Benson/Bodrick News
News from the 4th Grade
September 7, 2018
Math News
This week we continued to understand multiplication. We learned about fact families, inverse operations, and that you can’t have 0 as a divisor. We will be finishing up the first unit on Monday and taking a test on Tuesday, September 11th. Your child can review materials for this unit by accessing their textbook online and taking the topic test at the end of the unit--pages 34 and 35. The unit test is patterned after this test. To log into the textbook, go to the BHE Tech Link page. From this page, click math book and you will need to sign in using the Pearson Easy Bridge button. (Directions on the right.)
Next week I will start giving an ALEKS grade for topics mastered. Students can work on ALEKS at designated times each day (they either have 2 or 3 30 minute periods each week in class) or at home. Students were given their ALEKS usernames and passwords last week--they are taped into the front of their math journal. Students are expected to master at least 5 topics each week. This will be recorded in the gradebook as part of their classwork grade. They can earn up to 5 extra points a week for any topics over 5.
Students are encouraged strongly to memorize their multiplication facts. If your child does not know their basic facts, please have them study these facts daily. They can use multiplication.com to help study or use the website judebert.com to practice facts.
On Wednesday we will begin Topic 2--Generate and Analyze Patterns. We will most likely test on this topic around Friday, September 21st.
Science News
This week we set up our science journals and thought about what a scientist does and what they look like. We also took some time to talk about safety in the classroom with science experiments. We ended the week being introduced to our atmosphere. We will start keeping track of weather on Monday. This will be in their science journals and we will be able to start seeing some patterns in weather around Blythewood. We will also continue learning about our atmosphere--the different layers and the different gases that make up the atmosphere.
ELA News
READING LOGS
Each week, students will receive a reading log. They are expected to read for at least 20 minutes and then respond to their reading - using the question bank provided in their binder for fiction and nonfiction books. Your child is only required to answer one question a night. However, they are not allowed to answer the same question each night. The only questions that can be answered multiple times during the week are NF14 and F17 - which ask students to summarize what they read. Students can also read the same book over the course of the week - and are encouraged to take on more challenging reads such as chapter books. If the book is not a chapter book or book that takes longer than 20 minutes to read, it should not show on log more than once.
Social Studies News
This week, 4th graders reviewed map skills and the makeup of the world we live in. Students labeled maps of the world, our continent, and country - as 4th grade Social Studies is all about U.S. History and maps will be very much prevalent over the course of the year. To help students remember the seven continents, we created mnemonic devices (e.g. Aubriaunna always anticipates snacks every afternoon - for Asia, Africa, Australia, South America, Europe, North America, and Antarctica). We even continued the conversation about using mnemonic devices to remember direction as we studied the compass rose which is comprised of cardinal and intermediate directions. We ended the week with a quiz - students labeled a compass and maps of the world and our country and state’s borders. (Note to Parents: the quiz will be available to view at our Open House Tuesday. Grades have already been put into PowerSchool for some and will be entered for all by Sunday evening)
We also began Unit 1 - The First Americans & The Land Bridge Theory this week. If your child came home talking about/begging you to see the movie Ice Age - it’s because of me! The clip I showed was a wonderful way to introduce this concept and students really enjoyed the connection made!
Next week, will continue our studies on how it is believed that the first Americans got here and begin learning about Natives Americans of the U.S. During this unit, students will learn about and be able to
- Compare the everyday life, physical environment, and culture of the major Native American groupings; including, the Eastern Woodlands, the Plains, the Southwest, the Great Basin, and the Pacific Northwest.
Parents: BE ON THE LOOKOUT
- During the first Open House on September 11th, all parents will be given a Parent Study Guide for Social Studies that provides you with an overview of all pertinent information your child will learn this year for U.S. History!
Fourth Grade News
Related Arts Schedule for next week
Open House
Open House will be held on Tuesday, September 11th. There will be two sessions (both sessions will cover the same content). Sessions will be from 5:30-6:10 and 6:15-6:55. Ms. Bodrick and Mrs. Benson will be doing these sessions together so that if you have another child at the school, you may attend their class session also. We will be in Mrs. Benson’s room.
Ending Thoughts
Thank you for sharing your children with us! Please feel free to email us with any questions. Click on our name below for a direct link to our email.
Thanks for sharing your children with us each day!
Mrs. Shannon Benson and Ms. Aubriaunna Bodrick
