December 20, 2013 Weekly Update

I send you wintery greetings on this Thursday night, as we await the effects of our freezing wet weather on tomorrow's schedule.  Assuming we do have school tomorrow, we have several special plans to carry out - the Rocks and Minerals science test, our 'board game day' during 3rd hour with our first grade buddies, a math contest with Ms. Somers' room, a special present to wrap to take home, and finally a chance to relax and unwind with a wildlife DVD and a treat at day's end.  If we do have to miss tomorrow's classes, we will probably be able to do all these activities during the two days we get back on January 2nd and 3rd.  So stayed tuned to the weather reports and we will see what happens! 

 

 

It is my hope that many pages will be read by our students over the holiday break!  Hopefully plenty of books are already home or went home today, and for tomorrow I had also planned to make sure our readers are well supplied with good books, and extra reading logs sheets.  If anyone runs out of lines on their current reading log, they may continue to note books and pages and time read on the back of their last sheet. That should pretty much be all there is to any 'homework' over vacation time.  Speaking of reading books, I would like to pass along an appeal for help from our 4K teachers.  They have learned that at least two of the 4K rooms which are located at community sites in Middleton do not have even nearly an adequate supply of picture books or early reader level books for a classroom library.  Many of the children who attend these 4K classrooms do not have a good supply of books at home, either, so it is critical that their classrooms have good libraries.  Our West Middleton 4K teachers are asking all of us to collect books to give these rooms.  I wondered that if any of you have time to look through your shelves at home, and find books that you do not mind giving up, would you send them in with your 4th grader?  I will make sure they get to our 4K staff.  Thanks so much for checking!

Today in math our 4th graders wrapped up Unit 5 with their final test.  Also, there are quite a number of our students who have been making some noticeable progress on their basic facts drills, and that has been fun and exciting.  Keep it going all the way to 100%!  This week we also finally completed our class ReadAloud book, "Out of My Mind" by Sharon Draper.  Today we checked out this author's official book website together, and also watched an interview done with her, all about the writing of this book.  The kids were SO interested in what she had to say about the writing of this book, and how she came to develop the character of Melody, who truly became a new friend to all of us as we shared in her story.  Now most of our students want to read more of Sharon Draper's books.  She writes for adults, teens, tweens, and middle elementary aged children, so it might be a good idea for you to check out her official book website before your student begs you to get or borrow any more of her books.  There are two series (about a girl named Sassy, and a set of mystery stories where a club of elementary aged boys follow the clues) that seem very appropriate at this point.

Once we get back to school after the Break, I will fill you in on the latest in each of our subjects.  In the meantime, as I sit here writing to you, I hear ice hitting my window - so we will see what develops by morning.  I wish you all a most wonderful time together with your family and friends over the next two weeks, and I will be thinking of all my 4th graders, looking forward to catching up on all their news and stories when we gather back in room 117 on January 2nd once again.  Happy holidays to you all, Melanie Hannam

December 6, 2013 Weekly Update

December Greetings to our 4H families!  I certainly enjoyed meeting all of our parents and families at conferences a couple of weeks ago!  It was a real pleasure being able to meet with you and your 4th grade around the table to talk over your child's hard work and continuing progress.  I've always believed conversation together is the best way to help our students achieve their best in school, and to update you on their efforts.  You will also be receiving the first trimester report card by the end of next week.  Keep in mind the 'new' (as of last year) method of reporting progress, which is a number system 1 through 4.  A '3' is noted when students demonstrate they have met the grade level expectations with consistent accuracy.  A '2' is noted when they are well on their way to achieving the expectations, but still need more practice or instruction to achieve proficiency.  A '1' is given when skills are beginning to form, but more work is required to meet expectations.  A '4' is reserved for demonstration of skill that consistently rises above the expectations for grade level, where students show they can apply that skill in new situations.  Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions.

In both of our Reading and Writing Workshops, we are moving into the 'informational' phase of our studies.  We are analyzing how to best read and communicate in writing about nonfictional content.  We are examining what text features most effectively relay important factual information, how to pull out the main and supporting facts, and then how to do the same in our writing!  This is new ground for many in 4th grade, but so very valuable for their future years in school.  This week we are also wrapping up our work writing essays with thesis statements and supporting evidence.  This was an obvious stretch for everyone in class, but by breaking down the process step by step each day, I've been able to see their growing awareness of what it takes to write these essays effectively, and I am so very proud of our kids for their efforts and their growth!  I would like to take the time to have them type their final essay drafts, which may be a bit of a painstaking process, but it will give them a chance to practice much needed keyboarding skills.  Our kids are pretty motivated to be able to create a page with their choice of font, etc. so we will take advantage of this positive mindset!  :)  They will be typing their essays in Google Documents, so their papers will be accessible from home computers as well, in case our students want to do more typing at home to help with progress in this endeavor!  Thank you in advance for your patience and encouragement at home in this task!

We are making excellent progress in math.  All groups have begun Unit 5, and this unit will give our 4th graders the chance to practice multi-digit multiplication.  We will be using the traditional method as our main way to solve these problems.  Alternative methods, such as 'lattice', are no longer used after this year, so we are not going to spend more time practicing this.  You will see extra practice sheets coming home so our students can get as comfortable as possible with more involved multiplication problems.  This is when those who know their basic facts thoroughly will be SO glad they do!  For those who still struggle, I encourage continued practice at home whenever possible (long division problems are also coming soon!).

 

Science will finish off this month with the remainder of the Rocks and Minerals unit.  In Social Studies, we have moved off those chilly glaciers and on to the characteristics of different regions in our state.  We have just confirmed plans to take a 4th grade field trip to our State Capitol building and the Wisconsin Historical Museum on February 26th, 2014!  More details will come when we get closer to that date!

This Friday, we have 4 students from our classroom taking part in the annual West Middleton Spelling Bee (1:20pm).  Fourth grade is the first year students can take part, and will include 5th graders.  Top spellers remaining from our Bee will move on to our district Bee which will include 4th through 8th graders.  This first experience for our kids can be a bit stressful, but a valuable experience for future participation, and all of our 4th graders will be there for support! 

Thank you for any Scholastic Book Orders for this month - I will submit our order online during the evening of December 9th. I have been informed that if I order by December 10th, we will get our new books before we leave for the Winter Break.  Box Tops are still piling up in Room 117!  We hope to sneak in with a surprisingly large amount by this Friday's deadline, and blow all the other rooms away!  We will see!  Thank you for any last contributions on Friday this week. We will let you know how it ends up!!  Till next note, stay warm!  Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

November 8, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello, 4H families! Even with the addition of WKCE testing sessions during the past week, we were able to settle into some very productive and satisfying lessons this week. In Reader's Workshop, we got good, uninterrupted time with our favorite books and carried our study of 'character' and 'prediction' to deeper levels. We began our new unit in Writer's Workshop, which is essay writing. Our curriculum starts us off with small steps toward this largely unfamiliar mode of writing for our 4th graders, and we build up each day to a complete essay over at least 2 or 3 weeks. Every day our students figure it out a little more. In Social Studies we have finally been able to start studying about the Ice Age and Glaciers and the Ice Age Trail - and the kids are very enthusiastic about our discussions! We have all begun Unit 4 in math classes. In the 4th grade group we have jumped into decimal work and they have bravely held on with their attention as we practice some very new concepts - I am quite proud of our group. Like I said, it has indeed been a satisfying week of learning!

It has proven to be very beneficial to stretch out our WKCE testing over a 3 week period, using only parts of two days in each of the three weeks. None of our students appears to be feeling too anxious about the testing sessions, and all seem to be giving it their best efforts. They are being good troopers! Next week, our final week, we will be testing once in the morning on Tuesday, and once in the afternoon on Wednesday. Thank you, parents, for our students' excellent attendance!

An event coming up soon: We will be holding 7 rounds of individual classroom spelling bees over the next two weeks, in preparation for the School Bee sometime in December. Our students each get 7 chances to spell their word correctly in the class rounds, and then I send those scores to our Advanced Learning Coordinator, Ms. Weber, who will then choose the top 25 scores among all of our 4th and 5th graders to take part in the School Bee. The words being used for both Bees should be located in your student's Take Home Folder, and it is entirely up to the students, and you, to decide how much time and effort goes into preparing and studying.

Also keep in mind that our November Scholastic Book Orders are due November 15th. If you haven't tried to order online, give it a try - I was so pleased to find out it was quite user friendly when I started ordering for our class this way the first time in September. Otherwise, you may still feel free to send me your paper order form and check to Scholastic Book Club, and I can take care of it from there. I am just so thrilled at the opportunity we've had to grow our classroom library this way, using bonus points from our orders. We have quite the READING CLASS this year, and we use our books more this year than I have ever seen so far. We keep our awesome school librarian, Mrs. Dagitz, very busy as well, with requested books. It's impressive, and so much fun to share out about the great stories our students are discovering. Our students still ask to get as much reading time each day as I am able to provide - yay!

