Here are some pictures:
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Math About Us
This morning we spent some time collecting data about us. We measured our heights, our arm spans and our hand spans. We also figured out who could roll their tongues, which hands were our dominant hands, and if our earlobes were connected. We collected the data and recorded it as a class. As a class we talked about how we could organize the data in a way that made it easy to see. The learners felt that graphs would work best. We talked about lots of different ways to graph data. Tomorrow the learners will be responsible for graphing some of the data, and on Friday they will design class surveys and graphs on their own. We also completed our first number talk today. This was designed for the learners to get comfortable with what a number talk feels like in our classroom.
Here are some pictures:
Here are some pictures:
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
A SNOWSTORM in August?
Dear Fabulous Fourth Grade Families,
Today was a really great first day of school! The learners were enthusiastic and worked hard all day. It was really great to see them interact as a group. We were quite impressed! It sure did heat up towards the end of the day, but this morning we experienced a snowstorm in class. Please ask your learner to tell you about it, if they haven't already. It was a fun way to get to know more about one another. We have included video so you can see all the excitement. Paula was worried that we might have to call today a snow day!
The learners noticed right away that the biggest change with fourth grade was the number of bodies in the room. We spent part of the day talking about how we work together in groups effectively. We gave them the task of working together with puzzle pieces that created four rectangles. The learners were quite confident that they could accomplish this until we told them they couldn't talk, gesture, point, etc. to communicate with each other. The learners did a fantastic job working together in total silence. After the activity we brainstormed a list of qualities needed to be a successful group member and what the experience was like for them. Here are some pictures of the activity:
We also created a KWL for fourth grade. The learners had some interesting knows, wants and wishes for the year. Some of their thoughts included:
What do you know about fourth grade?
We do ROPES
We learn about the Gold Rush
We go on two overnights
There is more homework
It will be fun
What do you wonder about the fourth grade?
Do we have free choice
When is homework due, daily/weekly
What is PE going to be like
What are the binders for
What are your wishes for the fourth grade?
To do better in school this year
To make new friends
To get to know Emma better
Please remember that tomorrow is a full day. School gets out at 3:00. It was hot today and we didn't have bottled water in the classroom yet, so please send your learner to school with plenty of fluids. Also, please remember to look at our classroom website. There is tons of information about all the field trips and milestones this year, fun things to do with your family, and lots of resources about fourth grade curriculum. We hope you find it useful. The supply list can be downloaded directly from the document library if you need it.
We are looking forward to a fantastic and fun year. Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Kindly,
Elysha and Lale
Today was a really great first day of school! The learners were enthusiastic and worked hard all day. It was really great to see them interact as a group. We were quite impressed! It sure did heat up towards the end of the day, but this morning we experienced a snowstorm in class. Please ask your learner to tell you about it, if they haven't already. It was a fun way to get to know more about one another. We have included video so you can see all the excitement. Paula was worried that we might have to call today a snow day!
The learners noticed right away that the biggest change with fourth grade was the number of bodies in the room. We spent part of the day talking about how we work together in groups effectively. We gave them the task of working together with puzzle pieces that created four rectangles. The learners were quite confident that they could accomplish this until we told them they couldn't talk, gesture, point, etc. to communicate with each other. The learners did a fantastic job working together in total silence. After the activity we brainstormed a list of qualities needed to be a successful group member and what the experience was like for them. Here are some pictures of the activity:
We also created a KWL for fourth grade. The learners had some interesting knows, wants and wishes for the year. Some of their thoughts included:
What do you know about fourth grade?
We do ROPES
We learn about the Gold Rush
We go on two overnights
There is more homework
It will be fun
What do you wonder about the fourth grade?
Do we have free choice
When is homework due, daily/weekly
What is PE going to be like
What are the binders for
What are your wishes for the fourth grade?
To do better in school this year
To make new friends
To get to know Emma better
Please remember that tomorrow is a full day. School gets out at 3:00. It was hot today and we didn't have bottled water in the classroom yet, so please send your learner to school with plenty of fluids. Also, please remember to look at our classroom website. There is tons of information about all the field trips and milestones this year, fun things to do with your family, and lots of resources about fourth grade curriculum. We hope you find it useful. The supply list can be downloaded directly from the document library if you need it.
We are looking forward to a fantastic and fun year. Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Kindly,
Elysha and Lale
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Dear Fourth Families,
The move has created some different needs this year surrounding getting ready for back to school. Tomorrow is the day the movers come to our room. It will be very chaotic and timing hasn't been confirmed. What feedback we've gotten is that the room is left quite dusty and messy. Here's a schedule that, of course, could be changed based on what the moving in situation presents.
