Grade 4 Weekly Newsletter
February 11 - 15
Curriculum
Reading:
Historical Fiction Clubs will be ending in two more weeks. Students will continue reading and discussing their books with their historical fiction book clubs. Some groups are starting new books while others are finishing up their second book. Our mini-lessons will encourage students to be more nuanced in their claims and assumptions in order to avoid over generalizations and to be more self-critical.
The lessons for this week are:
Lesson 1: Some People’s Perspective is Not All People’s Perspectives
Lesson 2: Seeing Power in Its Many Forms
Lesson 3: Finding Thematic Connections across Texts
Lesson 4 & 5: Reteach as needed
Essential Questions
- How does history influence the characters, setting, and events in a story?
- Who has power in the story?
- How are the books we read in our groups related?
- What makes our book club discussions meaningful?
Writing:
This week students will be wrapping up their second historical informational report. Our minilessons will support students with analyzing one’s research to grow ideas from it and editing.
In this historical nonfiction writing unit, students learn that information texts are often conglomerates, containing a lot of other kinds of texts. These might include an all about chapter, a how to chapter, a diary, and/or an essay.
The lessons for this week are:
Bend 3: Building Ideas in Informational Writing
Lesson 1: Information Writing Gives Way to Idea Writing
Lesson 2: Digging Deeper: Interpreting the Life Lessons that History Teaches
Lesson 3: Using Confusion to Guide Research
Lesson 4: Questions without a Ready Answer
Lesson 5: Editing
Essential Questions
- How can historical events be incorporated into our nonfiction writing?
- How can research help me write historical nonfiction?
Mathematics:
Mid-Module Assessment will be on Sunday and Monday, 25th and 26th of February.
This week we will be continuing Module 5 - Fraction Equivalence, Ordering, and Operations.
This module builds on students’ grade 3 work with unit fractions as they explore fraction equivalence and extend this understanding to mixed numbers. This leads to the comparison of fractions and mixed numbers and the representation of both in a variety of models. Benchmark fractions (ie. ½) play an important role when students reason about fraction and mixed number sizes. Students have the opportunity to apply what they know to be true to new situations and problems.
Essential Questions:
- Why express quantities, measurements and fraction number relationships in different ways?
- How can fraction number relationships be expressed in different ways?
The lessons for this week are:
Lesson 1: Reason using benchmarks to compare two fractions on the number line.
Lesson 2: Reason using benchmarks to compare two fractions on the number line.
Lesson 3: Find common units or number of units to compare two fractions.
Lesson 4: Find common units or number of units to compare two fractions.
Lesson 5: Use visual models to add and subtract two fractions with the same units.
Here is the LINK to the Growth Mindset video (Jo Boaler). We suggest you watch it with your child and discuss what might create a positive math classroom at school. How can you build a positive math relationship with your child? What type of dialogue will you use? You might like the following sentence starters to help you!
Science: Where the Wind Blows
We are in the final week of this unit. This week, student groups will use their city’s weather data to make a weather forecast that will be filmed. Students are to write their script, incorporating their city’s weather data, and then practice presenting it to their group. Once they have rehearsed several times. They will perform their weather broadcast in front of a green screen. They will then be able to insert the pictures of weather in their city into their recording. The students are using the rubric to help guide them in their work.
Week 6 Focus: News Broadcast
Lesson 13: Students will plan their weather broadcast and start writing their script.
Lesson 14: Students will complete their scripts and practice presenting their weather broadcast with their group.
Lesson 15: Students will record their weather forecast on green screen and insert weather pictures into their final recording.
Daily: Students will continue to work on collecting weather data from their city and put it down in their computer spreadsheet. Students will then use this data in their weather forecast.
Essential Questions:
- Can weather be predicted accurately?
- How do the temperature and precipitation determine the climate?
Grade 4 Homework:
Daily homework tasks will be written into student planners each day. Tasks may include reading for 20-30 minutes per night, writing for 10 minutes per night along with additional mathematics work. Homework may differ according to teachers and students. Any mathematics homework that students find challenging please advise their homeroom teacher so they can progress accordingly. Homework is not meant to be impossible, challenging for students to grow their brains, but not impossible!
Grade 4 Guidance:
“ No way, cliques are not okay. Everyone can play!”
In Guidance, students are learning about healthy and unhealthy friendship groups. They are learning about “exclusion” and how to recognize the difference between cliques and a group of friends. We are discussing personal responsibility, integrity and the power of one to make a difference. Students will practice assertive statements for standing up for themselves and for others.
An Exclusive Clique
1. Members give up their uniqueness
2. Unkindness is shown to others and there is an unwillingness to solve conflicts
3. A closed group - excludes others from joining and prevents its’ members from playing with people outside the clique
A Group of Friends
1. Each person feels he/she can be him/herself.
2. Shows kindness to others and a willingness to solve conflicts
3. An open group – anyone can join and friends feel free to play with others
Upcoming Events
· Tuesday, Feb. 13th - Spelling Bee Semi-Finals, 3:30, ES Hall
· Thursday, Feb. 22nd - Trimester 2 Ends
· Wednesday, Mar. 7th - Early Release Day
· Thursday, Mar. 8th - CAC Holiday
Repeat Announcements
Core Value of the Month
During the month of February, we will focus on the Core Value of Creativity.
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