December 15th - 19th, 2014

No take home note or reaction sheet next week!  The only homework over winter break required from student's is the reading log.  Enjoy your holiday break!

Dates to Remember!

• Thursday, December 18th - Geo Bee, Van Arsdale library, 2:00 PM
• December 22nd to January 6th - Winter Break
• Wednesday, January 7th - Students return

Friday, December 19th we will be holding a Writer's Cafe in our classroom.  Students will continue to work on their Fiction stories and completing first drafts.  We would love to make this special for the students and have "cafe" sort of foods for all to enjoy while working.  If you wouldn't mind, we would love to have you click on the sign up genius link and sign up for a food item. This link will be sent via email.  Thank you!

1.  Writing:  we have a tight schedule next week and students will be required to finish pieces of in class writing.  If for some reason this writing is not completed in class, they will have additional at home homework that must be completed and turned in the next day. 

December 8-12, 2014

• Students continue to impress me with their writing and taking the time to brainstorm, plan, edit and revise both their in class writing! Thank you for having conversations with your son/daughter regarding the writing they have completed in the classroom and at home. 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.

• Please continue using IXL.COM, in addition to regular assigned homework. We are asking students to spend at least 10 to 15 minutes this week working on IXL.COM, E4, and E5.

• If you were unable to come to Grandparent's Day, the video is available here to share with your family! (http://tinyurl.com/niselygrandparentsday2014)

Dates to Remember!

• Thursday, December 18th - Geo Bee, Van Arsdale library, 2:00 PM
• December 22nd to January 6th - Winter Break
• Wednesday, January 7th - Students return

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• Please continue using IXL.COM, in addition to regular assigned homework. We are asking students to spend at least 10 to 15 minutes this week working on IXL.COM.

November 10th - 14th, 2014

No blog next week, or during the Thanksgiving Break!  This will be the last blog until December 8th - 12th.

Wednesday, November 13th - Family Math Night

Friday, November 14th - Report Cards go home

Friday, November 21st - Grandparents day, 12:00-3:00

November 24th - 28th - Thanksgiving Break

Writing:  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 last weeks 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.  These are all strategies we are working on in class.

Report cards will be sent home on Friday, November 14^th. Please sign and return the outside envelope.

• Grandparents Day:  Friday, November 21st.  Students will be working on a special computer presentation  in our classroom and plan to share these with their 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.

• 1. Turkey writing:

  This Turkey Needs Dressing!  On Friday students received 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 story about your terrific turkey. Your dressed turkey, and turkey story are due Wednesday, November 19th. Remember to use a circle and flee map to focus your thinking before you write.  These maps will be due with your turkey.
• 2.  IXL.COM  in addition to regular assigned homework, we are asking students to spend at least 10 to 15 minutes this week working on IXL.COM, 

      E4, and E5.

November 3-7, 2014

Thank you to all the parent helpers and contributors to our fall party. We had a wonderful afternoon of games, crafts, parade, and food! Thank you for spoiling us! <3

Dates to Remember:

• Wednesday, November 5th - Hearing & Vision Screening
• Wednesday, November 13th - Family Math Night
• Friday, November 14th - Report Cards go home
• Friday, November 21st - Grandparents day, 12:00-3:00
• November 24th - 28th - Thanksgiving Break

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Math: 

• Students have been doing a wonderful job practicing math problems on IXL. Students should know their individual log ins.   Feel free to continue exploring the site. Focus on the FOURTH GRADE D1, D2, D3.

• Students will continue to bring home math pages to complete from their math homework book. These pages need to be completed and turned in the next day. Keeping up with this important work supports the learning we are doing in class.

• Literacy -  We have been learning about how figurative language helps create a visual image for readers. Please read the poem below and then complete the activity that goes along with it.  You can choose to either type or write your answers. You must have AT LEAST one personification phrase for each season. You can do more of course!

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October 27th - 31st

Our Shark investigation was fantastic! Students worked hard to complete this lesson while science note booking. Thank you to all the many volunteers that helped this afternoon run so smoothly.

Mad Science Assembly 10:30-11:30.

• Halloween Fall Festival, Friday, October 31st - parties 2:15-3:30. 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 5^th.
• Report Cards: November 14th.
• Thanksgiving Break November 24-28th.

• 1.  Math Homework:  most days, if we complete the in class math lesson, students are expected to bring home a practice homework page.  This page is a great support to exactly what we are working on in class.  Students are also encouraged to work on several of our online sites to promote their math learning.
  
  
  IXL.Com is an excellent resource new to our classroom.  Students can pick grade levels of practice to either pick up on skills in past grades or push their thinking on grade level or advance to 5th or 6th grade learning. Student work is tracked thru this program and I am able to see the work they have done. To log on:
  
  
  Google Search:  IXL.com
  username:  (Students have individual usernames written in their planners)
  Password: nisely04

Students need to work through the problems under Fourth Grade, D24.

