Orientation Meeting
Resurrection 4th Grade
Mrs. Davis & Mrs. Gleason
Message from Mr. Gross
A Blessing for New
Beginnings
Leader: This year we come together to continue
our journey of faith. We are ready to learn from
one another and from our Church community.
And so we pray ........
All: God of signs and wonders, be with us on our
journey. Show us your love in our world, in each
other, and in your Son, Jesus Christ. And help us
to be living signs of your love every day. Amen.
CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
Faith. Academics.
Service.
Dear Parents,
We would like to take this opportunity to welcome you and your child to
Resurrection’s 4th Grade. This can be a transitional year for some
students. The change from a primary to an intermediate grade level can
make this an anxious time for students and parents. It is our goal to help
students make this transition as easily as possible.
In the following presentation you will find a basic outline of our program
this year. The major focus of each content area is given. We would
appreciate your questions and/or feedback as we move along. Only by
open communication and by working together can we meet the needs of
the fourth graders. Students, parents, and teachers are all integral parts
that will create a positive learning environment and a successful school
year.
Resurrection has an outstanding tradition of high
academic achievement and student spiritual
development. This is evident in our selection as a
2009 National Blue Ribbon School. We stress the
importance of putting school first. We understand the
importance of extra-curricular activities but feel that
students do better when they get sufficient rest each
night. This means limiting student involvement in
sporting events, party attendance and vacations
during the school year. Those “extras” are too
disruptive of the learning process. Please save the
after school and evening time for homework and
being together as a family.
Achievements
BLUE RIBBON SCHOOL
Fall of 2009, our school was honored as a No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon School.
The national program honors public and private schools that demonstrate academic
superiority or dramatic gains in student achievement. We have historically scored
in the 90th percentile on national norms on the ITBS tests.
We plan to continue this tradition with the help of you, our parents.
GREEN VISION SCHOOL
Our school is well established in the city wide Green Vision Program, beginning
in 2007. Protecting our environment is a specific gospel value. Our focus
is pollution prevention, recycling, energy efficiency. and waste reduction.
Since 2007 we have earned the Conservation Education patch, the Watershed patch,
and the Litter Free patch. We have also established an
Environmental Club for grades 4& 5.
New Responsibilities
Assignment Notebook / Daily Homework
Long Range Assignments / Projects
Diary
R.E.D. Folder / Accelerated Reader Program
School Wide Weekly Recycling
Homework Policy
(see handout)
Assignment
Notebook
Homework
* There is a space for each subject.
* Class check every day before
going home.
* Each student is responsible for
writing the assignment in the space
provided.
Diary (Once a Week)
The Diary is a teacher generated weekly report on the progress a student is
making.
There is a section to note any comments about the student’s behavior.
This diary must be signed by the parent and returned the next day.
Tests or information sheets might be included in the booklet and these
need to be signed as well.
WEEKLY
DIARY
Read Every Day Folder
Read Every Day is know as our R.E.D. folder. It is also the color red. This
folder records the minutes students have read in a week’s time period at
home. We ask the students read at least five days out of seven and that
they begin with a goal of at least 15-20 minutes every day. These books are
of their own selection, can include the Accelerated Reader choice, and are
expected to be at their reading level.
Classroom teacher uses AR test result information to determine the
student’s independent reading level to be utilized for daily reading choices.
Parent initials are required for each day’s entry in order to be recorded and
counted. Books are collected, read, and recorded once a week.
Accelerated Reader
Program
The Accelerated Reading Program is a computerized test of 10 multiple choice questions that test
comprehension of a self selected book within the reading level of the student. The levels are
determined at school and many titles are in our school library. The program awards points for
accuracy which must be at 80%. If a student scores below 80%, s/he will be asked to reread the
book and retake the test. If after the second attempt the student has not met 80%, s/he will be
instructed to read books at a lower level. These records help to determine a student’s reading grade
on their progress report.
First Quarter Reader Point Levels at 80% accuracy are:
8 points = 4 on the progress report
6-7 points= 3 on the progress report
5 points = 2 on the progress report
below 5 points = 1 on the progress report
Morning Snacks
Fourth graders have a long morning, so we like to have a healthy snack
while working. Each student is responsible for bringing their own snack,
but we require that it be a healthy choice.
