Dear Families, Grandfriends’ Day is Friday, May 3rd. Registration begins at 9:15 am in the Canteen area where grandfriends will receive a classroom schedule. Grandfriends then head to the Commons for a Band of Friends performance at 9:30 followed by opening remarks by Mr. Kennedy. They are then dismissed to the classrooms for 10. Many families have grandfriends that are splitting their time between siblings. Here is our 4th grade schedule: 10:00-10:40 - Morning meeting and National Park landmark share. 10:40-11:20 - Spanish 11:20-12:00 - Academic Choice (A sampling of various fourth grade activities) Dismissal will be at 12:00. If you have any general logistical or scheduling questions, please feel free to ask Jodi Pink or Jennie Pope, I can also do my best to answer any questions! Below are a few curriculum highlights: Language Arts Fourth graders have been busily publishing a narrative story. Through the writing process they are focusing on organization, word choice, and conventions. In addition to those three areas, students are asked to include at least one simile. Once the rough draft is complete, they are required to conference with two peers to receive compliments and suggestions. Rather than saying “I like your story”, students are asked to identify a certain part they enjoyed and why. When giving feedback, students are asked to be very specific about their suggestion by using phrases such as “Have you considered.” or “How would you feel about adding…”. After the story is published, each student reflects on their work by completing a writing rubric. Social Studies Fourth graders started to create their 3D national park projects. We look forward to sharing the projects with our grandfriends on Grandfriends' Day. Parents will get to see the structures on Portfolio Day. This project require the students to plan, reason, apply critical thinking skills, and to be creative. Check out the fourth graders in action! Math
The following concepts were introduced and/or practiced
Please enjoy a few pictures from the past few weeks! Warmly, Brigid
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Dear Families, Fourth graders have been very busy during Academic Choice. As mentioned earlier in the year, Academic Choice gives students an opportunity to choose what and how they learn. The Responsive Classroom Approach believes the following:
All options for Academic Choice have been introduced and practiced. Academic Choice should not be confused with making a free quiet choice. Although students are given a choice of what they learn and how they learn it, there are still clear expectations. Each option has meaning and purpose to enhance the learning of the students. For each choice made, students will share a plan of action, have conferences to monitor progress, and reflect on the work completed. This week students presented inquiry projects on Australia, Jerry Rice, Tobey Maguire, and American Sign Language. We also had a student create a Jeopardy game with a combination of topics we have learned about over the course of the year. There are many inquiry projects that are currently being worked on. Ask your child what they are doing for Academic Choice! Social Studies We have been learning about the people who lived in the west before it became the United States. Ken Fowler (an FA parent) visited fourth grade to talk about his connection to the Chickasaw Nation. During his visit he shared Native American stories and artifacts. In our classroom we have discussed the vast landscape of the west and the impact it had on how people lived. Language Arts
Now that we have finished Little House on the Prairie, fourth graders have settled back into the independent reading routine. We took time this week to have students share about their current books, which is a great way to spark the interest of others. I love hearing students excited about the books they are reading! Students continue to add to the Books We Read wall upon completion. Our April goal is to complete and review more books than we did back in January. April is Poetry Month! Since Lyn Hoopes visit, students have explored various forms of poetry. This week they practiced writing cinquain poems, concrete poems, and I am poems. Math
Have a wonderful weekend! Warmly, Brigid Dear Families, There will be optional parent/teacher conferences after school on Wednesday, April 17th. Students will not be attending this conference. Please let me know if you would like to meet and I can send you a schedule of my availability. I will also offer slots throughout the week for those families who are unable to meet on Wednesday. A conferences at this time is not mandatory. I am always happy to meet with families. If you would rather meet closer to the end of the year, I can make time available to do so. It’s hard to believe that we have only eight weeks left of school! Below are a few curriculum highlights: Social Studies This week we wrapped up our Midwestern study with a field trip to Dartmouth Historical Society, which is a former schoolhouse. We split up into mix it up groups to partake in a variety of activities from that time period. We learned how to spin sheep’s wool in order to make bracelets, practiced penmanship using an inkpen, played outdoor games, and completed math and spelling activities. Next week we travel to the west to learn about who lived there before it became the United States. Math
Language Arts The work completed during language arts this past week was connected to social studies. Students reflected on the field trip by writing about their experience, observations, and favorite/least favorite parts. Students buddy read Little House on the Prairie and answered comprehension questions. Fourth graders also identified specific quotes from each chapter that they could clearly visualize. This confirmed that an author's word choice can have a big impact on how the reader interprets the story. Have a wonderful weekend! Warmly, Brigid |
Welcome!Learn more about fourth grade happenings by reading this newsletter. Archives
May 2019
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