"A PEEK INTO HAILEY'S LIFE IN ETHIOPIA" Slideshow

Below is the updated slideshow with better quality.

 Please visit her website at Hailey In Ethiopia

Unfortunately, this video doesn't work on an iPhone or iPad.

Sample for Opinion Writing

Room 20's Got Talent

We earned our Mystery Motivator!

Some students showed off their talents while others enjoyed watching while nibbling on a delicious cookie, homemade by Alec and family!

Thanks!

Enjoy some highlights below.

The Week Ahead

This week will be a little different!

We have our wonderful field trip to Olivas Adobe on Monday!

We will finish the last few chapters of Because of Winn-Dixie and have our book party this Thursday! We will be working on student chosen Final Winn-Dixie projects, as well.

We will also spend the week reflecting on the first grading period in order to develop goals and specific ways to achieve these goals! The students will be sharing their reflections and conclusions at the conferences next week! It will be A LOT of work, but well worth it!

We will continue to focus on writing in response to literature and figurative language.

Olivias Adobe Information

These photos include the information we went over in class, in case you want to take a look at it! 

Remember your towel and sack lunch for tomorrow!

Ballroom Dance Awesome Statements

Region Information

Busy Week Ahead!

Focuses of the Week

In Language Arts:

This week we will read and discuss Because of Winn-Dixie chapters 11-20. We will focus on character traits of the main characters. We will look for specific evidence from the text to support why we choose these traits to describe each character. Ask your children about Opal, Winn-Dixie, Gloria Dump, Miss Franny, Otis, the preacher, and Amanda. Use the chart below to guide your discussion.

Click HERE for the vocabulary words for Chapters 11-20. Vocabulary Wheel sections with word, definition and illustration are due Thursday!

In Writing:

We will continue to focus on narrative writing, building strong sentences and paragraphs, and moving on to multi paragraph essays!

In Math:

This week we will continue to focus on multiplication by 2 digit numbers. Although it may seem different than the way we learned, please know we are focusing on a deeper understanding of the concepts, rather than simply memorizing the algorithm/steps. This may prove frustrating, at first, but in the long run students will develop a deeper understanding and develop persistence in solving difficult problems! Thank you for your support!

In Science:

This week we will complete our investigation on the force of magnetism. There will be a test on Friday! Please encourage your child to share their Science Notebook with you. By teaching you the properties of magnets and the interesting discoveries they made, they will be studying for the test! Click on the FOSS website on the left side for more information.

In Social Studies:

We will complete our studies of Map Skills and California Regions, moving on to California Native American tribes, focusing on customs and culture. If you know a member of a California Native American tribe who would like to speak our 4th graders, to give them a first hand account and a deeper understanding, please let me know.

Ethiopia Update 

My daughter, Hailey has arrived in her permanent placement in Bele, Ethiopia. Bele is a small rural town of about 7,000 people. They have found her a room for a model classroom, cleaned out the harvested corn, painted the walls, and are even going to cut her out another window!

She is beyond excited and is now ready for us to send the books we have collected! Hailey told me last night that the children have NO books to read for pleasure, and that our donation would make a remarkable difference in the school AND the lives of many children!

Our next step is to write letters to companies, soliciting donations for shipping of these items. The expense will, most likely, be upwards from $700, so we have our work cut out for us! Please let us know if you have any connections with people in companies, who might be willing to participate and the students of Room 20 will send them a letter!

Thank you for your support, as always!

Click below to read Hailey's blog, if you would like.

Embracing Ethiopia

Thank you to those who have turned in permission slips and donations for the Olivas Adobe Field Trip on November 4th and also the slip for the Halloween party!

We had 13 people turn in the form to chaperone on the Olivas Adobe trip! We were allowed 4 chaperones, but I was able to increase that number to 6. We will put the slips in a hat on Monday morning and randomly chose 6. All chaperones MUST have a current LAUSD volunteer application and TB test on file in the office, in order to accompany us! 

Conferences are coming up soon. (November 9-19) 

These will be STUDENT, PARENT, TEACHER Conferences.

A preference sheet will come home this week. I will assign times on a first come, first assigned basis. Please choose a time that is convenient for BOTH you and your child. THANK YOU!

Our Fall Festival is Sunday, October 27th! It's a terrific event! Thank you for your donations to our class theme basket and volunteering to work at our booth! I can't wait to see everyone there!

Curriculum This Week

What's Going on in Class:

• ELA - This week, we will read and respond to Because of Winn-Dixie chapters 11-15.  We will review last week's chapters and have a class discussion on Tuesday and then move on to the new chapters.  The quiz for Chapters 6-10 will be on Wednesday.  This will cover vocabulary and comprehension questions. Click here for Vocabulary Flash Cards and here for Comprehension Flashcards
• Math - Topic 6 Multiplying by 2-digit numbers using the algorithm, arrays, models, partial products, and other methods.
• Science - We will continue our study on Magnets and the behaviors of magnets.  We will have the Investigation 1 test on Magnetism next Tuesday. Students should be studying and reviewing their Science Notebooks nightly.
• Social Studies - Wrap up the CA regions project in the computer lab.
• Writing - Narrative Writing

This Wednesday night is McTeacher Night from 4:30-7:30! I will be working there

THE WHOLE TIME!

