Bartholomew Bats!


Our school is located in Round Rock, Texas which is near Austin. Austin and Round Rock both have huge populations of Mexican Free Tailed Bats that live under our bridges. A colony of bats lives beneath the Ann Richards/Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin and in Round Rock, another colony resides under the Interstate 35 bridge over McNeil Road. Each evening from March to about October, the bats fly out from beneath the bridge and search for insects to eat. The emergence of the bats is a wonder to watch. We are also thankful that all these millions of bats eat the bugs by our homes.

Our class mascot is the Bat to honor the mammals that live so close to us and help us. (also because Bat and Bartholomew both start with the letter B!) The bats in Central Texas live together in a group and help take care of the young. Then they migrate together as a team. Our class will also live together in our classroom, work together as a team, and help each other out. We are the Bartholomew Bats!





Monday, September 4, 2017

Newsletter

September 3, 2017
Hi,
I hope that you are having a wonderful Labor Day weekend and that you are enjoying time relaxing with your family and friends.
Thank you to all the parents who were able to attend our Open House on Thursday, Aug. 31. It was nice to see so many of you. Let us know if you have any questions.
Parent Information Night 2017-2018 Slide Show-see below
We worked hard last week on writing poems about ourselves, getting to know each other and establishing classroom routines. We did lots of reading in our independent books and writing entries in our beautifully decorated writer's notebooks. Your children are working hard and showing excitement and stamina in their reading and writing. I am impressed!
Read about our week:
  • Reading-We will read and analyze fiction which will include realistic fiction and fantasy. Story elements, theme, and character changes will be our focus. I will also work on individual reading assessments with the children to test their fluency, accuracy, and comprehension. We will write about our reading by writing response letters as well.
  • Writing-The gathering and writing of a variety of entries will continue. Then personal narratives will be planned, drafted, and revised this week. Our goal is to paint a picture in our reader's mind using our words. We want the readers to experience the events in our personal narratives as they read. We will do this by focusing on specific details especially in the most important part of the story and writing like a storyteller instead of summarizing the story. We will read mentor texts to get ideas for topics as well as style of writing.
  • Spelling-We took a spelling inventory to figure out our strengths and challenges with words. We will have our first spelling test on Friday, September 8. Each child will receive their individual spelling list on Tuesday in their agenda. This week, we will practice using the homophones their, there, they're and it's, its correctly and will have five more words based on the results of our inventory.
  • Grammar-Complete sentences with a subject and predicate is our topic for this week. We will continue to examine nouns and verbs as well.
  • Social Studies-We are continuing our study of maps and the regions of Texas. We will have an assessment next week and a study guide will be sent home by Thursday.
Dates to Remember:
  • Monday, September 4-No school-Labor Day
  • Tuesday, September 5-Reading Logs due-Your child should read everyday and have at least 120 minutes by Friday. 60 minutes is due for the weekend.
  • Tuesday, September 5, 2017-Interest Meeting for Choir-email me or send a note if your child is attending-Be sure to include how he/she will get home.
  • Tuesday, September 5-Walk and Bike to School Day
  • Friday, September 8-Grandparents' Day. Our lunch time is at 11:25.
Have a wonderful weekend and let me know if you have any questions or concerns. Thank you for sharing your child with me.
Sincerely,
Pam Bartholomew

Monday, August 28, 2017

Decorated Writer's Notebooks due on Tuesday

Hi,

I hope that you were able to stay dry over the weekend and that your friends and family around Texas are safe.

Because of the 2 Hour Delay, our day was a little mixed up.  The kids did an amazing job being flexible and working hard.  

Decorated Writer's Notebooks are due tomorrow (8/29).  The decorations should include:
            First name on the front
            Photos, drawings, stickers, etc.. of important people to student
            Photos, drawings, stickers, etc.. of important places to student
            Photos, drawings, stickers, etc.. of important things to student

RRISD has a motto this year that is "We are ONE Family".  We will include photos of the students' families, my family, our classroom family, our school family, etc.. They will be hung on the wall, so they may get lost or accidentally ruined, so please send us copies, not originals.  Thank you in advance!

