September 18, 2015 Update

Hello, everyone!  We have completed our third week of school already!  Everyday we get more used to our routines and expectations - and each other!  We are learning more about each other with each class, it seems, and the relationships we are building makes it more fun to work together for all of us.  We are making it a priority to treat each other with respect and kindness, and when that happens, everything just goes more smoothly.  I think I am seeing our students' stamina growing as well.  We still get times when we just need to stop and take a breather (and get the wiggles and whispers out of the way!) before digging in again, but we have had some nicely focused work sessions where they have amazed me. 

In Readers' Workshop, we are concentrating on reading deeply for details that matter, losing ourselves in the world of our books (so much fun!), and trying to 'become' the characters in the stories.  We are keeping track of the books we are reading with a special, bright colored Reading Log sheet for each month - you can find these in the purple reading folder that should be coming home every single day in a 2-gallon ziplock bag with the reading books.  In Writers' Workshop, we are also giving our attention to characters, practicing how to center our Realistic Fiction story writing around the motivations and struggles of the characters.  We are realizing that the stories we love most are the ones where the characters really matter to us - so that is how we are learning to write engaging stories!  The students have had some excellent writing sessions this week where they are really giving this a good try - I am proud of them!

Social Studies class goes way too fast.  We are still working on writing our own home mailing addresses and at least one emergency phone number all from memory.  Thanks for any extra practice on this at home!  We are also collecting all the info we can about cows and the dairy industry so we can be prepared to appreciate all we will see at the World Dairy Expo on September 30th.  You may be receiving some 'education' about cows these days from your 4th graders!  In Science with Mrs. Bertz, our students are getting a great start to the first unit on Rocks and Minerals.

We are coming to the end of our first unit in Math already.  Next week we will spend some days reviewing and practicing, and as soon as I figure out the best day for the first Unit Test, I will let you all know.  It usually goes quite well - this first unit is full of new vocabulary words, but the concepts of lines, segments, rays, angles, and polygons are not too difficult.

I would like to confirm our chaperones for our two field trip days on Sept. 29th (Pope Farm Park) and Sept. 30th (World Dairy Expo).  There is no limit to how many parents can chaperone on either one, since you can meet us at each destination and there is no admission charge (for the Dairy Expo, we have free parking vouchers for any parent drivers who can follow our buses there).  Parents who have confirmed with me that they can come are as follows:  Sept. 29 at Pope Farm Park -- Gina W., Kristen S-E, Chris K.    Sept. 30 at WDE -- Gina W., Chris K.      Three others for each trip did sign up during our Back To School Night in August, so if you plan to go, just email me and I will know for sure that you can still come, as well any other parents who want to join us.  The more, the merrier!  These are fun trips.  Thanks a lot!  I will email all chaperones with updated details toward the end of next week.

Events coming up --! 

**We will be tie dying our new WM T-shirts for this year on Monday!  You will be seeing these come home in a plastic bag that day with instructions on how to finish the washing of them to set the dye, so be prepared!  :)   I am thinking we won't have to wear the shirts to Pope Farm Park because our school will be the only ones there that afternoon of the 29th.  But we WILL want to wear them on Sept. 30th to the Expo! 

**Mark your calendars for the evening of Monday, September 28th!  If it works into your schedules, come to Culver's in Middleton for dinner!  From 4:00 to 8:00pm, they will contribute 10% of all sales to our PTO.  AND if you can make it there between 6 and 7pm, I will be the one bringing the food order to your table!!  I know it can't work for everyone, but just in case, I will see you there!

**I have a special request.  Would you look through everyone's sock drawers at home and pull out any lonely singles, any holey, worn pairs - and send them with your 4th grader to our classroom?  These old socks (athletic socks work best) are perfect as erasers for our small, individual whiteboards that we use quite often during class.  Thank you!

I will end for now, and send reminders and short update notes next week as we approach our trips and any other special activities.  As always, feel free to email me or call with any other questions or concerns!  Sincerely, Melanie Hannam

September 4, 2015 Update

Greetings to all of our 4H families!  Our first week of school went so fast!  There was so much to tell each other as we got acquainted and as we learned about how we will manage our time and work (and fun) each day in 4th grade.  With each day, we will get closer to a routine.  Our class group is already showing such promise in direction following and helping each other out.  I am so happy to settle in for a fulfilling year with your 4th graders.

