Well, it's the last week.  Wow!  What a year we have had!  Thanks for sharing your children with me.  They have grown in so many ways.  Keep sending their backpack to school each day.  We have things to send home, still.  Report cards and SAGE scores will be sent home on Wednesday.
     Please read with them over the summer.  If you can, get the Summer Bridge books from ebay or Barnes and Noble to help your child (ren) retain knowledge and get ready for 5th grade.
     

      Well, it's the third week in May.  The children have learned a lot this year.  I am so proud of their hard work.  

Hi Everyone, it's Monday again.  
     This week, we will be reviewing concepts from Language Arts:prepositions, main idea, and author's perspective.  There are no spelling words to work on.  
     Our math time will be spent on reviewing concepts that will help your children be successful in 5th grade.
     Our field trip is this Thursday.  We are going to the water fair at Dixie State University.  The students do NOT need to wear water gear.  We are learning and reviewing ideas about water.  A reminder note will go home on Wednesday about lunches.
    Mrs. G., in the library, wants you to look for lost library books at home to return.  Please look for Take Home books, too.
     I need your children to practice times tables and read at home this week for their homework.  Thanks for your help.
    

     It's May already, but I still have lots to teach your students.  Keep them motivated and working on their homework.  Progress can still be made.  
     This week we focus on writing conclusions, author's perspective, generating questions, prepositions, vocabulary, and spelling words in Language Arts.
     Our math unit on geometry will be finished on Wednesday.  Look for the review to come home on Tuesday.
     We are reviewing science concepts in preparation for our field trip next week.  I am also teaching the students Prevention Dimension, character development, and Social Studies,
     The students earned a pizza party in Success Maker.  We will have that pizza on May 13.  So please don't send lunches with your child on that day.
     If your child still wants a book in the Oracle Series, please send the money by Thursday, May 6.   CW Trisef is the author of these books.  He put on a wonderful assembly for us last week.  He seems to put realistic scientific ideas in a fun story for kids.
     Language Arts SAGE testing is on Wednesday and Thursday morning this week.  Please make sure your child is on time for school each day.  The Math SAGE test will be given May 9 and 10 in the afternoon.
     This is the last week for Take home books.  Please find them and return them to school.  Thanks to the students who consistently brought yours back throughout the year.  You have improved because of your hard work.
     Thanks for all you do, parents.  Until next time...  

     Thanks to Jessica, Hailey's mom, for coming on our field trip.  She was a big help.  It's amazing to have such neat artifacts and history so close to us.     
     For Language Arts this week your child (ren) will learn about generating questions and drawing conclusions while reading, prepositions, words that are similar with different meanings, and reviewing correct use of quotation marks.
     Math is continuing on the subject of geometry:measuring angles and identifying types of triangles.  Google some activities at home to help with understanding this unit.  
     There are no SAGE tests this week.  We will have the Language Arts section next week.
     I am happy when your kids get their homework done, and it's correct.  Thanks for your support.

     Wow!   I was impressed by the students' performance on Friday.  I hope you were too.  They worked so hard and practiced a lot.  Thanks for supporting us and coming to see our program.
     This week in Language Arts we will focus on problem solving, fact and opinion, and vocabulary.  There are spelling words this week.
     Our new math chapter will be on geometry.  Please look at your child's homework each night to help him/her solve the problems correctly.
    The students will be taking the SAGE Science test this Tuesday at 12:00 and Wednesday at 1:10 during our regular Science time.  We have been reviewing all of our units.  I know the students can do well on this test.
     Our field trip to the Silver Reef Museum is this Thursday.  I am happy that we get to go there.  I am in need of 2 helpers.  If you can come, please contact me through e-mail melissa.nielsen@washk12.org or the school 652-4787.
     I want you to know that I am proud of your child (ren) and all of their hard work to get where they are in their learning this year.  Please let them know when you are proud of them, too.  Thanks for getting them to school each day to learn. 

