Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday(Tuesday) morning.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: We continued both practicing the memorization and the conceptual understanding of multiplication this week. We also learned the associative property which shows that you can group factors in different ways the product stays the same.

EX: (3 x 4) x 2 = 24 and 3 x (4 x 2) = 24

We finished the unit and we will take the test on Monday. The next mini unit covers area and perimeter.

From Ms. Einspar: Ms. Einspar’s math class began Unit D, a mini unit on area and perimeter.  We will be testing on Wednesday of this week and will quickly begin Unit 5, the second unit on multiplication and division.

From Mrs. Penner: We started multiplication and division in the new book.

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: Unit C math tests will go home for corrections and a parent signature. We are beginning Unit 4, long division. It is a short unit and it is expected that the test for this unit will be given the Friday after Break.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are continuing with our geometry study: solid geometry with 3 D figures, surface area, and volume too.

From Ms. Medved: My kiddos in math are working on chapter 10 and 11.  We are doing multiplication, and we will be having a quiz on Thursday.

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies: On Monday, we’ll start with this next phase of Social Studies. This week we plan on reading about the Kumeyaay, Missions, and hopefully Ranchos. We are reading each section in the booklet, and then summarizing and rewriting our our community history book. Later, when we finish, students have an art and writing project to complete. I hope we can finish the unit by the end of February.

Grade 4 -Social Studies: Mrs. Calder’s and Mrs. King’s 4th graders are working in Social Studies, Unit 2: Early people in California. In this unit, students will learn how the arrival of the Spanish changed the lives of the California Indians. Students will also learn how life in California changed when Mexico took over the area. This unit covers the exploration, mission and rancho period of time. This week we will begin lesson 6. There are 8 lessons plus a review in this unit.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

The character trait being featured in February is citizenship. Wear purple on Wednesdays.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday(Tuesday) morning.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: We continued both practicing the memorization and the conceptual understanding of multiplication this week. We also learned the associative property which shows that you can group factors in different ways the product stays the same.

EX: (3 x 4) x 2 = 24 and 3 x (4 x 2) = 24

We finished the unit and we will take the test on Monday. The next mini unit covers area and perimeter.

From Ms. Einspar: Ms. Einspar’s math class began Unit D, a mini unit on area and perimeter.  We will be testing on Wednesday of this week and will quickly begin Unit 5, the second unit on multiplication and division.

From Mrs. Penner: We started multiplication and division in the new book.

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: Last week, we began Mini Unit C, The Metric Measurement System. Unit C builds on students’ understanding of the base-ten structure of the place-value system to help them understand the metric system of measurement. This system of measurement is an important focus, as it is the system of measurement used in the sciences. It is also the everyday system of measurement used in almost all other countries in the world. Frequent exposure to metric units will help students think about measurement in the metric system. There are 5 lessons in this mini unit. It is expected that we will complete lessons 3–5 this week. We will take the unit test on Friday, February 10.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are continuing with our geometry study and Math Quest problem solving — Working Backwards strategy this week.

From Ms. Medved: My kiddos in math are working on chapter 10 and 11.  We are doing multiplication, and we will be having a quiz on Thursday.

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies: On Monday, we’ll start with this next phase of Social Studies. This week we plan on reading about the Kumeyaay, Missions, and hopefully Ranchos. We are reading each section in the booklet, and then summarizing and rewriting our our community history book. Later, when we finish, students have an art and writing project to complete. I hope we can finish the unit by the end of February.

Grade 4 -Social Studies: Mrs. Calder’s and Mrs. King’s 4th graders are working in Social Studies, Unit 2: Early people in California. In this unit, students will learn how the arrival of the Spanish changed the lives of the California Indians. Students will also learn how life in California changed when Mexico took over the area. This unit covers the exploration, mission and rancho period of time. This week we will begin lesson 5. There are 8 lessons plus a review in this unit.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday(Tuesday) morning.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: We continued both practicing the memorization and the conceptual understanding of multiplication this week. We also learned the associative property which shows that you can group factors in different ways the product stays the same.

EX: (3 x 4) x 2 = 24 and 3 x (4 x 2) = 24

We finished the unit and we will take the test on Monday. The next mini unit covers area and perimeter.

