Margaret, Volume 7: September 29, 2014

So, is this a multiplication cluster, or an array? You decide!

In the spirit of food, here's a recipe for the week. A dash of multiplication clusters, or groups of multiplication facts and how they relate to each other. Add students thinking about how 4 x 12 can help you solve 8 x 12? With a pinch of a bazaar vs. supermarket vs. farm skit practice here, a sugary iMovie there, a survival story of an orange's birth to consumption, and the choice to eat food grown with chemicals or not, leave us in anticipation of what brilliant presentations our students will create to demonstrate their understanding that Providing food is complex and presents challenges. Mixed together with fresh new reading groups. Finally, topped off with an eclectic variety of food at Friday's Green Potluck. I would say this week was deliciously fun!

This book is so interesting, I can't put it down!

That's right! Reading group makes me want to cuddle with my best friend!

Mysteries...they always get the best of me!

When you read that I thought you were the character! Great fluency!

Reading is fun.?!," (Which punctuation mark is it again?")

Owl of the Week
Margaret has done a fantastic job keeping us rolling in fun and starting our day off right with community meeting. Here's more from her.

Monthly Book Presentations

Please check the blog post that includes the book sharing schedule.

Homework

Read 20 minutes each night!

Monday:  Two sides, imperative and exclamatory sentence worksheet

Tuesday:  One spelling exercise in your notebook.  If you choose an activity that is not written, have your parents sign your notebook that you did it.

Wednesday:  Happy Teacher’s Day!  No school!

Thursday:  Multiplication exercise worksheet

Friday:  Have a great fall break!!!!!

Up-Coming Events

10/1 No School- Teacher's Day
10/6-1/13 No School- Fall break
10/23 Elementary Math Night
10/15 UN Day
10/29 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day for students!

Isabelle, Volume 6: September 22, 2014

Another fantastic week, it has been! We are coming to the end of our first unit of inquiry on food. Students have really taken ownership and responsibility of their learning by challenging themselves to think deeply about our central idea Food is complicated and presents many challenges. I am sure you are equally impressed by some of the thoughts, questions, and ideas students shared this Wednesday evening as you read over their experiences on our farm field trip! Some students saw cows for the first time, while others tackled ideas of how to improve irrigation systems. Even further, many students experienced how farming life is difficult because of its physical demands, low-pay, and other 3rd world farming challenges. Many connections were made to this game, which we used as a learning tool to understand the world of farming.

What's that smell? Cow Manure, nature's alternative to chemically-enhanced fertilizers. "One person's waste is another person's treasure."

Hassaan exploring the grapevine fields.

Cotton fields ahead!

Plastic trash and irrigation don't mix. 

Picking cucumbers at the base of corn crops. The corn is not for human consumption, but for the farm livestock. So cool!

Christopher harvesting a cucumber!

Anymore?

Math review centers just before our end of unit assessment! We rocked them! Students enjoyed moving around the room and sharing all their ideas through mathematical arguing!

We took our first NWEA-MAP English Language Arts (ELA) test Thursday. After which, we stretched and did an activity to get our bodies moving again. Enjoy the laughter!

Owl of the Week
My name is Isabelle. I live with my mom, dad, and my little sister in Uzbekistan. Meeting new friends is certainly the most exciting thing about school. Some of my favorite things to do outside of school are read, swim, ice skate, and play outside. If I could change anything about the world, it would be to make the law say "No more littering" or "No more Oil Spills!" A person I admire is my mom because she helps me and I love her. My favorite dinner is potato dumplings and my least favorite dinner is sandwiches.

"Green" Potluck at TIS 
Hard work should always be rewarded with food, right? This Friday, 9/26/14 we will have Green potluck. This means please have your child bring reusable plates, cups, knives, forks, and spoons, along with his/her dish to share, Friday. All are welcome to attend. Any questions, please email me.

Monthly Book Presentations

Please check the blog post that includes the book sharing schedule.

NWEA Testing
ELA is done and we have Math on Monday. Be sure to get a good evenings rest on Saturday and Sunday!

