Fourth Grade News 

September 27th, 2017 

Our Class Rules 

A Look Ahead   
  After creating our individual hopes and dreams for 
First Celebration of Learners (C.O.L.)​:  the school year, our classroom revisited the school 
Friday, September 29th 8:10-8:50  rules and made a new set of rules. Here they are! 
   
Picture Day​: 
Wednesday, October 4th 
 
Open House​: 
Tuesday, October 17th 
 
EARLY RELEASE 
Wednesday, October 18th- 11:30 NO LUNCH SERVED 
 
NO SCHOOL 
Thursday, October 19th and Friday, October 20th 
 
Scholastic Book Orders 
Due the ​2nd ​Friday of the month 
Class Code:​ HG2QY 
 
Our classroom blog is coming along, but it still a   
work in progress. Please feel free to visit us at:   
http://ces-sarahboucher.weebly.com   

Curriculum Night  Benchmark Assessments 

   
It was a pleasure to see so many of you at our  The past few weeks, we have been assessing your 
Fourth Grade Curriculum Night!. Many thanks for  child in Reading and Math. Some of the 
fitting just one more thing into your busy fall  assessments are done with the whole class all at 
schedules. At Curriculum Night, the 4th grade  once, while others are done individually. We hope 
teachers went over the ins and outs of the  to complete these “benchmark” assessments by the 
classroom, fourth grade expectations and  middle of October so we know where your child is 
assessments, what the day and year looks like and  with his or her learning and where we want to 
many other details. We hope that this time was  take them. As always, if your child expresses 
helpful to those who attended. For those families  anxiety about these assessments, please contact 
that were not able to attend, the packet from that  your child’s teacher..  
evening is being sent home along with this 
newsletter. Please take some time to look this 
over and let me know if you have any questions.   
 Fourth Grade News 
September 27th, 2017 

   
Reader’s Workshop  Writer’s Workshop 
  The important thing about fourth graders is that they 
During our Reading time, we’ve focused our lessons  are readers and writers! The very first week of school, 
we read ​The Important Book​ by Margaret Wise Brown. 
on the Common Core State Standard goal of being 
We used this book as a mentor text and wrote our own 
able to read and understand fourth grade fiction  pages about ourselves! Fourth graders have also been 
and nonfiction texts (RL4.1 and RI4.1) and reading  working on our first poems called “I AM” poems. They 
with the fluency and accuracy it takes to  are really getting creative as they think deeply about 
understand fourth grade texts. (RF4.4).   who they really are while learning how to focus each 
To reach these goals we’ve...  line on one topic at the same time. 
● Learned how to choose a “just right” book  On the first week of school, the students really enjoyed 
● Discussed and practiced how to partner  decorating their Writing Notebooks to make them 
read  personalized so that they inspire them to write! We’ve 
● Compared and contrasted the differences  learned about what writers do, journaled and started 
between fiction and nonfiction  many lists to give us ideas of things to write about. 
● Identified features of nonfiction texts  Our goal is to fill up every page with lots of well crafted 
● Explored our classroom library   writing! Students will soon say... 
● Started setting up our ‘Reading Response  ● I can write on a regular basis with stamina for 
Journal’ that we will use this year.  different tasks, purposes, and audiences. W.4.10 
● Started filling out our reading book logs 
each day! 

 
Math 
We are currently exploring place value in the 
fourth grade. Students are able to say... 
● I can read and write larger whole numbers 
using numerals, words and in expanded 
form. 4.NBT.2 
Students are also learning to work with 
multiplication and division models. In this unit they 
will use rectangles to think about multiplication 
and division, use strategies to recall basic 
multiplication facts, find all the factors of a 
number and identify it as prime or composite, find   
the area and perimeter of rectangles and solve  We are enjoying teaching the students about the Habits 
word problems that involve multiplication and  of Mind that they should work towards as lifelong 
division.   learners. So far we have covered ​Persisting, Managing 
Students should be practicing their math facts  Impulsivity, and Listening with Understanding and 
each night! Have your child teach you how to play  Empathy​. We’ll continue to learn about these 
throughout the first trimester. Students are working 
Salute or other games to make memorizing the 
hard to use these habits and many will be recognized 
facts more fun!  for their efforts at our first C.O.L on Friday, September 
29th! We hope to see you there!   
 Fourth Grade News 
September 27th, 2017 

 
  Birthday Celebrations 
Thank YOU!  Fourth grade is an especially important year for 
We know there is A LOT of paperwork to fill out  celebrating birthdays as the children are entering 
during the first few weeks of the school year.  their second decade of life! In our class, we 
Many thanks for all your help in getting it in as  celebrate birthdays in various ways: Morning 
soon as possible. We also appreciate your efforts  Message compliments, special birthday songs and 
to complete the ​Parents and Partners​ sheet that  Morning Meeting activities. As a family, you can 
was attached to the Curriculum Night invitation. I  decide if you’d like to send in a special treat, or 
have enjoyed reading about your child from your  healthy snack, to celebrate. I just ask that you 
perspective and know this information will be  send in enough to share with all 16 children in the 
helpful as we help your child navigate these first  class. Summer birthdays will be celebrated at the 
few weeks of school. Thank you!  end of the school year at a date chosen by those 
children born in late June, July and August or, if 
they let me know ahead of time, they can celebrate 
on their half birthday! 

 
 
Books We’ve Read 
   
Jar of Kindness  First Day Jitters ​by Julie Danneberg 
  This School Year Will Be the Best​ by Kay Winters 
We are really off to a great start in 206! I have  Suman Crosses the Karnali River ​ by Engineering 
been extremely impressed with the behavior and  is an Elementary Team, Museum of Science 
efforts in our students during these first few  No, David​ by David Shannon 
weeks of school! The students are working hard 
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble​ by William Steig 
and respecting one another- helping to make our 
 
community GROW. I have challenged the students 
 
to have their own C.O.L. or Celebration of Learners 
as a reward.. If they work hard to be kind and  We will soon start reading the book, ​The Report 
thoughtful toward one another and use the Habits  Card​ by Andrew Clements. This is a realistic fiction 
of Mind, they can earn a class celebration of their  chapter book that we will be reading for the next 
choice! Students in room 206 will be looking for  month!   
ways that their classmates show Habits of Mind. 
We have also started reading the book ​The Littlest 
and will fill out a notecard when they’ve noticed it. 
Bigfoot ​by Jennifer Weiner. This counts towards 
As the notecards roll in, we will be placing marbles 
the five books from Dorothy’s List (D.C.F. books) 
in our Jar of Kindness and when we fill the jar we 
that fourth graders must read in order to be 
will have earned our first class celebration. Stay 
eligible to attend the D.C.F. Day at the Middle School 
tuned for our first celebration as we are well on 
next spring. 
our way! 
Fourth Grade News 
September 27th, 2017