Week of 11/27

This Week in Fourth Grade...

Math: We return from Thanksgiving break, and refresh our memories from what we've been learning and reviewing in Topic 4. On Tuesday, students will take their Topic 4 test. After our test, we will begin to explore our Topic 5 concepts: multiplying by 1-digit numbers!

Religion: The countdown till Advent has begun! To prepare for Advent, we will discuss the Liturgical Year's calendar this week. Students will be able to recognize the different seasons and special ways we celebrate Jesus' life during each time. 

Reading and Language Arts: Our essential question in RELA this week is: What helps an animal survive? We will be reading nonfiction texts to explore this question. As we read, we are looking to identify the main idea and supporting details in order to help us summarize the text. 

Science: We continue our Waves Unit this week with the topic of: Magnets! Students will read about and complete hands on activities in order to explore more about magnets.

Social Studies: Students have now explored the Eastern region of the United States! Before we "pack our bags" and head West, students will complete a culminating activity of our Eastern region studies. Students will be working on creating a "travel brochure" for an Eastern state of their choosing. At the end of the week we will do a gallery walk, and learn more about specific states in the East! 

Week of Thanksgiving!

This Week in Fourth Grade...

Though this week is a short week, it is full of excitement and thankfulness, as well as plenty of learning! 

Math: We will be spending Monday and Tuesday reviewing concepts and skills we have been focusing on in Topic 4. When students return from Thanksgiving break, they will have their Topic 4 test on Tuesday, 11/28.

Religion: We are wrapping up Chapter 5 this week, which focuses on the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. We will be doing some review of the main ideas of chapter 5, and taking an open book test on Tuesday. 

Reading/ Language Arts: We have some fun Thanksgiving activities planned during our reading time this week! Students will be doing some writing from the perspective of a turkey! Their goal is to persuade all the Thanksgiving hosts to cook something else as the main course for Thanksgiving dinner! 

Students will also be working hard to complete their final drafts of their how-to articles! We have been learning a lot from each other, by reading students' articles on how to complete a task or make something new! 

Social Studies: On Monday, students will take their Southeast Region test! They have been reviewing in school, and studying at home with their booklets! I know they will do great!

And of course, it's all about Thanksgiving this week! We will spend time learning about the First Thanksgiving, and complete festive activities along the way! 

Announcements:

• Tuesday morning students will participate in our annual Turkey Trot! Students should wear their PE uniforms and the appropriate outerwear to stay warm outside! 
• On Tuesday afternoon the school will come together for a Thanksgiving Celebration! We will sit with our buddies to enjoy a snack and watch a presentation from the student council! 

Week of 11/13

This Week in Fourth Grade...

Math: This week we continue our topic on adding and subtracting whole numbers. We will use our knowledge of place value to add and subtract numbers up to the thousands. We will spend some extra time practicing how to subtract across zeros. 

Religion: We are moving into Chapter 5 this week, focusing on the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. In Chapter 4, students learned about forming their consciences. In this chapter, they will learn about the peace that comes from receiving God's love and forgiveness through Reconciliation. In addition, students will be introduced to the "Keep Christ in Christmas" poster contest. We will go over the expectations, and even begin creating our posters (can you believe it's already that time of year?!)

Reading and Language Arts: We will continue with last week's essential question: how are all living things connected? We will continue to read narrative nonfiction stories about our environment and different ecosystems. While reading, we are on the lookout for identifying the main idea and supporting details of the text. 

In Writer's Workshop, students are gearing up for final drafts of their how-to articles. We begin conferencing to prepare our papers for publishing! 

Science: We will continue with our Science Weekly Five topic of Force and Motion this week! Students have enjoyed exploring the effects of speed and acceleration with their ramp building last week. This week we will review and summarize our findings. 

Social Studies: We are wrapping up our explorations of the Southeast Region! We will be spending time reviewing this week. Our Southeast test will be next Monday, the 20th. Students will be bringing home their study guides in the next couple of days. 

Announcements:

• Our annual Race for Education is THIS FRIDAY! Our Race festivities begin at 11:30 AM. Students should wear their race shirts,sweatpants and tennis shoes, and the appropriate outerwear. 
• On the horizon... Southeast Region test will be on 11/20

Week of 11/6

This Week in Fourth Grade...

Math: This week we will begin by continuing our review of place value concepts. On Tuesday, students will take their Topic 3 math test, which focuses all on place value concepts such as expanded form, place value relationships, and rounding. After our test, we will begin to use our knowledge of place value to add and subtract large whole numbers. 

Religion: We will be wrapping up Chapter 4 this week. Students have been working hard to prepare skits that will demonstrate their understanding of how our consciences work in helping guide our decisions. We will also spend some time reviewing the main ideas from Chapter 4 and take our chapter test this week. 

Reading and Language Arts: Our essential question in RELA this week is: How are all living this connected? We will be reading narrative nonfiction stories to help us explore our question. While reading we will build our comprehension by focusing on finding the main idea and supporting details of our text. 

In Writer's Workshop students are working on their rough drafts of their "how-to" articles, and will begin to revise and edit their pieces this week. 

Science: This week in science we continue our Waves unit by exploring the topic of Force and Motion. Students will read, identify new vocabulary words, and conduct experiments related to force and motion. 

Social Studies: We honor Veterans this week, by participating in a variety of activities related to learning more about veterans and thanking them for their service. We will also begin to summarize our explorations of the Southeast Region this week. 

Announcements:

• This Friday is a half day for students. Our Open House will also take place on Friday. Spread the word!