updated December 9, 2019

Veterans, Essays and Service

Congratulations to fourth graders Alison Nojaim, Ella Ward and Esme Reeves and fifth grader Evolette La Blanc for winning entries in the VFW Patriotism Essay Contest. I know our local VFW representatives are very grateful for your children’s thoughtfulness. I am so pleased with our fourth grade participation and strong parent support.

Thank you to our service coordinator, Joseph Ross. We’ve set six dates for service trips to the VA Medical Center in Beacon Hill (see flip side of newsletter). We will have lunch (students will bring their own) pass out thank you cards and play BINGO in the long-term care facility. Each and every student will go twice. If your child is sick on their scheduled week, please hold them back. They can easily switch to a later date. Thank you, parents, for your ongoing commitment to service.

These service trips make me hopeful. I believe our students are challenged and grow when their service involves human interaction. That’s not to downplay the importance of writing letters or collecting donations. All OLG classroom service projects aim to be both age appropriate and helpful to the community. In the future, your students will serve meals (fifth grade Over 65 Dinner and seventh grade Angeline’s Center for Women), pull weeds (sixth grade restoration work) and be ongoing participants in Mount St. Vincent’s recreational therapy (eight grade). Lifelong lessons will come from meeting people, being present, listening and serving.

Math:

Fourth graders have broken open a new chapter in Math, “Whole Number Multiplication and Division”. In this chapter, your child will study multiplication and division of whole numbers. Some skills include multiplying and dividing larger numbers with regrouping, estimating larger products and quotients and solving real-world problems using the bar model method. Look to my classroom webpage for links to video clips showing teachers and students practicing strategies we use in class. Fluency with basic multiplication facts is vital, so keep that basic fact practice routine going!

Last week we took a huge step forward, double-digit X double-digit multiplication. This week we continued with more practice. Next week, if all goes as planned, we begin our in depth study of division. Again, look to links on our classroom webpage to video clips of teachers from all over, eager to explain various methods to support understanding “long division”. Know that we eventually reach the traditional algorithm, very similar to what you and I learned back in fourth and fifth grade.

Writing homework, dialogue:

Fourth graders have written dialogue in whole group, partners and individually. We’ve watched youtube videos explaining, looked at books discussed and practiced. Tonight’s homework is to write a short dialogue (punctuated correctly) that can go into the personal narratives being written in class. Feel free to remind your fourth grader to drop a line and indent with each new speaker.

Service Trip Groups 2019-2020

Spelling Lists, full year

Dates to Remember

Wednesday, 12/11, 11:15- 2:15: Service Trip, VA Hospital (ten students attend)

Thursday, 12/12: All School Mass (OLG Feast Day) All blues

Friday, 12/20: Half Day, Break begins

12/23-1/3: Merry Christmas, Happy New Year

Wednesday, 1/8, 11:15-2:15: Service Trip, VA Hospital (ten students attend)

Thursday, 1/9: All school mass, all blues

Friday, 1/10: OLG Spirit Dress Day

Thursday, 1/23: 4^th attends daily mass, all blues

Friday 1/24: Half Day

1/26 – 1/31: Catholic Schools Week

Sunday, 1/26: Open House

Thursday, 1/30: Special Person’s Day

Homework

Monday: Read for 20 minutes

Spelling worksheet – Do one side, read the flip side.

Writing assignment

Tuesday: Read for 20 minutes

Read spelling sheet out loud. Practice fluency.

Reading/Social Studies assignment

Math assignment

Wednesday: Read for 20 minutes

Read spelling sheet out loud.

Try to sound like a news reporter on TV.

Math assignment

Social Studies assignment

Thursday: Read for 20 minutes

Be ready to read spelling sheet out loud

Have spelling worksheet from Monday, ready to turn in on Friday.

Study for weekly quiz and spelling test.

Helpful Websites

Science

https://www.fossweb.com

User Name: OLG4Science

Password: OLG4Science

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPZI2M1fDi8

Producers, Consumers, Decomposers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XV2-2Ym3IIc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wvzoIL4S7w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHNh5gYH780

Cursive Writing Resources

http://www.handwritingforkids.com/handwrite/cursive/animation/lowercase.htm

To see the animation, move your mouse over a letter. Lowercase

http://www.handwritingforkids.com/handwrite/cursive/animation/uppercase.htm

To see the animation, move your mouse over a letter. Uppercase

http://www.donnayoung.org/penmanship/cursive-animations.htm

Scroll down to the bottom of the page for cursive letter animation video clips for each letter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PBUYzWXEIQ

Continuous video clip, capital letters first, then lower case… not exactly how OLG teaches them, but clear and concise.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cursiva-lite/id976052613?mt=8

One of several free apps… Try them and share your experience with the rest of us.

Punctuation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZ4BbyBUSmA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWSfn9oPnJg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTChUiV9rCg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKGV8IvE7j0

clips to help learn punctuating dialogue

Social Studies

Video clips about timelines

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFu-zMjGJJA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccwFRZFsDbk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xc64qurhFng

Video clip explaining the challenge of showing the world on a flat map

Youtube clip guides you to create a map of Washington State. We call the “Puget Sound Lowlands” the “Western Lowlands”. Otherwise, this is perfect for helping us learn our state’s geography.

Video clip showing timeline and explaining BC/AD

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFu-zMjGJJA

Typing Website

http://www.typing.com

Spelling Website

Check out this website for online spelling practice…. Enter our list each week! http://www.spellingcity.com/

Math

Chapter 3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyWYQYqBbMg

Bar model example, division

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyvgHvDXStQ&list=PLCrYL64JQwDyAtX_ukOBiLJgEf8ri-u2T&index=1

Bar model example, multiplication

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyyw1gnGAhE&list=PLCrYL64JQwDyAtX_ukOBiLJgEf8ri-u2T&index=7

Bar model example, multiplication, before and after model

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUetnxoI2pE

Division, Math in Focus method

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asX8f0UFmgA

Division, Concrete to Pictorial, Math in Focus method

http://www.internet4classrooms.com/skill_builders/division_math_fourth_4th_grade.htm

Links to websites for division lessons and practice

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Qhw6Tv8780

Reminder, multiplying multiples of 10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QZnVBlMhNs

Double digit X double digit multiplication using an area model.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xmsEtyOB10

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVUfkN3TImI

Double digit X double digit multiplication showing partial products.

(No time is spent on this in Math In Focus, lesson 3.2, but I think it’s a good bridge between area model and the standard method that is taught next.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZD3YsWbOeA8

Double digit X double digit multiplication, standard method

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXdzUlf5fEk

Multiplication using an Area Model

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_xZfYtk0do

Multiplication using a Place Value Chart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzupp6Q3epA

Multiplication breaking apart larger factor into place value parts and adding partial products

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhLAe-_D1_o

Multiplication using place value method showing partial products

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QZnVBlMhNs

Multiplication, double digit X double digit, using an Area Model