Update!

April Update

We have been soooooo busy this week!  

It was so nice to have a break and it sounds like we all had great

adventures!

We spent the week before spring break working on PIRATE activities!!  

We researched pirates, wrote pirate stories, built pirate ships, designed pirate flags....so much fun!

Since we have been back, we have jumped right back in!

Here are some highlights of what we are working on:

• Science:  Motion and Design -- learning about Laws of Motion and using those laws to design, build and test designs.
• Reading:  Reading about Science in Motion
• Writing:  Learning how to write LIterary Essays.  Responding DEEPLY to text.
• Phonics:  Moving on with Morphology!
• Math:  Spending another week or two in fractions, percents and decimals.

And the BIG news.....We have been practicing for ISTEP+ part 2.

We will have ONLINE I-STEP testing on the following days....

Monday 4/17

Tuesday 4/18

Thursday 4/20

Friday 4/21

Monday 4/24

Tuesday 4/25

Wednesday 4/26

Most of our tests are from 8:30-9:30.....so a GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP is crucial!!!

Thank you for all you can do to get those kiddos in bed!

Update!!

As we near the end of the 3rd Quarter....WOW!

I have some dates for you...

Friday, March 10          End of 3rd Grading Period

Friday, March 17          Report Cards

Friday March 31          Spring Break Begins

Monday, april 10          Back to School

Hang on tight!  

This last bit of 4th grade will FLY by!

Building Stamina!

We spent some time this morning talking about having a 

FIXED     VS.   GROWTH

Mindset.

Ask your child about the difference.

With a GROWTH mindset, we believe that we CAN learn new

things.  That we CAN grow our brain!

During the 2nd semester of 4th grade, we build a lot of Stamina.

We write more.

We read more.

We do more complicated math.

We expect A LOT.

The kids are feeling a bit overwhelmed.

Here is what I reminded them...

• If we make mistakes....we learn.
• If it is hard....keep trying.
• We don't quit.
• We "Just keep swimming".
• Repeated practice makes us better.
• We may not get it YET...but we will.
• We MUST use our time well at school.
• We can ALWAYS take work home if we need more practice or more time.

Here is a video that we watched on the Growth Mindset.

Sometimes we all need a little PEP talk!

Pizza Party!!!

We have some EXCITING news!!

Our very own Erin Suhy wrote an essay for an 

essay contest in the Current in Carmel.

Her essay WON!!!!!

Here it is...

How sweet is she???

We will let you know when her essay will appear 

in the Current.  She will be FAMOUS!!!!

And because her essay won.....

we get a PIZZA party for our whole class!!

We will have the PIZZA PARTY on 

Friday, February 17 at our regular lunch time.

IF you would like to help us make it into a 

full, healthy meal, let me know!  

We would love donations of a veggie side, a fruit side, a dessert 

and drinks for 26 people!

IF your child would rather not eat pizza or has a gluten allergy,

please send a packed lunch or buy a school lunch that day!

Congratulations, Erin!!!

February Update!!

We are well into our
2nd Semester!


Here are some updates:

Math:  We have wrapped up our unit on long division and mutli-digit multiplication.  We are now working on fractions.  Watch your child's homework as it comes home each day.  It will give you a good idea of the skills we are working on and you can see how independent they are!

Science:  We have just about finished our unit in glaciers and landforms.  We are moving into rock abrasion and layers of the earth.

Writing:  We are finishing up our Informational Chapter Book on Pioneers.  We will spend next week publishing those books.  Watch for these masterpieces to come home late next week.  We will then begin writing an informational chapter book on Cataclysmic events.  We will start with research late next week.

Reading:  I have been checking in with your children on how they are doing with their Annotated Chapter Book.  The PTO purchased a chapter book for each student so that they could highlight, underline and write their thoughts in the book!  Check in with your child.  Are they on track to finish their book by Tuesday, February 21??

Annotating Books!

