Thursday~Friday

Oh my goodness! I do not ever remember this much snow and ice in December! Nor can I remember a time we did not get to have our Holiday Party! :( So sad!

*Parents: Thank you all SO much for your hard work, especially Mandy L. You have put so much time and effort into planning a perfect party for us! Thank you! I'm so sad we don't get to have it!

*Kiddos: I am going to miss you LOTS over the Holiday Break! I hope you all have a wonderful couple weeks to play, rest, and hang out with your families.  I can't wait to see you in the New Year!! XOXO

Merry CHRISTmas and Happy Holidays! Hope everyone has a happy, safe, and warm 2 weeks!

Wednesday

*Holiday Party is tomorrow at 1:30! IF we are not in school tomorrow we will plan on it being Friday at 1:30. I know that is going to be hard for most of our parents who work - but we will work it out and I am sure your kids will understand!!! :) I can help out in any way!

*I know it is NOT the best timing, but I am leaving half day today because my sister is having her baby! We are very close and I need to be there. I'm very sorry for taking a half day! :(

Wednesday Folders should be coming home today with info from the office and graded papers.

I went ahead and gave my students their gifts just in case - little pencils with their names on them, snow straws, and candy rings! :) The pencils were my favorite gift as a child so I always like to give them to my students as well! Hopefully they will bring them home and show them to you!

No HW tonight.

Have a safe night,

Snow Day & Tuesday!

Well...we've had our first Snow Day! Can you believe it? In December? I hope this isn't a sign for the weather to come!
*FYI:
~If you haven't turned in your Persuasive letter to your child, there's still time! Please try and email/send it in on Wednesday!!
~Holiday Party is on Thursday at 1:30! Hope to see you there!
~Ned and Stella have a safe place to go over the Holiday Break. Thank you to Alex and his family!!
~Just In Case... I checked to make sure I had all the Snow-Day Early Release forms and I do! Thank you! :) Just as a reminder, if we have to do this, I usually have to end up using my cell phone to call you because the school lines get so backed up. So in case you see a weird number and have been watching the news about early release days, please answer!
~Science Fair page due TOMORROW!
~No vocab. quiz this week due to missing school yesterday, half day today, and having to take a Learning Check on Thursday during reading class. We WILL still be learning and using the vocab. so it's listed to the right if you'd like to play one of the new review games I found!
**********************************
I was so worried about my kiddos that walk to and from school today! :(
We were very off  from our regular schedule today with the 2-hour delay! We still have to fit in Specials classes for each grade level but they were shortened. So...that meant we had each subject for a little of the time! :)

The order will be out-of-order today so I can remember what we did! :)

Science:

Reading: Today we read Snowflake Bentley and went over the vocab. words. Students also had about 5 minutes to read from their Lit. books.  All students will take their AR tests on the Lit. Books tomorrow.
HW: finish lit. books if needed

Math: Today we finished our basketball booklets with mean, median, and mode.  We also reviewed mean, median, mode, and range.
No HW
*If you remember from a few posts ago... I stated the Singapore math tests were not that good. :( The kids scored a lot better with the KCCT-like assessment I gave them the next day using the Smartboard and whiteboards.  In the Wednesday folders, students will receive their tests with an extra credit page to do. That is due when we return from break.  The test was already on the mid-term grade, so if your child's grade was lower than expected that is probably why.

Writing: THANK YOU!!!!! I received SO many letters today to your kids. I really appreciate it and your kids LOVED it! Because we missed a day of school, we are still editing ours. I promise to send those home before the break! You will get a copy of the letter to you and I will keep the original one for the hallway and for the portfolio.
HW: complete writing final copy if needed

Have a great night!

*Treasures Reading Series

Look to the RIGHT of this post. I've added a new link. It's called Treasures Reading Series.  It has some pretty fun vocabulary practice games {would be a fun way to study the words each week at home!} as well as the main selection book we read each week to use with our core content skill.

As a guide, next week we will be on Snowflake Bentley.
Hope it helps! :)

Friday

*If you go to this web site, www.LetsSayThanks.com you can pick out a thank you card and Xerox will print it and it will be sent to a soldier that is currently serving in Iraq . You can't pick out who gets it, but it will go to a member of the armed services.

How AMAZING it would be if we could get everyone we know to send one!!! It is FREE and it only takes a minute. We did a few in class, but this would be neat to do at home if you can! :)

*Special Thanks to Haley for our yummy mini-doughnut treat!! :) Mmmm!

We had a great day today! We worked very hard to write Mrs. Sharp a letter from our On-Demand prompt. We asked for more technology in the Art room to help us learn about animation, web design, and graphic artists.  The kids were super excited about it! :) However, that took most of the day!  We also played our review games for Science {remember, the test is next Wednesday} and learned more with Geometry to go along with Calendar Math.  Students also learned about rights vs. responsibilities in Social Studies and we learned who is 'in charge' in the local, state, and federal governments.

