Happy Halloween

What a crazy first quarter this has been at KME.  I am so sorry I have been neglecting the blog.  Hopefully things will calm down and I will update more frequently.  

Report cards are in your child's Friday Folder.  Please take some time to look this over with your child.  Now is the time to set new goals for second quarter.  

MATH —

We have begun our third unit in Math—Multiple Towers and Division.  The students are currently working on two digit multiplication problems.  Please continue to practice multiplication facts at home as it will help your child greatly in the next coming weeks.  

SCIENCE — 

Next week we will look at weathering and erosion and how it changes the earth.  The kids can see many of these changes occurring right here near their homes.  If you happen to see some weathering or erosion going on as you are driving around Landen, take some time to point it out to your child. 

SOCIAL STUDIES

We looked at the different types of Ohio maps.  The students looked at population maps, precipitation maps, and resource maps.  It is important that they know how to read different types of maps and answer questions about them. We have the unit test scheduled on Wednesday.  Your child will be responsible for knowing all the information pertaining to this unit.  

READING —  

We are moving on to the reading strategy questioning.  In this strategy, students need to ask questions as they read.  As they do this, they begin to look for answers and ultimately become engaged in the text  We are beginning new novels on Monday.  Be sure to ask your child what they are reading.  

REVIEW SHEETS  - 

Due to Beggars Night, we have only handed out Reading and Social Studies homework this week.  They will be due on their normal day - Wednesday.  

UPCOMING EVENTS 

Veteran's Day Parade - if you or a family member is a military veteran, we would love to have you participate in our annual Veteran's Day Parade.  Please contact Mrs. Presnall at npresnall@kingslocal.net to sign up for this fabulous activity.

Holiday Art Fair - Mark your calendars for the art fair scheduled December 13th.  In your Friday Folder you will find an RSVP, please be sure to send it in as soon as possible so Mrs. Heagan can have everyone's art work ready and framed.  

Welcome Back to School

We had a fantastic first week of school.  The kids did a great job listening to all of the beginning of the year reminders and housekeeping stuff.

SCIENCE

We began our first unit this week—Process Skills.  This unit will focus on the skills that are needed to be a great scientist.  We discussed this week what it means to make good observations, and how it important it is for a scientist. 

MATH

We are beginning the year with a quick review of the addition and subtraction strategies the students learned in third grade.  

SOCIAL STUDIES

We began our map skills unit.  Our first two lessons discussed the solar system and our planet.

READING

We have been building our reading stamina this week.  Each day we are discussing the best ways to read a book,  We have also been practicing the length of time we are really reading.  Next week I will meet with each student to discuss their reading needs

OAA Testing is Finally Over !!!

We are finished . . . finished testing that is!!  The kids did a great job on the test this week.  I am so proud of how hard they worked.  I am confident that they ROCKED THE TEST !! 

Now on to our crazy May schedule.  We have a ton of activities going on this month.  You are going to want to check back often to find out the most up to date information. 

May 15th - CIS Orientation -The students take a trip over to Columbia for a couple of hours to see what life is like as a fifth grader.

May 17th - Fourth Grade Music Program  - The fourth graders will perform their recorders for the parents during this presentation.

May 30th - Fourth Grade Field Day - The fun begins around 10, we will take a lunch break at 11:30 and then resume our games at 12:30.  The kids will need to pack a lunch this day. 

May 31st - Fourth Grade Reward Trip - A fun, culminating event for the fourth graders, where we will spend all day playing, running, and jumping.  Lunch will be provided. 

June 1st - Fourth Grade Award Ceremony and Luncheon - Plan on bringing your tissues as we wish farewell to our beloved fourth graders.  Times to be announced.

This One's For You Joe

I know it has been a long time since I've posted, I have no good excuse so please just forgive me.

This week brings lots of excitement in our classroom. Rick Sowash will be here on Thursday to present his Ohio Hero show with the help of a few students. If your child is helping Mr. Sowash with his presentation please have your child bring his/her costume Thursday morning. If you would like to come watch the presentation, it will begin around 10am.

