Reading

 

This week in Reading Workshop students began Shiloh, a novel by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor.  This is a dramatic tale about a boy named Marty and a runaway dog, Shiloh.  One interesting aspect of this book is the Appalachian dialect that it is written in. On Wednesday, we spent time deciphering this dialect and listing examples from the story. Students noticed that when the characters speak, they don’t use complete sentences when stating something.

 

Science

 

This week students learned all about the honeybee’s hive.  First, they discovered that there are three different uses of cells within the hive.  The bottom of the hive contains the brood cells where the queen lays her eggs.  Next, come the cells where the bees store pollen.  Finally, come the cells where bees make and store the honey. During Centers students carefully measured colored strips of paper and created hexagonal cells, which were then formed into a three-dimensional model hive. 

 

Writing

 

Fourth Graders are wrapping up their realistic fiction stories this week! During this unit, students learned how difficult writing fiction really is! They worked first on story planning, using charts and story arcs to organize their thinking. Students then worked with their writing partners to ensure they were showing the story, not just telling it through summarization. Next, they investigated hooking their readers with a strong beginning and concluding their story with a compelling ending. We finished the week by brainstorming a list of titles for their story. It won’t be long until these authors are publishing their pieces and signing autographs!

 

Important Dates:

 

Monday, October 9^th                     Fall Break – No School

Tuesday, October 10^th                   Fall Break – No School

Wednesday, October 25^th             Parent Lunch 11:15 am

Tuesday, October 31^st                    Halloween Carnival ½ Day