Division With Equal Groups

Multiplication Games

Several of you asked for links to games to help you practice your multiplication facts. Unit 4 is all about multiplication, so it's important to begin getting quick with your facts!

 Click this link to find lots of fun multiplication games. I like these because most let you choose which facts you want to practice. 

If you're just starting to learn your facts, begin with the 0, 1, 2, 5, and 10 facts (these are the numbers you can quickly count by to solve the problems). If you're ready for a challenge, add in the more difficult facts. 

Have fun!

Shake, Shake, Shake the Butter!

It's really easy to make butter like we did today in class for your Thanksgiving table. Impress your family and friends in just a few simple steps!

What you need:

• 1 pint of heavy cream (we used a quart to make enough for 60 kids!)
• 1 glass jar with lid
• Family and friends to help you shake!

What to do:

1. Fill a jar halfway with heavy cream.
2. Screw the lid on really tight.
3. Start shaking! It will take at least 10 minutes for your cream to turn to butter, so pass it to your family and friends when your arms get tired.
4. Your butter is ready when a ball forms inside the jar.
5. Pour off the extra liquid (this is buttermilk, like you use to make pancakes).

This is what your finished butter should look like! 

Enjoy your butter on a roll, or you can use it to cook other Thanksgiving dishes. It makes a great start to cupcake frosting! 

Yummy! 

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in our dual language family! 

218's Trotting Turkeys

Class 3-218 made these jolly  scrapbook paper turkeys to get into the Thanksgiving spirit.  

Turkeys on parade

Testing the turkey's foldable beak

 

Turkeys by Kelly C., Bryan G., and Jennifer V. 

Best wishes for a happy Thanksgiving!

Celebrating Our Series Reading Unit

To celebrate all we learned during our series reading unit, students created a book jacket for the next book they would write about their character. I'd love to follow some of these adventures!

Inspired by Beverly Cleary's Ramona

Inspired by Beverly Cleary's Ralph S. Mouse

Inspired by Ann Cameron's Julian and Huey

Inspired by Barbara Park's Junie B. Jones

Next up: non-fiction! 

Math Games to Help You Prepare for Monday's Test

Remember to study for the Unit 3 math test on Monday! Here are some extra links to games to help you practice the skills you need to know. 

Skills from Unit 3:
Perimeter and Area 
Measuring with a Ruler in Inches and Centimeters (you should be able to do the "easy" and "medium" levels in both inches and centimeters)

Old skills you still need to know:
Reading Line Plots
Making Change
Ballpark Estimates 

Enjoy your weekend!

Check Out This Awesome Selection of Kids' Books to Read Online!

Forgot your books at school or haven't been to the library for a while? Click on this link to see more than 150 books you can read online! 

Username: msranager
Password: gleane

Use the "filter" and "sort" tabs to find the kind of book you are interested in, and click on the cover to read the complete book on your computer. 

Read every day, lead a better life! 

This is How We Answered the Call!

Here are a few photos of the volunteers who received our food in Rockaway last Friday. The families were truly grateful for the time and love you put into your cooking. With our classes' help, volunteers were able to feed hundreds of our neighbors in need.

The American Legion, where our meals were taken to be reheated and served. The electricity comes from a gas-powered generator.

Volunteers prepare the food for serving

A delicious buffet! 

Thank you again for your generosity. It is truly appreciated! 

Finding the Area of Rectangles

Remember: perimeter is the total distance around the OUTSIDE of a shape. Area is the total amount of space INSIDE the polygon. Help yourself keep track of the squares you are counting by numbering the inside of each square!

Print-and-Play Math Game

Practice your skills making estimates with this Rounding Robots game! Just log into Google Drive, and you will see a new folder at the top called "Math Games to Print and Play." You will need to print a copy of the game board for each person who is playing. Ask your parents first if you can print the file! 

In class, we will use special dice that have 10 sides to play the game, but at home, you could use a regular deck of cards. Just take out the face cards and only use numbers 1-9. You can use beans, pennies, or pieces from other games as markers.

1. Put the cards face down in a pile.
2. Turn two cards over and put them next to each other to form a 2-digit number.
3. Round that number to the nearest 10 and cover it with a marker.
4. The first player to cover five numbers in a  row is the winner!

I laminate the games to make them last longer, but you can also put them in a clear plastic page protector or even a large Ziploc bag.

Hope you have fun practicing estimates!

THANK YOU!

We're blown away by how many of you generously cooked meals for families in the Rockaways. Over the past two days, parents and kids from classes 3-216 and 3-218 made nearly 20 large trays of food to donate to people in need after Hurricane Sandy. I know your delicious meals warmed the stomachs and the hearts of people facing one of the most difficult times of their lives. 

Thank you SO much! May we continue to teach our children the value of serving others.

Comments are Fixed!

I was getting pretty jealous because you guys were commenting so much on Mr. Fox's site, and mine wasn't getting any! Then Nikki let me know you couldn't comment without a special ID.

The problem should be fixed now. To post a comment, click the arrow where it says "Comment as" and select "Name/URL." Type your name into the top box. You can leave the bottom box blank. Finally, click the "Publish" button to post your comment.

 

Horatio and his bug wish you happy commenting!

Measuring Perimeter

Personal References for Units of Measurement

This unit in math we're working on measurement, and today's lesson focused on students using things they know well (personal references) to help them measure using different units of length. A few said our chart would be helpful for homework, so here you go.

Kids, let me know which charts you think would help you at home as we continue throughout the year, and I'll post them.

I hope you're staying warm!

Help Feed the Rockaways!

P.S. 89 is collecting warm meals to feed the hundreds of families still without heat and power after Hurricane Sandy. Michelle Rowe, an ESL teacher at our school, has been delivering home-cooked dinners to families every day this week. She needs our help to make sure there is enough to feed everyone.

If you are able to, please consider cooking a hot, nutritious meal or salad and sending it to school with your child in a disposable container. Mrs. Rowe will deliver the meals on Thursday, November 8 and Friday, November 9.

Help teach our kids the importance of coming together as a community to support those affected by this disaster.
 

Election 2012 for Kids

Visit this link to check out kid-friendly articles, videos, maps, and games to keep up-to-date on today's election.  

Happy (Late) Halloween from Horatio

I've had a lot of requests for some pictures of the famous Horatio. He didn't dress up this year, but here he is celebrating Halloween. And yes, this is the window he splatted himself on trying to catch that fat pigeon.

Win 100 FREE BOOKS!

 

 Unleash your creativity with Scholastic's Paws for Reading Contest! You could win 100 free books for yourself, plus 100 books for our classroom. Here's how:

1. Draw a picture or take a photograph of a cat or dog reading a book. They can be real-life pets or stuffed furry friends.
2. Bring your picture to school by November 15th and I'll submit it for you
3. Find out by January 8th if you're one of the lucky winners!

Scholastic will also donate $1 for every entry to Paws for Healing, an organization that provides therapy to injured dogs. Every picture will help animals in need. Good luck!