Inquiry Homework

Wow! Students have been hard at work this week planning and building their inquiry projects. Ms. Dierbeck, Mr. Kallie, and I have met with groups to discuss their progress. Many students discovered that while they had relevant facts and details, they don't have enough to put together a full scale project. We would like students to provide more than a list of facts. They should find some facts that can be developed with more information.

This is where you will be a valuable resource. Ask your child to share the following with you:
- their thick question
- what they plan to present to answer their thick question

Since you haven't been a part of the unit, you will be their first audience. What questions do you have based on what they presented? Many students have interesting facts, but they lack the detail that people will want to know when they hear the facts. Identify those questions for your child and have them continue their research to fill those gaps. Moodle is a great resource for students to check out. While they have spent a lot of time there, they may have passed over some details that they previously thought were not important. If Moodle is not enough, it's okay for students to search the web - with your permission. A trip to the library may also be needed.

Students do not need to begin any posters or projects of any kind. We will do that after break. What students can do is plan what they will write on those posters. If they are doing iMovie, they should plan their slides out. The expectation is not built around a number of slides but total speaking time. We are looking for 1-2 minutes of speaking time. This will help students gauge whether they have enough information. Students can also plan for the type of photos they'd like to find for their poster or iMovie presentation.

We want to get the word out early so students can properly space out their work. In most cases, if time was used wisely, this shouldn't be an overbearing assignment. Students have been working for three weeks to gather information and plan. Thank you for your help!

Reading Calendar Reminder

It's hard to believe March is coming to an end. Hopefully it will take this cold weather with it! Students should be finalizing their monthly reading calendars. This would be a good time for students to check how far they are from their goal and do some extra reading if they are behind the target of 30 minutes a night. At the end of the month, please have your child total their minutes for March and have you sign it. Calendars will be collected on Monday, April 8th.

April calendars were in student mailboxes today. If your child forgot it at school, have them simply record their April minutes on a separate sheet of paper until they return on the 8th.

Reading Challenge

Students have been working hard with our literature unit this quarter! Students have enjoyed the process of completing an entire chapter book. Especially, those that read a lot of non-fiction books or those that may have seen themselves as a non-reader when it comes to chapter books. So to keep the momentum going and foster that love of learning, I have a Spring Break challenge for the students.

This is not mandatory. However, any student that reads a complete chapter book over break will receive a treat the Friday we return from break. I have a few expectations:
1. It has to be a book that they have never read before or seen the movie for it.
2. It should be a book they started over break, or if they have already started a book, it should be less than a quarter of the way finished.
3. Students must write the title of the book and author on a notecard and get it signed by a parent verifying that they read it.
4. I won't expect any kind of write-up, but students should be able to tell me a little about it.

This was an idea that came to me after school today. Please let your child know about this ASAP! I look forward to hearing about all the great books that have been read!

Book Fair Coin Challenge

Thank you to all the students that brought in pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters for the Book Fair Coin Challenge. We raised a total of $27.80! That money was used to purchase six books for the classroom library. They will be a welcomed addition!

Touring Madison

Wednesday, the 4th graders had a great time touring the state Capitol building in Madison. As part of the tour, students saw both the Senate and House Chambers, the Supreme Court room, and the Governor's conference room. After our tour of the Capitol building, we went across the street for a brief tour of the Veteran's Museum.

Ms. Dierbeck and I would like to give a special thanks to all the parents that joined us! It was a great field trip!

Inquiry Project Update

Students have been collaborating with classmates all week in an effort to plan out how they would like to present their research at the Inquiry Fair in April. As groups get their plans approved, they are working to create a "rough draft" of their final products. For example, posters will be planned out on loose leaf paper and iMovie presentations will be organized and planned. Even in situations where students plan to dress up and act out their understanding, students will be expected to write up what they will wear, how it helps their presentation, and what they will do. The idea behind this is to help the students prepare for creating their final projects and in some cases, help students recognize that more research is needed. Ms. Dierbeck, Mr. Kallie, and I will review the rough drafts and help students accordingly.

These "rough drafts" need to be finished by the time students return from Spring Break. Students will have time to work on them over the next four school days. Any rough draft work that is unfinished will go home as homework over Spring Break. Ask your child about their plan, especially if they plan to dress up. We have asked those students to ok it with parents first since they will require unique clothing and attendance at the Inquiry Fair. Students that use their work time wisely, will have little to no work to do over Spring Break.

When students return from Spring Break our focus will shift to creating the final projects.

