Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Sulima's Scoop - Week of May 2

Weekly Reminders:
*Math quiz on dividing fractions and mixed numbers on Monday.
*Spelling Pretest on Monday.
*Science Test on Thursday.
*Spelling Test on Friday.
*Failure notices issued on Friday.

Plan Ahead:

*Early Dismissal on May 13.
*All School Concert at 9:00 on May 16.
*Fourth Grade Beginning Band Concert at 7:00 on May 17 at Lakeview.

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - We will fill out our "how to study" sheet on Monday. Our Simple Machines test will be on Thursday. Next week, we will begin our study of Rocks and Minerals.

Social Studies - Our visit to the Southwest will continue. We will continue to practice the skill of taking outline notes. Lesson 2 will focus on the climate of the Southwest.

English - We will finish our Hero Expository Essays this week. The children will also begin our study of adverbs and prepositions. They took a pretest on this unit on Wednesday last week.

Spelling - Our spelling words this week will work with words with silent letters. The test on Friday will need to be done in cursive. Your child should not only practice how to spell the words but also how to write them, with correct letter formation, in cursive.

Reading - Our reading strategy for next week is making inferences. Readers must make inferences, or "read between the lines," when an author doesn't tell the reader everything. Readers can do this by applying what they already know to story clues given by the author.

Accelerated Math Menu:
Monday - Quiz on dividing fractions and mixed numbers. HW: Review dividing by a one-digit divisor.
Tuesday - Dividing by 2-digit divisor. HW: WB pg. 34 & 35
Wednesday - Dividing by 2-digit divisors. HW: WB pg. 36
Thursday - Dividing Money. HW: WB pg. 37
Friday - Quiz on dividing by 1-digit and 2-digit divisors. HW: None.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Sulima's Scoop - Week of April 25

Weekly Reminders:
*Spelling pretest on Monday.
*Unit 6 - Pronoun test on Tuesday.
*MAP - Reading test on Tuesday, 1:00-2:00 (Homeroom)
*Family Reading Night on Thursday, 6:30-8:00.
*Chapter 17, lesson 3 science quiz on Friday.
*Spelling test on Friday.
*MAP - Math test on Friday, 1:00-2:00 (Homeroom)

Plan Ahead:
*Early Dismissal on Friday, May 13.
*No school on Monday, May 30.

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - We will continue our study of simple machines this week. The children will explore inclined planes, screws, and wedges. We will have an open-book/notes quiz on Friday.

Social Studies - We will begin our study of the Southwest by exploring the Grand Canyon. While reading the lessons in this chapter, we will be practicing taking notes in outline format.

English - We will take the test on Pronouns on Tuesday. Enrichment projects will be due the day of the test. Throughout the rest of the week, we will work on Expository Writing.

Spelling - This week we will be working with words with unusual spellings. Our pretest will be on Monday. The children should practice writing their words in cursive throughout the week. Our test will be on Friday.

Reading - Our reading target for the week is to identify topic, main idea, and supporting details. Topic is what the whole text is about. The main ideas are important points about each topic. Each paragraph can have its own main idea. Supporting details are facts and examples that support each main idea.

Accelerated Math Menu:
Monday -
Tuesday - No Math due to MAP testing.
Wednesday -
Thursday -
Friday - No Math due to MAP testing.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Sulima's Scoop - Week of April 18

Weekly Reminders:
*Spelling pretest on Monday.
*Thirty-nine state test on Tuesday.

*Dear Mr. Henshaw test (open book/notes) on Tuesday.
*Word Masters Contest on Wednesday.
*Chapter 17, lesson 2 science quiz on Thursday.

*Spelling test on Thursday.
*Early Dismissal (11:00) on Thursday.
*PTO Dine-out on Thursday at Panda Express.
*No school on Friday.


Plan Ahead:
*English - Pronoun Test on Tuesday, April 26.
*MAP Testing (Reading) on Tuesday, April 26. (Homeroom students) Visit this site to practice: http://www.sowashco.k12.mn.us/ro/pages/studentlinks/map/reading.htm
*Family Reading Night on Thursday, April 28.
*MAP Testing (Math) on Friday, April 29. (Homeroom students) Visit this site to practice: http://www.sowashco.k12.mn.us/ro/pages/studentlinks/map/


Homeroom Happenings:

Science -How do a pulley and a wheel-and-axle help do work? This is the question we will answer this week in science. Children should review their notes each night. They will take an open book/ notes quiz on Thursday.


Social Studies - We will begin our visit in the Southwest this week. Also, the children will take the 39 state test this week on Tuesday. They will need to correctly identify and spell each of the 39 states. Also, students can earn credit by knowing the capitals.

English -We will finish our lessons on pronouns this week by studying contractions with pronouns and homophones. We will fill out our "how to study" sheet on Wednesday. The test will be on Tuesday, March 26.

Spelling - Our words this week will have 3-syllables. Please help your child practice their spelling skills in cursive. The test will be on Thursday.

