Weekly Newsletter April 29 - May 3, 2019

Grade 4

Weekly Newsletter

April 29 - May 3, 2019

Language Arts 
In our Reading unit, students will be introduced to their Historical Fiction Book Clubs. Book Clubs assist students in developing interpretations in the company of their peers, which provides a sounding board for students to clarify their thinking. Students will begin to track the setting, character, mood and theme of their historical fiction text.
We will also examine, using our mentor text, Number the Stars, how character perspectives are shaped by their roles. Readers are encouraged to step into characters shoes and conclude that their thoughts and actions are shaped by both their roles and the times in which they lived. In our literary essay unit, students are discovering how to craft a thesis, honing their skills in discovering a big idea and determining what they really want to say. The students will learn to purposely angle their stories to highlight the way it supports and connects to their thesis.


Math 
This week students will be comparing and ordering decimal numbers. They will be doing this using symbols and models. Several games will also be played where this skill is practiced. In addition, we will fix mistakes from previous practice sheets ensuring that we have completely understood the basic facts related to decimal numbers.

Social Studies
This week we only have two days of Social Studies and students will begin looking at maps and locations of natural resources. With a partner, they will record this information on a blank map of their own. We will be making connections about where certain resources are located and how that impacts trade. 

Announcements

• Monday, April 29th: MAPS Testing - Grade 4 students will begin taking their math test.

Resources

Below is a link to our ES Library page filled with incredible reading resources like Big Universe (electronic books with varying reading levels), BookFlix & Trueflix and TumbleBooks which can all support our Grade 4 exploration of historical fiction.
Note: your child’s ISKL username and password are required to access these external resources. Please email jgormley@iskl.edu.my to request your child’s login information.
https://iskl.follettdestiny.com/common/servlet/presenthomeform.do?l2m=Home&tm=Home&l2m=Home

Below is a link to Splash Math: Decimal Games for 4th Graders. There are a number of games to play to reinforce decimal concepts.
Note: a free login is required to play past the demo stage.
https://www.splashmath.com/decimal-games-for-4th-graders

If you are interested in extending your understanding of how to think about and teach  fractions take a look at the link below:
http://www.therecoveringtraditionalist.com/teaching-fractions-with-understanding/?inf_contact_key=f45fd6a96cc126d51e93a9504988150bd18a532c4142cb79caf2b269de1401fa

Weekly Newsletter April 22 - 26, 2019

Grade 4

Weekly Newsletter

April 22 - April 26, 2019

Language Arts 
In Language Arts this week we continue to investigate historical fiction texts, paying particular attention to the mood and atmosphere of the places in which the stories are set. Students examine the blurb of their mentor text, Number the Stars, noting clues about where the story is set and the type of environment the characters are living in. Students will further research the key information taken from the blurb in small groups which will be collated to share with the rest of the class.
Students will also examine examples of literary essays, noting the important characteristics to be included within the introduction, body and conclusion. Student’s attention with be drawn to the ‘big ideas’ or theme of the text, noting the message or lesson that the author is trying to convey.

Math
This week the students will be using their understanding of fraction equivalence to investigate decimal numbers on the place value chart expressed in different units. Students will be decomposing fractions and decimals showing equivalency between the tenths place and the hundredths place.

Social Studies
This week students will continue their investigation into natural resources (renewable and non-renewable) and their connection to our physical environment, looking specifically at different landforms. If we have time, we may begin using some mapping skills to see where different natural resources are located.

Announcements

• Tuesday, April 23rd: Blue and Green Earth Day Dress Up  
• Thursday, April 25th: MAPS Testing Grade 4 students will begin taking their MAPS test.
• ES Dress Up Days: Plan your days in advance click HERE for dates and details. 

Resources
Below is a link to our ES Library page filled with incredible reading resources like Big Universe (electronic books with varying reading levels), BookFlix & Trueflix and TumbleBooks which can all support our Grade 4 exploration of historical fiction.
Note: your child’s ISKL username and password are required to access these external resources. Please email jgormley@iskl.edu.my to request your child’s login information.
https://iskl.follettdestiny.com/common/servlet/presenthomeform.do?l2m=Home&tm=Home&l2m=Home

Below is a link to Splash Math: Decimal Games for 4th Graders. There are a number of games to play to reinforce decimal concepts.
Note: a free login is required to play past the demo stage.
https://www.splashmath.com/decimal-games-for-4th-graders


 

Weekly Newsletter April 15 -19, 2019

Grade 4

Weekly Newsletter

April 15 - April 19, 2019

Language Arts 
In Language Arts this week we will be completing our pre-assessment for our new topic Literary Essays. After choosing a familiar text, students will write an initial opinion or argument essay whereby they state their opinion or claim, giving reasons why they feel this way. Students are encouraged to make claims about characters and themes using evidence from the text. The data gathered from this pre-assessment will allow for students needs to be determined for planning for the unit.

