Peek of the Week for September 17-21, 2012
It is hard to believe that we are now over halfway through the first quarter! Progress reports will go home on Monday. Please pay close attention to the comments and grades. We have several students who are struggling somewhat in different areas. It is essential that students pay attention in class so that they can learn the new concepts being taught or ask questions when they do not understand. Homework is also important so that students can practice the skills they have learned in class. Mrs. Durel and I both have a www.homeworknow.com accounts so parents and students can go see what the homework is for the night. Students also write their homework in their agendas daily so there should not be a question about the homework assignment for the night.
Please look for teacher request for a conference on the Progress Reports. Please sign and return Progress Reports.
Curriculum Day is September 20th from 8:00-8:30. Letters were sent home last week asking for donations because we are having light refreshments for the students and parents. If you are willing to send in supplies, please let the room moms know. It would be greatly appreciated. We hope to see a lot of parents on September 20th!
Please have students study for upcoming tests and quizzes. They need to start at least 2-3 days before the test is given. All students need to know their multiplication facts fluently. We are getting ready to start studying multiplication and division so it will be essential to know their facts!
Check out our www.homeworknow.com accounts for helpful sites and information! Not to mention, you will be able to see what we are doing and what homework is assigned for the night. We are still working on a few kinks with the uploading worksheets to the site. Right now they are way too big to print! Mrs. Stewart's site is still under the trial period so parents cannot download the apps for it just yet. It should be ready in two- three weeks. The trial period will be over then and she will let you know when you can download the apps.
http://my.homeworknow.com/
Remember to sign all papers with a grade of 69 or below. Also make sure to correct and return any papers that are indicated as soon as possible. Makeup work should also be indicated and returned to school within three days.
Mrs. Stewart will be sending home the log in information for the online math book. Please make sure to keep the letter somewhere safe. This will help if the students forget to bring home their math books.
Students can also access their reading stories (audio) from the basal at http://www.walton.k12.ga.us/STAFF/TextbookSoftware.aspx. There are links for science, language arts, and social studies but they are not the online books. There is a link for the online math book there as well, but Mrs. Stewart is sending one that has the specific student log in and password information.
We really need your help with this! We are trying to get materials and supplies for an upcoming project in science (for the entire 4th grade). We will be dissecting owl pellets in order to study food chains. This is a great hands on learning experiment, but a costly one. We can reuse the microscope, tweezers, and such in the classroom, but not the owl pellets. If you are interested in donating to this worthy cause, please visit http://www.donorschoose.org/kymstewart. Thanks a million to those who have already made a donation!
Peek of the Week for September 10, 2012
It was a good week! We still have quite a few areas that we need to work on in class. We are noticing a lot of students not paying attention in class and not studying for tests. Both of these are extremely important for the success of the student. Please discuss with your child the importance of listening and paying attention in class. Students need to start studying for tests at least 2 to 3 nights before a test. This will help to ensure that they child knows the material. There is always a review day before the test so that we can work with those students who are still struggling with some concepts, and many times we review right before the test is given. Encourage your child to ask questions and let the teachers know if they are struggling. Telling the teacher that they don't understand when the test is given out is not a good time to let us know that there is a problem! We need to know beforehand so that we can help the student.
Picture Day is September 20th. We also have Curriculum Day on the 20th from 8:00-8:30. We would love to see you there!
Please make sure to sign and send back any paper with a 69 or below.
Continue to check agendas nightly.
Please keep sending in Box Tops for Education, Campbell's Soup labels, and such. This is a great way for the school to get extra money.
Please check out our Owl Pellet project. We are trying to raise money to buy equipment and owl pellets for the whole 4th grade.
September 4, 2012
Hello Parents and Students!
