~~ More March News ~~

** Please send in empty 2 liter soda bottles to be used in Science Class **

Upcoming Dates:

• · 3/22 – 3/26 Nourish to Flourish Theme Week
• · 3/19: Student Council Fantastic Fridays kicks off
• · 3/27 – 4/4: Spring Break - No School

Nourish to Flourish Theme: Nutrition and portion size

Next week, we will have:

1. Eat and wear the color of the day.

Mon: blue/purple (ex. eat grapes and wear purple high heels)

Tues: White (eat a banana and wear white leg warmers and tube socks)

Wed: Red (eat a red apple and wear red MC Hammer pants)

Thurs: yellow/orange (eat carrots and wear orange capri pants)

Fri: green (eat celery and wear green Keds/Tretorns)

2. Student activity: record number of fruits and veggies eaten at lunch.

Student Council: Fantastic Fridays (some upcoming dates)

Stuffed Animal Day (March 19)

Mismatch Day (March 26)

Nerd Day (April 9)

Blast From the Past Day (April 16)

Curriculum Notes:

Writing: In writing class students are currently studying fictional narratives. We have recently been reading a variety of stories in class together in order to prepare for this genre. After reading each story, we have dissected the plot into a variety of components including the grabber, problem/challenge, action of the story, solution, and takeaway ending. This week students have been taking their own story topics and mapping out their ideas in a graphic organizer.

Next week we will begin drafting our stories. Writers will continue to use their skills in organization, elaboration, and sentence fluency when drafting. Students will also strive to become more independent when revising and editing their work. We look forward to having these fictional narratives published when we return from spring break.

Reading: Next week we will continue our study of Unit 4, reading the story, McBroom and the Big Wind. In this Survival Unit, the students will read various fictional and true stories about extreme situations. Our discussions with the different stories will center around how the characters stand up to the situations, and how we might respond if we were in their place. Please see the attached reading newsletters for your child’s homeroom, highlighting the upcoming vocabulary.

Math: Students will be finishing Unit 8 (Perimeter and Area) next week. The main objectives of this unit are to review perimeter and area concepts introduced earlier in Everyday Mathematics; to develop formulas as mathematics models for the areas of rectangles, parallelograms, and triangles; and to explore applications of area with the help of scale drawings.

Social Studies: Mr. Smith and Miss Carter’s classes have started their State Reports. Students will research their chosen state and complete a final report to be turned in on April 15. The first Due Date for the report is: completed research forms, due Thursday March 25. Report requirements and the project timeline were sent home for review, and can also be viewed on Mr. Smith’s blog: http://msmithop97.blogspot.com. There are also state research website links available on the blog.

~ State Reports have begun ~

Mr. Smith's and Miss Carter's classes have started working on State Reports in Social Studies. The first check point (due date) is Thursday, March 25. Report research forms should be completed by then. The final project is due on Thursday, April 15. Check the requirements document and timeline for more details. (see links to these documents in the left margin of this blog)

~ March ~

ISAT week starts this week, Tuesday, March 2.

Please help your child be successful by following the ISAT tips listed below.

The 4th grade testing will continue into next week, Monday and Tuesday, with our final test Tuesday afternoon.

A special Thank You to all of the parents who generously sent in snacks and juice during testing week.

~ February News ~

Upcoming Dates:

• 2/23: Frank Lloyd Home and Studio Tour – chaperones will be needed
• 2/26: PAAC 3rd Annual Night at the Museum – 6:30p.m.
• 2/26: End of 2^nd Trimester
• 3/1: Casimir Pulaski Day – No School
• 3/2: ISAT (Illinois Standards Achievement Test) begin on Tuesday, March 2.
• 3/12: Report Cards Sent Home
• 3/17: Arts Fiesta – 6:30 p.m.
• 3/27 – 4/4: Spring Break - No School

ISAT:

Students in grade 4 will be tested in ISAT Science, Math, and Reading. You can help your child do his/her best on the test by:

• Making sure, if possible, that your child attends school on the days of testing
• Making sure your child gets a good night’s sleep the night before testing
• Providing breakfast on the mornings of testing
• Providing a healthy snack for your child to bring to school
• Reminding your child to ask the teacher questions if he/she does not understand the test directions
• Letting your child know that you have confidence in his/her ability to do his/her best
• Advising your child not to worry about the test – just do the best he/she can

If your child is absent and misses a session, make-up testing will be administered during the week of March 8th.

Curriculum Notes:

Writing: In writing students continue to work on their biographies. Students have learned to research and take notes in their own words. They are now working on organizing their ideas into a four paragraph essay. While drafting these biographies, writers are trying to vary their sentence structure and word choice in order to improve sentence fluency. Students have also practiced citing their sources with proper documentation. A very special thank you to all the parents who came in to assist with this research project. The students enjoyed the extra support, and we appreciated having parents involved in our classroom activities.

Alongside of biographies fourth graders have been studying idioms in class. We encourage you to share various expressions at home, which can then be added to our classroom collections.

Reading: We will continue working on our “From Mystery to Medicine” unit. If your child is reading an Open Court selection next week, please see the attached newsletter. We will be doing some lessons on making inferences early next week. For your child’s next reading project, he/she will be practicing these inferencing skills. To make inferences, good readers must use information from the story in the form of facts, reasons and descriptions. Readers also use personal experiences or knowledge to bring to the stories. The Making Inferences Reading Project will be due on Friday, February 26th. The direction page will come home next Wednesday following our lessons. Your child will need to read a fiction book to complete the project, although he/she does not need to finish the book by the 26th.

Math: Students will be completing Unit 7 (Fractions and Their Uses; Chance and Probability) next week. The three main objectives of the Unit are: 1) to provide reminders, review, and practice of fraction ideas introduced earlier, 2) to develop a good understanding of equivalent fractions, 3) to provide informal activities related to chance and probability. Students continue to practice ISAT test strategy skills in preparation for the coming Math ISAT tests.

Science: The students (Carter’s/Smith’s classes) have been doing investigations in the Earth Materials Unit. They have been working with stream tables to model the water cycle, the effect of rain on land, and how rivers, streams and lakes are formed. They are also studying the four soil components in their stream tables to gain an understanding of ground water and runoff. Through a reading selection, they are learning where drinking water comes from. To increase your child’s understanding and interest in earth science ask him or her to talk about the investigations we are doing at school. If any parents or guardians have an expertise or interest in earth science and would like to share their knowledge with the students, please contact Mrs. Ambrosino.

Social Studies: Mrs. Ambrosino’s and Mrs. Sullivan’s classes are finishing their study of Unit 3 - Chapter 6 Social Studies lessons next week. Unit 3 – the main topic of study has been the Growth and Expansion of the United States, with focus on the Illinois Territory, Illinois becoming a State, and Illinois involvement in the Civil War.