Hello!!  Welcome to 4th grade!!!
    I am so excited to get a new year started!!  My class is always an adjustment.  We will work hard to get used to the routines and expectations of 4th grade.  I feel like such a meanie sometimes.  Trying to get used to a new schedule and new class is sometimes a very slow process.  The schedule this year is very different from what I have ever had in the past.  I actually am enjoying it but I am still trying to get used to it.  I feel like we are coming and going a lot.  I am very happy to be teaching your children this year.   All ready I feel like they are a great group of kids.  They have two new classmates and I feel like they have done an excellent job of welcoming them and making them feel comfortable.  Kudos to the kids!!

Facebook -  I have a Facebook page called St. Malachy Fantastic 4th Grade.  You can go on and like the page.  I have a first day of school picture on there.  I have to accept you to the page so the only ones seeing this page are parents unless you let me know a grandparent would like to see the page.  We keep the page private otherwise.  Last year's parents also have access.  Please go on and request to like it.  I will put different things on here that we are doing or just some pics of the kids during different activities.  Just another way for you to see what we are doing in 4th grade. 

Language Arts -  The story we are reading this week is called Because of Winn-Dixie.  It is a chapter book written by Kate DiCamillo.  This story has been made into a movie also which is on Netflix right now.  I hope to show it to the kids today.  It is a fun story about moving to a new town, not having any friends, making friends with a dog and the librarian.  It is funny how her and the librarian become friends!  We are working on story structure, so character, setting, and plot and also summarizing.  The students will actually work on summarizing each week with every story.  In grammar we are refreshing our memories on sentences, subjects, predicates, and nouns.  They will take an end of the week test on Friday along with a post test in spelling! 

Math -  This week in math we have taken a Chapter 1 pretest to see what the kids all ready know about Place Value.  This took a couple days to complete.  I take all my math tests online in the same place they take their Language Arts tests.  We have also completed the pre-pages for chapter 1.  These pages just refresh the kids memory on topics we will be discussing in this chapter.  Today I plan to start lesson one with them.

Social Studies-  We are digging right into the book this week.  Our whole year will be spent learning about the United States.  We will learn all 50 states, where they are on the map and their capitals.  We will learn them a region at a time.  We will learn about a Native American tribe who settled the region, we will learn about resources in the region, we will learn about climate, and what the regions offer today. The students will have an interactive notebook that we will work on that will have all 50 states in them and some facts about the states.  They will color the state's flag too.  It is a fun way to walk away from 4th grade with a book to keep about the states.  Right now the first few lessons are on the United States as a whole.  We are talking about landforms and then we will move on to discuss our government.  We just skim the surface about that.  We discuss the three levels and three branches and what the purpose of each branch is and what they do. It will be a fun yet very busy year for the students! 

There is a lot of adjusting for kids to do this year.  Organization is the key to be successful.  I will help them get there.  I know the first couple months seem very stressful sometimes but the students will catch  on and it will be easy for them.  We all just need to patient and help the students learn the new routine and expectations.  We work on all of it everyday.  Some need a little more help then others and this is expected.  I am still working on figuring all of them out also.  I will be gone tomorrow.  I know, I know, jeez, all ready!  My daughter is having all 4 wisdom teeth pulled and I have to drive her there and she can't be alone so that's my mom job.  Mr. Dick Bergstrom will be with the kids tomorrow.  I will plan the day just like I was here.  I hope everyone has a great long weekend with whatever you do.

God Bless,
Mrs. Sickels