Reading -This week in reading, we will be focusing on two important skills: following directions & summarizing. When reading a passage that describes how to complete a task, readers should look for clue words such as first, next and finally to clarify the order of steps. They also must understand that steps must be followed in the correct order in order to complete the task. Summarizing involves retelling a story in your own words, and including only the most important events. All students will study these skills using appropriate instructional-level materials.
*
Dear Mr. Henshaw Links:

http://www.quia.com/quiz/126610.html?AP_rand=1886590259
http://www.quia.com/mc/18500.html
*

WordMasters Link:
http://quizlet.com/3036034/wordmasters-4th-blue-10-11-flash-cards/
*

Accelerated Math Menu
:

Monday: Multiplying Fractions by fractions and Fractions by whole numbers. HW: WB pgs. 64 & 65.

Tuesday: Multiplying Fractions Using the GCF. WB pg. 66.
Wednesday: Multiplying Fractions and Mixed Numbers and Multiplying Mixed Numbers and Mixed Numbers. HW: WB pgs. 68 & 69.
Thursday: "Check Your Progress" Quiz. HW: None.
Friday: No School.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Sulima's Scoop - Week of April 11

Weekly Reminders:
*Spelling pretest on Monday.

*Inventions, Contract, and Grading Sheet due on Tuesday.

*OLSAT Testing on Tuesday.

*Straight A's recognized during School Board meeting on Tuesday evening.

*Spring Open House on Thursday evening, 6:30-8:00.

*Math "Check your Progress" quiz on Friday. Reschedule band lessons if at the same time.

*Spelling test on Friday.

*Check your child's grades on Friday - Midpoint of trimester.

Plan Ahead:

*Thirty-nine state test on Tuesday, April 19.

*Early Dismissal on Thursday, April 21, 11:00.

*District Eat-Out at Panda Express on Thursday, April 21. Click here for more information: http://www.ccsd66.org/PTO/FundRaisers/Panda.pdf

*No school on Friday, April 22.

*MAP Testing April 25 - May 6. I will let you know exact dates as soon as possible.


OLSAT Testing:

Our 4th graders will take the Otis-Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT) on Tuesday, April 12. The Otis-Lennon School Ability Test is designed to measure abstract thinking and reasoning abilities that are relevant to school achievement. Here are a few reminders that you can do to help your child do their best:

1. Make sure your child attends school on testing days unless they are sick.

2. Make sure your child get a good night’s sleep.

3. Provide breakfast for your child.

4. Remind your child to ask the teacher questions if he/she does not understand the test directions.

5. Let your child know that you have confidence in their abilities.

6. Advise your child not to worry about the test, but do their very best possible work.

Homeroom Happenings:

Science - In science, we will take a break from our unit on simple machines to focus on our inventions. On Monday, your child will be assigned a "note card speech." These will be due on Wednesday. The children will practice on Wednesday. On Thursday, the children will each give their invention presentation (note card speech) to the class. This presentation will be part of their grade.

Social Studies - The children should keep studying for the 39 state test. The test will be on Tuesday, April 19. Capitals are worth bonus. Students must know the location and spelling of all the states in the Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, & Southwest.

English - We began our Pronouns unit on Friday. The children took a pretest on this unit on Thursday, April 7 and chose their enrichment projects the same day. This week we will focus on subject and object pronouns, using I & me, and possessive pronouns.

Spelling - Our pretest will be on Monday. If your child misses 1 or none, they will be a challenge speller. They will take the challenge test on Friday and will need to do challenge activities throughout the week. If your child misses 2 or more, they will take the weekly spelling test on Friday and will work on pages from the workbook. Both of these tests will need to be done in cursive. Keep practicing cursive formations at home.

Reading - Our focus in reading this week will be on understanding different genres, specifically pourquoi tales. Pourquoi is a French word meaning “why.” Pourquoi tales are stories that tell how, long ago, something in nature came to be. Often times these tales contain animals or natural forces that speak or have personalities.

Mrs. Sulima's Reading Class: Our class will be doing a readers' theater this week. The children will get their scripts on Monday. They are to practice their lines, as well as, read all 5 Pourquoi Tales. We will present our readers' theater on Thursday. Lines do not need to be memorized! In class, the children will be writing their own creative Pourquoi Tales. Hope you can come to open house on Thursday night to read these fantastic stories.

Our final Word Masters list will come home last week. Here is a link your child may want to use to practice these words: http://quizlet.com/4766271/wordmasters-4th-blue-2010-2011-3rd-list-flash-cards/


Accelerated Math Menu:

Monday -Subtracting Fractions with unlike denominators. HW: WB pgs. 55 & 56.

Tuesday - No math due to OLSAT testing.

Wendesday - Subtracting Mixed Numbers. HW: WB pgs. 57 & 58.

Thursday - More subtracting of Mixed Numbers & Estimating of Mixed Numbers. HW: WB pgs. 59 & 60. Quiz tomorrow.

Friday - "Check Your Progress" quiz on lessons 6-12.