Friday September 30, 2016

Happy Friday everyone!

This morning in Math we learned about multiples, square numbers, and how to use a multiplication table. I have marked and returned everyone's Math assignments. Well done to all of you! During Science class we reviewed the plant life cycle and created a diagram to show this in our notebooks.  Next we compared how different plants reproduce, some using seeds and others using spores. We even got to take a look at the fern in our classroom and inspect it for spores! During Social Studies we recapped Jim Crow laws, drew conclusions on how African American people would have felt about these laws, and started to learn about leaders in the African American community.

*disclaimer: due to the typhoon we have not been following the schedule exactly. I am switching around subjects to try and get the most important material covered before the exam!

These are photos of the students enjoying the classroom educational games during ECA. The girls are practicing their multiplication tables while the boys are practicing matching singular and plural nouns.

HOMEWORK:

SCIENCE:

*Watch Unit 3 Lesson 3 online

IXL:

*Practice any skills you want to get better at!

LANGUAGE FESTIVAL:

*Please read the first story on the script and write down 2 characters you would like to be in the performance.

***The word of the day is DOLPHIN!**

Thursday September 29, 2016

Good afternoon everyone, 

We have a lot of catching up to do so we dove right into Grammar class learning about singular and possessive nouns. The kids paid excellent attention, participated, and asked questions. Way to go! During Math we reviewed lesson 4.1 because I didn't have much voice last time we went through it. Afterwards we continued to 4.2 where we learned about arrays and fact families. During ECA I introduced students to a series of math practice and grammar practice games I created for the classroom. 

HOMEWORK:

***Important note: Because of the typhoon  I have cancelled the Lesson 6 vocab quiz tomorrow. I will test lesson 6 words on the vocabulary test October 7.***

LANGUAGE: 

*English Workbook pages 31-33

MATH:

*Please watch this video on youtube about fact families: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ8lY40uHr0

*Do Practice sheet 4.2 for homework. This is a Math assignment that will be graded. Please write nicely and do your best work.

Please note there is an updated exam schedule below:

Grade 4 Quarter 1 Major Subjects

Exam Schedule

Friday October 7 (full day)	Tuesday October 11	Wednesday October 12
	8:35-9:15   Study Period	8:35-9:15   Study Period
9:15-10:00 MATH Exam	9:15-10:00    LANGUAGE Exam	9:15-10:00      SCIENCE Exam
230:3:15 Vocabulary Test Lessons 1-6	10:00-10:15      BREAK	10:00-10:15     BREAK
	10:15-11:00      Study Period	10:15-11:00     Study Period
	11:00-11:45      SOCIAL STUDIES Exam	11:00-11:45    READING Exam
	Dismissal	Dismissal

*This schedule is open to changes between now and exam week. If you have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to come and talk with me.

Quarter 1 Language Exam Study Guide

 Quarter 1 Language Exam Study Guide

Your Language exam will consist of the material learned in our weekly Writing and Grammar classes. This means you are responsible for all of the information in your Work on Writing and Language notebooks. If anything is difficult or confusing for you, please come see me for extra help as soon as possible.

Grammar:

Lesson 1 Types of Sentences

*I know the four types of sentences and their end marks.

Vocabulary: interrogative, question, exclamatory, exclamation, declarative, statement, imperative, command

Lesson 2 Subjects and Predicates

*I can identify the simple and complete subject and predicate of a sentence.

Vocabulary: subject, predicate, simple subject, complete subject, simple predicate, complete predicate

Lesson 3 Sentences, Fragments, and Run-Ons

*I can identify complete sentences, fragments, and run on sentences. I can correct fragments and run-ons to make complete sentences.

Vocabulary: sentence, fragment, run-on

Lesson 4 Common and Proper Nouns

*I can tell the difference between common and proper nouns and I can write them properly.

Vocabulary: noun, common noun, proper noun

Lesson 5 Plural Nouns

*I can differentiate between singular and plural nouns. I can identify specific rules for changing singular words into plural words.

