October 22 --- October 26

Dates to Note: 

October 24

• Information about the Jamestown Field Trip coming home. Please read and send back ASAP.

October 25

• Plant test for Thompson's class
• Force, Motion, & Energy Test for Shifflett's class
• Virginia Geography Test for Elsie's class

November 2

• No school for students

November 5 & 6

• No school for students

November 8

• Jamestown Field Trip
• Arriving back in the evening

Parents,
     We are finalizing our trip to Jamestown that will take place on November 8th. A field trip form will be coming home this week outlining all the information. Due to the nature of this trip, chaperones are needed, but the amount is limited. Classrooms will hold a lottery for parent chaperones. Please indicate at the bottom of the field trip form if you would like to be considered for the lottery.  

Keep your eye out for an email coming home concerning parent-teacher conferences!

     As a school, we are working hard on social-emotional education. In fourth grade, we began lessons during morning meeting that concentrate on these goals. Last week we read the story Just Kidding, in which a young boy learns how to deal with a bully. You can help with this at home by asking these questions...

Ask me about....

• What kinds of things we are doing to keep our classroom safe and friendly so that everyone will feel welcome and want to come to school every day?
• What bullying is?  
• Why it's not okay to leave someone out on purpose?
• What ways we can make sure everyone has someone to play with at recess or eat with at lunch?

Reading Update

Website

  Or TFK as we call it has proven to be very challenging for the students. You can help at home by discussing the topics, especially the heavy vocabulary. This week, some tough words were:

• Breed
• Instinct
• Stray
• Vulnerable
• Conservation
• Peril

Math Update

We have learned the area model for multiplying numbers. This is an excellent strategy for solving more complex multiplication problems. We are not yet ready to share the algorithm for multiplication yet, so please refrain from doing this at home. It is extremely important that they conceptually understand multiplication and area model is a great way to do this. 

Content Update-

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Finishes the unit on technology.

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Finishes the unit on Virginia Geography. 

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Finishes the unit on Force, Motion, and Energy.

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Finishes the unit on Plants. 

October 15 -- October 19

Dates to Note: 

October 18

• Morven Farm Field Trip

October 19

• Picture Day!
• Movie Under the Stars

Parents, if your child was one of the 6 students chosen from his/her class, we'll be sending home a letter early this week with reminders for Thursday afternoon. Thank you to all of those that showed interest! We're already in the planning stages of having Morven Farms come to SRES for a kick-off event for all the 4th and 5th grader. More details soon. 

Keep your eye out for an email coming home concerning parent-teacher conferences!

Reading Update

Website

  Or TFK as we call it has proven to be very challenging for the students. You can help at home by discussing the topics, especially the heavy vocabulary. This week, some tough words were:
dubbed
refugee
optimistic

Math Update

Classes are starting a new unit about multiplication and division called Multiple Towers and Cluster Problems. During this unit, students will build on the work they did in Unit 1. Students will be solving multiplication problems with 2-digit numbers, division word problems, and problems about multiples and number relationships. Throughout the unit, students work toward these goals: 

Students will work on multiplication and division again later this year in unit 7, when they will solve problems with larger numbers and share a variety of solution strategies. In our math class, students spend time discussing problems in depth and are asked to share their reasoning and solutions. It is most important that children accurately and efficiently solve math problems in ways that make sense to them. At home, encourage your child to explain his or her math thinking to you. Please look for more information and activities about Unit 3 that will be sent home in the coming weeks.

Content Update-

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Continues a unit on technology.

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Continues a unit on Virginia Geography. 

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Continues a unit on Force, Motion, and Energy.

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Continues a unit on Plants. 

October 7 -- October 11

Dates to Note: 

October 18

• Morven Farm Field Trip

October 19

• Movie Under the Stars

Reading Update

Website

  We will continue to use this resource throughout the school year. Students will be taking weekly quizzes on each magazine. Please look for these coming home in the Friday Folders. 

Math Update

We will be taking our Graphing test at the end of the week. You can help at home by asking your child to answer questions about a graph and to create a graph out of given data. Here are some examples of questions to give you more guidance: 

Content Update-

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Travels to Mrs. Elsie's room for a unit on technology.

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Travels to Mrs. Canalichio's room for Virginia Geography. 

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Travels to Mr. Thompson's room for a unit on Force, Motion, and Energy.

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Travels to Ms. Shifflett's room for a unit on Plants. 