Upcoming events for our calendars are: NO school on Monday, November 11th, the new BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION contest starting next week and lasting till December 6th, parent conferences (including our 4th graders!) on November 19th and 21st, the Book Fair in our West Middleton Library during that same week, and NO school on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. The first trimester ends with that holiday weekend - wow, how did we get to that milestone so quickly?! The first report cards will be ready about two weeks into December. Also, December 4th, Wednesday, is the annual West Middleton Winter Tea!

Stay tuned for continued updates and news notes, and please take time daily to look through your student's Take Home Folder with him or her. I will be seeing you all soon! Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

November 1, 2013 Weekly Update

Happy Halloween Week! I have just looked again at the pictures taken at our classroom holiday celebration - full of 4th grade mummies! I can't wait for you to see these great shots! (There will be a photo album for your to page through when you come for conferences.) While it just poured rain outside, it was an exciting time in room 117 on Halloween as we snacked on goodies, played Spooky Bingo, and lost several of our classmates as they became rolled up in toilet paper! Hilarious! Many, many thanks to the team of 'moms' who plotted and planned such a good time: Melissa C., Mary O., Michele P., Wendy K., Wendy A., Patty S., Lori C., Sara D. Thank you all for your generosity and creativity - wow! The kids won't forget this party!

What a contrast that was to our two very quiet mornings this week when we got a solid start to our WKCE testing. Our students are doing their best and I am very proud of them. Next week we will be testing only on Tuesday morning and Thursday afternoon. The 3rd week will be similar, and I will keep you up to date on days and times. Thank you for your support at home!

Some notices about upcoming events: The School Picture Retake Day is Tuesday, November 5th. We have no school on Monday, November 11th (due to the two evenings on the 19th and 21st when we hold conferences). Beginning November 12th until December 6th, West Middleton will hold a contest for the most BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION collected by classrooms - so start saving and scrounging and snipping!! The PTO will provide the winning classroom with a pizza lunch (we like pizza!). By the way, if you can attend, the next WM PTO meeting is scheduled for Wednesday evening, November 13th, at 7 pm in the Library.

Also, you will soon see the November Scholastic Book Order forms come home. Included this month will be a Holiday Catalog as well. If any parent wants to order books as a surprise for gifts, just let me know and I can set these aside and get them to you. Ordering online is very helpful and quite easy! You will also see the flyer come home about our annual Scholastic Book Fair, held again in the school library. Different this year is the timing - the Fair days will coincide with the week of Parent Conferences - this will be so convenient for your family!

We continue to make steady progress with our math lessons. We are reviewing Unit 3 in 4th grade, and the final test will probably be Monday. Check the Homework Page on the classroom blog to be sure. After our 'Bold Beginnings' writing project and our 'Ghost Story' project, next week our Writer's Workshop leads us into a new unit on writing essays. Stay tuned for more details as we get into those next week. In Social Studies, we are finally going to be able to enter the Ice Age in Wisconsin.

There is always SO much to do in 4th grade! The days just fly by, and our group becomes closer and more cooperative and helpful with each passing week (also more sociable, which we are working hard to channel to the appropriate times!). It is such a pleasure to be together each day! More news soon! Melanie Hannam

October 18, 2013 Weekly Update

Greetings to all of our 4H families.  We were so fortunate on Thursday afternoon - just in time for us, the drizzle ended, the clouds parted, and all 66 fourth graders from WM enjoyed a beautiful, mostly sunny fall afternoon trekking all across Pope Farm Park with gardeners, naturalists, and archaeologists.  Our sessions focused on how the native people who lived right in this area 13,000 years ago were able to thrive and survive.  Our kids were highly engaged in their simulated hunt for necessary supplies, tools, food, and shelter.  It was a memorable afternoon!  Thank you again for coming with us:  Cindy M., Hana A., Betty S., Jamie F., Wendy A. - it was fun sharing this experience together.

 

Back in the classroom, we are wrapping up another writing project, focusing on strong beginnings and significant endings.  In reading we have been delving into tips and strategies for knowing the characters in our books more deeply, and therefore, our understanding and our engagement in our reading also becomes deeper.  Math class has all groups beginning Unit 3 this week.  For the 4th grade students, the unit focuses on all aspects of multiplication - not only becoming more accurate with the facts, but also understanding factors, multiples, prime and composite numbers, division, and number sentences.  Social studies continues to give us opportunities to become familiar with our state's rivers, lakes, boundaries, neighbors, major cities, and landmarks.  We are leading up to a big study of the glacial age and how it has affected Wisconsin.  Science with Mrs. Bertz has been full of experiments with rocks and minerals.

 

Right along with all of our studies comes the development of good work habits and the goal of increasing the ability of each of our students to become organized and meet deadlines for completed assignments. Some of our students are not taking advantage of good strategies for keeping track of papers and due dates, such as using their planner and keeping their Take Home Folder organized.  I would like our 4th graders to be in charge of their folders, and their 'to do' lists in their planners, supported by you.  Sitting together for 5 minutes each day/evening after school and allowing your child to take you through their papers (what needs to stay home, what needs your attention, what needs to remain in the folder, what needs to go back to school) is to be their responsibility - please allow them to be in charge.  Let them tell you what is due and when, so that it remains their job, and not yours - thank you!  :)  It is the same with their reading log and their math books - you can support them best by asking them to show you what they are doing.

 

You have probably heard about the "Pride Paws" being handed out all through West Middleton.  Students earn these slips of paper whenever a staff member observes them demonstrating safe, responsible, and respectful behavior anywhere in and around school. All classes are focusing on hallway performance now through November.  Starting this week, Willy's Warehouse will be open for business!  Pride Paws are saved and 'spent' every two weeks at our new school store - Willy's Warehouse!  Orders will be submitted every other Friday, and within the next week, students will receive their purchased 'merchandise' which will usually go right into backpacks to be taken home.  The kids are pretty excited about it.

 

I am just about ready to send home the entire list of our Parent/Student/Teacher Conference schedule for November 19th and 21st.  This will confirm everyone's time, and if you encounter a problem with your time, you might be able to switch with another family if necessary.  Do let me know if you have any changing circumstances or questions.  Please remember that next week is a short week of school, with no classes on Thursday and Friday.  In addition, I have been invited to be a member of a team from our school who will attend seminars on 5 different days throughout the school year on 'The Culturally Responsive Classroom' - and the first day will be Tuesday, October 22nd.  Therefore, Mrs. Connie Johnston will be our guest teacher that day.

 

The following week - and the last week of the month already! - includes Halloween.  I will be looking for any parents who might like to plan a little celebration for the last 40 minutes of the day on Thursday, October 31st - some goodies to eat, an activity like a craft or a game or two...  whatever you might dream up!  Keep it in mind, and if I hear from you, I will put you in touch with others who have responded, and you may plan away!  Thank you, thank you!

 

Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

October 11, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello, 4H families!  This past week has been another full and busy one in Room 117.  In Writer's Workshop, we have organized our Writing Binders by inserting our first section with a cover sheet entitled "My Personal Narratives".  Now we have launched into analyzing what makes for a 'grabbing' story lead, and using dozens of books from our library, our class brainstormed a wonderful list of different techniques for story beginnings.  We are also identifying story endings that have meaning and relate back to the idea of the story (so there will be no more "and then we drove home and went to bed. The End.")  Our students created at least six original ways to begin a story, picked out their favorite one, and are now writing the rest of the story - so those will be fun to share next week.

 

We came to a good point in Reader's Workshop this week to stop and closely examine those Reading Logs that everyone has been filling out daily both at home and at school.  There is much to discover about each of our 'reading lives' as we look at the data we are collecting on these sheets.  Ask your 4th grader what they are noticing about their reading habits so far this year!  During conferences, we will take another look together at these logs.  We began our new Class Read Aloud book, "Out of My Mind" by Sharon Draper - and it has pulled us in from the first page.  It is such an enlightening story - parents, if you get a chance to read a copy, you will certainly enjoy this book as well!  The new thoughts and realizations about what it must be like to be 'Melody', the main character, are just tumbling out of our kids, and our class discussions get deeper by the day.  Ask your 4th grader to explain a bit about this story so far - it will be fun to hear their impressions!

 

In Social Studies, we have been traveling all over Wisconsin, using state road maps.  Along with brushing up on map skills, we are becoming familiar with locations of major cities, highways, rivers and lakes, boundaries, and attractions all over our state.  This is leading us into our deeper study of Wisconsin landforms, the history of the glaciers, and then how this land became settled.  Our field trip to Pope Farm Park next week on Thursday afternoon will be perfectly timed to enhance our study.  There are 3 parents who have let me know they would like to join us - please do email me if you also can come and spend from 12:30 to 2:30 at the Park with us.  It will be a fun activity to share with your child and the naturalists and historians who will lead us in our 'adventures'.  We will not change our normal school lunch plans for this trip - your child may still bring their own lunch or order the hot lunch like any other day.  We will just go down to the lunchroom 5 to 10 minutes earlier than usual that day, so we may board our buses by 12:20.  I am told we can all meet at the LOWER parking lot of the Park, not the higher lot.  

