Week 5 Updates

Hello 4B Families!

I hope you all had a restful weekend and you had a chance to enjoy the gorgeous weather yesterday.  I have a few dates for you all to keep on your radar.

• Field Day, February 9th: If you are unfamiliar with Field Day, each classroom participates in athletic games in a celebration modeled after the traditions of ancient Greece.  The city-state for our classroom is Crete and our classroom color is green.  Students will be allowed to wear green athletic clothes on Field Day; please refer to the student handbook for guidelines on choosing appropriate attire.  In addition to the athletic games, each classroom will be competing in an intellectual contest.  Each room will be presented with curriculum-based questions from throughout the year.  The fourth grade will begin the games at 11:00, and the games will continue until the end of the school day.  If you have any questions, please contact our wonderful parent liaison, Debbie Sinykin.    

•   Great Hearts Day, February 10th: This year, we will be devoting one class period to the celebration of the virtue of friendship.  Our classroom celebration will begin at 11:35 and continue until dismissal.  As a reminder, next Friday is a half day.  I will be coordinating with Mrs. Sinykin to create a sign-up for snacks and a couple of parent volunteers.  Please remember that students are not to bring in any Valentine’s cards or treats for their classmates. We will take care of showing our appreciation for our friends during our party. If any student brings in Valentines or candy, we will need to put them in the backpack to be returned home.

• Field Trip, February 17th: Our grade will be going to the MIM (Musical Instrument Museum) in a couple of weeks!  I will release more details as they become available, so be sure to check the blog for updates.  Last year, we left shortly after school started and returned an hour before dismissal.  I am not sure if the schedule will remain the same, but I wanted to give you a general idea in case anyone is interested in volunteering as a chaperone.

In Language Arts this week, we will be reading through chapter 13 in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.  Now that the students have completed their narratives, our writing will take a different focus.  We will be working on comparing different kinds of literature and writing paragraphs about these different genres.  This will come in the form of a packet with a short excerpt to read, some multiple choice questions, and a writing prompt.  The first packet will be going home tomorrow, but most of it should already be completed as I expect to walk the students through the majority of the first packet.

In History, we are continuing our exploration of Arizona history.  The students are very excited to begin work on their brochures and I cannot wait to see what they create!  Please encourage your scholar to do their very best to create a professional looking product.

In Science, we are continuing our study of meteorology and shifting our focus to the atmosphere.  We will be taking an in-depth look at the different layers of the atmosphere and how the sun's rays react as they penetrate through these layers to our surface.

Have a wonderful week and, as always, thank you for your continued support.

Week 4 Updates

Hello 4B Families,

We are finally back to a normal schedule since returning from Winter Break...woo hoo!

In Language Arts, the students will be putting the finishing touches on their narrative essays.  As it stands now, the students will be responsible for typing the final draft over the weekend.  They may need some help formatting the dialogue, as it is a new concept for them.  We are also taking our first Oz quiz on Wednesday, which will cover chapters 1-7.  I gave the students their study guides today, which should be completed for homework.  We will go over appropriate responses as a class tomorrow.

In Science, we are continuing our meteorology unit and began with a discussion about air pressure.  The students will have a quiz on Friday and they will receive the study guide tomorrow.  It is not very long and it will cover everything we have discussed about the water cycle and air pressure.

In History, we began our unit on Arizona history.  This is always an exciting unit as the students have lots to share about their home state.  We began the unit by discussing the 5 regions of the United States and exploring the differences (geographically, culturally, etc.) between each region.

A handout went home today with the girls about the upcoming Daddy-Daughter Dance.  This event will take place on February 4th and more information can be found on the PSO website.

Field Day is coming up quickly!  It will take place on Thursday, February 9th.  For our grade, the festivities will take place during the second half of the day and the morning will be a normal school day.  Please keep an eye out for more information (attire, team color, sign-ups) as we get nearer to the event.

