The scientists have been doing investigations about division, playing with amounts of objects and separating them into equal groups. In the morning lab they have also continued noticing and wondering about equal groups using arrays of different shapes and sizes. The scientists are also on the second week of multiplication sprints, where they are tested on their multiplication fact knowledge in sprints of 60 questions in 4 minutes, and guess what? All of them have already mastered the 2s! Take a look at the pictures to see their glowing fingers :) During Language Arts, the scientists have gotten their feet wet into writing in English, getting ready for Open Response with two types of questions: rewriting a story from another character's point of view, and explaining how the author uses text features to help the reader understand the story. They have also been working on cause and effect, and compare and contrast. Finally, in Science, we have just started learning about animal traits by investigating the characteristics we see in fossils using the Mystery Science unit. Here is the slide show from these past two weeks. Enjoy!
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The scientist have started the new year strong in their resolutions of learning and investigating. This month we are wrapping up multiplication strategies that these scientists master, and we will move onto division during the upcoming weeks. We will also start with the multiplication facts challenges next week as well, so get your memory muscles ready to get those facts in those fantastic brains! During Language Arts, we have switched our focus TEMPORARILY on getting ready for ELA MCAS that will take place at the end of March. So far we have been learning all about Author's Purpose, that is as easy as PIE ( please ask your scientist what this means), Cause and Effect, and we have started getting our feet wet on Parts of the Speech. To get the anxiety down for testing, we have continued practicing Mindfulness techniques, this time using the Mindful Schools curriculum of which I am attending online classes. This curriculum also comes with a mindful journal that we are adding to our own. The conversations regarding reading and math content are very rich and interesting, showing that our scientists are incorporating the PORTRAIT OF A LEARNER skills, and are getting ready for any challenging situation. I couldn't be prouder of them. Finally, this week we have also participated in a district wide Inspired Learning Day of which you have probably have heard a lot. It was a very enthusiastic and energized day where the students had a chance to collaborate with other kids from different grades, and lear new and interesting things.
Enjoy the weekend! |
AuthorHello! My name is Esther Willinski, and I am a fourth grade teacher in Massachusetts. Join us in our journey through 4th grade! Archives
December 2024
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