I hope everyone is staying warm in the cold weather. The change was perfect timing in our class as we have been studying weather fronts in science. Check out this fun website where the kids got a taste of the meteorologist's life. In math we introduced division and had some wonderful discussions about the relationship between multiplication and division. I introduced a great game called "Loose Caboose" that gave the kids a chance to practice division with remainders, a new skill in 4th grade. This week in writing, we finished publishing our Native American reports and practiced writing dialogue properly during grammar practice. In Reading, we read another book by Chris Van Allsburg, The Sweetest Fig. The kids led a discussion about major and minor characters, setting, cause and effect relationships and, finally, theme. It is a wonderful book, one of my favorites. Last but not least, in social studies, we began our unit on explorers of the "New World" by reading about Columbus.
But of course, the events that cast a shadow on all other things were... BENCHMARKS. Those dreaded, yet very useful, assessments that the children liken to torture. Two days of writing and one day of reading made for long mornings. However, I will be analyzing this data very carefully to help design future lessons and to better prepare your kiddos for STAAR. I am a little worried about the grammar portion of the writing benchmarks, so you can expect to see some more grammar preparation in our future.
Finally, we said goodbye to our darling Miss Smajstrla. We had a great party in her honor, where she surprised all of us with handmade gifts, bracelets and bookmarks for every student. The kids were thrilled! Thank you to Julie, Heather, Shelley and Brandie for planning the party and helping out. It was a ton of fun and the perfect way to say goodbye.
Highlights for next week:
Benchmarks: Math, Tuesday & Science, Wednesday
Math: Long Division
Science: Seasons
Writing: Personal and Possessive Pronouns & Reflexive Pronouns
Reading: Book groups, Van Allsburg Book Study
Social Studies: Explorers of the new world
But of course, the events that cast a shadow on all other things were... BENCHMARKS. Those dreaded, yet very useful, assessments that the children liken to torture. Two days of writing and one day of reading made for long mornings. However, I will be analyzing this data very carefully to help design future lessons and to better prepare your kiddos for STAAR. I am a little worried about the grammar portion of the writing benchmarks, so you can expect to see some more grammar preparation in our future.
Finally, we said goodbye to our darling Miss Smajstrla. We had a great party in her honor, where she surprised all of us with handmade gifts, bracelets and bookmarks for every student. The kids were thrilled! Thank you to Julie, Heather, Shelley and Brandie for planning the party and helping out. It was a ton of fun and the perfect way to say goodbye.
Highlights for next week:
Benchmarks: Math, Tuesday & Science, Wednesday
Math: Long Division
Science: Seasons
Writing: Personal and Possessive Pronouns & Reflexive Pronouns
Reading: Book groups, Van Allsburg Book Study
Social Studies: Explorers of the new world