*Homework: Book presentations are coming up!

Monday:  1. Math multiplication activity 2. Fill out form:  What will I bring to the International Potluck?  Have your parent sign it.

Tuesday:  Math multiplication activity

Wednesday (1/2 Day dismissal at 11:30 a.m.):  Write down the recipe for making your special dish that you will bring to the potluck.  Include all ingredients and processes.  Write it neatly, as we will be scanning these and making a digital 4^th grade International Cookbook!

Thursday:  Get ready for the International “Green” Potluck.  Gather ingredients, and make food!  Your parent may bring it to school at 12:35 or you can bring it in the morning. 

What to bring to the potluck:

1.        Your food to share

2.        Serving Utensil:  a knife, a large spoon, a fork, as needed.

3.        Reusable plates, cups, and knives, forks, and spoons.  A sturdy bag to pack for transporting all of this STUFF!

*It is expected that every child read 20 minutes nightly to improve their fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and overall reading skills. Plus, reading is fun!

*Please note: Everyday a Take-Home folder must go to and from school.

Up-coming Events:

9/20 20th Anniversary of TIS Celebration

9/22 NWEA Math Testing
9/24 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day for students!
9/26 12:35-1:35 "Green" Potluck at TIS (Culminating Food Inquiry Celebration)
10/1 No School- Teacher's Day
10/6-1/13 No School- Fall break
10/23 Elementary Math Night
10/15 UN Day
10/29 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day for students!

Ways to Contact Me/School:
E-mail: michaelr@tashschool.org
By appointment
Open-Door Policy (Thanks for signing in with the guards and main office before joining our community!)
Facebook
Flickr

Monthly Book Sharing Schedule

Junke	2
JiSu	4
Reagan	4
Junhyeok	5
Isabelle	6
Barbara	6
Christopher	6
Braelyn	8
Ekaterina	9
Khwahish	12
Margaret	13
Hassaan	14
Olga	17
NaYeon	18
Sevinch	22
XiaoYa	26
Anthony	30
Adli	30

October Book Sharing

1.     Choose a book which has a main character who is the opposite sex of you.  Have it OK’d by Mr. Mike.

2.    Read and enjoy your book!

3.    Choose three different objects to bring to school on your presentation day which could truly represent your character. 

4.    Practice what you will say at home.

5.    Share the objects with the class and tell how they represent him or her.

AN EXAMPLE

          If I had read Be a Perfect Person in Three Days, I would bring:

A bunch of broccoli to wear around my neck

A cup of really weak tea

A book

I would start with the book, and I would make the cover myself and stick it on a regular book.  I would share how and why Milo chose the book.  I would explain that the broccoli had to be worn for a whole day and that at first the main character was puzzled, but at the end of the day he realized he had to wear it so that he would not be so affected by other people’s teasing.  I would also explain that the weak tea was all he could drink on another one of the days that he wasn’t allowed to do anything, and that it wasn’t very delicious.  I would say that in the end he learned that only really boring people sit around doing nothing but drinking weak tea all day.  I might end by saying that the book had a really big effect on him and made him realize that being perfect was not really what he wanted to be in the first place!

Khwahish, Volume 5: September 15, 2014

Outstanding Week!

A review of the week in pictures, along with a few new important items. Please read carefully!

School camp out never tasted so good! Some more, S'mores?

We have created base groups. Each group brainstormed three rules (one behavior, one social, one learning), and group roles, or jobs - all which they came to a consensus about. After creating a group name that represented them all, they created a Tableau (a frozen scene) by choosing a Learner Attribute that most closely represented their group. Check them out!

Commitment - I try hard and never give up.

Empathy- I am open-minded and can understand other people's ideas and feelings.

 

Cooperation- I work well with others.

We have been hard at work creating, discussing, and arguing mathematically about rotational and mirror symmetry. Ask your child what they are and to draw an example for you. It's fun!

Can you describe a symmetric design without telling someone where to put the pattern blocks? We can!

Symmetry with geoboards.

