From the Desk of Mrs. Bauguss

As we have learned more about our new reading curriculum, we have made a few changes to our homework routines this year. Spelling was eliminated before it began after our amazing training the week before school began. The new curriculum, Wit & Wisdom embeds a fluency routine in it and it is exactly what we need to help our students show continued growth in their reading fluency. Therefore, please be on the lookout for fluency reads each week. The same sheet will be used 5 nights at home. The directions are fairly simple on the sheet-essentially the student will need to read the fluency passage to someone and they check that they read it. You can mark errors as they read and provide support as needed. The purpose of this is to get them more comfortable reading aloud but also to increase their reading fluency through repeated readings and extra practice. They will become more accurate the more times they read it and they will be able to increase their speed.

We also need to continue independent reading for 20-30 minutes each night. MANY studies show the more we read, the better we are at standardized tests and comprehending what we read. This will help your student in so many ways. I know we all live very busy lives nowadays but this routine could be added in the car on the way to activities or be a nightly bedtime routine as well. I am still sending the reading logs home each week as well where students can write a quick 3-5 sentence paragraph that summarized what they are reading.

Lastly, we need to practice our math facts. Many are struggling to remember their basic multiplication and division facts. I would highly recommend getting some flash cards (Walmart, Dollar Tree and Dollar General all typically carry them for $1-3 each). I have taught the students Multiplication War in class. It is a fun way to get them practicing and can be shortened as needed by only passing out a few cards at a time. Another way you can help them practice is to just call out math facts in the car! They can also use Multiplication.com to play games that are pretty engaging and helpful to practice.

Summary of Nightly Homework for 4th Grade:

• Fluency Passage
• Read 20-30 minutes
• Write on reading log 3-5 sentence summary paragraph of what they read
• Multiplication & Division math facts practice

I sent home Book It! registration forms last week. Directions to enroll your child were included. By enrolling, you are giving permission for me to track their reading on the Book it website so that Pizza Hut will give them a free pizza coupon. If the students meet their reading goal each month for the months of October through March, they will get a free personal pan pizza coupon to redeem at Pizza Hut. I have told the students that I will plan to eat at Pizza Hut one Friday each month to celebrate with any that want to join. Once they get the first coupon, I will let you know the date. If you have any questions about this, please let me know.

Updates:

Please send field trip payment #2 if you selected to make 6 payments or have not sent a payment in yet.

I have updated our Amazon Wishlist to include a few items related to our study of rocks to help enhance our lessons as well as a few more books that I think will interest the students. I have also added some more snacks to keep on hand for students who do not have one each day. This comes in handy to keep them fed. :) Here is the link to our class Wishlist.

Jackets Needed: As the weather is getting a little chilly in the morning, students may needs to bring a light jacket since we have an early recess. Some students were cold last week due to the chill in the air.

Reminders:

Please make sure students come to school each day with the following:

• Backpack
• Water Bottle
• Green Folder with reading log and fluency passage
• healthy snack

Green Folder: Your student will bring home a green communication each day. In that folder, there will be a place for you to write any notes or for me to communicate with you that way as well. This folder is your student's responsibility.

Homework: Each night, your student will be responsible for reading 20-30 minutes. The reading log should be in their green folder and be signed each night. They will also have a fluency passage each week.

Transportation: Please call the office if you have a transportation change for the day. Please make sure you have let me know how your child will typically travel home.

October 23: Red Ribbon Week: Wear Bright Colors or a message of kindness and a positive mindset!

October 24: Wear a WE shirt or your favorite team to show we are all on the same team!

October 24: Short Stop Spirit night 6pm-9pm

October 25: Early Dismissal @ 12:30pm & Wear your zone color-represent your feelings by wearing red, blue, yellow or green

October 26: No School Teacher Workday

October 27: No School Teacher Workday

October 31: Wear your costume! (No masks, scary costumes or props please)

November 1: Pajama day! (regular shoes please!)

November 2: Reading Check in

November 6: Math Check in

November 16th: 4th grade to John A Walker Center show

March 8th: 4th Grade to John A Walker Center show

March 27th: 4th grade to Raleigh

Here is our daily schedule:

Reading: 8:00-10:15

Recess: 10:15-10:45

Lunch: 10:45-11:15

Math: 11:15-12:30

Science/Social Studies: 12:30-1:00

Specials/Encore: 1:00-1:50

SNACK & Restroom: 1:50-2:15

Intervention & Enrichment groups: 2:05-2:50

Pack up: 2:50-3:05

Day 1: Art

Day 2: PE

Day 3: Media

Day 4: PE

Day 5: Music

Day 6: PE

We will have a mid-afternoon snack since our lunch is at 10:45. Students may bring healthy snacks that will give them the nutritional boost they need to get through the day. Our snack time is only 5-10 minutes long, so please keep that in mind when planning snacks to send. Also, foods requiring minimal clean-up are best! Please do not send anything with peanuts or peanut butter due to allergies. We do not have a refrigerator in our classroom, so do not send anything that must be kept cold.

Hydration is an important part of learning! Students are permitted to bring a water bottle to keep on their desks during the day. Please do not send any glass bottles, soda, or sports drinks. Water only, please!

Snack Ideas:

• pretzels

• animal crackers

• apples

• goldfish crackers

• graham crackers

• Slim Jim Beef Sticks

• granola/cereal bars

• yogurt

• pudding cups

• fruit snacks

• bananas

• oranges

We finished up reading Love That Dog this past week. The students were very engaged with the book and they enjoyed reading the same poems that Jack read in his class in the story. We will be finalizing our unit this week and writing our four paragraph essays! We will also finish up our book "Wonder" that we have been reading. The students have loved learning about the challenges that Auggie has went through and I am sure they can not wait to see how it ends! I have a special movie day planned on Wednesday so they can see the story come to life on the big screen. I will be sending permission forms home Monday to watch the movie. I know they will love it!

We will also be focusing on grammar and reading skill of the week review to build our entire English Language Arts understandings to solidify our knowledge and understanding.

We have been learning all about multiplication comparisons this past week as well as reviewing area and perimeter and double digit multiplication! The students have learned a method called the "Area model of multiplication" in which it breaks down the math problem into easier problems. We will be reviewing this coming week to prepare for our upcoming check in assessments.

The students have been learning all about rocks, the rocky cycle and the different types of rocks. We completed our science posters that explain a variety of topics they have learned about rocks. We took our science quiz on Friday and those will be coming home this coming week.

Each month I will send home book order flyers. You can easily order online as well. With a $25 order, you can pick a FREE $5 Book (use code: READS).

Class Order Due Date: 11/14/23

Shop Our Class Page: https://orders.scholastic.com/HQB6P

Shop Digital Flyers for Our Grade with Your Child: https://clubs.scholastic.com/grade4

Please share the Class Page link to extended family and friends. All orders also earn FREE Books for our class.

One of the best ways to help your child at home is to make sure they read each day! Reading is so very important and by reading each day it helps to build your student's vocabulary.

You can also chat about their day and ask what they have been learning. Staying informed about what is happening in class helps them be more successful.

If you have any questions for me, please let me know. I believe that we should have an open line of communication throughout the year in order for us to succeed.

Jennifer Bauguss

baugussj@wilkes.k12.nc.us

336-838-4261

Monday through Friday 7:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

I believe we should keep an open line of communication about your student in order to provide the best experience and education possible. I will post frequently on Class Dojo and update our Smore newsletter often. My preferred communication hours are 7:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.. Any messages received outside these hours will be answered the next business day.

You can message me on Class Dojo, by email or call the school. I do quiet my Class Dojo notifications after 5:00pm daily and on weekends. I will return your message or class within 1 business day.

Email: baugussj@wilkes.k12.nc.us
Website: wes.wilkescountyschools.org
Phone: 336-838-4261