*Be familiar with, and able to apply the four rules for changing singular nouns into plural nouns

Lesson 6 Possessive Nouns

*I can change singular and plural nouns into their possessive form using the rules

Writing:

Lesson 1 Putting Boring Words to Rest

*I know which words are too boring for writing or speaking in grade 4.

Lesson 2 Vivid Verbs

*I know vivid verbs to use instead of boring verbs.

*I can brainstorm vivid verbs to describe actions in pictures.

Lesson 3 Awesome Adjectives

*I can identify and classify types of adjectives. I can use these adjectives correctly in my writing.

*Be familiar with adjectives in the following categories: what kind, how many, how is it feeling, what it feels like, how it smells/tastes/sounds, what it looks like (color, shape, size)

Lesson 4 Short Response to Literature

*I can respond (reply) to literature (books/poems/articles etc.) using the ACE method.

*For this lesson you are only required to answer questions using part A and part C.

Lesson 5 Great Sentences

*I can create great sentences following the pattern:

Describer (awesome adjective) + Subject (noun) + Vivid Verb

Main Idea

*Be able to read a short text and explain, in your own words, the main idea.

Tuesday September 27, 2016

Good afternoon everyone,

School is dismissed at 12:00 pm today. Please be careful and get home safely.

This morning we jumped straight into math learning about multiplication properties and division rules. Because my voice is still not 100 percent, I guided students towards self teaching this lesson and taking helpful notes but we will definitely go over it again when I can speak properly. After Math introduction and practice, I gave students one on one feedback for last night's Social Studies homework. They edited their work appropriately and then we went up to the computer lab to read an online article about Jim Crow laws and they took a quiz on what they read. Afterwards they did IXL multiplication and division practice. Grade 4's, if you feel that your multiplication and division skills are not the best they can be yet, I encourage you to use IXL to practice. The better you are at these skills the easier the rest of the year will be for you in Math class.

HOMEWORK:

MATH:

*If you did not finish Workbook page 20 please do so tonight.

READING:

*Study Lesson 6 vocab words for Friday's quiz

*Read Lesson 6 Journeys story from start to finish. We will summarize it tomorrow in class.

LANGUAGE:

*Color each section of the Possessive Nouns handout a different color (there are 6 sections in total)

IXL:

*Feel free to do some multiplication, division, and possessive noun practice!

Important News:
***All of the major subject study guides are now posted on the blog.  I have also posted the exam schedule. Please take a look and come and talk to me asap if you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions. 

Stay safe munchkins and see you all tomorrow!

***The word of the day is MOTORCYCLE!***

Monday September 26, 2016

Hi everyone,

This morning our sweet Mickey was honored at assembly as the Angel of the Week!

I caught a bad cold this weekend and lost my voice so we altered today's schedule a little. To start, we did two rounds of Daily 2 and the student's did a good job of using their time wisely in reading and writing activities. During second period we went to the computer lab and students practiced multiplication and division since that's what Chapter 4 focuses on. They also spent some time practicing possessive nouns which will be our Grammar lesson tomorrow. During Science class we learned new vocabulary for lesson 2 and completed two interactive notebook activities for students to practice the life cycles of plants and apple trees.

HOMEWORK:

**So far I have posted your Math, Science, Reading, and Social Studies Exam Study Guides on the blog. Your exams will be Tuesday October 11 and Wednesday October 12. Both of these days are half days and students will be dismissed at 11:45 am without lunch. 

READING:

* Lesson 6 vocabulary quiz on Friday

SOCIAL STUDIES:

*Read pages 431 Segregation Limits Opportunities  and page 432 Migrating North in the textbook and summarize each section in your notebook. You may use full sentences or point form as long as you double space and everything is in your own words.

*If summarizing is difficult for you, please check this link for help on what a summary is and what it isn't! http://minds-in-bloom.com/2014/10/5-hands-on-strategies-to-teach-reading.html

***In the event of a typhoon tomorrow and if school is cancelled please check the blog again as I will post an additional Social Studies assignment for homework.***

***The word of the day is WHISPER!***

Quarter 1 Social Studies Exam Study Guide

Quarter 1 Social Studies Exam Study Guide

Chapter 11 Industry and Immigration

Lesson 1 Inventors and Inventions

*Communicate that Americans developed new inventions that changed life in the United States and around the world.