Tomorrow, the students will receive a paper to fill out with your help.  It is about cultural awareness and family traditions.  We will use the information to display countries that our ancestors are from as well as to use later in the year for poetry, writing, and social studies. It will also help us to get to know each other better.  Please return the paper by Wednesday, if possible, so that we can create our map/bulletin board.

Be sure that your child is reading everyday and is recording reading on his/her reading logs in the homework folder.

Let me know if you have any questions or concerns. 

Thanks,
Pam

Monday, July 24, 2017

Back to School Soon! Keep Reading and Writing!

Hi,

I hope everyone is enjoying a summer filled with fun adventures with friends and family as well as many learning opportunities.  Take the time each day to observe things around you.  Notice things, wonder about things, ask lots of questions, and think deeply about these observations.  Talk about them and write about them. Learn new things everyday.  Be sure to read lots of great books, draw, play games inside and out, be kind to others, help others, laugh and smile a lot, be creative and use your imagination!  Have fun and enjoy each day.

School will start soon and that fun and love of learning will continue and grow as the year begins.

I can't wait to see all my former students and wish them luck in their new learning environments, and I am excited to meet my new students and begin our fourth grade adventures!

2017-2018 is going to be great!!!!!

Sincerely,
Mrs. Bartholomew

Friday, June 2, 2017

Thank you for a wonderful year! Read and write this summer!

Hi 5th Graders and Families,

Thank you everyone for such an amazing year.  We learned a lot and had a lot of fun.

We took the 40 Book Challenge and read more than ever!  Keep reading everyday and write about your summer and your books on our Google Classrooms (reading or social studies).  Give book recommendations, tell about your summer adventures, tell us anything you'd like to share.

We wrote lots of essays, poems, fantasy stories, personal narratives, opinion/expository pieces, letters, etc... Keep writing this summer!  Write emails to me and I will happily write back to you. Write on google docs and share your writing with me.  I would love to read it!  Be observant and creative and keep writing!

We did lots of projects like the Texas Hero Project, created battle flags for Texas, explorer projects, and tribe projects.  We had fun visiting the Bob Bullock Museum. We researched Asian countries and customs, and we read traditional tales from Asia. We made projects, plays, and art using information learned about an Asian country. Create things this summer.  Research and learn about something that is interesting to you and share your new knowledge with others.

We helped lots of people this year.  We enjoyed time with our mentors and wrote letters and a book for them.  We collected toys for kids at Dell Children's Hospital and raised awareness of OMS.  We collected money and books for Libraries of Love and organized the Walk to Read Event.  We wrote from the point of view of a child receiving a library and books from Libraries of Love. We researched and learned about Africa and schools around the world and completed iMovie trailers, slide shows, and posters to share what we learned and we even met Trudy Marshall, who created over 36 libraries in Africa.  We raised money and had fun in our Kids Kicking Hunger Kickball Tournament and collected almost 400 flip flops for Honduras.  We also wrote letters using Google Translate to some of the children at Copprome Children's home in Honduras.  Find ways to help others this summer.   Give and share your talents and time with others in need.

Go to iStation and do some reading work on the computer to keep your skills sharp.

Keep reading this summer.  We read aloud Stone Fox, I Survived the Attacks of 911, most of Nightmares, and Number the Stars.  We read in book club groups and discussed books together. Talk to your friends and family about books, characters, themes, etc... Read fiction, non-fiction, poems, magazines, etc... Participate in a reading program. Have fun and travel to new times and places with your books.

Have a wonderful summer.  Enjoy each day.  Spend time with your family playing games and talking together. Learn something new everyday and use your imagination.  I will miss seeing you everyday, but look forward to hearing about your summer on Google Classroom and on my emails.

See you next year, 5th Graders!

Sincerely,
Mrs. Bartholomew


Saturday, May 27, 2017

Newsletter

Hi,

I can't believe we only have three days left of fourth grade!  We will have some fun, but will continue learning.  

Teacher Appreciation Week:  Teacher Appreciation Week was amazing and you all went above and beyond to make me feel so special. Thank you for the flowers, notes, gift cards, candy, presents, and especially the notes.  I love working with your children and I appreciate all of your support.  Thank you everyone.  It has been a wonderful year!

