Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween! 4th graders have been working very hard these past two weeks!
Here's what we have been up to:

• In ELA the class has been practicing responding to questions using text based evidence. We have been continuing to work on paragraphing, and are publishing final copies of our "special people" essay. Students continue to practice independently editing and revising written work.  We will be finishing Boy in a Girl's Bathroom next week, and the class will be completing a project for this book in class. We also continue to practice close reading to identify the main idea and details of a passage.
• The class did great on their social studies test! Next week, we will begin to learn about European explorers and students will work in groups to research an explorer. We will start the solar system unit in a couple of weeks. 
• In math, we are practicing rounding to estimate. Students cycled through stations twice this week. We just started to review subtracting with regrouping. This is something that many students still need practice with. Please encourage your child to go on IXL to practice math topics being covered.  
• Next week we will be getting a student teacher from SUNY Oneonta, her name is Devin Pappuza. We are very excited for her arrival!
• Reminder: Next Friday will be our Halloween party at 1:45. Students are allowed to send costumes to school to change into for the party. Please leave any weapon props at home.

Here are some photos from our trip to the Huyck Preserve! We learned a lot about ecosystems!

Red Back Salamander 

Checking out an old cemetery.

Having Fun in Fourth Grade!

I hope that everyone is enjoying this nice fall weather! We have been busy in fourth grade learning lots of new concepts!

• In ELA, we are continuing to read There's a Boy in the Girl's Bathroom. The class continues to buddy read this book, or listen to it being read out loud. We have been practicing making inferences using this book, along with our read aloud book Holes. Students have also been learning how to determine the main idea and details of short passages. The class continues to practice paragraphing. We started writing an essay about special people. 
• In social studies, the class has just started to learn about the Algonquian and Iroquois. We will spend the next couple of weeks learning about similarities and differences between these two tribes, as well as how they used the natural resources of NYS to survive. 
• In math, we just started unit 3, which focuses on place value. The class had a unit 2 assessment last week, and they are working on corrections. We have been cycling  through math stations, and working on our fact fluency. We will have a multiplication facts quiz on Friday. 
• PLEASE SIGN UP FOR REMIND 101 IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY : )

Here are some photos to check out!

Our Save Fred! Science Experiment

 Groups Practicing Paragraphing 

Main Idea and Details Group Activity!

Working Hard!

It was so nice to meet you all at parent night! Thank you all for coming. The class has been working very hard the past two weeks! Students have been introduced to several new concepts, and  have also reviewed many topics covered in third grade. Here's what we have been working on:

• In social studies, the class spent a few days learning about NYS geography. We spent time finding different cities, mountain ranges, rivers etc. on a NYS map. The class also learned where NYS is located compared to other states. Students also learned about NYS symbols, and early people of NYS.
• In ELA, the class has been reviewing parts of speech, synonyms, antonyms, and homophones for word work. We have been reading from There's a Boy in the Girl's Bathroom together, and have been practicing summary writing. We are also still practicing paragraphing. Students learned some reading comprehension strategies and applied them during read to self and read to someone time. The class was just introduced to main idea and details, and will be practicing this concept in the coming weeks. 
• In math we just finished up unit one and took our unit 1 assessment. We will be starting unit 2, which focuses on continuing number patterns. It is very important that your child is fluent with their facts through 12. 
• Reminder: Please sign up for Remind 101 to receive text message reminders!

Last week we tasted 3 types of Melon with the "Good Eats" program. Here are some pictures of our experience!

In line to try melon!

Matt loved the melon!

Sydney and Julien also enjoyed the melon!

Welcome to 4th Grade!

Welcome to my blog spot! Please check here for bi-weekly updates.

The class has been very busy adjusting to the new routines in 4th grade. We just started the Daily 5, and students have been practicing read to self, read to someone, and work on writing. We have also been reviewing paragraph writing including topic sentences, supporting details, and closing sentences. In the future, we will be learning about how to write essays on different topics. This week we will be reviewing parts of speech. We started Unit 1 in math, which covers properties of multiplication and division, and review from 3rd grade. The class is learning about the geography of NYS, and our state symbols. Here are some pictures of read to someone time:

Almost 5th Graders!

