Another week down!

The students are bringing home their airplanes today.  They have made them in Science Lab.  This is a project our fourth graders enjoy every year, and the Briscos pay for this out of their own pocket.  Make sure you thank them for all they do for our students.  They are wonderful!
We had a good day in class.  I know we are all ready for the weekend.  Spelling Tests on SpellingCity.com went well, and we are gearing up for next week's first round of Module Tests.

Way to go Unique for getting our star of the week!  Tyrease also got student of the week in Math lab!  Y'all rock!!!

We had Math Lab today, which the students love.  They always do really well.  We played on scootpad.com this morning and on ReadingPlus.  I love the technology that these students are helping me figure out more and more.  Behavior has been good overall lately.  I'm really proud of how hard everyone is working.  I will try to post some pics tomorrow.  I keep forgetting my camera lately!
Go learn something new!  It's almost the weekend!

I have been trying for two hours now to upload a video....  I don't think it's happening tonight!

Today was good, but long.  The students worked in Reading groups really well.  We practiced spelling (test Friday) and Reading Plus.  Then, we wrote our introduction on our hero pieces.  The students are doing really well.  We continued patterns in Math.  It was a very routine day!  Sometimes, that's just the way it is!  Go learn something new!

BOX TOPS

Oh!!!  Send Box tops for Education to school!!!!  We are currently in sixth place as a class!  I want to win!!!

What a day!!!  We have started working in our Reading program (Reading Plus) which is really great for the students.  They are getting into a routine.  They worked hard in Reading centers today.  In Writing, we started a new piece on a hero in their lives.  I look forward to reading what each of them have to say about the important people around them.  In Math, we looked at number patterns.  We saw that there are patterns all around us.  The calendar, the borders on our boards, the way we are seated (pretty much), the colors in the room.... patterns are everywhere.  Point out patterns with your student as y'all come across them in the real world.  This is such a big and easy Math concept that gets overlooked.

I know I haven't posted the past two nights, and I apologize.  My life has been crazy the past few weeks.  It honestly probably will continue to be the next few.....  I do have a new niece as of about 7:10 (10:10 here) Alaska time this morning!  She is beautiful! I can't wait to go see her Thanksgiving!




I want to also back up, and congratulate Jordan and Donta for being student of the week last week!  Jordan was chosen for our class because of his hard work and determination to do well! and Donta was chosen from Art.  I;m very proud of these two boys!






I also want to tell you all how much more technology we are using.  I know you have seen the websites  that your kids can play/learn on, but we now are keeping digital portfolios on the students.  I am really excited to show this new toy off at conferences.  I think it will really help everyone see what their child is doing when they aren't there.  I still have a lot to learn, but I'm trying!

On that note, go learn something new!!!

Happy Birthday to me!

My students gave me the best present ever..... great behavior ALL DAY!  I was so happy with them!  We had a great time today continuing on with our Actor's Workshop in Reading.  The students are getting the hang of it.  The like it.   They have fun!  It's great!  Here's a  video clip of the workshop in action.  Tableau in the Classroom

In Math, we used Cheeze Nips (spelling?) to find factors.  The students did well, and worked hard, so we had a snack, too!

Well, I'm off to dinner!  Go learn something new!

Oops!

I know, I know.... I've been horrible lately about posting.  Monday, I was in a phenomenal workshop all day.  Yesterday, I have no good reason.  I'm sorry!  It has been a busy, busy week so far.  We have put some of the things I learned at my workshop into practice the past two days with our "Actor's Workshop".  It helps the students focus and concentrate.  It's been really fun!  I can't wait to do more!
We also started ReadingPlus today.  This is a computer, research based reading program that checks for and improves fluency and comprehension.  This is the best computer program I have ever seen used in schools.  We did this last year, and every student moved up in Literacy.  I look forward to continuing the program this year.  It is web-based if you want to look into some more.  There is even a video that explains more about it.
We worked on some spelling practice, and then started rounding in Math.  The students really struggled with this skill, even though it's a review..... but they were really getting the hang of it by the end of the lesson.
On a more somber note, we have had some issues this week with "adding fuel to the fire" in our class, and in fourth grade in general.  We always encourage students to walk away from a problem, rather than adding to the problem.  If the problem can be fixed by ignoring it, that's sometimes the best way to handle it.  That's not always the case of course, because sometimes the problem doesn't go away on it's own.  Please reinforce this with your children at home.  A bully is never okay, and should always be dealt with, but fighting back with fists is never a great choice!  Please encourage your children to SPEAK out for what is right!  They have to stand up for themselves, and stand up to a problem if ignoring it doesn't help.  There are several appropriate ways to do this. First, they can speak to the bully or the problem (maybe a person who just gets on their nerves) about what is bothering them.  Next (or instead), they can speak with Mrs. Conway, another teacher, a parent, or me and let us handle it (sometimes students don't see that because we try to discipline in private... but I PROMISE I will never ignore a bully). I'm not only talking about bullying here.   Even being a bystander to a fight or to bullying is not okay.  That "adds fuel to the fire."  We had a long chat about this today in class, but please reinforce this with your student.  After all, you're the best teacher your child will ever have.  They learn from me for a few years maybe, but they learn from you from birth to death.  Thanks for all that you do!
Go learn something new!

