Dear 4D Parents,

It's almost February! We have our field trip to the MIM (Musical Instrument Museum) this Friday. Paying for the trip (on the payment portal) is also the permission slip. If you have not paid yet, please do so ASAP. If you have any problems or questions about this, please contact the office. It is VERY important to be in the classroom by 8:00 AT THE LATEST, earlier is much better 😊 

Important Dates:

• Friday, February 2 - MIM field trip, we leave the school at 8:15, be in the classroom by 8:00 AT THE LATEST, earlier is much better 😊 
• Friday, February 9 - Early release - Teacher In-Service
• Wednesday, February 14 - Great Hearts Day - *Please see the note about this below*
• Monday, February 19 - No school - Presidents' Day

_____________________________________

Academics This Week:

As we start The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, we will focus on theme, setting, and characterization. The students will be introduced to plot. Please make sure your child brings their book to school on Monday. On Friday, once we are back from the field trip, we will take the Spalding test and recite "Clouds".

In math this week, we will continue studying decimals by introducing the thousandths place. We will have a short quiz over decimal concepts covered in the last three weeks (tenths and hundredths) on Thursday. There will be a unit test on Friday, Feb. 9.

In science this week, we will continue to learn about the cardiovascular system. We will learn about the parts of blood and blood types. 

This week in history we will take our Kingdoms of Africa quiz on Monday. On Tuesday we will begin our study of Arizona history. The focus of the week is the regions of the United States. Students will explore the 5 regions, their climates, landmarks, cultures and how they differ from Arizona. 

________________________________________

Volunteer Opportunity!!

Here is an opportunity to help our class without a huge time commitment! We need a parent volunteer to aid during our library time which is from 10:05-10:25  on Thursdays. You can help any capacity that you feel comfortable with... 

* Read a book to the class

* Assist scholars looking for books

* Check books in and out of the computer system

* Shelve books

You do need to be fingerprinted to assist in this capacity. If you would like a quick training on the layout of the library, how to search for books or how to check books in and out of the computer you can contact Shannon Lee at library@archwaylincoln.org. 

To sign up, just click the following link: http://signup.com/go/gCsPnkG

Thanks for your continued support!

Great Hearts Day, Feb. 14
At Archway Lincoln, we will not celebrate Valentine’s Day as it is traditionally celebrated in schools, but will instead celebrate Great Hearts Day on Wednesday, February 14th. Our class will have a short celebration, the focus of which is on friendship and kind-heartedness, not gifts and candy.

Our classroom liaison and I will plan a celebration during which the students will enjoy activities that recognize what it means to be a good friend. Our hope is that each child is celebrated for the ways in which he or she demonstrates Friendship in our classroom and community.

Please remember that students are not to bring in any Valentine’s cards or treats for their classmates. We will take care of showing our appreciation for our friends during our party. If any student brings in Valentines or candy, we will need to put them in the backpack to be returned home.

Thank you for your consideration of this special day and the establishment of traditions here at Archway Lincoln!
___________________________________

Hope you have a great week!
Mr. Bergeron

Dear 4D Parents,

Another exciting week is upon us! Thank you to all of those who volunteered to chaperone for our MIM field trip on 2/2, we truly appreciate all of the support!

Additional note: Please be sure that students have a water bottle with their name on it each day. With the warm weather continuing into the “winter” months students are taking numerous trips to get water when they forget their water bottle.

Important Upcoming Dates

• January 25th - Class Photos (Forms went home last week)

• February 2nd - Field Trip to the MIM (check your email for more specific information)

Academics for the week:

We will review for our quiz about rocks, weathering, and erosion on Tuesday. We will begin our next unit on the cardiovascular system (CVS). We will be able to identify the parts and functions of the CVS including the heart, blood, and blood vessels. We will see what happens to our heart rate when we exercise. 

We will finish Robin Hood this week by comparing and contrasting the book with other media. The final assessment will be a written assignment that we will begin on Tuesday and end on Wednesday. The students will be given a graphic organizer and rubric to help facilitate the assignment. On Thursday and Friday, we will learn about the common elements of a fairy tale and introduce The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Please make sure your child has the version of the book that is shown in the Current Literature section in the left margin of this blog.

This week in history we will finish our study of African Kingdoms during the Middle Ages. We will focus on the Songhai Empire and the travels of  Ibn Battuta. At the end of the week will begin our review for the quiz on Monday 1/29. 

In Math we will continue our unit on decimals. Students will learn how decimals apply to money, how to convert a fraction to a decimal and also how to compare decimals.

Thank you all for your continued support!