End of the Year Party-Our end of the year party will be on June 1, 2017 at 9:15 am-10:15 am.  We will have brunch/breakfast type snacks and have some fun activities.  We will do autographs in the afternoon on Wednesday. It will be a great wrap up to a wonderful year of learning together.  Thank you to everyone who signed up to help or donate.  It is going to be a great party!  Here is the sign up genius: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b054ea4a923aa8-endofyear

Thank you, Mrs. Alexander: Thank you to our homeroom mom, Mrs. Alexander, for your help with this party as well as all of our homeroom needs this year.  Thank you for organizing the Teacher Appreciation Week activities. The carnival basket was wonderful and the parties have been so much fun!   Thank you for all your hard work.

Autograph Signing on Wednesday-Bring in your yearbooks.  If you don't have a yearbook, don't worry.  We will provide paper autographs books to anyone who needs one or who doesn't want to write in his/her yearbook.

40 Book Challenge-We are wrapping up our 40 Book Challenge.  Lillian, Jaida, Gage, and Divya have passed the 40 Book Mark!  Many students are very close.  Continue to read and turn in notecards!  We will have a celebration on Wednesday during lunch for everyone who read an award winning book in April or May and will have a special celebration for everyone who read 40 Books!  I hope that everyone enjoyed reading this year and tried some new genres.  Even if you didn't read 40 books, hopefully everyone read a few more than they may have in the past and found some new favorites.  Keep reading all summer.  I will set up a chat in our Google Classroom, so that everyone can share and comment on great books that they read during the break.  Happy Reading!

Read about our week:

Reading and Writing-We are working on the 40 Book Challenge and sharing our favorite books with each other. A video of the book, Tuesday, was enjoyed and then we wrote our own stories inspired by the  We will continue to read and discuss Chris Van Allsburg's books and will write creative stories based on some of Chris Van Allsburg's illustrations.  On Tuesday, we will watch the movie based on the book, Watson's Go to Birmingham.  Many of the students read this book and we will use it to continue to talk about acceptance and understanding others. 

Social Studies-We will continue to learn about the Republic of Texas.  We will also use Google Translate to continue to write letters in Spanish and English to children in an orphanage in Honduras.  

FYI-Your child will bring home a white grammar book this week.  In class we use mentor sentences from books that we've read to teach grammar in an authentic way, so we don't use this book very often.  Your child will enjoy using this book this summer to practice many of the skills taught this year.  


Dates to remember:

Monday, May 29-No school-Memorial Day

Wednesday, May 31-Reading Challenge Lunch Treat-Award Winning Book and Students who met the 40 Challenge Goal-Autograph signing at 1:00 pm

Thursday, June 1-Last Day of School- End of the year party 9:15 am-10:15 am, Report cards will be in Thursday Folders

Thank you for a wonderful year!  Read everyday all summer! Work on Think Through Math and Istation.  Practice reading, writing, and math in different ways and keep talking to others about your learning and your questions.Thank you for sharing your child with me.  Let me know if you have any concerns.

Sincerely,
Pam

Sunday, May 21, 2017

Newsletter

Hi,

We had a busy, but great week!  

Field Day was today and it was so much fun.  The water relays are always fun!  The new Star Wars water game was exciting!  The slides and all the other relays are also amazing.  The tug of war is great for many and frustrating at the same time.  The class played hard and are probably exhausted.  Thanks to all of our volunteers and helpers.  It was a wonderful afternoon.

Mentor Meeting on Tuesday-We had our last mentor meeting of the year on Tuesday.  We gave them each a copy of the book written by the students and played lots of fun games together.  The mentors live at The Court in Round Rock Assistive Living Center.  If you want to write to them or go visit, just give a call and let them know and stop by. Randi is the activities director there and she can set a visit up for you.  Address2700 Sunrise Rd, Round Rock, TX 78665 Phone(512) 640-5053 I am sure that they would love to see you.  

