Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

This past week we started our journalism unit by reading news everyday and learning that all good news stories begin with stating the 5W's (Who? What? Where? When? Why?) and using the inverted pyramid/triangle of journalism (see below).  We will resume with spelling after break.

Reading

We continued to read news and nonfiction texts during Reading this past week.  In reading groups, we also started our rocks books to go with our new science unit! 

Math

Students finished Chapter 6 in Math this past week.  We are starting Chapter 7 on patterns this week and will finish it after break. 

Social Studies/Science

We finished Social Studies Chapters 3 and 4 today with our test.  Now we begin our rocks unit in Science that we will continue after break!  

  Other Important Info.

• We held one of our classroom spelling bees today!  Our next classroom spelling bee is this Wednesday, December 16th.  Our classroom winners will then participate in the school spelling bee on January 15th!  Good luck, students!  
• Our Winter Party is this Thursday from 2:00-3:00.  As a reminder, there is no school this Friday, December 18th! 
• Winter Break starts Monday,December 21st.  School will resume on Monday, January 4th.  
• Don't forget to be filling out the Six Flags Read to Succeed Reading Logs.  If a student is wanting to participate, they need to read 6 hours in addition to their class reading log minutes.  As a reward, they will receive a free admission ticket to Six Flags theme park. These reading logs are due Friday, February 12th.  

Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

This past week in writing, we finished our persuasive essays!  They turned out great!  We celebrated today, and pictures will be up on the next Weekly Update.  Our next writing unit will be a short journalism mini-unit.  The next Spelling Test will be Friday, December 11th.

Reading

In reading this past week, we summarized nonfiction texts and decoded big words.  Nonfiction text can be tricky to understand sometimes, but we are doing a good job of comprehending what we read.   

Summarizing nonfiction text

Math

We have been working hard on learning the steps of long division.  Students are doing very well with this and most have all of the steps memorized!  The Chapter 6 Test is this Thursday, 12/10.  Students will receive the study guide tomorrow in class. 

Social Studies

In Social Studies, we have finished Chapter 4.  We are currently working on a class timeline of all the important events throughout Missouri's history, including all the big dates we discuss all year.  This includes Lewis and Clark's journey and westward expansion.  Timeline pieces are due this Wednesday, 12/9, and the finished timeline will be ready to view on the next Weekly Update!  The Chapter 3/4 Test will be this Friday.  Students received the study guide today.

  Other Important Info.

• Our classroom spelling bee will be held on Monday, December 14th and Wednesday, December 16th before winter break.  Our classroom winners will then participate in the school spelling bee on January 15th!  Good luck, students!  
• This Wednesday, 12/9 is an Early Release Day with dismissal at 1:40.  Make sure your child knows how they are going home.
• Don't forget to be filling out the Six Flags Read to Succeed Reading Logs.  If a student is wanting to participate, they need to read 6 hours in addition to their class reading log minutes.  As a reward, they will receive a free admission ticket to Six Flags theme park. These reading logs are due Friday, February 12th.  

Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

This past week in writing, we made sure to add persuasive words and transition words in our essays.  We also discussed that we need to add facts that will persuade our audiences.  We will continue to work on these things and editing as we continue to develop our essays.  We will finish these persuasive essays by our celebration date of Friday, December 4th.  The next Spelling Test will be Friday, December 11th.

Reading

In reading this past week, we continued to study the structure of nonfiction texts.  We will begin to look at more challenging texts that use multiple text structures.  Again, this is helping us to better read and understand nonfiction texts.  

We practiced identifying text structures by highlighting clues
and key words in short passages with our reading partner!  

Math

This past week we learned the steps of long division!  This is still challenging for some students, and we will continue to work on learning and correctly using the multiple steps.  Below is a picture Division Man, who helps us to remember those steps!  It is important that students keep up with the math homework pages that are assigned a couple times each week during the months of November and December.  It is also vital that they know their facts!

Social Studies

In Social Studies, we have finished Chapter 3 and have started Chapter 4.  Students find Chapter 4 pretty interesting as it explains westward expansion and Lewis and Clark!

  Other Important Info.

• Tomorrow students will take home The Great American Spell Check newspaper to help them in studying for the classroom spelling bee and possibly the school-wide spelling bee.  Our classroom spelling bee will be held in December before winter break.  Our classroom winners will then participate in the school spelling bee on January 15th!  Good luck, students!  
• Don't forget to be filling out the Six Flags Read to Succeed Reading Logs.  If a student is wanting to participate, they need to read 6 hours in addition to their class reading log minutes.  As a reward, they will receive a free admission ticket to Six Flags theme park. These reading logs are due Friday, February 12th.  
• Thanksgiving Break starts Wednesday, November 25th.  School will resume Monday, November 30th (an "E" day).  Have a great break!  

Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

This past week in our writing unit we participated in debates!  Students came up with some pretty persuasive reasons and evidence for their assigned point of view.  Check out some of our debates below- and don't miss the captions that provide information on the winning opinion!  New spelling words won't be passed out until after Thanksgiving break.  The next Spelling Test will be Friday, December 11th.

Most students voted, "NO."

Most students voted, "Yes."

By ONE vote, "Yes" won the debate!

The majority voted, "NO."

Reading

In our reading unit, we are studying how nonfiction texts are organized.  We are studying texts that are structured by chronological order, cause and effect, compare and contrast, and problem and solution.  This is helping us to better read and understand nonfiction text.  

Math

This week we will start Chapter 6, "Divide by a One-Digit Number."  Again, it is important that your child knows their multiplication and division facts.  They should be practicing facts for fluency on a nightly basis.  

Social Studies

In Social Studies, we are currently studying timelines in Chapter 3.  We will continue with Chapters 3 ("The First People of Missouri") and 4 ("The Arrival of Europeans") before resuming in our science units.  

Other Important Info.  

• This Wednesday, November 18th is an early release day with dismissal at 1:40.  Please make sure your child knows how they are getting home.  

• The contest is almost over!!  Don't forget to click here to vote for Long Elementary to get new playground equipment!   

Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

This past week we started our persuasive essays by brainstorming opinions in which we would want to persuade either our parents, teachers, or friends.  In this part of the unit, we will also hold debates!  The Spelling Test will be this Friday, November 13th.

Reading

This week we finished our read aloud, The Tiger Rising!  Check out the graffiti wall we made below! (Unless you want to read the book- there are some spoilers!)

We started our nonfiction unit that will further support our essay unit and our upcoming nonfiction book unit in writing.  We are reading a lot of nonfiction.  As fourth graders, students should read 1/2 nonfiction texts and 1/2 fiction texts.  

Math

Students have been doing a good job in solving 2-digit by 2-digit multiplication problems this past week.  Below you will find a video that we watched to help us with the many steps!  The Chapter 5 Test is this Friday, November 13th.  Students will be working on the study guide this week.  Instead of the regular Standardized Test Prep. or Reflection Journal Friday Homework for the month of November, students will have math homework on an almost nightly basis.  You can check the blog's "Homework" tab against your child's assignment book to find the nights that homework was assigned.  

Social Studies

In Social Studies, we will continue with Chapters 3 ("The First People of Missouri") and 4 ("The Arrival of Europeans") before resuming in our science units.  

Other Important Info.  

• Class t-shirt money is due by Friday, November 13th!
• Six Flags Read to Succeed Reading Logs were passed out this past week and are due Friday, February 12th.  If a student is wanting to participate, they need to read 6 hours in addition to their class reading log minutes.  As a reward, they will receive a free admission ticket to Six Flags theme park.   
• Don't forget to click here to vote for Long Elementary to get new playground equipment!   

Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

Students are doing a great job with their personal essays, and we will finish them this week! Then, we will move on to our persuasive essays!  It will be nice to have the same structure and organization for both pieces.   The Spelling Test will be next Friday, November 13th.

Reading

In reading groups, we practiced fluency by reading The Legend of Sleepy Hollow play this past week!  Then, we watched a video of the story told by Glenn Close!  We will continue to read debates from our StoryWorks magazines to support our essay unit. 

Math

We will start Chapter 5 tomorrow.  It is very important that students know their multiplication facts because we will multiply by 2-digit numbers in this chapter!

Social Studies

The Chapter 2 ("Our State Today") Test will be this Friday, November 6th.  Students will recieve the study guide tomorrow in class.  They will need to know the surrounding states of Missouri, the capital of Missouri, famous Missourians, how to find location using latitude and longitude, and how to read a population map.  We will continue with Chapters 3 ("The First People of Missouri") and 4 ("The Arrival of Europeans") before resuming in our science studies.  

The Halloween Party!
A big THANK YOU to all parents who brought in party supplies and volunteered at the Halloween Party!  Students had a blast!

Other Important Info.  

• Don't forget to click here to vote for Long Elementary to get new playground equipment!   
• This Friday, November 6th is Long's Picture Retake Day! 

Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

Last week we started "Essay Boot Camp!"  We learned what an essay is as well as the structure of an essay.  We also chose our first essay topic and came up with a thesis and 3 supporting reasons, including 3 examples for each of those reasons.  Then, we started to freewrite about our topic to gain ideas.  Personal essay topics include sports, holidays, friends and family members, pets, objects, and a favorite book.  This week we are continuing to grow our essay ideas.  The Spelling Test will be this Friday, October 23rd.

Reading

In reading groups, we are reading debates from our StoryWorks magazines to prepare for our essay unit.  After reading the debate, we are deciding if we agree or disagree with the thesis statement.  We will continue reading these debates this week.  

