SPELLING Please ask your child to explain the patterns to you. The last five words each week are the Extend and Apply words. Students need to think about the pattern we learned during the week to help them spell these words.

READING/LANGUAGE  Each day the children participate in Read to Self, Writing, and several days a week they work on Word Work, Partner Read, and participate at the listening center. There is a lot of choice in what they read and write. Student choice seems to improves skills and interest in reading.

We will begin guided reading groups soon in order to listen to kids read and work on skills. Students in 4th grade will learn how to choose books at their reading level and should be able to explain to parents how they do it.

I conference with students individually often as well, to check fluency, to see that the book is at their level, and to help them select books of interest.

I read poetry to them each day. I also take time each day to read aloud to them. I read both fiction and non-fiction to them daily. Please have them share with you what they work on during the reading block. Try to make time for reading anything at home. Reading to a younger sibling or a grandparent helps increase confidence with their reading skills.

READING CALENDARS I'm not asking that you fill out monthly reading calendars this year. I do encourage you to read something every day! You should be reading all genres...poetry, fiction, non-fiction, biographies, autobiographies. Read the newspaper. Pick up a magazine. Read a recipe when you make dinner for your family. Reading skills and practice can be done anywhere! I don't want reading to become a battle or chore. Read because you LOVE IT! If you don't love reading, you simply are reading the wrong book!

SOCIAL STUDIES We are working on how to best access information in our text book. Informational text books are so hard for fourth graders to read so we are "walking" through chapter one together. We look at the questions first and skim and scan to look for headings that fit the words in the questions. We have made great progress here. We also focus on using the glossary and index to help us with unknown words and concepts.

SCIENCE We will be working with water, rocks and minerals, and electricity and magnetism this year. 

MATH Our math curriculum is called Everyday Mathematics. The students actually have a Student Reference Book they can refer to when they have trouble with a concept. What a novel idea! Student Reference Books may be taken home.

All students should have their multiplication facts memorized by now. If not, please work on these at home.

STATES AND CAPITALS TESTING We will not be testing states and capitals this year. With the new curriculum I can't justify using an hour of class time a week for testing. There are fun games on the district website in Curriculinks that will help kids learn the states and capitals.

ACTIVITY SHEETS We are learning how to fill out our activity sheets.These need to be signed by a parent on Thursdays and brought back to school on Fridays to be entered in our prize drawing :). These are to inform you of work that's due, as well as to inform you of what we're doing in school. Please ask your child about this sheet. This is our daily communication in Mrs. Hart's room.

ASSIGNMENT BOOKS Mr. Barnette's class uses assignment books in order to inform students and parents of work due.

We don't send home "Peek of the Week." We expect students to notify parents with the activity sheet and assignment book.

We will post upcoming activities on the our website homepage and in the calendar section of the website.