How to Survive the 4th Grade

This year, Principal Phillips challenged us to do a project with the students in which they"tinker" with technology. Mrs.Lopez-Sinclair and I decided to have the students do a functional piece to teach upcoming 3rd graders "How to survive 4th grade ELA". The students were introduced to two web 2.0 sites: www.toondoo.com and www.prezi.com. Very little direction was given, and the students had to "tinker" with the sites, and figure them out on their own. In groups, they created the following INCREDIBLE presentations:

Emily P, Cavin, Parker, Tekiyah

Martina,Jacob,Angus,Tori

http://prezi.com/cs5ish4kixa1/how-to-survive-4th-grade-ela-with-mrslopez-sinclair-bymartinajacobangusand-tori/

Olivia, Gabby, Franchesca
http://prezi.com/48pmzahptyrx/how-to-survive-fourth-grade-ela/

Camden, Noah, Amber, Ben

http://prezi.com/0-c5ll8ju_ln/top-10-survival-tips-for-4th-grade-ela/

Nathan, Jaylon, Justin, Caleb
http://prezi.com/ef0wa0-oeixm/copy-of-survival-guidelines-for-4th-grade-ela/

Morgan, Zane, Eder, Peyton
http://prezi.com/p5zvztfmear-/copy-of-the-survival-guide-to-fourth-grade-ela/


Will, Mackenzie, Veronica, Ben V.
http://prezi.com/larqfixjiklc/survival-guide-for-fourth-grade-ela-bywillben-vveronicamackenzie/

Preston, Jayan, and Ben W.

http://prezi.com/gplib5vlizps/survival-skills-for-the-4th-grade-ela-classrooms/

Hayden, Ashley, Keyandra, Luke:
http://prezi.com/mal6z5c7hi8u/how-to-survive-4th-grade-ela-with-mrsoleary/

Chloe, Katelyn, Courtney, Aaliyah

http://prezi.com/9rsazhs1ki2x/how-to-survive-4th-grade-ela-chloe/


Alex, Madison, Clay, Jordan, Andrew F.

http://prezi.com/b4vnjuhiez6z/copy-of-how-to-survive-4th-grade-ela-alex/

Nathan, Romaria, Rida, Melina, Evan:







Blake, Mia, Katyeryn, Caitlyn:

Emily, Sophia, Heather, Andrew W.

The Astonishing Adventure of Teddy Bodain

This book was recommended as a great read aloud by a colleague at Chets Creek Elementary School. She said that it was recommended to her by a teacher who taught in a different school where attendance was low. It was this read aloud that got her students wanting to come to school every day to hear the next letter entry. In our ELA classes, we have been reading this incredible story of Teddy Bodain set in 1892. Our students hang on to every word and never want us to stop reading. Personally, I cannot wait to read this book to my students every day!

A book review by M.O. Neill

“The Astonishing Journey of Teddy Bodain" is a story that will remain in your heart for months and months after you finish the book. Teddy Bodain is a character with whom all children, boy or girl, can connect. I teach 4th grade and I have witnessed just how much my students love and cherish this story. The story is written in a friendly letter format. I read one letter each day aloud to my students. Never have I read a book to a group of children who literally beg for more after the one letter has been read. When it is time for "Teddy Bodain" to be read aloud, my students clap! They cheer! Their faces light up! They sit on the edge of their seats anxiously waiting to hear what adventure Teddy will face that day. The students lose themselves in the story, allowing them to reflect back to how life was in the late 1800's. They are able to show character empathy to each and every character. My students wish they could be Teddy Bodain so they could have the chance to experience the same adventures that she does. The accountable talk that develops among the students after each letter is read is amazing. Teddy will become a best friend to anyone who reads this book. "The Astonishing Journey of Teddy Bodain" will touch your heart in more ways than you can imagine. Believe me. My heart is touched each time I read a letter. I know a group of 4th graders whose hearts have been touched as well. We have all found a treasure in this beautiful story.

