Math Games and Information

As you know, we took the math test for unit 6 last Wednesday. For some students, the grade on this test was lower than they usually achieve. This was a unit full of new material (division) and we had several days off during this unit (due to the snow).

Because of these factors, I am going to offer a retake for this test. If your child scored less than 80%, they will be allowed to take a makeup test. The test will take place during recess this week (I will announce the day once I've seen the weather forecast). If you child has questions about something on the test, please encourage him/her to see me as soon as possible.

Today we began our next math unit, which is on Fractions. I am including a few links here to fraction games. If your child enjoys using the computer, this is a great way to sneak in some math practice!

FIND GRAMPY

FRACTION FRENZY

COOKIES FOR GRAMPY

VISUAL FRACTIONS (This site has a lot of fraction practice!)

And Snow it Goes....

Our last two weeks have been a bit choppy, but we've done our best to continue moving forward with all of our units. I know that when we return next week (to a FULL day of school), the children will be ready!

Here's a quick snapshot of our last two weeks:

In Math, we have continued to progress in our unit on division. I realize that this is a bit difficult for some of the children, and that it is also tough for parents since this is a new way to do this. I also look at this as an opportunity for the children to stretch themselves. When they have to rely on their own tools, I notice many students advocating for themselves. They come to school with concrete questions about the homework. This is a great tool for the kids to have as they move on to higher grades. The directions for the "low-stress" division can be found in your child's Student Reference Book, as well as here (scroll to the bottom for division). We were scheduled to take our math test on Tuesday, however, it will be Wednesday next week.

In Science, we began our unit on Weather, with a discussion about weather instruments and how meteorologists forecast the weather. Though many of us groaned at the thought of more snow, the weather maps and radar available help the children make a real-life connection to what we're learning in school. This unit will be made up of several smaller chunks, with shorter tests for each. We will be having a test on "Air Masses and Fronts/Weather Forecasting" sometime next week. I will be giving out a study guide and assigning the date of that test on Monday when we return to school. Our class website has many weather sites with games and activities that your child might enjoy. You can check it out here.

In Social Studies, we began our unit on the Regions of the U.S. We began with a quick overview of our country, and will start learning about the first region, the Northeast, next week. Our study will include many aspects of learning, including some research and projects at home. For those families with former fourth graders, students will not be completing the full US Regions portfolio, rather some smaller projects. The children will have all of the information that they need each time they have something to complete at home.

In Reading, we began a new interactive read-aloud, The Cricket In Times Square, by George Selden. We will be focusing on looking at characters in this story, and discussing how they may change over time. So far, the kids are really enjoying this book.

Last week, we had an anti-bullying program come to our school. The program, called The Power of One, included skits showing real examples of bullying (both physical and cyber bullying). I hope that your child shared some of this program with you.

I hope that your child enjoys this snow day. Though I realize that we've had many snow days already this year, these days never get old for the kids. They will remember this winter! Enjoy the weekend!

Happy New Year!

Here are some pictures of some math and social studies work today.

I hope that this first week of 2011 was as successful for you at home as it was here in room 24! It was a little tough getting back into the swing of things, but all of the children did very well.

From the Teacher's Desk

This week we began unit 6 of the Everyday Math program. The main topic of this unit is division, which is a new and challenging concept for many of the students. This is particularly difficult for families, because it is something that most parents aren't comfortable helping their child with. Please don't worry! We will continue to practice this. I know that continued practice will make a big difference with this. If you would like more information, you can find instructions for all of the algorithms we use in fourth grade here. Division is at the bottom of the page. In addition, practicing math facts is essential. Students who know their math facts automatically will do better at learning this new topic. You can find the math fact practice that we use in school here.

In reading, we spent the week focusing on specific reading skills. We discussed finding the genre of books at length, as well as inferring and making connections. Several students are participating in a small book group reading Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan. This is a short historical fiction book about a family living in the midwest.

We also began writing a personal narrative this week. The topic the children are writing about is about something they did on a day off of school. You can imagine that many of the children had a LOT of ideas!

In social studies we are just starting our unit on the Regions of the United States. We began this week discussing "What is a region?" We will finish discussing this first topic on Monday and the students will have a quiz on Friday. They already have vocabulary flash cards, and though I announced the quiz today, I did not write it on the assignment board.

We are continuing our study of weather by learning about weather forecasting and tools to forecast weather.