Behind the Scenes - Week of November 7

Weekly Spotlight:
Spelling pretest on Monday.
*Roller Skating party on Monday, 3:45-6:30.
*Unit 1 - Sentence Test on Tuesday.
*Spelling test on Thursday.
*No school on Friday - Veterans Day.

Coming Attractions:
*Southeast Map Test on Tuesday, November 15.
*End of first trimester on Friday, November 18.
*PBIS & PTO Power Paws Community Service Project on Friday, November 18, 6:30-8:00.
*Thanksgiving Break, Wednesday, November 23-Friday, November 25.
*Parent Teacher Conferences, week of November 28.
*Report Cards - ONLINE, Tuesday, November 29.
*No school on Friday, December 2.

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - The children will continue to learn about animal adaptations this week.

Social Studies - We will explore the wildlife in the Southeast. The children will also learn about the resources from the Southeast. They will be doing a Southeast Farmer project. They will need to write from the point of view of a Southeast farmer. Students should start studying for the Southeast Map test which will be on Tuesday, November 15. They will need to identify each state in the Southeast, the Mississippi River, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Gulf of Mexico. Spelling counts! The children can earn 1/4 point bonus for each capital correctly identified. A blank map was sent home on Friday for studying purposes.

MRS. SULIMA'S WEBSITE LINK: http://www.sherylsulima.com/

Peanut Farmers:
http://www.nationalpeanutboard.org/classroom-farmingtoday.php
http://www.nationalpeanutboard.org/classroom-funfacts.php
http://www.ehow.com/how_5147989_farm-peanuts.html

Peach Farmers:
http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0781683.html#A0781693
http://www.worldslargestpeachcobbler.com/fuzzfacts.cfm

Orange Farmers:
http://www.fillmorepirucitrus.com/Orange_Facts.htm
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/facts-about-oranges.html
http://floridaoranges.com/unique-facts/

Cotton Farmers:
http://ganyardhillfarm.com/barn_news/teaching-resources/cotton-facts/
http://unctad.org/infocomm/anglais/cotton/crop.htm

Spelling - The children will take a spelling pretest on Monday. Due to the short week, our test will be on Thursday.

English - We will take the Unit 1 - Sentence Test on Tuesday. Enrichment projects will be due on the day of the test. We will spend the rest of the week on a writing project.

Reading - This week, we will focus on the reading comprehension skill known as sequence of events. Recognizing the order of events in a story makes it easier to understand the story. Clue words such as first, later, then, and finally signal sequence.

Mrs. Sulima's Math Class:
Monday -Dividing larger numbers by a 1-digit divisor.
Tuesday - Zeros in the quotient.
Wednesday - Check Your Progress quiz on chapter 3, lessons 1-5.
Thursday -Short division.
Friday - No school, Veterans Day.

MAP Practice:
http://www.sowashco.k12.mn.us/ro/pages/studentlinks/map/reading.htm

http://www.sowashco.k12.mn.us/ro/pages/studentlinks/map/

http://www.belleplaine.k12.mn.us/se3bin/clientgenie.cgi?schoolname=school357&statusFlag=goGenie&geniesite=133&myButton=g5plugin&db=g133_b545

Behind the Scenes - Week of October 31

Weekly Spotlight:
*Spelling pretest on Monday.
*SE Map Due on Wednesday.
*Chapter 1, lesson 3 and chapter 2, lessons 2 & 3 science test on Wednesday.
*Picture Retakes on Thursday.
*Spelling test on Friday.

Coming Attractions:
*Rollerskating Party on Monday, Nov. 7, 3:45-6:30.
*Unit 1 Sentence Test on Tuesday, Nov. 8.
*No school on Friday, Nov. 11 - Veterans Day.
*End of 1st Trimester on Friday, Nov. 18.
*No school on Wednesday, Nov. 23-Friday, Nov. 25.
*Parent-Teacher Conferences during the week of Nov. 28.
*Report Cards Issued online on Tuesday, Nov. 29.

THANK YOU:A big thank you to all the parent volunteers that made our Halloween party a spooktacular event. The kids loved the treats, games, and crafts!

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - The children will take a test on chapter 1, lesson 3 and chapter 2, lessons 2 & 3 on Wednesday. During the rest of the week, we will begin our next unit on Adaptations. Children should review the following concepts for the test:
*Define vertebrate & invertebrate.
*Describe characteristics of vertebrates. Which animals are vertebrates? What are the 5 classifications of vertebrates?
*Describe characteristics of invertebrates. Which animals are invertebrates? What are some of the classifications of invertebrates?
*Define photosynthesis & life cycle.
*Describe the stages of the life cycle of flowering plants. See tomato plant life cycle.
*Describe how plants reproduce using only spores. See fern life cycle.
*Define direct development & metamorphosis.
*Describe and order the stages of an animal's life cycle.
*Describe how some plants grow and develop.
*Describe the stages of the human life cycle.
*Describe the difference between simple and complete metamorphosis.

