lundi le 20 février, 2017
Chers familles de division 6,
In French this week, students will begin to correct the draft of their current stories. Students will also be introduced to the past tense "'imparfait". This tense is different from the passé composé because it is used to describe past events, states of being or habits. It is similar to the English past progressive and is often used with avoir and être. L'imparfait verb tense can be used in the same story and even the same sentence as the passé compose verb tense. For example, "Hier je marchais au magasin et j'ai vu un chat" (Yesterday I was walking (imparfait) to the store and I saw (passé compose) a cat. Guided reading groups this week will focus on how and when to identify a liaison, which is the pronunciation of a final consonant of a word or an added sound (for example in English we say "an orange" instead of "a orange" because it sounds better). When reading in French, most last consonants are not pronounced, for example "grand", the last d is silent. However, when the following word begins with a vowel, there is an added liaison sound, for example "les grands éléphants", is pronounced "les gran-z-éléphants". Therefore, we will continue to practice the liaison throughout the year in order to become more fluent when reading and with our oral language.
In English we have started reading the novel "Stuart Little" by E.B. White. We will read this together and work on reading, phrasing, expression and intonation. While we read,we are also discussing punctuation, grammar, parts of speech and the meaning of words. Students are creating a visual event sequence so that they can later re-tell the story in their own words. All students are encouraged to practice their English spelling words (posted here last week). The spelling test is on Thursday and the words are also available with free games at spellingcity.com/egarcin.
In Math this week, students are doing word problems and learning how to answer it with an equation and a complete sentence. They are also continuing to practice adding/subtracting money, multiplication and division. We will also discuss different ways to earn and save money.
In Science and Art, students are continuing to build their habitat dioramas. Upon completion, they will be on display for about a week and other classrooms will be invited to come view their creations. On Wednesday, the Sierra Club is coming for a special interactive and hands-on presentation about ecosystems. Once our habitat unit is complete, we will continue our study of Canadian provinces and territories.
In PE, students continue to create and practice a dance they will perform at our next concert. Students are also continuing to learn some traditional French Canadian songs, for example "L'arbre est dans ses feuilles". These songs teach us traditional French Canadian stories, culture and dance.
Please note that there is no school this Friday, February 24. Have a great weekend!
Mme Garcin