Week of September 9th

Dear 4A Families,

What an excellent first week of school with my wonderful new 4th grade students.  It is clear to see that this will be an amazing year—with such a bright, kind, creative and fun group of students. I so enjoyed talking with you on Parent’s Night.  Remember, if you have questions, suggestions, concerns, please contact me!  We are partners in your child’s learning.

Next Tuesday, September 17th is individual class picture day.   Flyers to order pictures were sent home last Friday, and you can also use this link  to order online with our school ID# LS119030Q0. Students may wear free dress on picture day.

The Magazine Drive officially kicked off with the opening assembly last Friday.This year’s theme is “Treat Yourself”. The annual Magazine Drive is one of Holy Rosary School’s largest fundraisers.  Approximately $120,000 is raised!   Cash donations, in lieu of magazine orders, are welcome! $25.00 donation = 1 magazine order.  Thank you so much for your support of this important fundraiser! Please share this link with family and friends. Check the eFC for more information.

  • Please turn in all Summer Reading Reading and Summer Math right away!
  • If you have not yet returned your pink student profile and blue iPad user agreement, please do so by the end of the week. Thank you.

Thank you to those that have sent me the email addresses you wish you use on the class distribution email list.  I will be sending one more paper copy of the newsletter this week.  You can also access the newsletter online at 4a.holyrosary2023.wpengine.com.

As we move into our second week of school, we will continue to practice the routines and expectations of the school and 4th grade.  The time we spend on these procedures now helps to set the stage for a successful year. Our regular curriculum schedule will also start to move into place.

Spelling:  Each student should have the spelling words for the number words in their filer. This list will support our upcoming math lessons as well. A words list was passed out last Friday. We will also be using a site called Spelling City this year. The site has many activities that will help the students review and practice their weekly lists. Students will have login information pasted into the back of their student planner on Monday.

Reading: Last week Ms. Corrigan began administering an oral reading assessment to the students, which will be completed this week. We will begin our regular reading routine this week as well,  starting with a wonderful tall tale in our anthology called “Stormalong”.  We will focus on understanding characters and the figurative language concepts of hyperbole, simile and metaphor.

Language ArtsWe will be presenting our introductory Venn Diagram getting to know you activity this week.  Along with our spelling and vocabulary work, we will be reviewing cursive forms and paper headings.

MathOur lessons this week will focus on place value and comparing/ordering numbers. The students will learn to read and write numbers correctly though the millions.   Look for math homework each night this week.  Thank you for going over your child’s homework with them to check for accuracy. Look for a flyer to come home in your child’s filer on Tuesday or Wednesday this week from Xtramath.  Even if you child has already had an account, you need to sign up again so that the account is associated with 4A, and I can access results.  Thank you!

Religion: Our religion lessons this week will focus on our Steps to Respect lessons and social skills.  When our class norms clearly support SAFE, RESPECTFUL & RESPONSIBLE behavior, unkind/bullying behaviors are less likely to happen. Our lessons this week will help reinforce these norms by connecting words and actions to class rules and expectations for social and learning behavior. We will also be doing some introductory activities on the parts of the Bible, how to look up verses, as well as learn a bit about the history of the Bible. Lastly, the students will be making personalized bookmarks for their Bibles.  During this Wednesday’s Mass Fr. Oakland will bless the  4th grade Bibles.

Social Studies/Science:– Ms. Benson and I will be meeting with both classes this week to introduce ourselves and the curriculum for the year.

Be on the lookout for information on our “gritty” classroom in next week’s newsletter. Grit and Growth Mindset fall into the same category.  This short video (Link on 4A website)is a good introduction to growth mindset and is one I will be sharing with the class. These are the traits we will be forcing on this year to become gritty!

COURAGE, TENACITY, HARD WORK, OPTIMISM, RESILIENCE, SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE, GRATITUDE, CONSCIENTIOUSNESS, PERSEVERANCE, DELAYED GRATIFICATION, PERSISTENCE, SELF-CONTROL AND OPEN-MINDEDNESS.

 Headphones:  If your child has not yet brought in headphones or earbuds, they need to do so no later than Friday the 13th.  They are used daily in class.  Thank you.

 I wanted to remind you about the Every Kid in a Park program.Thanks to this program, every 4th grader and their family can receive a FREE annual pass to the National ParksThis offer is good for every child entering the fourth grade.  Check out the link!

Have a great weekend!