Fabulous February!

Hi Everyone!

There may only be a few more weeks until spring, but we have so many miles to go before we sleep in room 5! The February MCAS calendar came home today. It is a slightly different format (looks like the weekend reviews) but still contains one problem a night to be completed at home. The completed packet is due back in school on Monday, March 3rd. These are questions taken directly from past MCAS tests. This is an excellent way to help to prepare the students for the upcoming tests.

Reminder! Tuesday, March 25th is the MCAS Long Composition for 4th grade. There are 2 parts to the test- writing (long composition) and reading (comprehension and open response questions). The 3 days of the Reading MCAS will be completed the week following the Long Composition. If you have any questions about these tests, please let me know.

Here's what is going on with Mrs. Gorham's Gang...

Chorus Concert: It was wonderful! It was nice to see so many families able to attend this special event. The children looked lovely in their "concert dress". Thank you for helping with this. Thank you also to Mrs. Stonebraker for her effort and dedication in preparing our students for their first concert! We look forward to their next performance in May. The next concert will have an evening performance as well. I will let you know the date in a future post.

Valentine's Day: We will be celebrating Valentine's Day on the 14th. Your child received a class list on Monday. If he/she plans to pass out valentines, they must have one for eveyone in the class- teachers are optional. Reminder: We have a "No Food Policy" at Zeh School that includes candy. If you wish to pass out a treat with your valentine, I suggest: pencils, erasers, temporary tattoos, stickers, etc. Both Dollar Tree and Target have decent selections for a low price. We will be decorating valentine bags to hold our cards/loot on Thursday, February 14th at 11:30. Please contact our room parent, Mrs. Ransden, if you have any questions about the activity or wish to help. We are looking for donations of valentine stickers/fun foam/glitter to use to decorate our bags. Thank you in advance for your help with this.

Mathematics: We have our fractions test tomorrow and we will spend the rest of the week completing our "Winter Benchmark" assessments. I will share this data with you at our next scheduled parent conference in March. Our next unit in math will be Decimals and we will start that next week.

Science: We have begun our "Unusual Bird Guide" project. The students are creating their own original bird. They must include specific information on their bird such as: migration, range, nest type, beak type, eggs, voice, habitat, food, enemies, and interesting facts. A sketch of the bird must also be drawn. This is an "in-class" project, but students may need to take work home to finish.

Social Studies: We are just getting started on the Midwest Region and have learned our states and capitals as well as the 5 Great Lakes. HOMES is a mneumonic device that can help you to remember the names of these lakes. Do you remember them? We will have a quiz on the states and capitals next week.

Reading: We have started our unit on Tall Tales and have been working exclusively with Paul Bunyan. One of the most important parts to tall tales is the use of hyperboles or exaggerations. We are making a hyperbole book using just the exaggerations found in Paul Bunyan. Drawing with perspective is another skill we are working on with our illustrations. We will also participate in reader's theater this week for Paul Bunyan.

Listening Centers: Did you know that we have listening centers in room 5? Everyday at D.E.A.R time, 2 groups of students have the opportunity to listen to chapter books on tape. Currently, we are listening to The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks and The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. We rotate the children so that everyone gets to listen to all of the stories. Ask your child what story is there favorite so far this year.

Read-Aloud: We are still reading Poppy. Do you have any idea why Mr. Ocax does not want the mice to move to New House? What might he be afraid of?

Thank you to Justin & Family for sharing their copy of the Matilda DVD. We read Matilda for read-aloud and I promised the children we could watch it before vacation. It was a very enjoyable experience for all! There were many similarities and differences between the book and the movie.

Reminders:

1. 2/12/08-Understanding Our Differences Program.


2. 2/14/08 -Valentine's Day is on a Thursday. Party is at 11:30 am!


3. 2/14/08- PTO Grade Level Coffee at 9:00 am. Please join us!


4. 2/15/08- Last day before Winter Break!


5. 2/18 thru 2/22/08- Winter Break


6. 3/6/08- Northboro Unplugged


7. 3/11 thru 3/13: Scholastic Book Fair


8. 3/13- 11:30 Dismissal for Parent Conferences

I think that is all for now. Thanks for all your help!
-JoAnne