Wow, what a beautiful weekend, eh? I spent Friday and Saturday nights in SF for the Noise Pop Festival and saw 6 amazing bands. I got to check out the new deYoung Museum in Golden Gate Park. And I even made time to collect sand dollars near the Cliff House. It was awesome to get away from school and not worry about the grades that will make or break your fourth graders' day on Friday as report cards are sent home. (Insert evil laughing sounds here.)
Report cards are rough. As a class, we are excelling in the areas of math and writing, but are struggling with language and its applications. Comprehension has been the most difficult for the class to work with, especially as the material that we engage with becomes more complex and open to interpretation. Please do not freak out when your child gets their report cards. It is completely normal for grades to dip mid-year, especially with the reacclimation process of returning to class after an extended Winter Break. Remember my spider web analogy from Back-to-School Night and realise that this last trimester might have been the one that constantly knocked your kid down. This final semester of the year is the one where they will learn to refine and hone their web building skills to make them successful in the fifth grade and beyond.
The class and I reviewed grading requirements for the Acclerated Reader Program, and students know that they will need a minimum of 45 - 50 points this grading period to earn an 'A'. I reviewed with them that 21 points can come strictly from the 4 books that we will finish this year with, which leaves them responsible for them to read 4 - 5 age appropriate books in the next twelve weeks. Each student will receive an AR progress report with their grades this Friday. Accellerated Reader will constitute 25% of their overall language/reading grade in this final grading period.
We reviewed the entire Biography packet in class today and the students know that it is due on Friday, March 30. Late work will be marked down.
Tuesday brings us our Statewide Spring Writing sample. The prompt is a fun one and I expect the class to have a nice time working on this material tomorrow morning. Tuesday also brings us our second visit from our SPECTRA artist.
Wednesday morning brings us a visit from a local musician. He will be performing at a school-wide assembly from 8-9am. All are welcome to attend.
Before I list the homework that everyone is responisble for tonight I would like to officially let everyone know that I will be taking March 15 - 23 off to have my tonsils removed. I have prolonged this surgery from the beginning of the school year and my health has taken a beating. Eileen Buron, one of the class' favorite subs, has agreed to spend the week with the kids and I am confident that she will be fantastic while I am out. My last day in the class will be next Wednesday, so if you have pressing issues, please contact me prior to that date.
Finally, the class is responsible for the following tonight:
- Reading log
- Red Folders (lots of goodies to look over)
- Reading Practice book pages 296 - 297
(spelling words from the week are on these pages)
- California study guide page 47
Respectfully, Mr. B
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