A Note While We Wait for the Hurricane…

 Your children have been very busy! We are continuing work on mastering the addition math facts but we are also adding multiplication to our curriculum. If you want to provide you child with additional practice, try the website www.aplusmath.com. This site allows students to practice using flashcards, worksheets, and games. We will also be using Fast Facts here at school.

We are starting a new novel this week called Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan. It is a short historical fiction about a family living on a prairie in the late 19th century. Although they love each other very much, Jacob, Anna and Caleb miss having a wife and mother with them. Sarah is a young woman who answers an advertisement placed by Jacob and agrees to come from Maine to meet the family.

We will learn new vocabulary, study US maps, write friendly letters, research either a prairie or seacoast, complete character studies, and discuss several themes. We will also learn about Patricia MacLachlan and how her personal history influences the stories she writes. We will end the unit by watching the movie of Sarah, Plain and Tall.

The –ing spelling words from last week will be the ones your child continues studying this week. They are all words from the novel. The test will be this Friday.

Third and Fourth graders will be visiting the food pantry on Tuesday, October 30th. Please be certain your child is dressed for the weather.

I am still missing three progress reports. Please sign and return your child’s report as soon as possible.

I cannot believe we are nearing the end of the first quarter. Thank you for being so kind and supportive. It has been a wonderful experience so far. I feel very lucky to have a job that I cannot wait to get to every day…

It’s a Busy Week!

 

 

Today, we will be going to the Food Pantry. It was so touching watching how hard the students worked the last time we were there. I was very proud of them.

Thursday, we will be participating in the Living Rosary in the gym at 8:15AM. The children have been diligently practicing their prayers and how to use the rosary. You are invited to join us for this celebration of Mary.

Friday is…the FUN WALK! I am so excited to be participating for the first time. If you are available in the afternoon (beginning at 12:15PM), I would love for you to join us. Please let me know if you are able to attend.

The WARM FUZZIES jar is almost filled again. You children are amazing!

Please be sure to sign and return the progress report that came home last Friday. Also, the homework planner and poem are to be signed each evening. It is your child’s responsibility to get this done and they do get points for having it completed.

I hope to have some additional sites posted where your children can practice their math and reading skills very soon.

Keep checking back!

October Notes

This is my favorite time of year. I love the cool weather, the beautiful fall colors, and all the autumn smells in the air. I hope that you are enjoying these changes as well.

This will be a short week for us, but packed full nonetheless.

Your children will be bringing home their science books and study guides each night to review for the quiz on Friday. This is only a quiz on the first lessons. It will be open book, so it will be helpful to ask your child questions and see if they can find them in the book. There will be a spelling quiz on Friday and a reading quiz on chapters 6 and 7 in Here We All Are (also open book). This may seem like a lot but I want to complete these concepts and start all new next week. (I will be in Buffalo at a workshop on Friday, so it is a good time for these assessments. This way students are not introduced to new concepts by someone else.)

Thursday we will be walking to Mass. We will leave school about 8:35AM for mass at 9:00.

Progress reports will be coming home soon. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.

We are now through all the review material. Your children will continue to master their math facts, adding new ones as they progress. They are going to be working very hard to learn new ways to express math content (in words, explaining how they arrived at the answer) and how to use texts to find information. They will be writing papers (with a lot of guidance at first and then more and more on their own) requiring the use of several resources. They will be learning how to listen to others and respond accordingly through short oral reports. They will practicing their prayers and learning about the rosary as October is a month in which we honor Mary.

The Fun Walk is scheduled for October 19th and I am looking forward with excitement to participating with the children that day.

Thank you for all your support so far. I feel lucky to be a part of the ICS family.

Happy Fall!

Tuesday, September 25

What a busy day! The students started with art class. They had Social Studies and a math quiz. We went to lunch early and then to the Food Pantry. We got so busy, we left five minutes later than scheduled! It was a rushed walk back to the school where the children went immediately to gym and then to music. We did a quick review for the Religion quiz, read a few more pages of Patricia Polacco’s JUNKYARD WONDERS and headed home. My head is still spinning so don’t be surprised if your child’s is!

Tomorrow will be a calmer day…and it will end with a 20-minute free time earned by FILLING THE WARM FUZZIES jar. The children are so proud of themselves…and so am I!

A Few Notes for Next Week

 

 

Beginning on Monday, both third and fourth grade will be reading the same book for ELA, Here We All Are by Tomie DePaolo. It is the second in the autobiographical series by the children’s author and illustrator. There are eight books in all if your child decides to continue reading them.

We will first delve into the text by closely examining the illustrations for things the students notice and things they wonder about. We will define vocabulary by using contextual clues in the sentences surrounding the unknown word. Students will be able to describe the characters and how their actions affect the plot of the story. Spelling words will be from the text.

We will be using this book for about two weeks. I had seven copies here at school, borrowed a copy from Mrs. Case, borrowed three from the public library, and bought one copy. Please be sure to remind your child to take good care of whichever book he or she may have.

Your child will bring home the book for rereading. Books MUST be returned to school each day as we will need them during the lesson. Please do not allow them to read ahead---it will be so tempting! They will also have some interesting homework: one night they will explain what “power reading” is, another they will ask for your memories of wanting to learn to read. A little more unusual assignments but beneficial as we discuss the answers in class and improve speaking skills.

I am currently looking into the next title we will use. I will have ten free books available through Scholastics as a welcome back gift, so I will not have an additional expense this time. If you continue to order books for your child through our account at Scholastics, they will give us more free books ($15 for every $25 ordered through our account). Our account number is L8RWH. It is very easy to order online. Drop me an email if you have any questions (ADittman@dordcs.org). This will help me greatly as I have already exceeded my personal classroom materials budget!

I also am placing a wish list request for dry erase markers. The fat line and thin line are both needed. Darker colors are best. Any you might be able to donate will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for all your support!

Have a great weekend.

Curriculum Night

Tomorrow (Tuesday 9-18) is Curriculum Night from 6PM-7:30PM.

Please come for an informational overview of the Core Curriculum and then a presentation by your child’s classroom teacher regarding classroom routines and expectations.

Childcare is available for children in the after school rooms.

I hope to see you there!

REMINDERS

 

Spelling test tomorrow.

Parent homework due tomorrow.

Scholastic book orders due tomorrow.

 

 

New spelling words will be in the folders tomorrow as well as another set of 100 math facts. The weekend is a great time for short bursts (5 minutes or so at a time) of practice.