Naaktgeboren's Class Blog

Greetings Families, Please remember that tomorrow night is curriculum night. I hope to see all who can make it. Here is the schedule again. Best, Michael Naaktgeboren Curriculum Night Schedule 6:00-6:15           Welcome and opening remarks by Mr. Gillingham, Ms. Pantalena, and Mrs. Mason                                                        A-L                                            M-Z 6:20-7:05           Child's Classroom                      Specials in MPR 7:10-7:55           Specials in MPR Child's     ...

Greetings Families, I wanted to let you know that I was returning some assessments today. You will see that the class averages are not very good. This is likely because students are not engaged in the lessons well and they are not studying their notes nightly like I have asked them to do. These are skills that they should develop in fourth grade. Your support is likely necessary for many of them because the likely lack the discipline to study each night. If you would, taking time once a week to review their notes with them to see if they know the answers will do a lot of good. If you are quizzing them at home, they will know they are not only responsible to me for knowing the content but to you as well. This will do even more to encourage them to be engaged in the lessons during class and to make good use of their notes at home. Thank you for your support. Best, Michael Naaktgeboren Returned Assessments Subject: Assessment (Class Average) Math: Unit 1, Chapter 2 - Ap...

Greetings Families, I hope everyone is doing well. I've spent some time reviewing data from the MAP testing that the students took this week and from the progress students are making on Khan Academy. I am hoping that with this data and with what the students are producing in class, I will be able to identify what needs are present and how to best support their learning. There are two important events coming up that I want to remind you of. Curriculum Night Curriculum Night is this Wednesday. Some of you have already told me that you won't be able to make it, but if you have that evening open I think you will find it time well spent. Please remember this is an adult only evening. Here is the schedule: Curriculum Night Schedule 6:00-6:15     Welcome and opening remarks by Mr. Gillingham, Ms. Pantalena, and Mrs. Mason                      A-L  ...

Greetings Families, I hope everyone is enjoying their Saturday morning. I'm sure the students are enjoying a little rest.  This week was a very successful week in that we were able to do MAP testing. MAP testing is an internal diagnostic that allows us to see where students are and how to best support them. When coupled with our own classroom assessments, we are able to get a good picture of which students need the most support and which students need to be challenged. Traditionally we don't share this data with families unless it indicates that a child is far below grade level and in need of interventions.  Here are the lessons for this week: Lessons History : This week in history, students will continue their study of the countries of Europe. Students should be reviewing the countries of Europe on the map in their notebooks. They should be able to identify the location of each country and its capital. They will look more closely at the early Middle Ages wi...

Greetings Families, I hope your family is already enjoying their weekend. We had another successful week in 4B. The students are slowly starting to get to know me and my quirks. I'm looking forward to seeing them again on Monday. As I expect you know, Monday will be a little crazy with the eclipse. And by crazy, I mean wild and a lot of fun. Hopefully, you have seen the email from Mr. Gillingham inviting you to attend the event with your child. Our time outside is from 10:45-10:55 a.m. Please sign-in at the front desk and find us in the common area in the middle of all the buildings. If you do not plan to come, please make sure you send the permission slip in with your child. Children without a permission slip will not be permitted to participate. Here are the lessons for next week. Lessons History : Students will be wrapping up their study of geography and maps this week with a unit example. Students should have brought their study guides home to study over the we...

Greetings Families, Today, the students used Khan Academy for the first time. After some pains getting everyone logged in, the students were hard at work. It looks like it went really well and many students were excited that I provided them with a slip to take home so they could use it at home. If your child doesn't bring his or her username and password home soon, let me know and I'll email it to you. Best, Michael Naaktgeboren

Greetings Families, I want to send out a quick note to remind you of two important things coming up. First, club registration opens tomorrow morning at 8 a.m. Clubs are on a first-come, first-serve basis. So make sure you know what clubs you want and are ready to signup first thing in the morning. Second, please put Curriculum Night in your planner and plan to be there. There is a lot of information discussed on this night and fourth grade is very different from your child's previous years at Arete. Best, Michael Naaktgeboren

