Tellin' Tales Thursday

We did work on our Tall Tales today.  Tomorrow is publishing day.  They will be up on the big board for all to see on Report Card day!  Several kids asked permission to email their drafts to someone at home so that they could work on them this evening.


Tonight at home....

• Read, or reread chapter 28 and 29.  Complete the "Extra, Extra" activity.  Remember, you are a reporter. Write as though you are giving the "scoop" on the events in the chapter.
• Math: complete the Form A review sheet.  We will take the Ch. 13 test tomorrow
• There is no reading test this week. 
• Theme Review Sheet will go home Tomorrow.
• Tomorrow is "school colors" day.  Wear your blue and green to show your Disney pride

Wearing Hats Wednesday

We are sporting some beautiful hats today.  We've got the Chicago Bulls, the Sox ( whoohoo!),  a couple of cowgirls, and  several others.

Tomorrow is Dress Up Day!

Today we...

• Worked on our Tall Tales.  We should be published by Friday.
• Worked on the "predict and check" problem solving strategy
• Worked on our Illinois project. Today's focus was IL waterways.
• Went to Music
• Worked on ST Math
• Completed a Science Fusion digital lab

Tonight at home...

• Complete Math text book page 255: all
• Read for Pleasure

Talking About Theme Tuesday

The theme of the day is Theme.  Ask your student to explain this to you!

Today we.....

• Met in small groups to discuss last night's reading of Holes.  We also talked about Theme.
• Created a page in our IL book: IL Ecosystems
• Read folktales, fables and myths and responded by creating mind maps with the Ideasketch app.
• Worked on our Vocabulary Cartoons to help us review the Theme 4 words.
• Discussed how using "compatible numbers" can help us make strong estimates in division.  We are focusing on finding multiples of the divisor.
• Used the Compound Light Microscope to observe plant and animal cells

Tonight at home....

• Read chapters 25,26,27 in Holes and complete the Fact Finder page
• In the Math text, complete page 259, 4-30 even problems

***Students, please get into the habit of writing a heading on your paper.  This should include your name, the date and the title of the assignment.  Thank you!

Metallic Monday

It just sounds good, that's why!


Today we.....

• Discussed patterns in division and make "pattern" pennants to help us remember
• Read folk tales and myths
• Talked about THEME and how it differs from main idea
• Created "multiple eggs" to help us relate multiplication and division
• Discussed Illinois ecosystems, lakes and rivers

Tonight at home.......

• Complete math page 257:25-35
• Reread chapters 23, 24, and 25.  Complete a reflection in your journal.  Remember to add details from the text.  Reflect upon one section that you found interesting or exciting!

Spirit Week

• Tuesday is College Day!  Wear your college gear or colors
• Wednesday is Hat Day!
• Thursday: Dress Up Day
• Friday: Disney Colors Day

Spirit Week Announcement

Team201,  Don't forget that tomorrow is "Sports Day!"  See you tomorrow!

Tall Tale Thursday

Tonight At Home..

• Finish Your Tall Tale Template.  You may change the template as needed.  Your tall tale should include plenty of hyperbole and figurative language.  Ask yourself these questions: Is it interesting?  Is it funny?  Is there a problem and solution?  Does it make sense? Is it descriptive?    We will be adding to these tomorrow and next week.
• Math textbook page 247. Problems 20-32 evens

Weird Date Wednesday

Yup, it is 3/13/13!   OOOOoooooooooo!


Today we..

• Use our IL OUR HOME texts to learn about our state's ICE AGE.  We took a quiz on edmodo. Parents, if you log on to edmodo, you will see your student's results.  I will grade the short response soon.
• We used arrays to model long division.
• We compared the characteristics of fables, folktales, and tall tales.  We read a hilarious tale called Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind.
• We began the brainstorms that will lead to the creation of our own TALL TALES.  Believe me, they will be very tall.  You will see them on Report Card day.

Tonight at home:

• In the math text, page 249, complete problems 1-11. Yes, you MUST make the models.
• Science Fusion: Read and Do the activities in pages 3-14.  Bring them tomorrow!

Testing is over Tuesday!

Yes, the ISAT testing is complete!   Your children put their all into today's Science ISAT!  Testing lasted from about 8:45 until about 11:00!

Today we also..