From Ms. Einspar: We are working on unit 4, multiplication and division 0–5, 9 and 10.

From Mrs. Penner: We started multiplication and division in the new book.

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: Monday we will review Unit 3 and will take the test on Tuesday. Wednesday we will begin Mini Unit C, The Metric Measurement System. Unit C builds on students’ understanding of the base-ten structure of the place-value system to help them understand the metric system of measurement. This system of measurement is an important focus, as it is the system of measurement used in the sciences. It is also the everyday system of measurement used in almost all other countries in the world. Frequent exposure to metric units will help students think about measurement in the metric system. There are 5 lessons in this mini unit. It is expected that we will complete lessons 1–2 this week and 3–5 next week. We will test a week from Friday, February 10.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are starting Geometry; and continuing to work on our supplemental problem solving unit, Math Quest, with the new strategy of “working backwards” this week.

From Ms. Medved: My kiddos in math are working on chapter 10 and 11.  We are doing multiplication, and we will be having a quiz on Thursday.

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies: On Monday, we’ll start with this next phase of Social Studies. This week we plan on reading about the Kumeyaay, Missions, and hopefully Ranchos. We are reading each section in the booklet, and then summarizing and rewriting our our community history book. Later, when we finish, students have an art and writing project to complete. I hope we can finish the unit by the end of February.

Grade 4 -Social Studies: Mrs. Calder’s and Mrs. King’s 4th graders are working in Social Studies, Unit 2: Early people in California. In this unit, students will learn how the arrival of the Spanish changed the lives of the California Indians. Students will also learn how life in California changed when Mexico took over the area. This unit covers the exploration, mission and rancho period of time. This week we will begin lesson 4. There are 8 lessons plus a review in this unit.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday(Tuesday) morning.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: These next two units in math focus on helping students master their multiplication facts to 10 as well as develop a strong conceptual understanding of the relationship between multiplication and division. Many students already have a good grasp of the facts, but that can cause problems in understanding the concept. When they see a story problem with easy numbers, they just “know” the answer, but they don’t understand “why” that is the answer. As we get into similar problems with difficult numbers, they don’t understand what each number represents, # of groups, #in each group, or total #, therefore, we are really focusing our discussion in class on a deeper understanding of those parts. One way of helping with that at home is to have your child draw and explain a pictorial representation of the problem.

From Ms. Einspar: We are working on unit 4, multiplication and division 0–5, 9 and 10.

From Mrs. Penner: We started multiplication and division in the new book.

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: We will continue to work in Unit 3, Multidigit Multiplication. Unit 3 reviews and builds upon the concepts of arrays, single-digit multiplication, place value, and area that the students discovered in earlier units. The activities in this unit help students gain a conceptual understanding of multi-digit multiplication. They are expected to apply their understanding of multi-digit multiplication to numeric calculations and real-world problem-solving situations, including multiplication combinations and comparisons. There are sixteen lessons in this unit and it is anticipated that we will complete Unit 3 today and take the unit test on Thursday.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are going to be doing a quick refresher of multi-digit multiplication and “long” division with remainders this week.

From Ms. Medved: My kiddos in math are working on chapter 10 and 11.  We are doing multiplication, and we will be having a quiz on Thursday.

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies We are continuing with our book study of Indians of the Oaks. We are currently on Chapter 15, and complete an average of two chapters a day. That means, we should finish the book on Tuesday! We still need to spend this Friday finishing up loose ends, and allowing for students to rewrite their own ending to the book. Next Monday will be a review, and the test will be given next Tuesday.

Grade 4 -Social Studies: Mrs. Calder’s and Mrs. King’s 4th graders are working in Social Studies, Unit 2: Early people in California. In this unit, students will learn how the arrival of the Spanish changed the lives of the California Indians. Students will also learn how life in California changed when Mexico took over the area. This unit covers the exploration, mission and rancho period of time. This week we will begin lesson 3. There are 8 lessons plus a review in this unit.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday(Tuesday) morning.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: These next two units in math focus on helping students master their multiplication facts to 10 as well as develop a strong conceptual understanding of the relationship between multiplication and division. Many students already have a good grasp of the facts, but that can cause problems in understanding the concept. When they see a story problem with easy numbers, they just “know” the answer, but they don’t understand “why” that is the answer. As we get into similar problems with difficult numbers, they don’t understand what each number represents, # of groups, #in each group, or total #, therefore, we are really focusing our discussion in class on a deeper understanding of those parts. One way of helping with that at home is to have your child draw and explain a pictorial representation of the problem.