State Capitol Field Trip

Tomorrow the 4th graders are heading to Madison to tour the State Capitol Building and the Veteran's Museum. Here are some quick reminders to prepare for the field trip:

• We will leave as soon as attendance is taken in the morning. Our target is an 8:30 departure. If you are a chaperoning on the field trip please arrive with your child before school.
• Students should pack a bag lunch. We will be eating in the Capitol building. There is no need for a backpack, lunches and coats will be locked up prior to the tour.
• Students can bring a camera to take photos during the tour. This includes personal devices that are used as a camera. Students must use their devices as a camera only during the tours.
• Students should not bring any money. We will not have any opportunity to buy souvenirs. 
• We will leave Madison at 1:00.

Geometry Unit

Next week, students will begin the Geometry Unit in math. This week, students are working on wrapping up the current Measurement and Data Unit and taking the Geometry pretest. We will use the pretest along with data from the winter MAPS test to help us place students in rooms that will deliver skills at their instructional level. Stay tuned to the blog for information regarding the skills of this unit.

Reading Between the Lines

This week, students began working on inferring when reading literature. Readers infer when they "read between the lines" to figure out what is happening without being told by the author. We talked about how people infer on a daily basis. We can tell how someone is feeling based on their body language or the way they are speaking to us. When readers apply this skill, they come away with a deeper understanding of what they are reading.

There is a formula to forming an inference. It is: Background Knowledge + Text Clues = Inference.

In order to infer, students need clues from the story, but that is not enough. They use their background knowledge to make sense of those clues and make an inference. This skill requires careful reading. Encourage your child to carefully monitor their thinking when reading. I have been very excited by their progress already. Ask your child to explain inferencing to you and share some examples.

Inquiry Research

As students continue to research their area of interest, some have exhausted all of the resources we have at school. Ms. Dierbeck, Mr. Kallie, and myself are working hard to bring in new materials as we locate them. Talk to your child about their progress in researching their question. It may be beneficial to visit the public library to find more materials on their topic. Students can also do further research at home by logging onto to our Moodle page or surfing the internet with parental guidance. If you have any questions please contact me at school. Thanks for your support!

Inquiry Fair Date Change

The date of the Inquiry Fair has been moved due to a number of scheduling conflicts. The new date is Thursday, April 18th. I will forward the time of this event when I get it. The students have been working hard on their research and will be excited to share their learning with you! Stay tuned for more updates.

Scholastic Book Fair

The Scholastic Book Fair is returning to Mitchell next week. It runs from Monday, March 18th through Thursday, March 21st. Family Night will be Wednesday, March 20th from 6 - 8 PM.

Our class will preview the Book Fair on Monday, March 18th. Our day to purchase from the Book Fair is Thursday, March 21st.

Book Fair Coin Challenge

February Reading Calendars

If your child has not yet returned their February reading calendar, please remind them to add up their minutes read for February and have you sign it. In the event the calendar was lost, a note from a parent with the minutes read will be a suitable replacement. Thanks!

4th Grade Field Trip to the State Capitol

On Wednesday, March 20th, the 4th graders are taking a field trip to tour the State Capitol building and the Veteran's Museum. Look for a field trip permission slip to come home today. Permission slips are due back by March 13th. Please email me if the permission slip does not make it home. I can email you a PDF of the permission slip. I will post more information about the trip as it nears.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Camp Upham Update

Here are a few important reminders:

If you want to be a chaperone for the trip, the Volunteer Application and Consent Form must be completed and turned in by Friday, March 8th.

All student forms are due by Friday, March 8th. The forms are:
- WAWM School District Health Form
- University of WI Upham Woods Youth Event Health Form
- Upham Woods Agreement
- Consent for Emergency Treatment Form

Racine Kringles orders are due by Friday, March 8th.

If you have any questions, please contact me.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Dear Parents,

Third quarter conferences are coming up on Monday, March 18th. As with the previous two rounds of conferences, I will only meet with half of the families in my class. A note will come home this week with information regarding online scheduling of conferences.

To clear up any confusion, I will send an email to you letting you know whether or not I will conference with you on the 18th. If I plan to meet with you, look for the scheduling note and schedule a conference as soon as possible. If I don't plan on meeting with you, please do not schedule a conference online. However, if you would like to meet with me, please contact me separately and we can schedule a conference outside of the scheduled date.

Please contact me if you have any questions. This can be confusing, especially since this is the first year for this format.

Happy Dr. Seuss Day