Updates...Reminders...Resources

Tis the Season!

Its that crazy, fun-filled family time of year!  Each moment is precious so I will only take a few moments tonight to give you some updates, reminders, and a resource we have been using in the classroom.

Updates

Google Docs has been a valuable learning experience and successful for most students!  This week students typed up their fictional narratives at home for homework.  I was able to read each of them, comment and continue those discussions the next day in school.  The feedback was more immediate, and it was helpful for students to look at "clean" copies of their writing as they practiced their editing skills this week.  Thank you to all of the families that supported their children with this new learning tool.  This experience will certainly help them next year at Quinn Middle School. 

The deadline for completed typed drafts is Tuesday.  Students are aware of this deadline.  Some may need an extension and we have talked in school about how this can happen sometimes.  As long as students have been working hard each night this won't be a problem.

Reminders

I am still looking for guest readers for Tuesday the 23rd!  I haven't gotten any volunteers yet and would really love to have many guests.  I have plenty of books to choose from, or feel free to bring your own.  Just let me know.

Resource

This week in math students have been learning about finding factors of a number.  There is an online game some students played this week and really seemed to like.  There is a lot of strategy involved and really helps with finding factors, and multiplication skills.  Feel free to have your student play at home.

http://illuminations.nctm.org/Activity.aspx?id=4134

 

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday season!

Updates!

What's Going On?

The winter months are a busy time for fourth graders.  We have gone from a class of new fourth graders who still sometimes act, think and feel like third graders to students that are "full-time fourth graders" now.  They have learned the ropes and are thinking more deeply, writing in more sophisticated ways, reading more complicated texts, and solving math problems they never thought they could in third grade. 

So what exactly are your fourth graders up to these days?  Here is an update!

Reading

Students have just finished learning about how characters change.  They learned that a character's traits, thinking, feelings and actions can change.  They have learned how to keep track of these changes while they are reading and how to write about them.  While you are reading with your child pay attention for when the character learns a lesson, this is usually what causes the character to change!

Now we are moving on to comparing and contrasting characters in books.  We began this week by learning the vocabulary associated with comparing and contrasting and using the vocabulary while comparing and contrasting two different books and two different characters.  You can help by using this vocabulary with your child at home. 



Writing

We are nearing the end of our fictional narrative unit.  Students have been working on lifting the level of their writing by adding more action, thought, dialogue, action, and sensory details.  This week students learned about similes (Ex: The snow was like a white blanket covering the land.)  You can help by asking your child about similes at home this weekend.  They had fun coming up with them in school this week and couldn't wait to share them with each other.  I'm sure they would love to share some with you as well!

Math

We are learning to divide with remainders.  We started out really focusing on what it means to divide and showing this with many different pictures, relating it to place value as much as possible.  When many of us were students, we learned the process to long division, but many of us did not truly understand what it meant and what was really happening to the numbers during division.  I can say that students are grasping division at a much deeper level this year.  They are manipulating numbers in many different ways and learning how to make division more efficient even as the numbers get bigger.

The biggest way you can support our math at home right now is continuing to have your child study their multiplication facts...especially the 6, 7, 8, and 9 facts.  These are the ones that slow children down and often prevent them from being successful at times.  If you feel your child is solid, please let me know and I can give you some other ideas for MAH homework.

Science

We just finished our unit on rocks and minerals.  Students grew their own crystals and learned many different experiments they could perform on unknown minerals such as the scratch test, luster test, acid test, and streak test.  They then applied these experiments on several mystery minerals in an attempt to identify them. 

Social Studies

We launched into a unit on the United States regions this week by looking at a couple of videos that give a great overview of the United States in all its glory and diversity.  Students will be learning about how where you live in the United States can often affect how you live.  They will be learning research skills, non-fiction reading skills, oral reporting skills, and how truly amazing our country is.

So as you can see, we are busy busy busy!