 

All of our math students are wrapping up Unit 2 with final tests (4th graders - this Friday / 5th graders - next Monday).  Everyone is being encouraged to keep practicing those basic facts!  Many are showing some steady improvement, but we need to see even more.  Students in my 4th grade group are keeping track of their results each week on the back pages of their Studylink books, so ask them to show you how those numbers are looking - are they climbing, or plateauing?  Thank you for supporting practice time at home  - it makes all the difference.

 

We had an exciting surprise this week - we have welcomed a new girl to our 4H family!  Cecelia D. has joined us from a Madison elementary school, and everyone has been so welcoming and helpful in making her feel comfortable and at home with us.  I am so proud of our friendly and thoughtful classmates!

 

On Friday this week, you will find a Parent Conference Sign-Up Sheet in your student's Take Home Folder.  Please give it some thought, check calendars, and mark your 1st, 2nd, 3rd choices for time slots, and then I will confirm one of those times with you once I hear back from everyone.  Thanks so much.  This weekend I will place any final orders for our October Scholastic Book Orders online.  If you still want to order online, feel free - I can wait till Sunday to do my part.  Just a heads up - early in November I will be sending home the usual order forms for that month and there will also be an extra catalog form for Gift Books for the holidays. 

 

I look forward to seeing some of you at Pope Farm Park next week - hope we still have some of the gorgeous weather we had this week!  As always, feel free to email me anything you wonder about or need to inform me.  Our kids are having some awesome days in 4th grade - it's been so much fun!  Melanie Hannam   

October 4, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello to our 4th grade families!  Today some of our students remarked, "It's Thursday already?!"  This week did seem to go by especially quickly, partly due to our beautiful Tuesday afternoon touring the grounds of the World Dairy Expo in Madison.  We couldn't have ordered a more comfortable day to wander through immaculate cow barns, milking parlors, and dairy tents.  It was so much fun to watch our kids look around in awe at sights quite new to most of them.  They especially couldn't get enough of watching and identifying the different breeds of perfectly groomed cows at every turn, and all of us were exclaiming at their SIZE - when we get within arm's reach of these gentle but powerful animals, we realize just how massive they are!  I want to again thank our terrific chaperones for coming along and keeping us together:  Mary O., Patty S., Lisa B., Kim P., Jamie F., and Rufino A.  Our students did a most wonderful job with listening to the many guides who were full of information, and I heard many intelligent questions being asked, as well.  Way to go, fourth graders!   We all said we wished we could take a field trip for every unit we cover in social studies and science this year!

 

On October 17th, we do have another opportunity for a couple of hours away from the classroom again - thanks to our school district.  From 12:30 to 2:30 that day, all 3 of our classrooms are invited to Pope Farm Park on Old Sauk Road for a hands-on program with guides, naturalists, and historians.  Three parents have volunteered so far to join our class there that day - please let me know if you would like to come, too.  We can have as many parents with us as we'd like - you are most welcome!  See the info half of your permission slip for a refresher on all the details (all parent signatures have already been turned in - thank you!)

 

Coming home this Friday, October 4th:  The October Scholastic Book Order forms - remember that you may order through me and send me a check made to Scholastic Book Club with your order form, or you may order directly online (which has proven to be very easy and convenient!).  We are setting a deadline for our order this month of Friday, October 11th.  Also coming home this Friday is a small laminated login card attached to an information sheet about how you and your student can access "Everyday Math Online".  Your 4th grader can find games and other activities on this site which will help them practice basic facts, and other math concepts.  Take a look and give it a try!  Almost all of our math students, whether they attend the 4th grade or the 5th grade class in math, need more practice with accuracy and recall of their basic facts - this is another fun way to get that practice.

 

Friday, October 4th, is also the date for the PTO-sponsored West Middleton Fall Dance in the gym from 6 to 8 pm!  This event also includes a Pumpkin Sale.  These pumpkins got delivered to our school entryway this afternoon, and what a collection of huge, perfect pumpkins they are!  It creates an atmosphere of instant Autumn at school.

 

Very soon I will send you a sheet with a list of time slots for our two parent/student/teacher conference evenings on November 19th and 21st.  You will have the chance to mark your first, second, and third choice for times, and I will confirm those with you after hearing from everyone.  It is so valuable for our students to be present as we discuss their goals and progress, so hopefully there will be time slots that work for everyone's schedules.

 

This week we are over the halfway point in Unit 2 for math already and it is going so well!  We are polishing off our first three personal narrative writing projects and organizing them into those binders which will collect all of our 4th grade writing this year (a real keepsake).  In reading class we have been using both our personal reading books and our class read-aloud book, "Stone Fox" to practice reading "Stronger, Faster, Longer", "reading ourselves awake" and to read "like the words are GOLD!"   Next week we shift our social studies emphasis to Wisconsin's Ice Age history and the resulting landforms, along with adding to our mapping skills, and in science, Mrs. Bertz has our students deep into experiments with Rocks.

 

One last thing - and not the least thing!  Our class has been very motivated to demonstrate orderly and respectful behavior in ALL of their classes throughout the building.  We have been collecting 'compliments' from teachers and other staff members and keeping track!  We set ourselves a target of 25 positive remarks and today we reached our goal!  Therefore, we have voted that the way we most want to celebrate our achievement is to enjoy a 'read-in' day, which will take place next week on Friday, October 11.  On this day, we may each bring in a small blanket or pillow, wear 'comfy' clothing and/or slippers in the classroom, and read our way through our book collections.  We will also munch (Mr.!) Hannam's special carmel corn, and watch the movie version of the book we will have completed by then, "Stone Fox" (produced for NBC back in 1987!).  We just wanted to let you know about this special day ahead of time!  They have earned it - and I love their idea for 'all day stamina' with their books, of course!

 

We'll let you know how everything goes next week!  Until then, Melanie Hannam   

September 27, 2013 Weekly Update

Greetings to our 4H families! It has been such a satisfying week! Our kids have been writing and reading up a storm this week. Our Writer's Workshop hour is first thing in the morning, and maybe this is proving to be well timed. We have had three classes in particular this week where it was close to pin drop quiet for as long as 45 minutes while everyone worked on their 3 personal narrative pieces. The only sounds were pencils scratching on paper and my editing conferences with individuals. Our 4th graders are making beautiful progress with their writing stamina just like they have with their reading. I think you will really enjoy reading what your child has chosen to write about concerning important people, moments shared, places, and objects they value in their lives.

In our Reader's Workshop, the discussions about our books and favorite authors and what makes for 'wide-awake' reading have been extremely stimulating for all of us! We have so many in our class that practically eat books for dinner, and they are recommending good books to me as much as I am guiding them! Almost everyone in our class allows themselves to get excited about analyzing characters and events during our discussions, and it is so much fun to listen to everyone share their thoughts and opinions. We finished our first class read-aloud book, The Lemonade War, last Friday, and this week we started Stone Fox together. This is prized time in our classroom along with 'stamina' time when we all dig into our current favorite book. We will soon also begin reading Out Of My Mind, by Sharon Draper, which is this year's Global Read Aloud book. We will be reading through this special story at the same pace and time frame as thousands of other upper elementary students from all over the world!

Both of our 4th and 5th grade math students are past that first unit test, and have begun the first assignments for Unit 2. Thank you for returning the 4th grade tests with your signature. This is the second year we are using the grading system using the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 - so hopefully you are familiar with it. We assign these numbers to each of the goal concepts in Everyday Math, which are aligned with the Common Core Standards. I award a '3' whenever proficiency is demonstrated, meaning they are meeting all expectations. A '2' is given where they show they are well on their way to proficiency, with some need for some extra practice or improved accuracy. A '1' is given when beginning skills are still developing. I tend to reserve that '4' for report cards when our students have been able to show consistently over time a high level of mastery and are able to apply a concept to another situation. If you ever want to discuss this system, or see a written summary of each level in more detail, just let me know. Conference time will also give us a chance to talk about it as well.

Somehow we also managed this past week to fit in some reading assessments, our first spelling assignments, and our schoolwide tie dye shirt project. I hope you were all able to finish the process at home without too much hassle! The entire fourth grade is encouraged to wear their new shirts next Tuesday when we go on our first field trip. All plans are in place to attend the World Dairy Expo. We have 5 moms who volunteered to come along on Tuesday - many thanks! Our social studies classes have been full of talk about each of the main cow breeds we hope to identify at the Expo. We are also learning about the bigger picture of Wisconsin agriculture, and we opened some eyes in our discussions about cranberries, soybeans, corn silage, Christmas trees, ginseng, mink pelts, baitfish, cucumbers for pickles, carrots, green peas, potatoes, maple sugar, tart cherries....and much more... who knew?!

