December 12-16, 2011

• Holiday Gingerbread houses: We still need supplies to create our houses, such as white frosting, graham crackers and candy decorations.
• No math club this week!  We will start up again after break on January 12^th, 2012.
• No Take Home Note/ or homework next week. Students will still be expected to read over the winter break and fill out two reading logs. Happy Holidays!
• Student Supplies needed:  many students have used up or no longer have some of the essential supplies they started the year with, such as pencils, erasers, glue sticks, scissors, dry erase markers, colored markers and colored pencils. Our school does not have the funds to purchase these supplies for students and many students do not even have pencils.
• Winter Break:  December 20^th- January 3, 2011. Student’s return Wednesday, January 5^th, 2011!

2.  Complete the math worksheet below using the lattice method of multiplication.

Language Arts

Print off and complete the worksheet below.  The focus of the worksheet is INFERENCING.  You will need to be a detective and search out clues that will help you answer the questions correctly.  There is one correct answer for each question.  This is due by Wednesday morning.

December 5th–December 9th, 2011

· Needed: DRY ERASE Markers. We have depleted our supplies! Students use dry erase markers several times a day on small white boards during math, science and reading.

· Field Trip to Peck Elementary: Friday, December 9th from 11:00-1:30. We will be spending time with our pen pals. Students need to bring a sack lunch and drink.

· Holiday Gingerbread houses: we will be making these houses to compliment our Area and Perimeter math lesson. Students will be designing and calculating the area and perimeters of their holiday houses. Supplies needed: Graham crackers, white frosting, M & M’s, Dot’s, Tootsie Rolls, small candy canes, pretzels, Smarties, and any other candies for our little houses. We also need two or three parents who would have some extra time to glue graham crackers to small student milk cartons. (glue houses – Monday, December 12th. Students measure, design and create houses on December 15th.)

· Grandparent’s Day: was a wonderful success this year. Thank you for all the treats donated by parents.

· Night at Barnes and Noble: Thursday, December 8th, Denver West from 4:00-9:00. This will be a fun night. Part of the proceeds from this evening will come back to Van Arsdale Elementary.

· Winter Break – December 19 – January 4. Only reading log homework will be assigned over this holiday break.

· January 3rd – no school for students. Teacher workdays.

· Students return on Wednesday, January 4th, 2012. Student Supplies needed: many students have used up or no longer have some of the essential supplies they started the year with, such as glue sticks, scissors, dry erase markers, colored markers and colored pencils.

1. Welcome to ZooDesigner! You have been hired to design 5 enclosures for the animals at a local zoo. After successfully creating these enclosures, you will be given a certificate. Please print these certificates and turn in to class on Friday, December 9! How many certificates can YOU earn?! [Note to Parents: if you are unable to print at home, please provide a hand-written confirmation with signature.]

Click here to begin designing!

2. Constructed reading response: We have been working hard at responding to text in class. Here is a chance to show me what you know! Remember, read the text, and in your written response, include a topic sentence, 3 supporting details from the story, and a strong concluding sentence. Read the question and text below and write a constructed response:

QUESTION: Why do researchers believe dogs have the inborn talent for reading humans, thus making them people's choice for a pet? Give at least three examples from the text.

A Dog’s Life From Wild Wolf to Friendly Fido

How does the family dog know from the look on your face that he or she is in the doghouse? Believe it or not, your pooch did not learn from experience. There was no need. A recent study has found that dogs have an inborn talent for reading humans, and ability that may explain why they were one of people’s first commonly kept pets.Scientists have known for some time that dogs are descendants of wolves. But they didn’t know why some wolves were able to be domesticated, or tamed to live with or be used by humans.Researcher Brian Hare says that he has a pretty good idea. He found that dogs outscored both wolves and chimpanzees in tests to see which animal could best read human gestures and facial expressions to find hidden food. The conclusion? Dogs are born with a remarkable ability to read people, making a human-dog relationship very natural.Humans put dogs to good use, too. They used their new sidekicks to help them hunt, for protection, and for companionship.Hare believes that wolves developed this people-reading skill as a way of survival. The wolves that became domesticated were the ones that could read humans well enough to find scraps of food. The better those wolves got at reading humans, the more food they found, which increased their chances of survival. Over thousands of years, those wolves turned into today’s dogs.

November 28th - December 2nd, 2011

• No Homework this week!  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday!

• We have a class of poetry writers!  Students are writing/publishing and creating fantastic poems.  Many of these poems were shared on Grandparents Day.

• I feel very blessed and honored to be in your children’s lives!  It is a joy to be their teacher and I’m very thankful for each one of them and such wonderful family support!

• Thanksgiving Holiday:  No school November 21-25.