From Ms. Einspar: We are working on unit 4, multiplication and division 0–5, 9 and 10.

From Mrs. Penner: We are finishing up mini-unit C.  On Wednesday we will start multiplication and division in the new book.

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: We will continue to work in Unit 3, Multidigit Multiplication. Unit 3 reviews and builds upon the concepts of arrays, single-digit multiplication, place value, and area that the students discovered in earlier units. The activities in this unit help students gain a conceptual understanding of multi-digit multiplication. They are expected to apply their understanding of multi-digit multiplication to numeric calculations and real-world problem-solving situations, including multiplication combinations and comparisons. There are sixteen lessons in this unit and it is anticipated that we will cover lessons 7–10 this week.

From Mrs. Harvey:

From Ms. Medved: We are working on order of operation and expressions (Chapter 7 in the CA math books)

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies We are continuing with our book study of Indians of the Oaks. We are currently on Chapter 15, and complete an average of two chapters a day. That means, we should finish the book on Tuesday! We still need to spend this Friday finishing up loose ends, and allowing for students to rewrite their own ending to the book. Next Monday will be a review, and the test will be given next Tuesday.

Grade 4 -Social Studies: Mrs. Calder’s and Mrs. King’s 4th graders have begun a new unit of instruction in Social Studies, Unit 2: Early people in California. In this unit, students will learn how the arrival of the Spanish changed the lives of the California Indians. Students will also learn how life in California changed when Mexico took over the area. This unit covers the exploration, mission and rancho period of time. This week we will finish lesson 1 and begin working with lesson 2. There are 8 lessons plus a review, so it will take us a while to cover the material.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday(Tuesday) morning.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: This week will begin working in Unit 4, Multiplication and Division with 0–5, 9, and 10.

From Ms. Einspar: This week will continue working in Unit 4, Multiplication and Division with 0–5, 9, and 10.

From Mrs. Penner: Finishing Unit 3.

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: We will begin Unit 3, Multidigit Multiplication. Unit 3 reviews and builds upon the concepts of arrays, single-digit multiplication, place value, and area that the students discovered in earlier units. The activities in this unit help students gain a conceptual understanding of multi-digit multiplication. They are expected to apply their understanding of multi-digit multiplication to numeric calculations and real-world problem-solving situations, including multiplication combinations and comparisons. There are sixteen lessons in this unit and it is anticipated that we will cover lessons 1–5 this week.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are starting working with function tables, generating the “rule” for the function table, and multiple variables this week.

From Ms. Medved: We are working on order of operation and expressions (Chapter 7 in the CA math books)

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies We are continuing with our book study of Indians of the Oaks. We are currently on Chapter 15, and complete an average of two chapters a day. That means, we should finish the book on Tuesday! We still need to spend this Friday finishing up loose ends, and allowing for students to rewrite their own ending to the book. Next Monday will be a review, and the test will be given next Tuesday.

 Grade 4 -In Social Studies/Science: Mrs. Calder’s and our 4th graders are beginning a new unit of instruction in Social Studies, Unit 2: Early people in California. In this unit, students will lern how the arrival of the Spanish changed the lives of the California Indians. Students will also learn how life in California changed when Mexico took over the area. This unit covers the exploration, mission and rancho period of time.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

The character trait being featured in January citizenship. Wear purple on Wednesdays.

BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS IS THIS FRIDAY
On Friday, January 6 we will be honoring our Character Counts Students of the Month at our Student Council led Breakfast of Champions before Friday Flag. I am proud to announce that Tianna Vollrath will represent our class for the pillar of trustworthiness.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday(Tuesday) morning.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: Beginning mini unit C, Patterns. Test on Friday.

