Welcome back to school - I hope everyone had a restful holiday. Thank you to those who came in for student-led conferences before the break. I've had nothing but positive feedback from both students and parents. After school activities begin today - if you have any questions about what your child has signed up for or need to change an activity please let me know. On Monday, April 6, fourth grade students will have school pictures taken. Please refer to the school newsletter at the end of the week for more details. Also next week fourth grade students will take the MAP tests. As we did back in September, the tests will be spread out over three days...Tuesday is reading, Thursday is math andFriday is language usage. Please ensure your child has a good night's sleep and a healthy breakfast prior to each test.
This week we begin an exciting new unit in science - Land and Water. This is a rich unit for students as they learn to use models to study the interactions of land and water under various conditions. Given the topography around Kathmandu, I am excited for students to make connections between what they're learning in the classroom and what they see around them. We will also try to make another trip to the farm in Okhar Pauwa to see first-hand the effects of erosion and deposition.
Last month Grade 4 students began collaborating with students from the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Bulgaria and Thailand on the Flat Connections "A Week in the Life..." project. This project joins elementary school classrooms globally with a view to exploring what life is like in each country through discussion, sharing, and collecting multimedia to create final products together. Additionally, students explore global issues and conduct meaningful discussions and collaboration. Outcomes will include student-driven solutions shared through creative use of technology. Below are some of our essential questions
I'll keep you updated as to our progress - in the meantime, ask your child what group they are in and what is their research topic. Soon I'll post a link to the Flat Connections web site where our work will be posted.
Speaking of websites, I've dusted off our website, Fawcett's Fourth Grade...
http://lsgrade4.weebly.com/ Should school be cancelled for any reason (bandha, snow, etc) students can find the day's work posted there. We will continue to use the Google Classroom as well.
The next ten weeks are going to fly by. Please have a chat with your child and stress the importance of working all the way to the end of the year. It's during the next month or so that attitudes and efforts drop off and we must remain on task up to the final day!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
This week we begin an exciting new unit in science - Land and Water. This is a rich unit for students as they learn to use models to study the interactions of land and water under various conditions. Given the topography around Kathmandu, I am excited for students to make connections between what they're learning in the classroom and what they see around them. We will also try to make another trip to the farm in Okhar Pauwa to see first-hand the effects of erosion and deposition.
Last month Grade 4 students began collaborating with students from the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Bulgaria and Thailand on the Flat Connections "A Week in the Life..." project. This project joins elementary school classrooms globally with a view to exploring what life is like in each country through discussion, sharing, and collecting multimedia to create final products together. Additionally, students explore global issues and conduct meaningful discussions and collaboration. Outcomes will include student-driven solutions shared through creative use of technology. Below are some of our essential questions
- What are the similarities and differences among the environment around the world?
- How can we connect with each other through our commonalities?
- How does your geography, history and lifestyle of where you live impact your environment?
- What are essential solutions to researched global issues and how can we share these?
I'll keep you updated as to our progress - in the meantime, ask your child what group they are in and what is their research topic. Soon I'll post a link to the Flat Connections web site where our work will be posted.
Speaking of websites, I've dusted off our website, Fawcett's Fourth Grade...
http://lsgrade4.weebly.com/ Should school be cancelled for any reason (bandha, snow, etc) students can find the day's work posted there. We will continue to use the Google Classroom as well.
The next ten weeks are going to fly by. Please have a chat with your child and stress the importance of working all the way to the end of the year. It's during the next month or so that attitudes and efforts drop off and we must remain on task up to the final day!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.