2.  Banana Project is due this Thursday, October 30th.  See blog from October 6th-10th for details.

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October 20-24th, 2014

• Help Needed:  We have taken on an organizing and revamping project in our classroom and are in need of plastic magazine bins.  I've been able to find a few at garage sales and Craigslist but am trying to collect 50!  

• Parent Teacher Conferences are next week, Monday to Wednesday. Hopefully you've already signed up for a spot! If not, please email me to schedule a time for your conference!

• Fall Parties are on October 31st. If you'd like to volunteer, a sign up genius link was sent to your email. Please sign up from from there! We need any help we can get. Students are allowed to bring a costume for the parade later in the day, however it should not take longer than 15 minutes to get changed. Remember, no masks are allowed due to school rules.

Dates to Remember:

• Monday-Wednesday, October 20-22 - Parent Teacher Conferences ~ If you have not yet signed up for a spot, please do so ASAP or email me to find another time!
• October 22 - Early Release at 1:00
• October 31 - Halloween/Fall Parties

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• Keep working on your Banana Costume project! Remember it is due on October 30th!

• LITERACY: Please read the following prompt and respond in a one page, paragraph form. Remember to construct interesting, and detailed sentences! You must use a circle and flee map. The final copy, flow map and circle map will be due next Friday, October 24th. Share with your parents!

If you could choose one food to never eat again, what would it be? Why?

• MATH: Let's practice our math facts! Play the game below for at least 15 min, 3 different times before Friday. The thing is... you have to click all the clouds! Have Mom or Dad sign in your planner that you fulfilled the requirement and I will pay you 5 PAWS.

http://www.multiplication.com/games/play/flying-high

October 13-17, 2014

• 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.

• Shark Dissection! The date for the Shark Dissection has been moved to Wednesday, October 15th, weather permitting. Students should wear old clothes that they don't mind smelling a bit like fish that day. An old shirt over regular clothes works great as well!

• We still need helpers for our shark dissection! If you're able to and aren't squeamish about dissecting, we'd love to have your help! I don't need as many helpers for my own class, but may need parents for the other two classes' dissections Please send a signed note back with your student if you can help!
• Nisely: 1:00-1:45
• Russ: 1:50-2:35
• Wiley: 2:35-3:10
  

Dates to Remember:

• October 13-17 - Book Fair
• Monday-Wednesday, October 20-22 - Parent Teacher Conferences ~ If you have not yet signed up for a spot, please do so ASAP or email me to find another time!
• October 22 - Early Release at 1:00
• October 31 - Halloween/Fall Party

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Science:

Please watch the following youtube link before Wednesday!

SHARK DEMO VIDEO

Social Studies:

Look at the image below.  Observe it closely.  Write 4 open and 4 closed questions.  Please type your questions and share them with me via google docs or as an attachment via email.  

A CLOSED question: ·         Can be answered with a yes or no answer ·         Can be answered with one word,  a short phrase, or a simple sentence ·         Can be answered quickly ·         Has one correct answer ·         The answer doesn’t encourage further conversation on the topic ·         Answers are usually short and concise

An OPEN question: ·         Requires an explanation ·         Can be answered with a list, more than one sentence, a paragraph, or even an entire essay ·         Often require a deeper, lengthier response ·         Can have more than one “right” answer ·         They encourage further conversation on the topic

This is an ongoing assignment and is due on Thursday, October 30th

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 31st. 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 31st, we will share our stories while we enjoy banana splits (with new, different bananas of course!). Attached you will find a rubric that will be used to grade you project.

Remember:

• Everything should be typed in 12 point, Times New Roman font.
• This story should be a minimum of 1 page, double spaced

October 6th - 10th, 2014

• 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.
• Dissecting Sharks!: Students will use science note booking and dissecting sharks  coming Friday, October 10th, weather permitting. Students should wear old clothes that day. An old shirt over regular clothes would be helpful. 

• HELP NEEDED: dissecting sharks with students on Friday, October 10th. Nisely's class:  1:00-1:45,  Wiley's class:  1:50-2:35, Russ' class: 2:35-3:10.

• Parent-Teacher conferences will be Monday, October 20^th , Tuesday, October 21st, Wednesday, October 22nd.  If you haven't already signed up for a time, please email me.
• Cookie Dough Delivery on Thursday, October 9^th. Limo ride is Friday, October 10th from 1:00-3:00.
• Early Release Day:  This Wednesday, October 22nd at 1:00.
• Fall Party: Friday, October 31st

1. This assignment is on going and due on Thursday, October 30th.

  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.