Sincerely,

Mr. Bergeron

Dear 4D Parents:

I hope you had an enjoyable long weekend. We had a great first week back last week. It was so wonderful to see everyone after such a long break. The class seemed very focused and prepared to work hard during Q3. I am looking forward to another exciting quarter!

Important Dates:

• January 16, 18, and 19 - MAP testing (mid-year assessment)

• January 17th - Parent Positive - Bar Models with Mrs. Barksdale, 8:15-9:15

• January 25th - Class Photos

• February 2nd - Field Trip to the MIM (check your email  later today (1/16) for more specific information)

Academics for the week:

We will finish Robin Hood this week. On Monday, January 22, we will have a culminating activity and on Tuesday, January 23 we will have the final test on Robin Hood. Our next book will be The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank L. Baum. I have placed a picture of the cover under Current Literature in the left margin. Please make sure your child has this version. 

 In Math this week we will begin our study of decimals. We will begin with studying decimals less than one before moving on to decimals larger than 1 and comparing decimals.

This week in science, we will conclude our study of meteorology with a quiz on Tuesday 1/16. We will study the three types of rocks, how they form, the rock cycle, and weathering.

This week in history we will continue our study of African Kingdoms. We will focus on the Trans-Sahara Trade and how trade helped to spread ideas across Africa. We will also study several important Kingdoms including Ghana and Mali, as well the impact of Mali's Mansa Musa and his pilgrimage to Mecca. 

___________________________________________

Sincerely,

Mr. Bergeron

Dear 4D Parents:

I hope you had a restful and fun break. I'm so glad that I was able to meet with many of you at the conferences. I am very excited to start this quarter!

Important Dates:

• January 8 and 9 - Fourth Grade Project: reciting "Paul Revere's Ride" 
• January 15 - no school - Civil Right's Day
• February 2 - field trip to the MIM - an email will be sent out soon with information about this trip

Academics for the week:

In ELA this week, we will learn about Point of View and begin working on informative and explanatory texts. We will continue to read and discuss Robin Hood, as well as, recite Paul Revere. 

This week in math, we will review the concepts we covered in the first semester, including place value, the operations of whole numbers, fractions, operations of fractions, and measurement.

In science, we will learn about forecasting and climate. We will compare weather and climate. There will be a quiz during the week of the 16th.

This week in history we will begin our study of African Kingdoms. We will focus on the geography of Africa including the countries of Africa as well as major mountains, rivers and other geographic features. We will then begin studying the Kingdoms of the Kush and the Aksum and how these kingdoms impacted Africa. 

___________________________________________

Mr. Bergeron

Dear 4D Parents:

There are 3 early release days left before the break. One of those will be our Middle Ages Celebration; it should be a fun day. Thank you to those who are able to help donate and volunteer. There are still some spaces left. If you have the time, we could use the extra help : )

Important Dates:

• Dec 18 - last day to contribute for Tax Credit Drive and be entered in raffle for gift basket
• December 18-20 are early release days.
• December 19th - Middle Ages Celebration
• Winter Break starts on Thursday, December 21st. The 3rd quarter starts on Monday, January 8th. 
• Parent/Teacher Conferences for 2nd quarter are January 4-5 (Thursday and Friday). This the link for the sign up: http://signup.com/go/CxsoZdx

• January 8 and 9 - Fourth Grade Project: reciting "Paul Revere's Ride" 
• January 15 - no school - Civil Right's Day

__________________________

Academics for the week:

We will continue learning about author's purpose and theme this week. There will be an activity with idioms and we will also have time to work on the poem.

"Paul Revere's Ride" is the fourth grade project for Project Week. It will be recited the first two days back from Winter Break (January 8th and 9th). Parents are welcome to watch their child recite the poem. Just email me if you would like to come and I'll give you an approximate time for your child's turn.  

This week in Math, we will conclude our unit on measurement with a unit test. This test will be structured like the previous one on fractions. On Monday, the students will take the test and after that, I will go through them, highlighting incorrect answers and work. It is most beneficial for the students’ learning if they show all their work, so I can highlight exactly where they started to go wrong. On Wednesday, I will hand back the test and the students will be able to correct the highlighted problems for full credit.

In science, we will continue learning about weather. We will focus on thunderstorms and lightning.

In history this week we will finish our unit on Islamic Empires. We will study the Crusades, why they occurred and the impact they had on Islamic and Christian Empires as well as the world around them. We will take a quiz on Wednesday. Students already have the study guide to use to prepare for this quiz. 

___________________________

Please remember to sign up for conferences and practice the poem over the break!