My favorite thing to do is to make the desserts! Come by so I can make you a cone!

DODGERS!!!!

Dodgers are going to the National League Championships!

Wear you Dodger Blue tomorrow!!

Quizlet for Winn-Dixie 1-5

Flashcards for Chapters 1-5 Vocabulary for Winn-Dixie

This Week in Room 20

We have been very busy learning!

Please note that the curriculum news written on this page is my goal for our classroom, but often times, we are unable to cover everything exactly as planned.  Unforeseen events and other classroom activities do occur and can cause us to get behind.  Sometimes, students are not ready to move forward and need more time to practice a skill or concept.  In that case, I will always adjust test and quiz dates and give students advance notice.  Check your child's planner for the updated due dates and important deadlines.

This week in:

Math- We will continue working and the concept of multiplication by a one digit number. We have been learning different ways to show understanding of this concept. Please ask us to show off! The intention is to understand what we are doing rather than complete the problem quickly using just the algorithm. We challenge you to try it our way! The Topic test will probably be Thurday or Friday.

Language Arts- We will continue reading Because of Winn Dixie. We are studying character, looking for concrete evidence from the text as to why we have given certain character traits to each character in the story. We are also using our comprehension skills of inferring and visualizing to help us delve deeper into the plot. We have finished chapters 1-5 and will take a quiz on Tuesday. 

We will also continue to work on narrative writing. We are focusing this week on strong action words and strong sentences!

Science- We will continue proving the relationship between force and magnetism. The Science quiz will be next week. 

Social Studies- We will continue our studies on the California regions and will put together our final "crafty" region map. We were delayed a bit because we spent time creating a practice map and learning about specific features of each region

Art- We are finishing up our pastel "Georgia O'Keeffe" flower circles.

We had our first ballroom dance lesson on Thursday and the students loved it! Looking forward to posting some pictures this week!!

You probably heard that we had our first 4th grade rotation on Friday and it seemed very successful! All 160 fourth grade students were split into 5 groups and will have five 5-6 week sessions. They will get to experience each one of the following:

Mrs. Dant- Chess

Mrs. Hauser- iPad project using iMovie

Mrs. Hassig- Sewing

Mrs. Kearns- Art

Mrs. Slezinger- Social Skills/Character Education

Looking forward to another great week. 

Homework

Exact Location

If you need help click HERE

Dodgers!

Dodgers are the 2013 National League West Champions!

Wear your Dodger Blue tomorrow to celebrate!!!!

Go DODGERS!

We have been talking about the "MAGIC NUMBER!"

If the Dodgers win tonight, the number will be 0!

If that happens, they will win the Division Title and clinch a spot in the playoffs!

We should all wear our Dodger Blue tomorrow!

What's Ahead For The Week

In Language Arts...

We will be focusing on the long i and its spelling patterns for phonics. Our vocabulary words are: endless, realistic, sensible, protested, paralyzed, and display. Vocabulary books are due every Friday, first thing in the morning.

Sample of a Vocabulary Book correctly completed!
The 4th square is "teacher's choice" and was supposed to be empty last week. 
This week the 4th square should contain one antonym and one synonym for each word.

We will be focusing on character traits, distinguishing between implicit and explicit characteristics. Determining what is directly stated and what is inferred. Please practice this at home, too.

In Math...

We will continue focusing on mental math, properties of addition, rounding, adding and subtracting. 

In Science...

We have learned so many interesting things about magnets. Ask us about the forces of attraction and repulsion! We will continue on our quest for magnetic knowledge.

In Social Studies...

We remain focused on latitude and longitude, hemispheres, and the regions of California. As you know, your student picked an exact location in the state of California. They will be researching information specific to their unique location, as they are exposed to to concepts in class. Toward the end of the week, look for criteria for a California Region project to come home. This project will be completed in class, however, students are asked to bring in items of their choice to develop this creative representation!

September 19th from 11am-10pm is Restaurant Night at Pizza Rev! Look for the flier in your child's backpack on Monday!

How To Access Textbooks Online

The following sites can ALWAYS be accessed using the links to the left.

MATH

Pearson Success Net

https://www.pearsonsuccessnet.com/

From the main menu, you can click on OPEN BOOK. You can also check out the video animations of each Topic by clicking on the "TO DO LIST." You can take quizzes and print worksheets as well. This is great to use as a review or as pre-teaching tool.

