Info: 9/10

September 10, 2010

Dear 4th Grade Parents:
We survived the First Week back to school!! We spent some time getting to know more about each other, working as a community to create classroom expectations, and then diving right into working hard and enjoying learning. It all started with a well-attended mass. Thanks for joining us!

What Are We Learning?
This week in Language Arts we created posters that told all about ourselves so we could get to know each other. We also reviewed all the reading strategies and will begin a story next week.
In Math we reviewed math facts and started the unit on geometry. I was impressed to see that a lot of the students remembered information from the end of last year! We are learning all about lines, angles, and shapes. A study link explaining more on this unit went home in your child’s homework folder earlier this week.
In Science we are exploring magnets and electricity. We will be learning about force and current, building circuits, and creating electric games! There is also an awesome field trip coming up in October that goes along with the unit.
In Social Studies, we are learning what the social sciences are along with basic geographic terms so we can build a base for learning about the United States and its features. We are also taking an audio guided “train tour” of the Northeast region where the students learn more through interactive experiences.
Beginning 2nd quarter the students will have an opportunity to change classes 3 times a week for Science and Social Studies. The 1st quarter we will stay in our own classroom.
In Religion, we are exploring the series We Believe. It focuses on living out God’s Commandments and being like Jesus. There is a terrific website that goes along with some of our lessons. As a family, you can explore accompanying activities by logging onto www.webeleiveweb.com

Housekeeping
Homework has started! To get a night-by-night update on your child’s homework you can visit my blog site at http://mrpschmidtsclass.blogspot.com/ where I post daily updates on what is due and what we worked on for the day. I have also provided a link on my webpage to get access to my class blog.
Homework will be assigned on a daily basis. Some of it requires your child to bring a book or workbook home. So far everyone has been wonderful about bringing those materials back to use the next day. Hopefully that trend will continue!

What Are All These Papers?
I have enclosed an Scholastic Arrow book order. It is optional whether you order or not, but if you do, please make a check out to Scholastic. Please do not send any cash. The book orders for this month will be due by Monday, September 20th.
I have a class schedule posted on my web page, please feel free to take a look at our weekly activities. So far this week, I have been able to meet many wonderful individuals who work very well independently as well as together. A perfect example of our cooperative efforts is the group activities we played during our Morning Meetings. We worked very hard to show that everyone in our class is important and that without each person our class would be incomplete and missing valuable relationships and opportunities. Way to go team!
Communication
I prefer to be emailed as a way of communication, but feel free to call and leave a message. I will provide my phone number and extension at Parent Information night. Looking forward to meeting all of you again next Tuesday night at PI Night!

Have A Great Weekend,
Mr. Paul Schmidt