Skyping with students in Africa-We attempted to skype with Trudy Marshall in Africa. Trudy Marshall is the founder of Libraries of Love and we collected books and money for them in January.  Our plan was to skype with some students in Uganda and we created lots of questions to ask them.  Technology was not cooperative and we are hoping to try again.  We loved learning about Africa and Libraries of Love would love to extend that with personal contact with some of the students.

Texas Hero Projects-The kids worked hard on their Texas Hero Projects and did a great job presenting.  Researching can be challenging and writing information without just copying it can be tricky.  Bibliographies are another area to continue to work on.  The kids had a lot of fun using Quizletlive.com to practice facts about the heroes and did well on our Texas Heroes test!  Overall, we learned about lots of interesting figures in Texas History and will continue to study more about Texas in the next few weeks.

End of the Year Party-Our end of the year party will be on June 1, 2017 at 9:15 am-10:15 am.  We will have brunch/breakfast type snacks and have some fun activities.  We will do autographs in the afternoon.  It will be a great wrap up to a wonderful year of learning together.  Look for a sign up genius soon.

40 Book Challenge-We are wrapping up our 40 Book Challenge.  Lillian, Jaida, Gage, and Divya have passed the 40 Book Mark!  Many students are very close.  Continue to read and turn in notecards!  We will have a celebration on Wednesday during lunch for everyone who read an award winning book in April or May and will have a special celebration for everyone who read 40 Books!  I hope that everyone enjoyed reading this year and tried some new genres.  Even if you didn't read 40 books, hopefully everyone read a few more than they may have in the past and found some new favorites.  Keep reading all summer.  I will set up a chat in our Google Classroom, so that everyone can share and comment on great books that they read during the break.  Happy Reading!

Student-led Conferences- Thank you to everyone who attended conferences.  

Read about our week:

Reading-We are working on the 40 Book Challenge and sharing our favorite books with each other.  We also did an interactive read aloud with Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride, which is a picture book about Amelia Earhart and Eleanor Roosevelt.  We will read and discuss Chris Van Allsburg's books next week.

Writing-We enjoyed writing some fantasy stories and wrote a personal narrative this week for our DCA.  We will work on some persuasive pieces next week.

Social Studies-We will continue to learn about the Texas Revolution and the Republic of Texas.  We will also use Google Translate to write letters in Spanish and English to children in an orphanage in Honduras.  

Dates to remember:


Monday, May 22-Wear College Shirts, Last Writing Club of the year from 2:50-3:50, Spelling Test

Thursday, May 25-Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast-7:30, PTA General Meeting at 8:00

Friday, May 26- Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green

Monday, May 29-No school-Memorial Day

Wednesday, May 31-Reading Challenge Lunch Treat-Award Winning Book and Students who met the 40 Challenge Goal

Thursday, June 1-Last Day of School- End of the year party 9:15 am-10:15 am

Thank you for sharing your child with me.  Let me know if you have any concerns.

Sincerely,
Pam

Saturday, May 6, 2017

Newsletter

Hi,

We had a great week.  Our field trip to the Bob Bullock Texas History Museum was a success, even though we had some bus issues early on.  The students did a great job being patient while waiting for the extra bus and then did an amazing job learning about Texas.  One of the highlights was the 4D Star of Destiny Movie.  Ask your child about the snake bites. Thank you to all of our chaperones also.  The chaperones definitely helped make our trip go smoothly.

STAAR Testing this week:  The third and fourth grade students will take the math test on Monday and the reading test on Tuesday. Fifth grade students will take the science test on Wednesday and make-ups will be on Thursday and possibly Friday.  Visitors will not be allowed on campus during testing.  Free breakfast will be served on testing days.  

Thank you for encouraging your children to do their best during the tests. Remind them to reread the questions, reread the passages, prove answers, and think carefully. Taking notes, underlining, highlighting, and drawing pictures can help understanding. Taking breaks is important.  They can put their head down, go to the bathroom, or have a healthy snack  to help them refocus and re-energize to keep working hard.  Be sure that the students go to bed early and are prepared to put forth their best effort and show what they know.  They are going to do well.

Parent Teacher Student Conferences-You will receive a sign up genius soon for conferences.  Your child will lead the conference and will discuss his/her progress this year.

Kickball Tournament on Sunday, May 7 at Gattis Elementary at 12:00.  Don't forget to bring a canned food item for the Round Rock Serving Center.  Remember your donation for registration will go to help children in Honduras.

Flip Flop Drive-The FCE Service Club is leading a Flip Flop Drive for people in Honduras.  My daughter, Emma, and I will travel to Honduras in August to deliver the flip flops and help the children in the Copprome Children's Home and the surrounding villages.  We are very excited to go, but we need your help.  Please donate flip flops. All sizes are needed.  Our goal is to collect 300 pairs of flip flops.  Thank you in advance for your donations.

Dates to Remember:

Sunday, May 7-Kids Kicking Out Hunger Kickball Tournament 12-4pm at Gattis Elementary School

Monday, May 8-STAAR Testing-4th grade Math-No Writing Club

Tuesday, May 9-STAAR Testing-4th grade Reading

Wednesday, May 10-Parent Teacher Student Conferences begin-See Sign up soon.

Thursday, May 11-Rising Star Night-6:00 pm

Friday, May 12-No Reading Response Letters Due, No SpellingTest, Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green

Monday, May 15-Wear College Shirts, Last Service Club of the year from 2:50-3:50

Tuesday, May 16-Parent Teacher Student Conferences

Wednesday, May 17-Parent Teacher Student Conferences

Friday, May 19-Reading Response Letters Due, SpellingTest, Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green-Field Day 4th Grade-12:30-2:30

Monday, May 22-Wear College Shirts, Last Writing Club of the year from 2:50-3:50

Thursday, May 25-Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast-7:30, PTA General Meeting at 8:00

Friday, May 26-Reading Response Letters Due, SpellingTest, Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green

Monday, May 29-No school-Memorial Day

Thursday, June 1-Last Day of School- End of the year party TBA

Thank you for sharing your child with me.  Let me know if you have any concerns.

Sincerely,
Pam


Sunday, April 23, 2017

Texas Hero Project due on Monday. Other school info also.

Hi,

The kids have been working hard in class on their Texas Hero Projects.

We will begin presentations on Monday.

The students will receive three grades.  One is for the planning sheet, the project, and the presentation (with three objects or pictures that represent your hero).

1. Texas Hero Planning Sheet-The planning sheet is in their google classroom.  Some people used a paper copy.  Either paper or electronic is fine as long as it gets turned in and is complete.  I attached a copy of the Texas Hero Planning Sheet.  Be sure to write the summary and other research in your own words.  Read some facts, then cover it up and rewrite them in your own words is one way to do this.  There should be no copy and pasting being done from websites and put into a summary.  Be sure that the bibliography is in the MLA format.  Easybib is a great site for this. To get to Google Classroom, search for Google Classroom or go through your child's google account.  The student's username is their email-s######@student.roundrockisd.org password is their two word password that they use to log onto the computers.  Go to the dark blue social studies google classroom for Bartholomew and the Texas Hero information is on that page. If more research needs to be done, go to the Forest Creek website, then directory, fourth grade, Bartholomew, and when on the Bat Cave Blog, go to the Social Studies Link and then scroll down and you will see all the Texas Hero names and three websites to try.


2.Project-The students can choose the manner in which they present their research on their Texas Hero.  They can make a poster, do a computer presentation, dress up as the hero, make a cereal box project, song, etc... They have to be able to share the information from the planning sheet in their presentation. Take pride in your project and put effort into it.  Be creative and do your best.

3. Presentation- We will begin presentations on Monday and will continue until we are complete.  The students will need to have three objects or pictures that represent the hero as part of the presentation.  Practice presenting. Work on eye contact, speaking loudly and clearly, and speaking with expression.  (Some students may want to try an accent.) Work on talking TO the audience and making like a conversation rather than talking AT the audience and just reading from your project.  It is fine to have notes, but try not to just read to us.  

I am so excited to see the final products of all the hard work and research. We all can't wait to learn more about some Texas Heroes!

  
Read the Coyote Call for important school information. Here is a link to the Coyote Call .

Here is the link to other school flyers. Peachjar.

Here is a link for sites for Early Voting. Early voting locations.

