Lighting up the holidays with circuits and cheer!

Electromagnets

Penguin Ornaments

12/15-12/23

This week's update will include the next two weeks, since they consist of only seven days together.  Our class will be visiting our school's Toys for Tots store on Thursday, December 18th.  If interested, they may bring money in to purchase items.  All proceeds go to our local Toys for Tots!

Please have bowling permission slips with payment in by Friday.

Here is what we will be busy with in the upcoming weeks...

Language Arts:

New reading logs went home and are due next Friday, December 19th.

Students are continuing to work towards the goal of being at 13 books completed by January 9th. 

Comprehension- We will be focusing on one of our more difficult informational text skills which is text structure.  This examines how the text is built or organized.  

Vocabulary- Suffixes: ful, less, ness, meant

Word Study- New lists were written into agendas Thursday and they will be tested on them Thursday, December 18th.  Please encourage your students to be sorting their words by patterns and sounds at home to prepare and learn.

Students bring they corrected tests home each week.  Please make sure your student is sharing these so that you can see their progress!

Writing- Will be introducing opinion writing and writing an opinion piece on our favorite holidays or celebrations. 

Grammar- Modal Auxiliary Verbs (must, shall, can, will, may, should, could, would, might)  We will be learning about in which contexts different ones should be used in our writing.  

Science:

We will be wrapping up electricity and moving on to magnetism.  Ask you child how they did building their own electric circuits this week!  After the holiday break our class will be transitioning to Mr. Krupa for Social Studies.  

Math: They will be continuing with unit 4.  Please remember and utilize the fantastic sites Mr. Krupa has on his blog for practice!

12/8-1212

Thanks for your feedback on how you would like to receive our weekly updates.  I will continue to copy the information into the email as well so that everyone has easy access to it.  

Bowling permission slips went home this week.  Please sign and return them with payment by December 19th.  We will not need chaperones for this even, however, you are invited to join us there if you have had your background check completed.  

I apologize for the length of this update as there is a lot to cover this week:)

Here is what we will be up to next week...

Language Arts: 

New reading logs went home today and are due next Friday.  Students are expected to be at 13 books finished by the January 9th PATH reward to be on track for their goal.  Students who are currently behind have blue plans to catch up stapled into their agendas.  Parent encouragement and support on the completion of this is very appreciated.  My hope is that we have everyone caught up and on track when we return from the holiday break.  

Comprehension:  Our comprehension skill of the week is text and graphic features.  This includes things such as graphs, tables, pictures, timelines, glossaries, bold/italics and titles.  Fourth graders must be able to recognize these features and be able to analyze why it was included in the text and how it helped their understanding of the topic.

Grammar: Relative Pronouns- This involves using the proper forms of who vs. whom.  

Vocabulary Words of the Week: transfer, transport, obstacle, excess

Vocabulary Strategy: Antonyms (opposites)

Word Study:  As I mentioned in my previous message, there has been a change to our word study schedule.  We will now be on a Thursday to Thursday schedule.  Students were given new word lists and ideas for pattern sorting in class yesterday.  They will be tested on these patters next Thursday as well as get their new words/patterns.  Please continue to encourage your child to be looking at the patterns they are noticing within the words.  Doing word sorts at home is a more valuable practice than simply memorizing.  Your child knows and has practiced many types of sorts that may be repeated at home.  

Science:  This week we introduced reading from textbooks and how to find the information we need.  Next week we will be continuing electricity and construction our own electrical circuits!

Math

In our math classes next week, we will continue naming and measuring angles and classifying triangles by their angles and sides. Terms that we are learning and reviewing are acute, obtuse, isosceles, scalene, and equilateral. In addition, we will use transformations to prove congruency and extend patterns to identify repetition using shapes and numbers. Please continue to memorize the division facts so you are able to solve division problems with remainders. There are many websites listed on my blog to help your child improve their fluency score and meet their math log goals.  http://krupafourthgrade.blogspot.com

Upcoming Dates to Remember:

Unity Day (wear orange)- December 10th

Bowling Fieldtrip Slip Due- December 19th

Bowling Fieldtrip-December 23rd

Winter Break- December 24th -January 2nd

Back to School- January 5th

11/24-11/25

We have a short week coming with just two days of school.  Please enjoy the time with your families and celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday if your family does so.