Important Dates

12/5      Holiday Shoppe  3:30 - 8:00 pm

12/6      Holiday Shoppe  9:00 am - 1:00 pm

12/10    1/2 day PD 11:40 dismissal

12/15    Team up meeting 11:30 am in conference room

12/19     Term 1 report cards go home

 

 

 

Effective Effort - Making Hard Work Count!

Lots of Hard Work!

Students have been working very hard in fourth grade!  There has been a lot to work hard on too.  In math, students are learning how to multiply multi-digit numbers and are just starting to learn division.  In addition, they are learning to apply all of this knowledge in word problems.  In reading, students are learning about how characters change in stories and how to write about these changes and include evidence from the text.  In writing, students are learning how to write fictional narratives with action, thought, dialogue, and feeling.  Today they had to begin a new fictional narrative from scratch, showing off all they had learned about writing fictional narratives so far.  In science, we are learning about how crystals form and how to tell the difference between different types of crystals. 

Needless to say, we are learning a lot and working very hard while doing so!  Sometimes students work hard but still find themselves lacking the success they are looking for.  This is where Effective Effort comes in.  Effective Effort is understanding all that goes into hard work.  Sometimes we can work really hard but we are working in the wrong manner.  There are six main elements of Effective Effort that are posted in the photo below.  Research shows that if we specifically teach students these six elements, their achievement will increase.

Today we began learning about these six elements.  Students brainstormed what they thought each of these meant and created posters describing them.  I spent the day pointing out the different elements as they occurred in our classroom and when giving directions, described what the effective effort would look like during the assignment.  As we move forward, students will be doing self-assessments of their effort to increase their self-awareness in this area.  I will also continue to verbalize these elements every opportunity I get.

How Can You Help?

You can help by using the same language at home when your child is doing something that requires a lot of effort.  Whether it be a school assignment, a home project, chores, or athletics anytime you can talk it up will help us in the classroom.  When students hear the same message in more than one place, it makes an enormous difference!

Upcoming Dates
This Friday - Math Vocabulary Quiz (all words previously tested and new ones assigned)
11/26 - 1/2 Day Thanksgiving Break
11/27 - Happy Thanksgiving!
12/5 - Holiday Shoppe 3:30 - 8:00
12/6 - Holiday Shoppe 9:00 - 1:00

Authors

Transformation

Our classroom has had quite a transformation over the past few weeks!  While learning to write fictional narratives, our class has gone from summarizing events to being storytellers that use the same strategies as the published authors we love. 

We have been learning about how most stories follow a story arch where towards the beginning of the story, characters face a problem that gets worse as the story progresses.  Something in the story then occurs to cause the character to learn and change which allows them to solve the problem.  The story ends with the problem getting better.  Students story arched their own story ideas and began developing characters.  We used our knowledge of character traits from our learning during Reader's Workshop to help us come up with realistic characters that have character flaws that add to the problem in the story.

One major focus of this unit has been a push from summarizing the events to making the events come alive through the use of action, dialogue, thinking and feeling.  The picture below shows an example of The Three Billy Goats Gruff story summarized and then rewritten using the strategies mentioned above.  We are learning to show the major events in the story rather than tell about them.  Instead of saying, "the character was angry," students are putting themselves into the shoes of the character and are imagining what they would say, or do to show they were angry. 

How Can You Help?

Writing in this way is still a relatively new concept to students so it is still tricky for some.  You can help by pointing out when an author is using a lot of action, dialogue, thinking or feeling as you are reading together.  Then ask your child how they could do something like it in their own story.  Another way you can help is by playing a "storytelling game" in which you story tell an event from your day with action, dialogue, thinking and feeling and then have your child do the same.  The more experience they have with this the better they are going to get!
 

Happy Storytelling!

