Oct. 9, 2018

Parents,

The math homework tonight is on lesson 2.6 on multiplication using expanded form. We understand this strategy might be unfamiliar to you so I have provided a tutorial below to help your child, if needed. I am also providing updated information for this week below. Have a good night.

Math:

Students are continuing to work through chapter 2 on multiplication. We should be completing 2.7 tomorrow on multiplication using partial products, 2.8 on Thursday on multiplication using mental math, and 2.9 on Friday on problem solving: multi-step multiplication problems.

Science/ Social Studies:

Students will be working on putting their salt dough maps together this week.

Estimated Timeline:

Oct. 5: Research the region that your group is assigned.  Use your social studies textbook to find the information and record it on the graphic organizer.

Oct. 12: Use the map, poster-board, paint and dough provided to create a “salt map” of your assigned region.  Your map should include a map key and labels. (see this link for directions http://kidworldcitizen.org/2012/01/29/3d-salt-dough-maps/ )

Oct. 19: Explore the purpose of a “rover” or “drone.” Bring in recyclable materials that could be used to design a vehicle that can explore your region. Your design should consider the geography of your region. You should also consider how your vehicle will collect information about the region.

Oct. 26: Present to the class a “documentary” about the discoveries of your vehicle in your region.

Language Arts:

Students will continue Unit 1 on main idea, summarizing, making inferences, answering cross-text questions, and building vocabulary as they also transition to working stations of writing letters, word work, and reading. In addition, they are becoming more comfortable finding and writing text-based evidence to support their answers.

Important Dates

Oct. 10, 2018
Parent Open Forum 8:30 - 9:30

Reminder: Early Dismissal Every Wednesday at 1:40

Reminder: We still need more supplies in order to build our rovers next week. Thank you to those who have already brought stuff in.

Grading:

This year your child will have letter grades on their report cards.  It is important for you to review the papers that come home with your child on a regular basis. If your child has a C or below on an assignment, please help reinforce the concepts and have your child redo the assignment.  Sometimes you may also see a 1-4 score on your child’s paper. This type of score reflects a rubric score for the assignment. See the grade equivalents below:

4-A, 3-B, 2-C, 1-D or Below

Interims will keep you informed of your child’s current grades. The first interim, however, will be very general since only a few grades will be given by that date.

Homework:

Please check your child’s homework notebook for daily homework assignments.  The basic nightly routine will be 20 minutes of reading AND a math assignment.  The math will be the homework pages in the math workbook that correlate with the daily lesson OR a Think Central assignment.  Your child should have the pages written down in their notebooks. Mr. Utter will also post daily assignments with how to videos on the G-Force blog.

Snack:

Fourth grade students have a very early lunch this year, so we will not have a snack time.  Our time is limited in the afternoon due to recess and specials. Please make sure your child eats a sufficient amount of lunch to get them through the school day.

FYI...

• Looking for extra math practice? Please go to the following site to assist you in parent math newsletters, extra practice for the math units we are working on, games, and many other useful resources to help your child with math concepts. (https://sites.google.com/view/midatlanticmathresource This site is found on the Crossroads homepage.

• If you need to contact any of us, the quickest way is through email. (NOT through Class Dojo).Our emails are as follows:
• charles.utter@am.dodea.edu; kali.hamill@am.dodea.edu and judith.ward@am.dodea.edu.
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• If your child will be absent from school, please let the office know with a call, email, or note. You can email the school at CESattendance@am.dodea.edu
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• New DODEA rules prohibit food for birthdays so please do not send in cupcakes or other food for your child.