Thursday
Any helpful (adults only) willing to help Elysha and I with cleaning surfaces tomorrow from 8-11 am? Bring sponges, rags, cleansers and vacuum cleaner. Email us to confirm if you can.
Friday
We may just need a day holed up in the room by ourselves to organize the classroom. It takes creative planning and concentration to make a pleasant space for thirty learners and three + adults. : ) We also have meetings during the day that we need to attend. Once we find out more about scheduled meetings, we'll try to post good times to stop by to either say hello or help out.
Saturday
Meet and greet at the clean up day. Note: We both will be attending till lunch time and possibly after. We hope to see you there.
Monday
Work day for staff
Thank you for your flexibility and help with this unique situation this year. We are lucky that there are 30 returning families and learners in our class this year. Familiar faces that we are looking forward to reacquainting and or getting to know better this year.
With Appreciation,
Lale and Elysha
The move has created some different needs this year surrounding getting ready for back to school. Tomorrow is the day the movers come to our room. It will be very chaotic and timing hasn't been confirmed. What feedback we've gotten is that the room is left quite dusty and messy. Here's a schedule that, of course, could be changed based on what the moving in situation presents.
Thursday
Any helpful (adults only) willing to help Elysha and I with cleaning surfaces tomorrow from 8-11 am? Bring sponges, rags, cleansers and vacuum cleaner. Email us to confirm if you can.
Friday
We may just need a day holed up in the room by ourselves to organize the classroom. It takes creative planning and concentration to make a pleasant space for thirty learners and three + adults. : ) We also have meetings during the day that we need to attend. Once we find out more about scheduled meetings, we'll try to post good times to stop by to either say hello or help out.
Saturday
Meet and greet at the clean up day. Note: We both will be attending till lunch time and possibly after. We hope to see you there.
Monday
Work day for staff
Thank you for your flexibility and help with this unique situation this year. We are lucky that there are 30 returning families and learners in our class this year. Familiar faces that we are looking forward to reacquainting and or getting to know better this year.
With Appreciation,
Lale and Elysha
Dear Fourth Grade Families,
We hope you are enjoying some final summer fun before school starts next week. We are excited about the upcoming school year and are looking forward to working with you all! We haven't moved back into our classroom yet, but are hoping to find out more information in the next couple days about when that will happen.
We are thrilled to let you know that Emma Moore, the current CLC Librarian, will also be the new fourth grade instructional assistant. Emma will be a fabulous addition to our classroom. We feel lucky to have an assistant who is already familiar with the CLC and many of its learners. She will be an incredible asset. Please join us in welcoming her to the fourth grade!
We wanted to remind everyone to sign up to our class list. The link on the scclc homepage was broken, so if you signed up prior to August, you probably were never added to the list. There are only about four families currently signed up. We will send out an additional email (to follow this one) to the fourth grade list, so if you receive it, you are subscribed. If you don't get it, you will know you need to sign up. Please sign up at your earliest convenience because we will begin using this as our primary mode of communication.
Please stay tuned for more information regarding the campus clean up on Saturday. So much is dependent on our move in date, but we are sure we will need plenty of help! If you can't make it on Saturday we will be sending out some times that both of us will be on campus on Monday for learners that would like to stop by and say hello.
Warmly,
Lale and Elysha
We hope you are enjoying some final summer fun before school starts next week. We are excited about the upcoming school year and are looking forward to working with you all! We haven't moved back into our classroom yet, but are hoping to find out more information in the next couple days about when that will happen.
We are thrilled to let you know that Emma Moore, the current CLC Librarian, will also be the new fourth grade instructional assistant. Emma will be a fabulous addition to our classroom. We feel lucky to have an assistant who is already familiar with the CLC and many of its learners. She will be an incredible asset. Please join us in welcoming her to the fourth grade!
We wanted to remind everyone to sign up to our class list. The link on the scclc homepage was broken, so if you signed up prior to August, you probably were never added to the list. There are only about four families currently signed up. We will send out an additional email (to follow this one) to the fourth grade list, so if you receive it, you are subscribed. If you don't get it, you will know you need to sign up. Please sign up at your earliest convenience because we will begin using this as our primary mode of communication.
Please stay tuned for more information regarding the campus clean up on Saturday. So much is dependent on our move in date, but we are sure we will need plenty of help! If you can't make it on Saturday we will be sending out some times that both of us will be on campus on Monday for learners that would like to stop by and say hello.
Warmly,
Lale and Elysha
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