We have an EXCITING week ahead of us! I am so thrilled to learn about Victoria & Bella's culture with the rest of our class. We have found ways to learn about the Brazilian culture through every subject area! It's going to be a lot of fun. We even have a new tab for links to information about Brazil. Be sure to check out the Google Street View link!
Reading
Last week we discussed many different kinds of figurative language and how they help authors convey different meanings. This week we will put that knowledge to the test by analyzing poetry together and individually. Students will be required to use their schema and text clues to make inferences about author's purpose and meanings throughout the week. We will even spend time analyzing some Brazilian poetry!
Writing
Last week we also learned about several different poetry styles. Students will only need to be able to differentiate between lyrical and free verse poetry for STAAR, but we will dig deeper into poetry in our classroom. We will take our new knowledge and put together a set of poems around a central theme. Some possible topics are: Brazil, Amazon Rainforest, celebrating differences, and trying new things. Students will finish their poems by Friday! Check Google Classroom on Monday for assignment details!
Math
We are coming up on our last week of fractions. We will focus our learning on comparing and ordering fractions. Student will learn how to compare fractions by finding common multiples and by cross multiplying. On Tuesday we will discuss units of measurement while making Brazilian lemonade - yum! Don't forget to access Khan Academy videos at home for extra practice. They are a GREAT help along with IXL!
Science
We are going to put our study of patterns to the side this week. Instead, we are going to learn about animal and plant needs in the Amazon Rainforest. We will even make our own mini terrariums on Wednesday. Speaking of mini terrariums, I will need help cutting the bottle for the project. Would you mind helping? Send me an email to let me know. Crafts like this are not a skill I possess :)
Social Studies
This week we are going to learn about the Brazilian flag and what the different colors and symbols represent. Students will make a ThingLink sharing their learning. We will also listen to the national anthem and discuss the lyrics. At the end of the week we will talk about the importance of football (soccer) in Brazilian culture. We will watch highlights of when Brazil won the World Cup in 2002. When we are done, Coach DiCarlo has offered to teach the kiddos some soccer drills! Students should wear their best soccer (athletic) clothes on Thursday for our lesson with Coach!
Homework
We do not have any homework this week. We do have a list of Portuguese words that students can study for a fun 'quiz' on Friday. Our very own Portuguese speakers created these Quizlets for us! You can find them on our Brazil page. Don't forget to turn in your extra credit assignment on Friday.
Fourth Grade 411
A HUGE thank you to all of you who donated items for this week. We could not have done it without you. There are still a few items you can sign up for here!
We have wonderful parents who have offered to bring special treats for our kiddos every day this week. We will try Pao de queijo, mango, oranges, and pineapple. We might even get a special chocolaty treat! Let me know if you do now want your kiddo trying any of our treats.
Progress reports are going home this week. How is it already time for progress reports??? This year is FLYING by with all the fun we are having! Thank you so much for your patience as I get caught up on grades. I sent home several graded assignments last week. Don't forget that students have the entire grading period to make corrections to failing (below 70) assignments!
Please make sure you checkout our calendar to see everything we have going on this week. Please note that we do have lunch @ 12:00 on Thursday for Thanksgiving Lunch!
And finally, our room has transformed to a Brazilian paradise. Click the pictures for a better view.
And finally, our room has transformed to a Brazilian paradise. Click the pictures for a better view.