The above book review expresses my thoughts perfectly. Now, we would love to hear the opinions from our 4th grade students. Tell the world what you think of "The Astonishing Journey of Teddy Bodain". What you have to say might be an inspiration for other readers!

Skills Test Help

This week's Write for Today is tough! My students were asking for some extra practice. Go to these sites for some extra help:

Capitalizing Rules:
http://www.quia.com/mc/3522.html

http://www.studyzone.org/testprep/ela4/g/capitalizationp1.cfm

Irregular Past Tense Verbs:
http://www.tcet.com/eaonline/FlashedESL/fe-pastirregular.html

http://www.helpingwithverbs.com/lessons/PastTenseVerbs.htm

Proofreading Practice:
http://www.eduplace.com/kids/hme/k_5/proofread/

"Write 4 Today" Study Sites

Some of my students have been struggling with studying for our Write 4 Today quizes, and asked for some extra help. Here are some fun sites to practice with :

School House Rock Video:
http://youtu.be/fdUXxdmhIsw

The Predicate Coaster:
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/predicate_coaster/index.html

Sink or Swim:
http://fen.com/studentactivities/SinkOrSwim/SinkorSwim.html

Print out for extra practice:
http://teacher.scholastic.com/lessonrepro/reproducibles/profbooks/predicates.pdf

Commas

Comma Cartoons:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWyrN22Zmuo&feature=relmfu&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1

http://youtu.be/ZAUjO2gEfXI

Commas in a series BATTLESHIP:
http://www.quia.com/ba/38272.html

Comma Confusion Space Game:

http://www.compasslearningodyssey.com/sample_act/34lang_confusion.html

Lots of extra help:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/words/grammar/punctuation/commas/

Have fun studying!

:)Mrs.O'Leary

SPIRIT WEEK

What a fun week to come to school at Chets. We saw many "new" sides to the students and teachers in 4 Corners as we varied our ususal looks and adorned farmer attire, mismatched clothing, silly socks and crazy hair. Many of us also transformed into awesome pop or rock stars on Friday! Enjoy the slideshow of pictures which highlight many of these fun new looks!

FCAT will be "NO SWEAT" next week!!!! Bring it on!
Be sure to leave a comment telling how you KNOW you are ready for next week's FCAT! Also, take our blog "poll" and vote for your favorite Spirit Day from this past week!

Mrs. O'Leary's Beautiful Wedding !!

Ms. Launey (now Mrs. O'Leary) was simply gorgeous and elegant at her wedding! The groom was very handsome! Together, they make a perfect couple! The wedding ceremony was just beautiful. The weather could not have been more pleasant. Dinner was absolutely delicious! The wedding cake was delectable! Post-dinner dancing was delightful! The entire evening was unforgettable. Enjoy the pictures of her most special day! Thank you, Mrs. O'Leary for allowing us to share in your most perfect day!

Ms. Launey's Pre-Wedding Reception

Thank you to all of the 4 Corners students and parents for making today so special for Ms. Launey. We had such a special time celebrating her upcoming marriage to Mr. O'Leary. We enjoyed popcorn and refreshments, watching Ms. Launey open her special gifts, and dancing to all of our favorite songs together. It was a beautiful day at the Chets Creek Pavilion! Enjoy the slideshow of today's celebration!

Grimms Fairy Tales

This week we started our fairy tales study. After reading a traditional version of Cinderella, we analyzed the characters. We learned about fairy tale archetypes, which are types of characters that tend to show up in many different fairy tales. The six archetypes we are studying are:

-the damsel in distress (Cinderella)
-the helper (Fairy God Mother)
-the villian (the stepmother)
-the other evils (the step sisters)
-the person with mixed loyalty (Cinderella's father)
-the rescuer (The prince)

We have begun to look for these characters while we explore other fairy tales.

The children have been very surprised when reading some of the original Grimms Fairy Tales, which originated in Germany in the 1800's. The tend to be quite different than the Disney Fairy Tales the students are familiar with.