Below are the science content game from the Earth-Sun Systems Unit:

Have a WONDERFUL weekend and stay warm!

Thursday

Good Afternoon! :)
*New Behavior ~ In an effort to keep the kids on task and giving me quality work until the break, students are working towards EARNING 20 points before next Friday.  If they earn their points they will get to enjoy a movie. If not, they will use that time working on review math and reading assignments.  Students simply earn points by following directions and giving their best effort on assignments. Very easy! :)
*Don't forget to contact Mandy Long to help with the Holiday Party next Thursday! :)

Math: Today we worked for a long time on mean, median, mode, and range. We were in the middle of a UK basketball activity but were unable to finish it so we will on Monday.  The students are really having a hard time with this even with the amount of practice. PLEASE watch/check your child's HW!
HW: 3 pages (all with examples) of mean/median that are stapled together

Reading: Today we took the Vocab Quiz (much better this week!!), our sequence PAS probe, and read in the literature books. We also played a grammar review jeopardy game over grammar skills we've learned so far in reading.
No HW

Science: Students finished up their games on the Earth-Sun systems. The games are SO creative! I'm impressed!
No HW

Writing: Students are almost finished writing their letters! Are you?! :)  Some students even turned in their final draft today.  We also went over one more time the scoring rubric I will be using to grade their papers.  Students know exactly what to do to get an A!
No HW

Have a good night,

Technology Writing Essay for Money! :)

If you are interested in a writing contest with the theme “How does Technology make the world a better place?” Please read below and click on the link )…


The entry deadline is Sunday, January 16. Students can win money $10,000 from Teen/TweenTribune.

We won't have time to do this as a class, but it would be a great after-school writing assignment or something to work on over the Holiday Break!

Click here to learn more: http://tweentribune.com/essay

You can either send in your child's piece to me or mail directly to:

TeenTribune & TweenTribune
726 Yarmouth Street
Norfolk, VA 23510



I'd love to see some of my awesome writers try for this!! :)

**Don't forget to read today's post below!! :)

Wednesday

*Wednesday Folders come home today!
~Mid-Terms will be in the folders.  A lot of grades were low this time due to the Thanksgiving break. If I've seen a major issue I will contact you. Otherwise, we will continue working towards success with all kids!
*Class Meeting:
Today we had a class meeting to discuss a few 'clean up' issues. More and more students are not turning in HW or not asking you to sign their planner. I told the kids I was hoping this was just because we are so close to a break; but I would appreciate the extra words from you on this issue as well! Thank you!
*My Homeroom Parents:
1- I sent an email today to those of you I have emails for and I sent a note home in the Wednesday Folders about a Persuasive Letter activity I would love for you to participate in! :)
2- There is a letter coming in the Wed. Folder about our Holiday Party. Please RSVP to Mrs. Mandy Long about the party next week.

Math: Today we worked more on range, median, mode, and average while also learning to read data from a line plot! We did a lot! The kids were very engaged and seemed to really be getting the hang of it with some help.
HW: a practice page made by me - they are to bring home to examples from class to help

Reading: Today students got into their leveled fluency pairs and read short stories that used our vocab. in the text.  Students did a pretty good job with the analyzing questions but still need work on how to restate.
Students also participated in a sequence activity which they did great on!
HW: vocab. worksheet to help practice for the quiz tomorrow

Science: Students worked on their moon phase games today. They look so good! Some of these kiddos should work for Hasbro Games! :) We will be playing the games on Friday and Monday.  I have the Sun-Earth System test scheduled for next Wednesday.
No HW

Writing: Students had Health with Ms. Timaji.  They set short and long term goals. I was pretty impressed with some of the goals. Ask your child what their goals were!!

Have a good night,

Tuesday

Good afternoon!
*Science Fair page due tomorrow!
*I am here only half-day today due to the Behavior PD I attend once a month.

Dr. Smith is my sub again, but here is the HW the kids do have tonight~

Math: pg. 102 in Workbook - they do NOT need to do the Range question, we didn't get to that in our lesson today!

Reading: practice vocab words (they are to the right of this post) and complete a Sequence WS.

Science: finish (if not in class) pg.'s 113-116 questions from the KCCT science book in their science journals.

No HW in Writing.

*FYI: I'm sorry about not letting the kids go out for recess; however, as stated in our Staff Handbook, we cannot take students out if it's 32 degrees or below! It's really cold out!! :) I promise to take them out once it warms up a bit! I want to do my best to help kids stay healthy, too!