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September 29th - October 3

• Parent Teacher Conferences are scheduled for October 20-22nd. I have created a SignUp Genius page for parents to sign up for conferences; you should have received an email with the link to the page. If you didn't receive the email or haven't signed up for a conference spot yet, please do so via the link below!
• http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c084fa4ac2ea5fb6-parent

• As I mentioned last week, I've rostered my class onto Raz-Kids.com! This site gives the kids access to hundreds of eBooks and audiobooks for them to read, listen to, and record and is a great resource! To sign in, students should enter: 
• Teacher: snisely 
• Password: First initial, last name
• Example - Teacher: snisely | Password: JSmith

Dates to Remember:

• Thursday, October 9 - Cookie Dough Pick Up
• Week of October 13-17 - Book Fair
• Monday-Wednesday, October 20-22 - Parent Teacher Conferences

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• MATH: Click on the Mega Math link below to play our math games that directly tie to our math Expressions unit. Remember the higher the letter is in the alphabet, the more challenging the game.
• MEGA MATH
• Also, be sure to finish any math homework that comes home. These pages are due the next day.
• LITERACY:   please write down as many  examples of learning with the spirit of endurance. (This can be a character in your book or examples of yourself learning with the spirit of endurance.

• 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.

• Parent Teacher Conferences are scheduled for October 20-22nd. I have created a SignUp Genius page for parents to sign up for conferences; you should have received an email with the link to the page. If you didn't receive the email or haven't signed up for a conference spot yet, click the link below to sign up:
• http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C084FA4AC2EA5FB6-parent
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• I have rostered my students to Raz-Kids.com, using the school's subscription to Raz-Kids. This site gives the kids access to hundreds of eBooks and audiobooks for them to read, listen to, and record. Reading comprehension quizzes along the way show student progress. Your child can access the site on a computer tablet or phone (iOS or Android systems) via http://www.raz-kids.com/login/snisely. In addition, you, as a parent are also able to follow your child's progress! Log in as your student, click on the "Parents" link in the upper right, register and follow the instructions. Alternatively, if you prefer, you can send your email address(es) to me at snisely@jeffco.k12.co.us. Student sign in is: Teacher:  snisely  Password:  First initial, last name .  (ie:  Teacher: snisely  Passord:  TSmith

Dates to Remember:

• Friday, September 26th: Early Release at 1:00 & Carnival

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• Literacy: Please read the following text on fingerprints and complete the diagram as instructed.

• Math: Play the factor game below to sharpen your factor finding skills
• http://www.hoodamath.com/games/factorfeeder.html

September 15-19, 2014

Picking a "Just Right" Book

What can we do to make sure that we grow as readers? How do we know if the books that we are reading are the best for our level? We talked about the five-finger rule of picking a "just right" book this week. Make sure you're picking "just right" books!

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We are starting our next Writing unit: Poetry and Figurative Language. If you have any kid friendly poetry books, I would love to borrow them for the next three weeks. Please make sure they are clearly labeled with your child's name. Thanks in advance!

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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.

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INSERT CARLANAN'S INFO

Dates to Remember:

• Friday, September 26th: Early release (1:00 PM) and Carnival

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LITERACY

Dear Students, 

This week we discussed opportunity cost during our time together in social studies.  Please write a short story that shows me that you understand the concept of opportunity cost.  Make sure that your story includes a main character, a choice with at least three options, and the final opportunity cost clearly identified.

Please click on the link below and watch this sort video to refresh your memory.

Opportunity Cost

Please label your paper with your name, student number, and your homeroom teacher's name. You may turn this in as you finish it.  The final due date is Thursday, September 18th.  

• Literacy: 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).

• Math: Follow this link and play the following math time game.
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/maths/shape_space/time/play/

September 8-12, 2014

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

Help Needed!  We need a mom or dad that can donate time to our class to file on Fridays for Friday Folders.  Please let me know if you can help, even  one or two times a month would be greatly appreciated.

• 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 link, under Classroom Resources on the left). Please encourage your son/daughter to read the rubric and edit and revise their writing before turning it in.
• The minutes required for Weekly Reading Logs has been changed to 100 minutes to keep everything fair between all fourth graders, between all three fourth grade classrooms.

Dates to Remember:

• Wednesday, September 10th: Cookie dough orders due
• Thursday, September 11th: Picture Retakes
• Friday, September 26th: Early release at 1:00 and Carnival

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• Please read below and complete the web on a piece of paper:

If the images do not load, please click here.

• Writing Prompt: If you found $20 on the ground, explain what you would do with it.

Notice that below we have attached the rubric for your writing prompt. Please share with your parents the discussions we had in class about following the prompt! This will also remain as a link under "Classroom Resources" on the top left side of the blog.

