McFarland-Mayberry-Begley Bulletin

for the week of May 23, 2016

Due Dates / Upcoming Events:

Monday, May 30th - No School

Tuesday, May 31st - Author Tamra Wright visits

Wednesday, June 1st- Full Day / Monthly reading calendars due (May)

Thursday, June 2nd -  ABL Culminating Event (see details below for what to wear/bring)

Friday, June 3rd - Final Science Quiz (Skeletal System) / Senior Walk

• June 2nd - ABL Celebration Day (outside: sneakers, water, sunscreen)
• June 7th - 4th Grade Field Trip to Strawbery Banke
• June 15th - Book Swap: Please send in donations!
• June 16th - Team Celebration of Reading Day
• June 17th - Last Day of School

Thank you to all who attended the 4th Grade musical.  The kids did a phenomenal job!  Many thanks to Barry Saunders, our fearless music teacher!

Academic Updates:

Reading Workshop

This week, while continuing with reading assessments and our mentor text for social issues (Just Juice), we started working on bookmarks for incoming 4th grade readers.  The kids have had fun creating their own slogans or borrowing slogans from the internet that relate to reading.  They are working to compile a list of their five favorite books from 4th grade.  These bookmarks will be part of a 4th Grade Survival Pack that we’ll hand out to incoming 4th graders on Step-Up Day, June 8th.

Writing Workshop

We’ve had great fun this week, using a poetry project idea from Mrs. Overton, the 4th grade teacher in the book, The Candy Smash (#3 in the The Lemonade War series).  A writer starts by writing six words, one word on each Post-it.  Anyone can write six words, right?  Then, we add more Post-its, using specific, precise words to describe and say things about the topic.  We move the Post-its around, grouping them by sounds (alliteration, assonance) and/or by meaning.  The result is usually a poem that is free of a formatted structure and that contains only words who have earned a spot in the poem.  Our writers are so proud of their work; often these poems sound quite different than any they’ve written before.  And it’s a completely different way to use our brains and bodies together -- the very act of moving words around, of “building” a poem in this way, is a unique experience!  The main character in The Candy Smash, Evan, is a boy who has to work very hard in school, and yet he has found confidence and strength in his writing by working like this.  And it doesn’t hurt that he has discovered a way to express his feelings for Megan Moriarty, his love interest!  We love a good love story!

This week's Rock-n-Roll Friday song: "Midnight Train to Georgia" by Gladys Knight and the Pips.  Had my older son been a girl, we would have named him Georgia because I love this song so much!  The kids analyzed the story behind the lyrics...and we all tried out the Pips' move of tooting the train's sound effects (woo-woo!).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v78-ftcqpNw

Math

In math this week students have been reviewing concepts from the beginning of the year in anticipation of a final assessment for the end of the year. It has been good to take students back through concepts taught earlier in the year, it certainly shows us how much learning has taken place in 4thh grade!

Theme

This week students learned a little about the muscular system and how it works in conjunction with the skeletal system.  Students watched a short informational video, read a book, and participated in a muscle lab.  We also had a game day to play Whack a Bone (and other review games) and a day to make study cards for next week’s quiz, which will be on Friday, June 3rd.  Your child should have brought home their cards and study guide (photo below) on Thursday.  Please check in with them and make sure they are studying for next week’s quiz.