Dear 4A Families,
I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Hard to imagine we are already in the
last week of February. This week is READ ACROSS AMERICA. We will be including some extra reading time and I will be sharing some theme related books in class each day. On Friday we are having a Comfy-Cozy day and students may wear their comfy clothes and bring in a small stuffy. We will have a whole school read-in from 2:15-2:50.
Wednesday we begin the season of Lent with the Ash Wednesday. Lent is a time when we are compelled to ask forgiveness for our sins and change our lives for the better. The ashes we receive are a sign that we are ready to change our lives. We will be focusing on three types of sacrifice and practices during Lent that will help us grow in our faith: prayer, fasting from excess and unkind actions, and good works or almsgiving. During Lent the students will be reading special Lenten prayers and Bible readings for the season. In class this week we will be reflecting on our plans for Lent. One way we will be incorporating prayer will be in the memorizing of the Memorare . We will recite the prayer daily at school, and each student will have a copy in their filer. This is a nice prayer to keep by your beside and recite each night as well. As a school we will be participating in several service related activities to share our gifts with those less fortunate. Each family will receive a rice bowl on Monday. Please read below for information on the Brown Bag Lunch collections for St. Martin de Porres
BROWN BAG FRIDAYS FOR ST. MARTIN de PORRES SHELTER
This year we will once again be able to include our Lenten outreach of providing lunches for the St. Martin de Porres shelter. Students are asked to help pack and bring a lunch along with an additional item on designated Fridays during Lent.
These lunches can be kept cold, so perishable food is fine.
**If you are interested in driving a few students to deliver the lunches one Friday in Lent, please contact Kristin Bentler in the school office.
Please note the collection dates below. It is most helpful if the additional items are kept separate from the lunches.
Fri. March 4th: Gr. k-4 mens gloves, Gr. 5-8 lunches
Fri. March 25 – Gr. K-4 lunches, Gr. 5-8 men’s socks
Fri. April 1st – Gr. K-4 travel size toothbrush and toothpaste. Gr. 5-8 lunches
Fri. April 8 – Gr. K-4 lunches, Gr. 5-8 disposable razors and travel size shaving cream
Reading: In response to our story selection, students take on the role of Sacagawea as part of the Corps of Discovery. Students compose a journal entry detailing the trials of the summer of 1805 from Sacagawea’s point of view. We practice fluency as students read and record this journal entry aloud, focusing on adding emotion and expression that are appropriate for the content.
Flat Stanley Project: Students should have completed the rough and final drafts for their first entry that was completed at home. Students should bring back the entire Flat Stanley folder so we can collect the final drafts. Thank you for helping your child manage time and for assisting with editing and revising. This one-on-one help is extremely beneficial for your child.
Students will bring the folder back home on Tuesday with more rough/final draft papers. Students will have the month of March to complete TWO more entries of their choice. We will continue with this project throughout the Spring, spacing out the entries so the students are working on approximately one entry every two weeks.
Flat Stanley Pictures: Remember to take pictures of your Flat Person on their adventures. KEEP ALL PICTURES either at home or in the Flat Stanley folder until the end of the project. We will create a scrapbook at the very end, so no need to worry about printing out pictures yet. Most people take pictures using their parents’ phones, so when the time comes, all of them can be printed out together. You are also welcome to send me the pictures to print for your children. In the end, the students will want to try and have at least 2 pictures to accompany EACH journal entry. Remember, you can also collect mementos like ticket stubs, brochures, maps that relate to the entries.
Here are just a few ideas for Flat Stanley journal entries. Possibilities are endless!
Language Arts: In class, the students will begin a new writing project this week that will support some of the skills they will use during their upcoming Oral Biography Project. Each student will be assigned a notable person to learn about. They will read a short biography and do a bit of research to write a summary of their lives. When we present this mini biography in class the students will get practice speaking in front of their classmates as a famous person like they will during their big oral bio project. . We will also learn about PVLEGS to support oral presentation skills. Next week we will be going over the directions for the Oral Biography Project. More to come….
Spelling: The spelling words for Unit 17 were passed out last Friday. The test will take place this Friday as usual.
Math: Look for corrected Chapter 6 tests in your child’s filer. This week we will begin a chapter on patterns and sequences. Students learn about non numeric and numeric patterns and sequences. We will also include review of multi-digit multiplication to keep our skills strong.
Science: Students learn to classify rocks into three main categories: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic based on their make up and formation. Observations of the physical properties such as hardness, luster, color, streak, specific gravity, cleavage, fracture, and tenacity also allow students to characterize rocks.
Social Studies: The students are learning about the challenges of traveling the Oregon Trail through a QR code search and related readings. We will also be learning the locations of some of the major rivers in our country. This will not be a memorization test however.
