Week of October 2nd

Hi Everyone, 

     Welcome to another fabulous week at JBE!! 

     4th grade is a year of change for a lot of students. We have already discussed the amount of responsibilities that we are giving to students this year. It is now time that we discuss the changes that our 4th grade bodies will go through this year. Many students start to develop issues with their vision in fourth grade. Only students that were new to JBE went through vision screening this year. So if your child has not had their eyes checked this year it may be time. 
     Some of the other changes that kids go through in fourth grade is a change in body chemistry. With puberty right around the corner, it may be time for some students to begin to wear deodorant. It is important that students begin to become aware of the importance of daily hygiene, when it may not have been that big of a concern in years past. 

When I take the students to the computer lab on Wednesday we will begin learning how to make a power point presentation. Making power points is a choice project that students enjoy completing. If your child does not yet have a flash drive please get one for them so that they can participate in this fun activity. Students will learn how to make a presentation, how to include pictures and photo's and how to add a link to a video. 

This week in math we will work on units of customary measurement. Just like with the metric system students need to be able to choose the most appropriate unit for different measurement tasks. In fourth grade students will learn how to use and convert:

Length: inch, foot, yard, mile

Capacity: fluid ounce, cup, pint, quart gallon

Weight: ounce, pound, ton

The good news is that students do not have to memorize the conversions. They were given a reference sheet last week in class. I am asking them to keep the sheet in their trapper so that they have it at home and at school. You may obtain additional copies by visiting http://www.pantherrun.com/FSAMathematicsReferenceSheets.pdf .

Don't forget to check out the games on the Math Sites page for some additional fun practice. 

This week in science we will begin working on matter. This week we will learn about the properties of matter. Did you know that matter is classified according to it's  properties. Things such as color, texture, size, shape, mass, attraction to magnets and state are all considered. 

This week in social studies we will begin the real history of state. We will read about when the first prehistoric peoples arrived in our state. Did you know that prehistoric Florida was twice the size that it is today. After the ice age sea levels rose and left us with the Florida that we know today. For homework this week students need to read and annotate chapter 2 lesson. Students should take their notes on pages 14 and 15 in their journals. 

Have a GREAT week,
Aesha