Greetings Families,
The class has successfully put two weeks under their belts and are ready to jump into week three. I've had a lot of fun thus far. I'm very blessed to have such a great class with a lot of enjoyable students. We've also done a good deal of learning. We have finished our first history unit, geography, taken two math tests, place value and estimation, and will be tested on the first science unit this week, chemistry. It is amazing how quickly things move in first grade.
Toward the bottom of this post, I'll take a brief time to discuss the classes academic performance. Though we've taken measures to reduce the homework to more reasonable amounts over the past couple of years, the learning expectation of fourth grade remains the same. The rigor of fourth grade from third grade is substantial, and it does take some time for students to adjust.
Let's pause there and take a look at the lessons for this week.
Lessons
Grammar/Writing: This week, students will learn about adjectives and adverbs. For those students who attended a Great Hearts school last year, this should be review. There is an assessment on Friday.
History: During history last week, the students briefly reviewed the glory of the Roman Empire. Following that short conversation, the class discussed what led to the fall of Rome. Due to a good deal of fighting among generals more concerned with their own glory than the glory of the empire grew weak. This created an opportunity for the barbarian tribes from northern Europe and Asia to attach and eventually the end of the Roman Empire in 476.
This week, students will look at how the Middle Ages, commonly referred to as the Dark Ages, were not really all that dark. Instead, Renaissance writers simply looked down on those who had come before them and had forgotten a good deal of what the Greeks and Romans had known. However, there were still great rules and advancements that took place during the Middle Ages. They will also look at the important role the Church played during the Middle Ages and the split of the Church when what had once been the Catholic Church (catholic meaning universal) became the Roman Catholic Church in the West and the Eastern Orthodox Church in the East.
Literature: The students have continued their journey with Irene and Curdie in The Princess and the Goblin and will this week read chapters nine through ten. In addition to reading and summarizing this week, students will take a look at narrative perspective (1st person, 2nd person, & 3rd person) and how the author develops characters directly and indirectly in the text. There is a short review check on Friday over a narrative perspective.
Math: Factors were briefly introduced on Friday, and this week students will be expected to master the concept of factors. As I pointed out to students on Friday, the key to being good with factors is to know the multiplication facts. For students who are still struggling with factor memorization, this will be a difficult unit. Overall, I would say somewhere between half and two-thirds of the students know the addition and multiplication facts well. For those who are still struggling, they should use their math facts cards for around five minutes a night. I'll put some additional information about the facts below. The factors test is on Wednesday.
Poetry: Over the first two weeks of school, students should have been working toward memorization of our first poem, "Humanity," by Elma Stuckey. This week, students will be called at random between Monday and Friday to recite the poem.
Greek and Latin Roots: Students had a review check last week to assess their knowledge of the first four roots. Not surprisingly, many students failed this first review check. Thankfully, the weight of these weekly "quizzes" are very little. They do however allow the child to know that they are not dedicating the necessary effort to memorize the roots. This week, they will have a review check on number 5-7. In addition, they will learn numbers 8-10. Though this week's review check is brief, at only three roots, next week's will be longer. Every four weeks, the review check is over all of the roots taught. Therefore, students should be reviewing all of their roots weekly to maintain memorization. Here is the PowerPoint with all of the roots.
Science: The class is nearing the end of their first unit. This week, students read about how engineers are using solutions to solve problems, compare the solubility of salt and sugar, be assessed on chemistry, and start their study of electricity. The chemistry test is on Thursday, and students should have started completing part of their study guide over the weekend. Here is a Quizlet that might help them prepare. I'll also embed the Quizlet below. In addition, there is a science quiz on Monday. I will list the question students must be able to answer on the quiz for them to study below.
Spalding: In Spalding this week, students will learn ten words on Monday. On Tuesday and Wednesday, students will start working on the rule pages. If we are able to make good progress on the rule pages, the students may learn attentional words. The goal will be to use our time wisely and to be as productive as we can without sacrificing good, neat work.
