October 27

In reading this week we finished our class read aloud, The Tiger Rising, we talked about how to savor endings and we talked about how the books we choose to read and love are books that help shape us as a person. Students created bookmarks with book titles and a quote or phrase from the book that was meaningful to them. Your child will be adding to this throughout the year. Ask your child about their bookmark. Last week we discussed how we can grow complex ideas to help interpret our books by connecting the smaller ideas we have. Often two thoughts that may seem unrelated can really be connected when we look for patterns. We then discussed how we can find the theme of a book. One easy way is to wait for the end of a story and look for a lesson the main character learned. Students also discussed trying the strategy of thinking about common life issues found in many books such as dealing with a loss, sibling or family issues, and friendships or fitting in. We then make a theory as to which one of these issues fits our book, and think about the message the author is trying to give about that issue through the characters, the setting, the beginning, the middle and the end of the book. This strategy can happen even from early in the story. We are growing and developing as readers, and every level of book that we are reading lends itself to finding the theme at some level.

During Writing Workshop time students have been writing the final copies of their fiction stories. We will be having a “Gallery Walk” in class soon to read and comment on each other’s stories. Ask your child what they wrote about and what they think of their finished piece.

In Math we have started Topic 4: Multipling double digit numbers. We started with reviewing the strategy for multiplying by tens and hundreds.  Students then learned how to use compatible numbers to make estimates. Next, students learned how to use area models and arrays to break the problem into basic facts that are easier to multiply. We will be continuing on with the partial products method and the shortcut next week. I am still noticing that many errors are being made  due to students not knowing their basic multiplication facts. It is imperative that your child have instant (correct) recall of all of their basic facts. This is a 3rd grade concept that was to be mastered in 3rd grade. We don’t have time in the day to practice math facts here at school, so please have your child practice at home. Moby Math Fact Fluency or the Timed Test app are great apps for practice. Flash Cards or practicing in the car on the way to and from school are also great!

We have started our second Science unit: Organisms in Their Environments. We began by discussing habitats and what animals need in their habitat to survive (air, water, food, shelter). We have also added to our classroom zoo! We know have a tank with 16 African Dwarf Frogs, 10 Guppies and 8 Mystery Snails! Students observed the frogs yesterday and we looked at physical and behavioral adaptations. Students also compared two frogs side by side, noticing differences in size and shape. We discussed how bigger, longer back legs can give one frog and advantage over a smaller frog, the big frog can swim faster and escape predators or catch prey easier.

We will begin our Swimming rotation for Physical Education next week. Our class will be swimming on Thursday and Friday next week. Your child will need to bring a swimsuit and towel to school both days. A letter from Mr. Robinson should be coming home soon.

Important Dates

Tuesday, October 31 – Halloween parade (9:00 AM) and party (9:30 AM)

Thursday and Friday, November 2 and 3 – Swimming with Mr. Robinson

Monday and Tuesday, November 20-21 — Half Days (Records Days)

Wednesday – Friday, November 22-24 – Thanksgiving Break – no school

 

October 20

There has been a lot of learning happening in 4th grade this week!

This week in Reading Workshop we learned how to build an interpretation of a story by reading and thinking about many aspects of a book and connecting different parts of the book so that we can think across the whole story. We practiced this using the class read aloud Tiger Rising. We looked specifically at Rob and noticed how he was sad and lonely throughout the book, but we also noticed two times when he felt really happy. What we discovered is that Rob feels happy when he is with people who “get him”, for example, Sistine and his mom. We then took this idea and tried to make it in to a “big idea.” Students came up with the theme: “People are happiest when they are with people who understand them.”

During Writing Workshop time students have been writing the final copies of their fiction stories. We will be sharing these in class soon. Ask your child what they wrote about and what they think of their finished piece.

In Math we have learned different methods to multiply multi-digit numbers by 1 digit. Students started with using the distributive method, then we learned the partial products method and final we learned the “shortcut” method (old school method that you and I learned in school). We completed Topic 3 with our test this week. I am noticing that many of the errors are due to students not knowing their basic multiplication facts. It is imperative that your child have instant (correct) recall of all of their basic facts. This is a 3rd grade concept that was to be mastered in 3rd grade. We don’t have time in the day to practice math facts  at school, so please have your child practice at home. Moby Math: Fact Fluency or the Timed Test app are great apps for practice. Flash Cards or practicing in the car on the way to and from school are also great!

We also started our second Science unit: Organisms in Their Environments. We began by discussing habitats and what animals need in their habitat to survive (air, water, food, shelter). Next week we will be adding to our classroom zoo! We will have a tank with 16 African Dwarf Frogs, 10 Guppies and 8 Mystery Snails!

We also participated in an assembly to congratulate Mrs. Smits on becoming a citizen of the United States of America!

Important Dates

Tuesday, October 31 – Halloween parade (9:00 AM) and party (9:30 AM)

Wednesday – Friday, November 22-24 – Thanksgiving Break – no school

Reminder: Parent Teacher Conferences are on Wednesday and Thursday this coming week!

In Reading Workshop this week we have continued to grow insightful theories about the characters in the books we read. We have searched for precise, true exact words that we can use to describe the characters in the stories we read and supporting our theories with evidence form the text. Example: Sistine isn’t just bossy and sassy, she is passionate about the things she believes in. Sistine doesn’t take no for an answer when Rob tells her that they can’t let the tiger go, she fights for the tiger and even says she will saw through the locks! We also discussed finding the arc of the story. We used this format to help us: “Somebody (main character) Wanted (What he/she desires) But (obstacles in their way) So (how does the main character respond) to help us. As books become more complicated, answering these questions becomes more difficult. We are also looking for ways that our characters are complicated, how are they more than one way?

During Math students took their Topic 2 Practice Test and if needed the Topic 2 Final test. Students are still getting used to the language used in this program and the types of questions being asked. Rest assured, for the most part, scores were much improved on the final test. We also started Topic 3: Using Strategies and Properties to Multiply by 1 digit numbers. Continue to encourage your child to practice their basic math facts at home. I still see a lot of students counting on their fingers for addition and subtraction. It is imperative that your child has instant recall of all of their basic math facts (this was a 3rd grade skill), especially multiplication and division. Practice at home is a must!

In Writing Workshop we continued to draft our scenes. At this point drafting should be complete. Next week we will revise our drafts making sure we have stretched out the heart of the story, and we will work on editing our work for complete sentences, paragraphs, punctuation and capital letters.

This week in science we came back down to earth and looked at fossils. Students examined different fossils and made observations. We also talked about the layers of the earth, from oldest to youngest. (oldest on bottom and youngest layer on top). We took our first Science test today!

Important Dates

Wednesday and Thursday, October 11 and 12 – Parent/Teacher Conferences

Thursday and Friday, October 12 and 13 – 1/2 days – Noon Dismissal

Monday, October 31 – Halloween Parade and Party (more details to come)