This coming week is going to be a busy one! I am so excited to announce that we have a guest speaker coming to the fourth grade on Tuesday. Dr. Willett is coming from the University of Akron to talk to our kids about natural disasters and survival skills. This ties into our current novel, Lost on a Mountain in Maine. However, it also helps prep the children for our next reading endeavor, the I Survived books. She is always engaging and brings good information to our students. 

In addition to Dr. Willett, we will have a guidance lesson from Mrs. Kerrigan, our school guidance counselor. This supplements our weekly lessons from Second Step. Hopefully, you recognize the name from handouts that periodically come home. The program helps students build social-emotional skills, like nurturing positive relationships, managing emotions, and setting goals to be successful in school and life. We are currently enjoying the song "Stop! Name Your Feelings, Calm Down." I bet they can sing you a line or two!

We do have a math test tomorrow. We have been working hard on adding and subtracting fractions. Look for a purple study guide in your child's red take-home folder if you want to review that tonight! Tuesday, we will be starting Topic 10, which is a short and sweet unit on multiplying fractions. Miss Sokolowski and I are so impressed with everyone's ability to work through our strategies. I am confident we will do well tomorrow and with Topic 10.

One final note is that starting March 20th, you will get this update on Monday via physical paper. Please look for the handout in your child's take-home folder on March 20th. The content will be the same, just in a different format.​

Important Dates to Know
3/13/23 - Girls' STEM/Coding Clubs (Bring a note if staying)
3/14/23 - Pi Day
3/15/23 - PTA Meeting and District Health and Wellness Event
3/17/23 - St. Patrick's Day
3/20/23 - Girls' STEM/Coding Clubs (Bring a note if staying)
3/22/23 - Gaming Club (Bring a note if staying)
3/24/23 - Bath TEAM Hero Shirts / End of 3rd Quarter
SPRING BREAK IS MARCH 27 - 31
4/3/23 - No School for Students; In-Service/Records Day

I cannot believe the sunshine we have been experiencing here lately! Granted, when it rains, it pours. But this Vitamin D overload is doing us all some good. I hope your children got some fresh air this weekend and played outside. We cracked our windows and enjoyed the sunshine as much as we could.

We are continuing this week in language arts in the new book Lost on a Mountain in Maine. The class is already invested in Donn Fendler's story, and we struggle to put the book down every morning. On Monday, the class will get a writing project to complete as we read. It is similar to the reading journals we have done in the past. Again, it is digital, and it is broken into parts based on our daily reading. Miss Sokolowski designed it in Numbers, which is equivalent to Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel. 

In math, we have one more week on Topic 9 as we continue to learn how to decompose fractions, add and subtract fractions with like denominators, and find equivalent fractions to mixed numbers. Math is a fast track in fourth grade, but these kids are keeping up! We are so proud of their efforts. Please remind them to continue to put forth their best work, especially as we head toward the fourth quarter.

Please note that there is spelling homework for Mrs. Hetman's language arts students this week. The list is words with the endings -er and -est. Please take advantage of the last page in the packet and "test" your children a couple of times on the words. They always do a great job on the homework, but it doesn't always transfer to knowing the words on the assessment. Thank you! 

Important Dates to Know
3/6/23 - Girls' STEM/Coding Clubs (Bring a note if staying)
3/10/23 - Magical Theater Performances
3/13/23 - Girls' STEM/Coding Clubs (Bring a note if staying)
3/14/23 - Pi Day
3/15/23 - PTA Meeting and District Health and Wellness Event
3/17/23 - St. Patrick's Day
3/20/23 - Girls' STEM/Coding Clubs (Bring a note if staying)
3/22/23 - Gaming Club (Bring a note if staying)
3/24/23 - Bath TEAM Hero Shirts / End of 3rd Quarter

This winter weather has been so confusing to our minds and bodies!! I think I speak for the students when I say, "We are ready for spring!!" Despite the mild temperatures, we still recommend students come to school with a coat. And our big push right now is to get the kids to leave the mud outside!! Please talk to your children about staying out of muddy areas and/or how to clean their shoes before coming in. Our custodians are doing double duty after the children leave for the day. Thank you!

