Week of 10.29.18

Highlights for the Week of 10/29/18
in Mrs. Bell's Class

Spelling -  Unit 10 - Suffixes -ment, -tion and -ly

This week's list contains words with the suffixes -ment, -tion and -ly.  Students will study the definitions of the suffixes and how they change the root words that they are attached to. We will also look at antonyms of the spelling and vocabulary words. The final TEST is scheduled for Friday, 11/2.

Reading - Unit 1 - "Courage"
The Happy Birthday Dr. King / I Have a Dream Speech QUIZ is scheduled for Tuesday, 10/30. Students should review the story, "Happy Birthday Dr. King", the "I Have a Dream Speech" and the words to the U2 Pride song to prepare for the quiz. Students will also write a response to the question, "What lesson about courage is MLK trying to teach based on his I Have a Dream Speech?".

Social Studies - The Southeast
Our study of the Southeast begins with students creating a map of the region. Look for a QUIZ on the map to be scheduled the week of 11/5.

Science - Energy Conversions
Building a simple electrical system and examining its parts will be the focus of Science this week.

Mrs. Bell's Math Class- Unit 2 - Adding & Subtracting Fractions

Fraction story problems will be our focus as we near the end of Unit 2. Students will complete a CHECKPOINT on 10/30 that covers strategies for adding and subtracting fractions. The Unit 2 TEST is tentatively scheduled for 11/5

FYI...

It was a pleasure to meet with so many of you during conferences. Please do not ever hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns that you may have about your child's progress.

The Halloween celebration will be on Wednesday, 10/31. Students will change into their costumes at 12:45, and the parties will begin at 1:00. The traditional PV parade will begin at 1:55. Students must be able to put on their Halloween costume in 5-10 minutes by themselves. Fourth grade will have designated classrooms for girls to change in and for boys. They will NOT be allowed to change in the bathroom. No props that resemble a weapon should be brought to school. THANK YOU to all the parents who are helping to make this a special afternoon for our classroom!

Mrs. Karen Bell

Week of 10.22.18

Highlights for the Week of 10/22/2018
in Mrs. Bell's Classroom

Spelling -  Unit 9 - Prefixes pre-, re- and mis-
Words on this week's list will include the prefixes pre-, re- and mis-. We will study the definitions of these prefixes and how they change the meaning of the root word that they are attached to. The final TEST is scheduled for THURSDAY,  10/25.

Reading - Unit 1 - "Courage"
We will be digging into an excerpt from Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream Speech". Students will use their close reading skills in the whole group and with partners to interpret the message, language, vocabulary, and perspective of the piece. 

Social Studies - The Narragansett
We will complete our study of the Narragansett People with a small project titled "The Narragansett Village", which will be due on 10/25. Students will draw a model of what a Narragansett village of the past would look like based on what we have studied about their culture. Look for the project description sheet to come home on Monday.

There is also an open note/book QUIZ on the Narragansett scheduled for 10/24.

Below are some photos from this week's writers' workshop in which students used "whisper readers" as a tool in the editing process. Be sure to ask your child about he/she used the tool while editing his/her NE Descriptive writing project.

Science - "Energy Conversions"

Our Science unit this year revolves around energy conversions. Students will learn about how energy is converted from one form to another, how it can be transferred from place to place, and the variety of energy sources that exist. Throughout the unit, they will take on the role of systems engineers for Ergstown, a fictional town that experiences frequent blackouts. They will explore the reasons why an electrical system may fail and make discoveries about the way electrical systems work. Then, they will apply what they have learned as they choose new energy sources and converters for the town, using evidence to explain why their choices will make the electrical system more reliable. This unit has a number of sessions that will take us well into 2019. 

Mrs. Bell's Math Class - Unit 2 - Adding & Subtracting Fractions

A CHECKPOINT is scheduled for Monday, 10/22. Students should review their spiral notes and homework sheets to prepare for the checkpoint. 

Our focus this week will continue to be on finding a better buy and the relationship between fractions and ratios. Look for another fraction checkpoint to be scheduled the week of 10/29.

I wanted to share this photo of student work that shows the four strategies for adding and subtracting fractions with unlike denominators that we have studied.  These strategies include the Double-Number line (or as we like to call it the Dazzling, Delightful Definitely NOT Dreaded Double-Number Line), the money method, the clock method and finding common denominators. Be sure to ask your child if he/she can explain each of the four methods and how one chooses which method to use.

FYI...

10/26- No School - Conferences
10/29 - No School - Teachers' Institute

The Halloween celebration will be on Wednesday, 10/31. Students will change into their costumes at 12:45, and the parties will begin at 1:00. The traditional PV parade will begin at 1:55. Students must be able to put on their Halloween costume in 5-10 minutes by themselves. Fourth grade will have designated classrooms for girls to change in and for boys. They will NOT be allowed to change in the bathroom. No props that resemble a weapon should be brought to school. THANK YOU to all the parents who are helping to make this a special afternoon for our classroom!