From Ms. Einspar: We are working in two units this week.  Mini unit C — Motion geometry patterns ( recognizing and describing slides, flips, and turns), Repeating patterns and growing/shrinking patterns (number and geometric patterns).  Test on Friday.

We are also continuing with Unit 3 — Completing tables (rows, columns, and cells), working on word problems with extra information, not enough information to solve, or solving two-step word problems.

From Mrs. Penner: Please contact Mrs. Penner if you have a specific question concerning your child math studies.

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: We will complete Mini Unit B: Lines, Angles, and Triangles. Unit B reviews lines, segments, rays, and angles. Students use these concepts to explore different kinds of triangles. For example, perpendicular lines make right angles, and a roght triangle has one right angle.

This unit also builds on the exploration of quadrilaterals from Unit A and the concepts of perimeter and area as the students discover the standard method for finding the perimeter of a triangle (side + side + side) and the area of a triangle (1/2 base x height). I anticipate that the Mini Unit B test will be given on Friday, January 6.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are starting working with function tables, generating the “rule” for the function table, and multiple variables this week.

From Ms. Medved: We are working on order of operation and expressions (Chapter 7 in the CA math books)

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies We are continuing with our book study of Indians of the Oaks. This week we are watching an informative movie made by the Kumeyaay that demonstrates their production of pottery, basketry, and other various aspects of Kumeyaay culture. Later in the week, we’ll read about how the main characters in our story, Pion, Kwee-tahk, and Op-a-chuck, weave baskets and build their Kumeyaay huts.

 Grade 4 -In Social Studies/Science: Mrs. Calder’s and our 4th graders are going to Ms. Medved for their science instruction. I will be taking her class for their Social Studies instruction.

In Science our class will be presenting their projects this week and celebrating the completion  of the Electricity Unit.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday morning.

We have a fieldtrip to the Challenger Learning Center in Balboa Park scheduled for Monday, December 12. We are leaving at 9:15 sharp and all students need to bring a sack lunch. We will return to school around 3:00.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: This week we worked on understanding tables and charts. We focused on using exact language to tell what each row, column and cell represents. We also practiced writing questions based on the information in the chart. We also took a look at various story problems with either extra information, hidden information, or not enough information. We are going to push through the last few lessons in the unit and try to take the test before we go on break next week. Continue memorizing multiplication facts.

From Ms. Einspar: We are working in two units this week.  Mini unit C — Motion geometry patterns ( recognizing and describing slides, flips, and turns), Repeating patterns and growing/shrinking patterns (number and geometric patterns).  Test on Friday.

We are also continuing with Unit 3 — Completing tables (rows, columns, and cells), working on word problems with extra information, not enough information to solve, or solving two-step word problems.

From Mrs. Penner: Please contact Mrs. Penner if you have a specific question concerning your child math studies.

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: We will begin (and complete) Mini Unit B: Lines, Angles, and Triangles. Unit B reviews lines, segments, rays, and angles. Students use these concepts to explore different kinds of triangles. For example, perpendicular lines make right angles, and a roght triangle has one right angle.

This unit also builds on the exploration of quadrilaterals from Unit A and the concepts of perimeter and area as the students discover the standard method for finding the perimeter of a triangle (side + side + side) and the area of a triangle (1/2 base x height). I anticipate that the Mini Unit B test will be given on Friday, December 16.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are starting a new unit — Unit 4 — Variables and Algebraic Expressions … we will be working on this for the next several weeks.  we are continuing to work on our Math Quest problem solving supplemental unit.

From Ms. Medved: We are working on order of operation and expressions (Chapter 7 in the CA math books)

Grades 3–4: In Language Arts, Our class book is off to the printer. I can’t wait to get it back.

In Reading Both third and fourth graders are using the Houghton Mifflin reading anthology as their text. The theme for third grade is celebrating traditions and for fourth grade, American stories. Various comprehension, grammar and spelling skills will be taught and reviewed following reading the stories.

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies We are continuing with our book study of Indians of the Oaks. This week we are watching an informative movie made by the Kumeyaay that demonstrates their production of pottery, basketry, and other various aspects of Kumeyaay culture. Later in the week, we’ll read about how the main characters in our story, Pion, Kwee-tahk, and Op-a-chuck, weave baskets and build their Kumeyaay huts.

