<h2 style="text-align: left"><a rel="attachment wp-att-212" href="http://pitts.cuipblogs.net/?attachment_id=212"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-212" title="kid writing_2" src="http://pitts.cuipblogs.net/files/2010/01/kid-writing_2.gif" alt="kid writing_2" width="64" height="64" /></a>Weekly Overview</h2>
<h2>Week of January 18 through January 22</h2>
Congratulations to Kaytlyn James who was our class representative in the school Geography Bee last week!   Also congratulations are in order for Natalie Braye and Miette Hennessey for being finalists in our class Spelling Bee who go on to compete on Wednesday with the rest of the Ray School finalists.  That just goes to show there is immense talent in our classroom!

Please review all homework assignments with your child.  I am having a problem with students completing all assignments and also remembering to bring them to school and turn them in.  Homework is an extremely important part of our curriculum.  Also, I expect all students to continue working on reaching their Accelerated Reader goals.  There is one week left in the second marking period, so please remind them of their reading committment. 

Black History month is very near and it's time to think about who your child would like to research this year.  Since science is a major focus in fourth grade, I am limiting their research to the study of African American scientists and inventors.  More information will be available later on this week.

<span style="color: #339966">Language Arts:  </span>We are working on building our reading strategies.  Our lessons this week will focus on drawing inferences, drawing conclusions and making generalizations from the text.  Other lessons will include identifying author's purpose and probable outcomes.  We will continue to work on developing writing skills, particularly reviewing how to answer extended response questions.  Students will have a rubric to follow that we will discuss at school and I expect parents to review their child's score on sample questions in order to refine this process.

<span style="color: #0000ff">Math:</span>  We have completed Unit 4 and will begin Unit 5 on extending multiplication skills.  This unit also covers two different multiplication methods:   partial products and the lattice algorithm.  In our ISAT review we will examine the commutative properties of addition and multiplication. 

<span style="color: #800080">Science: </span> Last week students built a simple circuit, identified components of an electrical circuit and examined what a switch does.  This week they will conduct a search in the lab for insulators and conductors of electricity.  Students will also identify hidden connections on a mystery board.

<span style="color: #ff00ff">Social Studies:  <span style="color: #000000">We will review some of the biggest events of the past year in our Time for Kids magazine and delve into photojournalism and discuss the importance of pictures and how they capture current events.  Students will also be writing a letter to President Obama about what they feel top priorities should be for issues affecting this nation.</span></span>

<span style="color: #ff00ff"><span style="color: #000000"><span style="color: #993300">Art: </span> We will examine what a collage is.  Students should be saving magazines with pictures they would like to use to assemble their individual collages.</span></span>

<span style="color: #ff00ff"><span style="color: #000000">HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS:</span></span>
<table border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
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<td width="75" valign="top"><strong> </strong></td>
<td width="88" valign="top"><strong>Mon.</strong></td>
<td width="96" valign="top"><strong>Tues.</strong></td>
<td width="96" valign="top"><strong>Wed.</strong></td>
<td width="84" valign="top"><strong>Thur.</strong></td>
<td width="84" valign="top"><strong>Fri.</strong></td>
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<td width="75" valign="top"><strong>L/Arts</strong></td>
<td width="88" valign="top"><strong>NO SCHOOL</strong><strong> </strong></td>
<td width="96" valign="top"><strong>Read for 30 minutes.</strong><strong>Book Notes</strong><strong>ISAT READING COACH</strong></td>
<td width="96" valign="top"><strong>Read for 30 minutes. ISAT READING COACH </strong></td>
<td width="84" valign="top"><strong>Read for 30 minutes.</strong><strong>Book Notes</strong></td>
<td width="84" valign="top"><strong>Read for 30 minutes.</strong><strong>Book Notes</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="75" valign="top"><strong>Math</strong></td>
<td width="88" valign="top"><strong> </strong></td>
<td width="96" valign="top"><strong> </strong></td>
<td width="96" valign="top"><strong>Study Link</strong><strong>Practice for timed test</strong></td>
<td width="84" valign="top"><strong>ISAT MATH COACH</strong></td>
<td width="84" valign="top"><strong> </strong></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="75" valign="top"><strong>Science</strong></td>
<td width="88" valign="top"><strong> </strong></td>
<td width="96" valign="top"><strong>ISAT SCIENCE COACH</strong></td>
<td width="96" valign="top"><strong>ISAT SCIENCE COACH</strong></td>
<td width="84" valign="top"><strong> </strong></td>
<td width="84" valign="top"><strong> </strong></td>
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