Thursday, January 26, 2012

Behind the Scenes - Week of January 30

Weekly Spotlight:
*Last day to donate for Cancer Smasher on Monday.
*Math Quiz on Tuesday, Chapter 10, lessons 6-9 (open book/notes)
*Great America Read to Succeed sheets are due Wednesday.
*Southwest Map on Thursday.
*Dear Mr. Henshaw Quiz on Thursday.
*Spelling/Vocabulary Test on Friday.

Coming Attractions:
*Movie Night on Friday, February 3.
*Valentine's Day Party on Tuesday, February 14.
*No School on Monday, February 20 - Presidents' Day.
*Spring Pictures on Thursday, February 23.
*Early Dismissal on Tuesday, February 28.
*P.T.O. Dine Out at Chili's on Tuesday, February 28.

Weekly Happenings:
Science - This week we will begin our Electricity Unit. Students should review their notes each evening. We will focus on simple circuit, static electricity, and current electricity.

Social Studies - We are moving on to the Southwest. The Southwest Map project will be assigned on Tuesday and due on Thursday. We will practice taking notes in an outline format this week.

Spelling - This week we will only have vocabulary words on our spelling list. You may begin practicing the following words: hoist, jubilee, unremitting, scruples, nudge, tranquil, rejuvenate, and eccentric.

English - We will continue our unit on Pronouns.

Reading - The reading strategy that we will be studying next week is summarizing. When reading passages, it is not necessary to recall every word. Instead, we will practice using main ideas and supporting evidence to summarize a passage. While reading, a good reader finds the main ideas, whether they are stated or implied. Then, the reader must find supporting evidence to support the main idea. This support may be in the form of details, examples, explanations or descriptions.

Mrs. Sulima's Math Spotlight:
Monday - Transformations. The kids enjoyed this game today! Transformation Golf Game: http://www.mathsonline.co.uk/freesite_tour/gamesroom/transform/golftrans.html
Tuesday - Open book/notes quiz on lessons 6-9.
Wednesday - Begin Chapter 11, Customary units of length. Please practice measuring with a ruler to the nearest 1/8 in or 1/10 cm.
Thursday - Customary units of capacity.
Friday - Customary units of weight & Trivia Challenge.
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Thursday, January 19, 2012

Behind the Scenes - Week of January 23

Weekly Spotlight:
*Midwest Map Test on Tuesday.
*District Spelling Bee on Tuesday, 1:00 in PV gym. Good Luck, Saahil!
*Early Dismissal on Wednesday, 11:00.
*Chapter 4 Science Test on Thursday.
*Bingo Night on Friday, 7:00-8:30 in PV Multipurpose Room.

Coming Attractions:
*Movie Night on Friday, February 3.
*Valentine's Day Party on Tuesday, February 14.
*No school on Monday, February 20.
*Spring Pictures on Thursday, February 23.
*Early Dismissal on Tuesday, February 28, 11:00.
*End of 2nd Trimester on Friday, March 2.

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - We will finish our study of the human body this week. Our test on chapter 4 is scheduled for Thursday. A "How to Study" sheet will be filled out and sent home on Monday. Items to study include:
*how tissues and organs form systems
*how the respiratory and digestive systems work
*how the circulatory system carries oxygen and nutrients
*Key words in lesson 1: tissue, organ, esophagus, stomach, diaphragm, artery, capillary, and vein.
*how the nervous system acts as the body's control system
*the jobs of the bones
*how muscles work with bones to move the body
*Key words from lesson 2: spinal cord, bone, joint, and muscle.

Social Studies - We are finished with chapter 8. Since we took a quiz on each lesson, we will not take a test on chapter 8. We are going to move on to chapter 9 and do lesson 1 only. This lesson focuses on a Native American tribe of the Midwest called the Ojibwa.

Spelling - We will have our test on Friday covering 10 spelling words and 8 vocabulary words. The vocabulary words this week are: capable, emanate, distinguish, tendency, detect, mundane, revelation, elicit.

English - This week we will begin a unit on Pronouns. Our lessons will include: What is a Pronoun, Subject Pronouns, and Object Pronouns.

Reading - The reading skill that we will work on this week is the identification of character, setting and plot. Students will fill out story structure maps as they read fiction to help them organize their thoughts and identify the main characters, setting & plot.