Have a good night,

Monday

Good Afternoon!

FYI:
Holiday Party is next Thursday, Dec. 16th at 1:30.  If you'd like to help and bring in something, please contact Mrs. Mandy Long at along@uky.edu. Thanks!

Today, students had a sub, Dr. Smith.  All 3rd-5th grade teachers had Release Day, which is where we work at school on upcoming lessons and units. We worked on making sure we were teaching rigorous and excelling lessons plans and have the first month of January planned! Now let's hope we don't have too many snow days in there!

The Reading Class vocab. words are now listed to the right of this post. Please use this as a guide to help your child study for the weekly quizzes.

HW:
Reading: finish defining vocab.
Math: I believe Dr. Smith worked on the HW with your child, so he/she shouldn't have any tonight. Take this time to review division!!

*Tomorrow I will be gone the last half of the day. I will try my best to write the blog once I get finished with the PD that will last until 4, so please check later!

Have a good night and stay warm! Our heater broke last night, but luckily it's still under warranty so they fixed it today! Brrr! Would have been a cold night!

Friday

Happy Friday! :)

We had a great day today! Although I love having Mrs. Maldonado's sweet kids, I love having my homeroom all day, too!

We started the day with 5 Math Centers.  The kids were great and working very hard on challenging problems with addition and subtraction with up to 4 digits.  The zero's were giving kids problems, so we will revisit this next Friday as well.

Students also did great on Comprehension today. While I was reading, the kids were acting out the author's descriptive writing. We love reading from good authors!

We also began our new SS unit on Government. Today we learned about the 3 types of government and what it means to be a good citizen.

Students worked with their Math Buddies on reading, writing, and adding money.  This was a great review for my kids, too!

We also worked on our Persuasive letters. They are coming along great! :)

Lastly, students enjoyed drinking some Hot Chocolate while having DEAR time. I think they enjoyed it!

Have a wonderful weekend and stay warm!! :)

Thursday

Good Afternoon!
*Would anyone like to care for Stella and Ned over Christmas? My husband's parents live in SC, so we will be there for a week! If you would, please send me an email. I will provide the tank and food! :)
*Holiday Party is December 16th (Thursday) at 1:30. Please contact Ms. Long, our co-homeroom parent if you'd like to help with bringing in food or crafts. along@uky.edu

Math: Today we worked more on average. The students are doing pretty well, they are just forgetting to remember to see how many pieces of data they are working with the divide by.  Students participated in a fun measuring activity to find the average lengths and heights of each other.
No HW
*Weekend HW: they have a 3x5 card stapled to their planner to keep track of the amount of time they spend watching TV this weekend for an activity on Monday

Reading: Today students took a few assessments! Students took their vocab. quiz and their compare/contrast quiz.  Students did a great job "planning" their next Lit. Book.  I let the students have Choice Book this time since it's only 3 weeks. 
No HW

Science: Today we made a shadow diagram.  Have your child show you tonight! :)  We also learned about the sun and moon revolutions.  Students are in the process of making a game about this information. They are being very creative and smart!
No HW

Writing: We worked more on our persuasive letters and got the 3rd paragraph written on our draft.
No HW

Have a great Thursday!

Wednesday

Good Afternoon! We've been very excited about the snow today! :) haha!

*PTA Coupon books are due Friday
*Wednesday Folders are coming home today

*If you would like to help with the Winter Party by bringing in some food items (pretzels, chips, cupcakes, etc.)  please contact Mandy Long at along@uky.edu, or home phone 223-9448. Remember, the Holiday Party is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 17th at 1:30. I hope you all can join! :)

Math: Today we started a new unit on Mean, Median, and Mode.  We began with finding averages (mean).  Students did very well on their activity in groups of 4 and I was proud of them for working so well together!
HW: workbook pg. 94, problems 3-4. Problem 2 we did together so students can use as a model
*Math Tests are almost graded. Honestly, they weren't great. However, I gave them a KCCT-like test after I gave the Singapore test and they did a lot better on it...

Reading: Today we worked more on comparing and contrasting texts and characters.  Students read together while practicing fluency on different leveled groups.  Then they compared the main ideas of the texts.  We also worked on vocabulary and finding different endings for our words.  Students also had time to practice vocab words.
HW: finish vocabulary page if not finished in class, practice vocab words for test (must be written in a complete sentence with the word spelled correctly)

Science: Today we learned more about shadows and why we have shadows. Ask your child where their shadow would be at noon!
No HW

Writing: We continued with our persuasive letters and wrote the 2nd paragraph today. Students got into writing groups helped one another as well.  Next, students were placed in groups and were given a certain persuasive technique we've learned about and had to present a skit about the same topic. They were hilarious!!The best part, they all performed them well and the students knew what the technique was.
No HW

Have a great night,

Tuesday

SO proud of our chorus students! They were AWESOME! :)

Another busy day with meetings filling my planning and after school time so only showing HW. So sorry! :/

Math: No HW
Reading: write each vocab word in a sentence, compare/contrast differentiated worksheet
Writing: No HW
Science: No HW

Hopefully you can look at the planners and ask your kids what fun things we did today! :)

Monday

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday and break!
Today we were definitely back to the grind and busy, busy! Whew!

