Reading: Our readers did a fantastic job working in new teams this week. We read a Scholastic article about Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War three different times over the course of several days. Each time we read we focused on a different aspect of the article, digging a little deeper each time. I was proud of your kids for the effort they put forth in engaging in discussion and collaborating with new peers. Their critiques of the writing were sophisticated and their thoughts about the topic were thought-provoking. Ask your kids about "How Lincoln Changed America" and whether or not the author wrote a strong article.
Writing: We started outlining our persuasive pieces!! The kids each chose a role, an audience, a format, and a topic (RAFT) and have developed reasons with evidence to support their opinion. We have football players writing to baseball players about which sport is better, Chicago enthusiasts writing to travelers persuading them to visit, and jelly beans persuading kids to eat them instead of chocolate! Very clever. Ask your child what he/ she chose as their "RAFT" assignment, and what reasons he/ she has developed thus far.
Roots: Our prefix this week was 'inter,' meaning between or among We wrote our own sentences and drew pictures to develop a better understanding of the difference between "between and among." A challenging but important concept to know! What examples of "inter" words can your child offer?
4th Grade Math: This week we finish our decimals/fractions unit. We learned how decimals as in money and how to add the decimals. We then worked on story problems with money and reviewed for our test. Today we took the test in class. Students will get it back on Monday. Ask your child how they thought they did on the test.
Social Studies: This week we had shorter time for Social Studies due to our read-a-thon and a few other things. We began our research for the Midwest and then will continue it next week. Students should be finished with three out of five of their chapters (regions) for our book creator! Ask your child if they finished their Southwest book creator chapter.
Great Mail Race: The students were very excited to receive our first letter for our Great Mail Race. You may remember that we wrote letters to schools in all 50 states plus Washington, D.C. during the week of PARCC tests. We have heard back from schools in the following states: Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arkansas, Nebraska, and Florida
Science: This trimester, our scientists are studying with Mr. Lukehart. They'll be learning about Ecosystems throughout an exciting unit during which they'll develop experiments using mealworms and build a live terrarium and aquarium! Ask your kids about what they planted, grew, or added to their ecosystem.
Growth/Fixed Mindset: This week we continued to work on their scripts for the iMovie. Most of the groups finished their script and began their iMovie All of the students are making a commercial for a growth mindset. Ask your child what they are focusing on for their iMovie.
Miscellaneous:
Great Mail Race: The students were very excited to receive our first letter for our Great Mail Race. You may remember that we wrote letters to schools in all 50 states plus Washington, D.C. during the week of PARCC tests. We have heard back from schools in the following states: Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arkansas, Nebraska, and Florida
Science: This trimester, our scientists are studying with Mr. Lukehart. They'll be learning about Ecosystems throughout an exciting unit during which they'll develop experiments using mealworms and build a live terrarium and aquarium! Ask your kids about what they planted, grew, or added to their ecosystem.
Growth/Fixed Mindset: This week we continued to work on their scripts for the iMovie. Most of the groups finished their script and began their iMovie All of the students are making a commercial for a growth mindset. Ask your child what they are focusing on for their iMovie.
Miscellaneous:
- There’s a lot going on at Magic Tree Bookstore. On Sat., April 18 at 11:00 a.m., Patricia J. Murphy will visit the bookstore to talk about her newest book, Hope for the Elephants. You will have a chance to hear a bit of the book and to learn about problems that elephants are facing. Call (708)848-0770 or e-mail info@magictreebooks.com to reserve your place. There is also a bookmark contest going on until Apr. 19 for 4-18 year olds. Kids have the chance to design a bookmark that will be Magic Tree’s official bookmark for the year! There will be a winner from each of 3 categories: elementary and younger, middle school, high school. Please don’t include any licensed characters like Batman. Be sure to include your name, phone number, parents' name, and age. Turn your entries in to The Magic Tree Bookstore by Sun., Apr. 19th at 4 p.m.
- It's time for our annual Whittier Food Drive to support our OPRF Food Pantry. The goal for this year's "Can Do Community Challenge" is for the Food Pantry to collect 100,000 items and dollars in order to receive an additional $25,000 from Challenge Corp. Our Whittier Food Drive will run from Thursday, April 16th to Wednesday, April 29th. Non-perishable food items (especially high protein foods, whole wheat pasta and brown rice), toiletries, and monetary donations will all be accepted. Monetary donations go the furthest because they allow our Food Pantry to purchase food at a considerably reduced cost. Your donations will be a big help to people in need. Please start collecting and saving today!! Thank You!!!