Social Studies - We will begin our trip through the Southeast region. Our journey will begin by focusing on the land and climate of the Southeast.

Spelling - Our spelling words this week will focus on short and long vowels. Our pretest will be on Monday, and our final test will be on Friday. If your child receives a 95% or higher, they will become a challenge speller. On Friday, they will take a test on their challenge words.

English - We will finish our sentence unit this week. Our final lessons will include: simple predicates and correcting run-on sentences. The children will fill out a "how to study" sheet on Wednesday. The Sentence test will be on Tuesday, Nov. 8. Enrichment will be due the day of the test.

Reading - Mysteries will be the focus in reading for all fourth grade students next week. We will begin by learning vocabulary words that are typically associated with mysteries, such as “suspect”, “evidence” and “suspense”. Students may practice the definitions of the vocabulary words by completing a crossword puzzle at the following website: http://www.eduplace.com/kids/hmr06/gr4/activities/pdf/gr4th _xword.pdf. All students will read & study “The Case of the Purloined Pachyderm”. While reading this mystery and other mystery stories, students will be studying the format of a mystery and using the reading strategies of monitoring and clarifying.

Mrs. Sulima's Math Spotlight:
Monday - Pretest on next chapter. Mini-lesson on division, fact families, and rules of division.
Tuesday - Order of Operations.
Wednesday - Division Patterns.
Thursday - Three-digit Quotients.
Friday - Zeros in the Quotient.

Behind the Scenes - Week of October 24th

Weekly Spotlight:
*Tuesday Schedule on Monday - bring library books.
*Math quiz on Monday - Chapter 2, lessons 5-8.
*Monday Schedule on Tuesday - bring your recorder, if you haven't already.
*John Lynn Assembly on Wednesday.
*Early Dismissal on Thursday, 11:00.
*Chapter 2 Math Test on Friday.
*Halloween Parade on Friday, 1:00.
*Halloween Party on Friday, 1:30.
*Bingo Night on Friday, 7:00-8:30 - Join Mrs. Sulima!

HALLOWEEN PARTY:
On Friday, we will have our Halloween Parade and Party. Please keep in mind the following guidelines when helping your child pick out a Halloween costume for our Halloween party and parade (parents may come at 1:00 pm to watch our school parade) on Friday, October 28th:
*We only have 10 minutes for costume changes. Please make sure your child can change into his/her costume easily and by themselves. If the costume can be worn over their clothes, then both the time to change and the chances of losing any clothes is minimized. Children will not be allowed to use the washroom to change. Girls will change in one room and boys will change in another.
*If you send your child in with make-up, your child will need to be able to apply it themselves (within the 10 minute time limit).
*Please do not send any weapons (guns, swords, etc.) as part of the costume. Save those for trick-or-treating.
*We will not have time to change back into our clothes for dismissal. Your child will wear their costume home.

Coming Attractions:
*Chapter 1, lesson 3 & Chapter 2, lessons 2 & 3 Test on Wednesday, Nov. 2.
*Picture Retake Day on Thursday, November 3.
*Roller Skating Party on Monday, November 7, 3:45-6:30.
*No School on Friday, November 11 - Veteran's Day.
*End of first trimester on Friday, November 18.
*No school on Wednesday, November 23-Friday, November 25 - Thanksgiving Break.

Homeroom Happenings:
Science - We will finish chapter 2, lesson 3 on life cycles of animals. The children will fill out a "how to study" sheet on Thursday. Due to Halloween, our test will not be until Wednesday, November 2.

Social Studies - The children are working on a Narragansett village project. They had the choice of drawing an illustration of the village or writing a detailed story about the life of the Narragansett. Both projects need to include evidence of the following: wigwam(s), Sachem, fishing, hunting, farming, cooperation, and tools used.

Spelling - Our spelling words this week will be Halloween themed. We will not take a pretest or test. Your child will have 3 activities, using the words, that will be due on Friday. All three activities will be grades - 10 points each.

English - We will continue our study of sentences. On Monday, everyone will stay with me to learn about the 4 types of sentences - declarative, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory. Throughout the rest of the week, we will focus on subjects and predicates, simple subjects, and simple predicates. We will also be doing an activity using alliteration.

Reading - This week in reading, students will be reviewing the strategies and skills that we have studied so far this year, with particular emphasis on predicting and making inferences.

Mrs. Sulima's Math:
Monday - Check your Progress quiz on chapter 2, lessons 5-8. HW: None.
Tuesday - Fill out "how to study" & Extended response. HW: Study for test on Friday.
Wednesday - Extended Response & review for test. HW: Study for test on Friday.
Thursday - No math due to early dismissal.
Friday - Chapter 2 Test. HW: None.