Good Morning! We are in the final days of fourth grade, and boy are we busy!

• In social studies, we have been learning about the Industrial Revolution. As you know, the students have been researching an inventor to create a Podcast and display for our living museum next week. We have just finished writing the Podcasts, and are working on recording them. Tomorrow we will begin to work on the tri-fold boards. Please begin to assemble a possible "costume," that your child can wear to represent their inventor. The living museum will be June 18th from 2:00-3:00. Please come if you are available!
• In ELA we are finishing up the "Dear America" journals of Finn or Angela. The students have been creating comic summaries of what they have read, and they are turning out great! We hope to have both books finished by next week.
• In math, we have been reviewing concepts covered this year for our end of the year assessment this Friday. Please make sure that your child knows their multiplication facts; especially 12's! 
• The next 2 weeks will be a busy! Some important dates to remember are:
• June 18th-Living Museum, 2:00-3:00
• June 19th Field Day
• June 24th Class Picnic
• June 25th Moving Up Day, Report Cards Sent Home
• June 26th 1/2 Day, Last Day!

Spring is in the Air!

With ELA and math testing behind us, we have started up some new projects in fourth grade, and have been working very hard! This is what we have been up to:

• We had a great trip to the Huyck Preserve yesterday! The kids caught crayfish in the creek, and marked them with nail polish. The researchers at the Huyck Preserve are studying an invasive species of crayfish, and use the kid's findings in their study. The class also had a presentation from a wildlife rehabilitation expert. The class got to see and learn about 2 different hawks, an owl, a weasel, a Snapping Turtle, and a Box Turtle. 
• Students have been working in groups on designing and building bridges made out of toothpicks. Each group has a $1,000 budget, and must plan their bridge accordingly. Groups must write checks, balance check books, and work together. The bridges are off to a great start!
• Last week we studied the Erie Canal in preparation for NYS Day, and our cruise on the Dutch Apple. Students learned about Dewitt Clinton, and the reasons why the canal was built. They also learned how the canal was built, and about inventions created to make building the canal easier. We studied some old photos of the canal and made inferences.
• We have been learning about simple machines in science. The class is also reviewing for our NYS science test which will be in June.
• We just started a new literature circle that is aligned the with the Industrial Revolution, which we will be studying in social studies. Students chose which book they preferred, and have been reading the books here at school either with a partner, or teacher. Then, the class has been summarizing what they have read in the form of a graphic novel (comic).
• In math, we have been learning about decimals. We spent time this week finding and placing decimals on the number line. We also spent time working in our bridge groups. We will continue working with decimals, and then will move on to measurement.

Thank you for checking in!

The Home Stretch!

As always, we have been very busy in 4th grade! I hope that everyone had a relaxing spring break!

• In ELA, we finished our Hoot literature circle. The end of the book offered us the opportunity to learn about descriptive writing, author's voice, author's purpose, and the mood/tone of the character's dialogue. The class viewed the Hoot movie, and we were able to compare and contrast the book and the film. We will be beginning new literature circles with 2 books from the Dear America series; "The Journal of Finn Reardon," and "The Diary of Angela Denoto." Students will choose which book they would like to read. The books coincide with the Industrial Revolution, which we will be studying in social studies. The class has been working on writing persuasive letters.
• Social Studies- The class learned about the Articles of Confederation, The Constitution, and The Bill of Rights this week. Students also learned about the rise of cities in NYS, and how NYS came to get the nick-name, "The Empire State." Next week we will be learning about transportation in NYS during the 1800's.
• In math, we have just finished up our geometry unit. This week, the class learned how to classify triangles by their sides and angles. They also learned about different kinds of quadrilaterals. We have been reviewing for next week's state test, which will be Wednesday, April 30th-Friday May 2nd. Monday and Tuesday we will be reviewing more.
• Since the math state test is next week, please remember to send in any breakfast items that you signed up for. Thank you!

Thank you for your continued support. Have a great weekend!