Thank you for all your support as your student brings home assignments and notices about events and projects. We'll let you know all about our trip next week, and maybe share some pictures as well! Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

September 20, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello again to our 4H families!  I have been collecting a list all week with news to share with you.  I must tell you how much I have enjoyed reading your answers to the questionnaire I asked you to fill out for your 4th graders.  It has helped me greatly in understanding how your child learns and what works best for each one of them in the classroom.  Each day that we spend together on our lessons, projects, and most of all, our classroom discussions, we all become better acquainted, and the respect and the community in our room develops more strongly. It is so much fun to be a part of this group.

 

We have had a full and satisfying week as we work to make every minute count.  Our first writing projects are being edited now in Writer's Workshop - we have been writing personal narratives about sharing a memorable experience with someone important in our lives. We have also been describing a special place in which we love to spend time and describing why it is so special.  Our students are building up their writing stamina daily, just as they are happily building up their reading stamina.  Many identify our 'pin drop quiet' reading sessions as a highlight of their days (music to this teacher's ears!).  I am asking them to keep a more detailed record of their reading time and progress this year in their reading logs, so that they can learn to analyze what kinds of books are just right for them, and what is working to make their 'reading life' the best that it can be.  While they get lost in their books during these sessions, I am able to meet with individuals and small groups to listen to them read and conference about how to improve their comprehension skills.  Everyone is pushing for a whole day of reading sometime - we just may try that soon!

 

We have sent out our first Scholastic Book Club orders, and I just heard today that our box has shipped already!  My first attempt to handle our entire order online worked beautifully, so now I am a fan - thanks to all the parents who placed your own orders online and got me started!  Of course, families may always send me the usual paper order forms and checks to school, and I can still place those orders online and just send the checks through the mail.  We will have the opportunity to order through Scholastic each month of the school year.  We can't wait to get our own brand new books, and also add new books from our bonus points to our classroom library.  Thank you!

 

In math class, the 5th grade students have their first unit test on Monday, and our 4th grade (along with our six 3rd graders) math test will be next Tuesday.  The first unit was actually a lot of fun, increasing knowledge of geometry.  Hopefully you are seeing both the Journal and the Studylinks coming home every day, even if the assignment was able to be completed in class that day.  I love hearing that your student is able to explain the new concepts to you.  When they bring home each of their unit tests to show you, there will be a cover sheet summarizing their results.  This cover sheet will have a place for your signature to show that you have seen it, and then I request that these test pages and cover sheet all come back to school as promptly as possible.  We save all of our tests in a math folder, and it is excellent documentation of your child's progress as well as a great record of areas that need more practice.  You will end up with that entire folder at year's end, and it provides a perfect summary of 4th grade skills to perhaps keep brushed up on for the next year.  Thank you for your signature and return.

 

We began doing our 3 minute drills this week on basic math facts.  The goal is to correctly answer all 100 basic facts for each of the 4 operations within 3 minutes.  This exercise has revealed that most of our students do need to put in some extra time almost every single evening to practice facts!  Even 10 minutes extra each day can result in sharply increasing scores - you can use the sheets in plastic that came home, flashcards, dice, computer games...  Thank you for making this a priority along with your student.  The Everyday Math program in 4th and 5th grade assumes that students at this level have mastery of their basic facts - it is essential to success in handling the new concepts we cover every day.

 

The first spelling list came home this week.  Most of our weekly lists will be composed of words that our 4th graders and I find in our reading and want to use in our writing - words that they actually want to use and read at this stage in their lives.  There will be a variety of ways to practice their lists, and test dates will generally happen about a week after first getting the new list.  Each student is to keep their 'master copy' in their Take Home Folders - this way, their word list is always with them at home and at school!

 

We finally have our dates and times set for TWO field trips in October!  This week Friday, permission slips for both trips are coming home.  The information you need to know is described on each of the slips.  Please keep the top half of these papers for yourself, and return the bottom half with your signature.  We will attend the World Dairy Expo at the Alliant Energy grounds on October 1st from 12:00 noon to about 2:15 pm.  On October 17th, we will be bused to nearby Pope Farm Park to attend a special hands-on program provided by MCPASD to every 4th grade class in our district.  We will be there from 12:30 to 2:30 that day.  See the permission slips about how we will handle lunch - we will eat earlier in our classroom with sack lunches either ordered through Lunch Express, or sack lunches brought from home.  Take note that we do have three students in our room this year who have nut allergies.

 

If you are interested in chaperoning one or both of these trips, just send me an email!  ALL interested parents are welcome on both trips - the more the merrier!  You will be driving yourselves to these destinations (usually carpooling to the World Dairy Expo).  I hope many of you can join us - these are fun trips.  Once I have my list of parent chaperones, I will contact you with more details.

 

There is so much to tell you, but I'd better stop here for now.  Keep in mind that we are in the midst of MAPS testing (Measures of Academic Progress) - computerized assessments for math and reading done 3 times in the school year, as well as other Reading Assessments individually.  We tie dye our school t-shirts on Monday, September 23rd - watch for them to come home with special washing instructions.  On Friday, October 4th, from 6 to 8 pm, the Back To School Fall Dance and Pumpkin Sale will be held at West Middleton.  I will keep you posted on all news and details and activities each week, and remember to check our classroom blog for calendar items, daily schedule, and the HOMEWORK PAGE, updated daily!  Write me anytime!  Till next note, we are very happy in 4th grade!  Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

September 11, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello to all of our "4H" families!  I have finally been able to enter in the classroom email addresses for our new group for this year.  If you find that you would prefer receiving my updates and notes to any additional email addresses for your family (or if you would like me to delete any addresses included on this list), please do let me know!  I am happy to adjust this list so it is most convenient for you.  I will also put this note on the main page of our classroom blog (see the address below my name), in case you might not get this email but are able to see the blog page.  All of my newsletters will be emailed to you as well as copied onto the blog page (apologies for getting my notes twice, in many cases - just trying to cover all bases!). 

 

I have much news to share with you, and I have been anxious to begin communicating with you.  I promise not to bombard you with everything all at once.  I will start with the most immediate items.  First of all, I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be getting to know your 4th graders.  We are off to just an excellent start - this is a wonderful group!  Everyone agrees that our days are flying by so far, and it appears all are enjoying our activities and lessons.  I am very conscious of making optimum use of every minute we have together each day - there is so much to learn and experience this year!  As we go through these first weeks, I will fill you in on how we handle the content for each subject of the day.  I welcome any questions from you - anytime!

 

As you saw from the order forms that came home last Friday, we have the opportunity to order our first books from Scholastic Book Clubs (new name this year).  I will send home forms each month.  This year I want to begin doing our orders online - and parents have the chance to order online as well, instead of ordering through me.  You will need a "class activation code" if you place your own order - and our class will still be able to earn bonus points from your orders to get more books for our classroom library.  The website is:  https://orders.scholastic.com/MFRC8

(the last 5 digits are the activation code for our class).  Let me know if you have any problems doing this - I am learning, too.  You can still send in to me at school your check to Scholastic Book Clubs with your order form, if you prefer.

 

In 4th grade we actually have TWO field trips in October already!  We like to attend the World Dairy Expo each year at the Alliant Energy Center grounds, because it ties in so well with our study of Wisconsin and a major industry in our state.  This event is always during the first week of October, and we haven't been informed yet if our tour this year will be on October 1st or 2nd.  I will let you know as soon as I know!  I will be looking for any number of chaperones who would like to join us, so think about coming - we go for 2.5 hours in the early afternoon.  I've told our students that they will never see such clean and pampered cows anywhere else - ever!   Our school district also provides all 4th grade classes the opportunity to take a trip to nearby Pope Farm Park for two hours during the week of October 14th - again, I will let you know the date and time assigned to us as soon as I find out.  Naturalists, historians, archeologists, and geologists all meet us there to lead us in classes and hands-on activities about Wisconsin history, native people, landforms, rocks, etc.  I will let you know when I am ready to collect chaperone names, but I wanted to give you a heads up about the possibilities coming up.

 

I will stop here, and please stay tuned for more information very soon.  If you'd like to send me a quick reply that you received this email okay, or if I need to know any changes, feel free to email me.  I look forward to communicating closely with you throughout the year so your student has the best 4th grade year possible.  Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

WELCOME TO FOURTH GRADE - 2013 - 2014!

Hello to all our new 4th grade families! 

I am very much looking forward to getting acquainted with all of my new students, and to meet you, their families! 

All students should bring their backpacks with their supplies into our classroom on Tuesday morning when they get to Room 117.  We will be organizing off and on all day!  Don't forget to bring your current or favorite reading book for the first day of school.

On Thursday evening, September 5th, all families are invited to come visit the classrooms from 4:30 to 6:30 pm.  It will be another chance to get better acquainted, and I will have some information to give parents.