We will also start our unit on Historical Fiction. Students will begin by examining the introductions of familiar books in order to analyze the setting, taking note of when and where the story takes places and what this place feels like. Students will be encouraged to be alert for change within the text, identifying clues by the author.

Math 
In math this week the students will be completing the unit on fractions and operations. They will be continuing to use the area model and number lines while multiplying fractions. This aids the students with their conceptual understanding of multiplication of fractions.

Social Science

We are launching our unit on Trade and Resources this week.  The big ideas of this unit are: “Where you live impacts how you live” and “Resources impact the economy and trade in regions around the world”.  Student will begin the week tapping into their current knowledge of natural resources and how they connect with products and trade.  We will then look more closely at different natural resources and their location.

Announcements

• School Start Time: School starts at 7:50 am. Many student arrive before then and are able to chat to their friends and play in the common area. At 7:50 am sharp classes hold their informative morning meetings. Please ensure that your child arrives in plenty of time to get to their classroom each morning ON TIME!
• ES Dress Up Days: Plan your days in advance click HERE for dates and details.  (The next Dress Up Day will be Friday, April 19th)
• MAPS Testing: Grade 4 students will begin taking their MAPS test Starting on April 25th.

Resources
Below is a link to our ES Library page filled with incredible reading resources like Big Universe (electronic books with varying reading levels), BookFlix & Trueflix and TumbleBooks which can all support our Grade 4 exploration of realistic fiction.

Note: your child’s ISKL username and password is required to access these external resources. Please email jgormley@iskl.edu.my to request your child’s login information.

https://iskl.follettdestiny.com/common/servlet/presenthomeform.do?l2m=Home&tm=Home&l2m=Home

Below is a link to Splash Math: Fraction Games for 4th Graders. There are a number of games to play to reinforce fraction concepts. A number of classes are in the process of reviewing fractions to prepare for an end of unit assessment.
Note: a free login is required to play past the demo stage.
https://www.splashmath.com/fraction-games-for-4th-graders

Weekly Newsletter April 8 -12, 2019

Grade 4

Weekly Newsletter

April 8 - April 12, 2019

Language Arts 
In Language Arts, students will spend the next week  completing the end of unit assessment, combining all recent learnings in order to produce a new informational text. Students will choose a nonfiction topic, identify & locate relevant resources, make a plan and select text structures that are most relevant. They will select headings & subheadings, research, take notes and paraphrase key words and ideas within their report. Students will draft their writing and revise using ARMs And CUPs.

Math 
This week in math students will be researching and learning about decimals - our next unit.  Students will be watching videos and learning how to model decimal work using decimats, along with noticing the relationship between decimals and fractions. In addition, we will be revisiting the place value mat, only this time, looking at values past the decimal point.

Science
This week we start our final chapter in science. Students are invited to consider how rock around the world is shaped, broken, worn down, and exposed.  The are introduced to a new question and phenomena: why Desert Rocks Canyon has so much more exposed rock than nearby Keller’s Canyon.  They use the book, Rocky Wonders, to learn about how rock is weathered and eroded over time. Later in the week,  students use the Earth’s Features Sim to explore what factors can cause water to erode different amounts of rock. The purpose of these lessons is to begin to explore what factors affect how much rock a river can erode.


Announcements

• WIDA Testing: EAL students have been notified and will be taking the WIDA test this week with Mr. Balsamo.
• ES Dress Up Days: Plan your days in advance click HERE for dates and details.  (The next Dress Up Day will be Friday, April 19th)
• MAPS Testing: Grade 4 students will begin taking their MAPS test Starting on April 25th.

Resources
Here is a link to extend students curiosity about fossils: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/fossil/

Weekly Newsletter Mar. 18 - Apr. 5, 2019

Grade 4

Weekly Newsletter

March 18 - April 5, 2019

This newsletter covers the week before Spring Break and also the week after Spring Break.

Language Arts 
In Language Arts throughout the next couple of weeks we continue to follow our topic across texts, cross-referencing information to ensure accuracy. Students continue to use notes to add any missing information to their writing, documenting sources used in their reference section. Students continually revise their work, adding and deleting parts to ensure that the reader is hooked and that essential paragraph elements are included namely a main idea sentence, details including facts, examples & data as well as an ending. We introduce transitions and figurative language to help the students link their information and to keep the reader interested. The students will work to collate their information into their typed slide show presentation, using ARMS and CUPS to self, peer, and teacher edit their work.

Math 
Students will be reviewing the unit, especially how to interpret line plots with fractions. We will also be reviewing how to add, subtract and multiply fractions and mixed numbers.  When students show that they have mastered their learning, we will go ahead with the unit assessment. 

