Husky Helping House

Today we wrapped our gifts for the Husky Helping House! Due to your generous donations, we were able to donate four outfits, two pairs of shoes, two packages of socks, one coat, books, and a couple games to a child in the community in need. 
How wonderful!

Happy Holidays to you and your family!

Frazier Arms Museum Field Trip

We had a great time today at the Frazier Arms Museum! Here's a peek at some of our favorite moments.  This would be a great family outting! They are even going to have a Toy Story display soon!

(We are learning about non-fiction text features...so the kiddos used their new schema on captions to create these picture captions themselves!)

Funny man dressed like a person from the Middle Ages!



"This is really heavy!"




She is standing by iron mesh from the Middle Ages!



He's really trying to get that bow and arrow back!




"I am the mighty minotaur!"

They really had to think!



Geology Rocks Costumes

GEOLOGY ROCK COSTUMES

*Here is a reminder of play costumes.  Your child knows their part.  Please have your child's costume at school NO LATER than this Wednesday! Thanks!*
Rosie – school clothes
Jenn – school clothes
Sherlock Holmes – like the character, hat, magnifying glass, suit, notebook, pencil
Doctor Watson – like the character, hat, magnifying glass, suit, notebook, pencil
Volcanoes – brown pants, red shirt, red hat
Earth – blue pants and shirt
Ferns – green pants and shirt
Sea Shore – blue shirt, brown pants (or vice versa)
Canyon – brown pants, brown shirt
Valley – greens and browns, valley girl style
Mountain – white hat, brown pants and shirt
Snow White – character costume
Rocks – gray pants and shirt
Professor Rock – boots, khakis, plaid shirt, hat, beard, glasses

Exciting News!

I have finally found the best way for you to subscribe to our blog posts! If you wish to receive an email when we update our class blog, please follow the steps below:

1.  Find the box to the right of this post labeled "Subscribe via Email".
2.  Enter your email address and hit "subscribe".
3.  A screen will come up titled "Email Subscription Request" where you need to input the word you see appear on the screen into the blank box.
4.  Hit "complete subscription request".
5.  The next screen will let you know your request has been accepted and you will receive an email for verification.
6.  When you receive the email, simply click on the verification link and you are good to go!

Once you have followed these steps, you will receive an email with the exact post that has been placed on the class blog each time it is updated! How's that for easy?!

Please spread the word to other parents of our class about this great new feature!

brewing tea!

Currently we are studying three of the different forms of energy:  heat, light, and sound.  We are focusing specifically on heat energy right now.  We have learned that heat energy can be created through sunlight, electricity, or friction.  Yesterday we investigated what heat energy can do by brewing tea with cold and hot water.

Through inquiry, we discovered that warm molecules move faster than cold molecules, resulting in tea brewing quicker in the hot water.

What are other ways could you brew tea using heat energy?

Important Dates!

Just checking in to remind you of important upcoming dates!

Monday, November 8--Unit 4 Math Assessment (review is coming home on Friday the 5th)

Wednesday, November 10--Early Release day

Monday, November 15--Geology Rocks costumes due in plastic bag and labeled with first and last name.  Please see the letter that went home in October for costume details.

Thursday, November 18 (8:15-1:00)--Frazier Arms Museum field trip...please send a sack lunch with your child

Thursday, November 18--7 pm Geology Rocks play in gym...please have your child here by 6:15!

Friday, November 19--1:15 Geology Rocks

Tuesday, November 23--Assembly at 1:15

November 24-26--Thanksgiving Break

Medieval Fair--FRIDAY!

Just a reminder....it's that time! We are celebrating the Middle Ages with a Medieval Fair this Friday, October 13th.  Our fair will be from 8:30-10:00 in the cafeteria.  We will have medieval games, crafts, and other entertainment.  We will follow this fair with a 4th grade picnic from 11:30-12.  Because our lunch will not be at normal time, please make sure your child brings their lunch that day.  If they are unable to bring from home, they may purchase a sack lunch in the cafeteria.

Thanks for your help and support!

Husky Hustle!