• had Science Art 
• learned how to use the microscope and studied the parts of the microscope
• practiced using the Compound Light Microscope in the lab

Tonight at home..... 

• complete page 247 in the math textbook.  Begin with problem 3, and complete the problems that are multiples of three. 3,6,9........etc.
• Reread chapters 22-23 and complete a reflection on these chapters.  Remember, I want to hear your voice, not just a long summary
• prepare for the microscope quiz that we will take on Thursday.  The copier is down, but there are links on edmodo!

Feeling Good Friday

Yes, we are feeling good about how hard we've worked all week.  Today Team201 took the final math and reading ISAT sections.  On Tuesday, they will be ready to tackle the Science!  Today was mostly about testing, but students did get a "bonus" gym period and outdoor recess.  In the classroom, we finished our original Candy Bar creations and shared our treat descriptions with the class.  I will post some pictures later this weekend.  It was not easy to hear these mouth-watering descriptions so close to our lunch period!  In the afternoon, we reviewed some science concepts.  We played the game, Are You Smarter Than a Fourth Grader, and watched a BrainPop on Eclipses.

This weekend at home...

• please complete the Sample Test.  We will discuss the answers on Monday.
• log on to Edmodo.  I have posted some Science Review songs and videos.
• Read for pleasure!

 I can't wait to return to our regular schedule next week!  Next week we will.....

• Study the microscope.  Some of this material is already posted on Edmodo!  We will learn the parts of the microscope, take a quiz, and learn how to use the microscope.
• Read the next Harcourt story, Juan Verdades.   We also read a variety of folktales, and we will write our own tall tales.
• Begin our SS unit: Illinois. I will be posting the text book, Illinois, Our Home, on Edmodo.  
• Begin Chapter 13 in our Harcourt text.  This chapter covers division basics.
• Take the Science ISAT, sections 1 and 2, on Tuesday.

I hope that everyone has a fantastic weekend! 

Time for Testing Tuesday

O.k., it is almost time.  


Tonight at home....
Get someone to sign your field trip form.  All forms and monies are due tomorrow by 8:00 a.m..  We can not make exceptions, as the check for the trip needs to be issued in the morning.  

It may be snowy, but testing will begin bright and early.  Try to leave some extra time in the morning so that you can get to school on time.  This will reduce stress for your child!

Tomorrow is all multiple choice.  We will take part one reading and part one math.

Make Some Noise Monday

Making Noise is what your kids are doing right now, at the ISAT Pep Rally!  The pep rally is a fantastic annual event.  It raises our spirits and allows us to release some of the mounting tension.

Well, the tension has one additional day to build.  Due to the weather report, Disney has decided to delay ISAT administration.  Tomorrow will be a regular, if rather snowy, school day.  Testing will begin on Wednesday.  This means the 4th grade students will take the Science ISAT next Tuesday, not this Friday.


Today we.....

• Played lots of calculator games.  We challenged our brains to beat the calculator, and most times, we proved that we are accurate human calculators!  We discussed how calculators are great for some problems, such as finding the mean, or working with large numbers.  We learned that we need our brains to get started and that calculators will not help us with strategy!
• Created mini fact finders to help us review Science topics

Tomorrow we will......

• Spend some time exploring figurative language.  We will examine poetry and song lyrics to help us.
• Create factor trees and multiple eggs
• Discuss Holes and meet in book discussion groups

Tonight at home.....

• There is no formal homework scheduled for ISAT week.  I noticed from the edmodo posts that many students were "bored" last weekend.  If you are looking for extra credit, complete some brain pop activities, go on Study Island, or log on to ST Math or TenMarks.  You may also write some extra reading responses.

Progress Reports
..are scheduled to go home with students on Wednesday.  Let's not allow this timing to interfere with our ISAT motivation.  If your child has dropped a few percentage points in a subject, there is still time to raise the quarter grade!  Please let me know if you would like to discuss learning goals for your child.

Back to the Future Friday

Today we saw the Pod 220 show Back to the Future. This is a great lead-in to our study of Westward Expansion, which will begin post-ISAT.

Tonight at home...
Parents, the homework is for you this weekend!  Your child is bringing home directions for and ISAT encouragement poster that we hope will keep your child motivated next week.  Please, use 8.5 x 11 or smaller.
Think of 10 ways that you can be kind and helpful to the people with whom you live and work.  Don't forget about your dear teacher!