*Analyze and explain what the sentence “Inventions shrink distances” means with examples to support your answer.

*Be familiar with Edison, Bell, the Wright Brothers, and Morse inventions and the effect they had on life and people.

Vocabulary: consumer, telegraph, investor, profit

Lesson 2 The Impact of Big Business

* Communicate how the growth of big business had a great impact on life in America.

* Recognize the cause and effect of how new inventions lead to urbanization

*  Compare and contrast the costs and benefits of cities with important industries.

Vocabulary: urbanization, entrepreneur, corporation, stock, assembly line, refinery, monopoly

Lesson 3 Immigration

  *Communicate that some of the costs and benefits of being an immigrant.
  *Conclude why some of the new immigrants might not try to fit in in America.

 *Discuss how America’s growth may have benefited people from other countries.

*Analyze why immigrants left their home countries and what they might have been hoping to find in America

  *Discuss why people may have wanted immigration to decrease

Vocabulary: diversity, prejudice, oppression, tenement, labor union, melting pot

Chapter 12 Struggle for Reform

Lesson 1 The Progressive Era

*Understand that changes in the American economy led to problems that Progressives tried to solve.

·         Describe living and working conditions that led to the Labor Movement

·         Summarize the goals of the Labor Movement and what caused it to start in the first place

·         Define the Progressive Movement and list some of its goals and leaders, including Theodore Roosevelt

·         Describe efforts made by the Progressive Era leaders in the areas of prison reform, mental health, conservation, and the development of the National Park System

Vocabulary: trust, strike, strikebreaker, boycott, Progressive, muckrakers,     conservation

Lesson 2 Unequal Opportunities for African Americans

*Understand that it was necessary to change the unfair treatment of African Americans.

·         Recognize the effects of Jim Crow laws in the South and the spread of segregation to other parts of the country

·         Identify ways segregation limited opportunities for African Americans

·         Summarize the reasons behind the Great Migration and the experiences of African Americans who moved North.

·         Identify leaders of the movement for better opportunities for African Americans, including Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Ida Wells-Barnett.

Vocabulary: civil rights, Great Migration

Lesson 3 The Fight for Women’s Rights

*Understand that many people worked to gain equal rights, including voting rights, for women.

·         Describe the role of women in the U.S. during this period

·         Summarize key events in the women’s rights movement in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries

·         Identify leaders of the women’s movement, including Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Jeannette Rankin

·         Recognize the importance of the Nineteenth Amendment

Vocabulary: temperance, suffrage, suffragist

Quarter 1 Reading Exam Study Guide

Quarter 1 Reading Exam Study Guide

Your Reading exam will be based on the six Journeys stories we have read, as well as all material learned during our Monday and Thursday Reading classes (Lessons 1-6). You will not be tested on the vocabulary from the stories, that will be a part of your vocabulary test.

Journeys:

Lesson 1 Because of Winn Dixie

Lesson 2 My Brother Martin

Lesson 3 How Tia Lola Came To Stay

Lesson 4 The Power of W.O.W.

Lesson 5 Stormalong

Lesson 6 Once Upon A Motorcycle Dude

For Journeys Lessons 1-6:

 *What is the main idea in this story?

* Be able to summarize a part of the story that I give you.

* There will be some comprehension questions about the story so make sure you understand what happens and why.

*You must be able to answer the questions using the ACE method learned in class. (AC only)

Reading Class:

Lesson 1 Story Vocabulary

*Vocabulary: plot, setting, complications, protagonist, antagonist

Lesson 2 Plot Elements

*Understand, differentiate between, and identify the plot elements that make up a story

*Vocabulary: exposition, inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution

Lesson 3 Conflict

*Understand the difference between internal and external conflict

* Explain the conflict in a story and support your answer

*Vocabulary: conflict, internal conflict, external conflict

Lesson 4 Types of Characters

*Understand and differentiate between types of characters in literature

*Vocabulary: protagonist, antagonist, flat, round, static, dynamic, sympathetic, minor

Lesson 5 Theme

*What is theme?