     This week we move on to Unit 6 week 2 in Language Arts.  We have already discussed Main Idea and details in writing.  We also are working on cause and effect.  Please read every night with your child and ask him/her questions about what he/she is reading.
     Our math chapter is short.  Our last lesson on perimeter and area was today.  Review will be tomorrow.  Then the test will be on Wednesday.  If your child does not understand this chapter, please get online at connectED.mcgraw-hill.com  Our next chapter is on geometry.  
     We lost to Mrs. Losser for the rocks, soil, and weathering jeopardy, but the kids remembered a lot of content we had learned.  I was proud of them for that.  We will keep reviewing science for next week's SAGE test.
     Congratulations to those who participated in the Science Fair.
     We practice each day for our 4th grade program.  We will perform for parents this Friday.  Please get a plain white t-shirt, bandana, and jeans for your child to wear.
     Homework is still a necessity, as well as reading.  Please keep up on it,  Thanks for all your support.

     This week we will continue the same Language Arts as last week.  Please complete the homework packet.  It will look different.
     The students completed their math test on the metric system.  Scores will come out soon.  Our next chapter focuses on area and perimeter.  Give your child some exposure to this at home.
     We studied the weather unit and beat Mr. Finlinson's class in jeopardy.  We will go up against the undefeated class of Mrs. Losser this week with our Rocks, weathering and soil unit.  
     We have dancers who are practicing hard for our 4th grade Utah program.  There are a couple of speaking parts which the kids will audition for.  Then I will send those parts home to memorize.  All the class will be singing.    Please come support us on April 15.
     Our first SAGE test will be this Wednesday and Thursday.  The students will be completing the writing portion during our regular writing times at school.  Wednesday's test will start at noon.  Thursday's test will start at 1:10.  Please be supportive of their efforts and encourage them to do their best!  
     The Science Fair is this Wednesday.  Thanks for those students who put a project together to compete.  I can't wait to see them.
     Thanks for being involved in your child's education.  All of them are progressing so well.  I just moved a bunch of them up new levels in reading.

     

      We had a great time on our field trip to the Art Museum and Opera House in St. George.  Ask your children what they liked.  The class got compliments from our tour guides of how well-behaved they were.  I was happy to hear that.
     This week in Language Arts we are talking about problem and solution, adverbs vs. adjectives, and text structure.  We will keep this unit for this week and next because of the short week this week.
     Our metric units chapter test will be on Friday.  Help your child convert numbers from kilograms to grams, liters to milliliters, centimeters to millimeters, and meters to centimeters at home.
     Last week, our class led during the first part of water cycle jeopardy, but then Mrs. Bennett's class pulled ahead.  We have reviewed our weather unit and hope to do well on the weather jeopardy against Mr. Finlinson's class today.  Ask your kids how it went.
     Next week starts our SAGE testing.  The students will complete the writing section on Wednesday and Thursday.  We have been working on supporting our ideas in essays.  I know the students can do well on this.
      Thanks for all your help in educating your child this year.  You support is greatly appreciated!!!
   

     It's Monday again.  We had a great time at Zion National Park last Thursday.  The kids got to see the Virgin River and visit the museum.  Thanks to our chaperones for helping out.  
     STREAM was a real challenge on Friday.  Hopefully, most of your children told you about their cages.  Some were a success, some were not.
     In Language Arts, we will focus on sequence in stories, Author's purpose and audience, homographs and finishing our essays about winters in Alaska.
     The math test was given and is being graded.  The students will learn about measuring with metric units this chapter.  
     The fossils test was given today for Science.  Grades will come out next week.  I am proud of the students who studied to get ready.  We will spend this week reviewing the water cycle and compete in a jeopardy contest against Mrs. Bennett's class on Thursday.
     Science fair packets and ideas are due this Thursday.  Please support your child if he/she is participating.  Thanks for you help.
     Keep up on homework.  When we develop good study habits while your children are young, it will pay off later on.