Here is what our super short week will be filled with...

Language Arts:

New reading logs went home today and will be due on Tuesday with only 80 minutes.

Between Krupa's and Bakke's homerooms, 85% of students have already made their 1st trimester reading goal!  Congratulations to each of them and their success on reaching this challenge.  The deadline for turning in completed responses is Monday.  Tuesday, we will be holding our 1st trimester reading reward party for all those who earned it!

Writing: We will be working hard on completing their I Survived story final drafts.  Watch for these to come home in their report cards!

Word Study: Word study will resume again after the long weekend, however, we are going to try out a change in the schedule.  We will be getting new words and testing for the previous week every THURSDAY from now on.  This will allow for more time to practice and master each of the patterns.  We will continue to have two lists going to better meet the needs of all of our learners.

Math:

Signed study guides are due on Monday.  They will be taking the unit test next week.

Social Studies:

Students will be testing on the western region of the United States.  Please practice over the weekend!

11/17-11/21

Our week was a little mixed up due to the lovely first snow this year!  I hope everyone was able to spend some time relaxing or catching up on their extra day off.  Please take the time to check your child's agenda to see if they made it to the PATH reward today.  If they have late work, please help them make a plan to get caught up as the end of the trimester is quickly approaching!

Language Arts:

New reading logs went home today and are due next Friday, November 21st.
There will be no word list until after the Thanksgiving break.  Students who scored poorly on today's test will re-do this week's word list.  Check Dojo to see if this pertains to your child.

Comprehension: This week we will be focusing on the sequence of event in a fiction story.

Writing: We will continue through the writing process with our historical fiction I Survived stories.  By the end of next week, final drafts should be done by Thanksgiving break.  They are looking AMAZING so far!  We have some very tainted writers in 4th grade:)

Vocabulary: Our words of the week are wreck, possess, construct, debris.  We will also be working on stressed and un stressed syllables.

Grammar: Conjuctions

Reading Goal Update:
Your child must reach their 10 book reading goal by November 25th in order to participate in the Reading Reward Party that day.  I do not accept more than one book a day.  They should be completing their response journals as they finish books.  We have had some trouble with students only reading a couple of pages and then trying to do responses.  This is dishonest and will not be accepted!  Their responses also need to be at least 5 complete sentences with correct capitalization and punctuation.  As fourth graders, this is the standard for all of their writing.  Please contact me with any questions you may have on this.  Many 4th graders are already at or past 10 books!! Congrats to them:)

Math

We will be taking a final addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division test in the next two weeks that will determine your facts test grade on your report card.  Please be prepared to do your best on these four minute, fifty question tests! The tests will be graded in the following manner;

Trimester One

Above Grade Level  (A)

Addition   0-20  100%

Subtraction 0-20  100%

Multiplication 0-10  90%

Division  0-10  90%

     All under 4 minutes

At Grade Level  (G)

Addition   0-20  95%

Subtraction 0-20  95%

Multiplication 0-10  80%

Division  0-10  80%

    All under 4 minutes

Below Grade Level  (B)

Addition   0-20  < 95%

Subtraction 0-20  < 95%

Multiplication 0-10  < 80%

Division  0-10  < 80%

    All under 4 minutes

Second Trimester includes 0-12's

Third Trimester includes 0-12's and the percentages increase

11/10-11/14

We had a wonderful focus Friday today to honor our veterans.  Great job to Alex and Eva in our class with sharing their poems at the ceremony.  Today, your students took home an envelope containing a hard copy of their MCA results.  Please remind them to share this with you at home.  We are closing in on the first trimester with just over two weeks left.  The students and I were talking today about how fast this fall has gone by.  It's true what they say.. time flies when you are having fun!

