A Short Week in January (01/20-01/22)

Hello parents! We hope you had a great four day weekend with your children. Our time was spent at school working through different workshops to help grow as teachers! We learned a lot of new and interesting things! Check out what is happening this week at school!

Math: We continue to work through our Hands-On Equations unit and the students are really excited about it. It is such an awesome experience to watch them grow and learn how to solve algebraic problems. Tomorrow, they will have their first quiz. Unfortunately, I am not able to send a study guide home, but most of the students should be fine! Please continue to have the students complete their homework and practice fact fluency.

Science: We have still been focusing on adaptations and patterns of living organisms. Our next couple of weeks we will be concentrating on adaptations and food chains and webs. Please look out for some science homework that may make its way home.

Reading: We are still practicing summarizing non-fiction texts. Please make sure that your child is reading at least 15 minutes a day at home.

Social Studies: Our focus is on Native American history and the students have a unit test coming up on February 1st. Check homework folders for a study guide that will be sent home.

Tic-Tac-Toe Spelling: The next one will be due on January 28th!

Writing: We are working on persuasive essays!

Upcoming Dates:

January 22nd: Movie Night @ 6:30

Scotties Trees Rock! Voting Start Date: January 11th-February 7th

- A couple of weeks ago, two teachers and a couple of students at Mazie Gable created a video of why trees are important to send into Scotties Tissues. This was a competition and our video was voted as one of the top 10 in the country! It is now a matter of popularity vote. Starting on January 11th you will have the opportunity to vote each and everyday for our commercial to win. Letters will be sent home with each student to tell you how the voting process works. We need your help with voting and spreading the word to as many people as you know. What a proud moment for Mazie Gable!

If you would like to receive text messages daily to remind you to vote, test 81010 with the message @mgoutdoors. The texting will stop on February 7th.

Visit the website http://scottiestreesrock.com/ to vote!

February 3rd: Career Day Spirit Day

February 12th-15th: No school!

February 18th-20th: Elementary Basketball Tournament

February 16th-26th: Study Island Benchmark #2 Due
**Make sure you sign and return their Benchmark graphs during this time.

Week of January 11-15

Hello parents/guardians! We hope you had a lovely weekend and are ready for this week! Check out what is happening in fourth grade this week.

Math: Last Friday, we finished up Unit 4 in Math and we will now be transitioning into Hands-On Equations. This is a completely new concept to the students, and it is the introduction of algebra. In fourth grade, they only completely Lesson 1 and will complete Lesson 2 and 3 in fifth and sixth grade. This is one of my favorite units to teach! Homework will still be sent home each night instead of Fridays so please look out for this! Also coming up this week, the students will be completing their Marking Period 2 fact fluency testing. If you have time tonight, practice these basic facts with your child.

Science: Tomorrow the students will be completing the Part 1 test of the Adaptations and Patterns Unit. A study guide was completed today at school and will be sent home with the students tonight to help them study. I have posted the science notes that we took in class on our blog as well if you need more guidance while studying with your child. We will then be studying how animals survive and adapt.

Reading: We are summarizing nonfiction texts about the Native Americans.

Writing: The students are publishing and sharing their personal essays.

Social Studies: We are learning about the Native Americans' way of life.

Word Work: Tic Tac Toe spelling due January 20th!

Vocabulary: Study Word of the Day words! Quiz is tomorrow, Jan. 12th!

UPCOMING DATES:

January 13th: Boots Day

January 18th-19th: No school for students.

Tree Commercial Voting Start Date: January 11th-February 7th

- A couple of weeks ago, two teachers and a couple of students at Mazie Gable created a video of why trees are important to send into Scotties Tissues. This was a competition and our video was voted as one of the top 10 in the country! It is now a matter of popularity vote. Starting on January 11th you will have the opportunity to vote each and everyday for our commercial to win. Letters will be sent home with each student to tell you how the voting process works. We need your help with voting and spreading the word to as many people as you know. What a proud moment for Mazie Gable!

If you would like to receive text messages daily to remind you to vote, test 81010 with the message @mgoutdoors. The texting will stop on February 7th.

Visit the website http://scottiestreesrock.com/ to vote!

January 20th: End of the Second Marking Period

January 6th-13th: Fact Fluency Testing

February 12th and 15th: No school

Freezing Into January (01/04-01/08)

Hello parents! We hope that all of you had a relaxing, yet exciting holiday break! Here is what is coming up in our first week back:

Reading- We are learning how to identify the main idea in nonfiction text as well as find the supporting details. Next we will be summarizing nonfiction text.

Writing- The students have chosen a person that means a lot to them and are writing a personal essay. They are learning how to include a thesis statement and supporting details in their opinion pieces.

Word Work- Tic Tac Toe homework is due 1/12/16!

Social Studies- We are beginning a unit on the Native Americans and how they affected the land before it was Pennsylvania. Our read aloud, Sign of the Beaver, ties nicely to this lesson.

Science- We will be half way through our Adaptations and Patterns unit at the end of this week and the students will be given a test on everything we have learned so far in this unit. The test will be given next Tuesday. Watch out for the study guide that will be sent home on Monday so the students may study.

Math- We will also be finishing up Unit 4 this week in math. The unit test will be given on Friday, which means I will be sending home a study guide on Thursday. As always, this study guide is optional, but if it is completed it is two extra credit points on their math test. I wanted to make all of you aware that I have been teaching the students various ways to multiply, but have really been pushing them to learn traditional multiplication, they way you and I learned. If you would like to practice this more at home, please reach out to me and I will send home some practice sheets!

IMPORTANT UPCOMING DATES!

Fact Fluency Testing: January 6th-13th

No School: January 18th-19th

End of the 2nd Marking Period: January 20th

Tree Commercial Voting Start Date: January 11th

- A couple of weeks ago, two teachers and a couple of students at Mazie Gable created a video of why trees are important to send into Scotties Tissues. This was a competition and our video was voted as one of the top 10 in the country! It is now a matter of popularity vote. Starting on January 11th you will have the opportunity to vote each and everyday for our commercial to win. Letters will be sent home will each student to tell you how the voting process works. We need your help with voting and spreading the word to as many people as you know. What a proud moment for Mazie Gable!

Check back to the blog for more important information!

Thanks,

                 Miss Harlacker and Ms. Duke