We hope you enjoyed the long weekend. It was a very relaxing weekend with lots of football! Roll Tide! The students are continuing to make progress in all areas. We are really quite amazed at how well they have transitioned. That is great news! We do have several areas that need some attention. The first area is homework. We have many students who are not completing homework on a consistent nightly basis. Mrs. Stewart's homework is due the next day unless it is notated or otherwise specified. Mrs. Durel's homework packets are due on Friday and they will be notated as such, but all of the other homework is due the next day. Forgetting to do it or not knowing what to do is not an acceptable excuse. Students write in their agendas every day. This is the other concern- not writing in the agenda. All homework can be found in the agenda. If your child does not have anything written in their agenda, please talk to your child about this because there should be something written in the agenda even if it is the word "none."
Please talk to your child about making sure that they are completing their assignments in a timely manner and turning them in. Mrs. Stewart has several students in both classes that failed to turn in a performance task that was given to them on Tuesday and it was due on Friday. Mrs. Stewart and Mrs. Durel have each given extra class time for students to complete these assignments, and encouraged students to work on this assignment when finished with all other assignments. All late assignments will be marked as such and starting next week Mrs. Stewart will start deducting points off late assignments. This does not apply to any student who is absent and misses assignments. Make up work is due three days after the student returns to school. Please make sure that students return make-up work to school.
Please remember to send an excuse when your child is absent. Any work that is missed may be made up. Missing work is due three days after the missed day. Please speak to your child about the importance of turning this work in for a grade.
Please go over any assignment that is scored below a 70 with your child. Some assignments may be corrected for a grade up to a 70. Please check with the teacher to see if this possible or it may be indicated on the assignment itself. It is important that these papers are corrected and returned; otherwise the original grade will stand. Tests will be corrected (if allowed) at school. Grades are also posted in the online grade book.
We really need your help with this! We are trying to get materials and supplies for an upcoming project in science (for the entire 4th grade). We will be dissecting owl pellets in order to study food chains. This is a great hands on learning experiment, but a costly one. We can reuse the microscope, tweezers, and such in the classroom, but not the owl pellets. If you are interested in donating to this worthy cause, please visit http://www.donorschoose.org/kymstewart. Thanks a million to those who have already made a donation!
We are so impressed with the students' writing and really impressed with their love of writing! Keep up the good work!
If anyone would like to donate items to the classrooms, here are a few things we could use!
Candy (nothing with peanuts please!)
Pencils and erasers
Sandwich bags (Zip-loc and brown bags)
Bookmarks
Small items for the fish bowl- ink pens, small balls, yo-yos, and etc.
Don't forget to send in Campbell’s labels, Box Tops for Education, Tyson, Capri-suns, and Coke tops. These are great ways for the school to earn extra money.
Thank you for being great parents! Have a great week!
Peek of the Week August 27-31, 2012
It has been another great week! The students are settling into the routine and seem to be coping with the transitions very well. We are very proud of them! Keep up the good work!
Here are a few reminders:
Please check agendas nightly for notes and homework assignments. Please remember to initial at least 2-3 times a week. We are having a few students who are forgetting to complete homework on a consistent basis.
Please send in all supplies if you have not done so already.
Students may bring water bottles to school. Only water! No other drinks are allowed in the classroom!
As you may have noticed, grades are going home in the Monday folder or have already gone home. Please go over any assignment that is scored below a 70 with your child. Some assignments may be corrected for a grade up to a 70. Please check with the teacher to see if this possible or it may be indicated on the assignment itself. It is important that these papers are corrected and returned, otherwise the original grade will stand. Tests will be corrected (if allowed) at school. Grades are also posted in the online grade book.
Please remember to send an excuse when your child is absent. Any work that is missed may be made up. Missing work is due three days after the missed day. Please speak to your child about the importance of turning this work in for a grade.
Have your child study for tests. Studying takes days and time. Students should not be waiting until the night before the test to study! The science and social studies areas are more content related this year, so many students struggle when it comes to taking tests in these areas.
Please check the subject tabs on the web site to see what we are doing this week!
Week of August 20-24 Reminders:
Week of August 20-24
Science - We are continuing in our study into the solar system. We started last week by looking at how the Earth rotates and revolves around the sun. This week we will talk about the planets and review how the Earth rotates and revolves. Test on Friday over vocabulary words from page 54 in the science book. Students should have vocabulary cards to help them study.
