January 28 Library Visit
January 31 - February 1 No School
February 5 O&A to World Forestry Center
February 8 All School Meeting and Spirit Day
Homework
Due to the short week, there is no homework this week. Students should continue to read every day at home and practice their math facts.
Upcoming Out and Abouts
We are transitioning from our Waste & Recycling Unit into a study of Oregon's Natural Resources. This week, we will learn background information for our February 5th trip to the World Forestry Center.
Math Notes
This week in Third Grade Math, we will continue our work with multiplication and division. In this unit, students will develop an understanding of both operations by connecting their work to a variety of visual models, mostly in the context of story problems. Although students will be expected to develop proficiency with multiplication facts through 10, knowing when to multiply and when to divide will be the focus of our investigations.
This week in Fourth Grade Math, we will continue our new unit focusing on fractions and division. Using egg cartons as a model, your fourth grader will work this week on understanding, modeling, reading, writing, ordering, and comparing common fractions using concrete models (egg cartons) and visual representations (drawing egg cartons).
Questions/Comments/Concerns, please contact Becky at [email protected]
Weekly Review
Last week, we began a science inquiry project about decomposition. After watching a time-lapse video of fruits and vegetables decomposing, students discussed their ideas about what caused food to rot and why some food (like strawberries) rotted faster than others (like garlic). Then, they worked in small groups to create posters that show what they think happens during the decomposition process. Next, we will read science texts and conduct an experiment to explore what factors influence decomposition. As students learn more vocabulary and facts, they will be able to add to and revise their posters, which will provide a record of their learning.
We also had a Science Talk about water to launch our study of Oregon's natural resources. Science Talks are student-led discussions and the class is getting much better at listening and responding to each other without needing me to call on individual students. They have developed their own systems and rules to make sure everyone has a chance to speak and we have been practicing how to respond to someone you disagree with. Their conversations often go beyond the allotted 20 minutes as the students passionately share their ideas and questions. Last week's student-submitted question was "How is water made and how do we get fresh water?" Below is a snippet of their discussion. We will follow up on their ideas in February with two classroom presentations about the water cycle and an Out and About to the Clean Water Services facility at Fernhill Wetlands.
"I think all water comes from the ocean, because the rivers are connected to the ocean."
"I think water gets clean in a giant machine. I don’t know how, but it cleans it."
"On TV, they showed a river and I think most of our water comes from it. One part is clean and one part is dirty and it’s in Africa. I think most of our water comes from it."
"I think water can get clean in a bunch of ways. Like, maybe it just has to go to a power plant and there’s different sections. But actually, it goes in sewers. It goes in sewers and then to a treatment plant."
"How we get water is from rain. I don’t really know how it gets clean but it goes to a water treatment plant."
"I think we get water from the ocean. Actually, water comes from outer space and comes down as rain."
"I watched Curious George, but only when I was 4, and they showed a water filter and talked about how it uses clean water."
"I have a water filter at home, it’s a small one. The water comes in the top and goes through a filter and goes down into the bottom."
"I think water gets clean by chlorine."
"The structure of water has something to do with how its made. There’s 2 hydrogen and an oxygen molecule. I think those cells are combined and make water."
"I think water comes from factories, but they probably get it from somewhere. I think they put it in bottles and give it to us."
"You don’t always get water from bottles. It comes from pipes."
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.