Week 8

Presentations went very well this week!  I was proud of these kids and how well they presented the information they researched.  We finished up the week brainstorming how children were different back when Nevada was first settled compared to now.  We completed Venn diagrams in our groups to show the differences and how we are alike.  We are looking forward to starting our new projects about maps this week.

Math update with Mrs. Neal

Hello all!
We are continuing with subtraction this week! We are focusing on partial difference for now, we will be getting to the standard algorithm later in the year. Here is a video for partial difference if you are unsure of how to use this strategy:

The homework will be as follows:

Week of 10/30
4th grade:
Monday- Partial difference page, back
Tuesday- No homework- Happy Halloween!
Wednesday- Practice test, evens
Thursday- Practice math facts

Thanks and Happy Halloween!

Reading update from Mrs. Luyt 10/23-10/26/17

Reading: This week we learned about themes in books. On Thursday, we took a spelling test. If you child received a 1, please be sure to sign and return the test so I know you have seen it. Students will receive new spelling lists on 10/30/17. The next spelling test is 11/9/17. Next week, we will be reviewing character traits, point of view, context clues, plot structure, and themes. In addition, students will be having a Latin/Greek test on Thursday, 11/2.

Homework: Read 20 minutes everyday. Study Latin/Greek words for assessment  (assessment 11/2). Study spelling words (assessment 11/9). 

FYI from Mrs. Duarte- Writing Class

I will be on a 3-4 week leave starting November 16th due to back surgery. Thankfully, the first week is Thanksgiving week, so it is one less week for a sub.  I will be letting the students know sometime this coming week.

We are fortunate to have Adrienne Snow be the long term sub during my absence.  I have already started working with her and Mrs. Hyde to ensure that the transition is smooth and that everything runs according to plan.  She will be observing in the classroom this coming Monday so she has an opportunity to get to know the students and see what a day in Room 4 looks like.

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Writing Update with Mrs. Duarte

It has been a bit spooky in writing class this past week!   Students have designed their own Haunted House and are working on creating a descriptive sales advertisement for their imaginative and creepy house.    We've read about a haunted house and watched the introduction to the 1960's "Adams Family" television show for inspiration.  Haunted House descriptions include things such as:  ghosts in the dungeon, flying books in the library, spiders in your bed, and floors that scream when you walk on them!   Next week, they will include their descriptive haunted houses in a Halloween story prompt. 

Math update with Mrs. Neal

Hello 4th grade families,
This week in math we focused on using place value to help us with multiplying and dividing with multiples of 10, 100, and 1,000. Continual practice of math facts would help greatly, please remind your students they should be doing 20 minutes of math homework each night so when they have nights that they finish early they should use that extra time to practice math facts. Also, if your student gets a 1 on an assessment, please sign it in the indicated place and return it so I can see that you have seen the grade.
This week we will be learning the partial sum strategy for addition. On last week's blog post I put a video for the partial sum strategy so please review that if need be. This is the only method of addition that we will be focusing on for now. The homework for this week will be as follows:

Week of 10/23
4th grade:
Monday- Partial sum page, back
Tuesday- 3RD GRADE IXL C.1, write out 5 problems using partial sum strategy to turn in
Wednesday- Subtraction page 1, back
Thursday- Subtraction page 2, back

Thanks and have a great week!

Week 7

The students of room 11 have worked so hard this week!  They have finished up the models of their groups and I think they look fantastic.  The kids had fun while they used their creative minds to model what life was like for the early settlers and Native Americans of Nevada.  They will be presenting them to each other and to the other 4th grade class.  If you would like to come take a peek at your child's model, feel free to stop by after school on Tuesday.  I will be there until about 4:20. I will also be posting picture of the models on next week's blog.

Thanks for sharing your wonderful children with me!

Reading update with Mrs. Luyt 10/16-10/19/17

Reading: This week we learned about evidence based terms. On Thursday, we took a Latin/Greek test. If you child received a 1, please be sure to sign and return the test so I know you have seen it. Students will receive new Latin/Greek words on 10/23/17. The next Latin/Greek test is 11/2/17. Next week, we will be introducing theme and having the students figure out the theme of read aloud books. In addition, students who have been identified as needing extra practice will be having a Spelling test on Thursday, 10/26.

Homework: Read 20 minutes everyday. Study spelling words for assessment  (assessment 10/26). Study Latin/Greek words (assessment 11/2). 

4th Grade Writing with Mrs. Duarte

We celebrated the final drafts of our personal narratives on Thursday!  Most students got to share out their stories and illustrations and the rest will do so on Monday.  It has been a journey!  Packets of their "in process" work will be coming home soon, followed by final stories and grades based on 6+1 Traits in the next few weeks.  Our next adventure will be creating a Haunted House and writing a descriptive advertisement to try to sale it!