This coming week in language arts will be a mixture of finishing the Because of Winn Dixie writing and starting a new book called Lost on a Mountain in Maine. Miss Sokolowski and I love this next book! It leads to a great unit on survival and intense weather. Hopefully, your kids will come home excited to share updates. Please note that there will be no new spelling homework this week, and Mrs. Hetman's spelling test will be on Wednesday. 

In math, we will be continuing with fractions! Miss S's math class took their Topic 8 test last week, and Mrs. Hetman's class will take it on Monday. Now that we have mastered equivalent fractions, we will learn how to add and subtract fractions. Mrs. Hetman's math class is getting used to a new math cycle that allows us to practice at our own levels and get more small group time with Mrs. Hetman. It has been a positive change!

In other news, we are low on candy for our Minutemen Store. As you know, our classroom management system works on a classroom economy. Students earn money for hard work, outstanding choices, and weekly jobs. Every Wednesday, students shop in the store to buy candy, a prize drawer trinket, or homework passes. If your child brings in candy for our store, we will gladly pay them a bonus! Please remember it needs to be individually wrapped and nut-free! Thank you!!​

Important Dates to Know
2/27/23 - Girls' STEM Club (Bring a note if staying)
2/27/23 - Apollo's Fire Orchestra Assemblies for Orchestra Students
2/28/23 - Mrs. Hetman out of district at a meeting
3/6/23 - Girls' STEM/Coding Clubs (Bring a note if staying)
3/10/23 - Magical Theater Performances
3/14/23 - Pi Day
3/17/23 - St. Patrick's Day

I hope all my wonderful fourth graders have a great day off today. My daughter is currently cleaning her room, and I did not ask her to, so I hope it's something in the air and you see the same results at home. At the least, hopefully, they are reading, playing with friends, and relaxing a little before we return tomorrow. 

When we return tomorrow, the students will take a practice ELA AIR test. We did this once before, and I am looking forward to seeing how their writing skills have grown. The actual tests are at the end of April / early May. We are working hard on the skills we see deficiencies in, though, and I am confident these children will succeed. 

After finishing that, we will start an informative writing piece comparing the Because of Winn Dixie book and movie. We already brainstormed the similarities and differences. The children will use a graphic organizer to write a multi-paragraph essay. It will be imperative, though, that students edit their work and look critically at their pieces. 

In math, we are continuing to work on fractions. We will continue to generate equivalent fractions using multiplication and division. If you last practiced math facts at home a while ago, this is a good week to break out flashcards or multiplication games. Mrs. Hetman's class will have math and spelling homework, and the math homework is all fact-based. 

Thank you to all families for the great Valentine's Day party. The kids were all well-behaved, had fun, and enjoyed one another's company. If anyone has any leftover candies they want to donate to our candy bin for our weekly shop, please send them in. We are running low on the Halloween donations we received since candy is a number one seller in our Minutemen Shop. **Please make sure the candy is nut free! **

Important Dates to Know
2/20/23 - President's Day/No School
2/22/23 - Gaming Club (Bring a note if staying)
2/22/23 - Bath Orchestra Dress Rehearsal at RHS
2/23/23 - Bath Orchestra Concert at RHS at 7:00
2/24/23 - Bath Team Hero Spirit Day/Popcorn Friday
2/27/23 - Girls' STEM Club (Bring a note if staying)
2/27/23 - Apollo's Fire Orchestra Assemblies for Orchestra Students
2/28/23 - Mrs. Hetman out of district at a meeting
3/6/23 - Girls' STEM/Coding Clubs (Bring a note if staying)
3/10/23 - Magical Theater Performances

If you are like most of your kids, I am sure most of you are watching the game now. Many students in the class have been very vocal about their preferred team today. We could not all agree on one brother to support this weekend. Therefore, I hope both Jason and Travis Kelce (and their teams) do well so everyone can enjoy the game.
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We have Valentine's Day on Tuesday. Remember, your child can make a valentine's box and bring it in. If they do not want to, I have brown bags we can decorate in homeroom. Regarding their valentines, I recommend not filling out the "TO," just the "FROM." We have had a bit of controversy in class regarding special cards or gifts to ask others to "be our valentine." That is strongly discouraged, and we do want your child to bring one card per student if they choose to participate. We have 22 students in class.