I am only showing HW today as I have lots to get through before going home tonight. Thanks for understanding!

HW:
Math: Our test is tomorrow - please practice problems from their study guide and sign after you help your child practice!

Reading: Some students have to finish defining their new vocab words. The vocab test will be this Thursday.

Science: A few students are working on extra-credit; they are making up a phrase to go with the moon phases for us to remember them in the correct order. The moon phases are in their science notebooks.

Writing: no HW

Have a good night!

Tuesday

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving break! I am so very thankful for all my precious students!

Monday

FYI:
*Science Fair Paper due tomorrow
*Each child needs a red or green apple
*Tomorrow is our last day of the week!
*Book Logs will be sent home next week ~ I couldn't get them made before this week ends

Math: Today we reviewed graphing skills and completed the last page of our study guide.  The test will be next Tuesday, Nov. 30th. 
HW: practice problems from study guide
*Tomorrow is our BIG multiplication bee with Ms. Travis' class!!
*I also added 2 games to the Learning Games tab on the right

Reading: Today we worked on individualized skills that students didn't score great on in the past couple of weeks.  Different activities included inferencing, main idea, context clues, fact/opinion, and problem/solution. Students also had lots of time to get their lit. projects completed today. Lastly, students took an AR test over the in class read aloud.
HW: complete project if needed
*We will not have vocab this week - we will pick back up next week

Science: Today students worked to finish the weathering articles we started last week as well as played jeopardy over sun-earth systems. No HW

Writing: We made Thankful Turkey bags! They are pretty cute. We wrote down reasons why we are thankful for certain people. Maybe you will receive one tonight!

Have a good night,

Friday

FYI's:

1. Would anyone like to take home Stella and Ned over Thanksgiving Break? I can provide the smaller tank and food! :) I would really appreciate it!

2. The kids need to bring in a few items for something we are doing on Tuesday- small red or green apple
Items someone can bring in the the class: toothpicks, dots or gumdrops, raisins, red swedish fish

Thanks!

Thursday

Good afternoon!
FYI:
*PTA Coupon Booklets are not to keep...unless you've paid! :) If you do not want to purchase one, please send the envelope back. Thanks! 
*Our Holiday Party is coming up soon! It's hard to believe.  If you would like to help in any way, I am sure our Homeroom Parents would appreciate it.  Please email if you'd like me to pass on your email/phone to a Homeroom Parent.
*Science Fair Boards can be purchased at Hobby Lobby in Brannon Crossing.  Check this website for weekly coupons for 40% you can use for the board! http://www.hobbylobby.com/weekly/weekly.cfm

Math: We went over line graphs again and worked on word problems involving line graphs.  Next I split the kids into 2 small groups and Mrs. Powell and I each took a group.  We went problem by problem on the study guide.  I feel like we need more time to work on some of the areas the kids weren't getting, so I've moved their test back to Nov. 30th.
HW: practice mult. facts, no paper HW

Reading: Students took several assessments today! :)  First, we took the vocab quiz.  Most students did a great job.  Students who scored a C or below will be re-taking the quiz on Monday.  I have stapled their quiz in their planners for you to see, sign, and have them return it back to me.  Next students took their Author's Purpose PAS probe over this week's skill.  Finally, we worked on reviewing our action verbs and then students worked on their research for their Lit. Group brochures.  These will be presented in class on Tuesday.
No HW

Science: I have finished grading the tests and I just entered them in if you want to check! I will pass back the tests tomorrow.  Today I had the kids do a pre-assessment on Earth-Sun Systems, which is our next unit.  The students played a jeopardy game.  They did ok...but we've got a lot to learn! :)
No HW

Writing: Today we had extra writing time.  We worked in our writing groups as well as on our own to nail down our persuasive topic to begin our letters.  Guess what?! I will be sending something home soon for you to try your hand at writing your child a  persuasive letter, too! :)
No HW

Have a great night,

Wednesday

*Make sure to check Wednesday Folders! There is an important message from PTA about coupon booklets!

