Happy November!
As we launch into our new non-fiction reading unit, I am so excited by how motivated students are to immerse themselves in the work of learning. Our discussions on "coding" non-fiction texts and understanding the difference between narrative and expository pieces during ELA instruction really calls on them to use everything they ever learned about the art of reading.
Knowing that narrative non-fiction has the characteristics of "stories", while maintaining factual understanding can be challenging for kids. While expository fiction requires students to find ways of learning and retaining information on groups of things often housed under one topic. It can be a demanding, yet stimulating endeavor.
Not only must students read and comprehend the information, they must also find ways of retaining what they are learning. To do this, they must identify the text structure and select an appropriate organizer to help them hold on to new ideas.
These are skills that will be valuable to them as learners throughout their academic careers, and it is thrilling for me to be a part of this process with your child.
Below, please find some links that I think you will find interesting. They will help you have a deeper understanding of some of the work we are doing, and how to be an informed part of the learning going on in our classroom.
Best -
Vivian
Understanding Text Structure I
The Importance of Teaching Text Structure
Friday, November 3, 2017
Tuesday, August 15, 2017
Welcome to the Fourth Grade!
Dear Fourth Grader,
I am so excited to be welcoming you to Fourth Grade! Tuesday, September 5th will be the start of a great new academic and social experience. We are going to have a fantastic year together!
I have spent the summer thinking about and putting together great projects, ideas, and units that we will spend the year exploring. So, to get your minds ready for this year, spend some time over these next few weeks thinking about how we can help make Fourth Grade a great year for you. What will your goals be? How can we work together to achieve them? These are some year-long conversations that we will begin as soon as you arrive in September. Don’t worry about not having answers to these questions right away! Our learning experiences and reflections will be our guides to an exciting and enriching year. Every new day or experience will be an opportunity to add something special to our class. While you are waiting for the first day of school to roll around, I hope that you are reading and practicing your addition, subtraction, division and multiplication facts!
On the first day of school please bring in a few books (2) that you read this summer. Also, please bring three current pictures of yourself.
These are the school supplies you will need if you haven’t ordered a PTA supply box:
- Five marble composition books
- Ten glue sticks
- One box of colored pencils
- One box of twistable crayons (crayons in a hard, twistable sleeve)
- 50 pencils
- 1 pink eraser
- One box of tissues
- Two yellow highlighters
- Two packages of 3”x3” lined post-its
- One blue two-pocket folder
- 1 package of thin markers
- 1 package of thick markers
- 1 set of watercolor paints
Love,
Mrs. Robert
Monday, April 3, 2017
We are so excited for our new mystery reading unit! 4Robert detectives will focus on the elements of this thrilling genre to solve the mysteries in their books...
Group 1:
The Nina, The Pinta, and the Vanishing Treasure
The Mystery of Mr. Nice
Jaguar's Jewel
The Goose's Gold
Deadly Dungeon
Falcon's Feather
Group 2:
Who Stole Grandma's Million Dollar Pumpkin Pie?
Crime Biters
Group 3:
The Clearing
Eleven
Dead Letter
Group 4:
Dead Letter
The Hotel Thief
Group 5:
The Skeleton Man
The Westing Game
Group 1:
The Nina, The Pinta, and the Vanishing Treasure
The Mystery of Mr. Nice
Jaguar's Jewel
The Goose's Gold
Deadly Dungeon
Falcon's Feather
Group 2:
Who Stole Grandma's Million Dollar Pumpkin Pie?
Crime Biters
Group 3:
The Clearing
Eleven
Dead Letter
Group 4:
Dead Letter
The Hotel Thief
Group 5:
The Skeleton Man
The Westing Game
Monday, February 27, 2017
Welcome back 4th grade friends! We are off to another great week of book club work. This week, our focus remains interpretation in social issue clubs. Please find the correct padlet for your club. Happy posting!
Things Not Seen
Raymie Nightingale
Trouble Maker
The Boy on the Porch
Jake Drake: Class Clown
Jake Drake
Fig Pudding
Loser
Freak the Mighty
From the Mixed-Up Files...
Mudshark
Jake Drake: Know-It-All
Things Not Seen
Raymie Nightingale
Trouble Maker
The Boy on the Porch
Jake Drake: Class Clown
Jake Drake
Fig Pudding
Loser
Freak the Mighty
From the Mixed-Up Files...
Mudshark
Jake Drake: Know-It-All
Friday, February 10, 2017
Good morning! I hope you enjoyed the short story, Marble Champ, by Gary Soto. Please find your padlet to post your responses. Enjoy!
Marble Champ 1
Marble Champ 2
Marble Champ 3
Marble Champ 4
Marble Champ 5
Marble Champ 1
Marble Champ 2
Marble Champ 3
Marble Champ 4
Marble Champ 5
Tuesday, February 7, 2017
Good morning 4th graders! I hope you are excited to start your new padlets for the the short story, Stray, by Cynthia Rylant. Below, please find the correct padlet for your group! Happy interpreting!
Stray - Group 1
Stray - Group 2
Stray - Group 3
Stray - Group 4
Stray - Group 5
Stray - Group 1
Stray - Group 2
Stray - Group 3
Stray - Group 4
Stray - Group 5
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
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