As promised, here are some Grimms Brothers links:

1. All about the Grimms Brothers
2. Grimms Fairy Tales
3. Animated Grimms Tales

Enjoy!

Fairy Tales, Myths, and Fables

What do you know about Fairy Tales, Myths, and Fables?



Get ready to bring your background knowledge as we start a new 6 week unit on these three genres. First, we will start out with Fairy Tales. What are some famous and memorable Fairy Tales that you know? What are your favorites? Have you read different versions of the same Fairy Tale? Next, we will move into Greek Myths. What explanations have you read for how things came to be? How did Myths get started? If you don’t know, you will soon find out. Finally, we will conclude with Fables. Do you know that these great stories teach us a lesson? Do you know that Fables were originated with a man name Aesop? Fables teach us morals and lessons that we can use in our every day life. Fables come from all different countries! Your teachers are so excited to teach this unit on these three genres! Happy Reading, here we start with Fairy Tales!!

Moon Phases

In Science, we have really been enjoying ourselves learning about the phases of the Moon. During the month of February, students observed the Moon each night outside their window and recorded it's changing appearance, allowing them to see 28 days of our Moon's 29 day cycle.

We have learned that the Moon has phases because it orbits Earth, which causes the portion we see illuminated to change. The Moon takes about 27 days to orbit Earth, but the lunar phase cycle (from new Moon to new Moon) lasts about 29 days. The Moon spends the extra 2 days "catching up" because Earth travels about 45 million miles around the Sun during the time the Moon completes one orbit around Earth.

Click here to see what each child's completed calendar should look like:
February Moon Phase Calendar

As we have studied the Moon's phases,we have also made booklets to help us learn what each phase is called. In doing this, our classes have identified several phases as being landmark phases. These are:

1) New Moon (the first (1)and last (29) day in our booklets )
At the new Moon phase, the Moon is so close to the Sun in the sky that none of the side facing Earth is illuminated. In other words, the Moon is between Earth and Sun.

2) First Quarter Moon (Day 8 in our booklet)
ONE QUARTER (the RIGHT quarter that we see) is lit....here, the moon is highest in the sky at sunset, then sets about six hours later.

3) Full Moon (Day 15 in our booklet- the middle day in the 29 day cycle)
On this day, the Moon is behind Earth in space with respect to the Sun. As the Sun sets, the Moon rises with the side that faces Earth fully exposed to sunlight. We are able to see the entire illuminated half of the moon! (Did you know that only one half of our Moon is always illuminated by our Sun, and that we NEVER see the other half from Earth??!!).

4) Last Quarter Moon (Day 21 in our booklet) ONE QUARTER (the LEFT quarter that we see) is lit.... (opposite of the First Quarter Moon).

Other terms students need to be famaliar with help to explain other phases that fall between these landmark phases are Waxing, Waning, Crescent and Gibbous. Refer to your child's Moon Phase booklet and accompanying lab sheet for more specifics.

Be sure to also ask your child about two other labs we are participating in on the Moon's Phases this week. You can also reference our science textbook HERE for more study information.

Don't forget to visit GIZMOS to review the 3-day virtual lab we worked on in class!! Thanks to Katelyn for her comment to this blog post- this online tool is the BEST at helping to show and explain the occurance of Moon Phases!

You can also click HERE to see a simple, quick time-lapsed video of the Moon Phase Cycle.

IT'S SHOWTIME!!

The Florida Writes Test is Coming Soon!!!

Need something to do over the weekend? How about one last writing prompt before our Florida Writes Test on Tuesday, March 1st? Your payment will be $100.00 Behavior Bucks on Monday, if you choose to take this challenge. Here is your prompt:

WRITING SITUATION:

It would be very interesting to be a coin.

DIRECTIONS FOR WRITING:

Before you begin writing, think about the adventures you would have as a quarter.

Now write a story about an adventure that a quarter might go through in an afternoon.

