April 3 All School Meeting and Spirit Day (Wacky Tacky Mismatchy)
April 6 Library Visit
April 6 Business Plans Due (optional)
April 6-8 Level 2 Basketball Camp
April 10 No School
April 16 Student-Led Conferences
April 17 No School
Homework Due Thursday, April 2nd
1. Read for at least 20 minutes every night.
2. Complete Reading Response Letter OR Opinion Paragraph Packet
3. Complete at least 30 minutes of math practice*
Optional: Complete electronic Business Plan by Monday, April 6th (for students who want to start their own classroom business)
*Suggested IXL skills for 3rd grade math practice:
F.7 - F.10 Multiplication skill builders
*Suggested IXL skills for 4th grade math practice:
E.2, E.3, E.4 Division
Upcoming Out and Abouts
This week and next week we will have In & Abouts to support our project work about energy and animal migration.
Volunteer Opportunities - http://vols.pt/drMimF
We are in need of breakfast donations and library chaperones for the month of April. Cereal for Community Breakfast can be brought in any time. Thank you for your support!
I would also like to assemble a parent panel to help evaluate business plan proposals. Students who are interested in opening their own classroom business will have to present their proposal to the class and the parent panel. Presentations will take place next Thursday, April 9th from 2:20 - 3:20. I have created a new sign up on VolunteerSpot for this activity: http://vols.pt/PvojTu
Math Notes
Before Spring Break, third grade mathematicians finished up the "Big Dinner" project by figuring out the correct cooking time for a 24 pound turkey. They also learned a multiplication game called Loops and Groups and brought home the materials to teach a family member. If students want to play Loops and Groups in place of their IXL homework this week (or if they already played over Spring Break), please send me a quick email letting me know that they completed their 30 minutes of math practice. If you are interested in playing other math games at home in place of or in addition to IXL practice, check out these ideas: Math games to do offline!
This week in Fourth Grade Math we will focus heavily on reviewing the fourth grade math topics we have covered so far this year; and spend some time focusing on math vocabulary. Next week we will transition our understanding of division towards fractions. We will first focus on ordering, equivalence, and adding fractions with like denominators.
Weekly Review
The classroom store has been open for a couple weeks and students have been spending their dino dollars (earned from their classroom jobs) on beanie baby sleepovers, homework passes and other fun treats! Now, some students would like to own and operate private businesses! The first step for entrepreneurial Plovers is to complete the electronic Business Plan. They may have some time in class to work on this, but I expect most students will want support at home. Business plans are due by Monday, April 6th, and then potential business owners will need to present their plan to their potential consumers (the Plovers) and community stakeholders (parents and FGCS administrators) on Thursday, April 9th. This process is completely optional and I intentionally made it a bit challenging so that students would really consider the responsibilities that come with managing a business! Please let me know if you or your Plover have any questions or concerns and I will be happy to help with the planning process.
Migration project groups have been getting to know each other and practicing team work skills by writing biographies of each other. This writing project also gave them some practice with informational writing and features of nonfiction texts (like captions, quotations and fact bubbles) before embarking on a major research project. Soon, groups will begin learning about their animal and writing about its life cycle, diet, adaptations and migration. They will also build a habitat model for their animal. Below is the wish list of supplies the Plovers came up with today. If you have any of these materials at home or would be willing to purchase one of the items, please send it in with your student by April 9th.
Project supplies wish list: wooden popsicle sticks, toothpicks, sand, pebbles (aquarium gravel), sequins, sparkly beads, wooden or natural colored beads, fake flowers and plants, yarn, air dry clay, blue/green/brown card stock and construction paper, natural materials (rocks, sticks, pine cones), drinking straws, pipe cleaners, wire, sandpaper, toilet paper tubes, fabric scraps, wool, fake feathers, faux fur, paper clips.
Communication
Please contact me with any questions or concerns. Parents and students can e-mail me at [email protected]. You can also leave a voice message on the class phone, come into the classroom before or after school, or call me before 8PM at home.