Seems like the kids were very well behaved for the sub! YAY! :)

Math: Today we worked more on reading line graphs.  Students did ok with this, but we will be working more on this skill tomorrow.
HW: stapled multiplication page

Reading: Today we did a quick lesson on author's purpose, and then I let the students use the rest of the class period to work on their research for their Lit. Group projects.  The brochures are turning out great! I will be able to use this as an entry for their portfolios! :)
HW: study vocab words for test tomorrow, complete differentiated author's purpose page

Science: Students took their Earth Materials test today.
No HW

Writing: Health with Ms. Timaji. No HW

*If you read this, please place a star next to your name on the planner! Thanks!

Have a good evening,

Monday

Hope you had a great weekend!
FYI:
PTA Coupon Booklets will come home in the Wednesday Folders
*************************************************************************
Tomorrow I will be out all day at a PD. If you need to make transportation changes, please call or email the office (glenda.evans@fayette.kyschools.us)
TOMORROW's FYI and HW:

Reading: students will have vocab. HW
Math: students will have pg. 77-78 in workbook
Science: students will have a study guide to practice with for the test
SCIENCE FAIR PROPOSAL is due Wednesday
*************************************************************************
Math Multiplication Packets: I was a little disappointed in the student work over the weekend when I went to grade the Mon-Thurs. packet.  Multiplication Facts were to be memorized in 3rd grade. We have a LOT of content to cover in 4th grade and cannot devote weeks of class time to re-memorize the facts. PLEASE help your child on his/her facts.  This week I will be trying something different. Hopefully it is easier to check your child's work this way.

Math: Today we worked on reading and making line graphs.  The kids did a good job on answering some tough questions!
HW: pg. 76 in workbook, stapled page of multiplication in planner. Please sign the mult. page after you review the answers

Reading: Today we started reviewing author's purpose.  Students read a story and we used clues from the folktale to help us find the purpose.  Next, we made our own Author's Pie. Lastly, students received their vocab words for the week. We will begin having weekly tests over the words on Thursdays.
HW: Finish Author's Pie by writing a short 2-3 sentence story about each label (entertain, inform, persuade).  Some students need to finish their definitions of vocab words as well.
Vocab Words:
interfere, guardian, agile, tottered, awkward, proclaimed

Science:
*The test has been moved to Wednesday!*
Today we reviewed for the test by going over sample/similar questions.  Students also worked in their groups to finish their articles on erosion and weathering.
No HW

Writing: Students took a Reading Assessment we didn't get to on Friday.

TOMORROW's FYI and HW:
Reading: students will have vocab. HW
Math: students will have pg. 77-78 in workbook
Science: students will have a study guide to practice with for the test
SCIENCE FAIR PROPOSAL is due Wednesday

Have a great night,

Friday

*Lunch Bunch Behavior Notes went home today! Hopefully they are helpful and nothing more! :)

*Science Fair~ Please realize this is a BIG part of the science grade and it is mandatory for 4th graders to have a project; from the District, not me! If your child does not turn in his/her forms on the correct day, it will be the same consequence as not turning in HW.  If you do not remember those consequences, please check your 4th grade packet from the beginning of the year.  All due dates are placed in your child's planner, in the Bulldog Bites emails, and on my Blog.  When your child does turn their form in on time they get a fun reward for just doing what is expected!! If you have any questions about this you may ask me, Ms. Sharp, or our Science Representative for GSE Ms. Travis.

We had a great day today!

The students all passed Junior Achievement this morning with flying colors!

We also worked more on our US Regions powerpoints in our social studies groups. The kids worked so well together!  Students also completed an On-Demand writing prompt today with me to turn into Mrs. Sharp. 

We enjoyed reading some fun math books with our Math Buddies today and even read outside to get to enjoy the nice weather we are having!

Lastly, students worked on word problems in math presented in a comic strip ~ I think it tricked kids into thinking word problems are fun! ha! :)

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Thursday

*NEW: Your child may be receiving this slip in his/her planner on Fridays. As you know, our Lunch Bunch is our weekly reward for students who follow all directions during the week.  Please refer to the tab on the side of the blog for a refresher of how to make Lunch Bunch and what our discipline is here in 4th grade.  This will be stapled into the planner as another way to keep the communication lines open so that you know how your child is doing with behavior.  Hope you find this helpful! Yes, it's another thing for me to keep up with - but if it helps I'm willing! :) Lunch Bunch Behavior

Your child did not make Lunch Bunch this week because:
__Missing Homework
__Talking
__PAWS Behavior {The new Strike Charts Ms. Sharp has implemented for Hallway/Bathroom/Specials/Cafeteria marks}
__Unsigned Planner

*PAC- the field trip was today and students missed all of Reading, lunch, and some of science.  MY reading students have their make-up work. It is due Friday (tomorrow).

