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Reading: Today was a discussion day in Literature Circles. Groups finished their magazines and will begin working on a project starting tomorrow. We also read Esperanza Rising, our shared reading book. 

Language Arts: Our mini-lesson today was about creating a scene for the reader to picture in their mind. Scenes are built using dialogue, senses, snapshots and description, and saving the end for the end (don’t spoil it for the reader). Students should be drafting their new piece of writing by now. The next piece is due April 13.

Spelling: We played contraction tic-tac-toe today to review contractions. Students can practice at home by studying the Level Four Core Word list and practicing words on their Words to Learn list.

Math: Students worked today on rounding large numbers.  Homework is to complete Math journal pp. 140 and 142. We will have a math test Tuesday over chapter 5.

One way to prepare for the test is to make sure your student is practicing multiplication facts if they are not yet mastered. Games at Multiplication.com may help.

Science: We completed two mini-experiments today to see how pitch is related to tension. Homework is to complete the Minigutbucket and Foss-ulele experiment write-ups. A science test is coming next Wednesday over sound.

Social Studies: We continued our cooperative learning Jigsaw project about the Three Fires people of Michigan. See Tuesday’s post for more information about the Jigsaw strategy.

Today, students worked in their expert groups to create test questions and start to plan how they will teach their teams the information they have learned. Students will have one more work day in class to create their lesson. The lessons will be presented early next week.

Visit the Social Studies resources page for more information, and stop in to the Social Studies Jigsaw blog archives for a peek at what students are working on.

Notes:

Reading: Today was a reading day in Literature Circles. Groups finished their magazines and will begin working on a project later this week. We also had WEB, our silent reading time.   

Language Arts: Students continuted to prewrite and plan their next piece of writing, due April 13. We discussed how important it is to choose an interesting topic to write about, and that personal narratives are usually easier to write as students don’t have to create new characters, plots or settings.

Spelling: We completed a word preview today, and spelling worksheets were made available. Past and current spelling worksheets are also available on the Spelling resources page. Students can practice at home by studying the Level Four Core Word list and practicing words on their Words to Learn list.

Math: Students worked in groups to practice multiplication, or worked with reading and writing large numbers and powers of 10. Homework is to complete Math journal pp. 138-139.

A math test over multiplication is coming next week. A way to prepare is to make sure your student is practicing multiplication facts if they are not yet mastered. Games at Multiplication.com are one way to practice.

Science: We journaled what we learned about pitch, length of vibrating object, and speed of vibration in our mini-sound books. We are approaching the end of this unit on sound, and will take a test over vibrations, sound, pitch, and volume soon, possibly next week.

Social Studies: We continued our cooperative learning Jigsaw project about the Three Fires people of Michigan. See Tuesday’s post for more information about the Jigsaw strategy.

Today, students worked in their expert groups to find information about their group’s main ideas, and created test questions. Homework is for students to finish answering the main idea questions on their expert group form, and to think about how they want their group to teach the information to their teams.

Visit the Social Studies resources page for more information, and stop in to the Social Studies Jigsaw blog archives for a peek at what students are working on.

Notes:

• Conferences are April 10-12. Reserve your appointment at the office windows.
• HELP WANTED: Mr. Keilitz is looking for parents willing to help with Field Day, which is at the end of May. If you are willing to help, please fill out the form here. Thanks!
• MORE HELP WANTED: A large collection of pop cans has been donated to the fourth grade and we are in need of someone willing to redeem them. Fill out the form here if interested.

Reading: Today we had WEB, our silent reading time. No Literature Circles due to completion of a student survey by MSU and the GISD.  

Language Arts: We had a mini-lesson on coming up with the right ending: surprising ending, circular ending, ending with a detail or a quote. The next piece of writing is due April 13.

Spelling: None today due to the student survey. Ideas for working on spelling at home include studying the Level Four Core Word list and practicing words on your student’s Words to Learn list.

Math: Students learned the standard method of multiplication–the method that most adults use to multiply. Homework is to complete Puzzle page 5, using any method your student chooses.

Note that some students are making mistakes on their multiplication problems due to not knowing their math facts. Have your students practice math facts at home; one way is for them to play math games at Multiplication.com.

Science: We reviewed the four mini-experiments on pitch and sound that students completed this week. Students learned that long vibrating objects make low pitches, and short vibrating objects make high pitches.

Social Studies: We began a cooperative learning project, using the Jigsaw strategy, about the Three Fires people of Michigan. In the Jigsaw strategy, students from each team were given a subtopic to learn about. Students with the same subtopic form an expert group. The expert group learns the important information, creates test questions, and plans a way to teach their teams about their subtopic. Students then return to their teams to teach their subtopics. Visit the Social Studies resources page for more information, and stop in to the Social Studies Jigsaw blog archives for a peek at what students are working on.

Notes:

• Conferences are April 10-12. Reserve your appointment at the office windows.
• HELP WANTED: Mr. Keilitz is looking for parents willing to help with Field Day, which is at the end of May. If you are willing to help, please fill out the form here. Thanks!
• MORE HELP WANTED: A large collection of pop cans has been donated to the fourth grade and we are in need of someone willing to redeem them. Fill out the form here if interested.

Working and Playing group, post your comments here. Click here to get your main ideas sheet or the planning sheet.