McFarland-Mayberry-Begley Bulletin

for the week of March 16, 2015

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Reading Workshop

Thank you to all those families who have been talking with your fourth-grader about your ancestors!  Kids have been excited to share with the class little tid-bits of information about who came from where and when and whether through Ellis Island or somewhere else.  A couple kids are sharing photos and copies of documentation — it makes what we’re learning so real!  And don’t worry if you don’t know where your family is from or if it’s “boring,” like mine.  When I asked my mother about our heritage, she replied, “We are apple-pie American!”  Not exactly helpful…Thankfully my aunt has done the research.

    On a more academic note, the kids are reading all historical fiction in class these days.  They have a choice to continue that reading outside of school, or they are welcome to continue with other books of their choosing.  We now have a chart that both Begley and McFarland readers are contributing to that shows short texts and chapter books and their themes and time periods.  In addition, students are completing written responses in class about a couple of class read-alouds, where they are showing their smarts in relation to envisioning, empathizing, identifying theme, and synthesizing their learning to write about what it was like to live in certain time periods.

Writing Workshop

We are off to a good start in our literary essay work!  I used this analogy with the kids: Think about unpacking a suitcase once you arrive at a vacation destination.  While unpacking items, your mom might say, “Why did you bring a headlamp with you?”  You might have to explain to her the reason you brought the headlamp is so you can read at night under the covers without disturbing anyone else in the hotel room.  Sometimes you have to explain why you chose to bring something.  

    This past week, we worked on writing supporting idea paragraphs in which we “unpack” details from the story.  These details are chosen with the purpose of supporting the thesis statement.  Yet it’s usually not enough to simply write the details.  In addition, writers often need to explain to readers why they “brought” certain details from the story.  So, once we’ve “unpacked” a detail from the story, we’re using phrases that can help us start those explanations, such as, This shows…This makes me realize…The reason I mention this is…This is important because…  It’s this kind of very deliberate instruction that helps kids to create strong, full paragraphs that show not only a deep understanding of what they’re reading but also how to be clear when writing about it.

Math

Fractions have been our main focus this week and will be for a while. Basic fraction understanding, operations with fractions and problem solving using fractions are a big focus in the Common Core Math Standards. When talking to math teachers in the upper grades, including high school, they will often site fractions as being one of the weakest areas for students at their level. Last summer Ms. Russell, Mrs. Harrington and I worked to align the Everyday Math unit on fractions with the Common Core. It is our hope that students leaving fourth grade will have a strong grasp on these important math concepts. You can help at home by taking opportunities to talk about fraction use in the real world such as cooking, woodworking, sewing, etc...

Theme

This week students started their continent maps.  After picking a theme for their continent, they designed a land, complete with major landforms and  map features (compass rose, title, key, scale).  Students are using art paper and watercolor paints to make their maps come to life!  I hope to have these on display at conference time.

    It is likely that soon we’ll begin to prepare for the end of the unit quiz.  We will be doing so as soon as kids are done with their maps, so while I can’t set a definite date right now, be on the lookout for email updates and study guides at some point next week.

Due Dates / Upcoming Events:

Monday, March 23rd - Reading logs due / sneakers for PE

Tuesday, March 24th - Study link due / recorders

Wednesday, March 25th - Early Release

Thursday, March 26th - Spelling due / ABL

Friday, March 27th - Study link due

Have a terrific weekend!