We hustled our hearts out! Thanks to your support and the kiddos' hard work, our class raised around $600 to help Harmony and our classroom!

What We've Been Up To

Math- We are wrapping up Unit 3 this week and will assess at the beginning of next week. We will learn about using parentheses in number sentences and how to solve for a missing number. Yes, we are beginning our study of algebraic thinking! :) Continue to have your child practice their multiplication facts nightly!

Social Studies- Thanks so much for the feedback on how you can help with our Medieval Fair next Friday. I will notify you soon of the items I need you to send in. This week, we are learning about the Black Death in the Middle Ages.

Reading- We continue to review our thinking strategies and story elements with King Arthur. This week, we are learning about asking questions (thick questions v. thin questions), story sequences (beginning, middle, and end), and summarizing what we read. We are also meeting in our Book Clubs. Continue to encourage your child to log their thinking during the reading nightly.

Science- We are in our Weather Unit. This week we are studying the water cycle (evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and accumulation). We are also learning about clouds and what they can help us infer about weather.

Writing- We are wrapping up drafting our feature articles this week and will type them next week in order to publish and celebrate them on the Friday before Fall Break. Talk to your child about their writing! A final piece will come home for you!

Word Work- We have started our word work routine! Your child is working on a specific word work strategy and grammar strategy weekly based on our 4th grade Word Work sequence map and their learning needs. Last week we focused on inflecting endings (adding -ed to the end of words) and verbs. This week, we will focus on prefixes (mis-, un-, dis-, re-) and nouns. I will put our Word Work PowerPoints up soon on the blog. Your child is working with these words within their writing and in the context of their reading. You will see word work assessments (using words within complete sentences) come home weekly showing their progress.

Just a reminder...When your child brings their notebook home for Wonderful Work Wednesday, please discuss the self-assessment with them and sign that you have taken time to read through their notebooks. You do not need to focus on editing/revision mistakes such as punctuation, spelling, etc. Please remember that notebooks reflect free, uninhibited learning and are a glimpse into their thinking process. Please take time to encourage your child's effort and hard work.

As always, please let me know if you have questions or concerns! Thanks for your continued support at home!

Busy, Busy

Well we're off to another week! Wow, time flies when you're having fun! I hope your weekend was refreshing and fun! I wanted to update you with what we worked on last week and what we will be busy learning about this week!

Science- We studied rocks and minerals last week! We classified rocks and minerals and learned about the three types of rocks: sedimentary (created by layers of sediments), metamorphic (formed with heat a pressure), and igneous (formed when magma cools). We had a lot of fun creating our very own sedimentary rocks! You saw these come home this weekend.

We also had fun with Starburst, making metamorphic rocks. This week we will learn about the rock cycle and JN's dad, a real-life geologist!, is coming in to talk to us about the job of a geologist! Stay tuned for an exciting surprise that will help us wrap up our study of earth's processes and rocks and minerals! (The surprise is being revealed to the kiddos on Wednesday...they're trying their hardest to guess!)

Social Studies-We spent last week learning about the code of chivalry (oh yes, we know how to be chivalrous now!). We also learned about coat of arms and their importance in a time of lawlessness. We wrapped up our week learning about what it would be like to live on a manor and creating our very own castle! (Pictures of those coming later this week!) We will spend this week learning about William the Conqueror, the Domesday Book, how trade affected the growth of medieval towns, and guilds and apprentices.

Hallway Display of Pledges to the King

Our very own Coat of Arms

Math- Last week we learned about various addition and subtraction algorithms. We just wrapped up Unit 2 with our assessment today. Unit 3-Multiplication and Division; Number Sentences and Algebra will begin on Wednesday. It is very important that we continue to study, study, study our math facts! Much of our unit will include practicing our multiplication facts in order to know them in a snap! Don't forget to check out the "Enrichment Websites" on the blog for online practice!