Here are our plans for the upcoming week:

Language Arts:

New reading logs went home today and will be due next Friday, November 14th.  Students should also have 8 books completed by this date.  We currently have 7 students who are behind on their reading goal.  Please check in with your child to see if they are one of them!

Comprehension:  We will be focusing on Historical Fiction and finding information directly in the text.  We will be reading a story called Riding Freedom and completing a story guide to practice all of the skills we have done so far this year.

Writing: This week we will be reviewing the writing process and will be starting a historical fiction story.  On Tuesday we will be going into the computer lab to do research on an event from history that they will center their story around.  Please take some time this weekend to brainstorm some events with your students and help them pick a topic!

Vocabulary: We will be looking at specific language authors use to create mood and effect in their writing.  We will also be practicing recognizing and using similes and metaphors.

Word Study: New word lists will come home on Monday.  Please continue to practice these with your students.

Math:

This week in math class, we will be understanding the magnitude of one million. We will identify place value for numbers up to the millions, adding and subtracting numbers that create a sum and a difference of one million. Look for a quiz to be given Tuesday .  An end of the unit test will be assessed before the holiday break.  Please be watching for a study guide to be completed at home during the week of November 17th-22nd. 

November 3rd-7th

It is hard to believe it is already November!  The end of the first trimester is November 25th, so please check in with your students and continue to encourage them to meet their trimester goals.  As the weather is getting colder, please remind students to dress appropriately for recess.  Sandals and T-shirts are no longer safe outside attire!

Here is what we will be busy learning next week in our classroom:

Language Arts:

Comprehension: Theme- When reading at home, ask your student what the lesson being learned in the story is.

Writing: We will be completing our Veteran's Day Poetry final drafts and voting on who will read theirs during the late start ceremony. I have been so impressed by the amazing poets we have in our rooms!

Word Study- We now have a couple of different lists/patterns going on due to the different needs and spelling abilities in our room.  Students will continue to bring home a hard copy of the list as well as writing their words into their agendas on Mondays.  All students will still test on their words on Fridays.

Vocabulary- Greek and Latin Word Parts (photo, graph, auto, tele)
Our words of the week are focus, promote, critic, target, thrill

Goal Check In- Students should be at a minimum of 7 books by the 7th.  This will help their success toward the goal of 10 by the end of the trimester.

Math:

In our math classes we will continue to work on solving word problems that involve addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.  We will identify place value of numbers to the thousands column and we will read, write, and round numbers out to the thousands, as well. 

In Social Studies class, we will be studying the states that are located in the Western Region of the United States. The students will be expected to have memorized their state capitals and be able to identify each state on a United States map. 

Last Week of October

Here is what's happening in our classroom next week...

Language Arts

New reading logs went home today and are due next Friday, October 31st.

Comprehension Skil-Point of view (who is telling the story? how do we know?)
Grammar-Verbs
Vocabulary-Suffixes -y and -ous
Writing-Transition words
Word Study- Long and short U patterns
*Some students will come home with a green challenge list this week.

This week we spent some time on the computers researching Veteran's Day.  Next week we will be writing Veteran's Day Poems in preparation for the ceremony being held on our late start November 7th.  Please take the time to ask your child about what they learned while researching this holiday.

All students should be at 5 books finished by this point in the year.  Please check in with your child to be sure they are pace with their goals.

Math

-Unit 3: Adding and subtracting milt-digit numbers and word problems
Continue to practice math facts and record on the fact logs.

Oct.20-Oct.24

I hope everyone had a great long weekend to spend time with their families and relax.   I am so proud of the leadership and accountability I saw with the students at conferences.  They did an amazing job and should be really proud of themselves.  Thank you for your willingness to try something new!

Here is a preview of next week!

Math:
Next week, we will review congruence, similarity, and symmetry; parallel and perpendicular lines; and the differences among quadrilaterals. We will review area and perimeter. The review/study guide will be sent home on Monday and we will test Unit Two  on Tuesday.on Tuesday. 

