Our first full week back at school and we accomplished a lot! I was especially proud of the students on Wednesday when we had a practice Long Composition to prepare for the MCAS on April 2. This was a lot of writing in one day but students were able to ask me questions, clarify concerns and evaluate the amount of time it took them to finish each part. I will not be able to provide this support during the actual test, so I was glad to be able to alleviate any worries. Most of all, I was so impressed with each student’s seriousness of purpose and per. They have all improved as writers this year and their independence and confidence when placed in a “demand writing” situation was impressive. I will review their writing to tailor our upcoming lessons to the needs of our class.
We also put on our electrical engineering hats this week and created scenes that were wired for light! Each student made a switch and used a bulb and battery to illuminate a shoebox scene. 3rd grade classes and our Little Buddies visited us and let us show off our talents. This was a great project that required students to use their creativity and problem solving skills. The boxes will be on display next week in the hallway outside our classroom.
Author Barbara O’Connor visited the 4th grade on Tuesday. She shared how events and objects in her own life are sparks for writing. She also shared how she has lived like a writer since she was in elementary school. We saw her writing, all marked up by her editor and then her published books. Her books have been published in many different languages all around the world! Her best advice to become a better writer is to read, read, read!
We continued to work with fractions this week in math. Thanks to Mr. Cahillane for helping with math games and photocopying on Friday!
We also put on our electrical engineering hats this week and created scenes that were wired for light! Each student made a switch and used a bulb and battery to illuminate a shoebox scene. 3rd grade classes and our Little Buddies visited us and let us show off our talents. This was a great project that required students to use their creativity and problem solving skills. The boxes will be on display next week in the hallway outside our classroom.
Author Barbara O’Connor visited the 4th grade on Tuesday. She shared how events and objects in her own life are sparks for writing. She also shared how she has lived like a writer since she was in elementary school. We saw her writing, all marked up by her editor and then her published books. Her books have been published in many different languages all around the world! Her best advice to become a better writer is to read, read, read!
We continued to work with fractions this week in math. Thanks to Mr. Cahillane for helping with math games and photocopying on Friday!