Most excitingly, students expanded their knowledge on the complexity of foods with a real-life experience at the Bazaar! Expertly, students bargained with vendors, discovered costs of items and where they were grown or made. I am sure many of you enjoyed your tumeric, flowers, apples, grapes, and many other items students purchased at the Bazaar. Check out the captions to get some clues about food issues we have been discussing.

Tomatoes: Would you buy the ones grown on a local farm, or someone's local garden?

"That's right. I know my potatoes!"

"Where are those red peppers from? We need to know!"

"Is your smile as big as a banana? Mine is!"

Grapes? So many choices? How exactly did they get to the bazaar?

My mom will love these flowers!

Why are the nan so warm? I don't see an oven? 

Of course, we will continue our inquiry on food this coming week with a final field trip (Tuesday, September 16) to the farm. Comparing and contrasting our experiences at the supermarket, bazaar, and farm should bring to light many wonders for our inquirers. Finally, we will have a culminating food celebration of unit with a Potluck Lunch here at school on Friday, 9/26 12:35 p.m. -1:35 p.m. More info to come later.

Message from P.E.

Over cooperative unit students are engaged in variety of team building games, in order to review and develop an effective communication in active physical activities.  

Owl of the Week
My name is Kwahish and I live in Uzbekistan with my father, mother, younger sister, and younger brother. One exciting thing about school is playing with my friend's Katya and Margaret. Outside of school, I like to read scary books and play with friends. If I could change one thing about the world it would be to save the world from dangerous diseases. Two people I admire most are my parents because they take careful care of me. My favorite dinner is Margarita Pizza and chicken pizza and my least favorite dinner is any fish.

Monthly Book Presentations

We are now starting a book sharing program in the fourth grade.  The goals of the program are to encourage fourth graders to try a variety of types of books, to give them a chance to recommend titles of good books to their friends, and to help improve their ability to speak before a group.

A different genre of book will be assigned each month.  Your child will be able to choose any title that fits the type as long as he or she has not read it before and it is at an appropriate reading level.

The format of each month’s presentation will vary.  I will give out guidelines for the next month’s format on or around the fifteenth.  Students will then share their books on the day of the month that is the same as their birth date.  For example, a student whose birthday is July 18 will share his books on the eighteenth of each month.  If the presentation is supposed to be on a Saturday, it will be made on the preceding Friday; while Sunday presentations will be moved to the following Mondays.

Reading and preparation are to be done at home.  No class time will be given, although your son or daughter can certainly ask me for help, ideas, and materials.

Please help by assisting your child in making a plan for when he or she will read the book, prepare for the presentation, and then rehearse.

For your information, the monthly book types will be:

October:  Fiction books with a main character of the opposite gender

November:  Science fiction or fantasy

December:  Mystery

January:  Historical Fiction

February:  Myth or Tall Tale 

March:  Animal stories

April:  Non-fiction

May:  Free choice

Thanks for your help! We look forward to some fun, creative presentations!

NWEA Testing
We need to measure students' performance in different ways. As such, we administer a multiple-choice test to in Math and English Language Arts (ELA) as a benchmark for where a child is academically. Dates are noted below. It is important to remember this is just one measure of student academic performance and growth. If you have any questions about this, please email me. 

*Homework:

Monday:  Drops in the Bucket

Tuesday:  Do one spelling activity of your choice.  If it is one that does not get written in your notebook, please write down which one you did and have a parent sign your notebook!

Wednesday:  In your Unit of Inquiry notebook, write a paragraph about the most interesting thing you thought about as a result of the farm trip.  Your paragraph should be at least 5 sentences long.   Give it a title!

Thursday:  Typing Ace.   Use your home row keys!

*It is expected that every child read 20 minutes nightly to improve their fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and overall reading skills. Plus, reading is fun!

*Please note: Everyday a Take-Home folder must go to and from school.