GRAB your READER

In writing, we have been working on many ways to make our writing more creative, and fun for the reader. One way to do this is by starting our piece with a grabber. A grabber is an opening sentence (or sometimes two!) that immediately captures the reader's attention. It flows naturally into the beginning of the piece. For example, lets say I was writing an expository piece about an animal that I would choose as a class pet. I might write something like this:

Some classrooms have gerbils, some have fish, but if I could choose a pet for my classroom I'd be way more creative than that! If I had my choice, we would have a monkey as a classroom pet.

Do you see how the grabber (in purple) immediately captures your attention? It leads right into the beginning (in grey), which tells us what the expository piece is going to be about.

There are many different strategies for writing grabbers. Here are a few we have been working on:

• SCENERIO


• VOICE


• MYSTERY


• OPINION


• ONOMATOPOEIA


• DIALOGUE


• GLOBAL STATEMENT/SPECIFIC STATEMENT


• RHETORICAL QUESTION


• FUNNY STATEMENT

Behavior Buck Challenge: Read the prompt below and comment with 2 different grabber/beginnings that would go with the prompt. You will earn $50.00 Behavior Bucks for finishing this challenge.

We have all lost something, or know someone who has lost something.

Before you begin writing, think about a time when you or someone else lost something.

Write to tell what happened the time you or someone else lost something.

The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins

The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins

by Barbara Kerley

With drawings by Brian Selznick

This is the true and unforgettable story of Victorian artist Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins who was a dedicated and passionate artist. He had a goal of building life-size models of dinosaurs envisioned from scientific fossils in the hope of educating the world about these awe-inspiring ancient animals. This was during a time when no one knew what dinosaurs were like.

We read this intriguing and captivating story aloud during Readers Workshop, and our students had much to take away from it. They learned to have courage and never give up on their dreams, because Waterhouse Hawkins never did, despite a corrupt politician who thwarted two years of his life's work in Central Park, New York City. They also learned that hard work and determination is the road to reaching your dreams and goals. Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins taught us all about the importance of believing in oneself and following your dreams.
He is a creative man who stretched the boundaries of what has been done before, and his legacy lives on today.

Watch this clip on Youtube and have your child recount the story as you flip through the incredible artwork together, page by page.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/He_qLTgKKQk?rel=0

Students, we would love for you to write a comment and share your thoughts and feelings about this amazing picture book.

Celebrating 100 Days of School !!

Today, our 4 Corners classes recognized the 100th Day of School in style- old style. :-)

Many of our students chose to accept the invitation to dress up as a 100 year old man or woman in celebration of this landmark day. Enjoy the pictures below, which show the creativeness and "style" of these students. If you are a 4 Corners student, also be sure to leave a comment sharing five mathematical facts representative of the number "100" to earn some extra Behavior Bucks. :-)

Congratulations to the Readers to Leaders!

The following students have read and responded to 10 chapter books so far this year! We are very proud of these students for reaching this goal. They will be attending the Reading Bingo Bonanza with Mrs.Phillips!

Ms.Launey's Homeroom:

Alex

Nathan

Jordan

Heather

Aaliyah

Mia

Evan

Andrew F.

Rida

Blake

Sophia

Emily

Katherine

Katelyn

Chloe

Andrew W.

Clay

Ms.Lopez-Sinclair's Homeroom

Morgan

Jaylon

Cavin

Franchesca

Jacob

Camden

Martina

Emily

Noah

Caleb

Tori

Nathan

Zane

Ms.Phillips' Homeroom

Alyssa

Emily C.

Will

Logan

Preston

Nya

Anastasia

Natali

Ashley

Angus

Ben V.

Ben W.

Sarah K.

