Parent FYI, week of September 24—28

Parents F.Y.I.

Weekly Newsletter for Mr. McRae's 4th Grade & 4th Grade Reading Class

Week of September 24—28

SPELLING WORDS

safe    kept   gray  grown             wrote             blind

suit      crumb    wait    creak   steep    gain   still      gold      crime    few      trunk    steal   weight   meat    past    reach   coast    odd   sigh       true      tube    steel     creek    meet   

VOCABULARY /  CHALLENGE /   REVIEW   WORDS /  INUPIAQ

sensation          descent            its              —(r) tuNa  

turbulent         graceful            it's              niGi

precious           rigid                there            qaniq

perch                continue          they're

hindrance       remind               their

fluttered

•  Houghton Mifflin Reading, Theme 1 Review

            Reading Selection: 

               "Chester Cricket's Pigeon Ride",  Garth Williams

               "The Parcel Post Kid" Michael O. Tunnel

            Theme:  "Journeys"

            Comprehension Strategy:  Predict/Infer

            Comprehension Skill:  Noting details, Text Organization

            Spelling:  Review Theme 1 words

            Structural Analysis:  Review:

            Grammar:  Review:  Subject / Predicate

            Writing:  Personal Narrative

•  HOMEWORK

            •  Substitutions can be made if homework is lost or forgotten:

                    Math:   a multiplication "times table"

                    Reading:  25 minutes of free reading, with a signed note from 

                                         parent

            •  Homework is not counted in grade, but it does determine

                  Class Raffle eligibility!

                                     

• PTA Meeting

·      Date:  September 24, 2012

·      Time:  6:30 PM

·      Location:  Library

·       

^Reading

We are finishing Theme 1 (Journeys) in Houghton Mifflin Reading.  This is a review week.  Our plan is to review:

1.  Reading comprehension:  keyword summaries, noting details in text, & test taking skills

2.  Subject / Predicate:  writing complete sentences, identifying simple and complete subject & predicate 

3.  Alphabetization

Math

This is Multiplication / Division week.  We are departing from the Houghton-Mifflin textbook and focussing on

 multiplication and division, with an emphasis on the language of word problems.  The goal is for each student to be able to solve AND write word problems using "times" and "divide".  Word problems are more fun when we write our own!  Help your 4th grader to "think" in multiplication and division by relating real-world situations to simple multiplication/division equations.  And of course--  it is ESSENTIAL that 4th graders memorize their multiplication facts and their corresponding fact families.  (For example:  if you know 3 x 4 =12, then you also know that 12 ÷ 3 = 4)

Writing

We have finished our "Personal Narrative" rough drafts.  In writing this week, we plan on a final phase of peer editing & teacher editing before we go to press with the narratives.  In particular, we are looking at ORGANIZATION of ideas in a story, as well the usual struggle to use correct punctuation, spelling, and grammar.

Science

               Last week, we finally got the science ball rolling!  We studied SCIENTIFIC METHOD (hypothesis, procedure, data,  conclusion), the method by which science "proves stuff."  We did this by performing Mr. McRae's award-winning "ESP Experiment #2".   Ask your 4th Grader for details!  We are also studying classification of living things.

•  EDITOR'S CHOICE sentences from last week 

The door creaked when I peeked.

There were monsters in my closet.

They're there.

I wrung SpongeBob SquarePants.

Don't wear a ring when you wring that thing.

He was slow because he had a lot of weight.

I would like to meet my meat before I eat it.

My gramma has a lot of cookware.

Beets taste gross.

I like to visit Dexter Creek.

I put the lead weights on my rod, then I led the way.