Greetings to our 4H families! We are into our last week of September already. Our first month of 4th grade has gone by so very quickly, yet in another way it seems like much more than 4 weeks since we first all met. Our days have been so full of getting to know each other and our new routines at school that I feel like we have 'traveled' a long way already! One month later from Back To School Night, and now I have 25 new friends in my life, along with each of their families, that I didn't have before! There is still so much to learn about each other, but we have made a solid start, building trust and communication, which is setting the foundation for a very fulfilling school year ahead.
Each day has brought us deeper into our lessons in Room 117. I am so pleased to see how quickly our reading class has become probably almost everyone's favorite part of the day. We all look forward to our 'pin-drop' time to get lost in our favorite books. We are also about halfway into our first class read aloud book, Crenshaw, written by Katherine Applegate (who also wrote The One and Only Ivan). The class discussions during these precious times each day bring out some of our students' deepest thoughts and reflections, and as they share their ideas and opinions, they help each other think more and more deeply with each passing week. This is a perfect model for each student individually to develop their own comprehension - we are creating habits that should last through a lifetime of rich reading experiences. Our mini-lessons in Readers' Workshop are beginning with character development as the doorway to understanding our stories with greater depth. Oh, I could do these lessons all day long!
One big thing I am emphasizing is that our 4th graders bring their reading 'bags' back and forth every single day! These 2 gallon zipper bags should hold their purple reading folder and their current reading book. Homework in other subjects will vary each day, but not with reading! I encourage each family to carve out a quiet reading time and place in your home most every evening for your child to just read!! Time spent reading at their just right level has been proven over and over again to be the single most important ingredient to becoming a better reader - and becoming one who loves to read as well! When bags get left at home, it is a real disappointment when we have our class reading time, and a favorite book is not there to dig into because it got left at home. I like the reading bags because it protects and preserves our books from all the contents of their backpacks. I thank you for your support with good organizational habits to make sure all important items get into backpacks each day. Take Home Folders are also an 'every day' item that must go back and forth. These often contain papers you need to see - either to keep at home or send back to school with your signature or feedback.
In Writers' Workshop, we have begun work on how to create a 'story arc'. We are writing some realistic fiction that contains a well developed character, a setting that is easily pictured by the reader, and gives our characters a challenge that needs a believable resolution. I am also giving our 4th graders opportunities to reflect on their reading by writing in their "Thoughtful Logs" - this gives them a chance to explain themselves on paper, developing both their writing skills and the depth of their thoughts. I will often be writing them back in these Logs, which is always fun.
In Social Studies, we are talking COWS! In preparation for our trip on October 5th to the World Dairy Expo, we are all becoming experts on some rather amazing facts about cows - and the dairy industry of our state as well. Be prepared to be 'educated' by your 4th grader as they come home with this new knowledge! :) Thank you to all who have volunteered to join us for our Expo tour that day. No limit to how many parents want to come - just email me if you are joining us and didn't already note that on the permission slip. As the permission slip states, parents can meet at school (I will send out more details later this week) and band together to carpool, following the buses to the Alliant Energy grounds. No charge for any of us! Quick note - if you are chaperoning, make sure you have returned that Volunteer Disclosure Form - I have a few parents who haven't returned that yet. I can send home another copy if you need one. I will email you all with special reminders about that day later this week.
Finally, I want to give you a little progress report on our math work. We jumped right in with lessons from the first day of school. The lessons take us through a lot of group discussion on different strategies for how to solve a problem. This is an unfamiliar way for many of our students (and parents!) to do math class. I have already seen some increased skill by our kids on how to solve one problem in several different ways, along with the ability to express their reasoning so another can understand - a big part to learn as well! So far there has been less time spent on filling out worksheets and taking home pages to answer - you have probably noticed! Homework pages will not come home consistently - much of the work gets done in class during the lesson routine, and also with partner work. This reinforces the reasoning strategies that Bridges Math wants to develop in our students, and I prefer being able to be with our kids when they work through their own pages, so I can guide their thinking and collaboration with each other. I will continue to keep you posted as we go along and let you know how best to support your math student this year.
TA! DA! Our class has earned our first Reward Day! We have collected 30 Class Pride Paws by meeting expectations for behavior and conduct in all areas of our school community! As a class, we have decided the following: On Friday, September 30th, our 4th graders in Room 117 may come to school dressed in comfy clothes, bringing along slippers if desired, and a small pillow or stuffed animal. They may also bring along a small blanket. We will spend our morning between encore classes and lunch having a cozy Read- In, with snacks! After lunch we will continue with reading and watching a National Geographic video, maybe with more snacks! It took some great effort to collect 30 Paws, and many in our class even donated some of their individual Paws to make it happen! These special days make for great memories in 4th grade.
I will be back in touch with all the last details for our October field trip later this week. Student pictures arrived in my mailbox on Friday, so those who took pics on September 16th will be bringing them home Monday. Picture orders can come back to me within the next week. Enjoy the last days of September! Sincerely, Melanie Hannam
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