Friday the entire fourth grade will be bringing history to life at the Ohio Hero Wax Museum. Your child should bring their costume to school on Friday. Please try to make this wonderful event. It begins around 2:30 and runs until 3:00.

Your child will bring home their speech on Monday, please help them practice memorizing this for Friday. They don't have to be perfect.

Everything else is going well in the classroom. We are working on our Geometry unit in math. This is our most vocabulary rich unit. The students need to learn a lot of terms and then apply them. We have a Geometry folder that holds all the information they need. I will have them bring it home on Wednesday so they can study the terms.

We have begun our Ohio History unit in Social Studies. We have learned about the prehistoric indians that first lived in Ohio. Now our focus is on the Historic Tribes. Hopefully, you saw the first test the students took in their Friday Folder. They were able to use their notes to answer these questions. The rest of the Social Studies tests will follow this same format. I still want your child to study their binder on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They can read over their notes to make sure they make sense and can read them.

Weather is our main focus in science. This is my favorite unit. Yesterday was an amazing weather day in the Tri-State. We discussed why tornadoes were likely yesterday. We will certainly have a lot to talk about on Monday.

Have a great weekend.

Only Seven Days Til Thanksgiving Break?

We have seven days before Thanksgiving Break.  Where has the month gone?   It was just Halloween ... wasn't it?

What a great win Friday night for the 12-0 Knights.  I watched the game from my warm couch.  Kudos to those of you that attended in the cold.  Next up Trotwood Madison...  I hope it is on tv :)  

Our Veteran's Day parade was fantastic.  The students really enjoyed waving flags for all the past and current members of our Armed Forces.  I thought the assembly was a wonderful way to end the parade.  If you haven't heard, my mother-in-law was in attendance.  She was very impressed with the students and the tribute.

Over the next week, our goal is to wrap up the realistic fiction writing unit.  Most of the students are almost finished writing their rough drafts.  My goal is to conference with each of them early in the week and then they will be ready to take the piece to publication.  Hopefully, they will finish their published work before we leave for break.

A science test is scheduled for Thursday.  The test will cover the layers of the earth, tectonic plates, earthquakes, physical and chemical weathering, erosion and deposition.  Students should use their Science Binders to help them study for the test.

I think I have turned the students on to a new author: Gordon Korman.  One reading group read the first book in the series Island.  They loved it and now they are fighting over who gets to borrow my ONE copy of the second book.  Another group read the first book in the Titanic series.  They have decided to share the ONE copy of the second book.  I love when I can turn them on to a new author.  If you are looking for Christmas ideas, Gordon Korman also has a few other series sets that I am sure many of the kids would love.

I will introduce division on Monday.  This can be tricky if the students are still struggling with their math facts.  Don't forget to practice these if your child is still struggling.  It really does help.

We are focusing on homophones in word study.   Last week we added quite a few to our word study list.  This week we will play a few games and illustrate the meanings of the words.  The students and I discussed that it is important to know the difference in meaning for these words as well as how to spell them.

Government is our next focus in Social Studies.  This is a quick unit on the three branches of government and their duties.  Remember the Social Studies binder comes home on Tuesday and Thursday.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.  I'm planning on grading the Social Studies test and watching the Bengals on the television tomorrow.  Let's hope for a Bengal win !!

Wonderful Weekend

What a wonderful fall day. I hope everyone was able to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather.

This week is busy. We have conferences on Tuesday and Thursday and our Fall Party on Friday afternoon. Also the Book Fsir is going on this week. Our day official day is Thursday, but we have two evening nights to shop on Tuesday and Thursday.

Social Studies: We will have a test on Wednesday. The test is over the regions of Ohio. Students need to locate and name the major cities and rivers in Ohio. As well as, label each of the four regions.

Readers Workshop: Each group began reading a new novel this week. We will continue with this reading and focus on the questioning strategy. They are really enjoying their books.

Writers Workshop: We are learning about the elements of realistic fiction. This week we will begin writing our own. I know the students will enjoy working with this genre.

Science: We will continue to look at earthquakes and volcanoes and how they effect the earth.

Enjoy the rest of this perfect weekend. I have heard from my weather guru that we could see some snow before Halloween.