Grade 4
Weekly Newsletter
October 8 - October 12, 2018
Thank you all so much for attending our three-way conferences. It was great seeing you all and I know that your children gained a lot by formulating and presenting their goals. We will continue to work on these goals throughout the semester....
In Curriculum:
Language Arts
This week in Reading, the children will be using nonfiction texts to explore different religions around the world. As they read, children will be noticing text structures and using brain frames to compare and contrast different religions.
In Writing, our opinion writing continues as we develop our drafts and work on other ideas for opinion writing using our planner.
Math
Students will also be learning how to solve two step word problems using the standard algorithm for addition and subtraction. They will begin to read both subtraction and addition word problems and use models and strategies to solve them, showing their thinking.
Social Studies
We will begin using the information our students collected on their personal culture to start their personal Cultural Presentation. This may take a couple weeks, especially since students preparing their research and thinking about how they are influenced by their language, culture, clothes etc. Students will select 4 main Cultural Universals and focus on those areas, preparing their work in Google Slides.
Announcements
If your child is a bus rider and you are planning to pick your child up after school, be sure to notify the bussing office(busing@iskl.edu.my or +603 4813 5070).
- Friday, October 19th - Free Dress Days for RM 5 Donation to charity
- Wednesday, October 31st - ES Halloween Dress UP Day (School Policy: NO weapons, NO masks, NO scary costumes)
Resources
Most parents stop reading with their child once they become independent readers. However, research suggests that we must continue reading with our children, into middle school. This looks different than when we read books to our children. Consider how you can read with your child. (sourced from Scholastic Parents
Time together. The number one reason for reading each night is quality time together. Period. Life gets nuts when kids go to elementary school. Between homework, lessons, classes, and meetings, it's a crazy time. But carving out that small amount of time—even if it's 10-15 minutes, which is just enough time to read one chapter of a book—is totally worth scheduling into your day. I'm betting payoffs for this small, scheduled “date” with your child will be big in the long-term.
Listening to fluent reading. If you choose to do the reading, which I strongly suggest you do, then this time together allows your child to listen to what fluent reading should sound like. You don't need to go crazy with voices and sounds—just read naturally and normally. The more your younger readers hear what fluent reading should sound like, the better! It reminds them how their reading should sound.
Talking about texts. It doesn't need to be an in-depth discussion about characters, plot-line, or style, but you may be surprised at how your conversations evolve after you read together for some time. You can begin by just “thinking aloud”—every few pages, share your thoughts about the text out loud, kind of like a built-in commentary. Your child will hear how you think about and process text as you read, and soon it will become habitual for him or her to do the same. Over time, incorporate questions or thought-provoking statements and involve your child.
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