Thursday, August 30, 2018

Our First Week In Review


Our first week of fourth grade was AMAZING!  We spent the majority of our week establishing our classroom community.  We want our learning space to be a place where we can all succeed!  We explored our new classroom, and we also learned some new things about each other, even about those friends we have known for a long time! 





We worked on a few collaborative challenges to get practice working together with our new classmates.  Students loved these activities, especially 'Save Fred'. Your child can share more about this.


Paper Chain Challenge











Save Fred














Math Art






This week, we created a list of classroom rules that we all agree to follow (we will all sign it on Monday).  On Thursday, we got together with ALL of the fourth graders, and we met both Mrs.A. Williams and Mrs. E. Williams.  We learned about Creative Arts Fridays, and talked about our weekly morning meeting with fourth grade. Your child can tell you more about both of these. 













In the next week, we will continue to establish our routines in the classroom, while beginning to focus on academics.  We will begin our first math unit (Place Value) on Tuesday, and will practice our Math Workshop while learning about this topic. We will work on our Reader's Workshop routines as well, while also exploring our classroom library.  During Writer's Workshop, we will focus on writing about our Hopes, Dreams and Goals. Science and Social Studies will begin later in the month.

From the Teacher's Desk
Our class blog is written for students and families. At times, I may have a specific message for the parents/guardians.  Those messages are in this section "From the Teacher's Desk".  Look for "adult specific" information here.  Please note that tweets are posted throughout the day.  You can find our most recent tweets on the right sidebar, or by following our class @mertenladybugs .  


National Parks Program:
   Once again, this year, the government has announced a program for fourth graders called "Every Kid in a Park".  This initiative is to encourage fourth graders to visit the National Parks FREE OF CHARGE!  All fourth graders in the 2018-2019 school year can receive a pass good for the year.  Information about this program can be found here.

Monday, August 27, 2018

Welcome to 4th Grade!

I am so excited to FINALLY meet you all tomorrow!  I know you may be nervous, but I hope you are also excited. I know I am.  Our room is ready, and I have chosen some really fun books to read with you tomorrow.  Check out your 4th grade teachers reading Because You Are My Teacher, by Sherry North.
This week we will complete some activities to help us to get to know one another, and will learn a lot about fourth grade!  I am sure it will be wonderful!

We will go to music for our special tomorrow.  Our lunch is pretty late (1:10), so you probably want to have a good breakfast, and to bring a snack to school. We will snack around 10:15.  Remember your water bottle because it can get warm in the classroom this time of year.

I know our 4th grade experience will be fabulous, and I can't wait to get started! 

~ Mrs. Merten

Thursday, August 2, 2018

Welcome to New 4th Graders and 4th Grade Families

Class placement letters will be mailed in the coming weeks, and you should learn shortly who your 4th grade teacher is! I am so excited to be your 4th grade teacher!  I can't wait to meet you at the end of the month. (That's me in the black and white shirt, with author, Sara Pennypacker.)



I have posted a letter for you, and one for your family in the Important Documents gadget on the right.  Just click on those documents to learn more about 4th grade and our upcoming year.  If you have time, scroll through our class blog to see what has been going on this summer, and to check out some of the fun that we had in room 24 last year.  Feel free to leave a comment on the blog, using the directions on the right.  Be sure to ask your parents before commenting.

The name of our blog is "Ladybugs on Learning". I hope you will find this page helpful for both parents and students.  If you are new to our blog, welcome!  If you are a returning guest, welcome back!  I'd like to share a few things with you, to guide you through using our blog.


  • Comments are welcome on our blog ~  from families as well as from our students.  You can find some instructions on how to best comment in the sidebar to the right.  Please follow the instructions and comment away!  
  • I have posted some links to important information to the right as well.  You will find summer letters to both parents and students, as well as the suggested supply list for incoming Fourth Graders.  You will also see our class handbook, which is currently being updated.
  • I try to post updates to our blog on Fridays, and very often include pictures or videos of our week.  I also try to include links(games, study guides, videos, etc.)  which could help students with homework or studying.  If you would like to follow our blog by email, there are two options.  You can enter your email in the "Follow by Email" gadget, or you can become a "Follower". Both of these options are in the section on the right.  
  • In addition to blogging, I have been  "tweeting" information about our class.  This is a way to stay connected "in the moment" to our classroom.  You will find our tweets embedded in our blog on the right.  If you would like to follow our class on twitter, our handle is @mertenladybugs .
  • If you or other members of your family speak a different language, I've included a translator gadget to the right.  This will help  families from around the world to keep updated with your child's school activities.
  • I know some of you are anxious about starting a new class with a new teacher. If you don't know me, my name is Mrs. Merten!  I have a link at the top entitled "Meet Mrs. Merten".  If you visit that link, you will learn a little about me and my family.
  • Below are a few pictures of our classroom.  I hope you enjoy seeing where you will be learning this year! I am looking forward to meeting you!




Our Class Library

Advice from last year's fourth graders