Week of 9.31.12

I hope everyone had a great weekend. Once again, my family and I enjoyed a weekend in the mountains. The leaves are already beginning to change in Boone. Looks like it will be a spectacular leaf season, if you can get there, I recommend it.

As we all know :), our project and book reports are due this coming Friday. Mrs. Jenkins has been working with students in Technology to type the book report. That should be a big help to most. Remember, this is the students project. I don't expect an extravaganza. The performance aspect of this (the fable) should take no more than 3-5 minutes. I do require students follow a script, so it should be rehearsed before they perform in front of class. I will have a puppet theater for student puppeteers to use in class.

As an added bonus for parents and students, I will not collect homework this week, although I strongly urge students to read everyday. As an even more fabulous bonus, we will not have a vocab test this week! I want students to work on bringing the best product they can on Friday, so work diligently, my friends.

We will focus on reading Harriet the Spy in class this week. We will also cover fables, and discuss what the differences and similarities are between fables, folk tales, fairy tales, tall tales and legends. We will also begin learning how to properly write dialog in stories.

See you all tomorrow!

Week of 9.24

Another lovely weekend in paradise! I could get used to this! 

This week, we will have spelling/vocab again as we continue to read Harriet the Spy in class. We will also look at fables, and what makes them different from fairy-tales, tall tales and legends. Students will continue to engage in discussion about our novel, and perhaps, have a quiz.

Mrs. Jenkins would like all students to bring their flashdrive and project/book report to class to work on typing it. Even if they have completed it, students should bring a copy to Technology. They can work on editing and ramping up the vocabulary.

A parent asked about using the website Prezi (http://prezi.com/) for the fable presentation. I looked it up and it is an awesome sight. I highly recommend everyone check it out. I was informed that I will not be able to use Youtube in class this year, which is a major disappointment for me, as there is a wealth of useful videos available for free to teachers.

Vocabulary/Spelling

Week of 9/24/2012 from Harriet the Spy

4A (13 sentences) and 4B (14 sentences)

nervous

approached

loathe

crossly

continued

peculiar

restrain

triumph

consoled

unconcerned

pompously

arrogantly

spewed

discreetly

distributed

annoying

dilapidated

 

Vocabulary/Spelling

Week of 9/24/2012 from Harriet the Spy

(15 sentences)

4C

simultaneously

decisively

loathe

crossly

careened

restrain

triumph

consoled

pompously

arrogantly

spewed

discreetly

distributed

iniquity

unmitigated

exceedingly

dilapidated

 Dates to remember:

*Emergency Evacuation practice during carpool: 9/25, beginning at 3:05. We will practice the emergency evacuation plan, please be patient and remember, safety first!

*1st Book Report and Fable Project (2 different assignments) : due 10/05 (see blog or handout for more information on this or any other book report assignments)

*Picture Day: 9/27

*Scholastic Bookfare: 10/8-10/12

*Report Cards/Awards Day: 10/26

This was e-mailed to everyone who's e-mail address I have:

A note about he progress report that went home on Friday: they are somewhat deceptive. I spent the first two weeks of school getting to know and assessing students. There are fewer grades on the progress report than there usually are and, therefore, they count for more than they normally would. That said, I do tend to have longer term assignments and fewer assessments than students and parents are accustomed to. I believe this approach benefits students ability to truly understand and absorb information. Grades will fluctuate throughout the year.

Dear Parents,

Regarding Grades and grading for the 2012-2013 school year: This year, North Carolina has begun implementing the Common Core Standards for all grades. The EOG testing this year will be reflective of the changed curriculum. What does this mean for you? Standards have been raised and grading will reflect this. This does mean students  aren’t working or trying as hard as they are able. It is just a reflection of the higher standards that the state is now requiring from all students and from their teachers. Grades should be tied to EOG results, at least to a degree. There are always students who do magnificent work in class and who just don’t test well, but that is the exception.  Please understand, a “B” is a good grade, it is not reason to panic or think you suddenly have a lazy child J, you do not.  I am being asked to insist that children develop critical thinking skills to tackle the increasingly difficult nature of the world.  Students must tie their thoughts to the reading or their writing. They must read more informational text with a critical eye. Offering up personal stories about the reading, instead of connections between the world and the reading, is no longer the accepted approach to communicating understanding.  The fairness of throwing this at students and parents is a moot point. This is the curriculum we are given and the guidelines to which we must adhere. I understand this is somewhat tough, but ultimately, it will lead to better students and a stronger country. We must begin to make sure our students will be prepared for college and to compete in a changing world market.  The new standards attempt to address this issue. Here is some very good and helpful information:

NC DPI information regarding Common Core Standards:

http://www.ncpublicschools.org/acre/standards/common-core-tools/#goela

 from Wake County Schools regarding Common Core: http://www.wcpss.net/common-core/   

Week of Sept. 17

4th grade is rolling right along and I must say, I was a little apprehensive about teaching students so young, but I am really enjoying these kids. Most are so interested in learning, work really diligently and have a great sense of humor! My kind of people! Time is just flying by and I cannot believe we are almost ready to send home the first progress reports.