This blog site is one good way to stay connected!  Each day I will be updating the homework list on the Homework Page, there is a page to view our Daily Schedule, and there is also a Google Calendar I will update with upcoming events.  The Home Page will provide you with my weekly newsletter, where you will be kept up to date on all our hard work - and fun together!

See you all very soon!  Melanie Hannam

May 31, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello, dear 4th grade families of 2012-2013, we have arrived at the final week of this school year.  This milestone always seems so far in the future, and then it comes so quickly, and just like that we have to bring our units of study to a close, ready or not!  I have just a few hundred things I still would have liked to cover with our kids!!  :)  Learning does truly never end, no matter what a school calendar tells us.  Hopefully, that message has been one our students have come to realize better this year.

 

We will start off our final week with a bang - our day long visit to the Cave of the Mounds.  We will have a full dozen parents coming with our class, so that will be lots of fun!  The weather forecast is looking quite promising!  I asked the students to write this list in their assignment notebooks:  Wear our grade's tie dye or blue shirts if possible, bring a light jacket or sweatshirt for the 50 degree cave, wear sturdy shoes for some hiking and slippery, damp surfaces, bring a completely disposable lunch (chaperones, don't forget your own!).  If anyone wants to bring a water bottle, cap, camera, or money, it is their own responsibility to keep track of these items.  There will be a short time to browse the gift shop.  We will be meeting with guides to learn the history of this remarkable site, hike above ground to see signs of the cave, see a short video before entering the cave, which will be about a 45 minute tour, pan for gold, and have time for a picnic lunch and runaround time outside on grass with picnic tables.  Note: if any chaperones would have a large cooler they could stow in their car for our lunches, that would help!   If you do bring a cooler along, bring it along into the classroom at 8:35, and we can fill them with our lunch bags.  Thank you! 

 

Then on Tuesday, we have more special plans.  Don't put the good hiking shoes away - after lunch we will board buses to get to Pope Farm Park on Old Sauk Road by noon.  Naturalists and geologists will lead us on an exploration of glacial landforms and evidence of Wisconsin's past - more hiking! - until 2:15 pm.  We have six parents who have committed to joining us there, and if any parent would still like to come meet us there, feel free!  No admission, no limit - just a great and scenic afternoon hike (with 73 fourth graders - ha!).  AND for our class we have one last very special lunch in Room 117 that day -- at 11:00, Luigi's dad is bringing in his amazing pizzas for us from Café Porta Alba!  Woohoo - can't wait!  Thank you so very much!  I will treat the class to Izzies to go with the pizzas.  Anyone up for baking some cookies for our dessert?

 

Next week is also our building-wide Celebration Week.  In honor of the last week of all of our hard work of the year practicing the West Middleton Way of Being Safe, Respectful, Responsible, and a Learner, we will wear neon clothing on Tuesday, dress like twins or triplets with friends on Wednesday, and wear Badger colors on Thursday, along with a special surprise for everyone at school Thursday afternoon during the last hour of classes.

 

In between all these special events, our class will find time to organize our papers, projects, and materials.  These items will come home a little each day.  A special note about the Everyday Math books coming home (2 journals, 1 studylink, and a yellow folder containing all unit tests and reviews):  I encourage you to save these over the summer.  If you are able to spend periodic time over the summer to help your student practice the skills contained on these pages, it will give your student an excellent start to next year's math lessons.  Pay particular attention to staying practiced on the basic facts for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.  Everyone gets 'rusty' in a big hurry if they don't keep using them.  It will be key in 5th grade to know their basic facts. 

 

Next week we will share our beautiful Informational Booklets with each other and also a class of 2nd graders, have a few math contests reviewing some of our skills, see a couple more National Geographic presentations on our country's breathtaking National Parks, teach each other the fantastic Space Factoids we have been collecting in Science, take one last WM Prairie Walk, and do some reflecting on what has meant the most to us during this past year of great growth and hard work.

 

I take this opportunity to tell you most sincerely that it has been a huge privilege to work with each and every one of your children - and you, the parents! - for this important 4th grade year.  I can't tell you how much I have enjoyed seeing the progress your child has made in so many ways, and how much I have enjoyed getting to know you and your families.  I will miss our visits and our teamwork!  I feel lucky that at least you will all be around next year yet, and I can see you and the kids in the hallways - the last year that will happen, since next year's 4th graders will start the move to middle school for 5th grade.  Your feedback and support and thoughtfulness has made my role as a classroom teacher even more of a pleasure.  Thank you!!  Melanie Hannam

May 17, 2013 Weekly Update

 

The countdown to year's end is on, but we have lots left to accomplish in 4th grade!  You should find the letter and permission slip for our June 3rd field trip to Cave of the Mounds in your student's Take Home Folder.  Keep all the info and send back the half sheet with your signature.  Thanks a lot.  If you would still like to join us on this day, you are most welcome - just let me know.  I have asked the kids to talk over with you if they should bring their own completely disposable sack lunches for this day, or if you want them to buy the sack lunch through Lunch Express at school.  We will have to fill out forms for Ms. Kay by Tuesday if we want to order a lunch.

 

Another permission slip will come home in the next couple of days!  This one is for our afternoon on June 4th at Pope Farm Park.  The naturalists have gone to great effort to accommodate our classes and I think it will be a very special tour and hands-on experience for all of us.  Again, any number of parents are welcome to join us, so just let me know.  The buses will get us to the Park by noon that day, and we will be back to school by 2:30.  See the permission slip info to find out all the details.  Your signature will be needed promptly for this trip as well.  Thank you!

 

Back in the classroom, we have spent nearly every day in the past week deeply involved in up to hour-long sessions with our new Chromebooks, doing research for our Informational Booklets.  Thanks so much for your support at home with computer time and printing jobs.  This coming week, we will be working on creating and constructing our book pages.  The kids have been excited to do their searches for info on the Chromebooks, and we have all been teaching each other how to find facts, pictures, save and share documents, etc.  They have taught me a number of tricks and shortcuts!

 

In 4th grade math, we are halfway through Unit 11 already.  In a few short days, look for the unit review sheets which will prepare everyone for our last unit math test within the next week.  We are learning about metric weights, volume and capacity, three dimensional polyhedrons, and subtracting with negative numbers.  Quite a mix of concepts!

 

Social Studies has had us roaming the western states lately, and comparing the extremes of geography and conditions in this region.  Thanks to some high quality National Geographic DVD presentations, within three days we explored the depths of Death Valley in California all the way up to the highest peak in Denali National Park in Alaska.  Fascinating!  We will still find time to do more exploring in our final science unit during the next two weeks when we delve into a study of our Solar System.  We are running out of time with so much to discover, but we are going to pack in as much learning as we can right up to the very last days!  

May 10, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello to all!  I must say, it was a special week of feeling appreciated!  I came to our classroom Monday morning with a newly decorated door crawling with personalized little Pac Man ghosties - it was "a Maze ing".  Thank you to the creative moms who put this all together - Trisha P. and Stephanie R.  In addition, our staff was very well fed all week long with breakfast, desserts, and two incredible lunches.  I love getting handwritten notes from our kids - they are precious.  Thank you all!

 

Speaking of gifts, your son or daughter will need to do some explaining when Mom opens her decorated envelope for Mother's Day.  We 4th grade teachers tried something new this year - and we will all have to wait and see if this is a successful venture.  I can't explain any more now, in case you have to wait till Sunday to see what I'm referring to!  I told the kids that an additional gift would be if they took responsibility for the 'care' of this gift... Let me know if anyone experiences any successful 'sprouting'!

 

We have already conquered Unit 10 in math, and took the final test today.  Watch for the test next week to sign and return.  We will begin Unit 11 on Monday. We will continue to meet in all of our math groups, 4th and 5th, through Friday, May 31st. 

 

Our Writing Project for creating Informational Booklets on a topic of interest, in order to teach other classmates, has been a major activity this past week.  We have been taking advantage of the new Chromebooks in our school, which are like small laptops.  At the same time, everyone can do research for their topic and take notes, saving articles and pictures to their own Google Drive accounts.  We cannot print from the Chromebooks, but by saving their material in Google Docs, they can access this material at computers in our computer lab, or at home, and get pictures printed from there.  I have been encouraging our students to take time at home to research, take notes, and print pictures in addition to time at school.  There is never enough time to do it all in class.  The kids love working with the Chromebooks, and the time we have them goes way too fast.  Next week we will have to decide on a deadline for note-taking, and get to the process of creating their booklets.  Thank you for helping your student get time on a home computer, if possible, to gather information for their note cards.  If any parent would like to come in for 45 to 60 minutes one or two days next week, to help some of our students gather information and take notes, that would be so very helpful.  It is difficult for me to get to everyone who needs assistance with notes and printing.  Just email me if you can help, and we can look at times and days.  Thank you! 

