4th Grade

Instructor: Ms. Kathryn Bonzo
Terms: 2018-2019 School Year

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Course Description

4th Grade Year ---Ready for Action---that is a 4th grader is a nutshell!

From start to finish, this year is about integrating the pre K/K years to 3rd Grade. The kids have been part of a school environment to understand the concept of school, responsibilities, consequences and learning. This year is really cooperative--that means growth personally, socially, and academically. From the kids sitting with different classmates each day at their tables to having Home Base Bins for their things, 4th grade is learning about being flexible learners and stretching their thinking on what they can do and what we can do together. Through meta-cognition (the term means to think about what and how you are thinking, learning, behaving), the kids reflect and grow in deep meaningful ways. 9 and 10 year olds are curious, inventive, and aware.

The concept of time becomes more real. I help the kids realize that we learn in quarters and each one has certain concepts that we focus on. Our weekly schedule is packed with Social Science, Readers and Writers Workshop, Physical, Earth, Biological Science, Chinese, Music, Art, P.E., Cursive and Grammar,Technology, Keyboarding, and Math. We go on plenty of field trips to support their curriculum and many guests or experts come to our class to teach. Many of you may be part of our learning! :) 4th Graders want to see how things relate to each other.

The flow of the day is up on the white board in our room. We go over it every morning in our Morning Meeting. The MM has a format that they learn and will begin to lead in January. The structure has 4 parts- Greeting, Sharing or Reading, Activity, and Announcements. It gives us a chance to get to know each other, set the tone for the day, and learn how to discuss ideas. At the end of the day, we have TBaA. Those letters stand for Think Back and About. During this last half hour, we review what we learned and what we did to learn the material. It is very important to reflect because it helps wire information to long term memory.

The kids all have class jobs and work in partners. These jobs rotate weekly. Learning how to talk to each other and work with a partner is very important in life. Negotiating and Compromising are things I do with them if there is a problem. They have to learn the skills of conversation and listening, problem solving and building relationships of all types.

The main tool for communication, besides our website, is through the Planner. It is a calendar type of tool that really helps kids learn to organize themselves. It is very useful for Parents to write to me or messages to their kids. When you notice their learning-- they love it! It is in the Planner that we write the TBaA. It gives you a way, parents, to talk about what is happening each day.

Homework means reading. It has been proven through research that doing that one thing each day after school makes a huge difference in learning. Please have your child read every day/night for 40 minutes. They have reading logs to keep up with this and 3 are required to be filled out each quarter. There are 15 lines on each-- so you get the idea-- it adds up to good habits and increased stamina for focus. They can read or be read to. The goal is an sustained 40 minutes. Other homework is usually work that isn't completed. That happens on occasion, but there is plenty of time to come in at lunch-- 15 minutes or before school to do those things. The kids are very tuned in to if they have puttered or progressed through an assignment or project. :)

Assessments or tests are integrated in each day. I let the kids know that how they behave, how they work, what they get done, how well they work with a partner, how work gets done, and what they have learned is measured. The goal is to have them take ownership of their learning, get them to ask questions, and for us to create a dynamic and interesting space.There are many ways to check in on how they are doing- through verbal or written communication, or projects, or having them reflect with a partner. Even doing 'thumbs up or down' with a few questions helps the whole class tune in. Cooperation for all to learn is key. That is why the kids remember to do Job #1 Learn, and Job #2 Let Others Learn.

Student Teacher Parent Conferences are a very essential piece of finishing up the first quarter. Each student will lead their parent(s) through several academic areas and discuss with their parents and me what they learned, and how they learned it. It is a wonderful time for the kids to see us all together. I love these conferences because I get to see how proud each child is telling about their work and how interested and amazed the parents are seeing through this conversation where their child is academically.

Parents are always welcome to visit our class and if you want to make an appointment to have some sit down time together, that is great! My goal is to have 4th grade be a wonderful stimulating year.:)

Birthdays-- we Love them. If your child wants to share a treat, that is great. We sing Happy Birthday and share the treats at 2:30.

