Dear 4th Grade Families,

This week is an interesting one! On Wednesday, we will be celebrating both Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day! We will be attending Mass in the morning that day to receive ashes on our foreheads and remember what this Lenten season prepares us for. In addition to this, we have Valentine’s festivities: a Valentines exchange in our classroom, a school-wide door decorating contest, and a school-wide Valentine’s creation (led by the middle schoolers).

Here’s an update of what we are currently learning in class! Also, don’t forget to check the end of this post for the latest episode of our podcast!

Important Dates and Reminders:

• Monday, February 12: Art with Ms. Sofer
• Wednesday, February 14: Ash Wednesday (School Mass at 8:30am) and Valentine’s Day
• Wednesday, February 14: Free, Free Dress for Valentine’s Day!
• Friday, February 16: 12pm Dismissal + 8:30am Mass
• Monday, February 19: President’s Day — No School

Our Learning:

• Math: This week, our class will be taking a math test to demonstrate their knowledge of multiplication. Students have been making great progress with their multiplication skills and are building their confidence! I am really proud of their growth.
• Reading: In reading groups, students are continuing to practice skills at their level. We are reading Island of the Blue Dolphins and continue to use historic information from The National Parks Service to understand better what Karana is describing.
• Writing: Opinion — Students are practicing revising their essays by adding transition phrases and formatting into paragraphs.
• Grammar: Similes and Metaphors
• Religion: This week we study Lent and make Lenten promises to focus on during this season.
• Science: The Birth of Rocks — This week, students will be taking their Science test on all they’ve learned throughout this unit. The test will include information about volcanoes and landslides.
• Social Studies: Our field trip to Olivas Adobe was so great! The information we learned will be helpful as we continue to learn about the Mission system. This week, we read more about the Missions as a class, and as individuals, students collect information about their missions for their research projects!

Homework: Due Wednesday, February 20

• Reading Homework: 5 reading responses
  • Students are encouraged to read 20-30 minutes each night. After reading, students will select a question/task from their reading menu to answer in their journal. 4 responses are to be completed by next Tuesday. Students may read either fiction or non-fiction and choose a corresponding task.
• Math Homework:
  • IXL skills:
    • J.3: Division facts to 12
    • H.1: Multiplication patterns over increasing place values 

Let’s have a great week,

Ms. Schmaeling