Language Arts:
Comprehension Skills- Writing informational summaries and determining what information is most important
Grammar- Common, proper and plural nouns
Word Study and Vocabulary-Homophones
Writing- Writing informational summaries and using transition words

New reading logs went home yesterday and are due next Friday, Oct. 24th.  We kept the 120 minute goal to allow students to have a couple days off.

As we are nearing the halfway point of the trimester, students are to be at 5 books finished by Friday. This will allow them to be on pace with the 10 per trimester goal.
Students were asked to bring home their reading response journals to write in over the 5 day weekend.

Many parents had questions about the grade level equivalents to their student's letter reading level.  I have included a chart to show this a little better.

Fountas and Pinnell Levels	AR Levels
A	0.2-0.4
B	0.2-0.4
C	0.5-0.6
D	0.7-0.9
E	0.7-0.9
F	1.0-1.2
G	1.3-1.5
H	1.6-1.9
I	2.0-2.4
J	2.5-2.9
K	2.6-2.9
L	2.7-2.9
M	3.0-3.4
N	3.4-3.9
O	3.5-3.9
P	4.0-4.4
Q	4.2-4.4
R	4.5-4.9
S	4.6-4.9
T	5.0-5.4
U	5.2-5.4
V	5.5-5.9
W	6.0+
X	6.0+
Y	7.0+
Z	7.0+

Oct. 13th-15th

Next week is conferences!  To be respectful of each family's time, please try to be on time to your student's conference.  Also, remember that the students will be leading their conferences so they must be there!  We have been doing a lot of things to prepare and your 4th graders are very excited to share with you all of the great things they are doing:)

We only have 2 days of school next week!  Here is what we have planned-

Language Arts:
-Looking at poetry and idioms
-How to use different print and reference materials

A new reading log was handed out today and will be due on Tuesday with 80 minutes read.
There will be no word list this week.

Math:
-Finishing up Unit 2 on perimeter and area

Fact logs only need to have 20 minutes of math fact practice.

Other:  Book orders will be due Tuesday.

Have a great week and I will see you soon!

Oct. 6th- Oct. 10th

Happy October!  Today was our first late start and we had a great day filled with activities including a whole-school PATH event and our weekly Friday choice time for all students who remained above 80% on class dojo and have all of their work completed.  Please check in with your child to see which choice they made.
I wanted to mention how proud I am of our class and the progress they are making already this year. We have a wonderful, positive, hard working class and I feel very fortunate to get to work with them every day!

Next week plans...

Language Arts:
Reading Comprehension:  We will be focusing on informational text this week.  The skills we will be practicing are main idea and facts vs. opinion.  New logs went home today.
Word Study: Short and long o words.  New lists will come home on Monday and we will test Friday.
Grammar: Simple and compound sentences
Vocabulary: Prefixes non-, and mis-  Our words of the week are: direct, habitat, organism, trace

Please check in regularly with your child on how they are progressing toward their book goal.  Each time they finish a book they must complete one response in their reading journals and turn it in for credit.  They have time in school every day for reading and writing in their journals, but they may bring these home as well.  To be on a good pace, students should have 2-3 books finished this week.

Math:
Please check in on Mr. Krupa's blog for regular updates - see right side for a link!
Unit 2
New fact  logs went home today


Other Updates:
Conferences are just around the corner!  Today I sent home reminder sheets with each student.  Please sign these and return so that we are able to make any changes in the schedule.  Remember, the students will be leading their conference so they will need to be there:)

Since conferences are taking place only a few weeks into our school year, we will be focusing them on where your students are currently at and their goals for the remainder of the year.  If there are things you would specifically like to talk about, please email me ahead of time so I can get the necessary materials ready.

October book orders will be sent home next week.  They will be due Tuesday, October 14th.

All fundraiser order are due this Tuesday, Oct. 7th.
Have a fabulous week!