*How do you find the theme of a story?

Friday September 23, 2016

Hi everyone,

This morning students wrote their vocabulary quizzes for lesson 5 and almost everyone aced them! Way to go! It's great to see how they are trying to use the vocab words in their speaking each day. During Social Studies we had a discussion about the unequal rights and opportunities that African American people faced in America during the 1950's. This lead to a thoughtful talk about racism, gun violence, and how to stand up against prejudices. I am loving all of the questions during our SS classes and I appreciate how considerate everyone is while listening to each other speak. During Math students wrote their chapter 3 tests which I have marked and returned.

I have to say a huge THANK YOU to all my darling grade 4 students who made me feel SO SPECIAL AND LOVED today! They planned a little surprise party during the morning break to celebrate my birthday, which is tomorrow. You are such thoughtful, caring people and I am proud to be your teacher. Thank you for the amazing cards, gifts, and hugs. YOU'RE ALL THE BEST!

HOMEWORK

Please read this script and listen to the audio,. On a piece of paper write a comment about it. If most people liked it, we will consider doing it for Language Festival.

http://jmsalsich.edublogs.org/2010/03/06/readers-theater-wayside-school/
http://jmsalsich.edublogs.org/files/2010/03/Readers-Theater-Wayside.pdf



SCIENCE: Watch Unit 3 Lesson 2 online

MATH: Sign Math test

Have a great weekend!

Quarter 1 Math Exam Study Guide (Chapters 1-4)

Quarter 1 Math Exam Study Guide

Unit 1 Chapter 1 Place Value

Lesson 1.1      I can use numbers in different ways (position, label, measure, count)

Lesson 1.2     I can read and write numbers through 999, 999

*know how to find the value of a digit

*know which place each digit is in

*know how to write numbers in four different ways

Vocabulary: expanded form, short word form, standard form, word form

Lesson 1.3      I can use logical reasoning to solve problems

Lesson 1.5      I can read and write numbers through 999,999,999

Unit 1 Chapter 2 Money

Lesson 2.1       I can compare numbers up to nine digits ex. 323,332,223 <  323, 332, 233      

Lesson 2.2       I can order numbers up to nine digits (from least to greatest, or greatest to least)

Lesson 2.3       I can count and compare amounts of money 

Lesson 2.4       I can make change from money     

Lesson 2.5       I can round numbers and money amounts

Lesson 2.6       I can use a bar graph to compare data.

Unit 2 Operations and Algebraic Reasoning

Chapter 3 Add and Subtract Whole Numbers

Lesson 3.1       I can use addition and subtraction rules

Vocabulary: zero property, commutative property, associative property

Lesson 3.2      I can use mental math to add and subtract 2 and 3 digit numbers

Vocabulary:   compensation, break apart

Lesson 3.3       I can use rounded numbers to estimate sums and differences (make sure you fully understand Lesson 2.5 about how to round numbers)

Lesson 3.4       I can decide whether an estimated or an exact answer is needed to solve a problem

Lesson 3.5       I can add whole numbers

Vocabulary: regroup

Lesson 3.6       I can subtract whole numbers with up to five digits

*Check your work by doing the inverse operation

Vocabulary:   inverse operations

Lesson 3.7       I can subtract when some digits are zeros

Lesson 3.8       I can add and subtract whole numbers with up to six digits

Chapter 4: Multiplication and Division Basic Facts

Lesson 4.1 Algebra: Multiplication Properties and Division Rules

Vocabulary: Commutative Property, Property of one, Zero Property, Associative Property

I can use multiplication properties and division rules.

Lesson 4.2 Algebra: Relate Multiplication and Division

Vocabulary: array, fact family

I can use multiplication facts to help you divide.

Lesson 4.3 Patterns in Multiplication and Division

Vocabulary: square number, multiple

I can use a multiplication table to discover patterns in multiplication and division.

Lesson 4.6 Multiply and Divide with 11 and 12

I can use a multiplication table to multiply and divide with 11 and 12.

