Mrs Brunner's blog

The two days before Thanksgiving the fourth and fifth graders will be participating in Thanksgiving themed Reading, Language Arts, and Math activities.

 We will be reading and listening to a true  Thanksgiving story, complete a peer partnered Thanksgiving sequencing activity, solve a Thanksgiving crossword word search, and write a list of things that we are thankful for this year.  The fifth grade class will also write a story of their own Thaksgiving family traditions.

It's hard to believe that next week is already Thanksgiving!

The fourth grade have been working on their multiplication facts from 0 to 3.  Please continue to practice these facts each evening with your child.  Also, be sure the math flash cards come back to school every day.  The fourth grade math class is also working on multi-step word problems, time, and place value to the thousand place.

The fifth grade Math class has just completed a unit on mean, median, and mode.  They really have done a great job and have a good understanding of the concepts that were presented in class.  We are now working on finding the % of a  number using "brain power" and calculator skills.  We are also working on place value to the milliionth place.

Thank you to all the parents that came to Rutledge Hall for parent/teacher conferences this week.  I am very pleased at the progress the students are making in their classes.  We are now into the second quarter of our school year.  Please remember to sign the daily reading log and review and sign the assignment notebook everyday.

4th grade Math has been excited about learning their multiplication facts.  Please practice each day.  The students have been introduced to the 0's. 1's. and 2's.  We will review those facts and continute with the 3's and 4's.  Students may use a multiplication chart when they do not have recall of the multiplication facts; but I will  continute to encourage your child to learn the basic multiplication facts to 12 x 12. ( There is a multiplication chart taped to the cover of their assignment notebook.).

Report Cards were sent home with the students yesterday, Wednesday, November 5th.  If you have any questions or concerns, please call or e-mail me.  My phone number at Rutledge Hall is (847)745-3811.  My e-mail is pbrunner@sd74.org.

I am pleased with the progress my 4th and 5th graders have made this past quarter.  Please sign up for a parent/teacher conference time with your child's homeroom teacher.  I will also be at the conferences for your child.  If we do not have enough time during the allotted conference; you can always come back to my room after the conference or make an appointment for a different time with me.

We have just started "snack time" for my fourth and fifth grade students.  Your child may bring a small healthy snack everyday to school.  Sometimes students need that extra energy break to help them focus on their morning classes.

This week has gone by quickly.  The students have been enjoying Red Ribbon Week.  Monday the students wore red to say "no to drugs".  Tuesday was pajama day.  Students and teachers dressed in their pj's.  Wednesday was crazy hair day.  Thursday, today, is Celebrity Day.  Students may come to school dressed as their favorite celebrity.  Friday is Halloween and students may come to school dressed in costume.

The fourth grade Math class has been working on 2 digit subtraction, time, and money.  Fourth grade students should continue to practice their basic addition and subtraction facts.  The fifth grade class learned to find the Mean, Median, and Mode of a set of numbers.  They are also working on their 2 digit multiplication skills. The fifth grade should practice their basic multiplication facts.

MORE ON IMPROVING YOUR MEMORY.............

What can a student do to increase his memory?

 (This information was taken from an article by Glenda Thorne, PH.D. )

General Principles for Enhancing Memory and Learning

1.  Understanding and Remembering

Students need to be taught relationship and differences between understanding and remembering.  That is, they need to know that simply sitting in class and understanding the information their teachers present in dicussions and/or lectures is usually not enough to enable them to perform well on traditonal tests.  They must also engage in some activity for the purpose of enabling them to remember what they understand.

2.  Activation of Prior Knowledge

I read an article by Betty Fielding about ways to improve your memory and would like to share this information with you.

Understanding How Your Memory Works

Understanding how memory works will give you insight into ways of taking control in order to increase your memory power.

--Memory is the process of registering, consolidating, storing, and recalling information and also is the result of that process.

--The more memory traces you have from sensory experiences, thoughts, feelings, and actions, the more ways you have to recall a particular piece of information.

--A stimulating environment makes a major contribution to improving your memory.

--People learn incidentally in the process of living from sensory memory to short-term memory. The working memory creates the connections to consolidate it into long-term memory.

Homework assignments for 4th grade

Read 30 minutes: Reading Log

Spelling study words for Spelling Test on Fridayv

Math worksheet: double digit addition

Parents please sign Reading Log and Assignment Notebook daily

Homework Assignments for 5th graders

RFC Reading for Comprehension: 2 pages

Spelling: Complete Lesson 13

Study Spelling words for test on Friday

Work on Bug progect for Science Class

 Math worksheet: decimals and division with a remainder

4th graders have been working hard on their new Reading Series: SRA/Corrective Reading.  All students have been earning reward points by doing their best and following classroom rules.  These same students have been working on their individual RFC (Reading For Comprehension) books and are making daily progress. 

The 4th Math class has been working on double digit addition and subtraction with regrouping, place value, and time skills.

5th grade Reading is making good progress in their new SRA: Reading Mastery Plus Books.  These students should be taking home the text and practicing their fluency by rereading the daily story. This reading can also count for their 30 minutes of Reading for the Reading Log.

The fifth grade Math Class has been working on division with a remainder, decimals, and multi-step word problems.  

Wed. 9/24, the fifth graders in  my Math Class will have a quiz on Multiplication of double digit numbers.  Please have your child study their notes and practice solving these problems. 

The fifth graders did a great job on their Math quiz and Spelling Test this week.  Thank you to all the parents that have been encouraging their son/daughter to study each night. 

 All fourth and fifth grade parents, please remember each night to sign your child's Reading Log and Assignment Notebook.  

Hav a great weekend!