We arrived in our classroom this morning to discover that our chrysalis had turned into a beautiful monarch butterfly!! We were so excited. We watched the butterfly for a few hours, as the wings had not fully opened and dried up yet. The students made careful observationa in their Science Notebooks, books that we use to draw diagrams and write about the different scientific discoveries we make. The students observed the last stage of the Butterfly's Life Cycle and labeled their drawings. The students also used words to describe what the butterfly looked like. We placed the butterfly and its container outside around 10am, because the butterfly had fully opened its wings by then. It stayed in the container until dismissal time, when it decided to leave with us!!!! It was amazing.
We have many new chrysalises forming for our other caterpillars. We have about 5-7 "Painted Lady" butterflies in our classroom now and hope they will all develop as beautifully as our Monarch Butterfly.
This week, the students started their "Book Clubs", or guided reading groups with me. Each week, the students will receive instruction on their lelev in reading. Each leveled book will be read in a small group, and the students will learn about reading strategies, reading comprehension and some word work. Please look for these books next week. As the students' reading improves, he/she might not take home a guided reading book each week, as they might last over several weeks in our groups. Chapter books and longer, more complex stories, require longer instructional sessions and classes. If your child does not take home a new guided reading book every week, he/she should bring home another just right book. Please let me know if you have any questions.
In writer's workshop, we started writing our "Small Moment" stories. These stories are personal narratives that zoom in on a specific event or place. The students learn to stretch their stories out over several pages, and they plan their stories over three fingers, with clear beginnings, middles and ends. We look forward to sharing these with you.
If your child brought home the Personal Readers last week, please return those to the classroom by Friday. We try to add new poems and songs each Monday. Thank you. We hope your child reads these songs and poems many times and practice his/her fluency.
Have a great rest of the week,
Maria
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