Week 6

We finally finished up the writing portion of our "Who Would Move to Nevada" project.  Everyone is thrilled to be moving on to creating a model of their group.  The students are welcome to bring supplies from home, it is not required, but it is always fun to see what they come up with.  We have some great models in the works.  I love the hard working hum in our classroom right now.  They all have work to do and are working together to get it done.  We are hoping to finish these this week.

We had a special experience this past Thursday.  We went into Mr. Kelly's room, our computer tech guy, and he led us in a google expedition.  We say old forts and Indian homes from when the west was settled.  I loved watching the kids get so excited.  It may have made a few of us a little nauseous, but it was fun to be a part of.

Math update with Mrs. Neal

Hello 4th grade families,

We have finished up our rounding unit and we are now rounding masters! The assessment for rounding will be graded this week and sent home. We have now moved into using place value to help us with multiplying and dividing. We will also begin addition using the partial sum strategy. The partial sum strategy may be new for some of you so here is a video that explains the partial sum strategy.

We will be focusing only on partial sum for now, we will get to the traditional algorithm later in the year. The homework for this week will be:

Week of 10/16
4th grade:
Monday- Division page, back
Tuesday- Practice test, evens
Wednesday- Partial sum page, back
Thursday- 3RD GRADE IXL C.1, write out 5 problems using partial sum strategy to turn in

Thanks and have a great week!

Writing Update with Mrs. Duarte for 10/9-10/12/17

Students learned more personal narrative writing strategies this past week, focusing on building in transitions, using stronger verbs, and being aware of the overuse of words like "it".   They reviewed their stories utilizing a revision checklist and will be going through an editing process next week. Our goal is to have final copies of our personal narratives by the end of next week!

Reading update with Mrs. Luyt 10/9-10/12/17

Reading: This week we learned about character traits. On Thursday, students with a spelling list took a spelling test. If you child received a 1, please be sure to sign and return the test so I know you have seen it. Students will receive a new spelling list on 10/16/17. The next spelling test is 10/26/17. Next week, we will be introducing evidence based terms. In addition, students will be having a Latin/Greek roots test on Thursday, 10/19.

Homework: Read 20 minutes everyday. Study Latin/Greek words for assessment (assessment 10/19). Study spelling list (assessment 10/26). 

Math update with Mrs. Neal

Hello 4th grade families,
This week in math we focused on rounding. We can round numbers up to the 100,000 place. The homework for this week will be:
Week of 10/9
4th grade:
Monday- 3RD GRADE IXL P.4
Tuesday- Practice test, evens
Wednesday- Practice math facts
Thursday- Multiplication page

Thanks and have a wonderful week!

10/2-10/5 Reading update with Mrs. Luyt

Reading: This week  we learned about first and third person point of view.  On Thursday, the students took their first Latin/Greek test. I'll be returning those to the students on Monday. If you child received a 1, please be sure to sign and return the test so I know you have seen it. Next week, we will be introducing character traits. In addition, students will be getting new Latin/Greek roots. The next test for Latin/Greek will be 10/19.

Students who were identified as needing to practice spelling, received a new spelling list distributed to them on 10/2/17. The next spelling test is 10/12. If your child doesn't receive a spelling list, they were not identified as one that needs to continue with spelling at this time.

Homework: Read 20 minutes everyday. Study spelling list for those who got a list (assessment 10/12). Study Latin/Greek words for assessment  (assessment 10/19).

Week 5

We are finally wrapping up the research portion of this project.  It has definitely been a tough task, but these kids have been working hard and have pulled through.  This week we will finish up our final drafts of the group essay and start planning for the models they will be making of their group.  They are excited for this portion and it will be fun to see what they come up with.  I will be in contact with possible supplies needed from home, if you have them.

We also had our first Masters of Geography members:  Jilliana and Trevor.  The kids are enjoying the short time they have to work on this fun project.

With it being fall, please remember to put names on jackets and coats and only school approved jackets can be worn in class.  Your children are a delight to have in class, I look forward to each afternoon I get to share with them.  Please let me know if you have any concerns or questions.

Writing Update with Mrs. Duarte

Students are hard at work refining their language arts skills through grammar review, journal writing, IXL practice, and continuous revision of their personal narratives.  This week the focus has been on show don't tell, painting a word picture, and satisfactory endings.   The final personal narratives should be completed within the next few weeks and students will have an opportunity to then work on a narrative story of choice.

Week 4

Time is, of course, flying by!  We continue to research and learn more about the early settlers of Nevada and how they helped shape our state.  We enjoyed a guest speaker, Anne Hyde, who taught us about the first settlements that the Mormons built in Nevada, what life was like, and what contributions they made to our state.  She spoiled us with homemade bread and honey butter.  This week we will finish up our research and work on our group essays.

Math update with Mrs. Neal

Hello 4th grade families,
This week in math we wrapped up our unit on place value and took an assessment on what we learned. This week the homework will be:

4th grade:
Monday- Number line page
Tuesday- Rounding page
Wednesday- IXL A.12
Thursday- Rounding page

Here are some pictures of a fun TRIBES activities that we did with Mr. Carrol:

Thanks and have a great week!