October 1 -- October 5

Dates to Note: 

Tuesday, October 2

• NBC 29 visits our Hall of Fame

Friday, October 5

• Schoolwide Morning meeting 

October 18

• Morven Farm Field Trip

We're having a great response for students that are able to attend the Morven Farm field trip after school on Thursday, October 18.  However, due to the size of the facility and the number of other guests that will be at The First Lady's Food Lab Launch, we have to limit our number.  4th grade will be randomly picking 24 to attend that replied that they were available.  However, there will be more opportunities for the entire grade level to visit Morven Farm on other occasions this year.  Your child's homeroom teacher will be in touch with you by the end of the week with whether your child was one of the random students chosen.  

Hall of Fame

Hall of Fame has been recognized by the news! NBC 29 will be visiting on Tuesday to report on our daily tradition!

Reading Update

Website

  We will continue to use this resource throughout the school year. Students will be taking weekly quizzes on each magazine. Please look for these coming home in the Friday Folders. 

Math Update

For our graphing unit, we are using a self-paced grid. Students work individually to complete tasks as they understand them. It gives students the freedom to work as they can and teachers the ability to help those who really need more focused attention. 

Content Update-

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Finishes with Ms. Shifflett on a Plant Unit. There is a test over the unit this Thursday. Look for the refrigerator magnet sheet to study at home.

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Finishes with Mr. Thompson on Force, Motion, and Energy.

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Finishes with Mrs. Elsie on a unit on Technology.

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Finishes with Mrs. Canalichio on a unit on Virginia Geography. There will be a test this Thursday over the unit. 

September 25 -- September 29

Dates to Note: 

Wednesday, September 26

• Day of Caring

Thursday, September 27

• 1st PTO Meeting  - Library - 6:00-8:00 pm

Friday, September 28

• Coffee & Conversation with the Community at 8:15 AM
• Playground Rubbing-Cutting Ceremony at 10:30 AM

Be looking for the letter and permission form regarding our partnership with Morven Farm and an upcoming afterschool field trip on Thursday, October 18.  This will be sent home on Monday with your child.  We’ll need to rsvp for the Food Lab Launch event and arrange afterschool transportation, so we’re asking you to please return the form by this Thursday (September 27).  Thanks!

Back to School Night

A big THANK YOU for all those who attended. If you were not able to come, information will be coming home in your child's backpack. Please keep an eye out for it. 

Hall of Fame

As many of you know, our students are invited to a daily psych up in Mr. Thompson's room. Here is the link to the song with the movements for your child to practice at home!

Reading Update

Website

  We will continue to use this resource throughout the school year. Students will be taking weekly quizzes on each magazine. Please look for these coming home in the Friday Folders. 

Math Update

We plan to start a new unit this week after Unit One assessment is complete. Unit Two is about graphing and interesting information from graphs. You can help at home by talking about how you read graphs. 

Content Update-

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Continues with Ms. Shifflett for a Plant Unit. 

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Continues with Mr. Thompson's room for Force, Motion, and Energy.

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Continues with Mrs. Elsie's homeroom for a unit on Technology.

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Continues with Mrs. Canalichio's homeroom for a unit on Virginia Geography

September 17--September 21

Dates to Note: 

Thursday, Sept. 20: Back to School Night
Friday, Sept. 21: No School for Students
Sunday, Sept. 23: Back to School Bash

Back to School Night

This Thursday, we will be hosting Back to School Night for Parents. Teachers will be offering one session explaining all the important points of the upcoming school year. Please try your best to attend. If needed, babysitting will be provided for families. 

Hall of Fame

As many of you know, our students are invited to a daily psych up in Mr. Thompson's room. Here is the link to the song with the movements for your child to practice at home!

Reading Update

Website

  The students are working on building reading stamina. We are also adding a reading publication called Time For Kids. This is a weekly nonfiction magazine written for kids. It helps them stay up to date on current events while understanding the age of the audience. Please ask your child about this week's article. We have provided the link if you are interested in learning more about it. 

Math Update

We are planning to give our first assessment this week. This test will be covering the following things: 

1.   List the factors of numbers
2.   List the multiples of numbers
3.  Determine which statements are multiplicative comparisons
4.  Determine if a number is prime or composite. 

Content Update- Students will be moving to new teachers for the first time!! Here is our plan

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Heads to Ms. Shifflett for a Plant Unit. 

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Heads to Mr. Thompson's room for Force, Motion, and Energy.

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Heads to Mrs. Elsie's homeroom for a unit on Technology.