Science
In the next two weeks in Science, students will discuss and model what they know about the past environments of Desert Rocks National Park and are introduced to the question What is the order of the past environments of Desert Rocks National Park?  They construct ideas about the order in which rock layers form by using relevant models and the Fossil Hunter’s Handbook and then model their understanding. Students then gather and organize evidence for two claims about the order in which layers formed in a rocky outcrop. Next, students read and discuss how scientists use data and ideas about rock layers to make arguments about what caused the dinosaurs to go extinct. Later, students write about which argument is most convincing and why.

Announcements

• March 18th: NO SCHOOL - ISKL Faculty Inservice
• March 25th -March 29th: NO SCHOOL - March Break
• April 1st: Coffee Chat & Resource Fair @ 8:00am - 9:45am  This is a great opportunity for you to learn about the resources that the Student Resource Team (SRT) offers to support all students in their learning and development at ISKL. 

Resources
Below is a link to our ES Library page filled with incredible reading resources including current event links to news sites such as Newsla (news site with the capability to adjust reading level), DOGOnews (news site with the capability to read articles out loud). Support our Grade 4 scientific exploration of the natural world or search articles related to interests, either way, all readers can access and engage in news and information.
https://iskl.follettdestiny.com/common/servlet/presenthomeform.do?l2m=Home&tm=Home&l2m=Home

Below is a link to Splash Math: Fraction Games for 4th Graders. There are a number of games to play that support our unit related to building fractions greater than one whole.
Note: a free login is required to play past the demo stage.
https://www.splashmath.com/fraction-games-for-4th-graders

Weekly Newsletter March 11 - 15, 2019

Grade 4

Weekly Newsletter

March 11 - March 15, 2019

Language Arts 
This week students will be developing their non fiction book chapters and writing informational paragraphs from their notes.  Students will be looking to include relevant transition words and figurative language.  In addition, they will be taught how to "push their thinking" and explain their thinking more clearly by providing examples or establishing their own inferences (based on facts).

Math 
This week in math the students will begin looking at how to multiply fractions with whole numbers. They will practice doing so by using equations, area models and number lines.  We will then go into solving word problems that apply the multiplication skill.

Science
This week students consider data and inferences they can make about fossils, and help construct a scientific argument about what the environment of Desert Rocks National Park was like in the past. They use data from fossils found in the area to help construct their arguments. Students then use what they discussed in their Evidence Circles to write a scientific argument, which serves as a Critical Juncture through which students demonstrate their understanding of the chapter’s content. At the end of the lesson, the whole class briefly reflects on the Chapter 2 Question: What was the environment of Desert Rocks National Park like in the past?

Announcements

• March 11th - March 15th: ES Library Book Week! 
• March 13th: Book Swap - Students bring in their coupons to choose new/used books                         (10 coupons maximum)  
• March 15th: Red Hat Book Character Dress Up Day
• March 15th: Author visit-Matt Smith (Comic book illustrator and ISKL Alumni!)
• March 18th: NO SCHOOL - ISKL Faculty Inservice
• March 25th -March 29th: NO SCHOOL - March Break 
• ES Dress Up Days: plan your days in advance click HERE for dates and details. 

Resources
Here is a video and a game to reinforce how to decompose fractions:
Video:
https://learnzillion.com/lesson_plans/8474-decompose-fractions-into-unit-fractions/
Game: https://www.classk12.com/grade-4-math/fractions-operations-nf/decomposing-a-fraction-using-visual-fraction-models-eg-38-18-28-2-18-1-1-18/4055
To further support our exploration of non-fiction text log on to Newsela, which is an online news website that has the capability of breaking down the text into different reading levels that all readers can access.  https://newsela.com/ (focus on Science)

Weekly Newsletter March 4 - 8, 2019

Grade 4

Weekly Newsletter

March 4 - March 8, 2019

Language Arts 
In Language Arts this week, students will begin looking at mentor texts to guide their informational writing.  We will be using the notes the students collected to formulate a multi paragraph informational writing piece.  We will most likely finish the introduction this week.

Math 
This week the students will be working on decomposing mixed fractions using an area model. They will then be adding and subtracting mixed fractions with common denominators. The students will continue to use drawings to help make deeper connections while adding and subtracting fractions.

Science
Due to our preparations for our Student-led Conferences this week we have limited science lesson times. However, we will be learning about different rock layers. We will also be using our inference skills about fossils in preparation for writing a scientific argument. The argument will be based on a claim about what past environments used to be like, using evidence from rocks and fossils.

Announcements

• March 7th & March 8th - Student Led Conferences (SLC): Be sure to sign up for a time slot on POWERSCHOOL. If you are unable to attend, please contact your child’s teacher so that an alternative date can be set up.
• ES Dress Up Days: plan your days in advance click HERE for dates and details. 

Resources
To further support our exploration of non-fiction text log on to Newsela, which is an online news website that has the capability of breaking down the text into different reading levels that all readers can access.  https://newsela.com/ (focus on Science)