Speaking of progress reports...Last week, on Friday, I sent home your students current homework grade in their agenda. I asked for it to come back signed tomorrow. It is vitally important students do their homework daily. I just don't have time for them to reads in class for 30 minutes everyday and to be successful in school students must read daily. This homework is due everyday, unless we have a vocabulary test the next day (most Thursdays). Reading homework should absolutely NOT be done all on one day. The point is to get students into the habit of reading daily and writing about it. This helps create lifelong readers. It also aids in getting students to think about what they read, as they read it. Reading and writing the summaries all at one time belies the point of the assignment. It is also important that students read for 30 minutes. I am very suspicious when a student reads 4 pages in a grade level chapter book and tells me it took them 30 minutes to finish. Beginning this week, homework of that nature will not be accepted for credit.

I also sent home a note if your student didn't turn in their metaphor poem. Most students turned it in the next day, but I still have a few who haven't given it to me. That grade will show up as a "0" on the progress report and report card, until the assignment is handed in.

Speaking of that assignment, students did and awesome job on them and many line the wall outside the classroom. They are beautiful! I will hang many more in the classroom this week,as there isn't enough space to hold them all outside! I will try and get a picture of some of them to post here, so if you can't get to school to read them, you can still see them!

Looming in the horizon: Remember, our book reports and projects are due  Oct. 5th. Make sure your student understands the assignment and is working on it.

Here's a poem for you to read and discuss with your student. (Ask about them rhyme scheme, imagery and whether or not it has onomatopoeia or simile?)

Humanity                                          by Elma Stuckey

If I am blind and need someone

To keep me safe from harm,

It matters not the race to me

Of the one who takes my arm.

If I am saved from drowning

 As I grasp and grope,

I will not stop to see the face

Of the one who throws the rope.

Or if out on some battlefield

I’m falling faint and weak,

The one who gently lifts me up

May any language speak.

We sip the water clear and cool,

No matter the hand that gives it.

A life that’s lived worthwhile and fine,

What matters the one who lives it?

This week's vocabulary/spelling. Try and use these words in your homework summaries for extra practice! From Harriet the Spy, Chapter 2. Test on Friday!

Vocab for the Week:

Vocabulary/Spelling   Week of Sept. 17, 2012

From  Harriet the Spy

4A and 4B

4a will write 12 sentences, 4b will write 13 sentences

bounded

obnoxious

embracing

grimaced

enraged

horribly

thundered

dreadful

sneer

despised

stammer

scowled

startled

apprehensive

meekly

dignified

collapsed

Vocabulary/Spelling   Week of Sept. 17, 2012

From  Harriet the Spy

4C

4C will write sentences with 14 words

bounded

obnoxious

quizzically

grimaced

enraged

disapprovingly

thundered

dreadful

sneer

despised

stammer

scowled

startled

apprehensive

meekly

dignified

absentmindedly

Here is a poem., written by a 4th grader this week, using her spelling words. Enjoy!

Wolves in the Street  By Carlee Wilson

Walking down the

Street, nighttime. Hear a

Yowl, hear a yowl.

I’m petrified, but on

The other hand, this

Is way cool.

Wolves in the street,

Coyotes in the chimneys,

Foxes in the fence, filled

With anxiety, wait, is

That a dead deer at the door?

Canines in the sky

Canines in your hair

Canines, over here, Canines,

Everywhere, I feel a twinge

Of hope, a twinge of fear,

A twinge of curiosity and coolness

I mean, will I be spared?

Exasperated pets,

Exasperation everywhere,

My books interspersed,

I abruptly

Run!

Coyotes on

The roof, wolves in the wall,

I looked, dubiously

Everywhere, wait is

That a dog, afraid of

A fly?

Stare intently over here.

Intently over there, running.

I discarded all thought that

I won’t be spared, with

 Wolves acting sedately

Wolves behaving relentlessly.