Reading- We continue with our reading of King Arthur! This week we will focus on our thinking strategies as we read:

-inferring: questioning as you reading to help you draw conclusions, make predictions, and reflect on your thinking

-determining importance: understanding the main ideas of the text and what the author's message is

-asking questions: asking questions and looking for answers before you read, as you read, and after you read

-visualizing: taking time to see and feel what you read

-fixing comprehension: applying "fix-up" strategies when you get stuck on a word or confused during your reading

-making connections: using what you read to understand what you read...you can make text to self, text to text, or text to world connections

-synthesizing: combining what you know with new information to understand the text

Encourage your child to use these strategies as they complete their nightly reading log. We have also started reading groups ("Book Clubs") and some small groups to assist with fluency needs ("Fluency Fun Clubs"). Ask your child about their small groups. (A couple groups will not start until Friday.)

Writing-We continue to work on our Feature Articles! We are wrapping up our research in the library tomorrow and will begin to craft and draft our feature article bit by bit! Make sure to discuss your child's topic with him or her. (They may even come home wanting to do further research!)

Important Upcoming Dates:

Sept. 23-Book Fair Preview @ 10:30 (Please do not send money, as we are not shopping, but do look for a "wish list" to come home that day.)

Sept. 27- Book Fair shopping @ 10:30 (Bring money if you wish to purchase items.)

Sept. 28-Assembly @ 1:15 "The NED Show"

Sept. 29-Early Release

Oct. 1-Husky Hustle (time not yet known for our class) and Harmony Harvest (Make sure to come and bid to win time at a special "party" with Mrs. Gentry! You won't want to miss out! The more the merrier!)

Have a wonderful week!

Lately

Here is a look into what we've been up to...

Math-- We are now in Unit 2 of math which is our number sense unit. We started the week by reviewing numbers up to one billion by learning how to read large numbers correctly and identifying the value of digits within a number. We learned about collecting data using a line plot and tally chart last week. We collected data on the number of raisins in boxes using our estimation strategies and how many people are in our families. After collecting data, we found landmark data, such as the range, mode, median, maximum, and minimum. Next week we will learn about finding the mean and using algorithms to solve addition and subtraction problems.

*We began our Mad Minutes this Friday! If your child came home with a sheet with problems answered incorrectly or not answered at all, they should use that sheet to study for next week! The goal is complete the sheet correctly in 2 minutes or less. If they passed that level, they should work on math facts in general in preparation for their next level! Don't forget to check out our links on the blog that can help with math facts practice!

Science-- We continued our study of earth's processes and how they cause slow and fast changes to the earth. This included experiments with erosion, flooding, and weathering. We got pretty dirty and a little wet when we used our stream tables to see how erosion occurs in a hands-on approach.

We even took a short field trip to see how the lack of vegetation has caused some extreme erosion near the high school's tennis courts!



We will begin our new unit on rocks and minerals next week.

Writing-- We used this week to collect many more seed ideas (ideas that could turn into writing pieces) in our Writer's Notebooks. Some of these strategies included a questions list, a best and worst list, rereading and highlighting our notebook, and reflecting on where we have seen idioms, sayings, and proverbs come alive in our daily lives. Some of these include: Two wrongs don't make a right; Bull in a china shop; Through thick and thin; On the warpath. We will learn about more of these throughout the year! Next week begins our Feature Article study and researching about a specific topic we want to develop into our first published piece.

Reading-- We started our first read aloud, King Arthur, this week. What an exciting and adventure-packed story so far! This read aloud is allowing us to integrate our Middle Ages study with reading. What a fun way to learn! We are beginning our study of story elements and applied our knowledge of the setting and characters to our read aloud by responding in writing.



Social Studies-- We continue our study of the Middle Ages! We learned about vassals and how they pledged their loyalty to the king in exchange for safety and land. We created our homage (dedication to the king) and presented them to the king this week. In exchange for their loyalty, students receive a piece of land from King Gentry (in the form of a shiny new pencil). We also played a feudalism game to show how unfair the system of government was. We continue to discuss how what we are learning shows the negative affects of lawlessness during these times. Next week we will learn more about knights, the code of chivalry, and creating a coat of arms.


Have a wonderful weekend!

PS. Check out the very bottom of the page for a video of the smiling faces of room 201! :)