Up-coming Events:

9/18 NWEA ELA Testing
9/20 20th Anniversary of TIS Celebration

9/22 NWEA Math Testing
9/24 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day
9/26 12:35-1:35 Potluck at TIS (Culminating Food Inquiry Celebration)
10/1 No School- Teacher's Day
10/6-1/13 No School- Fall break
10/23 Elementary Math Night
10/15 UN Day
10/29 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day

Ways to Contact Me/School:
E-mail: michaelr@tashschool.org
By appointment
Open-Door Policy (Thanks for signing in with the guards and main office before joining our community!)
Facebook
Flickr

Jun Hyeok, Volume 4: September 8, 2014

Enjoying our purchases outside of Magnit!

This week we had an incredible experience building on our knowledge of the complexity of issues surrounding food. Students learned how Magnit supermarket stored some of its food products by exploring packages, burlap bags, and an employee wrapping egg cartons in the store's basement. Upstairs, they were challenged on our field trip to purchase goods made in Uzbekistan and with no added sugar. We debriefed at school and here are some things some students shared: where supermarkets store food? how they supermarkets get food? where supermarkets get the food they sell? One student added to the discussion, "Things made outside of Uzbekistan are more expensive than the same thing made in Uzbekistan. Like Nutella is really expensive, and Chocolate spread made in Uzbekistan is not as expensive."

In the basement of Magnit, an employee wraps eggs.

Students examine the UPC/Bar code to see if the 2nd and 3rd digits are "78". This tells you if the product was made in Uzbekistan. Cool fact, right?

After working hard to find products without added sugar and made in Uzbekistan, students finally make their purchases. I definitely appreciated Margaret's help!

Ms. Magda and I are working on writing complete sentences. We will build them and discuss different types as we lead into how to write a terrific paragraph. Also, we are exploring conventions of non-fiction texts during our literacy time. Students have been using photographs, captions, diagrams, drawings, cutaways, and other conventions as clues to understanding challenging texts during UOI time. 

Is it rotational, or mirror symmetry? That is the question! Students have been exploring creating, comparing, and discussing designs with symmetry. Ask your child at home what each is and if it is possible to create a design that has both mirror and rotational symmetry? You will be surprised, I am sure!

Reagan and Christopher creating a design with mirror symmetry. Can you tell?

As part of our UOI study, next week we will be working with maps. Food distribution, food scarcity, and other elements often relate to our global geography and political maps. When students are discovering more about the food they eat, we will be tracking and completing world maps about where our food grows and travels. Mr. Seth in Technology will also be using Google Earth next week to track how far student's favorite foods travel from their origin to them.

Owl of the Week:

My name is Jun Hyeok. I live in Uzbekistan with my mom, dad, and sister. What excites me about school is that I will get better at reading. My favorite thing to do outside of school is the camp out. If I could change anything about the world it would making many camp outs at school. One person I admire is my mom. For example, she helps me with snacks, lunch, and homework. My favorite dinner is fish cooked in a pan. My least favorite dinner is fish and pork fried egg dumplings. Thank you for reading!

Here's me making symmetric designs with pattern blocks.

*Homework:
Monday:  Bring in one item of processed food and one item of natural food.  Name and describe each item, and why you chose that item, in your Unit of Inquiry notebook.

Tuesday:  Drops in the Bucket, two sides.

Wednesday:  Types of sentences worksheet.

Thursday:  Typing Ace. You will have to write about this activity tomorrow, so don’t skip it! Study for spelling quiz

*It is expected that every child read 20 minutes nightly to improve their fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and overall reading skills. Plus, reading is fun!

*Please note: Everyday a Take-Home folder must go to and from school.

Up-coming Events:

Monday, 9/8 After-School Activities (ASA) begin

9/20 20th Anniversary of TIS Celebration
9/24 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day
10/1 No School- Teacher's Day
10/6-1/13 No School- Fall break
10/23 Elementary Math Night
10/15 UN Day
10/29 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day

Ways to Contact Me/School:
E-mail: michaelr@tashschool.org
By appointment
Open-Door Policy (Thanks for signing in with the guards and main office before joining our community!)
Facebook
Flickr