Reading - We will have our first quiz on chapters 1-3 of Who is Neil Armstrong? on Tuesday and students will be allowed to use the novel during the test. We will continue reading the book and identifying the main idea and details of each chapter as we read. We will also explore affixes (prefixes/suffixes), informal vs. formal English, and sequence this week. We will be reading, The Gardener, a story from the reading book during Guided Reading this week. Our reading vocabulary test and comprehension test will be on Thursday, August 23. No spelling test this week. Our next spelling test will be Friday, August 31. Please be sure your child is reading a book or other literature of their choosing every night (including weekends) for 20 mins and logging this on the stamp in their Agendas. Re-reading lessons covered in class in their science and/or social studies books can count for their 20 mins of reading time. Students will receive a reading packet on Monday for homework and it will be due on Friday.
Social Studies - We will continue studying Native Americans and covering Chapter 2 in our social studies textbook. Students will receive a Daily Geography sheet each day for homework this week and it will be due the following day.
Week of August 13-17
Science- This week the solar system will be introduced. We will start with the rotation of the earth and how it affects us. We will have a homework assignment this week. It is due the next day. No scheduled tests or quizzes this week.
As you may have read in our class handbook, we are trying to get materials and supplies for an upcoming project in science (for the entire 4th grade). We will be dissecting owl pellets in order to study food chains. This is a great hands on learning experiment, but a costly one. We can reuse the microscope, tweezers, and such in the classroom, but not the owl pellets. If you are interesting in donating to this worthy cause, please visit the following link:
http://www.donorschoose.org/kymstewart
We do appreciate your help!
Reading - This week we will establish procedures for writing in our journals. We will also begin reading Who is Neil Armstrong and work on identifying the main idea and details as we read. During our Guided Reading time, we will discuss strategies that good readers use when reading and will begin reading The Sign of the Beaver. Accelerated Reader (AR) goals will be set this week and a label with your student's goal will be placed on the inside of the front cover of the Agenda. I will be sending home a reading worksheet on Mondays and it is due on Fridays, unless otherwise noted. Please be sure your child is reading a book or other literature of their choosing every night (including weekends) for 20 mins and logging this on the stamp in their Agendas. Re-reading lessons covered in class in their science and/or social studies books can count for their 20 mins of reading time.
Social Studies - This week we will begin our unit on Native Americans and will start with the Inuit, Kwakiutl, and Nez Perce tribes which is Chapter 2 in the Social Studies textbook. It is very important for your child to bring home their Social Studies books and notes daily to study the content covered in class that day. Remember re-reading chapters covered in class can count towards the 20 mins of nightly reading requirement. I will be sending home a Geography/Map Skills worksheet on Mondays and it is due on Fridays, unless otherwise noted.
Spelling - This week's spelling skill is words with the long and short A sound. Spelling tests will be every Friday and we will have our first spelling test this Friday, August 17. I will be sending home a Spelling worksheet on Mondays and it is due on Fridays, unless otherwise noted. SpellingCity.com is an excellent resource for students to use in preparation for their weekly tests. You will need to have Internet in order to access the website. The web address is: www.spellingcity.com. To find my lists:
1. Click on "Find A List"
2. Enter my last name (Durel)
3. Click "Search
4. Cick on my name (April Durel)
5. Then select the correct date (Week of August 13, 2012)
Math - We will continue to review prime and composite numbers. There will be a quiz on prime and composite numbers on Wednesday. We are also going to start into place value and how to represent numbers in different ways. On Friday, we will have a test on multiplication facts. It is very important that students are fluent in their multiplication facts. Please study with your child. I am sending home the multiplication test that we took last week. If your child misses more than 30 on the test then that is an indicator that your child needs to study their facts a little more. Please check agendas nightly for homework and notes.
Math- This week we will be introducing even/odd numbers, prime/composite numbers, and place value. There will be a homework assignment that will go home on Tuesday and it will be due on Friday. There will also be a couple of other homework assignments and they will be due the next day. We will take a multiplication facts test on Monday to see how well we do. We will grade these in class. There are no scheduled quizzes or tests this week.