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!

Happy Spring! I hope everyone is doing well. Here is what we are up to in fourth grade:

• In science, the class has been learning about electricity. We have been focusing on current electricity, and how it works. Students built circuits in science lab to help them better understand how electricity flows in a closed circuit. We will continue to learn about electricity for the next few weeks.
• In language arts, we are reviewing all topics covered this year. The ELA test will be April 1st, 2nd, and 3rd.  We have been reading the book "Hoot," in class together. We have been focusing on the author's use of imagery, and on characterization. The class also created wanted posters for one one the characters in the book. We have spent a little time each day practicing for the ELA test.
• In math, we just finished up our unit on fractions. We spent time this week multiplying a whole number and a fraction. We have also spent a lot of time converting improper fractions to mixed numbers, and then simplifying. We just started to learn how to use the formula for area to find missing sides of rectangles. The class has had math review every morning.
• Please remember to send in any ELA breakfast items that you may have signed up for.

Have a great weekend!

February 27

What a busy month February has been! Hopefully March will bring some warmer weather. This is what we have been up to in fourth grade:

• Social Studies- We finished up the American Revolution unit. I was very pleased with the student's performance on their assessments. The class also completed their mythology projects, which were displayed in the main hall. We received several compliments on the quality of work of the tri-fold displays from many teachers. We will be starting up an electricity unit in science next week.
• Language Arts- We continue to work on figurative language. This week, the class learned about personification, and reviewed similes and metaphors. We have also been talking about the structure and features of different forms of writing (prose, poems, and plays). The class has been practicing plays in small groups to present to their peers. We will begin a literature circle next week for the book Hoot. The class has been practicing writing essays. We have been reviewing main idea, author's purpose, and theme.
• Math- We finished up our first unit on fractions. We have started a new unit which focuses on adding fractions with like denominators, and simplifying. The class has been working on multi-step word problems every morning. We also cycled through math stations twice this week.
• Other News- Please send in a safe snack for the month of March.

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