The Last Homework Assignment of 4^th Grade

I will be giving kids their last homework assignment of 4^th grade this week.  We will see all kinds of examples of work this week.  Please make sure your kids take their time with this projects.  It shouldn’t be finished in an hour, but rather, they should take several days to complete it.   

THE ABSOLUTE LAST

HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT FOR 4th GRADE!

Congratulations!

You are nearly fifth grade students.  Thank you for a job well done.  I am very proud of all of you.  Please read the directions carefully!

DUTE DATE:  MONDAY, JUNE 11^th

You have been asked to create an object made from RECYLCED material.  This object must follow the rules, so make sure you read them very carefully!  You can use any kind of materials you can get your hands on - please ask permission from your parents before you use things in your house!

On a piece of LINED NOTEBOOK PAPER write (using your best handwriting) the following:

•  I used the following materials: 

•  I used these materials because:

•  This is how I made my project:

•  Recycling is important because:

You will present your final product to the class and give an ORAL presentation.  Don’t forget to practice!

Here are some guidelines:

•  Your CREATION must be made from recycled materials.  Think about the things I showed you as an example and create something COOL!

•  You must turn this assignment in ON MONDAY, JUNE 11^TH

•  Your final product must be 3D.

•  You CANNOT have help from an adult. 

(This is all about YOU!)

•  You are free to use ANY materials you want.

Think creativly!  Do you want your creation to be useful?  Do you want someone to wear it?  Will it be used as a decoration?  Does it serve a purpose?  Does it solve a problem?  Could it be sold?  Who would want to buy it?  Create something THOUGHTFUL and MEANINGFUL. 

Your hard work will be evident.  If you don’t put effort into the proect, that will be evident too. 

Don’t forget…HAVE A TON OF FUN! 

Science

WoOOoooT!  It’s almost time for our BIG WATER TRIP!  We will leave Haisley BEFORE school on Thursday, May 24^th.  Please let me know if you will have a problem getting your kids to school.  We can figure something out to help everyone get here.  You don’t want to miss this trip!  There are two parts to this field trip.  Part one:  We will be on a boat. It’s called The Clinton and it’s a floating classroom.  There are activities that are done on the boat that teaches kids about our Great Lakes and how we must help take care of them.  The second part of the trip is spent on land learning about the marshlands in and around the park (and the rest of the state).  They will learn about the animals that call the marshlands home, why they are so important and what we need to do to help preserve them.  They will also take samples from the water in the marshlands and look at the creatures that live within the water. 

Math

We solved number stories with decimals last week!

We have had to take a lot of math assessments lately.  Sadly, we have a few more to take in the next two weeks.  We will take both the ELA and MATH NWEA test, along with Everyday Math tests too.  Things you can practice?  Multiplication facts, partial quotients, multi-digit addition and subtraction, adding and subtraction fractions, and adding and subtracting decimals. I will send some things home this week to help kids practice before we test next week.  

Books We’ve Read Out Loud

Reading out loud to your kids makes my day.  There’s NOTHING better.  I love hearing their gasps, seeing their smiles, and I REALLY love the conversations we have while reading a book.  They are always bummed when I have to stop reading and eager to start the next day.  Please keep reading with them.  PLEASE.  PRETTY PLEASE.  I love this list.  It’s one of my favorite lists we make throughout our school year.  Keeping track of the books we’ve read out loud help us talk about them.  We see this list every day.  I’m not a fan of reading logs though.  As it turns out, a reading log can often suck the life out of a reader’s love of reading.  It shouldn’t be a chore, or even proof you’ve read. If reading feels like a chore, do you like doing it?  I sure don’t.  As summer approaches, it’s important for your kids to read, but again, if it’s not fun, they won’t like it.  Let them read whatever they want.  Seriously.  If they aren’t reading great American Literature, it’s okay.  Comic books are fabulous.  As are graphic novels.  Nonfiction is as fantastic as fiction.  Recipes count.  Ann Arbor has SPECTACULAR libraries.  Use them.  Let your kids listen to books on CD.  Take turns reading out loud…or don’t take turns!  Basically, the only thing they SHOULDN’D do?  NOT READ.