Greetings Families, Today, I returned reviewed the student's first science quiz. These quizzes will be very regular. They will usually take one to two a week. The purpose is to get them engaged in the lessons because they know they have to know the information soon and well. If your child's grade is a little low on this one, don't let it stress you too much. I had students who did very poorly on these quizzes at the beginning of the year and were passing them all toward the end. They just have to learn how to engage the lessons in class and how to make good use of their notes on a regular, recommended nightly, basis. The quiz was titled Q1W2D1 (Quarter 1, Week 2, Day 1 Quiz). It reviewed things we have studied in the chemistry unit. The class average was an 86.6%. Also, I told students to keep this quiz in their science folder because they will be helpful in preparing for the chemistry unit exam. Best, Michael Naaktgeboren

Greetings Families, I'm returning the first group of quizzes to you today via your child's take home folder. Here are the quizzes I'm sending home along with some data. Subject: Assessment (Class Average) Math: Place Value Quiz (93%) Math: U1Ch2 Place Value Quiz (75%) History: Map Quiz 1 (70%) Comments Regarding Quiz Grades I believe the students underperformed on the history quiz because they are not accustomed to taking regular quizzes. What I am seeing thus are is a lot of students looking around the classroom, playing in their desks, or just being distracted. Part of this is due to the return to school from a long summer break. They just are mentally prepared to be engaged in the lessons as they should be. Don't let this be stressful to you yet. It takes time for them to find their form. They also haven't been expected to perform at this high of a level before. That is one reason for the regular quizzes. They will learn that they always have to ...

Greetings Families, I hope you are enjoying your weekend. Last week was a good first week and I'm looking forward to seeing your child tomorrow. Khan Academy I want to take this opportunity to introduce you to one of the ways I'm hoping to help students grow in math so that they are capable of performing well and better prepared for fifth-grade and beyond. Along with the Singapore curriculum, this year 4B will be utilizing Khan Academy to help students review, identify student specific deficiencies, and to allow more advanced students to progress beyond the limits of the Singapore curriculum. Why I Chose to Use Khan Academy My intended use of Khan Academy is not for it to serve as the primary means of math instruction. Instead, it will function as a tool to help students review content in which they are deficient. However, some students who perform above proficient might enjoy the challenge of learning new material independently through the videos provided. Anothe...

Greetings Families, This week has been pretty crazy as we have been adapting to the new school year. The students demonstrated a lot of virtuous behaviors this week, especially as they persevered in adjusting to the fourth grade expectations. The jump from third to fourth is pretty steep and it often takes students off guard; but they have been steady in their growth. One of the big jumps in fourth grade is quizzes. This week, students took two quizzes: one in math and one in history. The grades on the math quiz were largely good while many students suffered on the history quiz. The purpose of the quizzes is to help motivate students to be regularly aware and engaged in class. As a former third grade teachers, I'm aware of the teaching styles used by the students' teachers last year. The teachers did a great job of teaching the material, but students did not have to be engaged in the lessons or regularly review their notes because study guides were handed out that were of...

Greetings Families, I hope your child and you have found the first couple days of school enjoyable. I have greatly enjoyed working with your child the past two days. Today, we actually got to spend some time on actual lessons, which is great. During our time together, we found a few students missing some items. Many students, largely due to an oversight on the class supply list, are missing pencil pouches/boxes. Please ask your child if they have one and if not, please provide one. Another need is The Princess and the Goblin . We have a few copies available to borrow, but about ten students didn't bring their copy to class today. Please send your child to school with his/her copy tomorrow if they do not already have it. If you have discussed with the front office about needing to borrow a school copy, please email me to let me know. If it has been ordered and just hasn't arrived, let your child know so they can let me know its on its way. Thank you for your support. ...

Dear Families, Welcome to the 2016/2017 academic year at Archway Classical Academy Arete. My name is Michael Naaktgeboren and I feel honored to introduce myself as your child’s fourth-grade teacher. Below is some information about me. I was born in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. I moved to a small town in middle Tennessee when I was three. My middle and high schools years were spent mostly in Iowa and Ohio. When I was a senior in high school my family made the decision to return to Tennessee where I graduated from high school in 2001. I left for basic training a few months after high school as a member of the Tennessee Army National Guard. I started my college studies at a small community college but was postponed when the 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment was deployed for Operation Iraqi Freedom III. Upon my return from duty, I moved to Kentucky to continue my pursuit towards a bachelor’s degree. I attended Boyce College and in 2010 obtained my Bachelor of Arts in Biblical and Theological Stud...