 

An update on upcoming field trips:  We are all set to spend the full school day on Monday, June 3rd, at the Cave of the Mounds.  Any and all parents who want to spend the day with us at this special place can do so, and follow our buses in your cars.  Some of you have let me know you plan to come - please email me if you want to chaperone, too.  Details with a permission slip are coming home soon.  Our other outing was to be for the morning of June 4th at Pope Farm Park.  That day needed to be rescheduled due to the conflict with the MHS Senior Class trip (no buses available for us!).  However, we got rescheduled to June 3rd!  At this time, I am trying to coordinate new plans with one of the naturalists with the Pope Farm Program, so I will let you all know as soon as I can if we can still make something work.  As it is now, June 4th will be a regular day in class for us.

 

Our final Scholastic Book Order is due this Monday, May 13th.  Another deadline is Friday, May 17th, the last day we collect Box Tops and Food Donations toward our building goal of 12,000 total items.  We send Mr. Macklem to the West Middleton rooftop for a day if we succeed!  Also, if you have a 4th grader interested in performing in a 4th grade (only) talent show on the afternoon of May 31st, the deadline for turning in audition/permission slips is Wednesday, May 15th. 

 

May you enjoy family time this Mother's Day weekend!  Melanie

May 3, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello, again, everyone.  This week we went from a couple of days in shorts and t-shirts for recess, to being stuck back inside with sweatshirts being pulled on and a 40 degree rainfall!  

 

We took two days in fourth grade math to complete Unit 9's final test, to make sure there was enough time to catch any careless mistakes or misreading of directions, which does plague many of our students.  Now we are exploring reflections and lines of symmetry in Unit 10, along with work on adding and subtracting negative numbers.  This unit is quite a bit shorter than the others, so we will be reviewing our lessons by the end of next week already in preparation for the final test there.  We will keep you posted on the exact date for that.

 

This week's spelling list may be more difficult for many, so I am giving everyone some extra days to practice.  The test will be next Wednesday.  The stories our students are creating, using these spelling words, are quite entertaining and fun - and they get the chance to let their imaginations roam along some unusual routes in trying to use all their words.  In Writer's Workshop, we did not get real far in our note taking this first week for our Informational Booklets.  We needed to take two class periods to complete this year's final and third round of MAPS assessments in the computer lab for math and reading.  Many of our students are becoming noticeably more comfortable using the computer for these assessments, and they are visibly gaining confidence in how they are answering as well.  We all feel great that we have completed these assessments for the year!

 

Now that our first Book Clubs have finished their books, we have given ourselves the chance to trade and exchange, so that students interested in reading one of the other books get the opportunity to do that.  We traded around today.  We will be doing more reflecting on our reading in our Thoughtful Logs with these.  In Social Studies, we are winding up our exploration of the Midwest Region of the U.S., and just like Lewis and Clark, we are pushing westward!  I cannot wait for the perfect time in this unit to show our students some National Geographic DVD's of our beautiful National Parks.  Watch out - you may get some requests for major family trips! 

 

On Monday at lunchtime, all of West Middleton's 4th graders get treated to a small dish of Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt!  Woohoo!  We won the contest for best behavior in the lunchroom over a two week period earlier in April!  We've come a long way!

 

Early next week, your student will bring home the last monthly Scholastic Book Order form of the school year.  We'll give it a week's time to turn them back in, so I can get our order out in time to receive our new books before the last week of school.

 

Keep in mind that we are planning our day away at the Cave of the Mounds on Monday, June 3rd.  If you are interested in chaperoning, just let me know.  The other trip, to Pope Farm Park for a half day, is now questionable - I will keep you informed.  It was scheduled by the district on the same day as the Senior Class Trip, and buses won't be available that day!  So stay tuned on the status of that one!

 

As notes of importance come up during this last month of school, I will email you all and keep you up to date.  We will be quite busy trying to get all the learning in that we can during our rapidly dwindling time together in fourth grade! 

April 26, 2013 Weekly Update

Dear 4H Families - I told our 4th graders that I would start my note right off with an invitation for you to look into their Take Home Folders today to find the finished drafts of their "Memoirs".  Hopefully they have already presented you with their precious memory stories.  I was so touched by these stories, and where our students were able to express what these memories meant to them, it was quite special (thinking more like a parent here than a teacher, I must admit!).  These are definitely projects worth putting in the "save till they're grown up" box.  I told the kids that they may have the option of keeping these at home now, or if they do return it to school after you've read them, we will be putting them in our big lime green binders where we are saving all of their 4th grade writing projects to take home at the end of the year.  Enjoy this little window into what's important in your son or daughter's memory so far - maybe some of you are in for a surprise!

 

I hope you haven't minded getting a little tree taking up space first in your refrigerator, and soon hopefully, somewhere in your yard, this week!  Give the kids the job of keeping them watered and safe from lawn mowers this first summer, and may these roots and sprigs grow into beautiful evergreens as your children grow as well.  Well, this is certainly a sentimental beginning to this week's update!

 

On to other more businesslike topics:  We have completed Unit 9 in 4th grade math, so on Monday we will take the final unit test.  We went over the Review problems in class today, and I instructed everyone to take these home this weekend so that they can use them for more practice.  These examples closely match the items on our test.

 

Our Writer's Workshop has been all about Informational Writing since we finished Memoirs.  We have researched what inviting and engaging pages filled with info about a real topic looks like.  We have decided on a topic we are interested in learning more (and teaching others) about, and are deciding into what categories we will sort our facts and pictures, charts, diagrams, etc.  Some students have already found books and articles in our libraries, and they will be looking for more info at home this weekend (online sources, the public library, your own book/magazine collections... may we have your permission to print out some pages of facts and pictures at home for our note-taking sessions next week?).  Next week in class, we will be taking our notes and keeping all of our information organized.  When these projects are completed, our students will be 'teaching' their own classmates, and one or two classrooms of second graders!

 

For the last two weeks, our Book Clubs have been reading and discussing the events in their books during Club Meetings.  They have set their own reading schedule, and have kept to them very well.  Most of the groups were able to celebrate the completion of their book late this week, and the last group will be done next week.  Now everyone wants to switch books and read some of the others, so that will happen next.  This project has proven to be valuable not only with reading comprehension, but also for proper meeting protocol, respect, self discipline, compromise and negotiation, leadership skills...  lots of valuable lessons! 

 

Social studies has us exploring the upper Midwest states of our country, and led us to 'discovering' the remarkable story of Lewis and Clark's courageous journeys from St. Louis, along the Missouri and Columbia Rivers, and all the way to the Pacific Ocean in the early 1800's.  We have also made the acquaintance of Sacajawea, and are reading stories of her important role in their exploration.  We've really enjoyed going back to this time period and imagining what it must have been like.  We will branch out into other regions of the U.S. in the coming weeks, and somehow we will find time to explore beyond our entire planet Earth for our final Science Unit on Sun, Moon, and Stars.  Yikes, and there's only 6 more weeks of school to do all this exploring!

 

This reminds me to let you know of our final two field trips, coming up during our last week of school.  Mark your calendars:  On Monday, June 3rd, all of our 4th graders will be spending the whole day at the Cave of the Mounds.  We get a special tour and meeting with the guides of the grounds above the caves, eat a picnic lunch there, go on our Cave tour, and also do some 'sluicing' for gold!  Think about whether you'd like to chaperone this fun day - a letter with all the info will come home in May!  All parents can follow our buses in their own cars to the Cave.  Then on the morning of Tuesday, June 4th, our 4th graders have been invited to take part in a special program of hands-on activities at nearby Pope Farm Park.  Naturalists, geologists, and historians will lead groups into exploring the evidence of the last Ice Age, and the history of this land.  Buses will take our classes there, and parents are again invited to attend with us - we'll want lots of adult help to be with our groups! 

 

Enough news for now - we certainly aren't slowing down as we come to our last month of school, by any means.  So much to learn, so little time....!   More news next week, Melanie Hannam

April 12, 2013 Weekly Update

All of these April 'showers' surely better bring lots of May flowers!  After a rainy week where our games cupboard saw lots of action during numerous indoor recesses in Room 117, we have survived!  During a couple of our classes, we all even stopped just to listen to the rain pounding the school roof, and counted seconds between lightning and thunder (which actually led one student to do a "Gold Star Research" extra report on this practice!). 

 

We began our Book Clubs this week!  First we discussed the expectations for respectful group talk.  Each of our four clubs has a list of questions to guide their discussion, encouraging deep conversation about the characters and events.  The clubs must make their own agreements on how much to read for their next meeting.  Every student has a supply of sticky notes to mark spots in their reading which they want to bring up in their meetings.  As I join each group to listen in, I can see that there is as much to learn about group dynamics, compromise, the art of respectful listening and speaking, and the ability to stay focused on the topic at hand as there is about deep comprehension.  I am pleased to see how enthusiastic the students are about reading their club book - and that's in addition to their independent reading book!  Next week we will be doing some written reflections about parts of their stories as well.

 

We are completing our Memoir writing in Writer's Workshop.  Next week we begin a unit on Informational Writing.  We will be analyzing the techniques used to make nonfiction books and articles clear and appealing to the reader who wants to learn and research about a topic of interest.  This will lead to our students creating their own informational booklet. 