• Report cards are in Friday folder this week! You may keep the documents inside the envelope.  Please just sign and return the outside envelope on Monday, November 28.

Field Trip to Peck Elementary:  Friday, December 9^th from 11:00-1:30. We will be spending time with our pen pals. Students need to bring a sack lunch and drink.

1.  If you want to play an awesome game, check this one out!  Practice now, because next week you will have an assignment using this web math game.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks2bitesize/maths/shape_space/symmetry/play.shtml

November 14-18

• Writing Prompts:  Thank you for having conversations with your son/daughter regarding the writing they have completed in the classroom and at home.  I have included these graded writing pieces in their Friday folders. I was pleased to see so many students are using strong descriptive words, had a clear beginning, middle, and end to their writing, and took the time to edit and revise. On reading responses, we are working on including a topic sentence, supporting details from the text and including a strong conclusion. These are all strategies we are working on in class.

• Report cards will be sent home on Friday, November 18^th. Please sign and return the outside envelope on Monday, November 28^th.

• Grandparents Day:  Friday, November 18^th. Students are working on writing poetry in our classroom and plan to share these with their special guests on Grandparent’s day. Students are encouraged to dress up on this day in order to represent our school and show respect to our guests.

• Thanksgiving Holiday:  No school November 21st-25^th.

• Fourth Grade Field Trip to Peck Elementary:  Friday, December 9th from 11:15 – 1:30. Permission slips (see below) are included with this week’s take home packet.  Please sign and return as soon as possible.  Students will bring their own sack lunch and drink.  We will be having lunch and planned activities with our fifth grade pen pals as we get to know them better.

  



1. Please create the following Polygon Creatures on paper:

Now make the following creatures and write a description for each (use juicy words!):

• Trimouthed Creature
• Quadheaded Creature
• Pentahorned Creature
• Hexatongued Creature
• Octatailed Creature
• Decaspiked Creature

2.  Please play the following game:

http://hoodamath.com/games/bizwiz.php

November 7th - 11th, 2011

November 7th –November 11th, 2011

• Report cards will be sent home on Friday, November 18^th. Please sign and return the outside cover.

• Grandparents Day:  Friday, November 18th.

• Thanksgiving Holiday:  No school November 21^st-25^th

• Arvada Food Drive:  Our school will be collecting canned and boxed goods to help meet the many needs of food in our Arvada area.  Students in our class can bring in their donations from November 28^th to December 9^th.  The classroom with the most donations will receive a pizza party from student council.

• Snacks needed for Grandparent’s Day:  To provide a welcoming, social environment, we will again be serving simple snacks to our grandparents and other special guests. A light finger food such as cookies, brownies, pastries, breads, or mini muffins are needed. All the snacks from fourth grade will be served in the main hallway outside the C pod. Please email or call Diane Ranta if you can donate food for this special day or if you have any questions. (Diane Ranta 303-431-3669, e-mail: dianeranta@msn.com)

1.  This Turkey Needs Dressing!  In your Friday folder I sent home a turkey copied on card stock.  Cut out the Turkey, use scraps of cloth, paper, foil, glitter, and your imagination for a spiffy he or she.  Be sure to name him or her and then write a biography about your terrific turkey. Your dressed turkey, and turkey biography are due Friday, November 11th. Remember a biography is a a written account of another person's life, in this case, the life of your turkey.

2.  Please play the following geometry game and be prepared to discuss the shapes and ideas presented in the graphics.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks2bitesize/maths/shape_space/2D_shapes/play.shtml

October 31st - November 4th, 2011

• Halloween Fall Festival, Monday, October 31st - parties 2:15-3:40. Students may bring a costume to school on the morning of the 31^st and will be given 15 minutes to change before the school-wide parade begins. Please no masks. This is a school rule.
• Hearing and vision: November 16^th.
• Grandparents Day, November 18^th, 10:55 to 11:55.
• Math Club: Thursday mornings from 8:00-8:45 a.m. These times will be used for students that need additional help and support in math.
• Please remember that the Banana Costume and writing are both due Monday, October 31^st.

• The Fourth Grade Rats Cube was sent home on 10/28 in your Friday Folder. This needs to be completed and turned in by Friday, November 4.