Weekly Schedule
Other Topics
Academic Performance: As we start to send some graded work home, you may be surprised by the poor performance of some of your child. I want to give you a two-fold message about this. First, don't become stressed out because of it. Second, the sooner your child's corrects it the better. Okay, so back to the first comment. Don't become stressed out. The reality is, fourth grade is very different from third grade. Third grade does a good job of preparing the students, but there is no way to really prepare them. The biggest thing students have to adjust to is that they are always being held accountable for their learning. This is the point of having some many quizzes and short tests. We do this because it helps train the students to discipline their minds to focus during lessons. We also do it because it gives us great data as to the child's learning, mastery, and retention.
If your child was a thriving student in third grade, chances are he or she will adjust to the expectations of fourth grade and start receiving the grades you expect. If your child struggled in third grade, chances are it will take some time for him or her to adjust to fourth grade. In the end, immediate grades are not what matters. What matters is do they understand the material eventually. So, a child may fail the first two math tests of the year because they don't know place value. That is concerning, but as long as they know place value and how to round by the end of the semester, the objective has been met. It just wasn't met at the rate of the curriculum. Thus, let a child's grades guide your understanding of how he or she is performing. A grade is only a snapshot. Don't let a child's grade determine your view of your child's abilities.
Cursive: Now that we've spent two weeks teaching manuscript (print) and cursive, all students are expected to use cursive on their work. This will be easier for some and more difficult for others. But, the ability to write beautifully should be desired by all of us. There is no reason that the beauty of writing should not match the beauty of the prose we aspire for.
Mechanical Pencils: Students may use mechanical pencils if 4B if they would like. Wood pencils are always allowed. If they become a problem, then I'll take them away from particular students or the class, but all of my fourth-grade classes prior to this one have been able to handle it. However, please do not purchase expensive mechanical pencils for them. Theft is always an issue, sadly. They will lose them. Students will have the same kinds, so they get taken accidentally. If your child would like to use mechanical pencils, please either buy them really cheap ones or put a label on it.
Clubs: For those who have children in clubs, they begin this week. Many of the clubs are already full, but you can see the clubs for the fall here.
Tutoring: This week, I will start inviting students to math tutoring. Tutoring will be on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. On Tuesday, it will be from 3:05-3:35 p.m. And on Wednesday, it will be from 2:05-2:35 p.m. Please show up at 3:35 and 2:35 accordingly. If you show up to early, you will clog up the pickup line. If you don't arrive by 3:45 and 2:45 p.m., there is a cost for late pickup. There is no tutoring this week because I have a dentist appointment. If you don't receive an email about math tutoring, but believe your child should receive the extra instruction, please email me to let me know.
Math Facts: When I met with third-grade families last year, they asked me where they should focus their attention over the summer to ensure that their child is ready for fourth grade. I said, without a doubt, the two most important things they could do were to have their children read for 20-30 minutes every day and to master math facts. Many of the students have come into fourth grade with great math fact memorization. Some have not. No matter where they are now, what matters is that they get to mastery as soon as possible. Given that this is a skill that is expected to be mastered by the end of third grade, the fourth-grade curriculum doesn't provide much time for this work. We are doing Rocket Math in class every day. I am sending home worksheets many nights. We play around the world in class often. Yet, for some, this will not be enough.
Flashcards are a great way for children to work on this skill, and that is why we have required them this year. However, someone can only take so much flashcard work. If you allow your child to use the internet, I recommend Math Playground. They have some subscription-based games, but many of the multiplication and division games are still free. I recommend that you go here to look at them to see if they could benefit your child's math fact fluency. I personally like Grand Prix Multiplication.
Science Quiz
I hope this post has been beneficial to you. If you need anything, please let me know.
Best,
Michael Naaktgeboren
The class has successfully put two weeks under their belts and are ready to jump into week three. I've had a lot of fun thus far. I'm very blessed to have such a great class with a lot of enjoyable students. We've also done a good deal of learning. We have finished our first history unit, geography, taken two math tests, place value and estimation, and will be tested on the first science unit this week, chemistry. It is amazing how quickly things move in first grade.