Here we are.....devouring our new books!!  Thank you CE PTO!!!

All this reading makes a teacher's heart happy!

River Tables

We learned so much about the parts of a river.  Some of our learning came from reading....bust most of our learning came from doing!!!!!  Here we are making our own River Tables!!

Ask your child if he/she can name the different parts of a river!!

2nd Semester!!!

We are off to such a great start!  

It seems like we ALL craved the structure, fun and learning

that a school day provides!  We jumped right back in
and everyone is working so hard!!

I just love our sweet little team of 24 and how well we

all work together!

A few notes for the upcoming week:

• Report Cards will be available tomorrow!
• New Homework policy is coming home today ( a letter).
• Please continue to check the assignment notebook for daily homework (math only) and upcoming test information.
• Body Safety talk tomorrow, Friday, Jan. 6 for all 4th grade classes.
• MAP testing starts next week.  Math first, then Language Arts.
• New Novels will be sent home next week (thank you, PTO).  Each child will receive their very own novel to read and make notes in.  They will have 4 weeks to read cover to cover!
• Science has started - we are learning about Earth's Changing Surface (landforms)
• Long Division is coming up!  IF your child struggles with multiplication facts - try to work on that!  It will make their life a lot easier!!
• In writing we are starting a new genre:  Informational Text!  We are starting with a book on Pioneers.  We are doing RESEARCH!  FUN!

As always, please call or send me an email if you have any questions or concerns!

Winter Break has ARRIVED!!!

I am oh so thankful for this amazing class and their

sweet families!

We had such a fun party! 

Here are some of the brave volunteers 

that came to help us celebrate!!

We are so cool, that we were the only class with LIVE music!!!

Thanks for a super fun 1st semester and 

THANK YOU for the incredibly generous gifts!

I don't deserve all the love!

Have a glorious break with your families - enjoy every minute.

Julie

Multiplication in Math

Hello Families!

I wanted to send you an update on how we are doing with 

multiplying BIG numbers in math.

This is such a big skill and an important one to master!

We have introduced 3 methods for multiplying:

• Traditional Method (the way you and I learned!)
• Partial Products Method
• Lattice Method (taught in 3rd grade - most comfortable method for many)

Your child may use ANY METHOD they prefer.  

Here are some tips for each method...

Here is how partial products works:

49 X 32 =

40X30 = 1200 

40X2 = 80

9X30 = 270

9X2 = 18

Add these products together to get...1568

As for lattice....there are boxes and lines involved.

IF your child is able to draw these lines and boxes carefully and independently, 

that may be a good method for him/her.

I will send home a "cheat sheet" of each method today.

Please consider having a talk with your child about the method they prefer.

From this point forward, I will not require your child to use a particular

method -- they get to choose!

Thank you for your help!

I Am Thankful....

I Am Thankful for.....

Sydnee's desire to always improve.

Austin's enthusiasm for all things.

Josh's stories about his brothers.

Amber's friendliness.

Sylas's deep knowledge on all subjects.

Harper's fun conversations.

Lauren's quiet kindness and sensitivity.

Benjamin's laid back attitude.

Marcellus's return to our class!!!

Delaney's artistic talent.

Jackson's desire to please.

Maile's sweet smiles.

Josie's creativity.

Anna's motivation to do it well!

Gavin's shy playfulness.

Rosie's leadership skills.

Landon's desire to be helpful.

Sophie's attention to detail.

Nick's encouragement of others.

Will's balance of work and play!

Addie's constant positivity.

Erin's listening and learning skills.

Cohen's sense of humor.

So Thankful for this amazing group of kiddos!

We have so much fun learning, each and every day.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Electric Circuits

Experimenting with Electric Circuits is always a favorite in fourth grade science!

Ask your child what they learned about:

Open and Closed Circuits

Conductors and Insulators

The Flow of Electricity

Parallel and Series Circuits

So.  Much.  Fun. Learning!!!!!