Passion Project

Share Your Passion!
Studies show that students are more motivated and passionate about their school work when they are interested and have a say in what they are learning.  I don't think we need research to tell us that!  We see it in our children every day.  Many parents have expressed a desire to see their child's motivation increase when they are doing homework and have also wondered how they can get their child to care more about their homework.  One suggestion I have is what I call a Passion Project.  This is a student driven project in which the student identifies an area of interest that they would like to become an expert on.  The student then brainstorms what they would like to learn and creates a plan to learn it and teach their new information to the class.  The teaching may be in the form of an oral report, technology presentation such as power point, posters, a play, mock news report, artistic representation, song etc.  If the student can dream it up, we can mostly likely give it a go!

These projects are in addition to the regularly assigned homework and are an independent assignment.  I would always be happy to consult with the student on their project, but the project should be done at home.  Parents should coach their child but should refrain from doing a portion of the project for them.  The goal is to increase independence and strategies for success as we get ready for middle school. 

These projects are completely optional!

 

I will talk the project up in class and send them home with interested students.  If you are interested in having your child work on one (which is great on nights when they fly through their homework!) please let me know and I would be happy to send one home.

 

As always, thank you for your support and let me know if you have any questions!

Movers, Shakers, Inference Makers!

Talk the Talk So We Can Walk the Walk
It was so nice to see all of the families at conferences this week.  Each time I speak with you all, I always feel as though I get a clearer and clearer picture of your child. 

At conferences I spoke a lot about making inferences and how students will have to be able to discuss and then write about the inferences they are making.  Students now know that an inferences is:

Inference:  Something you know in the book even though the author hasn't told you.  You use clues in the text and your own background knowledge (schema) to make an inference. 

Common Inferences:

 

Character's feelings

Character traits

Why something is happening

The author's message

The lesson in the story

What a word means

 



 



Now that students know what an inference is, they are working on finding evidence (clues in the text) for their inference and explaining their inference.  They learned how to reread the text to find evidence to support their inference and how to use the schema to help them explain how their evidence shows that their thinking is correct.

 

We are spending a great deal of time discussing our inferences right now.  If students can talk about their thinking, they will be able to write about it, which is the ultimate goal.  This week, students all inferred about The Wretched Stone by Chris Van Allsburg and collected evidence and thought about how they would explain their evidence.  Each student participated in a debate where they had to prove their case to someone with a different opinion.  It was a very lively debate with many passionate opinions!  Below are two examples of notes that students took in preparation for the debate.

 

 

 

How Can You Continue This at Home?

Read and talk with your child!  When you read with them, ask them what they are thinking.  When they tell you, ask them why they think that (what is their evidence)?  When they share their evidence, ask them how that evidence shows they are correct.  You can also model your own thinking.  Most of all, enjoy reading!

 

 

Important Dates

 

10/20 - Team Up for Education Meeting 11:30

10/22 - 1/2 Day



 





So Much Going On!

Authors!

 

What a great week!  In writing we have been learning about the genre of personal essay.  This week our class spent a great deal of time drafting essays about topics they felt strongly about.  Prior to this week, students have been free-writing their opinions, choosing topics, crafting thesis statements and opinions and planning their essays.  It was amazing to see the essays come to life on the papers of your students.  Next week you will see these essays come home as students will need to write or type their final drafts (we call it publishing!). 

 

While I know it is difficult, please do not help your child to further edit or revise their writing in any way.  These essays were about learning the writing process that goes into writing a personal essay and although their punctuation, spelling and paragraph structure may not show it at times, an enormous amount of work and teaching went into the essays.  Fixing a student's essay for them can sometimes minimize that work for the student and the finished product is not what the student would typically do.  Thank you so much for your support in this.

 

 

Mathematicians!

 

Thank you for supporting your child as they have done xtramath.org over the past two weeks as a way to increase the automaticity of their math facts.  Next week I will be sending home math vocabulary to study for homework and ask that students take a break from xtramath.org.  They can still do it on their own time if they wish, but for homework they will have a MAH (Math at Home) sheet where they will have to record how long they studied their math vocabulary and how they did so.  Students will bring home flash cards that they created in school to help with the studying.

