Weekly Update: Dec. 10-14

Weekly Update

Important Reminders:

• We still need some icing for our STEAM Project - Gingerbread Houses.  We are going to plan out our design on Dec. 17, and we will build them on Dec. 20.  So if you are still able to send in items for our houses, we appreciate the help.  Thanks!
• We will be watching the movie Wonder on Thursday, Dec. 13th.  We will also have a pajama day that day.  The kiddos are able to bring in a blanket, pillow, and stuffed animal if they wish for the movie.  They can also bring in a special drink and an extra snack to have during the movie.  We are celebrating the KINDNESS that everyone showed with their donations to Helping Hands. Thank you!
• PLEASE practice multiplication facts!  The students need to really know them quickly, and without having to use strategies to solve them.  We will be starting multi-digit multiplication and long division soon, and having those multiplication facts memorized will be a HUGE help!  On Google Classroom (just log in with your child's username and password, then save that to your computer, and you will then have access whenever) I put some multiplication websites and game directions under the "classwork" tab and then under the "Websites" topic.  Thanks for your help with practicing these facts!

• Please remember to check, and initial, your child's planner every night.  Homework and important notes are written in the planner daily.  Thanks for your help with this!
• Please send a snack with your child that is NUT FREE every day, as we do not eat lunch until 12:10.  Thanks!

Important Dates to Remember:

• Dec. 10-14 = Leader of the Week - Hunter
• Dec. 13 - Wonder movie & PJ Day
• Dec. 14 - Brady is having oral surgery today, so I will not be at school.  
• Dec. 20 - Winter Parties
• Dec. 21 - End of the Second Quarter
• Dec. 21 - Half Day of School
• Dec. 22 - Jan. 2 - Winter Break
• Dec. 27 - Concord Family Bowling at 2:00
• Jan. 3 - School resumes

Check Out What We Are Learning This Week:
Writing:  
We are continuing Unit 2: Personal and Persuasive Essays.  We are spending one more day drafting our Opinion Essays, and will then revise and edit on Tuesday.  On Wednesday the students will be working on their project of choice that will answer our PBL question: How can we educate others about the importance of understanding extreme weather.  I can't wait to see what they come up with!

Reading:  

We are continuing Unit 2: Reading Informational Books.  We will be focusing on finding the main idea and details of different non-fiction texts.

Read Aloud:

We are continuing to read The Wild Robot.  This book is about a robot named Roz who opens her eyes for the first time, and she discovers that she is alone on a remote, wild island. She has no idea how she got there or what her purpose is--but she knows she needs to survive. After battling a violent storm and escaping a vicious bear attack, she realizes that her only hope for survival is to adapt to her surroundings and learn from the island's unwelcoming animal inhabitants.  As Roz slowly befriends the animals, the island starts to feel like home--until, one day, the robot's mysterious past comes back to haunt her.  This book is from bestselling and award-winning author and illustrator Peter Brown. The kiddos are enjoying this book, and are finding it very funny!

Math:  

We are continuing with Ch. 7: Patterns and Sequences this week.  In this chapter we will learn nonnumeric and numeric patterns, sequences, addition and subtraction rules with input/output tables, multiplication and division rules with input/output tables, order of operations, equations with two operations, and equations with multiple operations.  We are currently planning to take the test on Wed., Dec. 19.

***Knowing your multiplication facts is extremely important as we move forward in math, so keep practicing those facts!  We will continue to practice multi-digit multiplication and long division.

***In order for students to show mastery with a standard, they will be doing "Check-ins" throughout the year to show that they didn't just memorize the skills for the test, but that they retained the skills, thus showing mastery.  My goal with the check-ins is to make sure that the 4th grade Math Standards are mastered by all students by the end of the year! ***

Spelling:  

We will begin learning the patterns of the words for our next spelling sort in our units.  We will also take our next Sight Word test on Thursday, Dec. 13th.  (Since I will be out on Friday, we are moving the test to Thursday.)  Remember these are the words that do not follow a pattern, and need to be memorized.  Students will need to not only spell the words correctly, but be able to read them in order to "pass" this group of words.

Social Studies:

 We will begin Ch. 6: Early English Settlements.  We will learn about Roanoke, Jamestown, and Plymouth.  We will discuss what challenges were faced in the first English colonies.  We will also begin Ch. 7: Comparing the Colonies.  We will learn about the three colonial regions - The New England Region, the Middle Region, and the Southern Colonial Region.  We will discuss how these three colonial regions were alike and different.  

Have a GREAT Week!