On Tuesday when we return, we will begin our first math lessons, using our new Journals and Studylinks.  Most days there will be pages, or parts of pages, to finish up as homework.  I want both books to go home everyday, so your child can show you (and ask them to explain to you how to do the skill!) what they worked on that day in class, and what they need to complete for the next day.  Even if the assignment gets all finished up in class, they should be bringing home both books, so you may see that they have indeed completed the items the best that they can.  Parents do not need to correct any work, but a suggestion to try an item again if you notice something incomplete or incorrect is appreciated.  I will be explaining to our math students that I do not grade anything they do in these workbooks, because this is where they practice their skills.  I never want anyone to be afraid to try something they are not sure of - I want them to feel comfortable giving every item their best effort.  I present the lesson one day, and we practice in class.  Students practice again by trying the pages in their books, and then the next day, we practice again by checking those items together and discussing again.  And remember, if you ever wonder about the accuracy of the homework assignment in their assignment notebooks, I update the Homework Page on our blog every day after school!

Another important part of our math class is Basic Facts practice in all four operations:  addition, subtraction, multiplication, division.  We will start out nearly every single class period with a chance to answer the 100 basic facts within 3 minutes.  On Mondays, we will do the 100 addition facts, Tuesdays it is subtraction, etc.  I check these papers daily and we keep track of progress.  Students may consider their facts 'mastered' once they achieve 100% accuracy within 3 minutes for each operation.  I tell them that once they achieve this, they get a 3 minute 'naptime' during this exercise!  :)  All you can do to help your child practice their facts is such valuable support!!!  I can't emphasize enough:  The 4th grade math curriculum assumes a 4th grader has mastery of all of their basic facts in the lessons that are presented every day.  If a student is still struggling to accurately recall their facts, it makes the new math skills much more difficult to practice and learn.  You will see each week's 3 minute attempts come home on Fridays, so you may be aware of how things are going for your child.  I will also send home progress reports every few weeks.  Thank you in advance for finding some way to routinely give your student the practice help he/she needs.  The clear plastic sheet protector with the fact sheets that came home in all of the parent papers is meant to stay home and be one way to practice.  If you use a slim dry erase marker on the plastic sheet, then you can use those pages over and over again. 

Speaking of the papers that went home the first night/day -- thank you so much for returning them so promptly.  I just need a few to come in yet.  One thing I thought I should explain better is that "Volunteer Disclosure Form".  It became necessary to have this on file about a year ago for all parents in the school district, before any opportunities to work with students as a volunteer and to even be able to go along on field trips!  So we are asking every one of our parents to fill out and sign this sheet at the beginning of the year, so if/when you want to join us for any activity or trip, you are all set and done with that formality.

And that leads me to the fact that all of our 4th grade classes are going on TWO field trips on the last two days of September already!!  Crazy, but that's how the schedules worked out this fall!  On September 29th, we go to Pope Farm Park for 2.5 hours to do activities with local experts in archaeology, gardening, geology, and history.  Our school district has made the commitment to send every 4th grader to these sessions both in the fall and in the spring for different activities. The Park is the perfect location to learn about Wisconsin's unique history, landforms, and geology - and we are so fortunate to have this area within two miles of our school!  If you'd like to meet us there and join us, it will be so much fun, and the more the merrier.  Just let me know - the permission slips will come home this next week, with the time frame and more details.  The following day on September 30th, we will continue our special tradition to attend the World Dairy Expo at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison.  We study the agriculture of Wisconsin in Social Studies, and experiencing up close what is all involved in milk production from the most beautifully groomed cows we will EVER see, all the way to grocery store coolers, is a very memorable opportunity for our kids.  It is a highlight of our year, and parents love this trip, too, so again if you can find time to go along, let me know, and watch for that permission slip, too!  (For both of these days, we will probably have to eat a sack lunch in the classroom earlier than our normal lunch time, since we will be getting on buses around 11:00am (exact time frames will be on the permission slips), so talk over with your student this weekend if they will want to bring their own sack lunch from home, or will want to order the Lunch Express sack lunch.  We will have to fill out order forms on Tuesday so the kitchen knows what to plan for.  Thanks a lot!)

I will end for now with the reminder that if you have an Orchestra student, the first large group lesson begins at 7:15am THIS Tuesday, Sept. 8th, at school!  They will end at 7:45 each Tuesday, and get back to our room in time for our first class.  Sometime during Tuesday mornings, small group lessons also take place when these students get excused from class during different rotating 30 minute time periods each week.

I will keep you updated on all news and events, and as we go through the weeks ahead, I will fill you in on our other subjects and what we are studying and exploring.  I am happy to hear from you at any time through emails, calls, or visits!  Sincerely, Melanie Hannam