Post # 21

A mini week packed with big learning! We did our best to keep on schedule and accomplished quite a bit in spite of Mother Nature's cruel joke. I loved how these Fourthies kept up with homework, fact practice, creative writing, non-fiction reading, Wordly Wise and spelling review. I enjoyed their posts and pictures about their snow day frolics!

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The girls had fun celebrating spirit week. Be sure to check out the pictures that our class photographer took. You'll have to scroll to the bottom to see the most recent pics.

The girls are just about finished with their iMovies about the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. We'll have a movie day next week and watch the documentaries on the big screen. I love how they worked together- researching, writing, and creating the movies. Here they are if you want a sneak peek. Moving into the 1910's next week.

We stayed on course and the girls completed the unit 5 assessment in math. Ask your daughter about the power of mistakes. We talked often this week about growing from mistakes and how mistakes are essential to learning. It's all about the growth mind set. The tests are in their work folders. I reminded the girls to work carefully on their "Pick 8" problems. Next week's "Pick 8" are adding and subtracting decimals. Everyone can benefit from a little reminding regarding lining up decimals and maintaining a keen focus. "Pick 8" is a graded homework assignment.

All of a Kind Family was finished independently. The story ends with the birth of a long anticipated baby boy. So we decided to have a little fun for the culminating activity. The girls are in the process of making a birth announcement for this baby boy. Their announcement is keeping to the time period (turn of the twentieth century) and includes clever rhymes and images. I was able to locate the birth announcement for my older daughter to show as an example. Strange what you can find on a snow day:)

Girls- Your mystery blog question.......

How old will Annie be on her next birthday?

Post # 20 Snow Day #2

Snow Day Summary- What to do:
1) Review weekly homework. Make a plan.
2) Study WW words and spelling.
3) Practice division facts and "Pick 8."
4) Read the assigned Newsela article: "New Planet in the Solar System."
5) Jonas Brothers- Musical Moment. Do it by yourself or with your family and friends.
6) Read your historical fiction book.
7) Post your snow day adventures here.

Stay Safe

Have fun

And always be kind.

Post #19

Happy Snow Day!

I hope that no one will read this blog post until much later in the day while relaxing in toasty PJs. The girls brought home all of their books in preparation of a snow day (s). They should take their fact check at home, if possible. I totally understand if they can't. The girls have a small jewel pouch in their agenda. What's in the pouch? Precious jewels- Wordly Wise flashcards! We talk often about the power of words and how precious they are, both in writing and speaking. The Wordly Wise quizzes will become more difficult during the second semester. No worries- girls know how to prepare.

Jewel Pouch for Wordly Wise- Words are JEWELS!

The girls are becoming multiplication wizards! They now have 3 algorithms for solving multiple digit  multiplication- wrestling, lattice, and the traditional method we all learned. Problem solving activities will be packed with multiplication from here on. Speaking of wizards.... Our writing lab was created by Madison. The girls threw themselves into the fantasy world and are in the process of writing their Daily Prophets. Our grammar focus was on pronouns and using them correctly.  Newsela is the primary source for our non-fiction reading. I am proud of the girls' determination and the improvement they are making. 

We have been talking about the power of having a growth mindset:

 

Girls-

Let's share our SNOW DAY! Remember you can add pictures, comments, even movies. Click here.

Post #18

Our beautiful New Year's bulletin board!
Doves of Peace for the New Year

The girls wrestled with multiplication, estimated traveling distances, made multiplication fortune tellers, problem solved with animal friends, and earned stars in Matific. They got creative with Matific monsters and used the site creatures for a little Wordly Wise creativity. The girls are quite clever when it comes to working Wordly Wise into their writing. We listened to sounds of nature around the world. They used the sounds to inspire their writing while reviewing cardinal directions, continents, countries, and oceans. More with sounds of nature next week.

Our grammar focus was using adverbs correctly. The girls explored a variety of interactive sites and incorporated adverbs into their writing lab. The girls have a writing folder in their Google Drives and are in the process of moving all of their writing activities into this digital portfolio. Ask your daughter for a peek into her writing portfolio. Fourthies love to write! You can see their clever thoughts in the creative writing composition books. And don't forget to follow your daughter's adventures on her blog for even more writing examples. Three Word Thursday(3WT) brings out the creativity in these Fourthies . Unfortunately there is usually an audience of one to enjoy the writing- me. This week the girls put their writing in a collaborative presentation so they could read and comment on each other's work. See for yourself:


All of a Kind Family should be finished by next Friday. The girls will write an alternate ending to the story using their creativity and what they have learned about the first decade in the 1900's. We continue to explore life in the 1900's. The girls read about the Wright Brothers and the 1908 San Francisco earthquake. They are writing about this natural disaster and are in the process of producing a movie that chronicles this devastating event. The drama meter is all over the place with this project!

Girls- Your blog question is when will be get our first inch of snow??? Make your prediction here.

Post #18

It was great to have the girls back after a relaxing, fun-filled two weeks. They came back refreshed, happy and motivated. What a treat for me:) 

We are about to wrap up the first semester of fourth grade. We spent time this week discussing the importance of time management, organization, and attention to detail. The girls have a "Homework Plan" handout in their agendas. They should be reviewing the week's homework and reflecting on their own schedule and extra-curricular activities while making a plan for quiz preparation, nightly homework, and long range assignments. Many have been doing this since the first week of school- good for them! We will continue this practice for several weeks. Please takes a few minutes and ask your daughter about her homework plan. 

This group of Fourthies continues to impress me with constant enthusiasm as we approach new concepts in math. This week we worked with metric conversions. Your daughter should be ably to tell you about the Kangaroo who helps Dolphin Because Dolphin Can't Multiply. This is tricky but a helpful handout is always available for each Fourthie.

The new math unit focuses on multi-digit multiplication (using a variety of algorithms), comparing large numbers, and problem solving with multiplication). The girls practiced extended multiplication and were introduced to multiplication wrestling. Ask your daughter for a demo. Problem solving featured a rogue bear in New York City and the history of toothpaste. They were able to solve double digit multiplication problems using multiplication wrestling. 

Friday fact checks will include division for the next several weeks. Next week's fact check will be the two's and three's division facts.

We have moved back in time and are now studying life in the 1900's. The girls will travel through time as a ten year old and will journal about their life. They journaled about their excitement and the thrill of watching a silent motion picture. More of the 1900's next week.

Spelling and Wordly Wise #8 will be assessed next week. There are many resources on our Fourthie site for review and quiz preparation. Additionally the girls have tiny flashcards that they should use to prepare for the quiz on Thursday.

Sometimes we need a reminder about how good it is to be us! Each girl was given a "Gratitude Jar" and planted a seed. The flowers are blooming. The girls will fill this jar with notes about their successes and reflections on their many blessings. The jar will come home in June. I told the girls to keep it close by and whenever they need encouragement they should open the jar and read a positive, uplifting note they wrote to themselves.

Just a reminder.....The girls need to return the foriegn language letter by Friday, January 15th. 

Girls- Your blog question?????

How many children are on the Fourthie Homework Flakes box?