In fourth grade this coming week, we are looking forward to getting back to our class routine, having successfully finished the ERB testing last week. The testing provided an opportunity for the students to try their hand at standardized testing, which will be something they will encounter again later in their academic careers (SSAT, SAT, ACT). The fourth grade met the challenge of taking the ERB’s with aplomb, and did not seem to be terribly phased by the process. I want to reiterate that the results of the ERB’s do not affect the students grades in any way, but are simply a tool we use to measure and reaffirm our school’s curriculum.
In math, we are working on multi-digit multiplication. We will be heading into our exploration of division shortly, and mastery of multi-digit multiplication will be extremely useful when we begin that unit. In order to provide the students with several methods for accomplishing multi-digit multiplication, I will be showing them both the traditional method, as well as the box method, the lattice method and the breaking apart method. Most students will discover they have an affinity for one or more methods, depending upon their learning style.
In English, we are enjoying our current class book, There is A Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom. The book has prompted great classroom discussion, as well as written responses. It has been interesting for the students to place themselves into the shoes of the fifth grade characters we’ve encountered. We are still fairly early in the book and we are just getting to know the characters, but the ability to greatly relate to characters who are very similar to themselves has been exciting. In addition to reading our new class book, the students are continuing their vocabulary work in Wordly Wise, as well as spelling.
In history, we are continuing our State Poster Project. The students are wrapping up their research on their selected eastern states early this week, and will begin working on their actual posters. Their research skills are really improving, and they are locating and identifying the information they need for their project with much greater efficiency, both on the computer and in print sources. These are skills that will serve them well as they move through their academic careers. Everyone seems to be enjoying this project, having a lot of fun in the discovery process, and I am looking forward to seeing their posters come together.
A quick thank you to Elise and Kristen for the wonderful Lunch Bunch last week! Everyone greatly enjoyed the delicious food, and it is always a welcome change when we get to enjoy a special meal together at lunch time.