 Grade 4 -In Social Studies/Science: Mrs. Calder’s and our 4th graders are going to Ms. Medved for their science instruction. I will be taking her class for their Social Studies instruction.

We are finishing our study of electricity and magnets.  The focus of this unit of study is Electricity and Magnetism. The lessons covered will include: 1) What is Static Electricity? 2) What is an Electric Current? 3) What is a Magnet? and 4) What is an Electromagnet?. Vocabulary words include: charge, static electricity, electric field, electric current, circuit, electric cell, conductor, insulator, resistor, series circuit, parallel circuit,magnet, magnetic pole, magnetic field, electromagnet.

The students will finish taking their science test on Tuesday.  All science projects are due on Tuesday, December 13th.  All science packets are due Tuesday, December 13th as well.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday morning.

We have a fieldtrip to the Challenger Learning Center in Balboa Park scheduled for Monday, December 12. There is a $20 donation being asked to help cover the cost of the bus and entrance fee for this fabulous learning experience.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: This week we continued working on rounding and estimation and began working with money. We learned how to use subtraction and “counting on” to find change. Although it is often quicker to just subtract, please ensure that your child knows how to count on as well. Another skill we worked on was rounding money up or down based on whether you are rounding what you have or what you need. Continue memorizing multiplication facts.

From Ms. Einspar: We are working in two units this week.  Mini unit C — Motion geometry patterns ( recognizing and describing slides, flips, and turns), Repeating patterns and growing/shrinking patterns (number and geometric patterns).  Test on Friday.

We are also continuing with Unit 3 — Completing tables (rows, columns, and cells), working on word problems with extra information, not enough information to solve, or solving two-step word problems.

From Mrs. Penner: “I’m doing geometry (mini unit) namely angles, types of triangles, symmetry.”

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: are continuing to work in Unit Two, Place Value and Multi-Digit Addition and Subtraction. Unit 2 develops the concepts of grouping and ungrouping numbers as a key step in performing multi-digit addition and subtraction. The activities in this unit help students gain a practical understanding of addition and subtraction and the relationship  between the two operations. Students are expected to apply their understanding of addition and subtraction to numeric calculations and real world problem solving situations, including those involving tables of data. Estimation and mental math provide students with a method to validate their answers. There are 21 lessons in this unit. It is anticipated that we will cover lessons 15–19 this week.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are starting a new unit — Unit 4 — Variables and Algebraic Expressions … we will be working on this for the next several weeks.  we are continuing to work on our Math Quest problem solving supplemental unit.

From Ms. Medved: We are working on order of operation and expressions (Chapter 7 in the CA math books)

Grades 3–4: In Language Arts, Our class book is off to the printer. I can’t wait to get it back.

In Reading Both third and fourth graders are using the Houghton Mifflin reading anthology as their text. The theme for third grade is celebrating traditions and for fourth grade, American stories. Various comprehension, grammar and spelling skills will be taught and reviewed following reading the stories.

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. All lists have been added to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies We are continuing with our book study of Indians of the Oaks. This week we are watching an informative movie made by the Kumeyaay that demonstrates their production of pottery, basketry, and other various aspects of Kumeyaay culture. Later in the week, we’ll read about how the main characters in our story, Pion, Kwee-tahk, and Op-a-chuck, weave baskets and build their Kumeyaay huts.

 Grade 4 -In Social Studies/Science: Mrs. Calder’s and our 4th graders are going to Ms. Medved for their science instruction. I will be taking her class for their Social Studies instruction.

We are finishing our study of electricity and magnets.  The focus of this unit of study is Electricity and Magnetism. The lessons covered will include: 1) What is Static Electricity? 2) What is an Electric Current? 3) What is a Magnet? and 4) What is an Electromagnet?. Vocabulary words include: charge, static electricity, electric field, electric current, circuit, electric cell, conductor, insulator, resistor, series circuit, parallel circuit,magnet, magnetic pole, magnetic field, electromagnet.

The students will begin taking their science test this Friday and will continue it on the following Tuesday.  All science projects are due on Tuesday, December 13th.  All science packets are due Tuesday, December 13th as well.

