Parent Handbook

Welcome to Fourth Grade!

2018-2019

Mrs. Stejskal and Mrs. VanderZwaag

A Prayer

Thank you, Heavenly Father,

For the children in our school-

Each one a gift of love from You.

May we realize our sacred trust

As we seek to bring them up

To love and serve You.

Help us to create a climate of love

Where they may grow and develop

That sense of security so necessary

To a growing faith in people

And in You.

May we accept each child as

A unique person created in

Your own image and precious to You.

May they learn to accept themselves

As persons of worth

With talents and abilities

That You have given them.

Help us to share with them

Those values that lead

To abundant life in Christ.

And eternal life hereafter.

May they know a sense of achievement

Through creativity and work well done.

Father, give them

A sense of belonging,

In the family,

In our church,

In our school,

And with their friends.

And may they feel at home with You

In the beautiful world that You have made.

Amen.

CURRICULUM - Morning

READING

*We will be assessing your child’s reading level a few times throughout the year using the Fountas and Pinnell Reading Level Inventories. Once a level is determined we will be encouraging students to pick out books at the reading (letter) level that has been given to them. Our goal for fourth grade is to be reading in the Q, R, S, T, band of books. Of course, some students will exceed that and some will need interventions to help them grow.

*Our school is now adopting the Reading Workshop curriculum developed by the Teachers College of Reading and Writing at Columbia University. The program consists of the following units: How to Build a Reading Life, Following Characters into Meaning, Book Clubs with Adventure and Survival Stories, Historical Fiction, and Non-fiction/Informational and Research units.

*Interventions will also take place during our independent reading time in class. Small group work will take place to work on individual targeted skills. .

*Independent Reading takes place in class every day during workshop time. Instead of using paper reading logs this year that are transported from home to school every day, we will be using bookopolis.com to record our reading. The first week of school Mrs. Stejskal will model for students how to record their reading minutes on a reading log, how to put books that they would love to read on their bookshelf, and how to write a review online. This is a great site that parents can also access for book recommendations.

*Students visit the library every week and we will make sure their are books available in their book box, at their level, ready to read.

Goals for Fourth Grade Readers:

-1 page in 1 minute

-30 minutes of sustained independent reading at school

-30 minutes of sustained independent reading at home

(150 minutes of reading each week)

-reading at appropriate level

-growth of 1 or 2 levels and across genres

-become critical thinkers

-develop a life long LOVE for reading

LANGUAGE ARTS

Words Their Way

Beginning of year: students are given the Pearson Spelling Inventory which matches them up with words at their developmental/instructional level.

Students are given a list of 15 words to study each week. They will need to understand the phonetic component of the words, the spelling, AND the meaning. Throughout the week they will be given activities that will help them learn the words.

A test is given on Friday based on the ‘rules’ of their word lists. The goal for the student is to be able to transfer this focus of word study to their every day and published writing.

Writing – Writing Workshop program that includes mini lessons 4-5 times per week with time given for extended writing in their writer’s notebook.

A writing piece will be published every four to five weeks. Published writing will be completed on i-pads accessible on your students Evernote Account.

Genres that are covered are:

Personal Narrative

Persuasive Essay

Fiction

Literary Essay

Informative Research.

English/Grammar – We will study sentences, nouns, verbs, adjectives, punctuation, and other parts of grammar in context of writing and mentor texts.

Penmanship – Quick review of correct formation of all letters in cursive is covered.

FAITH INTEGRATION Continually integrated throughout: teaching points, connections between texts, current events, Bible memory, real life experiences, and discipleship practices.

CURRICULUM - Afternoon

BIBLE

History of the written Word

Study of the judges, kings and prophets of Israel and Judah

Study the exile and return to Jerusalem

Stories of Esther and Daniel

Devotional memory work monthly. Curricular memory work coordinates with Bible lessons.

MATH

Knowledge of basic facts is VERY important! Daily practice at home is required. Details of this assignment will be communicated early in the school year. Please feel free to practice using paper and pencil, games, and on-line resources.

Classroom math lessons will come from the Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Math Expressions Common Core curriculum, copyright 2013. Math Expressions is focused on the Common Core State Standards and helps students study a small number of mathematical concepts with time to develop and build in-depth understanding. In Math Expressions, teachers create an inquiry environment where students invent, question, model, represent and explore. Students spend much time involved in explaining their methods. The curriculum offers many opportunities for individualizing each student’s learning program based on their needs.

Topics covered:

Place Value

Large Number Addition and Subtraction

Multiplication with whole numbers

Division with whole numbers

Equations and Word Problems

Measurement

Fraction Concepts and Operations

Fractions and Decimals

Geometry

This year I am very excited to again be using a workshop model of teaching mathematics. Students will demonstrate their prior knowledge for each common core standard, and will be grouped based on the instruction that will best meet their needs. They will spend time daily with the teacher, as well as other stations around the room (independent work, partner practice, and games) to deepen their understanding and knowledge no matter what level they are at.

SCIENCE

Battle Creek Science Unit Kits - This curriculum aligns with the Michigan standards for teaching science and emphasizes an inquiry model of teaching science: students are to learn science by engaging in activities that focus on the scientific process, observation and discovery.

Taught first and fourth marking periods only. Units are:

Energy Transfer

States of Matter

Organisms in their Environment

View From the Earth

SOCIAL STUDIES

Second and third marking periods only.

Study of the Regions of the United States.