Sept. 29-Oct. 3

Upcoming events this week include:
Watch Dogs Information and Pizza Night-Tuesday 5:30-7:00
Picture Day-Wednesday! Students must have their order form brought to school by Wednesday if you are interested in purchasing pictures.
PTAC Ice Cream Social-Thursday 6:00-8:00 in cafeteria
2 Hour Late Start-Friday
Pleasantview 1k and 5k- October 11th

Here is what we will be working on in 4th grade next week!

Language Arts:
New reading logs went home today and will be due next Friday, October 3rd.
Comprehension-Decribing characters and analyzing character traits
Grammar- Types of sentences and using punctuation for effect in our writing
Vocabulary- Using context clues to find word meanings
Our words of the week are trait, concern, ruin, model.  Try using these words at home!
Word Study- Short and long i  
New lists will be put into agendas on Monday.  Students will also be bringing home an idea letter for how to be practicing their words at home.

Math:
Students will be testing on Unit 1 on Tuesday.  Below is a note from Mr. Krupa..

Good afternoon!

We had a few students not turn in a Math Log last week. These studentswere disappointed when they learned they werent able to attend the No
Late Work Reward Event due to the fact that their log was incomplete.
I want my math students to be attending this event. I want my math
students to have attain mastery of all the math facts!
So Im sending along a suggested schedule for completing the Math Facts
Log which is due at the end of every week. I've made recommendations
for every night of the week, but remember you only need to total 50
minutes of practice per week. This suggested schedule allows you to
practice more than 50 minutes a week so you could take a day or two
off. The listed sites are very user and family friendly as the
students could achieve all 50 minutes of practice online.  All
activities are placed on my blog located at
http://krupafourthgrade.blogspot.com [1]

or you can copy and paste the websites to your address bar.
Here's the suggested timeframe for practice. We begin on a Friday.

Friday

    Practice a math game on  Mr. Krupa's website - 10-15 minutes
Recommending:  Math Facts Shootout

http://www.abcya.com/math_facts_game.htm [2]

   Multiplication and Division

Saturday

  Practice a math game on Mr. Krupa's website- 10-15 minutes

Recommending: Math Bingo

http://www.abcya.com/math_bingo.htm [3]

Sunday -

 Take a quiz online and have the computer correct it  - 10-15
minutes
http://www.fun4thebrain.com/quizzes.html [4]

Monday

 Flash Cards 10 minutes.  (I have some if you need them or they are
one dollar at the dollar store) orhttp://www.fun4thebrain.com/multiplication/alienmunchmult.html [5]

Check out the entire site

Tuesday

 NWEA Math "Practice Sites" 10 - 15 minutes (located at the very
bottom my Blog, use your MAPS Test score to figure where to begin
http://www.sowashco.k12.mn.us/RO/Pages/studentlinks/map/ [6]

Check out the entire site

Wednesday

 Math Apps and Website games 10-  15 minutes (located on the blog
under "Websites")


 Recommending: http://www.ixl.com/math/grade-4/missing-factors-facts-to-12[7]

Check out the entire site

Thursday

 Flash Cards- 10 minutesor http://www.adaptedmind.com/p.php?tagId=403# [8]

Friday- Turn in your Math Log!!! Celebrate! Get a new Math Log

Check out other links under "Websites" located on the righthand side
of the  blog and Practice Sites at the very bottom of the blog.

Enjoy your improved mathematical knowledge!
Links:
------
[1] http://krupafourthgrade.blogspot.com
[2] http://www.abcya.com/math_facts_game.htm    Friday
[3] http://www.abcya.com/math_bingo.htm               Sat.
[4] http://www.fun4thebrain.com/quizzes.html           Sun.
[5] http://www.fun4thebrain.com/multiplication/alienmunchmult.html  Mon.
[6] http://www.sowashco.k12.mn.us/RO/Pages/studentlinks/map/     Tues.
[7] http://www.ixl.com/math/grade-4/missing-factors-facts-to-12        Wed.
[8] http://www.adaptedmind.com/p.php?tagId=403#                          Thurs.