(Oh, and I promise to upload pictures of our super fun Math factors activity tomorrow.)

Four weeks already?

It seems hard to believe this is the end of the fourth week already.  It's been great!  Last night were our first parent/teacher conferences.  I was so pleased to have a 50% turnout.  I always want everyone though!  Janet Miekens was the winner of the drawing for a $10 BK giftcard!  Congrats, and thanks to all of you who came!  I hope to see the rest of you next time!  You can always call during my conference period (1:45-2:45 each afternoon), or call my cell anytime after school.

Congrats to Taliyah for getting our star of the week!  She has been doing a great job of staying focused and trying hard on every assignment.   She has been a good friend and worked well with her peers in groups.  Keep it up, girl!!!  We actually had a lot of good choices this week, so it was a difficult decision!

Today, we did our spelling test on the computer program posted in the side bar.  The students really seemed to enjoy testing this way because every student could go at their own pace and hear the words as many times as they needed.  I can tell who studied!The lists for the next two weeks are already posted, so get ahead!  Play the games!  Make studying fun!

We continued with poetry in Reading today, and then the students wrote their own poems.  They worked hard to be creative and insightful.  I am so pleased!

I'm sadly, off to bed.  I know it's early, but I have a workshop tomorrow in Camden (about an hour and a half drive), so I'm going to "veg" out while I fall asleep.  I Redboxed a movie, I have a big comfy sweatshirt on, the rain sounds wonderful....  I'll see you all on Monday!  Go learn something new this weekend!

Today in Math, we continued the stations we began yesterday, because not every student got to every station.  The students had two awesome days in stations.  They all worked hard, and stayed on task.  While we did get a little loud at times, we are learning to keep the volume at a reasonable level so everyone can still work.  I was very proud of how well the students did the last two days.

Mrs. Conway played a team game that worked with place value.  The students had a lot of fun with this.

While she wasn't working alone, she was the only one not looking at the camera at my station.  Here we worked with place value to add up to and subtract down from 100.  It was a race, so the students had to work fast to borrow or carry those tens.  

This was an independent station where the students reviewed multiplication by matching facts to an array.

 This group of boys won the prize for working together best.  They helped each other out.  They didn't bicker.  They stayed quiet.  I was so pleased!  Both of these pictures show them working at an independent station (working together... independent from a teacher), where they are working with the number of the day.

Way to go Tyrease, Maliek, Anthonie, Donta, Jordan, and Jonathan!








In Reading, we read more poetry, and identified and discussed similes.  Then, the students worked hard to include their own similes in their Writing as they finished up their Writing pieces and began to make revisions.

It's been a really good week so far, and I am looking forward to Parent/Teacher Conferences tomorrow.    Every parent and student who come will get a treat, plus parents will be entered to win a gift card to Burger King!!!  If you mention seeing this on the blog, your name will be entered to win twice.  SOOO, come see us tomorrow night!  Until then, learn something new!

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Just a few:  Fundraisers due tomorrow!
Parent Teacher Conferences are on Thursday (3:45-6:45)!  Please come!  There will be presents!
Spelling Test on Friday.  Check out SpellingCity (there's a link in the sidebar) to practice at home!

Remember

Today was a hard day at school, but I was very proud of my students.  We watched a video on BrainPop about the tragic events that happened eleven years ago.  The students listened, asked relevant and thought provoking questions.  They were respectful and then wrote about how they felt about the events of today.  Yes, we did Writing, Math and Science, but talk to your children about our nation's history.  They are in awe.  Let them teach you something new, and let them learn from you.

with a bang!

We started the week off with a bang!  We had Grandparent's Day breakfast this morning, which is always fun.  I love getting to meet all the grandparents and see the students with their families.  We had a decent turnout, but we always want more!