Kamelia

Mr.Pinchot's Homeroom

Emma

Ethan

Matt

Ashley

Mario

Luke

Keyandra

Madison

Seth

Emily

Chris

Sarah

Janvi

Michael

Brendan

Miyah

Hayden

Alex

Jack

Inquiry is at the Heart of Science

In our classroom, we spend a great deal of time building understanding of how to "think like scientists". We discuss applications to the "real-world" daily, as we make connections to experiments and labs we regularly perform in class and as we discuss nonfiction material that we read and study together in order to deepen our understanding of scientific concepts.

Below is a list of important ideas that we continue to emphasize in science, which align to our state standards and the recommendations by the National Science Foundation.

1) Scientists use their background knowledge (and do research) before experimenting. They use this knowledge to make an educated guess (hypothesis) as to the outcome (the answer to their “testable question”).

2) When doing experiments, scientists carefully measure materials (when there are materials to measure) and they carefully collect measurement data (using tools such as rulers, timers, graduated cylinders, balance scales, etc.), so that they stay in control of the experiment, collect ACCURATE data, and draw accurate conclusions based on intentional variables (not unintentional variables that could occur if they performed a sloppy test (or trial).

3) Scientists change only one variable (called the independent variable) at a time when doing an experiment so that they will know what “caused” what they observed happening in the experiment. The change that occurs as a result of this independent variable is called the dependent variable. Scientists also have a “control”, a sample item intentionally left alone in its original condition that is not “experimented with”, so that as they observe changes in an experiment, they can recall the original state of what is being tested.

4) Scientists perform experiments multiple times to verify the validity of their data.

5) Scientists communicate with other scientists results of their work so that they may learn from each other. Differences in data collected (or outliers/unexpected outcomes) are analyzed so that the cause of these discrepancies can be determined (or scientists can at least "try" to determine why something unexpected happened).

6) In experiments where changes occur over a relative short period of time, data is collected frequently so that it will be known "when" a change occurred (such as in water evaporating from a cup left out in the sun)- scientists might check a water level and record the depleting amount of water in milliliters every 15 minutes so that they will have a good idea at what “time” the last of the water evaporated from the cup.

7) Data is collected at regular intervals (not haphazardly), and this information is often times compiled in a table/chart or put into a graph to better analyze the results so that reliable conclusions can be drawn.

8) Conclusions drawn after an experiment are based on evidence (collected and analyzed data), and the hypothesis is always reviewed and determined correct or incorrect.

9) Experiments and conclusions drawn (new ideas learned) always lead to NEW questions (goal: testable questions) and new experiment opportunities.

Inquiry is at the heart of science.
In our classroom, our students are immersed in science experiences to help build and sustain these ideas. We don’t just talk about them, we actually “do” these things, and we talk about why we are doing them as we do them so that the students will understand what science truly encompasses.

Which part of "being" a scientist do you find to be most enjoyable and why? Leave a comment. If you are on our Four Corners Team, a great comment will earn some great Behavior Bucks!

I Got Six

Chick-fil-A Night

WE LOVE OUR PARENTS!


A big thanks to all our 4th grade parents who brought their families in to eat dinner at Chick-fil-A and supported Chets Creek. In doing so, you are giving back to our incredible school, and you are helping our gracious business partner, Chick-fil-A. Just take a look at the families who came in during the time that I was there from 6:00-7:15pm. I know that there were more of you who came in after that. We appreciate all of you who came out!

Happy New Year 2011

HAPPY NEW YEAR!



What are your New Year’s Resolutions?

New Year’s Resolution: A goal someone sets out to accomplish in the coming year after reflecting upon self-improvement.

New Year’s Eve has always been a time for looking back to the past and more importantly planning for the New Year. It is a time to reflect on the changes we want (or need) to make and resolve to follow through on those changes.

Here are my New Year’s Resolutions for 2011:
*Improve my mind, body, and spirit and help others.
Mind – Learn something new each day.
Body – Do something active each day.
Spirit – Meditate/Pray daily.
Help Others – Commit a random act of kindness each day.

Now that I have shared my resolutions with you, write us a comment and share yours. Happy New Year 2011!

Love,
Mrs. Lopez-Sinclair