Mrs. Sulima's Math Class:
Monday - Perimeter
Tuesday - Circles
Wednesday - More Circles & Circumference
Thursday - Lines of Symmetry & Trivia Challenge
Friday - Transformations
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Thursday, January 12, 2012

Behind the Scenes - Week of January 16

Weekly Spotlight:
*No school on Monday, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
*Fourth Grade Spelling Bee on Tuesday - Saahil and Demetri will represent our class.
*Chapter 4, lesson 1 Science Quiz on Wednesday.
*Chapter 8, lesson 3 quiz on Friday (open book).
*Spelling test on Friday.

Coming Attractions:
*District Spelling Bee on Tuesday, January 24, at 1:00 in PV Gym.
*Early Dismissal on Wednesday, January 25, 11:00.
*Bingo Night on Friday, January 27, 7:00-8:30.

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - We will continue learning about the different systems of the body. We will have a quiz on chapter 4, lesson 1 on Wednesday. It will be open book (not notes).

Social Studies - This week we will learning about farming in the Midwest. This lesson will end this chapter. Our test will be during the week of January 23. Students should be studying for the the Midwest Map test. This test will be on Tuesday, January 24.

Spelling - Our study of vocabulary will continue this week. Try using and practicing these words with your child: sufficient, mishap, defer, wrath, hilarious, likeness, dabble, & ordeal. The test will be on Friday.

English - At the end of the week, we will take our next English pretest. The children will receive their contracts on Monday, January 23. We will begin our new unit on Tuesday, January 24.

Reading - The comprehension skill that we will be focusing on this week is drawing conclusions. Good readers use details in a story to draw conclusions about characters and events. Students may use graphic organizers to gather details from a story to draw conclusions. They will learn that it is possible to draw more than one conclusion from the same details.

Mrs. Sulima's Math Class:
Monday - No school.
Tuesday - Triangles.
Wednesday - No math due to MAP testing.
Thursday - Congruent and Similar polygons.
Friday - Quadrilaterals & Trivia Challenge.
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Thursday, January 5, 2012

Behind the Scenes - Week of January 9

Weekly Spotlight:
*Final classroom spelling bee on Tuesday. Top two winners from our class will go to the grade level spell-off.
*Reading MAP test on Tuesday at 1:00.
*Spelling/Vocabulary test on Friday.
*Math MAP test on Friday at 1:00.

Coming Attractions:
*No school on Monday, January 16 - Martin Luther King Day.
*TGIFridays District Fundraiser on Monday, January 16.
*Fourth Grade spell-off on Tuesday, January 17.
*District spelling bee on Tuesday, January 24, at 1:00 in PV Gym.
*Early Dismissal on Wednesday, January 25, 11:00.
*Bingo Night on Friday, January 27, 7:00-8:30 in PV Multipurpose room.

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - We will continue our study of the human body by exploring different systems in the body. Notes will be taken in class. Students will now be taking quizzes at the end of each lesson. The quizzes will be open book (no notes).

Social Studies - On Tuesday, January 24, the children will be taking the Midwest test. They will need to correctly locate and identify all the states in the Midwest. The children will also have to label the Great Lakes (in the Midwest) and the Mississippi River. Spelling will count! Your child can earn bonus points by identifying the capitals. They will earn 1/4 point for each correct capital.

English - We will continue to take a break from our normal English units to practice Extended Response writing. This past week, we went over our recipe for writing an Extended Response.
Our recipe includes: Turning the question around, Text proof, Interpretation, Text Proof, Interpretation, and What I learned statement. The Interpretation is the most important part of the response. This is where we can put our own thoughts, feelings, and opinions. The last statement of the response should state what you learned from the reading selection that you can take with you as a life lesson.

Spelling - I was thrilled with the excitement from the students about our spelling change. The addition of vocabulary words to our list will be beneficial to their reading, speaking, and writing. I even had a few students show me that one of our vocabulary words was used in the book they were reading. We will continue the same procedure this week. Our vocabulary words are: undulate, modest, immune, stately, encumbered, placid, whimsical, and endearing. Start using and discussing these words this weekend. The test will be on Friday. They will need to spell the 10 spelling words, 8 vocabulary words, and understand the meaning of the 8 vocabulary words.

Reading - This week, we will be working on the reading target of identifying the problem and the solution. Most stories involve a problem for the character to solve, and the solution to the problem may come after others have been tried.

Mrs. Sulima's Math Class:
Monday - Angles & using a protractor.
Tuesday - No math due to MAP testing.
Wednesday - Polygons.
Thursday - Trivia Challenge.
Friday - No math due to MAP testing.

MAP Practice Games:
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