do.

If you have any questions about the test, please do not hesitate to contact me.

I hope you have a great week!

Friday January 25th

Happy Friday!!

Home Journals are coming home today!  Here is the learning web that we created to help us write our journals:

Please take a moment to read your child's journal, sign it, and send it back to school on Monday.

I hope you have a fantastic weekend!

January 23rd, 2019

Math Test Tomorrow!

The students will be having a test on Patterns and Equations tomorrow morning.  They have had the opportunity to study this week, and I have gone over what the questions on the test will look like.  If students are wanting some extra practice tonight, they can go on IXL.  The strands of "Patterns and Sequences", and "Variable Expressions" would be the most helpful.  Students can also practice their multiplication facts.

Humanities

Students are progressing well with their autobiographies.  We have gone over self-editing strategies (such as reading your work out loud to yourself, and using the checklist), as well as peer editing strategies.  Here are the checklists that have been provided to students for the beginning and middle, which are taken directly from the rubric that will be used to mark the autobiographies:

I have checked that my beginning:

- is exciting, draws the reader in, grabs their attention

- includes the beginning events of my life

- has a title

- is detailed

- is in an order that makes sense

- is not just a list of events

- COPS

- Capitals (proper nouns, the beginning of sentences, “I”)

- Organization

- Punctuation (sentence stoppers .?!, commas, apostrophes, quotation marks)

- Spelling (make sure to ask if you are unsure about how to spell something)

I have checked that my middle:

- contains the middle events of my life

- has detail and description

- COPS

- Capitals (“I”, beginning of a sentence, proper nouns)

- Organization (the order makes sense, split the writing into paragraphs)

- Punctuation (period, commas, question marks, exclamation marks, quotation marks, apostrophe)

- Spelling (make sure to ask if you are unsure of how to spell something)

- has a variety of sentence beginners

- has sequence words

Reminders and Upcoming Important Dates:

- We will be doing Home Journals on Friday.  If your child has not yet returned their Home Journals, please send it to school with them tomorrow.

- Monday January 28th - Book Truck

- Thursday January 31st - Fun Lunch

- Friday February 1st - No school

- Field Trip on Monday March 11th to Glenbow Museum.  VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! Please contact me at clwillis@cbe.ab.ca, if you are able to volunteer.

Don't forget to follow me and Ken Taylor School on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/MissCLWillis

https://twitter.com/KenTayloryycbe