Toward the bottom of this post, I'll take a brief time to discuss the classes academic performance. Though we've taken measures to reduce the homework to more reasonable amounts over the past couple of years, the learning expectation of fourth grade remains the same. The rigor of fourth grade from third grade is substantial, and it does take some time for students to adjust.
Let's pause there and take a look at the lessons for this week.
Lessons
Grammar/Writing: This week, students will learn about adjectives and adverbs. For those students who attended a Great Hearts school last year, this should be review. There is an assessment on Friday.
History: During history last week, the students briefly reviewed the glory of the Roman Empire. Following that short conversation, the class discussed what led to the fall of Rome. Due to a good deal of fighting among generals more concerned with their own glory than the glory of the empire grew weak. This created an opportunity for the barbarian tribes from northern Europe and Asia to attach and eventually the end of the Roman Empire in 476.
This week, students will look at how the Middle Ages, commonly referred to as the Dark Ages, were not really all that dark. Instead, Renaissance writers simply looked down on those who had come before them and had forgotten a good deal of what the Greeks and Romans had known. However, there were still great rules and advancements that took place during the Middle Ages. They will also look at the important role the Church played during the Middle Ages and the split of the Church when what had once been the Catholic Church (catholic meaning universal) became the Roman Catholic Church in the West and the Eastern Orthodox Church in the East.
Literature: The students have continued their journey with Irene and Curdie in The Princess and the Goblin and will this week read chapters nine through ten. In addition to reading and summarizing this week, students will take a look at narrative perspective (1st person, 2nd person, & 3rd person) and how the author develops characters directly and indirectly in the text. There is a short review check on Friday over a narrative perspective.
Math: Factors were briefly introduced on Friday, and this week students will be expected to master the concept of factors. As I pointed out to students on Friday, the key to being good with factors is to know the multiplication facts. For students who are still struggling with factor memorization, this will be a difficult unit. Overall, I would say somewhere between half and two-thirds of the students know the addition and multiplication facts well. For those who are still struggling, they should use their math facts cards for around five minutes a night. I'll put some additional information about the facts below. The factors test is on Wednesday.
Poetry: Over the first two weeks of school, students should have been working toward memorization of our first poem, "Humanity," by Elma Stuckey. This week, students will be called at random between Monday and Friday to recite the poem.
Greek and Latin Roots: Students had a review check last week to assess their knowledge of the first four roots. Not surprisingly, many students failed this first review check. Thankfully, the weight of these weekly "quizzes" are very little. They do however allow the child to know that they are not dedicating the necessary effort to memorize the roots. This week, they will have a review check on number 5-7. In addition, they will learn numbers 8-10. Though this week's review check is brief, at only three roots, next week's will be longer. Every four weeks, the review check is over all of the roots taught. Therefore, students should be reviewing all of their roots weekly to maintain memorization. Here is the PowerPoint with all of the roots.
Science: The class is nearing the end of their first unit. This week, students read about how engineers are using solutions to solve problems, compare the solubility of salt and sugar, be assessed on chemistry, and start their study of electricity. The chemistry test is on Thursday, and students should have started completing part of their study guide over the weekend. Here is a Quizlet that might help them prepare. I'll also embed the Quizlet below. In addition, there is a science quiz on Monday. I will list the question students must be able to answer on the quiz for them to study below.
Spalding: In Spalding this week, students will learn ten words on Monday. On Tuesday and Wednesday, students will start working on the rule pages. If we are able to make good progress on the rule pages, the students may learn attentional words. The goal will be to use our time wisely and to be as productive as we can without sacrificing good, neat work.
Weekly Schedule
- Monday-Friday: Poem Recitation ("Humanity," by Elma Stuckey)
- Monday: Science Quiz (Chemistry)
- Wednesday: Math Test (Factors)
- Wednesday: Greek and Latin Roots Review Check (#5-7)
- Thursday: Science Test (Chemistry)
- Friday: Grammar Test (Adjectives and Adverbs)
- Friday: Literature Review Check (Narrative Perspective)
- Friday: Spalding Test
Other Topics
Academic Performance: As we start to send some graded work home, you may be surprised by the poor performance of some of your child. I want to give you a two-fold message about this. First, don't become stressed out because of it. Second, the sooner your child's corrects it the better. Okay, so back to the first comment. Don't become stressed out. The reality is, fourth grade is very different from third grade. Third grade does a good job of preparing the students, but there is no way to really prepare them. The biggest thing students have to adjust to is that they are always being held accountable for their learning. This is the point of having some many quizzes and short tests. We do this because it helps train the students to discipline their minds to focus during lessons. We also do it because it gives us great data as to the child's learning, mastery, and retention.
