Just a quick post to say that I hope everyone has a wonderful, relaxing Spring Break. Friday is the ends of third quarter and we will be starting back strong on April 7th. Students will be working on more opinion writing, nonfiction and fiction reading, new novel studies and many other interesting topics. Please make sure that students are prepared to put their best effort into fourth quarter. I highly recommend reading over the break and practicing some fraction basics. I look forward to seeing everyone bright eyed and ready to learn!
Today our class watched a video and read the folktale, The Story of the Hummingbird. After discussing, we reflected on how it made us feel. I thought that I would share the story with you..... it is a great way conversation starter! Enjoy! Everyone can make a difference, we need to all do what we can! One day a terrible fire broke out in a forest - a huge woodlands was suddenly engulfed by a raging wild fire. Frightened, all the animals fled their homes and ran out of the forest. As they came to the edge of a stream they stopped to watch the fire and they were feeling very discouraged and powerless. They were all bemoaning the destruction of their homes. Every one of them thought there was nothing they could do about the fire, except for one little hummingbird.This particular hummingbird decided it would do something. It swooped into the stream and picked up a few drops of water and went into the forest and put them on the fire. Then it went back to the stream and did it again, and it kept going back, again and again and again. All the other animals watched in disbelief; some tried to discourage the hummingbird with comments like, "Don't bother,it is too much, you are too little, your wings will burn, your beak is too tiny, it’s only a drop, you can't put out this fire."And as the animals stood around disparaging the little bird’s efforts, the bird noticed how hopeless and forlorn they looked. Then one of the animals shouted out and challenged the hummingbird in a mocking voice, "What do you think you are doing?" And the hummingbird, without wasting time or losing a beat, looked back and said, "I am doing what I can."Like the hummingbird, we each must do what we can. - Wangari Maathai "Be the change that you you wish to see in the World." - Ghandi So, the end of the quarter is in sight! I don't know about you guys, but the time has certainly flown by. Just wanted to write a post this week about some upcoming events before Spring Break.
Benchmark ELA and Math tests are scheduled for next Tuesday and Wednesday. Please make sure that your child is well rested and that they have eaten a balanced breakfast before coming to school. The end of the quarter is next Friday, March 28th. Report cards will be coming home around the second week in April, depending on make up days and scheduling. Our fourth grade students have started recorders in Music class and should be practicing at home. This is a great way to demonstrate responsibility at school. In addition to recorders, fourth graders have been busy preparing for their musical scheduled for April 16th. So exciting!!!!! Lastly, since school was canceled today, I have spent my morning grading student work and updating my website. I would like to take a minute to talk about how you can help promote your child to use text evidence at home. Text evidence is any part of literature that will support or "prove" your answer. In class, we use various types of text to site reasons why our answers are correct and to pull out specific details. This common core standard is used at school on a daily basis when reading nonfiction articles, as well as, fiction literature. During class discussions, I focus on asking both literal and inferential questions. Both types of questions can be supported by different parts of text. Using quotes from interviews, diagrams with labeling, character dialogue, illustrations, or even photograph captions are all types of evidence that help students formulate and support their opinions and knowledge. You can support this skill at home by asking "why" questions. During evening discussions about reading, day to day activities or family planning, start asking for explanations and reasons to support their statements. Practicing supporting ideas at home will carry over to their school performance! I am adding some fun reading quotes that mention two topics of study this week, poetry and economics. :) Here's my favorite part: I was reading the dictionary. I thought it was a poem about everything. Steven Wright You can make positive deposits in your own economy every day by reading and listening to powerful, positive, life-changing content and by associating with encouraging and hope-building people. Zig Ziglar Just a quick reminder about how important it is for your child to read each night! Reading nightly is a great opportunity for children to take note of new vocabulary, make connections, practice meta-cognitive strategies and to build oral fluency. I have created a "Reading Menu" that might be helpful to your child during their nightly reading time. The menu is designed to get students thinking and annotating during reading. Encourage your child to try it. Print, cut out and fold to make a usable bookmark! Let me know how it goes! Happy reading!!!!!! And your reading quote of the day..... No two persons ever read the same book.–Edmund Wilson Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him.–Maya Angelou
Good to see everyone back at school this week. I, for one, am ready for the winter weather to subside and to see some bright, warm sunny days. Hopefully they are not too far off. Just a quick summary of our class will be working on this week. Students do have ELA and Math homework this week. Please refer to the homework tab and to the student agenda. Students should also be reviewing Lesson 10 Wordly Wise vocabulary. We have an assessment this Friday and for an extension, students will get the opportunity to use vocabulary to write a paragraph on a topic of choice. Fun! :) In ELA we are finishing up the most wonderful historical fiction novel, Number the Stars. We will have lots of rich discussions about character development and the many themes within the book. In Writer's Workshop our students will begin writing opinion essays on their favorite pets. They will read nonfiction articles and use facts to support their opinion in the essay. We will also focus on revising and editing with peers and independently this week. Essays are due next Tuesday in class. In Math, we have really spent a lot of time on number and shape patterns. Patterns can be growing, repeating or even have multiple operations. Today we also began looking at function tables and how patterns are closely related. Students will have an assessment this Friday. Study Island practice online for patterns would be a great way to review for our assessment. In Social Studies we are continuing our study of Economics. We will discuss trade, exports, imports and specialization of labor this week. These are also great conversation starters for you at home too. Lastly, please make time to have conversations and read at home. It is such am important part of learning speaking, listening and vocabulary skills. Make time for learning everyday. It is a life long skill! A few Dr. Suess quotes to celebrate "Read Across America". Happy birthday to Dr. Suess, the world is a sadder place without you! Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not. Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/d/drseuss105646.html#YacppkkhkUtflWAu.99 You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who'll decide where to go. Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/d/drseuss414097.html#fjtlSTDiFVx3rkvS.99 |
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