Let me know if you have any questions or concerns. 

Thanks,
Pam

Sunday, April 16, 2017

Newsletter

HI,

I hope you all are enjoying your weekend and were able to enjoy time with family and friends.

Social Studies Projects:  We are working on Texas Hero projects.  Information is attached.  We are trying to use the Google Classroom Planning page to record research for our person, but if using a paper copy is better for your child, then that is fine.  This project will receive a grade for the planning paper (hard copy or turned into Google Classroom), the project (poster, cereal box, computer slide show, etc....) and the presentation.  The planning paper and project will be due on April 24.  Then we will begin presentations.  We will work on the projects in class, but the students may need to complete them at home.  There are websites for each Texas Hero on my website (Bartholomew Bat Cave) under the Social Studies Link.  Let me know if you have any questions or concerns.  I can't wait to see the creative ways that the kids show what they know and teach us about some Texas Heroes!

Earth Week!- COYOTES JOIN THE RACE TO MAKE EARTH A BETTER PLACE!

RACE TO RECYCLE!
Starting Monday, April 17th we will start a recycling contest for all grade levels.  HEB is partnering with us to recycle plastic grocery bags.  Students will be asked to bring their plastic grocery bags to school, and collect them as a class.  On Thursday, we will collect the bags to see which class class collected the most bags. The winner will be announced on Friday and the entire class will be awarded a prize.

DAILY ACTIVITIES APRIL 17TH - 21ST:

MONDAYGive a hoot, don't pollute!  Students please pick up trash on your walk to school or during recess, to keep our environment clean.
TUESDAY: Earth Day every day!  Students please bring a reusable water bottle to school to prevent plastic pollution.
WEDNESDAY: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!  Students pack your lunches with reusable containers to reduce waste. 
THURSDAYGet into the green scene!  Coyotes wear green today to celebrate Earth Week.  
FRIDAYShow you care, do your share!  Turn off lights when you leave a room.  Save water by taking shorter showers, and turn the water off when brushing teeth or washing your face.  Students are also encouraged to plant the Sunflower seeds given out at the last Walk and Bike to school day with their family to show how we love our planet Earth.

HEB EARTH DAY PROJECT
Our neighborhood HEB will be taking all our plastic bags and recycling them.  On Earth Day, HEB provides paper bags for their customers.  They have asked our students to decorate brown bags to use in their store on EarthDay.  Thanks to Mrs. Arnold for including this project in her curriculum again this year.  
If  you have any questions, please contact Whitney Kelley at whitneyclaire7@yahoo.com

Monthly Reading Challenge for April is to read an award winning book. (novel-about 100 pages) Mrs. Smith has also given the students an April Book Bingo Challenge. They can win food coupons for Mighty Fine and other places for completing the Book Bingo. The kids can turn in notecards for books read to have them count for the 40 Book Challenge. Have fun and keep reading!!!!!


Field Trip forms came home on Thursday.  The permission slip is pink. We will travel to the Bob Bullock Museum on Tuesday, May 2.  Let me know if you want to be a volunteer chaperone for the trip.  Be sure that you are up to date with your Volunteer Application through RRISD and are an approved volunteer.  Here is the link: RRISD volunteer application

Kids Kicking Out Hunger Kickball Tournament-On May 7, we will participate in a kickball tournament against Gattis, Blackland Prairie, and Cactus Ranch Elementary Schools. To play, fill out the form and bring it in with $10.  All money will go to Copprome Orphanage in Honduras. We will also collect food for the Round Rock Serving Center. Our sponsors will provide you with a FCE Kickball t-shirt to wear on the day of the event. When you register, you will get an email with a google form to fill out t-shirt sizes and give you more information.  You can create your own team or register and we will place you on a team. We can't wait to see you there!!!!!! Ask me or Mrs. Shogan if you have any  questions.

FCE Coyote Carnival-April 21-Thank you to the people who were able to donate items and/or gift cards for our Sweet Treats Class Auction Basket.  Thank you to Mrs. Alexander for putting our basket together. Food will be sold the night of the carnival - check out this flyer for all the details! Questions?  Please contact Laila Gregory at fcepta.carnival@gmail.com.