 

 

BOKS

 

Recently Mr. Quinn sent home information regarding BOKS, a before school fitness program that will occur on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.  I cannot say enough about this program and the wonderful effects it had on the students in my class that participated last year.  Many studies show that students who exercise do better in school than their peers who do not.  Please consider signing your child up! 

 

 

Important Dates





Conferences 10/15 & 10/16

Don't forget to sign up for a conference!

 



So Many Questions!

 

Where Did September Go?



Is it me or did September fly by?  Perhaps it is because we have been very busy in fourth grade!  Time does fly when you are having fun.  We earned our second paw print reward this week and learned how to play continuous kick ball.  It is a game that teaches teamwork. You can't be successful in the game without your entire team.  I love doing different team work activities throughout the school year.  I always teach my class that they are a team and while they won't all be best friends, they have to work as a team. 

Questioning

 

For the past couple of weeks students have been learning that good readers ask questions before they start reading a new book, while they read the book, and after they are finished reading.  Asking questions helps us read with a wide awake mind, it helps us monitor our understanding, and it helps us think beyond the words on the page to the deeper meanings in the book.  We are pushing for deeper questions that go beyond the text such as the ones below.

• What does the author want me to learn?
• Why did the character _____________?
• What does _____________ symbolize in the story?
• What lesson did the character learn?

These types of questions are not typically answered in the story and will cause students to have to use the clues in the text to help them come up with their own answers.  It leads to great discussions and deeper thinking.

Want to Help at Home?

 

I will send home some questioning hand outs this week that you can use when reading with your child.  What should you read?  Anything!  Even though your child is in fourth grade now, reading with them is still a wonderful way to support us here at school.  We especially like reading picture books even at the fourth grade level because the short length allows for students to experience more plots, storylines, lessons, and themes.  Read and talk to your child about their questions and their answers!  Ask them what in the story made them think that.  Enjoy!

Upcoming Dates

10/2 - Open House 6:30 - 8:00

10/8 - District Math Night 6:30 - 8:00

10/15 & 10/16 Parent Teacher Conferences

 

 

 

 



A New Year, A New Blog!

Welcome to my new classroom blog!  I have been looking for a new way to communicate with parents and caregivers so that you will have a better idea what we are up to for over six hours a day.  I thought that I would try blogging.  I have been teaching my students to try new things, challenge themselves, and embrace things that aren't easy.  I am taking my own advice!  Please bear with me as I learn new technology and create new pathways among my neurons (ask your child what I am talking about!)

A Great Start

The school year has been off to a great start as we have been learning routines, rules, expectations, and what life is all about in fourth grade.  We are a fantastic group of respectful, responsible, and ready students and were the first class in the building to fill our Paw Print chart and earn a reward.  Today we filled our second Paw Print chart and will be celebrating our 3 R's again this week! 

Growth Mindset

We started the school year off by learning about growth mindset.  We watched a lot of videos and did some activities that taught us that our brains are always growing.  In fact, when things get difficult we are actually "growing" or strengthening the neural connections in our brain.  We talked a lot about failing, but not giving up.  We even learned about famous people who failed, picked themselves up and kept going.  Oftentimes our children see a famous person such as Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and think that these people must have been born that way.  What children don't see is the hard work, dedication, and oftentimes, failure that went on in the person's life.  A full definition of growth mindset is below along with a link to a video that I showed in the classroom.

To go along with Growth Mindset, each student chose an inspirational quote that they decided to make their motto this year.  Each student took their motto and made one for their desk, locker and a large poster in art class to put up somewhere in the school.  Hopefully these posters will help to inspire others!

Fixed Mindset vs. Growth Mindset

In a fixed mindset, people believe their basic qualities, like their intelligence or talent, are simply fixed traits. They spend their time documenting their intelligence or talent instead of developing them. They also believe that talent alone creates success—without effort. They’re wrong.

In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment. Virtually all great people have had these qualities. ~ Carol Dweck

Famous Failures Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dT4Fu-XDygw