Happy Friday families!

Now that the weather is finally cooperating, it actually feels like Spring! It’s hard to believe that we are headed into our final month of school!

The kids have made it through the bulk of their testing. They’ve demonstrated great perseverance and the end is in sight! We will be taking the MAP reading test on Monday and the MAP math test on Wednesday. As always, please be sure that your child gets a good night’s rest and has eaten a substantial breakfast.  

Please be sure to refer to the important upcoming dates at the end of this blog. We have so many exciting activities in the weeks ahead—including attending the production of “Annie” at Twin Groves next week!

Here’s what we’ve been working in this week:

Literacy:

We are about half way through our exciting novel, George’s Secret Key to the Universe. The kids are enjoying the plot twists and the wonderful character development! In recent chapters, the evil Dr. Reeper has been introduced into the story and has become a character that we love to hate! 

Writing:

We have started to focus on narrative writing once again, focusing on the genre of science fiction. Students have planned stories which include elements of science fiction such as time travel, advanced technology, or advanced life forms! Thus far, their stories sound amazing! They are really enjoying the creative aspects of narrative writing!

Math

We have started our final unit in math, one which focuses on division and decimals. We have recently been working with powers of ten and will be moving into the multiplication and division of decimals. The end of our unit will focus on the division of fractions and whole numbers.

Social Studies

We are currently learning about the Columbian Trade Route and the many animals, foods, riches and diseases that were traded between the Old and New Worlds during the time of Christopher Columbus. Last week your student brought home a letter explaining the details of our much anticipated Trade Fair, which takes place on Monday, May 7. Please periodically check in with your student to be sure that he/she is working at home on preparing the items needed for the Trade Fair.

Science

Currently, as a part of our unit on Matter, we are learning about what causes substance to change. Students are learning how to use fair tests to plan an investigation. We will be planning  and carrying out an investigation where we will mix together a variety of different substances. Students will develop a plan to identify which substances react together to form new substances.

Important Dates and Friendly Reminders:

April 30—Reading MAP test

May 2—Math MAP test

May 2—Variety Show Auditions

May 3—Trip to Twin Groves to see “Annie” (in the a.m.)

May 15—Early Release

May 17—Transition Day at Twin Groves (details forthcoming)

May 17—Variety Show

May !8—Spring Fling (details forthcoming)

May 23—Field Day

Happy Friday, Families!

First week of PARCC testing -- check! One more week of testing ahead! This week, the students worked really hard and demonstrated a great amount of perseverance as they endured PARCC testing. They completed the English/LA portion and will be finishing the math portion next week. We've been trying to squeeze in some fun learning activities to balance out the monotony of testing! Today we played a math Jeopardy game!

As we head into the second week of PARCC and literacy assessments, please remind your student to get a good night's rest, eat a hearty breakfast, and bring a healthy snack. Also... don't forget to charge those iPads!! Continue to read more about what's happening in our classroom!

Upcoming Assessment Dates

April 9-17, 2018: PARCC Window

April 18, 2018: 6th Grade Placement Opinion Essay

April 19-20, 2018: End of Unit Literacy Assessment
April 30-May 4, 2018: MAP Window

Literacy
**We will start our new unit this upcoming Monday, which encompasses the theme of "Understanding the Universe". Our grade level text is George's Secret Key to the Universe by Stephen Hawking and his daughter, Lucy. The novel tells the story of a boy named George who is discovering the mysteries of the universe while learning about various aspects such as stars, planets, and moons. We started reading the first couple of chapters this week, and the students are very excited to see how the story will unfold. We even played a cahoot game based on the first few chapters. We are keeping track of the traits of the main characters on sticky notes in our books. Using the novel, we will also continue to work on our literacy targets and skills.

Writing
**Connecting to the theme of the universe, the students will be starting to write their own science fiction narratives. Before they start writing, they will brainstorm characters, events, and others ideas to include within their stories. Let the creative juices flow!

Remember to ask your student all about the sci-fi narrative he/she is crafting up.

Math
**We are finishing off Unit 6 this upcoming week. Unit 6 includes graphing coordinates on a plane, classifying polygons, finding volume of rectangular prisms, and identifying numerical patterns. Our Unit 6 Post Assessment will be on Thursday, April 19. Please remind your student to study the unit review guide in preparation. Students may also go onto Khan Academy or Dream Box to work on any assigned tasks for the unit. Unit 7 will include identifying patterns within powers of ten and multiplication/division of decimals to the hundredths.

Social Studies

**We are continuing to learn about the economy within social studies. The students discussed and identified the relationship between supply and demand. They also were able apply the concepts of supply and demand to real world contexts. We will begin discussing trade and cultural exchange, starting with the Columbian Exchange. Students will learn more about how trade affects the global market and America's economy.

Science
**We had so much fun last week identifying mystery powders in our investigation. Once we tested our five known powders and their reactions to substances such as iodine and vinegar, each group was given a "mystery powder" to identify. The kids did a great job! The clean up was MASSIVE, but there was so much fun and learning involved!

Variety Show
**Ivy Hall Elementary's Variety Show will be held on May 17, 2018. Sign ups for auditions is from April 6-27. The actual auditions will be held on Wednesday, May 2. If your student wants to showcase an unique talent, please encourage him/her to sign up for this awesome opportunity to participate in Variety Show!! Here is the FLYER for more information. Sign ups are open on the PTO Membership Toolkit.

Important Dates

April 9-17, 2018: PARCC Window

April 18, 2018: 6th Grade Placement Opinion Essay
April 19-20, 2018: End of Unit Literacy Assessment
April 19, 2018: 4th Grade Music Performance @ 6:30pm
April 20, 2018: Breakfast with your buddy @ 7:30am
April 24, 2018: Papa John’s Special Lunch
April 30, 2018: Parent Review Committee
April 30--April Reading Log Project Due
April 30-May 4, 2018: MAP Window
May 2, 2018: Variety Show Auditions May 17, 2018: Variety Show

**Please remember to send your child with a healthy snack. Nothing feeds the brain like a healthy snack!

**Please continue to have your child practice their multiplication facts up to 12.
**Please remember to have conversations with your child about his/her independent reading book to hold accountability over his/her daily reading.

Have a great weekend despite the dreary forecast!
Julie Holzhauer