     I had such a good spring break.  I hope you did too.  Three of my kids got new carpet in their bedrooms so we did a lot of dejunking in the house.  We also took a trip to Utah county to see my sister's new baby.
     Now we are back, ready to work, hopefully.  Language Arts this week will consist of comparing and contrasting subjects in our reading.  The kids are working on reading articles and writing expository essays, preparing for the end of the year tests.
     We are still studying customary measurement in math.  The test will be this Thursday.
     Our fossils unit in Science is almost done.  There is a vocabulary list going home today.  Please make sure your child(ren) studies it.  When we finish our fossils journal, that will be sent home to study from, also.
     Almost everyone turned in their homework before spring break.  That is great!  I am glad for students who are being conscientious of doing a good job.
     Please send board or card games to school tomorrow.  The children have earned a class reward for good behavior.

     Wow!  Leap day was fun today.  I gave the kids a bookmark that said "Hoppy Leap Year".  We also folded origami frogs.  Do any of you know someone born on leap day?
     This week in Language Arts, we will focus on main ideas and details while reading about national parks,  The class will also review what adjectives are while comparing things.  We have a comprehension test this week, too.
     We continue our math chapter on customary units for measurement.  The students have to convert from cups to pints, cups to quarts, and quarts to gallons.  
     Please participate in Dr. Seuss week.  It is so much fun for your kids!  

     Thanks to all who came out and supported our Read-a-thon night.  Also, thanks for those who supported it online.  We reached our $6000 goal. The money will go toward supplies for our Science Lab and Art.
     This week for Language Arts the theme is Desert Animals.  In writing, the students will compare similarities and differences.  In reading, they will summarize and find the problem and solution.  For grammar, the students will look for articles such as a, an, or the.  Similies will also be a focus.
     The class took the math test today.  I am anticipating some great scores.  Our next unit is on customary measurement such as cups, quarts, inches, yards, and pounds.  Please point out any time you are measuring things at home during this next week and a half.
     Thanks for all your support in homework .  See you at conferences.  

     Last Friday was fun as we exchanged valentines.  Thanks for including everyone.  This week will be busy with the read-a-thon.  Please sign up online with your child's code and get sponsors/donations.  Come dressed in your green read-a-thon shirt to school this Thursday, then come back for the read-a-thon at night.  The next day, Friday, you get to wear your pajamas to school to read some more.  This is a worthy cause that the PTA is working hard on to raise money for our science room and some neat art supplies.

      Hi Everyone.  We had a great visit from Zion Outreach today.  Our presenter was great!  Ask your child (ren) about his visit.  I hope most of you have taken the opportunity to get your free pass to Zion for this year.  
     This week in Language Arts the children will learn about working as a team.  They will visualize stories, think of author's perspective, and summarize.  They will also learn about homophones, pronouns, adjectives, and punctuation.  I gave the students an essay they wrote a couple of weeks ago and told them to make it better today.  They typed the essays on chromebooks using google docs.  Ask your child to share with you at home.
     Our new math unit compares fractions with decimals.  Watch for homework 4 days this week.
     Science grades will be out for report cards.  The students will learn about health and responsibility the next 2 weeks.
     This Friday, we will exchange valentines.  If your child would like to participate, please send valentines for 21 children.   Waylon M., Easton, Chloee, Daniel, Berlin, Colton, Kayden, Atrayu, Noah, Ellie, Casey, Keawe, Kamaile, Tessa, Maliki, Sienna, Avery, Hailey, Whalen J., Jaiden, and Brailey.
     Last thing, if you have not signed up for the read-a-thon yet, please do that tonight.  This is our fundraiser for the year.  We will not do a walk-a-thon.
          