I hope you have a great week,

Mr. Bergeron

Dear 4D Parents:

It is hard to believe we are quickly approaching the end of the quarter! We will finish strong not only with academics but some fun activities as well.

Important Dates:

• Dec 12 - Birthday Book Club
• AM Kinder (Jul-Dec) @ 11:30 a.m.
• Full Day Kinder - 2nd @ 2:30 p.m.
• 3rd - 5th @ 2:45 p.m.
• Dec 18 - last day to contribute for Tax Credit Drive and be entered in raffle for gift basket
• December 18-20 are early release days.
• December 19th - Middle Ages Celebration
• Winter Break starts on Thursday, December 21st. The 3rd quarter starts on Monday, January 8th. 
• Parent/Teacher Conferences for 2nd quarter are January 4-5 (Thursday and Friday). There will be a sign-up for this in the coming weeks. 

On Wednesday, December 19th, the fourth grade will have our Middle Ages Celebration. We will need A LOT of volunteers. So if you have been fingerprinted and have some time on that day (any time between 8:30-12:15), we would love for you to help out and have fun, too!

There will be a sign-up for this event coming soon.

________________________________

Academics this week:

We will continue to practice writing comparing/contrasting paragraphs through the week. The emphasis will be on writing strong introductory and concluding sentences, and using effective transitions. In literature, we will learn about author's purpose and theme. In grammar, we will learn how to write possessive nouns.  Please continue to help your child memorize Paul Revere's Ride.

This week in math, we will conclude our unit on measurement by applying what we’ve learned about fractions to measurement. We will practice expressing measurements as proper fractions and mixed numbers. The measurement unit test will be next week.

We will finish learning about tornadoes and hurricanes. There is a quiz on tornadoes and hurricanes on Tuesday 12/12. The cumulative test is on Thursday 12/14 which covers the atmosphere, solar radiation, atmospheric heating, hurricanes, and tornadoes. There is a “jeopardy” review game available at this web address 

http://www.superteachertools.us/jeopardyx/jeopardy-review-game.php?gamefile=2347356#.Wi2Q-FQ-eRs.  

On Friday, we will about air masses and fronts. 

In history we finished our Middle Ages unit last week. This week we will start our unit on Islam. We will study the Five Pillars of Islam, Muhammad, the spread of Islam and Islamic culture. We will also focus on important contributions to mathematics, science and art/architecture.

____________________________________

Sincerely,

Mr. Bergeron

Dear 4D Parents,

Our Winter Break is fast approaching. As the quarter winds down, we still have a lot of interesting things to learn. I hope these next few weeks will be an enjoyable time of learning for your children.

Important dates:

• Dec 12 - Birthday Book Club
• AM Kinder (Jul-Dec) @ 11:30 a.m.
• Full Day Kinder - 2nd @ 2:30 p.m.
• 3rd - 5th @ 2:45 p.m.
• Dec 18 - last day to contribute for Tax Credit Drive and be entered in raffle for gift basket
• December 18-20 are early release days.
• Winter Break starts on Thursday, December 21st. The 3rd quarter starts on Monday, January 8th. 
• Parent/Teacher Conferences for 2nd quarter are January 4-5 (Thursday and Friday). There will be a sign-up for this in the coming weeks. 

Academics this week:

This week in ELA, we will continue our focus on comparing and contrasting. We will use 2 characters in Robin Hood and some other passages to hone this skill. In grammar, our focus will be on defining and using similes and metaphors and classifying and diagramming possessive pronouns.

In math this week, we will continue studying measurement. We will practice adding and subtracting measurements and learn how to multiply and divide as well. These skills will mirror the skills our students already learned when we studied the operations of fractions.

We will continue our study of hurricanes and then go on to tornadoes, in science this week.

In history we will finish our study of Europe during the Middle Ages. We will learn about Joan of Arc, and the plague that swept through Europe in the 1300s. 
____________________________________

Mrs. Rockmaker, our music teacher wanted us to pass on this information:

Now that the November concert has passed students will return to the use of their notebooks (for grades 3,4 and 5) and Theory Time books (for grades 4 and 5 only).  I would also like students to bring a folder and a pencil to music.  Students who have left materials in the music room can retrieve them outside of class time.  New 4th and 5th grade students can purchase Theory Time books to be purchased from Barnes & Noble at the Chandler Fashion Mall from the school book list. I have attached a copy of the list.
http://archwaylincoln.greatheartsacademies.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/26/2017/04/Consumable-List-17-18.4.28.17.FINAL_.pdf

Needed this week:
Clear 2-liter bottles to make tornadoes!

I hope you have a great week!
Sincerely,
Mr. Bergeron