Math

In Math we started Chapter 4.  We are learning many different strategies for multiplying by a two-digit number.  So far we have discussed multiplying by multiples of 10 and rounding numbers to get a multiple of 10.  This week we will continue to learn other strategies.  For homework each night, students should be studying their multiplication and division facts!   They can also work on completing their pie pieces on ALEKS at home.  

Social Studies

We have started social studies this week with Chapter 2, "Our State Today."  It discusses famous Missouri artists, writers, and athletes as well as popular festivals and big cities in Missouri.  

Other Important Info.  

• Click here to vote for Long Elementary to get new playground equipment!   
• Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held on Monday, October 26th and Wednesday, October 28th.  If you have not signed up for a time slot, please do so  using the SignUpGenius link that was sent via email.  

Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

This past week we took a break from our writing units and wrote spooky poems using sensory details!  Students used awesome details.  Check out a couple of our poems below!   Today we started our new unit on essays.  We start "Essay Boot Camp" with a personal essay, writing about something that we love.  Then, we will write a persuasive essay.  We spend a lot of time in learning the structure of an essay.  New spelling words will be given out this week.  The next Spelling test will be Friday, October 23rd.  

Reading

As we are reading our read aloud, "The Tiger Rising," we are preparing for our persuasive essays and practicing giving text support to our answers by coming up with a list of debatable ideas about some of our characters in the book.  For example, "Sistine had friends in Philadelphia" and, "The tiger should be set free."  We will look for evidence in the text to either support or oppose these statements.  In reading groups, we are finishing our study of ecosystems.

Math

Students "showed what they know" today on the Chapter 3 Test.  We will start Chapter 4 ("Multiply with One-Digit Numbers") this week   Again, it is important that students study their multiplication facts at home!

Science/Social Studies

Food chain projects are due tomorrow, Tuesday 10/13.  The Chapter 4 Ecosystems Test is this Wednesday.  Students have their study guides.  Again, extra credit activities/practice activities can be found on the online textbook.  Students' usernames and passwords can be found on the login cards in the front of their binders.   The link to the online textbook can be found by clicking here.  After logging in, students click on "To Do" in the right-hand corner of the home page.  Then, the assigned activities will appear.  Click on the activity to complete.   After finishing an activity, click on the "I'm Done" button next to the activity.  These extra credit activities are due Friday.  After our ecosystems unit, we will resume with our study of Missouri in Social Studies. 

Other Important Info.  

• Click here to vote for Long Elementary to get new playground equipment!   
• This Friday, October 16th is a half day with dismissal at 11:50.  No lunch will be served.  Please make sure your child knows how they are going home.  
• As a reminder, grades can be viewed using SIS at any time.  This Friday, October 16th, marks the end of first quarter.  
• Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held on Monday, October 26th and Wednesday, October 28th.  If you have not signed up for a time slot, please do so  using the SignUpGenius link that was sent via email.  

Weekly Update

Writing/Spelling

This past week we finished our first writing unit!  On Friday, we celebrated our realistic fiction stories.  Students gave group members awards such as "Leadership with Leads," "Dynamite Dialogue," and "Creative Characters."  The Spelling Test will be Friday, 10/9.  

Reading

In reading groups, we are starting to read about ecosystems to add to our science studies.  

Math

This past week in Chapter 3, we reviewed strategies in remembering our multiplication and division fact families.  Multiplication is repeated addition and division is repeated subtraction.  We also reviewed the properties of multiplication.  Finally, we focused on identifying key words in word problems such as "times as many."  This week we will learn the order of operations as well as factors and multiples.  It is very important that students study their multiplication facts at home!

Many students have completed the "Addition & Subtraction" ALEKS pie piece!  Great job, students!  Remember, your child can log on to ALEKS at home.  Usernames and passwords are on students' login cards.  

Science

This past week in Science we started our Biome Quilt Project, in which each student researches a biome to find out more about its climate, plants and animals, and location.  Students have Monday in class to work on them, and then they are due Tuesday 10/6.  Extra credit activities/practice activities can be found on the online textbook.  Students' usernames and passwords can be found on the login cards in the front of their binders.   The link to the online textbook can be found by clicking here.  After logging in, students click on "To Do" in the right-hand corner of the home page.  Then, the assigned activities will appear.  Click on the activity to complete.   After finishing an activity, click on the "I'm Done" button next to the activity.  

Field Trip

Other Important Info.  

• To find the Reflection Journal prompts that were assigned this week, as well as old reflection journal prompts, click here. 
• As a reminder, current grades can be viewed using SIS.  Grades are updated weekly.  October 16th marks the end of first quarter.  
• Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held on Monday, October 26th and Wednesday, October 28th.  To sign up for a conference, you will receive a link via email to access SignUpGenius.  
• The Long Leaders after school group is looking for members!  Applications can be picked up in the main office and are due by October 9th.