• Please play the following math game to help increase your knowledge of money combinations. Click on the picture to be taken to the game:

• Become more familiar with different types of poetry while playing the following game. Please turn in (and label) at least one of each poem that you create while playing the game: 1 haiku, 1 limerick, 1 cinquain, 1 free verse. Click on the picture below to begin creating your own poetry:

October 24-28th, 2011

• Halloween Fall Festival, Monday, October 31st - parties 2:15-3:40. Students may bring a costume to school on the morning of the 31^st and will be given 15 minutes to change before the school-wide parade begins.  Please no masks. This is a school rule.
• Banana Costume and writing are due October 31^st.
• Hearing and vision: November 16^th.
• Grandparents Day, November 18^th, 10:55 to 11:55.
• Please note that the Van Arsdale PTSA (News & School Happenings) and school cafeteria lunch menu links have both been added under the “Classroom Resources” at the top left of this blog.
• November 18^th – Report Cards go home.
• Math Club: Thursday mornings from 8:00-8:45 a.m.. The first club will start this Thursday, October 27th.  These times will be used for students that need additional help and support in math.

1.  Have fun practicing your division strategies in Division Bingo! Click on the picture below to go directly to the game:

2.  Read the following story, answer the multiple choice questions at the bottom, and respond in writing (just like we practiced in writing on Thursday and Friday) to the writing prompt.

Reading Response Writing Prompt:

"In the story, The Greedy Dog, what happens to brown dog after he walks across a little bridge? Give at least 3 details from the story to support your answer."

October 17th-21st, 2011

• In place of the reading comprehension sheet this week, students will find a writing prompt.  I have also attached a rubric to help guide students on fourth grade writing expectations.  This writing piece and the rubric are due on Friday, October 21st.  Please take the time to read through your son/daughters writing and encourage quality final drafts. Many students need to be reminded to revise and edit; adding those rich descriptive words, and correct spelling and grammar errors.

• Needed: Dry Erase Markers.  Due to the high use of student dry erase boards, we have run out of dry erase markers.  We use these boards every day in math, and reading. We would love it if you could help replenish our supply.
• No reaction sheet this week due to conferences.
• Parent-Teacher Conferences on October 12, 13 were a great success!

     Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to attend.

• Early Release Day:  Wednesday, October 26, 1:10 dismissal.

• Fall Festival Parties and Parade, October 31, 2:15 p.m. 
• Italian Dinner:  Friday, October 21st, 5:30-8:30.  You can still purchase tickets from the front office.  Money earned from this event will help support 6^th grade students and their trip to outdoor lab.
• Math club will be starting soon!  Please check in coming news for information.

1.  Please read the following prompt and respond in a one page, paragraph form. Remember to construct interesting, and detailed sentences!

"If you were as small as a bug, would you rather be able to jump like a grasshopper, fly like a dragonfly, or climb like a spider?" Explain using rich examples.

2.  Main Idea Practice:

3. Have fun playing this division game this week! For a bonus, play the game more than once :) 

http://www.mathplayground.com/TB_MD/tb_md4_iFrame.html

October 10th - 14th, 2011

• Mid term reports were sent home in friday folder.  Parents, please sign and have your son/daughter return them on Monday.  I look forward to discussing these with you at conferences this next week.

• Fall Party:  has been changed to Monday, October 31.  Mrs. Ranta has volunteered to be our classroom liaison!  She will be calling parents that indicated that they could help with our party.
• Parent-Teacher Conferences are October 12, 13.   Confirmation Notes were sent home in the last Friday Folder. If there’s a conflict with your time, please call me as soon as possible.
• Our “Reading Basket” for the spaghetti dinner is filling up with wonderful items.  Thank you to all who donated the awesome reading items! Some ideas for this basket are books, journals, book marks, magazines and lights. We will continue to collect these items to promote 6^th grade and their efforts at outdoor lab.
• Spaghetti Dinner/Silent Auction date is October 21st from 5:30-8:30 p.m.
• Early Release Day, October 26^th,   1:10 dismissal due to a teacher staff development day.
• Thank you for helping your son/daughter study their multiplication facts! Many students are lacking knowledge of their multiplication facts!  Without this basic knowledge of facts, students may fall behind in math this year.  10 or 15 minutes a night of studying multiplication facts or first thing in the morning will promote this essential learning and pave the way for future math assignments.

• I’m proud our fourth grade class!   They continue to amaze me with their fantastic writing!  Please be sure to ask them about their “Slice of Life” stories.  Once revision is complete, they will publish their writing. The first rough draft was due Friday, October 7^th.

1.  Below  is a study sheet for Mrs. Russ' social studies class.  Student's are responsible for the following information:

Social Studies Review Sheet for the final Economics: Opportunity Cost and Choice unit

These are some of the concepts I might ask about on the quiz.

ü  Tell the difference between a good and a service.  Be able to give an example of each.

