Good afternoon everyone!

Please ensure you are sending your child to school with proper outdoor gear! Students will not be kept inside for recess if they do not have the proper outdoor gear.

A note from Ms. Helen, our Admissions Coordinator - As you are aware, the re-registration season is upon us and we have recently sent home packages with your child(ren). We value your loyalty and commitment to our school community and would love to continue our partnership by offering priority enrollment for our current SJA families. We kindly ask that you take a moment to review your financial statement and complete the information in the package and make any necessary changes to your place of residence, employment, email changes or any medical information that the administration should be aware of. Please be aware that in order to secure your child’s enrolment, it is imperative that you submit your re-enrollment package and fees no later than February 12, 2018 at 4:00 PM. After this date, all available grade-level spaces will be open to our families on waitlists who will then have the opportunity to secure any vacant positions.

A note on speeches - In Grade 4, students are expected to write and memorize a 3-5 minute informational speech on a topic of their choice. All work is to be completed in class, unless otherwise stated. We will begin with a guided writing activity, were we will take each paragraph a day at a time. I will write an example and then they will write theirs. We will have about a week to write rough copies, a week to write good copies and about a week to memorize with plenty of opportunity to perform in front of the class. On Wednesday, February 7, two students from each Grade 4 class will be chosen to compete in our SJA Oral Competition Day, on Friday, February 9. A letter was sent home, along with deadlines.

March Break Camp registrations have been sent home. If you are interested in registering you chid for our amazing March Break camp, please send in the completed March Break camp registration form, along with the $20 one-time non-refundable deposit. Please note that lunch is also included each day!

Upcoming Dates & Events

Thursday, January 18 – Rough copy speech due (in-class work only)

Thursday, January 25 – UOI Religion Rules Summative Due and presentations begin (more information to come soon)

Friday, January 26 – Good copy speech due (in-class work only) & UOI Summative presentations

Friday, January 26- Sunday, January 28 – Memorize speech at home – must be 3-5 minutes

Monday, January 29 – Friday, February 2 – In-class speech recitals

Tuesday, January 30  - Bake Sale

Wednesday, January 31 – Bake Sale and Casual Day

Wednesday, February 7 – Final in-class recital where 2 students will be chosen to move forward to the SJA Oral Competition

Friday, February 9 – SJA Oral Competition

MATH:

Our decimals unit may by very challenging, so we are taking our time. We will be spending 2 days on a few lessons to ensure our students are understanding the concepts. This unit will take us to beginning of February. Our unit math test will take place on Tuesday, February 6.

Today we discussed equivalent decimals; decimals that are written and said differently but equal each other. For example 1.3 = 1.30, even though we say (1 and 3 tenths & 1 and 30 hundredths) and write them differently.

Key points to remember:

 A fraction represents parts of a whole and is written like ½ (one over 2 or one-half). The top number is the numerator and represents the part of number. The bottom number is the denominator and represents the whole number. For example, ¾ (three-fourths) is a square with four whole parts and three parts are shaded in. 1/10 is one-tenth and 1/100 is one-hundredths. We also discussed equivalent fractions. Equivalent means equal. For example, 2/4 = ½, 2/6 = 1/3, and 5/20 = ¼.

Decimals are another way to write a fraction. The decimal separates two different numbers. The numbers on the left side of the decimal represent the whole number and the numbers on the right side of the decimal represents the parts of numbers. For example, 1.32 = 1 whole and 32 parts or 1 and 32 hundredths.

Homework:

Equivalent Fractions!

LANGUAGE:

Today we continued to work on speeches. I approved everyone’s topic and was happy to see that most had their research. By Monday, everyone should have his or her introduction, first and second body paragraph completed. A kind reminder that all speech work is to be completed in class only, unless otherwise stated. Students are also reminded to ensure they are paraphrasing, putting their research into their own words.

We focused on the second body paragraph today. This is a straightforward paragraph, however students need to support their ideas with information from their research. It should begin with the general topic for this paragraph, have ideas with supporting details, and an ending sentence leading into the next topic/body paragraph!

The introduction must include a greeting, and introduction of yourself and your topic, a hook (a statement/question that grabs the audiences attention), and a sentence that outlines what you will be taking about in your speech (your three body paragraphs).

The first body paragraph is a straightforward paragraph, however students need to support their ideas with information from their research. It should begin with the general topic for this paragraph, have ideas with supporting details, and an ending sentence leading into the next topic/body paragraph!

Speeches!

Homework:

-Finish second body paragraph if not completed in class

-Bring in more research if needed

UNIT OF INQUIRY:

Today our UOI period was cut short due to longer announcements, but we had some time to discuss mediation and do a small meditation activity. On Monday, students will create their own meditation skit.

Homework:

-Sign and return Religion Summative letter and rubric

-Summative begins Tuesday

-Summative due Thursday, January 25 with presentations beginning that day

Enjoying our mediation activity!

Safe travels home tonight! I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Mrs. Hocevar J