On Thursday we will be watching Because of Winn Dixie before we start a book/movie comparison. This is a significant writing assignment in class, but I am confident that students will put forth their best work. The movie is historically a favorite for the class, too. 

We will be starting fractions in math. Those students in Mrs. Hetman's math class will be utilizing Pearson Math online for the first time this year. Going online is a big step toward fifth-grade math, as many teachers expect them to log into the math program next year. We will still do paper and pencil practice, and fractions are an excellent time to bring in manipulatives like fraction strips.  
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Finally, it is National Random Acts of Kindness Week. To celebrate, we have a spirit week designed to help the children come to school with a smile on their faces. Tomorrow they can pull out the tie-dye before they wear red and pink on Tuesday.  

Important Dates to Know
Feb. 13 - 17 National Random Acts of Kindness Week
2/13/23 - Wear Tie Dye
2/14/23 - Valentine's Day Party - Wear Red and Pink
2/15/23 - Wear Tropical Clothes
2/16/23 - Wear Bath Team Hero Shirts / Super U PBIS Assemblies
2/17/23 - Wear Fitness Clothes
2/20/23 - President's Day/No School
2/22/23 - Gaming Club (Bring a note if staying)
2/23/23 - Bath Orchestra Concert at RHS at 7:00
2/24/23 - Bath Team Hero Spirit Day/Popcorn Friday
2/27/23 - Girls' STEM Club (Bring a note if staying)

This past week, we watched the Groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, declare that there would be six more weeks of winter. It was so interesting to share with the children how the groundhog chooses a scroll that predicts our weather. And how that prediction is only right 40% of the time! Nonetheless, we all enjoyed reflecting on if we liked the idea of six more weeks of winter or not. The class was clearly split!

In addition to groundhog day traditions, we have also been learning a lot about where water is on our planet and what transportation was like in the 1800s in Ohio. The class worked hard on even creating transportation poems last week. We will share those in class tomorrow before we move on to our civil rights and responsibilities. And on Tuesday, we will be sharing our water journey flip-a-clip animations. Those will be so much fun to see!

We finished Because of Winn Dixie. It is always a tough one for me to read the ending of!! Thankfully, it turns out to be a happy ending! We will be working on a character study and portrait this week. That will be in place of any end-of-book assessment. I will encourage the children to work hard, put a lot of effort into the assignment, and think about how the characters develop throughout the story. 

In math, we started a challenging topic!! There are a lot of terms to remember. Mrs. Hetman's math class has flashcards they should be studying at home. So far, we have only talked about lines and triangles. This week brings us to quadrilaterals, lines of symmetry, and a lot of practice classifying those shapes. If we stay on track, the test will be on Friday.

Important Dates to Know
2/6/23 - Girls' STEM Club (Bring a note if staying)
2/7/23 - Girls on the Run registration opens
Feb. 13 - 17 National Random Acts of Kindness Week
2/13/23 - Wear Tie Dye
2/14/23 - Valentine's Day Party - Wear Red and Pink
2/15/23 - Wear Tropical Clothes
2/16/23 - Wear Bath Team HeroShirts / Super U PBIS Assemblies
2/17/23 - Wear Fitness Clothes
2/20/23 - President's Day/No School
2/22/23 - Gaming Club (Bring a note if staying)
2/23/23 - Bath Orchestra Concert at RHS at 7:00
2/24/23 - Bath Team Hero Spirit Day/Popcorn Friday
2/27/23 - Girls' STEM Club (Bring a note if staying)

Is it just me, or is it hard to believe we are flipping the calendar to February this week? The students were fantastic this past week, working hard through MAP testing and playing harder during our extra recess on Tuesday. We cannot wait to see what we can accomplish this week as we move back into a regular schedule.