READING

Treasures Program at ConnectEd 

http://connected.mcgraw-hill.com/connected/login.do

You can read the book and use the Glossary to complete the Vocabuary Book. You can also check out the "TO DO LIST" and find fun videos and lessons on comprehension and phonics.

SCIENCE

If you have an iTunes account on your PC or Mac, iPhone, or iPad, you can download the Science book through iTunes University. Download the iTunes University App first. From the store search the keyword "FOSS" and you will find many resources. Add them to your course manager to listen to the audio of the textbook.

• You can also access the FOSS Website and do fun activities, listen to the audio version of the textbook, see the vocabulary words, view recommended books, and much more! Go to http://www.fossweb.com/home and use the Username ScienceRoom20 and the password Science4

SOCIAL STUDIES

At this point, there is no online access to the Oh, California textbook/workbook.

STUDENTS WILL RECEIVE AN UPDATED PASSWORD CARD THIS WEEK! THEY WILL BE GLUING IT IN THEIR PLANNER AND BRINGING ANOTHER ONE TO KEEP IN A SAFE PLACE AT HOME.

Picture Day

Just a reminder that it is picture day tomorrow!! Remember to bring your smiles!

Welcome September!

A PEEK AT OUR WEEK

In Language Arts...

We will continue to focus on Plot Elements. Ask us to explain the Exposition, Inciting Incident (not pictured, but we know it,) Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action , and Resolution! Read a story with us and we will impress you with our knowledge!

We will be working on responding to a nonfiction article and comparing and contrasting famous speeches.

We will also be focusing on summarizing fictional literature. The above tool makes it so easy to develop a clear and concise summary.

We will also continue the process of writing a Personal Narrative. Narrative writing tells a story about a personal or fictional experience. We will work on the process of this skill using brainstorming, graphic organizers and more to help make it less overwhelming.

In Math...

We will finish up learning place value through the millions period. Please take a few minutes to make up BIG numbers, practice them in word form, standard form, expanded form, and by creating an illustration or model. We will, most likely, have a test on Tuesday.

We will then begin focusing on Number Sense, including rounding, addition, and subtraction.

In Science...

We will continue our focus on magnets and magnetism. Last week we discovered that magnets do NOT "stick" to all metals, only those that are iron. We learned that sometimes iron is mixed with other metals to make steel. Magnets stick to steel because it is mostly iron. We even discovered a rock that is magnetic. Ask us about it.

This week we will explore magnet interactions.

In Social Studies... 

We will be learning about exact location, longitude and latitude. The most popular destination to determine was Gimbo, Ethiopia. It is very difficult to find Gimbo because it is SO small, so try to look for Bonga, Ethiopia, which is about an hour away. If you find it and turn it in by Friday, you will receive 10 points.

Click on the following links for fun videos and practice

BrainPop Latitude and Longitude

Kids Geo Latitude and Longitude map game

We will begin studying the four regions of California, focusing on 

California Region Map

We set AR goals on Friday and students should be reading 30 minutes each day to meet their individual goal.

Child ID pictures will betaken on Tuesday, September 10th. Please look for order form to go home on Monday!

Wednesday is September 11th, Patriot Day. Please wear red, white and blue to school. We will have a special assembly and sing American Patriotic songs!

Ethiopian Connection

My daughter, Hailey is serving as an English Language instructor in Ethiopia. 

She will live in a very small town called Gimbo for two years beginning at the end of September. She will, most likely, be lucky enough to set up a model classroom. In which case, Welby Way has many amazing books to donate to her and the people of Gimbo. We will need to fundraise for shipping. One of our ideas is letting the students write letters to companies asking for donations, so if you know of a company that might be interested in participating please let me know.

The students will also be personally involved through a program called World Wise Schools which will help promote global thinking. You can learn more about this program here: 
World Wise Schools

Embracing Ethiopia

Click on the link above to read my daughter's blog!

What We are Learning-Week of August 19th

In English Language Arts this week, we are kicking off our English Language Arts program.  Each morning we will focus on a variety of topics including literary genres, story elements, decoding words, vocabulary  words, comprehension strategies, figurative language, Greek and Latin words, and much more.  

In Math, our class is finishing up Topic 3 - Meanings of Multiplication and Division.  The test for Topic 3 will be Friday or Monday. Be sure to check out our math interactive journals for everything we have learned this week and last. Please review them at home with your child.  The following websites are great ways to practice multiplication...

• http://www.multiplication.com/games/all-games

• http://www.mathsisfun.com/timestable.html
 

In Social Studies, our class has been talking about the three kinds of government: local, state, and national.  We have been discussing who makes the rules and why they are so important. Students have brainstormed different jobs within our Los Angeles local government and we are using them to develop classroom jobs! Look for them to come home soon to share!

We used the Monarch butterfly to practice our observation skills.

In Science this week are starting our first Science unit called Magnetism and Electricity.  Yesterday we talked about making good scientific observations and using details to describe our observations.