In Reading this week we will be focusing on poetry and figurative language.  The students did very well with "buddy reading" a poem each.  The children were great at identifying the mood of each poem and some did well with proper inflection.  EVERY student needs to be reading at home.  It helps with fluency and comprehension.  These are just a few pics I snapped of the children reading their poems today.
In Writing, we did a pre-writing graphic organizer for a personal narrative.  You can see some published pieces on Thursday night at Parent/Teacher Conferences from 3:45-6:45.  PLEASE, please come, and bring your child if possible.  I want to be able to brag on well everyone is doing! Also, there will be a treat for everyone who comes.
In Math, we worked with fact families.  The children loved it because they could draw little houses to put them in.  They did really well, and thought it was super easy.  Tomorrow will be harder, but fun games as we continue to review place value.
With that, I believe it's my bedtime!  I'm sorry it's so late, but I had a meeting at school until 8:00, then met some friends at the track to work on my fitness!  We are a wellness school, after all.  I'm trying to get it together, so I can be a better example of health for my students.  We did start our Science unit on the heart and circulatory system today, but had some technical difficulties and some sickness.  I hope everyone feels better tomorrow!  Go dream up something new!

Well, I learned my lesson about sugar in the morning! Just kidding (kinda)!  The students have worked hard this week to read and write about our wormy experience with the Arkansas Democrat Gazette.  You can purchase the article here, if you are interested:
Exfoliation's loss is tequila's gain on Fulton farm
It costs $1.95 to download, but here's the gist: The billboard is an advertisement to a worm farm in Fulton.  The "humorous fabrication" states that the farm is in partnership with our school to provide worms for our lunches.  Needless to say, we are not eating worms, and we are not flattered that they are picking on us!  We wrote letters to the editor to say just that this week.  I am very proud of these formal letters our students produced.  We also have read How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell.  The students have listened and worked hard this week to complete story maps and comprehension checks each day.  SOOOOOO, to reward them, this morning I gave them some worms of their own to eat!  They were delicious!  Before you freak out, Mom, it was just pudding, oreos, and gummy worms!  I forgot to take pictures, but I am borrowing this picture so you get the general idea.

Source

We also had firefighters come read to us this morning, which was awesome!  Thanks for all that they do to keep us safe.  They challenged all students to learn their address if they don't already know it in case of emergency.  They were great!  Thanks again! Txk, AR Fire Dept.

We did another Writing assignment outside today.  It was beautiful outside this morning (before it got so hot)!  I love to give the students a chance to explore!  They worked hard, too.

This afternoon we had Orchard Lab where the students focused on punctuation rules.  Then we had Science Lab, where the students are each making their own planes.  The Briscos do some incredible activities with our children.  We are so blessed to have them work with us.  I'll post pictures when we fly!!!!

A big shout out to our THREE students of the week.... Tyrease for our class, Keneshia for Mrs. Davis, and Eugene for Mrs. Skinner!  We have the best class ever!  No other class has three students of the week.

I plan to learn something new this weekend in Little Rock watching the Razorbacks win!  Where will you learn something new?

Today was great overall.  We got to the most exciting part of our book in Reading.  We did some review of a rubric and habits of good writers.  Then, for Math we continued to review through centers.  We did some expanded notation and of course multiplication!  We watched a video today that the students thought was hilarious!  It was good to hear their predictions of what was going to happen.  They are so creative!  We also had a guest author come and speak with the students today.  The students seemed to enjoy him.
Don't forget to study for Math and Spelling tonight!  Tests are tomorrow!
Go learn something new!

Another week begins!

I apologize for not posting Friday, but our internet was down :(.  I hope everyone had a great weekend. I know the children were a little tired today from the long weekend.  We had a great day, though.
We continued reading How to Eat Fried Worms , which I think the students are enjoying.  We started writing letters to the editor of the Arkansas Democrat Gazette in regard to an article that was published using our school a few weeks ago.  It was a humorous fabrication, but it was very disrespectful.  I am very proud of how the students are working hard to handle the situation.
In Math, we worked in centers to keep working with simple addition and multiplication facts.  I know often times it may look like we are just playing, but ask the students..... they know what they are supposed to be learning with these games.

These are puzzles that have basic fact families.  The students have to fit together the correct puzzles. 

This expanded notation station has students finding the expanded notation for various numbers, and then writing the expanded notation out for each number.

The students love to have flashcard races!  It's their favorite center, and they get loud!  It's a basic competition, and the student who gets the most facts first gets to flash the cards for the next round.

Numbered cubes are also a big hit.  The students take turns rolling the dice and then multiplying the two numbers together to find the product.  They do have an extra die in this picture, but we corrected that after the picture was taken.

These are more puzzles to find the missing addend.

Last, but not least, we have BINGO.  This is another student favorite.  They roll two number cubes and black out the number on their BINGO board.

So many of these Math "games" are things you can do at home.  We also play dominoes a lot.  Students just have to multiply the two numbers on their tile to play it.  We play "War" with a deck of cards.  The student who plays the top card has to multiply the numbers on the cards to keep them.  These are easy ways to practice those multiplication facts!  It makes it fun!  Don't forget, we have a weekly test starting this Friday with those facts!  Study and practice!

Until tomorrow, go learn something new!