If your child was a thriving student in third grade, chances are he or she will adjust to the expectations of fourth grade and start receiving the grades you expect. If your child struggled in third grade, chances are it will take some time for him or her to adjust to fourth grade. In the end, immediate grades are not what matters. What matters is do they understand the material eventually. So, a child may fail the first two math tests of the year because they don't know place value. That is concerning, but as long as they know place value and how to round by the end of the semester, the objective has been met. It just wasn't met at the rate of the curriculum. Thus, let a child's grades guide your understanding of how he or she is performing. A grade is only a snapshot. Don't let a child's grade determine your view of your child's abilities.
Cursive: Now that we've spent two weeks teaching manuscript (print) and cursive, all students are expected to use cursive on their work. This will be easier for some and more difficult for others. But, the ability to write beautifully should be desired by all of us. There is no reason that the beauty of writing should not match the beauty of the prose we aspire for.
Mechanical Pencils: Students may use mechanical pencils if 4B if they would like. Wood pencils are always allowed. If they become a problem, then I'll take them away from particular students or the class, but all of my fourth-grade classes prior to this one have been able to handle it. However, please do not purchase expensive mechanical pencils for them. Theft is always an issue, sadly. They will lose them. Students will have the same kinds, so they get taken accidentally. If your child would like to use mechanical pencils, please either buy them really cheap ones or put a label on it.
Clubs: For those who have children in clubs, they begin this week. Many of the clubs are already full, but you can see the clubs for the fall here.
Tutoring: This week, I will start inviting students to math tutoring. Tutoring will be on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. On Tuesday, it will be from 3:05-3:35 p.m. And on Wednesday, it will be from 2:05-2:35 p.m. Please show up at 3:35 and 2:35 accordingly. If you show up to early, you will clog up the pickup line. If you don't arrive by 3:45 and 2:45 p.m., there is a cost for late pickup. There is no tutoring this week because I have a dentist appointment. If you don't receive an email about math tutoring, but believe your child should receive the extra instruction, please email me to let me know.
Math Facts: When I met with third-grade families last year, they asked me where they should focus their attention over the summer to ensure that their child is ready for fourth grade. I said, without a doubt, the two most important things they could do were to have their children read for 20-30 minutes every day and to master math facts. Many of the students have come into fourth grade with great math fact memorization. Some have not. No matter where they are now, what matters is that they get to mastery as soon as possible. Given that this is a skill that is expected to be mastered by the end of third grade, the fourth-grade curriculum doesn't provide much time for this work. We are doing Rocket Math in class every day. I am sending home worksheets many nights. We play around the world in class often. Yet, for some, this will not be enough.
Flashcards are a great way for children to work on this skill, and that is why we have required them this year. However, someone can only take so much flashcard work. If you allow your child to use the internet, I recommend Math Playground. They have some subscription-based games, but many of the multiplication and division games are still free. I recommend that you go here to look at them to see if they could benefit your child's math fact fluency. I personally like Grand Prix Multiplication.
Science Quiz
- Mendeleev is a Russian scientist who put the elements in order according to their atomic weight, creating the periodic table.
- Elements are pure substances that cannot be broken down into simpler substances.
- Thomson is the scientist who discovered electrons.
- Density is the amount of matter in an object relative to the space the object fills.
- Rutherford is the scientist who discovered the nucleus.
- Each element is composed of one type(s) of atom.
- A solution is formed when a solute is dissolved into a solvent.
- A vacuum is the absence of matter.
- When elements combine physically, they form a mixture.
Science Test Quizlet
I hope this post has been beneficial to you. If you need anything, please let me know.
Best,
Michael Naaktgeboren