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.

Parents, please help your children to remember to bring their parent-initialed Clean Slate Chart to class I check it first thing every Monday morning.

We have a fieldtrip to the Challenger Learning Center in Balboa Park scheduled for Monday, December 12. Please look for the yellow flyer coming home on Monday. There is a $20 donation being asked to help cover the cost of the bus and entrance fee for this fabulous learning experience.

MATH: We take Lightning Rods tests on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Progress reports are sent home on those days for par­ent initials. Forms need to be returned the next day in order to be updated with the current test results.  Third grade students can prepare for these tests by downloading the drill their are currently working on from the Math Fact Practice Pages link. Fourth grade students’ test are 80–100 basic fact problems in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Typically, math homework is assigned Tuesday –Thursday nights. Check your child’s planner for specific assignments.

Grade 3:

From Mr. Romanowski: Last week we finished Unit 2 and took the test. Results were very good overall. Keep up the good work. This week we worked on mini unit B which focuses on symmetry, and congruence, as well as understanding and measuring angles and triangles. There are two concepts that are always difficult in this unit: thinking that diagonals of rectangles are lines of symmetry and not drawing all lines of symmetry on non-quadrilateral shapes such as stars, hexagons and octagons. Please look for these mistakes in the practice work that comes home.

From Ms. Einspar: Unit B — naming polygons, triangles, and angle measures continues on and tests Weds. Thurs. will be something project oriented or pre-assess for unit 3.

From Mrs. Penner: “I’m doing geometry (mini unit) namely angles, types of triangles, symmetry.”

Grade 4:

Mrs. King’s math students: are continuing to work in Unit Two, Place Value and Multi-Digit Addition and Subtraction. Unit 2 develops the concepts of grouping and ungrouping numbers as a key step in performing multi-digit addition and subtraction. The activities in this unit help students gain a practical understanding of addition and subtraction and the relationship  between the two operations. Students are expected to apply their understanding of addition and subtraction to numeric calculations and real world problem solving situations, including those involving tables of data. Estimation and mental math provide students with a method to validate their answers. There are 21 lessons in this unit. It is anticipated that we will cover lessons 7–11 this week.

From Mrs. Harvey: We are starting a new unit — Unit 4 — Variables and Algebraic Expressions … we will be working on this for the next several weeks.  we are continuing to work on our Math Quest problem solving supplemental unit.

From Ms. Medved: We are doing our geometry unit.  We just finished with identifying lines, and now we are doing classifying Quads and polygons.

Grades 3–4: In Language Arts, Our class book is off to the printer. I can’t wait to get it back.

In Reading Unit tests have gone home for correcting, goal setting and parent signatures. Fourth graders are using the Houghton Mifflin reading anthology as their text and will begin a new unit this week.  Third graders will begin reading from a grade-level core literature book, Indian of the Oaks. Various writing activities will be used as a follow-up the the daily reading.

For spelling/word study, our class will be working on the website:  SpellingCity.com. I have purchased the premium account for this site. I have given all students their user and and password so they can log onto our class’ site. As of right now, I am continuing to asking students to work way through the 1000 most often used words in the English language. Each week I will add one or two new lists to the queue.

Grade 3 -In Social Studies We are starting Indian of the Oaks today, and have finished with out Kumeyaay culture group presentations.

 Grade 4 -In Social Studies/Science: Mrs. Calder’s and our 4th graders are going to Ms. Medved for their science instruction. I will be taking her class for their Social Studies instruction.

The focus of this unit of study is Electricity and Magnetism. The lessons covered will include: 1) What is Static Electricity? 2) What is an Electric Current? 3) What is a Magnet? and 4) What is an Electromagnet?. Vocabulary words include: charge, static electricity, electric field, electric current, circuit, electric cell, conductor, insulator, resistor, series circuit, parallel circuit,magnet, magnetic pole, magnetic field, electromagnet.

This week we will begin to cover lesson 2, What is an Electric Current?

As always, there’s so much to cover and so little time! Make it a great week. AND: WHBK (work hard; be kind)

If you have any suggestions on how I can make this blog more beneficial to you, please email me at kking@powayusd.com and share your ideas with me. Thank you.