*If your child is going to miss Monday and/or Tuesday during the week of Thanksgiving, please let me know! :) We have a few assessments that we are planning to give on Tuesday and I wanted to see if it would be best to just wait for the following week! Thanks!!

* MY MATH KIDS- Your multiplication packet is due TOMORROW {Friday} that you've been working on all week!!!

Math: Today we worked more on graphs. Students made their own bar graph after polling other students in class.
HW: finish writing a total of 5 statements about their graph, multiplication packet

Reading: We had a very small class due to PAC! We worked on a literary elements PAS probe that covered everything we've learned thus far as well as practiced more with possessive nouns.  Students also had time to work on their Lit. Book projects.
No HW

Science: Students continued to work on their Slow Changes articles for the hallway.
No HW

Writing: We practiced another activity on possessive nouns. I think we are getting the hang of it! :)
HW: complete activity if not finished in class

Have a great night,

Wednesday

*We only had 1 packet from the Office for Wednesday Folders, so I just told the kids to put that in their Red-Take Home Folder!

Science Fair:
I have listed all the due dates above and it will stay on my blog until the Science Fair is over! :)  The kids also have all the due dates listed in their planners ~ there will be something due every Wednesday until the Fair.

PAC Field Trip is tomorrow ~ those kids will receive their make-up work when they get back.

Math: Today we worked more with graphs and reading a chart. Students worked hard on answering inferencing questions based on those charts.  Next, we filled in a chart and answered questions together.
HW: pg. 138 in textbook - fill out the chart that is a worksheet and answer the questions (21-24) on the back; also Wednesday day of the multiplication packet

Reading: Today we worked more on inferencing, which I think the kids have down very well! :)  We also worked more on possessive nouns. The HW from last night wasn't so good - so we ended up doing tonight's HW together so we could get more practice.  Students also read out of their Lit. Books or worked on their new Lit. Book Project.  {which you can find to the right under Reading Class Lit. Projects}
No HW

Science: We continued working on our weathering and erosion articles.
No HW

Writing: We started our possessive nouns unit. Students worked on an activity together in pairs.  They had fun but we will continue to work more on this!! No HW

Have a wonderful night,

Tuesday

*Only showing HW today! :)

Math:
Tuesday (second page) of Multiplication Packet
Singapore Textbook page 132-133 (7 questions)
Finish Comic Strip Graphs worksheet if not finished in class

Reading:
Possessive Nouns worksheet review page

*Tonight is the Science Fair Informational Parent Night Meeting. If you can attend that would be great! Hopefully some questions will be answered tonight! 6:30 in the Gym, snacks will be provided and students can attend as well

Have a great night,

Monday

FYI:
Science Fair Parent Meeting at 6:30 in the cafeteria...TOMORROW! :) Please come and get all your questions answered!

Science Fair Contract due Wednesday

MATH~my math class is starting weekly packets on multiplication. These are to be done nightly and are due Friday.

READING~beginning tomorrow, weekly packets will be send home on vocabulary

Math: Today we began our new unit on charts, graphs, tally marks.  The kids read through different graphs and got to make a few tally charts and answered questions.
HW: pg. 68-70 in workbook, Monday of Multiplication packet

Reading: Today we are back to inferences and generating questions with inferencing.  Student read the story Dear Mr. Winston and practiced the skill.  We also worked on possessive nouns, which we will work on all week.  Lastly, Lit. Groups either worked on their new project, read chapters, or took their AR test.
No HW unless finishing reading chapters for Stargirl group.

Science: Today we continued learning about slow changes.  We did an experiment on how glacier erosion is caused.  Our test is scheduled for NEXT Tuesday. I'll let you know more this week.
No HW

Writing was cut and Science was cut short due to Ms. Bradford giving us a fun presentation and activity on water purification! Ask your kids about it! :)

PS--I'm working very hard to keep my IC grades as up-to-date as I can! :) Feel free to check out your child's scores! I know sometimes the passed back papers in the Wednesday folders can get overwhelming to look through! :)

Have  a great night,

Friday

*Sorry for not posting yesterday. Time got away from me and before I realized it I was home! :)

*The United Way change box was due today, but the office will be taking it Monday, too.
*Innisbrook orders are in! If your child had a big box we left it at school and you can pick it up on Monday. If not, the orders will be coming home today.
Today we had a great day reviewing problem and solution and working on KCCT-like prompts.  We also enjoyed learning more about business with Junior Achievement.  Students worked on writing a friendly letter.  We also reviewed Energy Transformations in science.  For S.S. students worked on preparing a power point for different US regions.

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday

*Wednesday Folders are coming home today
*Awards Program tomorrow at 12:45 in the Gym

Math: Tomorrow we have our Mult. and Division test! :) We have been practicing very hard! We finished the study guide today. HW: practice the problems stapled to the study guide as practice.