September 2-5, 2014

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

• 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.
• Students are doing an amazing job completing their homework and getting it in on time.  Thank you for your continued at home support with this.

Dates to Remember:

• Friday, September 26^th:  Early release at 1:00
• Wednesday, September 10th: Cookie dough orders due
• Thursday, September 11^th: Picture Retakes

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• Please read the following text. Complete the graphic organizer on a sheet of notebook paper writing the main idea and supporting details.

If the images do not load, please click here for the text, and here for the organizer.

• In math, we are focusing on determining place value. It is so important that we understand how to determine place value before moving on to new concepts in math (such as division). Mrs. Nisely had fun watching and playing this game about place values. Tell us what YOU think!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/maths/number/place_value_headings/play/

May 19th - 23rd, 2014

• Thank you parents for attending our student conference celebration!  What a delight it was to hear students sharing this goals, growth, and successes from our fourth grade year! Our kids have worked hard this and are ready for fifth grade.  Thank you also for supporting our class this year with your help, kind words, and donations.  
• End of the year party:  Wednesday, May 28th.  Students will bring a sack lunch, beach towel, and out door equipment (Frisbee, soccer balls, footballs, etc.) Please no bats. We will have a picnic in the park gazebo. 
• Field Day: This coming Tuesday, May 20th. We will be outside all day.  Students need a good nights sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, bring and water bottle, and sun block and hat.
• Solar Ovens:  Friday, May 23rd.  If you volunteered to donate an item or help assemble ovens, we will combine all three science classes together in the library at 10:30.
• Report Cards:  will come home in Friday, May 23rd's Friday folder.

Social Studies:  DUE MONDAY, May 19th

History Assessment                                           Name_____________

                                                                     Teacher_____________

Directions:  Use the information in your notebook, what you remember from class discussion and videos, and apply your schema to the task below.  I will be looking for specific details and strong description in your response.

Scenario:  While on a field trip to the History Museum you 'accidentally' wander away from your group and discover an old, dusty door tucked away at the end of a long, dark hallway.  Of course you are curious and open it to have a look, despite the clearly printed sign that says KEEP OUT.  Little do you know it’s actually a time machine portal and now you are hurtling through time!  After tumbling and twirling back in time, you land with a thud and discover you have landed in historic Colorado in the 1880s.  You are the oldest child in a pioneer family that has recently homesteaded in one of the three regions of Colorado. Write a diary entry, describing in detail, your day from sun up to bedtime.  You will receive extra credit for mentioning what other family members are doing during the day as well. This is your opportunity to apply what you’ve learned and use your amazing writing skills to ‘knock my socks off!’  I can’t wait to read your diary entries.

Use the back of this page to plan you diary entry.  What thinking map would work well for this task?

Lastly, on a separate sheet of paper, write two-four sentences describing how your life is similar and different from an 1800s pioneer child settling in Colorado.

Note:  You may hand write your diary entry and reflection sentences on notebook paper and staple them to this page, or you may type and print your diary entry and attach it to this page.

May 12 - 16th, 2014

Student Led Conferences/celebration:  May 14th. Between 4:00-5:30 p.m. A Student-led conference is a time for your child to be in charge!  These conferences highlight the most important person in the assessment process – the student. What should a parent expect at a Student-Led Conference?

1.  Your child will do most of the talking.
2.  Your child will tell you the goals he or she is working on in class.
3.  Your child will discuss his or her progress.
4.  Your child will share and explain different types of work that he or   she performs throughout the day.
5.    This conference is a celebration of learning.
We look forward to seeing you!


An invitation to this celebration was sent home with your son/daughter on Wednesday.
• Wax Museum was a huge success!  Thank you to all who could attend and also the time and effort from parents  to help prepare costumes, and final biographies.
• Owl Pellet dissection:  Friday, May 16th.  We still need parent helpers during dissection from 10:30 - 12:00.  

Field Day for Fourth Grade:  Tuesday, May 20th.  Hot dogs, hamburgers and other snacks will be sold again this year for a small fee for those students staying on campus during lunch. Please check with me if you plan on taking your son/daughter off campus for lunch.

• Solar Ovens: Friday, May 23rd from 10:30 - 12:00, students will be building solar ovens as part of our energy science unit.  We still need parent help on this day, if you are free. 

1.  For Science:  Please watch the following video on food chains and food webs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TE6wqG4nb3M

2.  Also, watch this movie on Carnivores, Herbivores, and Omnivores:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VejLXTsJrJc

3. Practice 3 digit by 3 digit multiplication. (Example:  284 x 398 = ?)Make-up 6 problems and solve them.  Check your work with a calculator. Due Friday.

4.  Study for your bone quiz. Study sheets will be given out in Friday Folders.

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