Ms. Hewitt’s Fourth Grade Class Newsletter
Sunday, August 30th, 2015
Good Afternoon Guardians and Students,
Thank you all so much for coming to Back to School Night. It was so amazing to have almost all families there showing their support and excitement for the year ahead! This year is going to rock! The BTSN presentation is linked in a tab at the top of our website. If you didn’t get a chance to sign up for a volunteer jobs please CLICK HERE. In class volunteer jobs will begin the week of September 14th. Thank you in advance for your time. If you want to add a special talent job that you have at the bottom of the form, please feel free!
I am so excited that both you and your children have their correct username and passwords to mostly all of the websites we will be using this year. Please note that I have not showed them how to log onto all 15 accounts...yet. We are strategically rolling out Chromebooks and these websites so they are used accurately and effectively. So far in class we have been on IXL, SpellingCity, Accelerated Reader and XtraMath. This week we will also go on TypingWeb and Google Classroom.
“Journey to California” projects were incredible! Thank you for taking the time to answer interview questions and prepare your child for success. The class and I loved hearing all about each others backgrounds. Grades for this project will go home this week.
We will continue learning about digital citizenship, and growth mindset (as your children about the words yet and ish). Also on Friday all baseline assessments will be completed and recorded. A sheet will go home for parents to look over and sign to see where their children are academically now.
Language Arts-
- Spelling City List #3 - words include: fact, begin, rapid, clasp, etc. Students will complete assigned activities at home and will take the test in class Friday morning on their Chromebooks.
- Vocabulary: Westing Game Vocabulary through Google Classroom.
- AR point goals: will continue to conference with students.
- Grammar: Types of Sentences- Brainpop video and in class activities.
- Writing- Learning good characteristics of a writer diving deep into main idea and expository writing.
- Genre Study: We learned about all the different types of reading genres the last two weeks. Now we are going to dive into a mystery book called, The Westing Game.
Math- Add and Subtract Whole Numbers
IXL Strands- Complete IXL strands to ensure success on the test. 30 minutes a week is the minimum requirement.
Chapter 1 strands: A.1, A.3, A.9, A.6, A.2
Chapter 2 strands: B.4, B.6, C.4, B.3, C.3, B.8, C.6
Students can practice studying for this test further by going on McgrawHill (link to the right) and work on the study guide that is identical to the math test. This website also has videos, games, and lessons for extra support at home.
Monday- Chapter 1 Math Test/ Chapter 2 pre-test
Tuesday- Lesson 1 for chapter 2: Add and Subtract Whole Numbers- B.4
Wednesday- Lesson 2: Addition and Subtraction Patterns- B.6, C.4
Thursday- Lesson 3: Add and Subtract Mentally- B.3, C.3
Friday- Lesson 4: Estimate Sum and Differences- B.8, C.6
Students should also go on XtraMath daily to become fluent in their math facts. Students can also utilize Mangahigh at home to practice math facts using the game titled, Sundae Times. This resource also helps their math fluency. Also I assigned some challenges on rounding if students are looking for more math resources. Our school ID is 67993.
Social Studies/ Science-
- Students will continue taking notes in their ISN (Interactive Student Workbook) on California’s location. Learning about latitude and longitude. We will begin a PBL project on Exploring California’s regions.
Reminders/Mark Your Calendars-
- Thursday, September 3 Coffee Talk and Wave Board Meeting at DP
- Wave meeting Thursday, September 3rd 6:30-7:30 in DP Base Room
- Parents get Googley on Wednesday, September 9th from 6:00-8:00
- Age of Sail mandatory meeting Tuesday, September 22nd at 6:00 pm in Miksits' room