ü  Know the two types of goods, durable and non-durable and be able to give an example of each

ü  The concept of opportunity cost

ü  How do you know when you have made a good decision financial or otherwise, give three examples

ü  How do I know when I have made a bad decision, financial or otherwise, give three examples

ü  Know the difference between a resource and a good, be able to give an example

ü  Know the two types of resources, renewable and non-renewable and be able to give examples

ü  Know and be able to recall the definition of: economy, opportunity cost, risk, incentive, financial risk

ü  Be able to talk about the economy of resources, economy of time, and economy of behavior in reference to the basic definition of economy…making the most of what you have and not wasting your resources

Social Studies Review Sheet for the final Economics: Opportunity Cost and Choice unit

These are some of the concepts I might ask about on the quiz.

ü  Tell the difference between a good and a service.  Be able to give an example of each.

ü  Know the two types of goods, durable and non-durable and be able to give an example of each

ü  The concept of opportunity cost

ü  How do you know when you have made a good decision financial or otherwise, give three examples

ü  How do I know when I have made a bad decision, financial or otherwise, give three examples

ü  Know the difference between a resource and a good, be able to give an example

ü  Know the two types of resources, renewable and non-renewable and be able to give examples

ü  Know and be able to recall the definition of: economy, opportunity cost, risk, incentive, financial risk

ü  Be able to talk about the economy of resources, economy of time, and economy of behavior in reference to the basic definition of economy…making the most of what you have and not wasting your resources

2.  Please read the following text on Fingerprints and complete the diagram as instructed.

3.   Here’s an “ap-peel-ing” contest, and a fun and creative way to celebrate October’s top holiday. First, design a costume for either a real or plastic banana. Use a variety of materials, such as paper, cloth, paint, glue, markers, glitter, yarn, or whatever. Create a setting and a nameplate for your banana. Bring your completed project to school on October 31^st. We will have a “parade” of costumed bananas and a panel of judges will choose the four “top bananas”.  Awards will be given for the Top Banana, Scariest Banana, Most Creative Banana, and Funniest Banana.

For a language arts connection, each student will write a story featuring their banana as the main character. This project will be completed at home as homework. The afternoon of the 31^st, we will share our stories while we enjoy banana splits (with new bananas of course!).

Attached you will find a rubric that will be used to grade you project.

Reminders:

·         The paper should be typed in 12 point, Times New Roman Font.

·         The paper should be a minimum of 1 page typed, double spaced.

4.  Please click on the site below and play the math game.  You will need a sheet of notebook paper to work each problem.  Please work through at least ten problems.

http://www.mathplayground.com/multiplication03.html

                                  

                                                

Division Strategies

The following are several examples of the division strategies that we are practicing in class:

October 3rd - 7th, 2011

• As students work through our science unit,  they have shown great strides in accurately recording and demonstrating wonderful experiments.  Science notebooks are a critical piece to our science studies.  These notebooks integrate writing and scientific data collection and thought. Higher levels of thinking are required throughout all of our science units.

• Midterm Reports will be coming home today, Friday, October 12th.

• Parent-Teacher conferences will be Wednesday, October 17^th and Thursday, October 18th. If you haven't already signed up for a time, please email me.

• Cookie Dough Delivery on Tuesday, October 11^th. This is also the day of the limo ride.

• Please remind your son/daughter that they must wait for you in the grassy area by the cafeteria when being picked up after school.  Students are not allowed to play on the playground equipment at this time, and for no reason should parents park in the hug and go zone!
• Early Release Day:  This Wednesday, October 24^th at 1:10.

1. Please read the following four paragraphs.  On a sheet of notebook paper, write the sentence that does not fit in the paragraph (this is a detail that should not be included with the rest of the text).

 

2.  Math homework:  follow this link and play the following math time game.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks2bitesize/maths/shape_space/time/play.shtml

September 26th - 30th, 2011

 

·    Thank you for helping your son/daughter study their multiplication facts!

·    Parent Teacher Conferences are October 12 - 13th. If you haven’t already signed up for a time, let me know.

·    Mid term grades will be sent home Friday, October 1st.

·    Wednesday, September 28^th, early release at 1:10.

·    Students are working on getting their class work and homework in on time. Students are responsible for bringing a late assignment note home for any missing homework.  This is a fourth grade expectation and a sign of responsibility.

·    Intermediate Field day - Thursday, September 29^th.

·    Most students have done an awesome job keeping up with the weekly blog and completing the homework assigned. Included in this week’s blog is a rubric for at home writing prompts (under the important forms tab). Please encourage your son/daughter to read the rubric and edit and revise their writing before turning it in.

·    Arvada fire department will present “The Hunt for Home Hazards” to our fourth grade students on Friday, September 30^th.

·    After giving the first round of our acuity test to students this past week, I noticed that many students struggle with determining the main idea, summarizing, and author’s point of view in reading and writing.  We will continue to spend time in class working on these skills.  Spending time at home to reinforce these strategies will only benefit your son/daughter.  I appreciate your help.