Suggestions are: fruit, popcorn, yogurt, pretzels, cheese, granola bars,
applesauce cups, carrot and celery sticks, fruit rollups, fruit snacks, or
crackers (cheese, graham, Goldfish, etc.) .
Water bottles may be brought to class.
Snacks NOT ALLOWED: No chips of any kind, cookies, candy, Little
Debbies, Twinkies, etc. No juice or energy juice.
Serve One Another
Major Curricular Areas
RELIGION
Major Focus: The Ten Commandments
Church year / Liturgical themes (Advent, Christmas, Ordinary Time, Lent,
Easter, Pentecost, etc.)
Service with school wide recycling each week.
Mass preparation and participation
Prayers: Act of Faith, Act of Hope, Act of Love
Essential 55
Olweus Bullying Prevention program
Math
All students must memorize basic addition, subtraction, multiplication and
division facts.
Emphasize problem solving skills
Multiple step problems
Multi-digit multiplication and division problems
Fractions and decimals
Measurement, money and telling time
Geometry
Mental Math and writing math problems
Social Studies
Geography
(Map skills)
History
(The people and heritage of each region
of the U.S.
Government
founded)
(How the U.S. government was
Citizenship
U.S. citizens)
(The rights and responsibilities of
Economics
(Natural resources)
Culture
(Life styles)
Technology and Society
transportation)
(Communication and
Regional projects
Chapter, map skills, and region assessments
Science
Ecosystems
* explore ecosystems in local
environments, in and out of the
classroom
*explore food chains and food webs
*explain energy flow
The Changing Earth
*weather and erosion
*volcanic eruptions, landslides,
earthquakes and flooding
Science is Everywhere...........!!!
Solving Air Pollution Problems
*two types of pollution: personal and
environmental
*the respiratory system and effects of smoking
*ways to reduce pollution
Physical and Chemical Properties
*properties of 5 household substances
*changes as they react to water, vinegar,
cabbage juice and iodine
Language Arts
Reading
Selections from the Houghton Mifflin reading
series
Literature groups
R.E.D. and Accelerated Reader
Independent Reading
Speaking
Conferences with peers and teachers
Language Arts
Writing
Writer’s Workshop / The Writing Process
6 Traits of Writing
Daily Oral Language
Cross curricular projects
Listening
Rules and Expectations
Be Respectful
Be Responsible
Be Unselfish
Be Reverent
COMMUNICATION
Important Information
Sacred Time: (8:30 to 9:05 every day) No interruptions allowed. The
previous Sunday’s homily will be discussed on Mondays and the next
Sunday’s readings will be discussed on Fridays. Deacon Tim and Father
Gary will make classroom visits on Fridays.
Homework: Requests made to the office/teacher by 9:00 AM the day of
the absence. Teachers will not be disrupting teaching time to fill
homework requests. Homework for a privileged absence will be available
only upon return.
Phone Privileges: Students MUST use the office phone. No calls will be
made for forgotten homework, instruments, assignments, etc.
More Information.....
Olweus: All teachers, staff, kitchen, custodial, parents, and students are
involved in the anti-bullying program called Olweus. Communication is
the key to preventing bullying. Bullying is never tolerated in our school. It
is a key component of our guidance program.
Birthday Treats: There are no classroom birthday treats school wide.
Each student will be acknowledged for their birthday in the classroom.
There will be no teacher treats as well.
School Arrival: Students are not to be outside door #5 and #6 before
8:00AM. There will be no supervision available. The principal will call
families of students dropped off before 8AM. Parents can use cell phones
for correct time guidelines.
More information...
School Departure: Students walking home from school are released at
3:00 p.m. and must use Door #1.
School Visitors: Parents and visitors are asked to enter through Door #1
and sign in at the school office. At no time will staff / students open the
door to parents or visitors who wish to enter though Doors #2-6. For those
utilizing the Preschool or Child Care Program, please ring the bell and
enter through Door#2. Thank you for helping to keep everyone safe.
TenMarks Math
TenMarks:
This program is aligned to Common Core State Standards, designed to
measure student’s understanding of concepts, and expose them to the
types of questions that they are likely to receive on standardized tests.
Each question has helpful hints and a three to five minute video lesson to
reinforce the concept.
When a student struggles with a concept, TenMarks recognizes it and
immediately directs the student to an intervention module.
TenMarks provides a personalized playlist for each student.
THANK YOU
fyourattention.
attention!