Sparks' Notes
10-12-15
What We Are Learning This Week
Great Expectation Life Principle: Fortitude
Math: Multiplication Strategies
Science: Mixtures and Solutions
Social Studies: First Texans Research Project
Writing: Personal Narratives
Reading: Informational Text
Language: Parts of Speech & Subject & Predicate
Library is every Tuesday. Don't forget your books!
Congratulations to Doris, who we selected as our classroom Student of the Week, for showing the life skill of fortitude!
Fourth Grade Field Trip to Elm Fork Education Center at U.N.T.
Thursday, Oct 15, 2015, 08:00 AM
1155 Union Cir #310559, Denton, TX 76203 (940) 565-4912
Morning Tutorials Are Open - 7:10-7:40 am
In our class, students who attend will receive a healthy snack when they bring their attendance ticket to me.
Important!!! Be Sure to Join Us On:
Edmodo - Our Communication System & Protected Learning System
Go to www.edmodo.com.
Have your student sign in. (Username and password are inside front agenda cover.)
Scroll down the left side of the page until you see Parent Code. Write this code down.
Logout (upper right corner, click on “Me” and select Logout).
Go to www.edmodo.com and select “I’m a Parent” (under blue box that reads “I’m a Teacher”).
Enter your student’s code and set up your account.
Make sure to go Account (upper right corner, click on “Me”) and select "Settings". You can select to have email or text alerts for specific items.
On our Edmodo site, you can see:
Daily agenda (planner/calendar)
Homework links (Folder->Classroom Information)
Student progress
Assignments
Subject area links
Classroom pictures
Chromebook Care
- Determine a fixed spot to plug in your Chromebook EVERY night so that it is charged and ready to go the next day. We have found that this step is crucial to keeping your Chromebook working properly. Keep your charger in your laptop bag when not charging.
- Please be sure to keep case free and clean. Stickers and moisture can damage devices.
- Make sure you bring your Chromebook every day in the computer bag/sleeve. This is an essential school supply, not an extra.
- Monitor your child's computer usage in a common area.
- If students are not taking care of their computer responsibly, computers will stay at school. If you would prefer that it stays at school, please just let me know.
1. Read a minimum of 20 minutes nightly and complete reading log.
2. Play math games for 20 minutes nightly and complete log.
3. Practice vocabulary words. Test on Friday.
Please check your child's math and reading log nightly to ensure it has been completed.
You've Won the Homework Lottery!
Cristian, Trinity, Bella, Michelle, Maria, NIck, Dominick, Addison, Morgan, Isabelle, Emily, Amina, Nehemiah, and Ashlyn
If your child is not showing you the completed reading and math log night, ask to see it. If it is forgotten at school, feel free to bring him/her back to get it. I am here until 5 on most days. I've also included links to the homework above. Thank you so much for doing your part as a parent to help your child develop successful, lifelong habits!
This Week's Vocabulary Words
Each child will be tested on Friday. Students are expected to be able to use these words in sentences. These are words we use day-to-day, so a functional use is critical to learning and understanding.
- conclude - to arrive at a judgment by reasoning
- justify - to provide evidence or reasons for
- inactive - not doing anything
- simile - a comparison statement that uses "like" or "as"
- persuade – convince, or influence
- Inspiring – relates to that which is motivating
- approximately - close to, around
- graduated cylinder - container with marks for measuring volume
- investigation - process of searching for information
- release - to set free from confinement or restraint
- absorb - to soak up
- diagram - drawing or sketch that makes something clear
- evaporation - process of becoming a vapor
- sphere - a round, three-dimensional figure
- sentence fragment - an incomplete phrase without a subject and verb
- commutative property - ability to reorder numbers in a sum or product
- distributive property - a process in math that allows you to break factors into their parts, multiply, and then re-add
- adobe - brick made of earth and straw
- recreation - any form of play or relaxation
- service - work done for others
You can practice these words on Edmodo using the Vocabulary Spelling City app.
(Click on the 2x2 array of on the far right. When the apps window opens, select Vocabulary Spelling City, and go to Vocabulary Week 7 in the yellow section. There are lots of games to help you learn your words!)
Parent Homework
Please do the following with your child:
Check and sign agenda nightly.
Check that reading homework and log are completed nightly.
Check that math homework and log are completed nightly.
Look through Tuesday folder and sign and return the next day (keep the work).
Dates to Remember
Tuesday, Oct. 13th
Cookie Dough Delivery
Family Reading Night 5:30-7:00 pm
Thursday, Oct. 15th
4th Grade Field Trip to Elm Fork Education Center at U.N.T.
Friday, Oct. 16th
End of First Nine Weeks Grading Period
Week of Oct. 19th-23rd
Parent-Teacher Conferences
Book Fair
Tuesday, Oct. 20th
Donuts for Dad 6:45 am - 7:30 am
Friday, Oct. 23rd
Awards Assembly for First Nine Weeks
Week of Oct. 26th-30th
Red Ribbon Week
Friday, Oct. 30th
Mad Scientist Day
PTA Fish Fry & Carnival
Friday, Nov. 6th
Fourth Grade Trip to Austin
Tuesday, Nov. 10th
Reflections Art Show
Wednesday, Nov. 11th
Veterans Day Assembly
WANTED: Used Dryer Sheets
WANTED: Playing Cards
WANTED: Old Scrabble Tiles
Michelle Sparks
Lunch: 11:20-11:50
Recess: 11:50-12:20
Email: msparks@littleelmisd.net
Website: www.edmodo.com/mbsparks
Location: 2600 Hart Rd, Little Elm, TX, United States
Phone: (972) 947-9452 41502
Twitter: @mrssparks502