Reading: Today we continued with our problem and solution skills.  Students read leveled books and answered some prob/sol questions.  We also practiced with our lit. books.
HW: finish prob/sol with leveled books

Science: We took a quiz on fast changes (which is up on IC if you want to see how your child did).  We also started slow changes today. We talked about how the Grand Canyon was formed by weathering and took a look at some other pictures of weathering.
No HW

Writing: Today we played our prefix game. We also went over suffix and practiced.  Students also started their article outline.
No HW

Have a great night,

Monday

Hope you had a good weekend!

*Would anyone like to be my Homeroom Parent or Co-Parent? If so, please email me! Thanks!

FYI:
*No school tomorrow, Election Day
*Math Test this Thursday
*Awards Program this Thursday at 12:45 in Gym
Math: Today we continued to practice division and multiplication problems.  We began working on their study guide -
HW: students need to complete ONLY the front/back page of the division sheet and the first word problems sheet.
We also went through and labeled which operation to use on the word problems

Reading: Our skill this week is on Problem and Solution. We read a fun short story on Ben Franklin where the kids learned all kinds of different things he invented. We also did some prob/sol tasks with those.  Students also read in their Lit. Books and the Fourth Grade Rats group took their AR tests.  If you want to know how your child did, it is up on IC.
HW: Finish reading chapter in Lit. Book

Science: Today we did an experiment with a shaken up bottle of soda and compared it to an erupting volcano.  Then the students were put into groups of 4 to answer an ORQ. Only 1 group scored a 100% (4)!!! WHOA! We'll be working more on these when we return to school. We are continuing Fast Changes this week.
No HW

Writing: Our skill this week is prefixes/suffixes.  We practiced prefixes today and the students started to make a memory game.
HW: finish root word/prefix if not in class

Have a great night,

Friday!

We had a fun and out-of-the-ordinary day today!
*Thank you to Mrs. Stathis for the yummy breakfast, Mrs. Elliott for the fun PAWS treat craft, and Mrs. Long for the yummy snacks!

We began with writing a response to an On-Demand Prompt about recess safety.  The kids worked very hard on this!

Next we had Junior Achievement and learned more about profit and the economy.

Then we met with our Math Buddies and helped them review (and us!) word form, expanded form, and standard form of numbers.

We also had Health with Ms. Timaji, and reviewed plural nouns by playing a Go Plurals game.

Have a wonderful and safe Halloween!

Thursday

Good Afternoon! :)

I forgot to mention the Science Fair Information Packet went home yesterday.  I went over this with the students today.  We wrote down each due date for all the papers and I tried to answer the questions as best I could for now.  There will be a Parent Info. Night on Nov. 8th and the parent volunteer is working to get the info made soon.  The Science Fair is MANDATORY for all 4th grade students and it will be a home project.

*Tomorrow the students get to wear PJ's and hats! PJ's are for our PAWS party.

*PS- I saw on Bulldog Bites that the classrooms were having "Fall Parties".  I never received information about this, and since we've never had a Fall Party in the past I was confused.  Sorry! :)
Math: Today we continued working on division.  I am getting worried about the students who do not know their facts still.  I hate that I do not have a few weeks to just focus on multiplication facts, but they were to have these mastered in 3rd grade.  I am thinking of having a multiplication log but will let you know.
HW: division practice

Reading: Today we practiced more with fact and opinion.  Then the kids took a Fact and Opinion leveled test. Students also read from their Lit. Books. 
No HW

Science: Today we went over anther fast change, volcanoes.  Students were very interested in this! We got to watch a cook Discovery video on different volcanoes.
No HW

Writing: Today we took a Plural Nouns walk-about and then took a quiz. We will continue to practice this tomorrow because a lot of students got confused with possessive and plurals.
No HW

Have a great night,

Wednesday

*Please check Wednesday Folders

Report Cards are coming home today.
Awards Program is Nov. 4th at 12:45 in the gym. You are invited to come. Students will be receiving Principal's List (all A's) and Honor Roll (A's and B's) awards.
Red Ribbon Week: tomorrow is Inside Out day with clothes
Math: Today we worked hard once again on division.  Students divided with 3 numbers today.  Most students do a great job, it's just getting those facts down!
HW: practice page
Test will be next Thursday over multiplication and division

Reading: Today we continued with facts and opinions.  Students read leveled readers and picked out 4 facts and 4 opinions.  Students had a harder time on this than I expected, so we will be working more tomorrow before taking our quiz.  Students also practiced this skill with their Lit. Circle books and found facts and opinions from the characters.
No HW

Science: We continued learning about fast changes today. We did different demonstrations to represent earthquakes and then watched a few clips about real earthquakes from the Discovery Channel online.
No HW

Writing: During writing time we had Guidance with Mrs. Moses.