OUT OF CLASSROOM LEARNING

Sept. 21 - DeGraaf Nature Center

Jan. 25 - Hemlock Crossing Nature Center

TBD – Market Day

March 14 - Lansing (Capitol building and Impressions 5 science museum)

May 28 - GR Public Museum and Planetarium

**Chaperones sign up available on our class blog.

OTHER IMPORTANT DETAILS:

CLASS RULES AND DISCIPLINE – Already this year, we have discussed rules and how important they are. We had the children help us develop a constitution of important rules for our classroom. We will use a stoplight to enforce these rules. When a child breaks a rule he/she will move his/her clothespin to yellow. The second offense results in moving the clothespin to red, followed by time spent inside at recess filing out a Stop Sheet. Stop Sheets state the problem and provide a plan to prevent it from happening again. These sheets come home, need to be signed by a parent and returned to school the next day. Each day the children start with a clean slate. Further discipline problems will be dealt with through contact with the parents or a visit with the principal.

ABSENT/MISSING WORK – Look for an assignment sheet. If your child is gone for more than one day, please stop by and pick up missed work.

GRADING – A number system and letter system based on percentages is used in fourth grade.

HOMEWORK - Unfinished school work will be taken home as homework.

Studying math facts and reading minutes is homework.

Students will receive review sheets before tests so they can study at home.

Student Planners/Homework Folder – This is our effort as teachers to help your child learn organizational and responsibility skills before Middle School. Please look at your child’s homework notebook regularly and sign it once a week to help build these skills.

VACATION HOMEWORK POLICY – We encourage you to take your family vacations during school vacations. Pulling your child out of school causes them to miss some learning experiences that cannot be duplicated as homework, and may make them feel insecure when they return. On the same token, we understand there are occasions where taking your child out of school in unavoidable. If your child misses school for a vacation, we will give you the paperwork your child missed when you return. We will not be able to present you with this work before you leave because we may not know exactly what we will be doing or how much we will cover in advance of your vacation. However, some good activities for trips such as these include: reading every day, keeping a written journal of the trip, practicing spelling words, practicing math facts, and practicing Bible memory.

PARENT HELPERS – Sign up on our class blog if you are interested.

MAP TEST – Students will be taking the MAP test this year. Testing will occur three times a year and is done on computer or iPad. The testing results will assist teachers in teaching directly to the needs of each individual student. Result printouts will also be shared with parents.

BIRTHDAYS – Children usually bring a treat, but do not have to. Half birthdays may be celebrated for those that fall outside of the school year. If your child chooses to have a birthday party outside of school, please be sure to invite all the girls or all the boys in our class to the party. This will eliminate any unnecessary hurt feelings.

SWIMMING LESSONS – Rose Park students will be participating in swimming lessons at the Holland Aquatic Center. Once the dates are determined we will add them to our class google calendar. The students must wear the swimsuits the pool provides.

CLASS NEWSLETTERS - Our class newsletters will take the form of a website. Please visit http://fourthgradefootprints.blogspot.com/ and sign up for updates via the e-mail link on the right hand side. We will also send you an email every Friday to remind you to go see the new updates for the week. This will be your place to get class information so please bookmark it and check it often!

CLASS GOOGLE WEBSITE - This google site (bit.ly/4thgradefootprints) contains some of the general year long information for our class. You will find schedules, a link to our blog, a link to hot lunch information, a link to our class photos, educational activities, and lots of other information there. This site is also a place where our students will be finding some of our on-line resources we would like them to explore in our curricular work. This site is not as critical for you to check regularly, but when you do peek at it, you will get a sense for some of the things we are learning and the resources we are using. You can access the site through our blog as well.

iPADS - Each student will have an iPad that stays at school. The iPads will be used to enhance our learning. We will use them for some project based learning, some research, some creating, and some skill practice.

PARENT/TEACHER COMMUNICATION – We feel it is important that we are in touch often. We are extremely devoted to meeting the needs of each child, but we need your help for that. God has given us both the task of teaching these children and we can only do that through open communication. We will be sure to let you know if we have good news or even concerns about your child and we would like you to do the same for us. You may reach us at school (820-4055) or at home in the evenings before 10pm and on weekends. We also have e-mail accounts that we check daily.

Jana Stejskal (morning teacher, except Thur. afternoons)

396-8128

jstejskal@hollandchristian.org

Kim VanderZwaag (afternoon teacher, except Thur. mornings)

748-9514

kvanderzwaag@hollandchristian.org

We will pray earnestly for your child and your family this year, and we ask that you remember us in your prayers. With God in the center and in control, this year will be filled with many growth adventures. We’re excited about what is happening already in our class. Let’s keep in close touch!

In Christ’s service,

Jana Stejskal

Kim VanderZwaag

Holland Christian Schools PreK-12 Bible Memory Plan

Bible memorization is and has always been an important element of the Holland Christian education experience. It is a practice that the church around the world and over the centuries has found profitable to, as the Psalmist says, “meditate on day and night.” In that same spirit, Holland Christian has identified two distinct reasons for memorizing Scripture at all ages. These are outlined below. The monthly devotional passages and the Bible curriculum connected memorization. This plan is more authentic to the faith formative educational setting we desire to create at Holland Christian, and aligns with our Word Rooted Discipleship Practice.

Two Uses of Bible Memory PreK-12

1. System-wide, communal and devotional Bible memory plan

September Psalm 8

October Psalm 23

November Psalm 100

December Luke 2:6-20

January Psalm 1:1-6

February Psalm 121:1-6

March Matthew 28:1-10

April Acts 2:1-4

May Galatians 5:22-26

2. Grade-level, curricular rooted memory plan in Bible using CSI plan by grade level.

The latest NIV version (2011) is be the source translation we use.