 

In Social Studies, we have begun our study of the regions of the United States, beginning first with the most familiar for us - the Midwest Region.  We will be doing some mapping for each region, and much 'armchair' traveling as we uncover what makes each region special and important - landforms and natural resources, people, industry, sights to see...

 

We have completed our spelling work with both the 4th and the 5th grade high frequency spelling lists.  Our students did quite well with handling the responsibility to be prepared for assignments and tests.  A new list of words (and vocabulary) comes to them on Monday - this time the words are coming right from their own Book Club books!

 

Fourth grade math students will begin their new unit on Monday, which uses their knowledge of fractions and decimals to convert these values to percents.  Unit 8 final tests came home Friday, and we would like parents to sign these tests after they have been shared, and students should bring them back to school for saving in our yellow folders.  Thank you. 

 

Upcoming events include the final CRT Day of the year on Tuesday, April 23, when buses will come at 11:00 am.  Also, Earth Day is April 22, and Arbor Day is April 26 - in honor of these days, every 4th grader will receive a small tree seedling from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources that week.  It will come with instructions for planting, so maybe your family would like to do a little planning for where in your yard you might have room for an evergreen to grow!  My now-grown up daughters had each brought home a tree when they were in elementary school, and we took pictures of them in front of their trees as both they and the trees grew!  Even through a move from Fond du Lac to Middleton in 2000, we attempted to transplant them here at our new home, and two of the three of them survived!  These trees have now reached our second story windows in height!  Good luck with yours!  :)

 

Till next note - Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

April 5, 2013 Weekly Update

Greetings to our 4H families!  We have all returned from our Spring Break, and ready or not, we spent our first five days back becoming totally immersed in our subjects once again!  (It got easier after that first day!)

 

In Math class, we are over halfway through Unit 8 already, which, as you know, had us measuring our kitchens!  We are learning about and applying the formulas for perimeter, area, and the concept of scale.  I expect that we will be taking the unit test by Thursday or Friday of the coming week. Stay tuned to the Homework Page of our classroom blog (and your student's assignment notebook).

 

Our Writer's Workshop is all about - finally - writing those Memoirs that we had been preparing for over the previous two weeks.  I am so proud of our students!  They are writing some touching, beautiful, and descriptive stories of memorable experiences they think they may "remember even when I am 80 years old!".  The toughest part is explaining what the experiences have meant to them and why.  They are getting it, though, and it will be so much fun for you to read!  We should get two memoirs for each student 'published' by the end of next week. 

 

We have wound up our science unit on Rocks and Minerals.  Hopefully, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic are now part of our students' meaningful vocabulary.  They have been impressed with our own WM small mountain of rock and mineral samples, collected over many years by dedicated fourth grade teachers (notably Mrs. Bertz!).  We will be concentrating our time for the next few weeks on a study of United States Regions in social studies, and wind up the year researching our final science unit for Sun, Moon, Stars, and Planets.

 

As you know, after mastering the 75 Most Frequent 4th Grade words, we decided to 'master' the 5th Grade list as well, and next week we will tackle the final 25 words on that list.  The students are doing well, and hopefully learning to take on more independent responsibility for being prepared on time to demonstrate their knowledge.

 

Readers' Workshop will look different in our room in the coming weeks.  I have collected multiple copies of several different books (adventure, sports, animal stories) for "Book Clubs" in our room.  Each Club will read their book in stages and meet during the week to discuss and analyze the events and the deeper meaning behind their characters' actions and words.  Our whole-class reading of books earlier this year, such as The One And Only Ivan and Stone Fox, brought out such rich discussion and deeper thinking, I am anxious for our students to experience more of that.

 

A couple of due dates are coming up.  By Friday, April 12th, any student who wants a WM Yearbook should send in their order form and payment.  I have extra forms in the classroom if needed.  Also due that same day is our April Scholastic Book Order forms.  We will send out one more order early in May, and that will be it for the year.  Your orders throughout the school year have resulted in dozens of new books for our classroom library through the Bonus Points earned, and I want to thank you heartily for that!  I think I will need to add another book shelf soon!  

 

Hopefully the change in our daily schedule by adding 4 minutes to each day has not caused any extra difficulty to your own schedules at home.  We find it nice to have some extra minutes for our resource time the last period each day - more math, etc. gets done in school instead of at home, which the students like!  Also, keep in mind that on April 23rd, our district will have our final CRT (early release) day, and students will be dismissed at 11:00 that day.

 

Until next week's update, enjoy the signs of SPRING!  Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

March 15, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello once again, dear families.  I so enjoyed meeting with all of you for conferences over the last two weeks.  Report cards will be coming home on March 21st.  As always, you can feel free at any time to call, email, or request a meeting time to talk with and about your 4th grader.  I think it is so good for them to see how much we all care about their progress and achievement in school.

Friday morning this past week started out with a little extra 'breakfast' in 4th grade math class, as we celebrated the end of our unit on fractions.  We divided several steaming hot pizzas into various sizes, did some adding up, and then subtracted - by gobbling those fractional slices right up and out of sight in record time!  Along with this delicious end, we are checking our last journal pages Monday, doing a two page review over the weekend (check the Take Home folder), and then our Unit 7 Test will be on either Tuesday or Wednesday.  We will make the decision about which day on Monday - it depends on how much we accomplish in class on Monday and how many questions there may be.

Literacy classes this week have us diving into something new - memoir.  Even at 10 years old, every one of our 4th graders has discovered an endless supply of memories about special events, people, and places that have made a deep impression on their lives - and we've heard dozens of stories all week to prove it!  We've shared photographs and treasured objects that hold special meaning for each of us, and more stories came pouring out.  It has been so much fun!  This weekend, I have asked each student to take a few notes in their new "Memory Logs" which they have brought home.  I have requested that they each find one or more family member or close special friend, with whom they have shared a memorable time, reminisce together to see what they each remember best about this time, and jot down some notes so that they may share and write about it next week in class.  Thank you for helping your child find some quiet time to have this conversation with that special someone.  Through all these activities, we are attempting to identify what makes an experience so memorable and significant - is it the actual event, or could it be because of the feelings experienced and/or the person with whom the event was shared?

Today, you should also find your student's 'published' realistic fiction booklet in the Take Home Folder.  If you haven't had a chance to read this yet, please do.  This represents their longest writing project so far this year, and much time and effort went into creating it.  I gave our 4th graders a choice to keep it at home, or they may return it to school to be saved in their green writing binders.  Enjoy your child's imagination!

We continue our study of rocks and minerals, now investigating what happens to make igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rock.  We found some awesome video clips of exploding Mt. Kilauea in Hawaii, watching red hot lava flow over highways and meet the ocean waves in clouds of steam... so cool!

After having all week to practice the first 25 words of the new (5th grade) high frequency spelling words, we took the test on Friday.  Next week we will concentrate on the second 25 words.  Giving your student some extra practice with these words will be helpful.  I am handing off more of the responsibility for being prepared for testing on these words to our students - by not giving them as many structured assignments to help them practice as in the past.  This will be a lesson in figuring out for themselves how much each of them must work to be prepared, and then do whatever it takes for them personally to be ready!   This can be a difficult lesson in responsibility for some to learn, but it is not too early to practice this! 

In other business, it is now time to order the 2012-2013 West Middleton Yearbooks - until the deadline of April 12th.  If your student's order form can't be located, there are extras in the classroom.  Also, we have quite a number of students in class who still do not have good pencils to use.  Each student is expected to have a few good pencils, sharpened, with erasers, at their desks.   This must be the time of year when those wonderful supplies they came to school with on September 1st, finally give out.  Thank you to those who sent in Kleenex boxes!  We could still use a few more to get us through the end of the year.  I am amazed at how fast we go through Kleenex!  Thank you.

One last request: If you know your student will be missing any school days next week due to leaving for a spring break trip early, would you send me a quick email?  It helps our attendance record keepers if they can stay on top of all the planned absences ahead of time - thank you.  I will end my note by wishing you all a restful and fun break week, whether you are taking off on a trip or sticking close to home.  May your days together create more of those special memories that could one day be recorded in a journal somewhere, only to be discovered with delight years later.  Happy Easter and Happy Spring!   Melanie Hannam

March 1, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello to all of our 4H families.  March has arrived, and it is shaping up to be a very busy month - though it's only three weeks before the Spring Break Week of March 25 through 29.  We start off celebrating Literacy Week from March 4th through 8th.  On Monday a group of actors that perform for students will act out stories written by our own students.  They are an improv group that includes students from the audience in each act for each story.  On Tuesday the last period of the day will have all of our students moving to a different room and teacher from their own, to hear a story read out loud.  Wednesday is Wordy Wardrobe Day - wear a shirt with words to celebrate literacy.  Thursday is the day to recycle and share literature.  Students may bring in gently used books from home to contribute to the 'book shop' and may pick up a different used book in return.  If you have books at home that you'd like to give a new home, send them all in any day this week before Thursday, and we will get them to the proper place.  On Friday, it is the ever popular "Dress Like Your Favorite Book Character Day".  Students should keep the outfits fairly simple, and bring along the book that goes with the outfit, if possible.  We will parade around the hallway circle that morning!

