NILE for 4th graders
On Monday, October 11th from 8:30-1:00 all Poly Drive 4th graders will be traveling to the county fair grounds to learn more about agriculture and agricultural products in Montana. In the last Wednesday Watch folders, a green permission slip was sent home. I have not had the following returned to me as of this posting (initials only): LC, DH, JR. If you need a new one, please let me know ASAP.
Mr. Bokum and Mrs. Bryce have volunteered to take my 4th graders. I will be staying with the 5th graders at Poly Drive. A parent volunteer is needed to assist with managing 2 ½ classes. Please send a note with your child, respond on the blog, email me, or call if this would fit in to your schedule, and you could help these teachers. J porischt@billingsschools.org
4th grade artifacts from home
Fourth graders are studying social scientists: economists, geographers, political scientists, and historians. I have brought several items (artifacts) from my house, and the students are analyzing and categorizing the artifacts. By Friday, the 4th graders will be assigned a social science category and asked to bring an artifact from home that represents that category. Examples I brought in are: Geographer—a map and the weather report from the newspaper; Political Scientist—a flyer about voting, money (coins), anything govt issued; Historian—old things, diaries, letters written by grandparents, old newspaper articles; Economist—newspaper ads, sales slips, tags from items purchased at the store w/ prices on them. The artifacts do not have to be complex or “spendy”. Just things that you have around your home that you would be comfortable having the kids bring to school.
Please send them by Wednesday, October 13 (or sooner). Putting it in a baggie would ensure the students could see them without having to take them out of the bag. If it is not something that you are concerned about (an ad from the newspaper), then you do not have to put it in the baggie.
Picture Day
Reminder: Friday, October 8th is picture day. More forms can be picked up at the office if you have misplaced yours.
Spelling Words
I do not run spelling lists to send home with students. They do have access to the spelling books and can take them home at any time. The spelling words I require for the spelling test are the Basic, Challenge, and Real-World Vocabulary words. Pretests are given every Monday and recorded in the grade book. Typically I correct the pretests between 2:00 & 2:45 on Mondays, so most Mondays your child should have the test with them in their backpack Monday evening.
If the child gets an A, they do not have to take it again on Friday (only their personal spelling words, if any). I change the pretest grade after the final test on Friday.
A parent requested that I put the spelling words on the blog each week. I have keyed in this week and next week’s list. Those will appear at the end of the blog.
No Name Box
With approximately 60-90 papers turned in daily, it is very helpful to have names on papers. J There is a consequence for no-name papers. I drop the effort score by one. The no-name papers go into a box. Students may look through the box at any time to see if a missing paper is in there.
Missing Work
With so many papers being handed in each day, I am trying to make it more visual and physical for students to keep track of whether they have turned in their paper or not. In red on the white board, I state when the assignment is due.
This week I have also placed a list of the students’ names by the bins where they turn their papers in. If the assignment is a Latin Word Root ws, then at the top of the list of names, I write LWR ws and the date. As students turn in work, they are to cross off their names. At the end of the class period, with a simple glance, either the student or I can see if the work has been turned in.
The most common phrase I hear when asking students about missing work is, “I know I turned that in.” I think with so many trips to the baskets to turn work in, they do recall going over and turning something in. Hopefully, this will assist in a higher percentage of work completion.
Mid-term reports
Please return these as soon as possible. I will be calling to make sure you have seen them this weekend if I have not received them.
More Social Studies grades are on the way!
“Sponge” grade
Each day when the students come into class, I have a Sponge activity on the overhead. If you ever heard your students talk about the Warm Ups in Extended Studies, this is very much like those. It serves to focus the students and get them thinking for the day.
Through September I did not collect or grade these. Some students did not participate fully, however. So I am now collecting them daily. At the end of the week, I will look through each student’s week of Sponge responses and assign an effort grade.
Last week we did Sponges in the areas of math, language, and science. If your child did the best on the science Sponge, then a 5 was recorded for them in science. That meant that I did not record their language or math sponge activity. So in that space, there is an “ex” meaning excused. If you are looking at your child’s grades online, then you might see an “ex” in one of the subject areas each week. It simply means that their sponge score is recorded in a different subject. The “ex” does not add or take away from their total average.
Make up work
A general rule of thumb is that the number of days the student was absent (ex: 3) times 2 equals the number of days to hand in make up work (6 days to get work in). Of course, I am flexible. If the child is getting make up work turned in each day, we go with the flow until it is all turned in.
Gifted Education Press Quarterly
If you would like to receive a free copy of Gifted Education Press Quarterly, go to this address and follow the instructions. http://www.giftededpress.com/
FYI: At Poly Drive, students and staff do not dress up on Halloween or the Friday before Halloween.
Call or email with questions or concerns!
Terri
4th grade spelling words October 4th -8th Unit 4 Short & long o words
BASIC:
block odd shock solve stock shown oatmeal wrote fellow scold coast locate slope throat host enclose known remote boast globe
CHALLENGE:
bonus approach motion continent accomplish
REAL-WORLD VOCABULARY: Math: Adding up a bill
allowance purchase reduced calculate addition sum tax subtract
5th grade spelling words October 4th – 8th Unit 4 Vowel sounds: oo & yoo
BASIC:
glue flute youth bruise stew choose loose lose cruise jewel dilute route cartoon avenue include assume souvenir conclude pursuit intrude subdue presume
CHALLENGE: conclude, pursuit, intrude, subdue, presume
REAL-WORLD VOCABULARY: Math: Probability
impossible probable outcomes ratio percentage option likelihood algebra
4th grade spelling words October 11th-15th Unit 5 Homophones
BASIC: wait weight vain vane vein sent cent scent creek creak heel heal peak peek ring wring miner minor heard herd
CHALLENGE: raise raze rays principal principle
REAL-WORLD VOCABULARY: Science: Minerals
ore crystal geologists classify properties hardness gems diamond
5th grade spelling words October 11th – 15th Unit 5 Vowel sounds: ou/o/oi
BASIC: ounce scowl pounce coward announce sprawl launch falter haunt naughty saucer August auction awkward loyal avoid moist destroy poison royal
CHALLENGE: poise loiter exhaust assault alternate
REAL-WORLD VOCABULARY: Voyage of Discovery
Sailor expedition navigation rigging mast exploration harbor destination
Mad Hatter Day information from http://www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/October/madhatterday.htm
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