Greetings Families,
I hope you are enjoying your Saturday evening. Today, I had the pleasure of taking my mom to Texas Roadhouse to celebrate her 62nd birthday. Given her health condition, I'm very thankful for another year we've had with her.
Below are a few notes and then what you can expect your child to see in his or her lessons this week.
Homework
We are now five weeks into the year, and I'm still seeing some poor trends with respect to homework. First, every day, I have a number of students who aren't turning in homework assignments. This is unacceptable. The purpose of the homework I send home each night is to review the concepts the students are learning in class during the day and to review concepts the students should have mastered throughout the year. Neglecting the homework increases the likelihood that students will not master current content and will forget content previously learned. If you are seeing a trend of missing homework on your child's grade reports each week, please check their planners each night to ensure they are being responsible.
Test Preparation
In addition to the regular nightly homework, there are many times when the homework assigned is to complete a study guide or to study for a test. Sadly, another trend I'm seeing is that students are not completing the study guides or studying for tests. This is terrible for two reasons. First, the academic team decided that homework would be worth the same as test and quizzes. That means missing homework is as bad as failing a test. Basically, students who participate in class and do all of their homework could get a C in the class while failing every test and quiz. Conversely, students could get all A's on test and quizzes and get C's or D's because they don't do their homework. However, what has usually happened thus far is that students who don't do their homework usually don't pass the tests.
This isn't to say that this is the whole class. There are a number of students who are working very hard and are excelling this year. I just have more students than normal failing to perform as fourth-grade students should.
Lessons
Science: Students have completed their study of electricity and will be assessed on the electricity unit on Tuesday. Over the weekend, students were asked to complete the electricity study guide. The way grades are now done, the study guide, which you can help them on, is worth just as many points as the test. They will then start their study of life science.
History: Students reviewed the Byzantine Empire study guide on Friday and will be assessed on Monday. Following the test, students will return to their study of Europe in the Middle Ages. They will look at the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Charlemagne, and what kind of government and life they had.
Grammar/Writing: This week, the focus will be on direct objects, indirect objects, helping verbs, and the 'not' adverb in grammar. Students will also have a daily paragraph edit homework assignment.
Spalding: The normal Spalding regiment of ten words a day Monday through Wednesday will be followed. They will be assessed on Friday.
Poetry: At some point this week, whether in private or public, your child will be asked to recite "Afternoon on a Hill" by Edna St. Vincent Millay.
Greek and Latin Roots: Students will take a review check on the fourteenth through sixteenth roots. They will then learn numbers 17-19. They review check will most likely take place on Wednesday. If your child failed to get the roots when they were taught in class last week, they are responsible for getting them from a peer during morning work or recess. They are also available on the blog under the resource tab.
Literature: In literature this week, students will finish reading chapter 20 and then read chapters 21-23. They will then end the week by reading one of the most famous stories in the Western tradition, the story of David and Goliath. The focus will be on the courage of David, and how they should demonstrate courage in their lives today.
Math: Students will take the unit 1, chapter 5 test on Monday, which is over the orders of operations. They will then have a brief chapter on negative numbers. They will have a test on chapter six at the end of the week.
I hope you are enjoying your Saturday evening. Today, I had the pleasure of taking my mom to Texas Roadhouse to celebrate her 62nd birthday. Given her health condition, I'm very thankful for another year we've had with her.
Below are a few notes and then what you can expect your child to see in his or her lessons this week.
Homework
We are now five weeks into the year, and I'm still seeing some poor trends with respect to homework. First, every day, I have a number of students who aren't turning in homework assignments. This is unacceptable. The purpose of the homework I send home each night is to review the concepts the students are learning in class during the day and to review concepts the students should have mastered throughout the year. Neglecting the homework increases the likelihood that students will not master current content and will forget content previously learned. If you are seeing a trend of missing homework on your child's grade reports each week, please check their planners each night to ensure they are being responsible.
Test Preparation
In addition to the regular nightly homework, there are many times when the homework assigned is to complete a study guide or to study for a test. Sadly, another trend I'm seeing is that students are not completing the study guides or studying for tests. This is terrible for two reasons. First, the academic team decided that homework would be worth the same as test and quizzes. That means missing homework is as bad as failing a test. Basically, students who participate in class and do all of their homework could get a C in the class while failing every test and quiz. Conversely, students could get all A's on test and quizzes and get C's or D's because they don't do their homework. However, what has usually happened thus far is that students who don't do their homework usually don't pass the tests.
This isn't to say that this is the whole class. There are a number of students who are working very hard and are excelling this year. I just have more students than normal failing to perform as fourth-grade students should.
Lessons
Science: Students have completed their study of electricity and will be assessed on the electricity unit on Tuesday. Over the weekend, students were asked to complete the electricity study guide. The way grades are now done, the study guide, which you can help them on, is worth just as many points as the test. They will then start their study of life science.
History: Students reviewed the Byzantine Empire study guide on Friday and will be assessed on Monday. Following the test, students will return to their study of Europe in the Middle Ages. They will look at the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Charlemagne, and what kind of government and life they had.
Grammar/Writing: This week, the focus will be on direct objects, indirect objects, helping verbs, and the 'not' adverb in grammar. Students will also have a daily paragraph edit homework assignment.
Spalding: The normal Spalding regiment of ten words a day Monday through Wednesday will be followed. They will be assessed on Friday.
Poetry: At some point this week, whether in private or public, your child will be asked to recite "Afternoon on a Hill" by Edna St. Vincent Millay.
Greek and Latin Roots: Students will take a review check on the fourteenth through sixteenth roots. They will then learn numbers 17-19. They review check will most likely take place on Wednesday. If your child failed to get the roots when they were taught in class last week, they are responsible for getting them from a peer during morning work or recess. They are also available on the blog under the resource tab.
Literature: In literature this week, students will finish reading chapter 20 and then read chapters 21-23. They will then end the week by reading one of the most famous stories in the Western tradition, the story of David and Goliath. The focus will be on the courage of David, and how they should demonstrate courage in their lives today.
Math: Students will take the unit 1, chapter 5 test on Monday, which is over the orders of operations. They will then have a brief chapter on negative numbers. They will have a test on chapter six at the end of the week.