Ms. Ceresa's 4th Grade Newsletter

It was a learning-filled week in 4th grade! Students explored the impact the Great Depression had on the lives of Americans and connected that to understanding how this setting impacts the progression and characters in our novel "Bud, Not Buddy". We also worked on a variety of writing this week, such as fairy tales, text response questions, and process writing to work on clarity and logic. In math, students explored how decimals are related to fractions and have begun adding within the hundredths place. In social studies, we looked at the importance of voting, how it gives the government its power, and the requirements to vote.

Friday, we spent time with our JK buddies helping them to pack up lunches for St. Theresa's! We ended the day by taking a walking trip to Sweet Mandy B's to grab a cupcake- it was a great end to our week!

Map Testing:

Our last round of MAP testing for 2-5th begins next week! Look below for the specific MAP testing schedule.

Questions? Send me an email or a message on Class Dojo

Email: mceresa@stjames-lutheran.org

Upcoming Events:

• Map Testing: May 11th-15th
• Monday: Language Arts
• Tuesday: Reading
• Thursday: Math
• Friday: Science

• Memorial Day: Monday, May 25th
• No School

• Zoo Day: June 1st; 9:00am-1:00ish
• We will be going to the zoo this day! Parents are welcome to join us for this walking trip:)

• Kickball Day: June 2nd
• 3rd and 4th grade will be spending the afternoon at Oz park playing kickball!

• Field Day: June 3rd, 12:30-2:30pm
• See below for more information

• Last Day of School: June 5th
• Early dismissal with school ending at 12:00pm

Field Day is scheduled for Wednesday, June 3rd! We will begin Field Day by eating lunch at Oz Park from 12:00-12:30 and then beginning station rotations after from 12:30-2:30. We are looking for a few donations and volunteers to help make the day extra fun for our students. If you are able, please take a moment to check out our sign-up list and consider contributing an item or your time.

Sign Up Link:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oTbMWNysdYW1LGp_bf02ws-uI6Sr2fyAp4h2I4XefiQ/edit?usp=sharing

Class T-shirts:

As part of our Field Day fun, students will be decorating white t-shirts to wear for the event. Please have your child bring in a plain white t-shirt by Tuesday, May 26th so we can decorate them in class.

We truly appreciate your support and generosity! Thank you for helping us make this a fun and memorable day for the students!

This month's donation focus will be on collecting hygiene products to benefit Nourishing Hope! Collection deadline for this month is May 29th. Items that are being requested include:

• Deodorant
• Toothpaste/ toothbrushes/ mouthwash/ floss
• Shampoo/conditioner/body wash/ body scrub
• Toilet paper
• Baby/ grown-up diapers
• Baby oil

Week 34 Homework:

No homework this week due to MAP testing.

Religion:

• Our religion lessons this week will be 66-68, which include "The Jailer at Phillippi", "Paul on Trial", and "Paul's Instruction for Ministry". We will use the books of Acts and 1&2 of Timothy to support these lessons.

Reading:

• This week we will be working on lessons 7-10 of Fishtank's Discovering Self module for our "Bud Not Buddy" novel study. In this, students will work to:

• Explain why Hoovervilles were created
• Analyze the ways in which Bud carries his family around inside of him
• Explain how the flyer impacts Bud's life
• Our spelling focus for the week will be on words that contain long o vowel sounds, and our grammar focus will be on understanding and using idioms.

Writing:

• Students will continue to engage in text based short response writings in relation to our novel study and continue to draft and revise their fractured fairy tales. Additionally, students will begin a multi-paragraph essay to describe what the Great Depression was, and how this setting influences how the story unfolds.

Math:

• We will be working on Topic 12 and 13 this week. Students will continue to work with decimals by solving problems involving money. After, we will be applying our understanding of decimals to begin working with the concept of equivalency with customary units of measure.

Social Studies:

• We will not be focusing on anything new this week for social studies/science due to MAP testing.

• Reminder to check Class Dojo for weekly pictures and classroom updates. If you have any questions, feel free to message me there or send an email!