Have a great night,

Tuesday

Tomorrow is school spirit day! Wear jeans and GSE gear.

We had an interesting afternoon with the lights going out due to the storm! :)

Math: We are still working on division. Kids are having a hard time because the mult. facts were not memorized.
HW: practice problems
Test is scheduled for next Monday. I think I will move it back, but I will let you know by Thursday.

Reading: Today we worked more on fact and opinion.  Students were put into groups to practice with different levels of games. Most students did a great job! Then, we caught up on our reading in lit. groups.
HW: finish reading chapters from Lit. Book

Science: We started learning about fast changes to the earth's surface.  We did an experiment on flooding and landslides. Then the students worked on inferencing with science about where to build an apartment complex on a hill. We finished with an exit slip.
No HW

Writing: Today we were going to do a plural nouns walk-about...but that turned into a sit-about once all the lights went off (except our room!).

*Students got their new Book Logs today. Some are stapled in the front of their planner.  It is due Nov. 19th.

Have a great night,

Monday

Hope you had a great weekend! Sorry for not posting on Friday ~ I ran out of here quickly to take care of my insurance and forgot once I got home! :)

FYI:
Red Ribbon Week! Tomorrow kids can bring their favorite stuffed animal to school.
Book Logs will be sent home by Friday
Report Cards are coming home this Wednesday
Math: Today we worked very hard on division again.  It's SO HARD for the kids to get this when they don't have their facts down. Please try and spend about 10 minutes each night with multiplication flashcards!
HW: 4 problems on division
Students can use the class practice page I asked them to bring home as a model for the HW

Reading: This week we're working on fact and opinion. We read an article together out of the Treasures series.  Students also read chapters from their Lit. Books.
HW: finish lit. book chapters, *bring in a magazine or ad that will be ok to cut out if you can!

Science: Today we learned where we get oil, fuel, minerals, etc. and how they help us in the environment.
No HW

Writing: Today we worked on plural nouns.  The kids had some trouble with -s, -es, -ies! We'll be working on this all week.
No HW

Have a good night,

Thursday

Busy day for me so only shows HW:

Math: problems with division with remainders - worksheet

Reading: Finish up Knowledge questions if not in class

Health was today for Writing

AR Points - I set the goals based on your child's Lexile level and the equivalence to AR points.  I feel that your child should be able to get the points in 9 weeks time with the amount of time given to read (20 min. per every night, 15-20 min. per day for DEAR time, any extra time in class) if they are reading on their level.  Reading is very important to me and my class, so I would like to see all students achieve the goals I have set.

Also, all students have plenty of opportunities in class to take AR tests and they can be taken at home as well.  We have a schedule up in the classroom to remind students when it's OK to take tests. Please advise to that or email me if you have questions.


Have a good night.

Wednesday

*Make sure to check the Wednesday Folders!
PS- I'm losing it! :) I thought the Report Cards were coming home today!!! But they aren't. They will be in next week's folder. SO SORRY!!!

FYI:
Thanks for all the cans and food donated! We've got a lot to share! :)
Multiplication Facts and Reading 20 minutes should be nightly!
AR Goals were sent home in the front of the planner ~ they are for the next 9 weeks
AR Goals from last time are in the planner as well for you to sign.

Math: Today we did more with division. Thank you to all the parents who checked and make comments on the HW about how smart your child is! I know it meant a lot to them!!
We continued with division and added remainders today. The kids did a great job.
HW: division sheet with 6 problems (please sign!)

Reading: Today we took the AR test on the read aloud I just completed with the class. The story was so fun and we could really incorporate all of our reading skills into this book! Most students scored a 10/10 or 9/10. YAY!  We also got into our small leveled groups to practice more with inferencing with practice probes. Students are doing a good job with this.  Lastly, students read some chapters out of their leveled literature groups.
HW: complete reading the chapters (students have the needed chapters on their Lit. Calendar. Please email if your child forgot to bring that home!)

Science: Today we started our new unit on Earth Materials.  We began with rocks and learned how to classify different rocks.  Students were able to classify several different rocks!

We also got our turtles today!!! Students were given a question to research with 2 other people to find the answer. Then we are going to make a learning web out of our new knowledge about red-eared sliders!


Stella and Ned! They are red-eared slider turtles! Check out the "Classroom Tour" on the right to see more pictures!

 Writing: Students received their new AR goals.  We also worked more on similes and metaphors.  Some students are really having a difficult time with this, so I am pushing back our quiz until Friday. 
HW: some students need to complete the simile/metaphor sheet

Have a great night!