Dear Parents,
     Happy Thursday!!  Spring Break is quickly approaching!!  Everyone is getting all excited about plans they may have for their time away from school.  I kept thinking a storm was brewing somewhere due to how the children's behavior has been lately.  They are harder to settle down after a transition, like from P.E., Music, or Library.  They are doing a lot of talking also.  I do believe it is more to do with Spring Break being near than a storm.  The 2 hour delay and 3 hour early out has seemed to calm them down a little.  I will be going with Jami and Josie on a school trip to Washington D.C. and New York over Spring Break.  I am very excited as I have never been to either place.  I get to see a lot of great things that I talk about during Social Studies!! I am very excited.  I intend to put my pictures on my laptop so I can share with the kids on my whiteboard.  I think I am most excited about Ellis Island because I talk about that in couple grades.  Oh, well, 911 Ground Zero will be awesome too!!  I can't wait.  I will share some pictures on my blog when I can!!

Conferences - Please remember that conferences are next week.  Check out the schedule on the website.  If the time you are signed up for isn't going to work please call the office and make arrangements.   I want to have all conferences done by Spring Break. 

Language Arts -  This week we read a story called The World According to Humphrey.  It is a fun story told from Humphrey's ( a hamster) point of view.  This story had a theme.  It taught us a lesson.  The lesson we were to learn is about how there are other things to do besides watch T.V.  This story is considered Fantasy.  We talked about other stories that we have read a loud that are also fantasy.  We about Comparative and superlative adjectives this week.  If you don't know what these words mean ask your student because they do.  We also discussed advertisements and how they use different tricks to get us to  be interested in their product, service, or idea.  We will have a normal Friday tomorrow with Spelling tests and end of week assessment.  Next week seems short but we will get through the 2nd story in this unit.  Please look for the Unit 4 test results in your folder today.  I don't need these back they are copies.  I kept the originals.

Math- We are working on Chapter 4  which is division.  We have learned two different ways to estimate quotients so far.  Each lesson has built on the other.  Today we just played with base ten blocks and division.  We will be talking about using the distributive property with division but today I let them investigate some problems on their own.  I gave no instruction just walked around observed and asked questions.  Tomorrow I will make the connections of what their investigating today means to the distributive property.  We will be getting to a mid chapter checkpoint before break.  I plan on stopping at this point and start the 2nd half after Spring Break.

Social Studies - As always I am loving the projects that are coming in.  We are a little backed up right now on sharing because of illnesses this week.  The projects are all still due on the day they are assigned but they may not share it on that day.  I think we are doing to have to carry over into next week for sharing.  Of course, if it is cake or food they will take priority that day.  We just finished the last chapter in the Southeast region.  We will be doing the review tomorrow and checking it on Monday.  They will take the test on Tuesday.  We will begin the Midwest and assign next projects as soon as we return from break.

I would like to thank all of you for your donations for the Auction items the 4th grade put together.  The scrapbook went for $200 and the "Heart of Iowa" basket went for  $200.  For having such a small class I am pleased with the amount of money we made for the foundation.  Also, thank you to all who attended the event.  It really is a good time.  It is so humbling to see all the people come out to support our school.  It shows how important our school really is to those who attend now and those who have attended in the past.  Thanks again for your support!!

God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels