Almost Summer....

We were busy last week finishing up some projects.  Your child should have come home with many papers and binders from the year.  Once you have looked at them the kids are able to bring them back to put in their time capsules if they want.

Field Trip

The kids did a great job during our field trip last week.  Thanks to the parents that took time out of their day to join us!

Book Hunt

I am hoping families can check around their homes for any of my classroom library books.  I am missing quite a few.  They will have my name on the inside cover.

Summer Reading

On Wednesday, along with your child's report card, your child will have a summer reading folder.  The folder will have information about summer reading for Quinn, some books your child wants to read, and some fun websites to visit over the summer.

Time Capsule Closing Ceremony 

Our Time Capsule Closing Ceremony will start at 9:00 on Wednesday in the cafeteria.  If you are planning on dismissing your child after the ceremony, please send back the yellow dismissal slip by tomorrow.  Students that don't have a slip won't be able to be dismissed right after the ceremony for safety reasons.

Also, a reminder that dismissal on Wednesday is at 10:55!!!

Thanks so much for all of your help and support throughout the school year!  I am really going to miss this group of kids!

~Jen 

Coming up this week.....

We have a very busy week coming up!  We are getting ready for our walk to the Hudson Public Library on Wednesday.  On Friday we will start to practice for our Time Capsule Closing Ceremony.  We are asking for time capsules to be brought in on Friday as well.  

Spirit Week

This week we are also participating in Spirit Week!  

Here is the schedule:

Monday- Favorite sports team day

Tuesday- Team Color day- 4th grade wear red

Wednesday- Wacky Wednesday

Thursday- Farley Spirit Wear

Friday- Crazy sock/crazy shoe day

I hope everyone has a great week!

~Jen

This Week in LL38....

Summer Reading

We started talking about summer reading last week.  We talked about the expectations going to Quinn as far as summer reading goes.  Your child will need to read one book from the Book List for Quinn Middle School.  There are many books to choose from.  We watched some book trailers for many of the books on the list.  The kids started creating lists of books that they would like to read over the summer.

Be on the lookout for information being sent home regarding the expectations for summer reading for 5th graders.

Field Trip

If you haven't sent back the permission slip for our field trip to Wood Park and the Hudson Public Library, please do so as soon as possible.

Scholastic Book Orders

The notice below was sent home last week with some book recommendations.  If you plan on purchasing books from the book order please do so by Tuesday.  I want to make sure we get the books before the end of the school year.

Time Capsule 

Just a reminder that students should have a time capsule box.  Students will be bringing their time capsules into school on June 17th so we can add some school work into them.

I hope everyone has a great week!

~Jen

This week in LL38....

It was so nice to see so many families on Friday!  The kids were very proud to show off all of their hard work.  I hope everyone had a great weekend as well!

Reading Workshop 

We will start to talk about Summer Reading this week.  We will take a look at what happens to readers when they don't read over the summer.  We will also start to think about books that we are interested in reading over the summer as well.

Book Clubs

Many of the kids did a great job coming to school each day last week ready to discuss the chapters that they had read as part of their book club book.  Please continue to encourage your child to read and stop and jot this week.

Math Workshop

We will be wrapping up Module 6 on decimals this week.  The kids will be taking an assessment this week.  After the assessments are corrected I will be sending them home as I have done this year.

Writing Workshop

Some students will need to finish typing any of their chapters 1 and/or 2 this week as part of their homework.  Since some kids were in the process of finishing last week, they will have until Friday to finish the rest of their chapters.  We will not spend any additional time typing this part of our research in school.  Students that have not finished will receive a reminder note tomorrow.  Thank you for your help with this.

We will continue the essay  portion of the research project this week.  Your child will be able to present their persuasive essay in one of three formats.  They will choose from either creating a persuasive commercial, a brochure, or an iMovie convincing people to visit their region.

I hope everyone has a good week!

~ Jen

Reading at Home-Update

Reading in the Edges UPDATE!

* Your child will be coming home with this notice today.  Please sign and return the bottom of the notice.  Thank you in advance for your help with this!!

We are beginning an exciting new chapter in our reading classroom…..book clubs!

Students have had the opportunity to join a book club of their choice and make independent decisions with regards to the types of ideas they want to track during their reading and how they will set up their reader’s notebook to do so.  They will decide with their group how much they would like to read each day and what they will discuss during their meetings.

The main purpose of this is to build readers and thinkers that are ready for the independence and responsibility that Quinn Middle School requires and to reignite the love of reading after a long spring of standardized testing.

One big change that you will see concerns the Reading in the Edges homework.  Most nights, students will be bringing home their book club book and notebook and will be required to read and take notes in preparation for their book club meeting the next day in school.  This can be done during the 20 minutes of required reading each night.

It is extremely important that students complete their required reading and note-taking!  In order to have productive, fulfilling book clubs, students need to be prepared for their meetings.  I am requesting that you support your child with this homework by encouraging them to complete it to the best of their ability.

Mrs. Groom and I will continue to support students in the classroom each day so that they can be successful with this endeavor.  We will provide tools, resources and coaching so that students gain the strategies they need to continue to grow as readers and thinkers.

This week in LL38....

A few reminders for this week....

• There is a 1/2 Day on Wednesday.  The kids will be dismissed at 11:40.
• Memorial Day Program- This Friday at 9 a.m.
• 4th Grade Success Day- Following our Memorial Day program- 10:00

Success Day

     We have been working very hard on following the writing process as nonfiction writers over the past several weeks.  During our 4th grade Success Day, your child will get the opportunity to show you where they are in the writing process as a nonfiction writer.  

     Our class will also share with you the entire process that they have followed as readers and writers to publish a portion of their writing of nonfiction on one of the Regions of the United States.

     We look forward to seeing you on Friday during Success Day.

Secret Snack

     You should have received a note from your child on Friday regarding a "Secret Snack" to help us celebrate during our Success Day on Friday.  I will be sending home a paper bag with your child tomorrow, so that you can fill it for Friday.

T-Shirt Notice

     Your child should have also come home with a notice regarding 4th Grade Class T-Shirts.  Please make sure you send in this notice with your child regarding his/her shirt size so that we can order one that will fit each child best!  These are due by Friday,  May 27th.

I hope everyone has a great week!  I hope to see many of you on Friday!

~Jen

This Week in LL38....

I hope everyone had a great weekend!


Writer's Workshop

We have been very busy as writers this past week!  The kids have been working very hard at becoming experts in their region.  We will be starting to wrap up our nonfiction writing over the next week or so and moving on to writing realistic fiction stories that weave facts from our research into our writing.

We have been starting to look at mentor texts like the I Survived series and looking at how authors are able to write a fiction story but put facts into the story as well.  We have also learned about the Jim Crow Laws and have been studying how the author of a story called White Water has weaved historical facts into the story.  We will continue to use mentor texts to help us learn how authors write fiction stories with facts written in them as well.

Math Workshop

We continued to work with decimals last week.  We learned how to compare decimals.  We also learned that drawing a picture is one way to compare decimals that are tricky.

We have MCAS testing this week on Tuesday and Thursday.  We have learned so much in fourth grade math this year, so we spent a little time each day playing a review game to keep all of that knowledge fresh in our minds!  :)

As you know, we have talked a lot this year about having a growth mindset and the power of positive thinking!  In the past, some parents have chosen to write their child a little note of encouragement for their child on the morning of the MCAS test.  I have found that these little notes of encouragement give the kids a little "boost" of confidence!  You can also ask your child the strategy that they use when they face a tricky problem.  We have talked a lot about positive words that we can say to ourselves if we are feeling discouraged or getting tired on a test question.

                                                         

Reading Workshop

To go along with our writing unit, we read White Water, a book about segregation.  This book is an amazing book that gets the kids thinking about a difficult situation from a different perspective.  We had many great discussions about this book last week.  The kids still had many theories about what Michael (the main character) learned about the "white" water.  Ask your child what they were thinking at the end of this book.

                                                        

Here is a page from the book that your child could share their thinking about.

                                       

Have a great week!

~Jen