Mr. Sassman's 4th Grade Class Blog
Weller Elementary School
Labor Day: The first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.
For more information about Labor Day, follow the link below! Some interesting stuff!
I hope you enjoyed your long weekend! My family and I had a chance to spend some precious time together. Fall has always been my favorite season of the year. Below is My wife Meagen, and my daughters Zemra and Zarina. We are expecting another little girl this October. I will severely be outnumbered!
Last week...
Our class completed their fall MAP progress monitoring assessments, and the results are in. It appears that many students were reading a lot over the summer, so great job parents. Because MAP tests take up two full mornings, we are still ramping up our academic campaigns. However, I sent home spelling practice packets that were personalized for individual needs, and I hope they were accurate. Please let me know otherwise. I also received several reading logs back, so the prize box was exciting on Friday...Speaking of Friday, did you say pancakes? Well, yes, we filled ourselves up, and I was especially impressed with how appreciative the kids were. Another sign of how sweet this class is!
We started two read-aloud books, Mrs. Young is reading James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl, and I have begun Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper. Both are entirely different, but excellent, no doubt. Speaking of reading, I will be introducing our Q1 book reports, now that I have some reading level data. I will meet with kids individually to help them select appropriate leveled books and send them home with directions and a rubric for the assignment. Please help them with this. Lastly, We will start our class novel next week. Stay tuned for the selection, I am still deciding which to begin with, as I have a few in mind.
On Friday, I sent home a field trip notification form. We are going to Ballaine Lake for science/art/ELA explorations. The other fourth grade classes will join us, and we will have five/six stations (depending on volunteers). Aquatic Invertebrates, Terrestrial Invertebrates, Marble Art, Six Rooms Poetry, and the final two stations will be set this week. This will be on Tuesday, September 10, 2019. We will depart Weller at 9 AM and return around 2-2:15 PM. As I mentioned in the notification form, this trip will be paid for from class funds, but if you would like to send in $5.00 to defray the cost of transportation, that would be much appreciated. No worries either way.
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| Most students have finished their first few art projects, Perspective, and Warm/Cold Trees. They are now on display, so pop by to see em'. We will send them home at conferences. |
This week...
We will change speeds a bit. We have a short week, but I am optimistic and ambitious. Math will resume, and homework will be assigned. I sent home 1-3 and some extra credit over the weekend for students that wanted it (yes, some asked). We will have time to finish 1-3 in class Monday afternoon either way. Please check with your child by asking which teacher they have for math class, as we have a "Walk-to-Math" program in fourth grade.
Technology is not yet in full swing. I will aks the students sign in to their PowerSchool accounts, explore their Google Drive, and start their first assignment, Autumn Haikus. We will work more with the Chromebooks as the year progresses, but let's ease into it for now. I firmly believe technology is an integral part of the classroom, but it needs to be strategically implemented and limited.
I would like to have all students finished with their rough drafts of their Summer Reflections, with some students finished with their final copies.
See below for more info about ongoing assignments and homework.
The First Quarter Plan:
Monday looks like:
- Non-fiction Narrative Writing - Summer Break Reflections
- State Reports and Poster Board
- States Potluck
- Spelling
- Life Sciences
- The United States - Geography, Mapping, Economy, States Reports
- Red Bird Math
- enVision Math
- Daily Oral Language (DOL)
- Q1 Book Reports
- Reading Logs
- Cursive Handbooks
- Class Novel
- Art
- And much, much, more...
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Monday looks like:
8:30 - 9:30
Arrive
Writing Prompt
Morning Announcements
New Seats
New Jobs
Class Meeting
Student of the Week Presentation - Alanna
9:30 - 10:00
Counselor class with Mrs. Dershin
10:00 - 11:30
Snack/Read Aloud
DOL
Summer Reflections
11:30 - 12:00
Lunch
12:00 - 12:30
Recess
12:30 - 1:45
Math Block
1:45 - 2:00
Break/Movement Activity
2:00 - 2:45
Autumn Haikus
2:45 - 3:00
Clean Up
Stack Chairs
Mailboxes
*Please note that math, specials (PE, music, and library), lunch, and recess are part of a fixed schedule and stay in blocks. At times, curriculum instruction will be shuffled to accommodate different initiatives.
