Already September

Things are popping in the classroom, literally speaking. We are finishing up with the textbook content on Sound and Light with chapter 14. Now comes all the fun hands-on activities with our Sound Unit from AMSTI, (Alabama Math, Science, and Technology Institute). Our chapter 14 test in science will be this Thursday,
Sept. 9th. Students reread chapter 14, study your study guides, and be able to match vocabulary words with their definition. Parents if you help your child study their study guides and sign it, you're child will receive an extra 5 points added to their test score. This also applies to AL History study guides.

Math is all about graphing: bar graphs (vertical & horizontal), line graphs, and line plots. A test on data/graphs will probably be around Wednesday, Sept. 15th next week if everyone seems ready.

We've been working hard with multiplication facts in the classroom. Your child should now know 1's, 2's, 5's, 10's. We started with doubles today. Every Friday I will be giving a math facts test that will average into 10% of their math grade. Please make it a routine to practice their math facts along with their spelling words. They have fact cards on metal rings to take home and practice.

Reading Street- You should be seeing Reading Practice worksheet pages, spelling, and language pages coming home as homework. They'll have at least a page a night to do. Spelling and grammar tests will also be given every Day 4 of the story. Day 5 will be their reading selection test. Since we had a holiday, the days will not line up with regular school days with Fridays always being test day. It goes according to how many days that where working on a certain selection. Today is Sept. 7-Day 1 of Letters Home From Yosemite, so Day 4 will fall on Friday, and Day 5 on Monday. We spend 5 days on each selection. After 5 stories, students will have to take a benchmark test on the computers to see how well they are comprehending the various skills taught. We've worked with sequencing, author's purpose, now main idea and supporting details. They're also tested on grammar and vocabulary strategies that we worked with.

AL History- Students have been working on map skills, using legends, keys, and cardinal directions. This was tough for a lot of them.

Fourth grade is all about learning how to study. Be patient. Grades might dip at first before they pick up. It's a big adjustment from third grade. From K-3 students are learning to read. From 4th on, they're reading to learn, and learn strategies that will help them take notes and study with, (graphic organizers).

Grammar tends to be the toughest for most, especially subject/predicate. This week I'll touch on dependent and independent clauses, but I will not take a grade on this.

I would like to have conferences with all parents that have students that had low grades on the progress reports that went home today. We need to quickly get these students on the right track. Report card cut off will be before fall break, and that's coming up real quick. We'll only have about 2-3 major tests in all content areas before the cut off.

I had a little trouble with my blog site, but now it's up and working. I hopes this helps with communication.