Regarding that normal schedule, here is what we have planned for this week:
We will continue to enjoy Because of Winn Dixie with the class during language arts. In addition to that great novel, we will focus on fluency and comprehension with an article about the Liberty Bell while also working on vocabulary strategies in grammar. In math, we will finish our topic on lines and angles with fun practice sessions. The test will be Wednesday, so you can help your students prepare by measuring and drawing angles at home. Finally, in science and social studies, we will focus on the water on our planet and the early forms of transportation in Ohio.  

As you know, Valentine's Day is just over two weeks away. When we told the class about the boxes, they were very excited. It is not required, and any vessel to hold cards and candy will do! Miss Sokolowski and I have games planned for the afternoon. In advance, thank you for supplying the conversation hearts and gummies! Please visit Sign Up Genius here if you still need to sign up for something and want to help.

Important Dates to Know
1/30/23 - Girls' STEM Club (Children need to bring a note if they are staying)
2/3/23 - Read-A-Thon "closing ceremony"
2/4/23 - 2023 The Voice / Power Pack Fundraiser
2/6/23 - Girls' STEM Club (Children need to bring a note if they are staying)
2/7/23 - Girls on the Run registration opens
2/14/23 - Valentine's Day party
2/20/23 - President's Day/No School

It finally looks like winter outside! How exciting!! Please encourage your kids to bring snow gear to school if it lasts through tomorrow. They can keep it in their lockers and gear up before lunch and recess. Their boots, once wet, will stay outside our classroom. Please let your child know if they need to bring the gear home daily or keep it at school. 

Tomorrow we start the Winter MAP testing. Please ensure your children get to bed early tonight and have a good breakfast. Monday will be the reading test, and Tuesday will be the math test. We will give the children the morning to take the test and resume our regular schedule in the afternoons. We appreciate your support in ensuring the children are well-rested and have healthy snacks on these a-typical days.  

In language arts this week, we will continue to read Because of Winn Dixie. The students have been doing an excellent job on their reading journals, and we will continue with the Chapter 16 - 18 journal this week. In math, we started geometry. The class learned how to identify and name lines and angles last week. This week, we will use our protractors to measure and draw angles. Fourth graders love it! Please check in with them to make sure they still have their protractor at school.

Finally, you may have already seen the email from Lauren and Lindy, our room parents. We are already thinking about Valentine's Day! I will talk to the children this week about making their Valentine's boxes and bringing in their valentines on Tuesday, February 14th. In addition to that exchange, we are also looking for some snacks and items for games. You can sign up here, if you can help.  Please drop off items for the party anytime after February 10th. Your child can bring them in, or you can drop off items in the office with "Room 111" on them.  Thank you so much!!

Important Dates to Know
1/23/23 - Read-a-thon continues
1/23/23 - Reading MAP Test
1/24/23 - Math MAP Test
1/25/23 - Gaming Club (note required)
1/27/23 - Report Cards Posted to Progress Book
1/27/23 - Bath Team Hero Spirit Day / Popcorn Friday
1/27/23 - Scholastic Book Fair for our class
2/3/23 - Read-A-Thon "closing ceremony"
2/14/23 - Valentine's Day party

As a reminder, there is no school tomorrow in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. We read Martin's Big Words in class and reflected on our big words for 2023. The class enjoyed making a visual representation of that word. I will have them printed for the children this week, and I hope they share them with you!  

The students also have Friday off this week. It is the end of the second quarter. Miss Sokolowski and I will have all grades in by Friday. You will see the final report cards in ProgressBook by January 27th. You can access ProgressBook at pa.neonet.org/district. Select Revere Local Schools. If you are new to ProgressBook, you must create an account and enter a registration key provided by helpdesk@revereschools.org.

The students have done an incredible job with their bird reports this week. We have about a half dozen more presentations on Tuesday this coming week. Students will bring their birds back home on Thursday. Please send in a bag if your child is concerned about how they will carry it home.