Mrs. Karen Bell

Week of 10.15.18

Highlights for the Week of 10/15/2018
in Mrs. Bell's Classroom

Spelling -  Unit 8 - Grade Appropriate & Domain-Specific Vocabulary
This week's spelling/vocabulary list will include a variety of words that are appropriate for 4th-grade students. Instead of studying a spelling rule, we will focus on the definition of these words and how they might be used in reading and writing. Part of this week's lesson will also highlight how to use reference materials such as a dictionary, thesaurus, atlas, and encyclopedia. The final TEST is scheduled for Friday, 10/19.

Reading - Unit 1 - "Courage"

At the beginning of the week, we will write our first reading response as a group. Then, we will spend time looking at the text structure of cause and effect. Text structured as cause and effect explains the reasons why something happened or the effects of something. An effect is what happens. To determine the effect, students should ask “What happened?”. A cause is why something happens. To determine the cause, students should ask “Why did it happen?”   Ask your child how we used the picture book on the left to discuss this type of text structure.  Once we have reviewed this concept students will revisit the story of "Happy Birthday Dr. King" to discover how cause and effect are used throughout the text.

English - Capitalization & Punctuation
Capitalization of places and things, abbreviations, and commas in a series are our topics for next week.

Social Studies -  The Northeast / The Narragansett
The rough draft of the Northeast descriptive writing project is due on Monday, 10/15. After working in class to proofread and edit, the final copy will be typed in Google Classroom and will be due on 10/16. 

Last week was our Northeast Feast in which students had the chance to enjoy resources from the region, including grape juice, cranberries and maple syrup. Based on the pictures, I think they enjoyed it!

Logan leads us in a game of Northeast Tic-Tac-Toe as we wait for the food to be prepared.

On October 11th we held a "writer's workshop" (pictured below) during which students worked on turning their brainstorming organizers into paragraphs. I am very impressed with the enthusiasm that they expressed for this project, and can't wait to read what they have written!

We will complete our study of the NE region with a look at the Native Americans of the area, the Narragansetts. Our focus will be on the culture and traditions of the group and how they have changed over time.

Mrs. Bell's Math Class - Unit 2 - Adding & Subtracting Fractions

Problem-solving with fractions will be our focus for the rest of this week. Students will continue to work with partners (pictured below) to create a poster of a hiking trail that is divided into sections based on fractions that they are given. They will then use their poster to problem solve. 

On Tuesday, we will introduce the final strategy for adding and subtracting fractions with unlike denominators...the "Double Number Line". We will also look at the concept of the "better buy". Look for the next fraction CHECKPOINT to be scheduled for the week of 10/22.

FYI...

Homeroom parents...don't forget to sign up for a conference on 10/23 or 10/24. Please click on the following link for the schedule...https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0f4aa4af22a5f85-october23

Happy Friday!

Mrs. Karen Bell

Week of 10.8.18

Highlights for the Week of 10/8/2018
in Mrs. Bell's Classroom

Spelling -  Unit 7 - "Suffixes "-ness", "-less",  and "-en"
This week's spelling/vocabulary list will include words with the suffixes -ness, -less, and-en.  We will study the definitions of these suffixes and how to determine the meaning of unknown words by breaking the words into base words and suffixes and by using context clues. The final TEST is scheduled for Friday, 10/12.

Reading - Unit 1 - "Courage"
Students will independently complete two baseline common assessments in reading this week. The assessment is designed to give teachers data to guide instruction - it's not for a grade. We will also look at the topic of theme.

Below are some photos of students working in small groups to close read the "Happy Birthday Dr. King" text in order to respond to text-dependent questions.

"I am a lean, mean close reading machine..."

"TDQ?...I'll show you!"

"TQA?...I'm not afraid!"

"The text is my treasure, the evidence is my gold!"

"I'm ready to dig, dig, dig, dig, dig!"

Social Studies  - The Northeast 
We will begin a descriptive writing project in which students will describe an imaginary trip to the Northeast region. As they describe their journey they will write about the geography, resources and fishing industry of the region. The rough draft of the Northeast Trip descriptive paragraph is due on Monday, 10/17.

Mrs. Bell's Math Class - Unit 2 - Adding & Subtracting Fractions

Using clocks as a reference for finding common denominators will be our focus this week. Then, students will look at how to decide which model (money or clocks) works best for different denominators. Students will complete a graded WORK SAMPLE (similar to a Checkpoint) in class on Tuesday, 10/10. 

Student-led learning is alive and well in our math class.  Below are some photos of Joseph & Luke leading the homework and Number Corners discussions.

The video below shows my mathematicians playing a game designed to improve computational fluency. As the student leader points to his classmates, they count from 1-100. When it is his/her turn, if the number is a multiple of 6, he/she states it in a "regular" voice. If the number is not a multiple of 6, he/she states it in a whisper voice. If you listen carefully you can hear them counting...

FYI...

Monday, 10/8: No School - Columbus Day 

Parent/Teacher Conferences are scheduled for October 24th & 25th. Look for an email from me next week to sign up for your conference.

Enjoy the Holiday Weekend!

Mrs. Karen Bell