What We Are Studying

If you have anything cool that you would like to share during these units, feel free to bring it in!

*SCIENCE*
Ecosystems, Animal Adaptations

*SOCIAL STUDIES*
The Alamo, Exploring the West (Oregon Trail, California Gold Rush), Opposition to slavery

*MATH*
Dividing Decimals, Multiplying Decimals, 3-D shapes, Problem Solving

*WRITING*
Persuasive Writing

*READING*
Summarizing text, novel study, reading strategies, DRA testing

Class Update 4/27

* CRCT Testing is finished! The kids did really great staying focused during the test, and also during the afternoons as we reviewed for the next day's content. Please congratulate your child on a job well done, and we look forward to seeing those testing reports come back to show how well they knew their stuff!

* Thank you, parents, for getting your children here to school on time for testing everyday. A special thanks to Room Mom Extraordinaire, Mrs. Kastensmidt, for organizing the snack schedule! You all did an amazing job keeping our kids fed with a variety of yummy treats each day. We even have some left over for snacks this week!! Way to go, moms & dads!

* We will be using our final weeks of school to go back over some of the Social Studies topics we only had time to briefly introduce, and to prepare for 5th grade. We have several end-of-year assessments coming up in reading, writing, and math. Please encourage your child to push through until the very end and not give up on learning! These DO count for placement and planning for 5th grade.

* How is your student's AR goal coming? After the testing each day there was plenty of time for independent silent reading, and I saw many students taking AR tests. 2 things to remember: The goal challenge will have to end by Friday, May 15th in order to still have time to celebrate during the final week of school. Also, the Ford media center will close for checkout 2 weeks prior to the end of school, and all books will be recalled at this time for inventory. So, that leaves less reading time and less opportunities to get books, both of which will need to figure in to your child's reading plan. We will run a report at the beginning of the week and send you an update mid-week to help you stay on top of your child's goal. I'd like to have everyone participating in our final AR celebration!!

* Friday is our Kennesaw State student, Ms. Jang's last day. We have enjoyed having her be a part of our classroom and she has helped out in so many ways. From one on one reading testing, small group math review, leading us in a few lessons, even playing kickball at recess, the kids have loved having her. Please have your student make a card for her to bring to class on Friday thanking her for her service to our class. We are also going to take up a collection to buy her a gift card to School Box so that she can buy supplies for her own future classroom! We are asking for just $2 per student, preferably out of their own allowance funds so that they can feel a part of her gift.

* Any ideas on an end of year homeroom celebration? Please email me with your thoughts for a special event to culminate our 4th grade year.

Classroom Announcements

* Thanks to all of YOUR efforts with the Boosterthon, our Science Lab has been up and running for 3 months, and the kids are loving it! Each classroom also received 10% of their profits back to spend on educational supplies. I have had a great time with the SchoolBox and Lakeshore catalogs, and have finally spent it all. We got numerous new board games that reinforce math, grammar, and reading skills. We look forward to playing them all - so THANK YOU!

* Spring Fling is coming! We now have a box in our classroom to collect used books, cd's, and movies to be sold "as is" at the event to raise funds for PTA. Please look around your house and see if you have anything to donate. Send it in with your child before April 16th to be collected and sorted.

* Buckle Down Math and Reading Post-tests have been given. We are using the results to focus on reviewing topics that might appear on the actual CRCT. If you plan on practicing at home (outside of the online CRCT tests), please let me know if you'd like to know of any areas to target with your child.

* Nacho, our class hamster, is looking for a "host family" for Spring Break week. If your family is not going out of town and would like to have him visit you, please email me! If more than one family volunteers we will hold a drawing. He has his own supplies, plus he enjoys leftover fruits and veggies! He is also in need of a new exercise ball if anyone has one lying around their house. We'd like to start getting him out more often because he is running on that wheel all day during instruction. :)

Extra Stick Opportunities

1. Go to the Constitution Center's website and print out the crossword puzzle. Fill it in by identifying the states who ratified the Constitution. Bring in for an extra stick!

2. Go to Math Playground and practice your algebra puzzles! Then, create a 3 x 4 grid of your own making up symbols, assigning them a value, and creating totals for each row and column. Test it out to make sure it works, then bring it in for the class to solve! (Worth 1 stick)

3. What amendment would you add to the Constitution? One for kids' rights? Write a paragraph about what you think needs to be added to the Bill of Rights.

4. Write a skit showcasing a disagreement between 2 delegates at the Constitutional Convention. What did they argue about? Make each person's position clear, and be sure to include factual information. Peform it for the class with the help of a friend! (2 sticks)

What We Are Studying

*READING*
Informational reading skills: cause/effect, fact/opinion, main idea, "Buckle Down" CRCT workbook

*WRITING*
Organizational skills for informational writing, writing to a prompt, engaging beginnings, takeaway endings, topic sentences/details. Writing Assessment is Tuesday, March 31st! Be sure to get to bed early on Monday night!

*SPELLING*
Sitton Spelling Units 21-22, Test Wednesday, April 1st

*SCIENCE*
Objects in space and how they move

*MATH*
CRCT review/practice, problem solving, multiplying decimals, division fact fluency

Road to Revolution Game

As a wrap-up to our unit on the American Revolution, test your knowledge on the Road to Liberty game!

Class Update 3/16

Welcome to the last 9 weeks! How this year has flown by! Can you believe your students are about to be 5th graders? We are busily preparing them for the responsibilities of next year and looking ahead to building organizational skills for middle school as well. Here are a few announcements:

* Congratulations to our 7 Super AR readers! The following students met their goal for the 3rd 9 weeks with at least 85% accuracy: Kenny Dreisbach, Sydney Lundeberg, Grace Povich, Bethany Collins, John Nardulli, Kristen Donohue, and Tarin Sule! These students will enjoy a pizza luncheon on Tuesday to celebrate their success. A special thanks goes out to Mrs. Nardulli and Mrs. Povich for coordinating this event for us.

* Unless there are special circumstances, goals will remain fairly consistent for the 4th 9 weeks. Students MUST get started early! They will only have 8 weeks this time to meet their goals in order to leave time for the final AR celebration during the final week of school. In addition, the media center will close 2 weeks before the end of school, so students will not be able to do any "last minute" reading unless they have AR books from home or the public library. Watch out for upcoming special reading events to encourage all readers. Remember the 25 Books campaign is ongoing, and IS a Georgia State Standard. We have scaled back our morning work to allow more time for checkout and reading before school starts each morning. In addition, our class will visit the media center this Friday for a lesson and check out. Please help your child remember to have an AR book at school to read EVERY DAY!

* As a 4th Grade Grade Team we have decided to discontinue Math Compacting for the last 9 weeks and return to our homeroom classes. This will allow us to review the math standards from throughout the year and utilize our "Buckle Down" books to practice for the upcoming CRCT. We will take the post-test next week to try and identify areas of weakness. We will notify you of areas you can work on at home.

* We are prepping daily for the CRCT with emphasis on math problem solving and reading comprehension strategies. Remember that online test practice is part of our homework from the website www.georgiaoas.org. This week's assigned tests are Reading 1, Language Arts 1. Please make a note in your child's agenda when they have completed these tests. Both are due Friday.

* Our 4th Grade Writing Assessment has been postponed until the end of the month to give us a little more time to practice. Keep encouraging your child to write as much as possible at home: letters, journals, emails to relatives - writing for purpose! Writing is everywhere!!

* Spring Fling is coming April 18th! Watch your Friday Folder for more information.