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Heads to Mrs. Canalichio's homeroom for a unit on Virginia Geography

Sept 10-- Sept 14

Dates to Note: 

Friday, Sept. 14: Monticello Football Game* (see below)
Thursday, Sept. 20: Back to School Night
Friday, Sept. 21: No School for Students

Future Mustangs!!

To our friends and future Monticello Mustangs at Cale, Red Hill, Scottsville, Stone-Robinson, and Stony Point… Monticello High School is most happy to offer FREE admission to all elementary school students from our Southern Feeder Pattern to next Friday night’s home football game vs. Spotswood.  Kickoff is at 7:00pm and non-school aged children are always free admission.  Adult admission is $7 to ACPS varsity football games and elementary students should enter the game with an adult.

Reading Update

Website

  The students are working on building reading stamina. We are also adding a reading publication called Time For Kids. This is a weekly nonfiction magazine written for kids. It helps them stay up to date on current events while understanding the age of the audience. Please ask your child about this week's article. We have provided the link if you are interested in learning more about it. 

Math Update

We have learned about multiplicative comparisons this week. Sounds pretty tough, doesn't it! Well, don't let the words fool you. Here is an example of a multiplicative comparison: 

Here is also a video to help you at home:

Content Update-

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Virginia Geography

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Technology

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Plants

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Force, Motion, & Energy

September 4th -- September 7th.

Dates to Note: 

Friday, Sept. 7: Homophone Test
Thursday, Sept. 20: Back to School Night
Friday, Sept. 21: No School for Students

Listening Conferences!! 

Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedules and meeting with us. The information you have given us about your child is so valuable and will help make this year a great one. If you still have had an opportunity to meet with one of us, please let us know. 

Word Study Update

Mrs. Canlichio's class, Mrs. Elsie's class, and Mr. Thompson's class are continuing the word study with a unit on homophones. Your child should be practicing these words every day. There will be a test this Friday over the list of words. Teachers will provide a sentence, and the students will need to spell the correct form of the homophone. 
     Ms. Shifflett's class will have a 3-week unit focused on plant parts. There is a lot of new vocabulary in this science unit so this will be another chance for the students to learn about the pistil, stamen, photosynthesis, chlorophyll, and many other new concepts. 

Reading Update

  The students are working on building reading stamina. While this may seem like a silly area to

focus on, you would be surprised how difficult it is for a 9/10-year-old to find one spot in the room, stay there, and just read. 

Math Update

We have learned about Factors this week. Below is a great example of Factors. You can help at home by periodically asking what the factors are of any number. 

Content Update-

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Virginia Geography

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Technology

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Plants

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Force, Motion, & Energy

Week of August 27th -- August 31st

Welcome to the Fourth Grade Blog!! We use this blog to highlight important information of the upcoming week. We will do our best to add events to the calendar on the right as they become available.

Dates to Note: 

Monday, Sept. 3rd: Labor Day/No School
Friday, Sept. 7: Homophone Test

SNACKS!! 

Please make sure your child has a healthy snack every day!! When a child is hungry, it is harder for them to focus on their tasks at school. 

Word Study Update

Mrs. Canlichio's class, Mrs. Elsie's class, and Mr. Thompson's class are beginning word study with a unit on homophones. Students will receive packets on Monday and work through them at school over the next two weeks. Please do not work on the activities at home. Instead, practice homophones in context. 
     Ms. Shifflett's class will have a 3-week unit focused on plant parts. There is a lot of new vocabulary in this science unit so this will be another chance for the students to learn about the pistil, stamen, photosynthesis, chlorophyll, and many other new concepts. 

Reading Update

  The students are working on building reading stamina. While this may seem like a silly area to

focus on, you would be surprised how difficult it is for a 9/10-year-old to find one spot in the room, stay there, and just read. 

Math Update

We will begin our year with the first of three units on multiplication and division. Factors and multiples are a key concept in this unit and remembering the difference can be tough. 

Content Update-

Content in fourth grade will be an opportunity for the students to learn from each one of us the areas we are passionate about. 

Mrs. Canalichio's Homeroom: Virginia Geography

Mrs. Elsie's Homeroom: Technology

Ms. Shifflett's Homeroom: Plants

Mr. Thompson's Homeroom: Force, Motion, & Energy

[Glitterfy.com - *Glitter Words*]


This newsletter is posted weekly to keep families in the loop of upcoming events. On the right, you will see a calendar that we will update as soon as we possibly can. Please feel free to let us know if there is anything you would like to see in this communication tool! We are looking forward to a great year.