Mythology Plays

           The talented students of 4A will be performing three Reader’s Theater plays on Thursday, May 24, and we would love to have you join our audience. These performances will begin at 2:30pm in the Community Room (next to District Office). Students will share information they learned about Greek mythology before performing Theseus and the Minotaur, Medusa and Athena, and King Midas.

Students are encouraged to bring sheets or long pieces of cloth to wear as costume togas.

South Park City

Our classroom has been transformed into a small city to allow students to explore economy and civics in a meaningful way. Check out our 4A Student Updates for more information.

Mythology Performances

To wrap up our Greek mythology studies, students will be performing three classic myths: Theseus and the Minotaur, Athena and Medusa, and King Midas. Any parents who are available would be welcome audience members on Thursday, May 24 at 2:30 in the Community Room (by the district office and the bus loop).

Denver Field Trip

A brilliant pink permission slip was sent home on Thursday. This slip has information about our plans for the day and dress and food requirements. Please read over the information, and send a signed permission slip back to school on Monday or Tuesday.
Thanks!

Reading & Rec Center

Thank you for encouraging your kids to read as we participate in our Reading Challenge. Reading slips will be available in the classroom or at the office. To celebrate reading, West Grand Elementary School will be hosting a Family Literacy Night on Tuesday, April 17. We will begin at 5:00pm in the library and end at 7:00pm. Any student who participates will receive double minutes for the reading challenge. The Scholastic Book Fair will also be open on that night. Come and celebrate reading with us!

Students who earned 22 or more CSAP/TCAP tickets will be going to the Fraser Rec Center on April 18. Please watch the Buckaroo News for additional information.

March Parent Letter & HW Calendar

Conference Schedule

Spirit Day!

On Wednesday, the K-8 students and staff will have the opportunity to show off the colors of their favorite sports team. Students may wear jerseys or shirt representing a favorite team of any sport, or they may wear team's colors if, like me whose favorite sport is swimming, a jersey is not available. :)

Also, on Tuesday, February 6, the elementary school will be hosting the opening ceremonies for our 2012 Winter Olympics. Our class will be representing Greece whose flag is blue and white. Please encourage your child to wear a blue or white shirt that day to add to our unified appearance.

Fraction Fiesta!

After weeks of hard work, we are wrapping up our fraction unit in math. To celebrate (and do more fraction work), our class will be having a fraction fiesta. We have several hands-on activities to reinforce what we have learned about fractions. Because fourth graders love to eat, students asked if we could have food. My one requirement was that the food must be fraction friendly. If you would like to send some fruit snacks, M&Ms, or  a pan of breakfast bars (our fiesta will be at 8:10), please let me know by Monday or Tuesday so I can plan some food related fraction activities. Thanks!

Upcoming Event

West Grand is sponsoring a dinner and presentation on February 8 for parents of 4th and 5th grade students. Dinner is at 5:30 in the Community Room, and the presentation begins at 6:30. The presentation gives parents information on raising adolescent children and offers support as interactions between you and your child begin to change. Please contact our school counselor, Jantrey Miller, for more information.

Study Hall & Report Cards

Our Study Hall has been moved to Monday afternoons from 4:00-4:45. Fifth grade Study Hall has also been rescheduled for Monday afternoon so that siblings are staying after school on the same nights.

Report cards have been printed off and are ready to go home. I would like to wait to send them home until next week. Students are taking MAPs tests next week, and I would like to attach their updated scores to their report card. If you would like me to send a copy of your child's report card home this before next Thursday, please let me know, and I'll take care of it.

January Newsletter & Homework Calendar

Kaps for Kimberlee

Remember that Tuesday, December 13 is Kaps for Kimberlee day. We are having a fundraiser to support Mrs. Kimberlee Nanda as she continues to recover from her brain surgery this fall. Students may wear a hat at school for a donation of $1.

Happy December!

Below is a copy of the newsletter that was sent home today and December's homework calendar.

I do have updated information about the last day before break. Thursday morning between 9:00 and 10:00, our class will be baking some yummy Greek holiday cookies. (These are the recipes I'm looking at: Greek Butter Cookies, Kourambiathes) At 10:00 we will be meeting with Mrs. Crosby's 5th grade class to share some poetry. The elementary school will be traveling to the high school at 1:15 to watch a movie. We will have our winter party at the end of the day (around 3:00 if all goes according to plan). If you would like to help with our baking adventure or our class party, please let me know. We would love to have you.

