Wow! What a whirlwind week we have had!

I hope everyone enjoyed a relaxing Memorial Day weekend! The students definitely worked hard to get everything done on Tuesday and Wednesday to be ready for a fun end to the week!

Thank you to all of the parent volunteers this week! We could t have done it with out you!

Things are certainly winding up. We will be hard at work next week wrapping up the loose ends. We have animal research posters , science and some math review to finish yet.

Please note that the school issued iPad and charger need to be returned to school fully charged by Tuesday, June 3rd! You may choose to turn it in on Monday.

Also 4th grade Celebration is on Tuesday, June 3rd at 6:30pm at the Middle School.

Here are a few photos from our week.

Check out these videos as you prepare for the 2014 Bocce Ball Tournament!

2014 Bocce Ball Breakdown 1
2014 Bocce Ball Breakdown 2
2014 Bocce Ball Breakdown 3
2014 Bocce Ball Breakdown 4
2014 Bocce Ball Finals

We have finished our last Math Unit this week! Students took the final test for Unit 8 Geometry today.  We will continue to review ALL that we have learned this year so that we are prepared for our end of year cumulative math test that is coming up soon!

In writing , students chose an animal from the Lincoln Park  Zoo website and then did online research to learn about that animal’s habitat, physical adaptations and behavioral adaptations. Students then wrote power paragraphs using their research information and are working on posters (in class) to present to the class.  If your child would like to add a color printed picture they will need to print it at home.  They may print 1 picture and 1 map.

In reading we  finished our  Fiction Book Clubs.  Ask your child about the book that they read and what they thought of the book club experience.

In science we are learning about how color and eye placement help or hinder an animals survival.  We learned that coloration can do three different things.  Color can attract, camouflage or warn predators away.  Ask your child to give you an example for each.  We also learned about the importance of eye placement.  Predators tend to have eyes placed in front, while prey animals tend to have eyes placed to the side.  Eyes in front, time to hunt.  eyes on the side, better hide.

Don’t forget the kickball game that is being organized for Holmes 4th graders on the half day of Thursday, June 5? A flyer will be coming home soon, but check out the information below:

Career Day was awesome today!  Thank you to all who volunteered their time to come in and  talk to our 4th graders (and Jeffers too!) about their careers.  The students were excited about all that they learned!

We are learning more about polygons in math this week.  We are able to describe a triangle by its angles and by its sides.  We also have learned about quadrilaterals and drawing diagonals to decompose quadrilaterals in to triangles as well as putting triangles back together to create quadrilaterals!

In writing we wrote another literary essay.  This time we talked about the theme of a book and used the story as proof and examples of that theme.  We are polishing our skills in  writing in the essay format.

We are continuing on with our book clubs.  Ask your child what book he or she is reading. We have now met with our groups twice and talked about what we have read in the books so far.  We discussed what a good discussion looks and sounds like.  We learn and comprehend so much more when we talk about our thinking when we read, and it is fun to talk to others about what we are reading!

In science we are learning about what a habitat provides an animal and what an animal needs to survive.  We looked closely at frogs, snails, and guppies.  We are able to talk about what happens when one animal in the same species has slightly different attributes, and how that affects the population.

We have great news!  We are the reigning COOL SCHOOL once again!  Holmes won the challenge at The Front Porch!  We will find out how much money we won and receive our plaque at an end of the year assembly.

Did you hear about the kickball game that is being organized for Holmes 4th graders on the half day of Thursday, June 5? A flyer will be coming home soon, but check out the information below:

I cannot believe that it is already May!  Today, we visited the Intermediate School and were paired up with a fifth grader who showed us around the building.  Ask your child what they thought of the Intermediate School. Hopefully, they are getting excited for the BIG move to 5th grade!

We have had another week full of fun and learning! Some of the highlights were the visit from our Symphony mentor, planting in the greenhouse and visiting the Intermediate School.  A few students also had the chance to hold our new friend Sonic!

Math ~  We have successfully completed our unit on fractions and decimals! I am very pleased with how well everyone has done with this unit! The final test was today.  Monday we will be starting our last unit, which is Geometry!  We will start with lines, rays and angles and we will be using protractors to measure angles!

Reading ~ We are continuing to study nonfiction texts.  This week we learned that we cannot only separate nonfiction into narrative and all about texts, but we can separate the narrative nonfiction into achievement and disaster stories.  We are learning to use all of our fiction reading skills to help us deeper understand narrative nonfiction!  Next week we will begin our book clubs!

Writing ~ Students have learned how to write a basic literary essay about a book or story that they have read.  We are now taking that one step deeper and are learning to look for patterns in a story that lead us to the theme or universal message.  we will then in turn write a thesis from the theme and write a literary essay about the message or theme of a story.

Social Studies ~ We are finishing up our Government Unit with a study of the Bill of Rights.  Students worked in groups  to create a Bill of Rights for the Planet Montak.  The discussed which of our ten rights were the most important and had to choose only five for the citizens of Planet Montak.  Ask your child which five rights their group decided on.  Students are now taking what they learned and creating a Bill of Rights “cartoon/film strip.”

Important Dates

Meeting Mr. Keefe!

 

Planting in the greenhouse.

Planting.

Greenhouse

Sonic taking a bath!

Sonic after his bath.