Veterans Day Essay

Topic-

Write to explain who Veterans are and what contributions they have made to our country.

Due- October 29th

Judging- November 5th

Weekly Update 9/29

Hello!  Hard to believe we're already heading into October!

• Picture day is Wednesday, October 1st.  These pictures are head shots only, so the girls can leave their fancy shoes at home.  We'd hate for them to get messed up on the playground.
• There is no school on Friday!
• Have you checked your child's AR progress?  Students should have completed more than half of their goal by this point in the 1st nine weeks.  Dr. Small and Mrs. Austin are checking and rewarding students that have made good progress towards their goal.
• Reading tests are going to start coming home after completion.  Please use these as a way to review and reteach skills.
• Students will be taking a Pretest for each Math chapter.  These are a great resource to work with your child on to help prepare them for their end of chapter tests.  Please look in Think Central to see these tests.  They are only available online.
• Did you know we have a Parent Resource Room at Springwood?  It's located in our Media Center.  There are computers and a printer for you to use, as well as books that you can borrow. 
• Students are taking timed multiplication tests two times a week in Math.  Ask your child what fact they're currently working on.  We have students working as high as 4s right now.  By the end of the week, I expect some will have moved up to 5s!  Practice facts with your child for a few minutes each night!  
• Paint The Town Pink is on Thursday!  Wear pink!
• In the future…
• October 7th – SAC Meeting – 12:00
• October 7th – PTO Meeting – 6:00
• October 7th – Curriculum Night for Math at 6pm - Pizza will be provided
• October 8th – Spirit Night at Chick Fil A on N. Monroe – 4:00-8:00 

Conferences/Progress Alerts

Dear Parents,

We've received several emails and phone calls since Progress Alerts went home yesterday.  Before contacting us for a conference, please check Parent Portal to review all of your child's assignment grades.  Look to see your child's grades on the tests, as they count for 80% of the Language Arts and Math grade.  Also, look to see the number of times homework was not turned in.  Included, but not for a grade, are your child's percentage correct on AR quizzes.  Many students  have performed poorly on their AR tests.  If you have set up your account settings to receive weekly grade updates, please note that if you receive a notification prior to a test grade being entered, the grade may change drastically once a poor test grade is entered.  Also, please be aware that new posts on our blog seem to not be sent immediately.  You may find it helpful to log into the blog at least twice a week to keep current.  Extra credit is being offered weekly in Wonders.  This past week, only 3 students took advantage of this opportunity.  Another assignment is already posted for next week.  We have duty 3 mornings and 3 afternoons per week, making our conference availability very slim.  Email communication would be the quickest way for us to relay information to you regarding your child's performance.  However, if you would like a face to face meeting, we will do everything we can to accommodate you.  

Sincerely,

Mrs. Rodriguez and Mrs. Lynch

Progress Alerts and Other Info

Parents, 

Progress Alerts are coming home today.  Please review your child's grades, sign and return the report.  If you'd like more information about their grades, please check Parent Portal and then send us an email with any questions that you have.   (Mrs. Rodriguez – Language Arts, rodriguezc@leonschools.net   Mrs. Lynch – Math, lyncht@leonschools.net)

The 4th graders are participating in an essay contest that is sponsored by the Pilot Club.  This is a required assignment.  Mrs. Rodriguez went over with the students today.  The topic is "Veterans – Who are they and what did they do for our country?"  The entry form is a bright yellow piece of paper that was attached to your child's Progress Alert.  Please keep this in a safe place!  It needs to be attached to their essay. 

Mark your calendars for our Math night on October 7th from 6-7:30pm.  Parents that attend will learn ways to help their child in Math and be served a FREE PIZZA DINNER!

Picture day is scheduled for Wednesday, October 9th.

Thank you,

Mrs. Lynch and Mrs. Rodriguez

Complex Word Problem in Math

Today we learned and practiced the standard algorithm for multiplying 2 by 1 digit numbers.  (This means I taught them to multiply the way you and I learned to multiply!)

Below you will see the notes we took today.  (The students completed the examples, I did them on the board.)  I want to draw your attention to the word problem on the bottom of the second page. This is a COMPLEX problem, with 3 steps!  These are the sorts of problems that students must be able to solve on their Chapter Tests.  

Math Homework

As we move forward into multiplying large numbers, your child will learn a number of difference strategies and ways to multiply.  Today we worked on area models and the distributive property.  Here's a picture of my notes that we wrote together in class today.

Weekly Update

Good morning!

• Progress Alerts will go home on Wednesday.
• Students will take their Mid-Chapter 2 Math Quiz tomorrow!
• The PTO is collecting new and gently used books for Family Reading Night and a book swap. There is a donation box in the front office. 
• Safety reminders:  students should be dropped off in the front of the school only (unless it's before 7:30 and they attend the before school program), parents must sign-in in the front office before walking onto campus, car tags are needed in hand or hanging from your mirror for parent pick-up, students cannot not be dropped off until 7:45am.