As I have been doing research for our door decorating, I've come across some fantastic sites about Greece, both ancient and present day. These links have been added to the reading and writing page on this site. Enjoy!

Math in Focus

I spoke with several parents about our math curriculum during conferences last week. Our program, Math in Focus, follows the Singapore approach to math instruction and puts a huge focus on place value. That focus causes some slight changes in how we teach and learn math at West Grand. Math in Focus offers online resources for students (and parents) to access for support away from school. Students can view an online textbook, student workbook, and virtual manipulatives in their library. The website is linked below and also on the math page. Students will need their username and password. Just shoot me an email, and I will get that information to you. Enjoy!

https://www-k6.thinkcentral.com/ePC/start.do

Happy (almost) November!

Thank you to all the wonderful parents who participated in parent-teacher conferences. It was nice to sit down and talk with you. Our next scheduled parent-teacher conferences will be in the spring, but I am always available to chat before then.

Tomorrow (October 31) will be the day of our Halloween party. The elementary costume parade will begin at 2:45. We will begin changing into costumes around 2:30. Our class party will be after the parade. We will have snacks, an art project, and some games. If you are planning on coming to the costume parade and would like to stay and help with games, please join us. Until 2:30, students will be expected to participate in a regular school day. We still have content to cover before we can have fun.

Below is a copy of November's homework calendar and spelling practice for 2nd quarter. Instead of 5pts for spelling practice, students must complete three assignments in a row, just like tic tac toe. The tic tac toe may be three in a row vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. Since students will not be turning in their tic tac toe board, please remind students to number their assignments with the box number.

Parent Teacher Conferences

It's conference time! Fourth grade conferences will take place on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. (Tuesday is an extra day beyond the scheduled elementary conference nights.) I will be available after school at 4:15. Fall conferences should take about twenty minutes. If you would like more time to talk, we can schedule a conference for another time.
I will be sending home a sign-up sheet on Wednesday. If you have other children's conferences already scheduled and would like a conference on the same night, please let me know. If you are still setting up conferences for your other children, please let me know which class your child is in. I will do my best to coordinate with other teachers.
Please list your top three time/date slots. I will send home another slip of paper with your scheduled time.

Pajama Day!

As a class, students earn marbles for positive behavior. We have been working very hard this quarter, and our marble jar is filled! Students have chosen to celebrate this accomplishment with a pajama day on Wednesday (tomorrow). Please remind students that we do have PE and recess tomorrow and that they will be expected to participate even in their pajamas.
Thanks,

4A Updates

Below is an electronic copy of October's newsletter.

October Homework Calendar

It's October already! The first months of school have flown by. We have completed our first field trip, survived our first round of MAPs tests, and (almost) finished our first research project. I think that's a pretty good start to the year.

Please take a moment to look at your child's homework calendar. Just like last month, there is a copy online as well as a paper copy for you at home and a copy for students in their homework folder.

Unlike last month, vocabulary will be checked on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. This allow everyone to receive additional feedback throughout the week as we progress through our word study. On Tuesdays, we will be checking "pg 1" which identifies the prefixes/suffixes for the week as well as their meanings. Usually the practice on this page asks the students to use the prefix/suffix to create words. "Pg 2" or "More Practice with (insert prefix/suffix here)" will be checked and collected on Wednesday. This page asks students to use words in context and create original sentences. We will still have our vocabulary quiz on Thursday. We have two more weeks of studying prefixes before we transition into studying suffixes. The practice pages will be similar.

You will also notice that on October 12, students will have Drops in the Bucket #1 for homework. We have completed the first part of our language Drops and will start math review this month. The format is similar, but we will go through the first page together in class.

Please, please, please make sure your child is reading at home. By the end of the month, students must have read one nonfiction book and take an AR test on it. This should not be the only book they read. If they find a nonfiction topic they really like, challenge them to find a fiction book that includes that topic. (Check out Magic Tree House books by Mary Pope Osborn for examples.) Or embrace nonfiction this month, and encourage your child to read multiple books on the same subject. Have conversations about how different writers present similar information.

Below are several links to book lists and articles for parents on student reading. Enjoy!
Favorite Books for Fourth Graders
Scholastic: Choosing Books for Your Child
Books for Third and Fourth Grade Students
Grand County Library District
            *Our local librarians are fantastic! Stop by and see what books they have to offer.