Report Cards!

I hope you are all having a great weekend! Report cards went home on Friday. Please sign and return the report card signature card and envelope. You may keep the report card for your records.

Week of January 6th

Welcome Back!

It’s a new year and a new quarter.  In math, we are skipping chapter 7 Patterns and Sequences to focus on fractions.  Don’t worry, your child isn’t missing out on anything, as this material is represented in the numbers of the week.  Chapter 8 Fractions will begin Monday January 12^th.  There will also be a new book for the remainder of the year.  This week, students will review and extend on division and multiplication. 

Eagles Eyes are going to be due every Wednesday.  The first Wednesday due date for these is  January 14^th. 

Science has the students learning about the phases of the moon and the tilt of the Earth.  This material will last to Friday January 16^th.

Thank you,

Bobby Desin

January 6, 2015 (2015 still sounds so strange, doesn't it?!?)

     I hope you all had a fantastic break with lots of family time! We are hitting the ground running this week. In Reading, we will be focusing on Poetry. We will emphasize stanzas, lines, rhythm, rhyme scheme, mood, and theme. Students will be working on analyzing these elements independently and in small group. Students will also work on writing their own poems and completing a Study Island module. In Language, we will switch back to using Grammar Mini Bites for this nine week period. We are finishing up our Colonization unit in Social Studies. We will be looking at how the lifestyles of large landowners, farmers, artisans, women, indentured servants and slaves differed. We will finish this unit on Monday next week. There will be a test on Tuesday, January 13th. A study guide was sent home today with your child. 

January 13th-Colonization Test (study guide given)

January 14th-Eagle Eye on Reading due (Please note that both the Fiction and Nonfiction forms have changed for the second semester).

Have a great week!

Mrs. Gordon

Colonial Day

Colonial Day will be on Wednesday, December 17th, 2014! Please have your child wear something that reflects Colonial dress. All activities that day will revolve around the colonies!

Please let me know if you are interested in helping out with an activity that day. Also, we would love donations of feather quills and liquid ink. These should be available from craft stores.

It should be a very fun day!!!

Colonial Project

Students in Mrs. Gordon's Social Studies class has been asked to complete a project on the New England, Mid-Atlantic, and/or Southern colonies. Students were given a choice board to choose which project he or she would like to complete. Students will be given time in class to work on the project, but the project should be completed by Wednesday, December 17th. Your child will present to the class on that day as part of Colonial Day.

Mythology Project

In Reading, we have been working on a Mythology project. The students have been working on story maps, story summaries, character trait organizers, and a paragraph about a mythological allusion (today, a "Herculean" task means a difficult or seemingly impossible task. This was taken from the myth of Heracles/Hercules). Students will be creating a poster that combines these things in class. I ask that students try to dress up in a Greek style on the day of his or her presentation. You can make this as simple (bedsheet toga) or as complicated as you like. Please, don't feel that your family needs to purchase anything for this presentation. Try to use items from around the house.

Reading 1 will present on Monday, December 15th.
Reading 2 will present on Tuesday, December 16th.

Week of November 17th

Reading (we are continuing last week's Weekly 5 to give students the opportunity to respond to literature with quality):

Reading Skill: Read your group reading book to complete book by November 21st. Finish the graphic organizer for plot.

Work on Writing: Compare yourself to the main character:  What is a similarity and a difference? Be sure to elaborate and explain why these are similarities and differences.  Write at least 10 sentences. Be sure to include a bold beginning and excellent ending.

Word Work: Vocab organizer for "oblige"

Listen to Reading: Study Island 2d:  Theme

Homework:  Eagle Eye due on Wednesday if your child's book is completed. We are almost at the mid-point, so remember:  4 Non-fiction points and 5 Fiction points!

Social Studies:  
Students will finish up their Roanoke opinion pieces by THURSDAY, November 20th. The final copies will be due then. We will begin talking about Jamestown and then the Plymouth settlement.

Common Core Revisions

State Board of Education proposes revisions to CCGPS standards in ELA, math; proposed changes posted for public comment for 60 days

I encourage you to take a look at the revisions and weigh in. There are only two ELA revisions for fourth grade but there are 12 proposed revisions to 4th grade math. View the link here.