10/24/25
Midterm grades are available to view on Sycamore starting today. You can log in to Sycamore here: https://app.sycamoreschool.com/index.php?schoolid=3388 If you need help logging in to Sycamore, please reach out to our technologist at angelle.kuehner@swsaints.org.
To view your child’s progress:
Click on your child’s picture and select “Schedule”, or
Click “My Student” on the home page, then select your child’s name.
We do not have school next week on Thursday or Friday because of Conferences. Due to the short week, there will be no new spelling words or vocab homework.
We will have our school-wide Halloween celebration on Wednesday. Everyone is welcome to wear orange and black to school instead of their uniforms. They can also bring a costume to put on for the dance which will be at 1pm. Parents and younger siblings are welcome to come to the dance as well!
Please sign up for Conferences if you have not done so yet. Also, please feel free to sign up for one with Ms. Crabtree if you would like to talk to her about reading class.
10/15/25
Next Friday, we will take our next map test. This will be on the central states of the US. Please help your child prepare for this. Everyone did amazing on the western states test so I am so excited to see how everyone does on this one too!
Have a great break!
10/10/25
Another amazing week of 4th grade! Our kiddos did an awesome job leading Mass and helping cut down the gardens for winter. We also got to watch a presentation from the New Prague Utilities staff because it was Public Power Week. It was very interesting!
Next week is MEA break. There will be so no school on Thursday or Friday. Due to the short week, there will be no new spelling words or vocab homework.
However, we will have a spelling RETEST on Wednesday on our list of states. Anyone who got more than 2 wrong on the test today will take the same test again on Wednesday. Please check in with your kiddo on how they did today and which ones they need to keep studying.
10/2/25
Periodically throughout the year, we will take a break from our normal spelling lists and work on spelling states. Tomorrow everyone will go home with a spelling list for next week that is just 12 state names. This is in place of our normal words and will be tested on next Friday.
Please keep practicing reading for Mass if your child is a reader! Hope to see you all at our Mass on Wednesday!
Also on Wednesday, we are going to be helping Ms. McNamara cut down the gardens to prepare them for winter. If anyone would like to come help, we will be doing this from 10-10:30 on Wednesday.
9/26/25
Monday is a teacher workshop day so just a reminder that there will be NO SCHOOL for students.
On Tuesday, we will take our final NWEA of the fall. This will be the language usage test. It is a different type of reading test focused on mainly on grammar, vocab, spelling, and punctuation rather than comprehension and reading strategies.
Wednesday is the feast of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus. This is our first feast day celebration of the year. Please remember to send your kiddos in their WHITE polos, nicest pants/skorts, and dress shoes. Everyone will be looking extra snazzy!
On Wednesday, our September reading log is due. Any kid who meets their goal, gets their log signed, and has a book report form completed (and approved) will be able to receive/participate in the surprise reward that day!
Friday, October 3rd is Homecoming. Please send your kiddo to school Trojan gear!
Lastly, we are gearing up for our first 4th grade led Mass on Wednesday, October 8th. If your child is a reader, please help them practice!
See you at the Marathon!
9/19/25
Our math NWEA was amazing! I was so impressed with everyone's focus and hard work. This week on Tuesday we will take the reading test. This one can be a bit more taxing for the kiddos so please encourage them again to try their hardest.
We also have our first map test on Friday for the western states. Please keep studying!
We are still outside working hard with Ms. Kathy McNamara. She is so wonderful. She has been helping the kiddos with their plant observations. Each week she has been teaching them a different way to observe their plants. Today she even broke out the measuring tapes and magnifying glasses for us in the rain!
9/12/25
Our first NWEA test will be on Tuesday. We will take the math test first. Please make sure your child is well rested and ready to do their best. We will take the test right after breakfast.
This week we made our study guide for our first map test. They will be tested on the western side of the country on Friday, September 26th. Please help your kiddo study the map.
These first few weeks have flown by! I am having a blast getting to know your wonderful children. They make me smile every day and I am so grateful for each and every one of them!
9/5/25
Picture day for 4th grade is next week on Wednesday. Kids do not need to wear uniforms for pictures. Please send them in whatever you want them to wear for their pictures. You can also send in forms and money whenever and I can hang onto it until Wednesday.
We started a fun plant observation project with Ms. Kathy McNamara today. Ask your kiddo about their plant!
8/29/25
What an amazing first week! I have had such a blast getting to know your wonderful kiddos and cannot wait for what is to come this year!
First of all, thank you all so much for your donations from my classroom wishlist. I cannot tell you how appreciative we are!
Today I am sending home our first spelling list for our test next Friday. This year we are doing a different spelling program than you are used to from the past couple of years. There will be no sorts and no groups! This program is based on the most commonly used English words. The point of this being that the words they use the most, they most definitely need to be able to spell correctly. I really liked this program a lot last year when I first tried it for 4th grade because I felt like it really filled in any gaps kids have from the sorting/word pattern program they used in 2nd and 3rd grade. Since they are the most commonly used words, a lot of them will be very easy - which is perfectly okay! There are 25 words each week, which seems like a lot, but it is likely that they will really only need to focus on a few of them. Since the words are easy-ish, if anyone gets more than 2 wrong then they will have spelling homework for the following week. I explained this all to the kids today so we should all be on the same page, but reach out with any questions.
Since we have 2 classes, this year I will be teaching math to both sections and Ms. Crabtree will be teaching reading to both sections. Right now we are swapping our entire classes, but once we get to the know kids a bit better and see their NWEA scores we will split them into leveled groups so everyone is appropriately challenged. I did this a few years ago when I taught 3rd grade and we had two sections and it was really fruitful for the kids so I am thrilled to be able to do it again.
Today I am also sending home our first monthly reading log. Each month will have a new reading goal in minutes. Students will have one month to complete their goal and return their signed log. This is not required, but it is encouraged. Whoever returns their completed log, will get to receive/participate in a mystery reward on the first of the month. We had an absolute blast with the mystery rewards last year and it really motivated kids to meet their goals!
Have an amazing long weekend and reach out with any questions!