Page 5 - SN March - Grade 5

EAL

MS. VISNJA PLECAS

Dear Parents,
In this period much time was devoted to writing up the notes that the Gr 5 students
had taken while researching their chosen topics. The next step which proved to be a
challenge for many of the students, was editing the students’ writing. This included fo-
cusing on including relevant information only, organizing the information under head-
ings, keeping like information together and making the paragraphs and texts coherent
and cohesive. In EAL class, in order to provide some respite to the students, we occa-
sionally stepped away from the demands of the exhibition and read and wrote stories
that were not related to their topics. We used sets of sequenced picture cards as
prompts to write and develop entertaining narratives. We are currently working on ed-
iting these stories. We read a selection of books chosen for the beauty of their lan-
guage and the variety of subjects they covered. One of the books we read and dis-
cussed was Hermit Crab’s Home, a wildlife storybook that fosters an appreciation of
wildlife and habitats so that children will grow to respect nature and help them grow
into responsible adults who care about the environment. The rich and poetic language
and the beautiful illustrations opened up the world of the ocean and the animals that
inhabit the shore. Factual information about the hermit crab provided at the end of
the book and a glossary were helpful in developing the students’ subject-specific vo-
cabulary.