We Are Hungry For Reading!

The students were to choose a book in their "Lexile Range" knowing they would be doing a book report on it.  They had no idea what the book report would look like!  Today was the day of the "Big Reveal"!  What would their assignment be?? 

CHEESEBURGER Book Reports!

Even though they are the oldest kids in the school, they are still kids! They love to cut, color and glue. They LOVED this project. I thought I would need to give several days for them to complete it. Boy, was I wrong! They wanted to keep working and working. So, we put on some Christmas music and went to work.

First, a little reading....



Next, a "First Draft"followed with some editing for correct spelling, scentence structure and punctuation.  The reports included story elements: plot, genre, characterization, setting and conclusion.  They were also asked what their favorite part of the book was and ......WHY?   Finally, coloring and assembly of the cheeseburger.  These were written directions.....that's right!  A following directions exercise, too!

 They were so happy with their "Final Products".  There were a lot of smiles as big as this one,,,, including mine!

Poster Math

Question:  How many different ways can 144 marbles be divided equally into bags?

That was the problem I gave the students on Friday.  I gave them some time to work on their own with it....no helping, no hints...just silent working time.  Of course everyone came up with 12 marbles and 12 bags.  They love that 12 x 12 = 144 multiplication fact!  Several of the students wrote their answer and turned their paper over.  Done!  I got a chuckle out of watching their faces when they realized I was giving way too much time to work if that was the ONLY possible answer.  Back to work.....:)

After they finished working independently, I put them into groups (I love group work!) They were given some chart paper and the task of showing AND explaining their thinking on their paper.  "Show and explain your thinking" is a great strategy for digging deeper.

 It's so much fun and very interesting to watch their thinking come to  life on their chart paper.  Group work helps stretch their thinking.  They are learning from each other.

Finally, they take a walk through the "Math Gallery" and look at all of the math posters.  One person from each group stays with the poster and explains ALL of the thinking on the chart...not just their own.  We follow up with a great whole group discussion and solve the question together.What worked? What didn't?  Why did you choose the solution you did?  How did you come up with that idea? So powerful to hear them share their thinking with each other!

 Can you figure out how many different ways there are to divide 144 equally?

Helping Others Project

Every year, Hallett Hawks support a "Helping Others Project" during the holidays.  This year, the ASB has chosen to help the Spokane Humane Society.  We need your help!

Items that are needed are:

Dry dog food

Dry cat food

Non clumping litter

Towels and washcloths
Kong dog toys

Large jars of peanut butter

Cat toys

Blankets (no electric)

Pet shampoos and conditioners

Grooming supplies

Cat beds

Frontline flea control

This is voluntary and all items will be taken to the Humane Society.There will be a large donation box near the front office.  If you have any questions please call the school at 565-3400.

Science Study Groups

We just finished Chapter 10 in science (Weathering) and are getting ready for a test.  It's always fun to   work in groups. so today's assignment was to work on their study guides in groups.  I love Pinterest and they had a great idea for grouping kids.  A fellow teacher gave me some wrist bands and I used them to group the kids by band color.  I had them draw the bands out of a brown bag. They loved it!!

They worked very well together.   

Help! We Are Working on Long Division!

We have started long division!  Yikes!  Although, many of us were introduced to it last year, we are still needing a lot of practice!  It would be great if you could help your student at night.  Right now we are working on multiple digits divided by single digit (4762 divided by 5 for example).  We use the algorithm:

Divide
Multiply
Subtract
Compare
Bring Down

You can help your student practice and become more confident by making up some problems and having them work through them with you.  Let me know if you have any quetions. :)

Woohoo!!

I FINALLY have our blog. The Spilker Scoop, up and running.  I have to apologize for the delay.  I know you all look forward to seeing what your kiddos are doing in school!  I changed things up on it a little.  It is only showing 3 posts on a page so be sure to click on the "older posts" tab at the bottom.  There are more posts from this year than are on the current page.  I hope you enjoy! 

Project Time!

 The kids have been working very hard!  It's hard work to get used to a new grade and new expectations and routines.  I decided we need a little "down" time.  What better time to do this than right before Halloween.  I found a really cool ( and challenging) skeleton project!  Of course, if I can tie in academics with our projects, even better! How about a little cursive practice!  The kids had to write their names in cursive (bubbled style) on a folded piece of paper.  When they cut them out, their names became the ribs of the skeletons!  Believe me, it sounds a lot easier to do than it was but they turned out great! It's fun to watch them work together.  They are great friends!

 We also made Jack-o-Lanterns!  Yep...I was able to tie in some Symmetry and Positive/Negative images.

I can't believe I didn't get a final picture of their projects!  I'm a little out of practice with the camera~I will get better!

Writing!!

Yes!  There will still be a few writing projects this year but not nearly as many as last year.  WHEW!  4th grade is all about writing and 5th grade is all about science!  We still need to practice our writing skills and the Writing Process.  My students really don't mind writing, they just like to be able to spread out and get comfy when they do it.  In these pictures, they are working on an informational report on Tornadoes.

 I don't mind them working with each other, as long as papers are getting written. :)

 I love the concentration!

 They had a list of facts to use and did some "research" in their science books and reading books.

Sometimes, all they need is a place of their own.

They worked super hard on these reports!  I can't wait to share these with you at conferences!

Math Math Math......

Math!  We have been reviewing a lot of what we did in math last year.  I always get a chuckle when they say they never did that.  I think they forgot that I taught 4th grade last year. :)  I have to say, though, they never complain!  They jump right in and give their best effort.  They want to do well and they want to understand.  That makes my job soooo much easier!

 Using whiteboards for math is VERY motivating for them!  If you are having struggles at home over math homework (or even Spelling pracitice), I highly recommend picking up a white board and some markers!

Reminder: If your student is struggling with something in math, please let me know.  I don't want anyone working to a frustration point at home!

Silent Reading!!

I know many of you can not get your kiddos to read at home.  I thought I'd show you that they truly CAN do it!  They actually ask me if they can have SSR (Sustained Silent Reading) and then they ask if they can journal after.  I'm not kidding!!  You should stop in some time to watch this.

Funny Kids

So, the kids like to tease me and play jokes on me!  Unfortunately, they usually win. :)  They like to switch jackets and seats.  Sometimes, it take me half an hour to notice that they are in different seats!!  If you look closely at this picture, you might notice that their sweatshirts don't seem to fit right.  This was right after a recess.  I love this class!

A Little Reading Comprehension

We have a GREAT Reading series.  We have been working through the non-fiction sections and the kids are very excited about it.  These are just a couple of pics while we were working on Nature's Fury,

Brain Teasers and Puzzles

We needed to "wake up" our brains after a couple months off so I thought Brain Teasers were just the ticket!  Look at this concentration.  They LOVED it!

Just look at that concentration!!  It is so much fun to watch them hard at work!