This coming week will be a short spirit week in honor of the Read-A-Thon. We hope kids will have fun with the following themes:
Tuesday: Crazy Hair Day
Wednesday: Pajama Day (this is also when we have gym, so plan accordingly)
Thursday: Neon Day
If you still need to do so, please click on this link to activate your child's personal page: https://www.read-a-thon.com/readers/r/XGwqkM. Activation takes less than a minute, and by doing so, you can help us meet our fundraising goal with the PTA. All students have already received credit for 50 minutes in class, too, so we are off to a great start!

In addition to the Read-A-Thon, we start the Book Fair on January 23rd. Our class brought home fliers last week, and we will attend during library on February 27th. Because that is the last day, if you know your child will be out that day, please let me know, and we can find time for them to go early.

And I cannot believe I am already writing about this, but Valentine's Day is around the corner. We will celebrate in class on Tuesday, February 14th. We do exchange valentines, but that activity is optional. If you would like your child to participate in that, please plan on supplying your child with 21 student valentines to hand out. We have 22 children in all. I will also encourage children to make their own boxes at home, but that is also optional. Children can also use a decorated brown paper bag; I have extras if needed. 

Important Dates to Know
1/16/23 - No School
1/17/23 - Homework due; spelling test today
1/17/23 - Read-a-Thon Spirit Week- Crazy Hair Day
1/18/23 - Read-a-Thon Spirit Week-Pajama Day
1/19/23 - Read-a-Thon Spirit Week-NeonDay
1/20/23 - No school for students / End of Second Quarter
1/23/23 - Reading MAP Test
1/24/23 - Math MAP Test
1/25/23 - Gaming Club (note required)
1/27/23 - Bath Team Hero Spirit Day / Popcorn Friday
1/27/23 - Scholastic Book Fair
2/3/23 - Read-A-Thon "closing ceremony"
2/14/23 - Valentine's Day party

The students are making significant headway on their bird research at school. Their goal is to become an expert on their bird by understanding how it looks, behaves, and where it lives. The research they collect is being put into a Keynote presentation that the students will share, along with their 3D model. We have received a few models already; I look forward to seeing the rest tomorrow.

In language arts, we started Because of Winn Dixie last week. We are lucky to have Dr. Keira Mellion come and talk to all of our fourth-grade classes about dog behavior on Tuesday this week.  I know our students are excited to see Nala and Grizz, Dr. Mellion's lab, that day. We are so enamored with our furry friends!

We started Topic 14 in math last week. It is all about using our basic math operations to extend patterns, describe features of patterns, and identify the rules used in patterns. It is a short topic, and we should be able to take a quiz on Wednesday. Afterward, we will move on to a topic that studies angles. This is the start of our geometry focus, and the students always do well.

We are learning about how Ohio became a state in Social Studies. This week we will get to know about some less-famous Ohio entrepreneurs. I am looking forward to the class seeing some great Ohioans from the late 1700s. It is always fun to see them be shocked by the inventions born here in Ohio!

Many of you were able to go to the skate party on Saturday. This week gives us more opportunities to come together as a school community. Make sure you check out the important dates below.​

Important Dates to Know
1/9/23 - PTA Book Donation Collection During Lunches
1/9/23 - Bird Model due at school
1/10/23 - Group Pictures for Yearbook
1/11/23 - PTA Read-A-Thon Assembly
1/11/23 - PTA Family Game Night and Book Swap
1/16/23 - No School
1/17/23 - Homework due
1/17/23 - Read-a-Thon Spirit Week- Crazy Hair Day
1/18/23 - Read-a-Thon Spirit Week-Pajama Day
1/19/23 - Read-a-Thon Spirit Week-NeonDay
1/20/23 - No school for students / End of Second Quarter
1/23/23 - Scholastic Book Fair begins
1/23 and 1/24/23 - MAP Testing
1/25/23 - Gaming Club
1/27/23 - Bath Team Hero Spirit Day / Popcorn Friday