Getting Ready for Grandparents

This week we are getting ready for Grandparents' Day on Thursday.  Tomorrow we will have a musical practice, and I'll also be putting together a slide show of memories that the students prepared during computer lab over the last two weeks. 
Also, a reminder that reading projects are due on October 10.  If there are any questions, please let me know as soon as possible.  The project should be the student's responsibility with some assistance from a parent, if needed. 
Science Fair will be October 25.  If your student is growing something, you may want to have them get started.  Just make sure that she/he writes down every step so that when we write our procedures, she/he will have the correct information.  The official start date will be Wednesday, once we've written the procedures in class.
Next week, we will be heading out to the Challenge Ed course at Fegley Middle School.  A permission slip will be coming home tomorrow.  Students will need to pack a lunch for the trip.  We leave school at 9 a.m. and return at 2 p.m., so no additional transportation is required.
If your child is running in the cross country meet, please make sure that she/he is dressed for the weather, has a light snack and drink, and a ride home from Woodland Park.  We are supposed to have beautiful weather, so it should be a great race! 

Apologies

I am very sorry for the late update this week.  I can't believe it's already Wednesday night!  It has been a busy week at school.  Today, we finished our first novel study.  The students in both groups really seemed to enjoy the books they read.  Several students who were reading Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing have already grabbed other Judy Blume books to read for SSR.  I will be assigning projects for the books on Friday.  They will be due on Oct. 10. This way students have two weekends to work on them, and it shouldn't interfere with regularly scheduled homework.We have also started laying the ground work for our science fair projects.  Thank you to everyone for signing off on the Big Question.  I am really impressed by the ideas the students developed.  Tomorrow we will work on writing a hypothesis.  On Friday, we will begin planning.  Please hold off on starting the projects until it is in the planner.  I have to stress the importance of a detailed plan and the use of the metric system.  I don't want anyone to have to redo their project because they got started too soon. 
In math, we have been working on multiplication.  A great at-home activity would be for students to practice their math facts.  This can be done with flashcards or by using one of the math websites linked to the blog.

September 19

I'm happy to report that we have earned our second reward for following the Core Values!  We have not had a chance to vote on our reward, but I will keep you posted.  Lounge Day was a success.  The students were able to maintain their focus while enjoying a relaxing day.

This week's agenda is full, as usual.  In math, we will be working on the addition and subtraction of whole numbers.  This builds upon 3rd grade skills, so I anticipate that students will be successful on this indicator.  If you are interested in how you can help in math, the best thing you can do right now is to work on multiplication facts with your child.  Knowing their facts will lead to a successful 4th grade math year.

We are a little more than half way through our first novel.  Students have learned about the different types of questions they might ask.  Today we will finish up a lesson on summarizing.  Then we will pull all of the Fab 4 strategies (predicting, clarifying, questioning, and summarizing) together.  Later in the week, we will focus on our characters.

We will also be celebrating Fire Prevention Week.  On Tuesday, Portage firefighters will be here to talk with us about how to be safe.  It will be very informative, as always!

Have a great week!

Monday Already!

Wow!  Hard to believe that it's Monday already!  Thank you to all of the parents who came to Back to School Night last week.  I was so glad for the chance to meet you.  I will send home my contact information tomorrow.  I apologize for the delay.
Tonight is your child's first night of regular homework.  Remember to post or e-mail any questions.  I will check from home tonight.
This week's objectives are mostly on the same theme as last week.  In math, we are working with whole numbers to round, order, and compare.  We are continuing to read our novels, while learning how to apply the reading skill of questioning and summarizing.  Currently, we are free writing as we set the stage for more focused writing throughout the year.  In science, we will continue to talk about the scientific process.  Stay tuned for information on Science Fair, which will be at the end of October.
Remember: do that homework!

Busy Week Ahead

Hope everyone had the chance to rest up over the Labor Day holiday because we have a busy week in front of us.  The students took their first math assessment last week on place value.  That means this week will be spent reviewing place value with those students who still need a little help, and moving forward into ordering, comparing, and rounding numbers.  We will begin our first novel.  Some students will be reading Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, and others will be reading The Great Gilly Hopkins.  Two of my favorite books!

We have a couple of special events this week.  Thursday is Back to School Night, beginning at 6:00 pm.  Then on Friday, we are having a member of the fire department come to talk with the class about the important role that first responders play during an emergency.  It's going to be a busy week, but one that should be a lot of fun!