Mayberry-McFarland Weekly Newsletter for the week of September 10-14, 2018

Due Dates / Upcoming Events:

• Monday, September 17: reading logs are due for Mayberry & McFarland readers 
• Tuesday, September 18: Home Link is due / McFarlands have P.E. (sneakers, please)
• Wednesday, September 19: early release
• Thursday, September 20: math journal pages should be caught up
• Friday, September 21: Home Link is due
• Monday, September 24: reading logs are due

Special Announcements:

Parent Info Night: Thank you to those of who were able to take time out of your busy schedules to join us for Parent Information Night Thursday night! It was a great crowd; thank you for the warm reception! McFarland parents, please keep an eye out for two Google docs coming your way: one for a student contact list to share with all families in the class and the second for volunteer opportunities. Hoping to have that out by the end of next week. Here is a link to the slideshow we presented last night: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/121Jl9mS2MoSZHclm-m3ayvFSGw5F5k6I8a-WqyKqoLQ/edit#slide=id.gc850946e1_0_0

Reading logs (a repeat from last week’s newsletter -- worth repeating!):

• All students who participate in the regular classroom setting with Mrs. McFarland for Reading Workshop have a weekly reading log. If your child receives instruction through a special education IEP in the resource room, they will follow the expectations for their own reading class. You can contact the resource room reading teachers via email with your questions (tneiter@msad51.org; dhobbins@msad51.org; jsmithbrock@msad51.org) .
• I’ll hand out reading logs on Mondays, and they are due the following Monday. Your child has the second log this week, and it is due on Monday, September 17th.
• Many students already have established the habit of reading for pleasure (or just because they know they should...nothing wrong with that!). Well done! Others haven’t reached it quite yet, but that’s part of my master plan as their reading teacher this year! And, your child will need your help.
• My expectation is that students log at least four of the days that they read at home throughout the week. They are welcome and encouraged to do more, especially if they already do. Also, I expect students to read for at least 25 minutes in one shot on those four days. Through these expectations, we are working toward establishing a regular routine, and we are working on increasing stamina. I talked to the kids about it like training to become a stronger runner: runners don’t run once a week for 2 hours; they run on a regular basis throughout the week. They don’t run for seven minutes in the morning and then 16 minutes in the afternoon and 12 minutes in the evening; in order to build their stamina, they run for a sustained period of time, gradually increasing it. I know that students in first, second, and third grades here in MSAD51 have been expected to read at home to contribute to their strength as readers, and we will continue that throughout the fourth grade year.
• Your child has four more days to complete this assignment: today (Friday), Saturday, Sunday, and Monday morning before school. Trust me, I’m giving lots of reminders about this in class every day.

Academic Updates

Team Culture
A focus for our team, in order to continue to build a respectful, kind learning community (and world!), is to help students gain patience and self-control so they avoid interrupting. You know what we mean: You’re talking to another parent on the sideline of a soccer game, and your child rushes up to you and blurts out, “Mom, can I have some money for the snack shack?” Or, you’re thinking hard, typing away on your Hannaford to Go order, and, while your eyes are on the screen, your child hollers from the doorway, “Dad, where are the Band-Aids?” Innocent enough, for sure. Imagine multiplying that by 23. Problem-solving, patience, and self-control are life skills, as are good manners.

First, we often use body language to let the child know s/he is interrupting unnecessarily, such as pausing our conversation with the other person for a couple of beats, yet not making eye contact with the interrupter; raising our eyebrows and making “meaningful” eye contact with the interrupter and then returning to the original conversation; giving the interrupter a quick shake of the head.

After sending a nonverbal message and finishing up the conversation or work at hand, we often use some key phrases with our children to help them break the habit of interrupting:

“That’s a problem you can solve on your own.”
“Ask someone else; there are others in the room who know the answer.”
“It makes me feel overwhelmed when people shout random questions at me.”
“When you interrupt my conversation/work, it tells me that you don’t care about what I’m saying/doing.”
“You can wait.”
“Please use self-control to wait.”
“Be patient. That’s not something that needs to interrupt the whole class right now.”
“Use your manners.”
“I’m busy with XYZ right now. Please wait until _______, so I can give you all of my attention.”

We will continue to have conversations during our morning meetings about interrupting (and as needed), and we will give positive feedback as kids demonstrate problem-solving, self-control, and patience.

