Here are some of the arrays we hunted down today. Wouldn't it be fun to go on your own array hunt at home? HIP HIP ARRAYS!
Today we celebrated the start of a new unit in math, Factors, Multiples and Arrays by hunting for arrays on the Trinity campus. Lead by the math superhero, Captain Array (a.k.a. an enthusiastic Mrs. Dugan with a quilt for a cape), students in room 215 went in search of sets of items arranged in equal rows and columns. Learn more about arrays and our new unit by reading the Investigations family letter on our Math Resources page. Here are some of the arrays we hunted down today. Wouldn't it be fun to go on your own array hunt at home? HIP HIP ARRAYS!
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The month of September is coming to an end and autumn is well on its way here in Charlotte. Let's recap all that we have been working on this month in room 215 and get a glimpse at what is to come....
Readers have been working to choose books that are "just right" for them by carefully shopping in our recently opened library. Once we find our books we have been applying comprehension strategies such as visualizing, summarizing, questioning, jotting thoughts and considerations, and mapping story elements in Reader's Notebooks. Our class completed our first read aloud, The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes this month. We have since started Norton Juster's The Phantom Tollbooth. Click on the titles to read a quick blurb about these classic books. This Friday, mathematicians are finishing up our first unit on Landmark and Large Numbers which explores number sense, addition, and subtraction with 3 and 4 digit numbers through 10,000. Students are taking ownership of their "go to" strategies to solve problems. A common goal for all fourth graders is to master subtraction on a number line. Some students are even pushing themselves to investigate negative numbers. We are consistently using mathematical vocabulary to describe numbers in addition and subtraction equations. We also started XtraMath.org to build our fluency with math combinations. Students have received personal PIN to login and practice at school and at home. XtraMath is a highly engaging way to integrate math, technology, and typing skills! In addition, students have worked on September's DynaMath Problems of the Day which are due September 29th. These questions offer opportunities for students to push themselves to complete more challenging work and practice perseverance using their math schema and reasoning abilities. We will continue to complete a different twenty question grid each month with an extended due date so students can also practice managing their own time and pacing their work. Writers have launched their writer's notebook by exploring why, when, where, what, and how writers write. Our first place to look for stories has been in our own world since we are the authors of our life's journey. Stamina building has also been a focus during our Writers' Workshop. Students have been tasked with writing for 15-20 minutes about famous quotes. Focus and writing stamina continues to be a place where we work to improve in fourth grade. Scientists have reviewed the Engineering Design Process by building bridges that can withstand the impact of a falling book using recycled materials (thank you for the magazine donations). We also explored the Scientific Method. We are currently applying our observation skills by studying personal rocks that we collected on campus. These rock observations are intended to help us transition into our Rocks and Mineral Unit. Geographers in room 215 have been using North Carolina books, Atlases, and developing cartography skills to complete maps of their home state and the United States. Students have worked cooperatively and independently, researching information and analyzing maps to help them with their geography projects. Geography even got sticky when we studied mercator versus non-mercator maps by peeling oranges. As ambassadors of God's grace and everlasting love we also impacted the greater community this month. First we helped Friendship Trays by picking okra, harvesting Swiss chard, and planting brussel sprouts in the 8th street garden. In honor of 9/11 students wrote friendly letters to elderly patients through the local Home Instead Senior Home Care. Most recently, we walked to Metro School and learned all about their students, staff, and facility. Parents please register as a CMS volunteer so that you can chaperone a trip to Metro School this year. We greatly appreciate it! What an exciting month it has been so far! Please add the important dates below to your calendars as we approach October. Important Dates to Keep in Mind 9/28 - - - TED Clubs Begin 9/30 - - - Early Dismissal 11:40am 10/2 - - - Blessing of the Pets Chapel, 8:00am 10/8 and 10/9 - - - Fall Parent & Teacher Conferences 10/8, 10/9, 10/12 - - - No Classes 10/23 - - - No School 10/29 - - - Children's Theater / "Coraline" It's official, our classroom library is open! The excitement of our long awaited library grand opening is behind us and we have been doing work learning the expectations and procedures for our library. Here are a few things you should know: 1. We will have open book shopping time each morning from 7:45-7:55 am for readers to peruse the the shelves and check out books or add books to their "shopping lists." 2. Students will shop for books that feel "just right" to them. The steps for "feeling out" a book are to study the cover, read the blurb, and open a book to the middle and read 2-3 pages to get a feel for it. 3. Each day of the week a group of five students is scheduled to shop at the beginning of Independent Reading time, to ensure everyone has a weekly opportunity to check out new books and return ones that have been read. 4. Students can check out a maximum of three books at a time. One book that they are currently reading in school and at home and two books on deck for when they finish. The books will stay in their plastic book baggies that travel back and forth between school and home. Today in science students observed...MARSHMALLOWS! The Fourth Brainers in room 215 explored the jumbo sweets and recorded their scientific observations. The first step in the Scientific Method is to Observe the world around you, so students gathered information about their marshmallows using their five senses (including taste, of course), sketched what they saw, and finally wrote descriptions of the fluffy treats. Who knew science could be so sweet? The Scientific Method varies slightly depending on the source, but the steps we are using this year are:
If you are looking for some fun experiments to do at home, check our this link: http://www.sciencefun.org/kidszone/experiments/ Being in fourth grade has many perks, one being a free one-year pass to national parks for fourth graders and their families.
Follow this link https://www.everykidinapark.gov, to discover more about this terrific resource. Each Trinity fourth grader has a voucher printed. Please look for it in your child's daily folder. A special thank you to our fourth grade parents, Sarah and Sean, for sharing the Every Kid in a Park program. In fourth grade students will be walking to Metro School on McDowell Street twice a month. I am so excited to be a part of this 8-year partnership between Trinity and Metro and support our students as they work with the physically and cognitively disabled students that attend Metro School.
A former T.E.S. fourth grader, Molly, said of her experience: I can’t imagine what it would be like if I didn’t work with Metro, it has taught me to think about others and not just myself.” This Service Learning project has a lasting impact on both Trinity and Metro students but we can’t make it a success without the support of our 4th grade parents. Each class requires a large number of parents to chaperone each visit. Students are separated into classrooms where they need T.E.S. parents and teachers to accompany them. Parents will be responsible for a group of fourth graders that may or may not include their own child. Within the next few weeks a chaperone schedule will be sent out by Dorothy Ruth Smith, our grade level Service Learning Parent Coordinator. This schedule will have assigned dates for each parent. Please look for this information soon. We hope that chaperoning on these Metro School trips will be as rewarding an experience for parents as it is for our students and staff. Service Learning is one of the most unique and cherished Trinity missions and we are thrilled that you can be a part of it. Metro School of CMS Last week was a wonderful time to reflect about our school's Honor Code and have fun doing so. Along with class discussions and an Honor Code focus during Chapel, we celebrated the H.C. by performing skits in class. Each group created and performed a skit to demonstrate one of the six pledges of the Trinity Honor Code.
As a member of the Trinity Episcopal School community, I pledge to:
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Mrs. DuganOur classroom blog to share the life and times of students in Room 215. Archives
May 2017
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