Lesson 4.7 Multiply Three Factors

Vocabulary: Associative Property

I can multiply three factors.

Quarter 1 Science Exam Study Guide (Units 1-3)

Quarter 1 Science Exam Study Guide

For the Quarter 1 Exam you will be tested on the information from units 1-3. You are responsible to know and understand all of the vocabulary in this study guide as well as the information from the textbook, the online lessons, and any activities or notes in your Science notebook.

Unit 1 Studying Science

*Lessons 1-5 (You are responsible for the textbook and online lessons as well as all Science notebook activities)

Lesson 1 What Do Scientists Do?

Vocabulary: Science, scientist, observation, hypothesis, scientific Process/Method, experiment, evidence, investigation

*explain that scientists make observations, ask questions, conduct investigations, and produce evidence that guides scientific thought and theory.

*recognize that scientific knowledge requires evidence.

Lesson 2 What Skills Do Scientists Do?

Vocabulary: infer, observe, communicate, compare, predict, conclusion, variable, classify, measure

*Describe the skills that scientists use and compare how we use those same skills in our everyday life

Lesson 3 How Do Scientists Collect and Use Data?

Vocabulary: research, microscope, magnifying glass, balance, spring scale, pan balance, tape measure, thermometer, data

*determine that scientists often conduct research as part of an investigation

*identify different tools that scientists use to study objects and properties

*communicate that data is based on measurement and observation, not inferences

*describe that measurements and recording methods need to be accurate because data are used as evidence for scientific explanation

Lesson 4 Why Do Scientists Compare Results?

*observation and investigation both use measurement as a tool

*standardized measures increase accuracy

*it is important to repeat measurements to make sure data is correct and accurate

Lesson 5 What Kinds of Models Do Scientists Use?

Vocabulary: model, two dimensional model, three dimensional model, computer model

*communicate that scientists use different types of models depending upon the subject they are studying.

Unit 2 The Engineering Design Process

*Lessons 1-3 (You are responsible for the textbook and online lessons as well as all Science notebook activities)

Lesson 1 What is an Engineering Design Process?

Vocabulary: engineer, design, prototype

*List the design process steps in order

*Describe how to use the design process to create a solution to a problem

*Engineering Design Process:

1.Find a problem    2. Plan and build     3. Test and improve

4. Redesign     5. Communicate

Lesson 2 How Can You Design a Solution to a Problem?

*You must be familiar with our lab activity where you designed a protective case for the Pringle chip. Understand the steps of the design process for this activity and what you did at each step.

Lesson 3 What is Technology?

Vocabulary: technology, tool

*Identify examples of tools that help people produce, shape, or build things.

*Describe how technology has changed our community.

*Identify the benefits and risks of using technology.

Unit 3 Plants and Animals

Lesson 1 What Are Some Plant Structures?

Vocabulary: Root, Stem, Leaf, Photosynthesis, Chloroplast

*You must be able to correctly identify the parts of a plant and tree and explain what each part does. For example, the roots are usually underground, and they absorb water and help to anchor the plant in place

*Explain photosynthesis in detail.

*Explain the difference between vascular and nonvascular plants

Lesson 2 How Do Plants Reproduce?

Vocabulary: Germination, Maturity, Fertilization, Pollination, Spore

*Recognize that all seed-plant life cycles include germination, maturity, reproduction, and death.

*Identify the stages in the life cycle of a flowering plant.

*Identify the stages in the life cycle of a nonflowering, seed-bearing plant (such as a conifer).

*Describe the role of pollination in the sexual reproduction of seed plants.

*Describe ways that plants are pollinated.

*Describe reproduction in seedless plants.

Lesson 4 How Do Animals Reproduce?

Vocabulary: Complete metamorphosis, Incomplete metamorphosis, Nymph

*Understand that some animals are born live, while others hatch from eggs.

*Understand that some animals go through metamorphosis as part of their life cycle.

*Compare and contrast complete metamorphosis and incomplete metamorphosis, and provide examples of animals that undergo each type.