If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please feel free to call or email me anytime to discuss things further. I hope you find this information helpful and useful.
IN-CLASS ASSIGNMENTS - QUIZZES - TESTS
--DOL Week 2
--Summer Reflections Rough Draft/Final Draft
--Cursive Letter "B"
--Autumn Haikus
HOMEWORK
ONGOING
--Reading Logs (ongoing)
MATH HOMEWORK DUE THIS WEEK
DUE ON
Wednesday, September 4, 2019
--Reteach 1-4
Thursday, September 5, 2019
--Reteach 1-5
Friday, September 6, 2019
--Reteach 1-6
***A brief note about homework. It is my philosophy that homework is an opportunity for students to practice skills that they have learned in school that day/week. The benefits are proven and tremendous. I try to keep things simple: 20 minutes of reading practice (reading logs), 20 minutes of math practice (worksheet), and 5-10 minutes of spelling (1 page per night). If your student is working on homework for more than an hour each night (Monday - Thursday, none on the weekends), please contact me so we can discuss things further. It is not my intention to make life impossible for you at home.
DUE ON
--Reteach 1-4
Thursday, September 5, 2019
--Reteach 1-5
Friday, September 6, 2019
--Reteach 1-6
***A brief note about homework. It is my philosophy that homework is an opportunity for students to practice skills that they have learned in school that day/week. The benefits are proven and tremendous. I try to keep things simple: 20 minutes of reading practice (reading logs), 20 minutes of math practice (worksheet), and 5-10 minutes of spelling (1 page per night). If your student is working on homework for more than an hour each night (Monday - Thursday, none on the weekends), please contact me so we can discuss things further. It is not my intention to make life impossible for you at home.
***Please keep in mind, projects, or tests we have in class may have to be brought home to be finished or to study. Please ask your child if they have completed their work and check PowerSchool regularly.
ONGOING INFORMATION
READING LOGSReading logs are a regular part of our class. Students will receive "points" for each day that they read a minimum of 20 minutes at home. The purpose: for students to read each day (not 100 minutes over the weekend or 40 minutes on Tuesday to catch up for Monday).
Reading logs will be due on a rolling basis and should have dates read on them. I will give credit as they are turned in and filled out correctly (please initial these). The points students receive will be added to their overall reading grade, counting towards their final grade.
It is simple, if students read and turn in their logs, they will see their grade improve significantly while naturally benefitting in fluency and accuracy. If they do not, they will not be given a "0" on the assignment, they simply will not receive any points.
I have a yellow folder by the classroom front door filled with new reading logs. Email me with any questions or concerns, please.
GOOGLE DRIVE
You can access all of your student's digital assignments online and work at home if you would like. Simply go to www.gmail.com and type in their email address and password. Then find the Google Menu (where you will find the Drive, Docs, and Slides) icon in the top right corner (it is a nine-square grid next to their s-number). This is where they will make their Google Slides Presentation for their Biography Book Reports. All passwords have been reset and synched to their individual defaults for the start of the school year. Please do not make any changes. It is as follows:
Username: s#@student.k12northstar.org (for example: s123456@student.k12northstar.org)
Password: s#g (for example: s123456g)
DATES TO REMEMBER
Tuesday, September 10, 2019
--Field Trip to Ballaine Lake (9:00 AM - 2 PM)
Thursday, September 12, 2019
--Class Picture Day
Friday, September 27, 2019
--Professional Development Teacher Work Day (no school)
Thursday, October 31 and Friday, November 1, 2019
--Parent/Teacher Conferences (please sign up online now)
More to come...
It's a good life!
Mr. Sassman