Writing Workshop
This week, we have focused on the kinds of details writers use (see chart below) to create a storytelling voice. We read a beautiful book, Salt Hands (https://www.amazon.com/Hands-Picture-Puffins-Chelsea-Aragon/dp/0140503218/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536937616&sr=8-1&keywords=salt+hands), which is a lovely example of a small moment story. Kids had their own copies of the story, and we identified and color-coded those kinds of details, noticing the balance that the author uses to help us see the story. We ended the week by reviewing sensory details, which is one way to bring a story to life.

Reading Workshop
This week, our reading workshop activities were varied! Students completed the i-Ready reading test, and I’m using that data to help create some small groups for some focused instruction this fall. In addition, I’m meeting with each reader one-on-one to get to know their reading habits, likes, dislikes, strengths, and areas to strengthen. Students also took a pre-assessment, answering some sophisticated questions about the characters, story elements, and themes of a story called “Papa’s Parrot.” Next week, we will really be getting into our regular reading routine!

Math
In math this week students worked on reading and writing large numbers, comparing large numbers and rounding. We learned how to play a math game called Spin and Round, students enjoyed playing with partners while practicing this difficult skill. Students also started using IXL in class. For each unit students will have a list of skills to practice when their work is done during math class. Students can also use IXL at home. Each student has their login and password taped to the inside of their planner. They can work on any skills they feel comfortable with in level F at home. IXL does not count toward fact practice. IXL is a skill building tool for a lot of math concepts, but not fact practice.

One way you can help your mathematician at home is to share reading large numbers when you see them in real life situations.


Theme
Science was exciting this week. Students explored the answer to this question: Why do some volcanoes explode? The experiment involved looking at the differences between thin and thick lava and how each type reacted to the bubbles they blew into the mixture with a straw. This experience led them to conclude why some volcanoes explode and others don’t. Ask your young scientist to explain what he/she learned this week.

Next week: Do mountains last forever?

Mayberry-McFarland Weekly Newsletter

for the week of September 4-7, 2018

Welcome to your child’s 4th grade team weekly newsletter!  We are pretty consistent at sending out a newsletter like this at the end of almost every week.  We consider it a victory for us if it gets to you by day’s end on Fridays; it might end up in your inbox Sunday afternoons or anytime in between.  Please try to be patient with us...One of our major priorities is regular communication with families, and this is probably the most important and informative part of that routine.

Due Dates / Upcoming Events:

Monday, September 10: reading logs are due for Mayberry & McFarland readers

Tuesday, September 11: writing notebook covers are due for Mayberry & McFarland writers / Home Link is due / McFarlands have P.E. (sneakers, please)

Wednesday, September 12: early release

Thursday, September 13: GMS ⅘ Parent Information Night 5:30-7:00...meet in GMS Gym

Friday, September 14: Home Link is due

Monday, September 17: reading logs are due

Special Announcements:

Birthday snacks (the important stuff first!):  We have already had a few late-summer birthdays on our team, and some 4th graders ask whether they can bring in a treat to share.  The answer is, “Yes, please!” And others don’t seem to care, and they don’t bring them in; that’s OK, too. We are happy to celebrate at snack time with your child on (or around) that special day.  The McFarlands are 23 children, and the Mayberrys are 22. The one thing we do ask is that the treats are easy to hand out (cupcakes as opposed to a whole cake; fruit kabobs already on the sticks as opposed to a large bowl of fruit salad; Dixie cups as opposed to half-gallons of Edy’s).  If your child has an allergy or food sensitivity and/or may not be able to have something that is brought in from someone else’s home, it works well to send in a handful of “their” treats, and we can stash them in the cabinet and give one to your child whenever needed throughout the year.  Summer birthdays: If your Summer Kiddo wants to set a date sometime during the school year to bring in a birthday treat, simply send us an email, and we’ll plan on it!

Math facts: All students need to be practicing math facts for either subtraction or multiplication at least 3 times a week for 10 minutes each time. There are many ways to practice at home. Some students have mentioned using flashcards, some have talked about an app or website they like to use. In addition, there is a link on my web page for fact practice sheets. The sheets are in PDF format and can be printed at home. Here is a link: https://goo.gl/PTwhPk I will be sending more suggestions home as the year progresses, but these ideas are a good place to start.