4th Graders are very capable and the more they find out what they can do, the more they will do.

I look forward to being with your child this year and getting to know you too.

Thanks, Ms. Bonzo

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Latah County Soil and Water Conservation District Riparian Restoration Lesson-- brainstorming for Art Walk Project

Katie and Makenna came in this morning and led the kids through a model that demonstrated how to improve an area that is badly eroding. The kids worked in 4 groups to help create a habitat that would bring back animals, foliage, and steelhead. The talk was all about conservation. Then, the group thought about ways to share what they know artistically. The final project will be in Art Walk during June.

Steel Wool Experiment-- How fast will it Rust?

The class spent over 2 hours doing 'lab'. If Science if find out and learning new information, it was a great day! the kids followed a hard protocol and made predictions after learning all about steel wool and vinegar.

The table groups were their lab partners. Everyone had a task and they had to write their notes in their science notebooks. They were surprised at how much writing W there was for observations and timekeeping. They made it through the whole process from claims and evidence, conclusions and reporting.

The room smelled super clean when we were done too!

Helllooooooo Clarissssa!

This was an exciting afternoon meeting a few weeks ago when I surprised the kids and got Clarissssa out. They were so good with her. Before she was taken from her tank, I talked about the importance of their relaxed behavior

(we took some deep breaths), and how much there is to learn from her and with each other.

Then, with the help of Ian who held her first-- the start person-- because he has a background with reptiles, the kids passed our class pet around the circle. Everyone did so well. Some were scared and we talked about that and why we feel that way. It is instinct to avoid things that move fast, etc. We talked about what they learned about snakes from the media. We discussed whether or not Clarissssa would be native to our area. They asked questions and then had a great time getting to know her. They always ask if they can watch me feed her. I always reply no since we don't watch each other eat though I do explain her process.

We will be taking her out more. I am able to do so during lunch and recess. That way 2 kids can come in and get to know Clarissssa and I will coach behavior and clean the tank. It works really well.

She has been my class pet since she was 3 years old (2010), and small enough to rest in the palms of my hands. She is a lot longer now!

She has done well because my students have shone respect through the years and understand that how they treat her and each other really matters. She has been socialized well.

The best thing I get to see is how the kids all react with a 'WOW" when they feel how soft and muscular she is. The learn she has two distinctive sides and how she moves. They get an up close look at her heat sensors and see her tongue smell them.

It was a great day for STEAM thinking when you think about it!!

And,it was a great day for this class! Everyone touched or handled Clarissssa in some way. They were proud of themselves and shared a special time supporting her and each other. :)

Collecting Reminder--Trex Plastics are the SQUISHY ones!

As you can see here, these kids are showing you that the plastics are soft and easy to squish, squash, or mush. That means the #2 and #4 plastics are what we collect.

Leave anything else out of the bags as we have to sort them before we turn them in. THANKS for giving us so much to send to Trex!!

Base Ten and Division

Learning to demonstrate the dividend before dividing up has been a huge idea that proves number sense. Each student to prove mastery must be able to model with base 10 clocks or draw and create the problem.

We typically check in with a 'Fist to 5' method where the number of fingers shown is a way to explain how well you know a concept. Then we had a chance for kids to teach kids. Great Collaboration!!

Book Clubs are going very well. Today, I asked some questions that they each answered in their notebooks about how the group has been working together. Everyone seems pleased with the books, but do want to socialize less. This was a fair evaluation.

They have been keeping up with character development, essential quotes and following the story arc. It will all come together for their own writing and performing.

The kids will start writing their radio shows! Sound effects included! We have been listening to Classic Radio so they are getting the idea. :)

Lionel Hampton Posters created by 4th Grade

are at the Moscow Chamber of Commerce

It was a treat to meet with the friendly staff at the MCoC. The kids rated the actual LHJ posters and with their partner figured out ways to describe in adjectives the work. The music measure has a timeline with facts from the years 2009-2018 ( that I plucked from History.com and other sources) to help engage viewers. The official posters that surround the work of the 4th grade were the template for their work. They learned a lot about graphic design and messaging.