I look forward to talking with all of you during one of the two coming Conference Days, Thursday, March 7th or Tuesday, March 12th.  Our students will have a chance to show you their latest work, and we'll talk about good goals for the last third of the school year.  I plan to stay as closely on schedule as possible, but if you are early or do have a few minutes' wait, be sure to check out our updated photo albums which will be on chairs outside our classroom door.  We have some beautiful shots of our Winter Prairie Hike, our Valentine Party, our latest Science experiments, and Writing class.  Take note:  The second trimester ends on March 8th, we have till March 15th to enter report card data, and you will receive those reports on March 21st, right before Spring Break.

We've missed some math classes over the last week or so, due to snowy delays, music rehearsals, and a field trip day!  In 4th grade math, we are digging into fractions.  Be sure to check in with your student when they bring home their two math journals, and ask them to show and explain to you what they are learning.  This will give you - and them - a chance to be sure they are grasping the new skills.  In science we have been conducting experiments with rocks and minerals, which has been good practice for not only the content area, but also for the important skills of listening and following directions accurately - whew! - not always a pretty sight in Room 117!    In Writer's Workshop, half of our classmates have completed their Realistic Fiction "Book" and the rest should finish this coming week, hopefully in time to show you at Conference time.  We have also been moving on into analyzing story meaning and character details more deeply, writing our realizations and opinions in our Thoughtful Logs.  This has been a real challenge for most of us, and it has stretched some students' writing skills.  Amid some groans and frustrations, it has been truly rewarding - and eye opening to some of our reluctant writers - to see some very perceptive reflections written down!  They CAN do it!! 

I will end my update with a humble request to help us with our supply of Kleenex boxes, if you can - we are down to our last box!  Thank you so much!  The only other supply that needs attention is each student's collection of good pencils - we are seeing more eraser-less stubs with each passing day!  I will talk to you all very soon!    Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

February 15, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello, 4H families.  This week I think it will be most helpful to send you a "list" (our kids know - I am famous for lists in the classroom :) ), since there are quite a number of approaching special events, dates, and reminders we all need to keep in mind (grab your calendar!):

1.  This very Saturday, the 16th, the WM Winter Carnival takes place at school from 2:00 to 4:30 (come find me in the 'prize room'!)

2.  Friday, February 22nd, all of our 4th graders will be touring the State Capitol Building and the Wisconsin Historical Museum.  Our students will need to bring a completely disposable lunch.  We will leave school at 9:15 and be back by 1:45 that day.

3.  Thursday evening, February 28th, all of West Middleton's first through fifth graders will be presenting the annual Choral Program at the Middleton High School Performing Arts Center.  The program will begin at 6:30 pm and last no more than one hour.  During the school day on Thursday, all classes will have a chance to rehearse on the PAC stage under the direction and supervision of Ms. Bodell and Mr. Macklem.

4.  The end of our second trimester is March 8th.  Therefore, it is parent/student/teacher conference time once again.  The two possible dates are Thursday, March 7th, and Tuesday, March 12th. You should have found a conference sign-up sheet in your student's Take Home Folder this Friday, where you can put down your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choices for times you can attend with your 4th grader.  If I can get these all back in the coming week, I can confirm your time very soon.  I look forward to helping your child report their progress in 4th grade.  Report cards should be ready for your viewing approximately one week after the end of the trimester.

5.  Our annual Literacy Week celebration will take place from March 4th through March 8th.  Each day that week all classes at West Middleton will take part in special activities with reading and books to celebrate and encourage our love of good books.  Stay tuned for a schedule of our events that week.

6.  The CRT Day scheduled for Thursday, March 14th, has been cancelled in order to make up for one of our missed days of school due to snow!

7.  Spring Break Week is March 25th to March 29th - no school.  We will all be back in class Monday, April 1st.

8.  For our 4th grade math students, the final Unit 6 test will be given this Monday, February 18.

9.  Students should keep practicing those High Frequency 4th Grade Spelling Words.  Those needing to retake the first 25 words will do that on Monday, and all students will be testing on the second 25 words on Wednesday.

10.  The Great Bus Race is on!  Students riding buses to and from school are earning "Pride Paws" from their bus drivers for the next 3 weeks.  They receive these for appropriate behavior on the bus.  Pride Paws are being counted daily and the bus that collects the most Pride Paws will receive a prize.  This endeavor is part of our building-wide PBIS (positive behavior) program. This past week was Bus Driver Appreciation Week, and we all met with our bus drivers to honor them and talk about expectations for safe bus behaviors.

As always, you may email or call me anytime with your questions or concerns - and reminders of your own!  Till next note!  Melanie Hannam

February 8, 2013 Weekly Update

Hello to all of our 4H families!  At least the kids can't complain they haven't gotten enough time to play in snow this season!  With yet another snow day this past week, many have wondered how the lost minutes of instruction will be handled by our school district.  We have been informed that we can make up the time by cancelling our March CRT day (so we will have a full day of school March 14th), and one minute will be added to each elementary school day for the 4th quarter of this year.  To add to the snow fun, Friday afternoon turned out to be a perfect time for our class "Winter Prairie Visit".  The sun was shining and we actually could feel its warmth on our faces.  We hiked through completely untouched snow halfway up to our knees down the middle of our prairie, and around the back of it.  Conditions were ideal for everyone to pick a clear spot to fall straight backwards into a cushion of soft snow, just lie there, and listen to a perfect Wisconsin winter day (interspersed with sounds of giggles and wiggles from endlessly energetic 4th graders!).  We came back into the classroom with our Thoughtful Logs already opened, pencils ready, and the title written:  "Winter Prairie".  We will compare our descriptions with our Autumn Prairie writing from last fall.  (Can't wait for our Spring edition!) 

Our week ahead will bring us to Valentine's Day on Thursday.  We do have four volunteers already (Emma, Avante, Luigi, and Jacob) who have offered to bring in goodies for our card exchange that afternoon - thank you.  As I wrote you earlier this past week, students may bring in cards for the whole class that day or anytime during the week, and I will keep them stored until Thursday afternoon.  We will have decorated envelopes ready to receive our 'mail'.  Other reminders for the week:  February Scholastic Book Orders are due Monday, the 11th, and bright green permission slips can be found in Take Home Folders for our Field Trip on the 22nd.  Please keep the top half for your information, and fill out and send in the bottom half as soon as possible.  We have 4 parent volunteers for our day to the Capitol and Historical Museum so far - I can take one more parent if you are interested in coming.  Chaperones will be able to ride the buses with us, and just need to give me $2 for their admission to the Museum - and bring along a lunch.

Take Home Folders should also contain a pink sheet with the 4th Grade 75 High Frequency Spelling Words.  No formal assignments to practice these have been given, though our students have been encouraged to practice and be ready for several pretests on these - any missed words will need to be learned and checked off for mastery.  The pink sheet should stay in the Take Home Folders, so they are available at all times both at home and at school.  In Writer's Workshop, we are at the stage of finishing our realistic fiction rough drafts, and next week we will be revising and editing, and creating our final drafts, with a 'book' cover and backing.  With several 30 minute long 'write' times throughout the week, many students are visibly developing their stamina to stay writing for an extended period of time - a most valuable skill!

We are in the midst of a major push to cover most of 3 chapters in our Wisconsin Social Studies texts before our field trip on the 22nd.  We are reading and comparing the ways of life for the early people of our state, and plan to get the basics of our state government covered as well (I know - lofty ambitions!).  We will do our best!  Our new science unit on Rocks and Minerals is also ready for launch.  Whew - no more snow days, please!

In math, please continue to oversee and give your 4th grader practice on long division problems. We learned how to measure and create angles with both full circle and half circle protractors this past week, along with continued work on division.  We will begin a thorough review this coming week on Unit 6. 

Other upcoming events:  The WM PO Winter Carnival is taking place next Saturday on February 16th, starting at 2:00 pm at West Midddleton.  Also, please make sure our upcoming WM Choral Concert is on your calendar for Thursday evening, February 28th.  It is scheduled to begin at 6:30 pm in the Middleton High School PAC.  Our students will all get a time slot to travel to the PAC with Ms. Bodell and Mr. Macklem during the school day that day for rehearsal on the stage.

Thank you for your continuing support for your 4th grader to meet deadlines, keep organized with their papers and belongings, and providing regular time to finish homework and READ!  Before this month ends, I will be sending out time slots for our 2nd parent-student-teacher conferences during the first half of March.  I will get specific dates and times to you very soon, so you can plan.  The second trimester ends on March 8th.  Time flies when we are busy!   Melanie Hannam