Dear 4B Families,
We made it through the first week back at school. It was so nice seeing the students. They came back with positive attitudes and they had a very productive week!
Catholic Schools Week this year is from January 25th to January 31st. On Tuesday the 27th the 4th graders will be delivering certificates of appreciation to many of the local businesses that support our school. Those that are chaperoning will receive an email from us this week to confirm. Thank you so much.
Reading: We are nearing the end of our journey with Charlotte’s Web but we are taking a little detour to do some reading on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr and the Civil Rights Movement. On Tuesday and Wednesday the students will be taking the reading portion of the MAP test.
Spelling: The spelling words focus on words with more letters than sounds. This test will take place this Friday the 16th. The students are also required to memorize and recite the Month Poem by this Friday the 16th as well as recite the months of the year in order from January to December at the same time they recite the poem.
Language Arts: The Cool School News HW assignment directions came home last Tuesday. Thank you for your assistance with the note taking portion of this assignment. Please make sure the completed assignment comes to school with your child on Monday when we will begin writing our rough drafts. Along with the Cool School News, the students will also reflect on a variety of Dr. King’s famous quotes (there are so many!) and illustrate one that they find most meaningful for a special hallway display.
Religion: Our religion work will focus on the Work of Mercy Poster group assignment. Each group was assigned one Work of Mercy to plan and design given specific criteria. Once completed the groups will do a special presentation to the class to teach about their topic.
If any parents have copies of the Northwest Catholic magazines to use for the Corporal Works of Mercy posters, we would really appreciate them!
Social Studies: The NE/SE/Midwest State test is this Thursday the 15th. I will include support for the abbreviations on this test, so the students should focus on mastering the locations. These are not new states, but the states the students have already been tested on. You can access PDFs to print along with links to online practice here. We are getting ready to move into our unit on the Lewis and Clark expedition.
Science: In the third lesson, students explore the role that air plays in enabling a sound vibration to travel. In the activity, Act Out a Sound, students do two short activities that explore sound vibrations. Students experiment with sound to understand how it moves through the air and then consider what would happen in an environment like space where there is no air.
Math: Students will be practicing multiplying multi-digit numbers using estimation, area models and the Distributive Property. We will move into the algorithm for multiplication for multiplication with a two-digit multiplier later in the week. Look for math homework each night. Students are expected to practice multiplication and division facts nightly (Xtramath or flash cards) until all facts are mastered. We are so proud of the great progress the students have been making with their facts. Thank you for your support with this important skill.