As usual, we were able to take Moscow SMART and had fun walking through the snow too.

Middle School Creative Writers

Share Poetry during Book-A-Bunga with 4th Grade

Each of the students in Mr. Collins' elective class gave a wonderful experience to younger students as authors sharing ideas of all sorts. Each author had an audience of three kids and the interaction between the writers and the audience was so fun to watch and see that sharing inner thoughts is really meaningful.

Book Clubs! After studying together to learn how to be a part of a literature conversation, and as a class enjoying several books and readings where there has been a discussion about the plot and the motivations of the characters, it was time for the kids to choose a book and read together.

The goal is to write a radio show of the story. They are taking turns reading, keeping notes about setting and following the story arc. They have learned about dialogue and its power to move the story or reveal suspense. We have listened to Classic Radio Shows! They have liked the storytelling. It will be their turn soon when they write their scripts. Stay tuned...!

MCS Spelling Bee had twelve 4th Graders participate this year, along with about 25 other students from grades first through eighth.

Last year, we had 59 kids start the Bee so this year we asked the kids to sign up about a week beforehand.

It was a great Bee this year. It was more serious and academic and the whole school's skills as audience and participants are really improving.

Thank you again to Ms. Buehler who has been the Pronouncer all these years and to our judges, Ms. Laura, and Mr. Sage.

Trenton and Brooklyn lead Morning Meeting

The two planned very well all 4 parts of the meeting. They came up with a Greeting, a Sharing, An Activity, and had time for class Announcements. The class is really listening to each other and able to enjoy this time together. The Sharing was fun today as all the kids brought their reading books to the circle and described the setting of the story.

Brooklyn and Trenton did a fine job together!

Clarissssa meets the class!

The volume level of the room jumped up so much when I said, "Since we have finished the scientific process-- (backward from results to question about the shed skin from my snake, I said, "We should get Clarissssa out."

The kids made a circle with the chairs and stools as we do for Morning Meeting or a Writers' Circle. We talked about compassion and empathy and what everyone, including Clarissssa would be feeling. Then, I asked Ian to hold Clarissssa when I got her out. He has a bearded dragon and has had other reptiles and felt comfortable being the first. There were mixed feelings from fear to excitement. I told about when I first got Clarissssa 12 years ago and all that I had learned. She has been a great class pet.

The kids were so careful with her that I will be able to add the class job back of Clarissssa Handlers. They were really happy!

VR or Virtual Reality Expeditions

Led by Mr. Collins after he and I had downloaded 4th Grade content for Social Studies and Science support, the kids were able to see Fort Mandan from the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Chinese New Year, and information on Climate Change from the peak of the Mattadorn to the depth of the Great Barrier Reef. They expeditions are very useful as there is ample information for narration read by the teacher to explain the photos or CGI to explain the 360-degree view.

After the lesson, I asked the kids to pick one of the expeditions to explain what they saw and learned from 'being there' with the others at their table. Then they shared out things they liked. The VR viewers do give you the sensation of standing at the locations. It is powerful for these places to become real.

Also, I told the kids that it was a fun time for me getting to learn from Mr. Collins and an example of 'Collaboration'. Thank you, Mr. Collins!!

Collecting Pastics!

Here are Meredith and Ian weighing plastic from one of the 4 boxes the school has for collecting plastics that we ship to Trex. The collecting has helped the kids learn so much-- seeing a wonderful solution to a huge problem and being able to learn that plastic is a resource that can be used again and again.

They know we can do something to make positive changes everyday and The Moscow Pullman did a great article about how our community is wanting to keep plastic out of the landfill.

Do give it a read!! Then come drop off your #2 and #4 plastic materials. :)