WHEW! It's only Monday, and I'm already overwhelmed with busy-ness. It is going to be a jam-packed week of learning! Here's what we have going on ...

Reading: We are searching for cause and effect as we read texts with Ms. M. in our Reading Teams. Soon, we will begin our class novel study of The Keeping Room, which will go along with our Social Studies work.

Word Study: We are taking a break from spelling and bending our minds around different sorts of analogies this week!

Language: We are learning the ins and outs of verbs so we can use them effectively in our writing. (Be sure to ask your child about "Not Yo' Gramma's Gramma' Songs" ...)

Writing: We have had a wonderful time telling stories from our past in conversation-- over the next 2-3 weeks, we will carefully craft one personal narrative or realistic fiction story that can be shared with others in writing.

Social Studies: We are kicking off our study of the American Revolution to find out why the colonies broke away from England! Paul Revere dropped by my room and mentioned that a certain Queen Barth and King Gadson miiiight be stopping in to help us with that ...

Okay, on to the BIG event: Colonial Day! It's happening this Friday, February 1st, and I daresay that it shall be splendid indeed! Here's the run-down:
- Each 4th-grade room will feature a different facet of colonial life: Home, Clothing, School, and Games. Ms. Matthews is quite looking forward to transforming into an old-fashioned school-marm.
- Students will rotate with their homerooms to each class between 8:30 and 11:10 am. (We have swapped Related Arts times with 2nd grade and will visit RA in the afternoon.)
- The cost is $2, to help cover the price of supplies.
- Students are not required to dress up in colonial costumes. I mean, let's face it-- that would be cool, but all you parents would hate me for springing that on you at the last minute, and all the kids would hate me for making them wear uncomfortable clothes. The teachers, on the other hand, will be dressed to the nines. :)
- Having said that, each child will have the opportunity to make a colonial hat and dress up for photos in Lord Steedly's abode. Moreover, if you and your child WANT to come up with colonial wear, go for it! It doesn't have to be complicated-- boys can wear a button-down shirt, roll up their pants, wear long socks, and don dress shoes. Girls can wear long skirts, braid and/or cover their hair, and throw on an apron. Let's have fun with this, eh?

So, I started off by saying that I'm overwhelmed with busy-ness ... but I'm also overwhelmed with excitement that I get to do so many wonderful things with such great kids. And that's a way better kind of overwhelmed to be. :)

Last week FLEW by! I missed my students while I was away for curriculum design on Tuesday and Wednesday, but it was time well-spent. My colleagues and I created a unit targeted at developing our students' vocabulary and word-building skills. We'll be implementing this instruction next month.

I'm expecting this week to whiz by, as well-- we will be busy with a lot of learning! Here are our goals for the week:

- Reading: We will identify cause and effect in various texts.
- Word Study: We will continue working with the words we were introduced to in our small groups last week.
- Language: We will correctly use verbs in the past, present, and future tense, as well as use helping and linking verbs.
- Writing: We will revise the essays we wrote for "Tricky Tom and Sneaky Sue" so that they feature more vivid verbs.
- Social Studies: We will review what we've learned about the colonies and show our knowledge on a test. We will also share our colonial brochures and investigate some primary documents that tell what brought early colonists to South Carolina.

Speaking of the colonies, 4th grade is looking forward to hosting its first Colonial Day in two weeks, on Friday, February 1st! Each 4th-grade teacher is planning a special activity that will help students get a feel for life in the colonies. Our classes will have a chance to experience each activity and imagine what it would have been like to be a colonist.

We would welcome any help you can give us with this exciting event, either by preparing materials beforehand or lending a hand on the day itself. If you would like to assist, please complete the form below. Thank you! We are looking forward to sharing this special day with our students!

We have had wonderful, learning-packed days since we've returned from Winter Break, and this week looks like it will be the same way. I am so proud of my classes for staying focused and trying their best!

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I have the opportunity to work with the 4th- and 5th-grade Language Arts teams for 2 full days. We will be designing instruction that will help our students build and use their vocabularies more effectively. I'm looking forward to getting to work with my colleagues but will certainly miss my students! Today, we discussed the work that they will be engaged in while I'm gone and reminded each other that behavioral expectations with a guest teacher are as good or better than behavioral expectations with Ms. Matthews. I'm confident they will make me proud.

Our goals for this week:
Reading - Identify main idea and key details in leveled texts about people who contribute to their communities.
Word Study - Goals will vary by small group.
Language - Identify, define, and use verbs in the past, present, and future tenses.
Writing - Practice writing an organized, interesting essay for "Tricky Tom and Sneaky Sue" (aka the authors of the PASS Writing Test).
Social Studies - Compare and contrast the 13 colonies. Create a travel brochure that tells which colonial region would be the best to visit and why.

Welcome back, everyone!!! I hope you and your loved ones had a safe, joyful, and relaxing break. I had a SUPER blessed two weeks spending time with my family at home, then traveling to snowy Pennsylvania with a dear friend. I know it can be difficult for all of us, adults and children alike, to get back to full workdays after having time off. However, I am SO excited about this new year of learning and will do my best to help the kids get excited, too! We will also be helping each other get back into the normal routine, so we will spend a good bit of time on the first day back reviewing our procedures and expectations. You can give your child invaluable assistance by helping him/her get back to consistent sleeping and homework routines.

Our goals for the next week and a half:
Reading. We will identify the main idea and supporting details used in various texts.
Word Study. As a class, we will study the meanings and spellings of more common suffixes. (I will be alternating between whole-group and small-group Word Study over the next few weeks instead of trying to cram both into every week. So, your child will not always have a new set of Word Study cards ... it will depend!)
Language. We will practice forming plural nouns and possessive nouns, since this is a tricky distinction we're still struggling with a bit.
Writing. We will finish and share our classmate biographies, and then spend some time preparing for our upcoming PASS Writing Exam. (More information on that in my next post!)
Social Studies. We will study how and why different American colonies were established, and explore what life was like for these early pioneers.

Who's ready for some wonderful wintry wandering through the world of wisdom? This lady is!