     Today, we got quite a surprise waking up to snow.  I am glad that most of you made it to school.
     This week for Language Arts, we will focus on possessive nouns, vocabulary, drawing conclusions on what type of characters we read about, visualize, and improve our opinion writing.
     Our math chapter is almost done, The students learned how to multiply fractions today.  The test is on Thursday.
     Our Science unit on Rocks, weathering, and soil concludes this week.  Please go over any papers you see in your child's folder that pertains to this subject.  I would like all of the children to score well on the test.
     Once again, I want to remind you about Valentine's Day.  We will celebrate on February 12.  We have 21 students in our class.  See the class list on our blog.
     Thanks for reading at home.  I am glad that reading is a priority in a lot of your homes.
  

     Hello Everybody!  A new week is upon us.  This week for Language Arts the focus will be author's purpose, generating questions, pronoun-verbs, vocabulary, and spelling.  
     Math will focus on adding and subtracting fractions and mixed numbers.  Please get online at Connect-ed to get extra practice.
     Our Science unit is continuing rocks and soil.  Thanks for completing the home projects. The test will be next Thursday, February 4.   Look for things to study.
     See's candy orders are due tomorrow.  Please send them in!  History Fair is coming up.  Sign ups for the Science fair will be here soon.  I will send them home when I see them.
     Valentine's Day will be observed in our classroom on February 12.  Please send valentines for everyone in the class, if you want to bring any.  We currently have 20 students in our class.  This is our student list: Waylon M., Easton, Chloee, Daniel, Berlin, Colton, Kayden, Atrayu, Noah, Ellie, Casey, Keawe, Kamaile, Tessa, Maliki, Sienna, Avery, Hailey, Whalen J., and Brailey.
     Once again, thanks for all you do.  Please send in any box tops or labels for education you get on your food packages.

     I hope you all had a great 3 day weekend.  I know that I loved relaxing a little more than I usually get to.  
     We are pushing along, as always, in class.  This week in Language Arts the theme is Animal Teams.  The children will read a story about ants working together.  We will focus on pronouns and generating questions when we read.  We continue to write opinions.  This is an essential skill needed for the SAGE testing in April.
     The students just took their test on fractions.  It was a difficult concept, but I'm proud of them for persevering and learning about prime and composite numbers, simplest form, and equivalent fractions.  Our next unit is on adding and multiplying fractions.
     Keep up the good work at home.  Only 3 students did not turn in homework last week.  Keep up on reading, too, and record it on your kite festival reading chart as well as your homework packet for me. 

   Here we are in week number 2 of January, almost half way through the school year.  
     For Language arts this week we will focus on theme, nouns, creating dialogue, and visualizing.
     Math is about fractions. 
     We continue studying rocks and minerals, weathering and soil for 2 more weeks.  Please help your child complete the project on rocks at home.
     Thanks for your help at home with homework and reading minutes.  When we invest our time in education when your child (ren) are young, we will see good results when they get older.

     I hope your holiday weeks went well.  I had a good time with my kids and extended family.  
     We are back from the break and starting off strong.  The class already earned a reward.  They will get to sit by a friend while I read our chapter book out loud to them.  
     From here on out, I am not going to send spelling scores home with your children.  I need them to look online for their scores.  They will take a pre-test on spelling on Monday.  Then they will take a post test on Friday on spelling and vocabulary.  Please get online at least once a week to have your child complete a spelling activity.  Those of you who I talked to at SEP conferences who do not have internet access at home, I will print out the scores for.   Because of the short week, I did not give a spelling pre-test today.  There will still be a post-test on Friday, though.
     For our STREAM activity this month, we still need toilet paper tubes.  Please send them in as you use them.  Thanks.
     Language arts this week will cover strengthening an argument in writing, visualizing what we read, identifying the setting, plot, and characters, and learning about irregular verbs.
     Our science unit will cover rocks, soil, and weathering.  Your children are welcome to bring in rocks that they find.  I will be sending home a project they need to complete at home.  Please look for this on Thursday. 
     Our new chapter for math will be about fractions.  Please talk to your child about equivalent fractions at home.
     If there is anything extra I could ask of you, it would be to have your child read more at home.  Thanks for all you do.