September 20-September 24

Welcome FALL!

These are this week's highlights in the world of GTD services at Irving School.

2nd Grade Math
We finished up our activities involving elapsed time and some of us began to work on money landmarks and giving change. Groups may be changing as Unit 2 pre-tests were givend this week. Next week students will be taking the CogAT test, please make sure they are rested and eat a good breakfast.

2nd Grade Reading
We began to read the book "26 Fairmount Ave." and began to write our own autobiographies to share stories.

3rd Grade Math
Also finished up elapsed time work. Will be moving into computation problems and algebraic thinking in solving equations (fact families, missing addends/subtrahends, etc.).

4th Grade Math
This week we finished up work in Geometry and began to go over the very difficult homework packet. Next week there will not be class on Monday due to a field trip-no homework packet.

5th Grade Math
Finished up Unit 1-Data collection, started data collection projects, and beginning Unit 2 (Operations with decimals).

September 13-September 17

Hello everyone,
So good to see so many at the Open House last night.

1st Grade

I have begun to go into the 1st grade classes to work on Thinking Skills and have introduced my friend "DOT" who invites to come along on adventures and think. A series of cards introduces questions and concepts that require higher level thinking skills for which I guide the class through.

2nd Grade
2nd Graders who see me for reading are being introduced to the work of Tomi DePaola and we will begin reading a chapter book called "26 Fairmount Avenue" which is an autiobiography of the author and his life as a young child. Students will be reflecting on their own families and stories and sharing them with the group as a culminating activity.

2nd Grade/3rd Grade math
Students are working on "Elapsed Time". Work has been sent home to be completed for next week. If you need a great teaching tool, see the web clock link in the sidebar of my blog.

4th Grade Math
Students have been studying plane geometry, angles, and perimeter and will be moving on to 3-dimensional shapes.

5th Grade Math
We are finishing up unit 1 on Data and starting our data collection projects.

That's all for the update for this week, until next, all my best.

Mr. Packer

September 6-10

Don't forget that Open House is this Thursday, September 16 between 6:30-8:30



2nd Grade math students have begun working on elapsed time, using clock manipulative to help them solve problems and checking their answers with my web clock and lcd projector. Here is the link for the manipulative clock on the web, you will find it a very useful tool for solving problems involving elapsed time.



3rd Grade math students did not meet this past week due to the Labor Day holiday



4th Grade math students continue to work on geometry, building polygons on geoboards and recording their attributes. They have also begun to create polygon riddles by writing clues to a polygon that they have created that will be used as an independent activity as we move forward with our geometry unit and moving on to angles and using protractors to measure angles.



5th Grade math students continue to work on unit 1 involving data collection and organization.

August 30-September 3

Hello everyone,

Slowly getting my schedule up and running, and filled out, look for it to be posted next week. This is what's happening so far at each of the grade levels and GTD Resource.

2nd Grade-Math Unit 1 pre-test given and scored, groups being formed, times being set

3rd Grade-groups are forming based on Unit 1 pre-test.

4th Grade-math group up and running.

5th Grade-6th Grade Everyday Math group up and running.

Please check back soon for updates regarding content being taught at each level.

Have a great 3 day weekend, and a safe and happyy Labor Day.

Mr. packer