Finally, I posted a link to the Lincoln Library on my blog underneath the Lincoln Links on the right-hand side.  Your child encouraged to browse the library's selection prior to our library day (Thursday) to maximize their library time.

Week 3 Updates

Hello 4B Families!

I hope you all enjoyed the holiday weekend!  I apologize for the delay in this week's blog post; Tuesday just seemed to fly by. 

In Language Arts this week, we are continuing to work on our narrative essays by adding in dialogue.  By next weekend, the students will be typing their final drafts (due on January 30th).  We will be reading up to Chapter 7 in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Friday and our first quiz will be on Wednesday, January 25th.  Study guides will go out on Monday and we will review answers as a class on Tuesday.

In Science, we are learning all about meteorology.  Luckily, January has an interesting variety of weather so the students can observe what they have learned.

In History, we are finishing up our unit on Islam.  As a team, we are still discussing if we will give the students a quiz next week.  Once we decide, I will make sure the students know right away so they can prepare.

Just a reminder, picture day is on Friday!  We also have our last day of MAP testing on Friday morning.

Week 2 Updates

Hello 4B Families,

Tomorrow, I will be sending your children home with order forms for Picture Day on 1/20/17.  Please keep in mind that these are not individual pictures, but the classroom picture. 

The dates for MAP testing have been released and are as follows:

• January 10th: Math
• January 13th: Reading
• January 20th: ELA (grammar)

There is no need to prepare for the MAP tests; just make sure your kiddos get a good night's sleep!

Students will receive their score sheets for Paul Revere's Ride tomorrow after the final student presents.  I must say, I was completely blown away by how well each and every student recited the poem.  Even those who could not make it through all the way were instantly supported with positive comments from their peers.  In fact, the worse someone performed, the more feedback they received!  That is my favorite part of this project; seeing the students support each other.

In Language Arts this week, we have started reading The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.  We will be taking advantage of the fact that it is a familiar story to push the students into answering some bigger questions about writing.  I am really excited to reach this new level in our study of literature!  We will also begin adding dialogue into the narrative rough drafts written at the end of the last quarter.  If your child no longer has that draft, that is ok!  Students will be required to re-write their rough draft, no matter what.

In History, we started our unit on Islam.  I am so excited for this topic!  I love how new it is for most of the students and it is such a blast watching them think about places so different from America and Europe.  We have already explored a very different culture in Ancient China and the students are already asking some really good questions about the history of Islam.  We have a beautiful slideshow prepared for later in the week with images of mosques, palaces, and calligraphy.  I want to emphasize that the focus is purely historical, with some descriptions of art and architecture.  The role of Islam in the Middle Ages is key and as we cover the Middle Ages, we cannot have a meaningful discussion without learning how Islam shaped European life.

In Science, we started our new unit of Meteorology.  This is a really fun topic, which lends itself to some fairly in-depth study.  We began with a lesson on Aristotle, the founder of meteorology.  Ask your child to classify 3 items in the spirit of Aristotle!

As always, thank you for your continued support!

Week 1 Updates

Hello 4B Families and Welcome Back!

It was so nice being able to meet and speak with you all during conferences on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Your willingness to rearrange your schedules to meet with us truly demonstrates your commitment to the vision of this school and classroom.  I only have a couple of quick updates for you as it is a short school week.

Project Week is going very well so far.  I have been incredibly impressed with the caliber of the students' recitations.  My favorite part of this particular project is the sense of accomplishment the students feel after completing such a long project.  Additionally, they have all been very supportive of each other and are ready with positive feedback after each recitation. 

I have just updated the blog with a picture of the next book we will be reading...The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.  We will start the book on Monday, so please make sure your child brings it to school (if it isn't here already).  I also put the 3rd Quarter reading group sign-up on the blog.  I did not want to include a sign-up for the rest of the year, as we have quite a bit of testing in the 4th quarter.  I want to ensure the volunteer dates are as accurate as possible to avoid any frustrations with rescheduling. 

As usual, thank you for all you do to contribute to the success of the classroom.