Week 6: Mathematical Efficiency and Cultural Diversity

         

        This week, students worked on mastering an efficient strategy: the standard algorithm for subtraction.  That translates to the "old fashioned way" for us parents.  We used the words "decompose" and "recompose" when talking about regrouping numbers into new place values.  Ask your child about Gru's "lightbulb".  In previous years, students have been encouraged to use several other strategies to encourage a true understanding of the operation and numbers.  By 4th grade though, students are expected to master the standard algorithm for addition and subtraction.  Encourage your child to use this strategy whenever subtraction is necessary.  Ask your child to demonstrate the "Minus 1" strategy, a very efficient strategy for subtracting across zeros!

         In science, students have finished their persuasive pet projects and they are all on display outside our classroom.  Students used this project to demonstrate their understanding of learned vs. inherited traits.  This approach to assessment is much more telling of their understanding than a typical test and students enjoy it much more as well!  Next week we will begin our Erosion and Weathering unit.  This unit will be a reoccurring throughout the year, as it is one of the most significant threats to the Chesapeake Bay's ecosystem.   

       Our word-of-the-week was “diversity” which was a recurring concept in both language arts and social studies.  In language arts this week, we read 5 different poems that reflected key aspects of different cultures.  We talked about the way poetry can capture ideas, emotions, and images with relatively concise wording.  The poems reflected the importance of cultural history, traditions, and perspectives.  We also looked at poetry as a form of writing and realized that it’s very hard to pin down poetry with a simple definition.  Poetry can be written in many diverse forms.  The students wrote about the poem that meant the most to them. We began spelling by reviewing short vowel sounds that most commonly occur in closed syllables.

             In social studies we narrowed our geography focus to the Mid- Atlantic States. The students learned the names and locations of the four states that border Maryland.  Then we narrowed our focus further to just Maryland. The students made color coded maps to illustrate the location of Maryland’s three geographic regions. This prompted us to acknowledge the diversity of Maryland’s land.  (The students were introduced to this concept when they made salt dough maps in 3^rd grade!)  Next week we’ll read informational texts to learn additional information about each region.

              There are only a couple of students who have not yet had a chance to present their ancestor project.  We will finish them up by next Tuesday.  It’s been impressive to see the students ask each other thought-provoking questions and give each other specific compliments on their work.  We have met a lot of inspiring people through these projects!