Reading logs:  All students who participate in the regular classroom setting with Mrs. McFarland for Reading Workshop have a weekly reading log.  If your child receives instruction through a special education IEP in the resource room, they will follow the expectations for their own reading class.  You can contact the resource room reading teachers via email with your questions (tneiter@msad51.org; dhobbins@msad51.org; jsmithbrock@msad51.org) .  

    I’ll hand out reading logs on Mondays, and they are due the following Monday.  Your child has the first log this week, and it is due on Monday, September 10th.

    Many students already have established the habit of reading for pleasure (or just because they know they should...nothing wrong with that!).  Well done! Others haven’t reached it quite yet, but that’s part of my master plan as their reading teacher this year! And, your child will need your help.  

    My expectation is that students log at least four of the days that they read at home throughout the week.  They are welcome and encouraged to do more, especially if they already do. Also, I expect students to read for at least 25 minutes in one shot on those four days.  Through these expectations, we are working toward establishing a regular routine, and we are working on increasing stamina. I talked to the kids about it like training to become a stronger runner: runners don’t run once a week for 2 hours; they run on a regular basis throughout the week.  They don’t run for seven minutes in the morning and then 16 minutes in the afternoon and 12 minutes in the evening; in order to build their stamina, they run for a sustained period of time, gradually increasing it. I know that students in first, second, and third grades here in MSAD51 have been expected to read at home to contribute to their strength as readers, and we will continue that throughout the fourth grade year.

    Parents, there are many ways you and I can help our kids meet and exceed these goals.  I’ll discuss this in much more detail next Thursday evening at

Parent Info Night (see info below).  In the meantime, your child has four more days to complete this assignment: today (Friday), Saturday, Sunday, and Monday morning before school.  Trust me, I’m giving lots of reminders about this in class every day.

GMS ⅘ Parent Information Night Thursday, September 13 at 5:30:  Parents, please meet in the GMS gym at 5:30 for a welcome and general school information from our administrator, Carol MacArthur.  Then, join us in Sheila’s classroom (room 210) for a presentation with both of us and an opportunity to ask questions about your child’s fourth grade experience.  We disseminate a lot of information during this one-time annual event, so we hope all can plan ahead to make it!  We very much look forward to meeting you and collaborating with you throughout this school year!

Academic Updates

Writing Workshop

This week, we have established writing territories, topics and ideas that we are comfortable writing about, such as people and places we know about and care about, and things we like to do.  There is a lot of choice as to what to write about in our writing curriculum, so it’s helpful to keep a running list of possible ideas to consult on any given day. Students also used Friday’s writing workshop to independently write a personal narrative (small moment story).  As our first unit is personal narrative, these pieces will help me to determine what students already can do and what we will focus on for our instruction.

Reading Workshop

For most of the first few days, we’ve been exploring the classroom library and establishing the use of the reading logs.  Next week, we will use the logs to reflect on our reading habits and to set some goals. We will start our first Reading Workshop mentor text and will review story mountain structure, the way many stories tend to go.  In addition, I’ll be meeting with every student over the next two months to get to know each as a reader.

Math

We are off and running in math. Students have had several lessons from the EveryDay Math curriculum this week. In unit 1 students will be working on many concepts involving numeracy, adding and subtracting large numbers, measurement conversions, and geometry. Below is a list of the goals I have posted in the classroom for students as we work through this unit:

• Read and write whole numbers through the hundred-thousands place.
• Read and write whole numbers in expanded form through the hundred-thousands place.
• Compare and order whole numbers through the hundred-thousands place.
• Round numbers through the hundred-thousands place.
• Add 3-digit + 3-digit numbers.
• Subtract 3-digit + 3-digit numbers.
• Convert from yards to feet.
• Determine perimeter of a quadrangle.
• Identify right angles.

I will cover more about 4th grade math at our Parent Night on September 13th.

Theme

Students have been enjoying their first exposure to the 4th grade science curriculum this week. At GMS 4-5 we use a program called Mystery Science. It is well-aligned to the Next Gen Science Standards (NGSS), which were adopted by the district several years ago. This first unit is called The Birth of Rocks. In the first lesson students mapped the location of about forty-eight volcanoes on a world map and observed patterns regarding the location of volcanoes. Ask your child to explain what Ring of Fire, and what the likelihood is that a volcano could pop-up in their own backyards. Next week we will continue some hands-on work with different types of lava. Stay tuned.

    Also, in theme, students worked in groups on a fun cooperative challenge involving stacking Solo cups without touching them. Below are a few pictures of students in action.