Volunteers needed for the Carnival on April 21-We cannot pull off this huge event without your help!

  • We need 107 Adult volunteer hours and we only have 42% filled.  Even if you can’t help the evening of the carnival, we need lots of help during the day, too!
Adult Volunteers -
  • We need another 96 Student volunteer hours so please have your middle school and/or high school students sign up here
  • If you can’t give your time, please consider volunteering baked goods for our Bake Sale -
  • Ask your child’s teacher if they need help putting together their silent auction item
  • Ask your child’s homeroom parent if they need help putting together the class basket for the raffle

Please contact Danielle Martinez at fcepta.volunteer@gmail.com if you have any questions.


Read about our week:

Reading-We had a fun egg hunt while practicing for STAAR.  We read a poem from a released STAAR test and I cut the questions and answer choices and put them into plastic eggs.  I hd the eggs around the room and the kids found them and answered the questions.  It was a fun way to practice some test taking strategies.  We will continue to practice test taking strategies as we read our book club books and talk about them.  Ask your child about his/her reading.

Writing-We will continue to work on poems, narratives, and expository pieces for Rising Star and we will write about our mentors. We will also work on writing some fantasy stories.

Vocabulary- We worked on multiple meaning words last week and will practice academic reading words this week.  Go to quizlet.com and practice using some fun games.  We will have a test on 4/21/17 on the Reading Review Words and Academic Vocabulary for Reading Words.

Spelling-Comparatives and Superlatives are words that we will study this week for spelling. Comparatives compare two things.  My cat is softer than your cat.  Your house is bigger than my house.  Superlatives are words that compare more than two things.  Joe is the oldest brother in the family.  She is the smartest person on the team.  We will practice spelling these types of words as well as some of our individual words this week.  

Social Studies-Texas Heroes Projects-We will continue researching a Texas Hero for a project due on April 24, 2017.  The kids will choose a hero, will research that hero, and choose a way to present the hero to the class.  See the note above.

Dates to remember:

Monday, April 17-Wear College Shirts, Service Club from 2:50-3:50-Rising Star Entries due to teachers-Return field trip permission slips. 

Thursday, April 20-Wear Green and bring in those plastic grocery bags to recycle!

Friday, April 21-Reading Response Letters Due, SpellingTest, Vocabulary Test on Reading Vocabulary Words. Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green-Kickball Tournament Registration Due on Monday-FCE Coyote Carnival from 5:30-9:00  

Monday, April 24-Wear College Shirts, Writing Club from 2:50-3:50-Bond Election Early Voting Opens

Friday, April 28-Reading Response Letters Due, SpellingTest, Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green.STEAM DAY-Presenters needed- contact lorilyn_brown@roundrockisd.org or laura_queton@roundrockisd.org.

Monday, May 1-Wear College Shirts, Service Club from 2:50-3:50

Tuesday, May 2-4th Grade Field Trip to the Bob Bullock Museum

Friday, May 5-Reading Response Letters Due, SpellingTest, Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green

Sunday, May 7-Kids Kicking Out Hunger Kickball Tournament 12-4pm at Gattis Elementary School

Monday, May 8-STAAR Testing-4th grade Math-No Writing Club

Tuesday, May 9-STAAR Testing-4th grade Reading

Thursday, May 11-Rising Star Night-6:00 pm

Friday, May 12-Reading Response Letters Due, SpellingTest, Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green

Monday, May 15-Wear College Shirts, Last Service Club of the year from 2:50-3:50

Friday, May 19-Reading Response Letters Due, SpellingTest, Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green-Field Day 4th Grade-12:30-2:30

Monday, May 22-Wear College Shirts, Last Writing Club of the year from 2:50-3:50

Thursday, May 25-Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast-7:30, PTA General Meeting at 8:00

Friday, May 26-Reading Response Letters Due, SpellingTest, Be sure to turn in completed reading logs. Wear FCE shirts or purple or green


Monday, May 29-No school-Memorial Day


Thursday, June 1-Last Day of School- End of the year party TBA

Thank you for sharing your child with me.  Let me know if you have any concerns.

Sincerely,
Pam