Oops!

Dear Parents,

I have to say that I have not started off the week at the top of my game. Here are a few of the mistakes I have made :) Please forgive me! :

1) I could not get the spelling words to print and forgot to put them on the blog this weekend, however, I passed them out today
2) I repeated two spelling words on the list. Therefore, the students only have 8 words this week. Due to the fact that we have a four day week that is ok with me.
3) I completed the conduct sheets today, but forgot to send them home in the brown folders. I caught a few children after school, but most did not receive them.
4)Spelling test did not make it in the brown folders either!!

I hope that those will be the be the only slip ups for a while! I apologize for any inconvenience.
I will send the spelling tests and conduct charts home tomorrow.

** There were very few graded papers in this week's brown folders today. This is because we spent a great deal of our time last week taking benchmarks. Expect more graded papers next week. Thank you for your understanding!**

This Week's Spelling Words:

1. addition
2. subtraction
3.recycle
4. landfill
5. lead lead
6. led led
7.steel
8. steal steal

Important Events this Week:

Thursday:

• Picture Day (We get our pictures taken first thing in the morning so that it will not interfere with our field trip.)
• Field Trip: We will be leaving at 9am, and returning between 12:30pm and 1:00pm. We will eat lunch upon our return (there is no where to eat on the landfill :)) Please make sure you have returned your child's permission slip and $5.00 fee.

Friday:

• All Progress Reports must be turned in to me with a signature. I will return an extra copy when I receive a signed copy.
• We will have a place value quiz. We will review on Thursday and Friday for the quiz

Upcoming Events:

Monday, Oct.5:

• We will have a quiz on the science vocabulary words that the students will receive on Wednesday. They should already be familiar with these terms.

Tuesday, Oct.13:

• Library Day

Wednesday, Oct. 14:

• Early Dismissal

Saturday, Oct. 24:

• Spooky Spaghetti, 4pm-8pm

Monday, Oct. 26:

• LDC begins

Thank you for the birthday wishes, balloons, songs, goodies, and gifts!! You made my 30th VERY special!!

Mrs. Zirczy

Progress Reports

Dear Parents,


Progress Reports went home today. Please sign the copy you received and send it back to school as soon as possible. When I receive the signed copy I will send home a copy for you to keep.

We had a wonderful trip to the Children's Museum on Tuesday. The children had lots of time to explore and learn. Thank you to Mrs. Powers, Mrs. Spike, and Mrs. Castillo who joined us.

We have another field trip fast approaching! We will be going to the Landfill and Recycling Center next Thursday, Oct. 1st. The price in $5.00. The permission slips went home in Tuesday folders.

We have been having Benchmarks this week so the students have had to take 4th grade TAKS release tests. I spoke with them about not getting too worried over these tests, given the fact they are given at the end of 4th grade. I explained that there are many things on the test that I have not yet taught them. However, these tests are very useful for me to gauge their strengths as well as areas for improvement for each student. I will use the results to guide my instruction. We have been going to LDC every day, but the testing has taken up most of the day other than that. I would like to compliment student behavior during testing. They have been very quiet and respectful of other students!



This week's spelling words are:

1. mode
2. maximum
3. minimum
4. hundred
5. thousand
6. million
Science
7. solution
8. mixture
Language Arts
9. peach
10. cream

Upcoming Dates:
Monday, Sep. 28 - School Holiday
Tuesday, Sep. 29 - Library Day
Thursday, Oct. 1 - Field Trip 9am-1pm *please send sack lunch*
Wednesay, October 14 - Early Dismissal
Saturday, October 24 - Spooky Spaghettie 4pm-8pm
Monday, October 26, LDC begins
Tuesday, October 27 - Library Day
Wednesday, November 11 - Student Led Conferences : 3pm-5pm

A few notes from Open House:

My Classroom Schedule:
8:00 – 8:10 Announcements
8:10 – 9:15 L.A.
9:15 – 10:00 Ancillary
10:00 – 10:10 Restroom Break/Snack
10:10 – 11:45 Math
11:48 – 12:18 Lunch
12:18 – 12:48 Recess (with Restroom Break)
12:48 – 2:30 Planner
2:30 – 3:00 Reading



Times to Note:
School begins at 8:00. (*tardies)
Dismissal is at 3:00.
GT pull-out is Thursdays 12:15 – 2:45
Library is every other Tuesday 10:30 – 10:50.
LDC is 8:00 – 9:00 for two weeks at a time. We are then off for four weeks.



Homework:
Your child should be spending a maximum of 1 to 1 ½ hours on homework.
I expect all homework to be completed. If your child has a busy night scheduled, they can complete homework in advance.
They will get spelling, reading or LDC, and math homework nightly.
I will pass out spelling words on Friday for the next week.



Tuesday Folders:
Every Tuesday students will bring home their Green Folder.
The Green Folder will contain their weekly conduct chart, graded and returned work, and other notes.
Conduct sheets and graded work should be signed and returned in the folder by Wednesday.



Grading Policy:
Each assignment will be weighted as follows:
Daily Grades—40%
Tests/Quizzes/Projects—50%
HW (completion)/Spelling—10%
Students will have an opportunity to retake any failed tests or quizzes for a maximum of 70%.
Students will be given a week to complete missed assignments due to absences. (Long term absences will be dealt with on a case by case basis.)



Conduct:
Weekly conduct sheets must be signed and returned on Wednesday with the green folder.
Conduct grades will be based on daily conduct marks I take in class. I will try to add a note about what type of behavior resulted in a daily mark.
E—1 mark
S—2-3 marks
N—4-5 marks
(If N’s continue, we may need a conference.)
U—6 or more marks
(We may need a parent conference.)

4th Grade Testing Day:

TAKS
Writing: March 3, 2010
Math: April 27, 2010
Reading: April 28, 2010
Stanford Window:
January 20-28, 2010

Birthdays:
On your child’s birthday you may send cupcakes or goodie bags to be passed out after lunch.
When lunch ends at 12:18, the students go outside to recess and may have their cupcakes.
Please send enough for the entire class. We have a total of 21 students.

Time for Kids Magazine:
I would like to use Time For Kids magazine for reading and social studies instruction.
The cost is $5.50 per student. Please send cash (no checks, please), I will place the order online with my credit card.I will not be able to place the order until the majority of students have brought in their money.

Thank you for your continued generosity and support!!
Mrs. Zirczy

Spelling Words

Dear Parents,

I have been preparing for open house, so there is much info to come tomorrow. I just wanted to get this week's spelling words up. I will post a more informational letter later this week.

This week's spelling words:
1. equivalent
2. equal
3. place value
4. weight
5. mass
6. balance
7. pain
8. gain
9. aid
10. drain drain

Thank You!
Mrs. Zirczy

Field Trips!

Dear Parents,

Field Trips:

   

     We will take a field trip to the Children's Museum on September 22nd.  They have a new exhibit that is all about Matter!  Permission slips with the details of the time and price will be coming home this week. I will need 2-3 adult chaperones to accompany us.  If you are interested and available please send me an e-mail.

     We are tentatively planning a field trip for October 1st to a local recycling center.  I will update the blog when I get more information.  Again I will be needing 2 - 3 adult chaperones.

Presidential Address:

     We will be showing the Presidential Address to Children at 11:00 on Tuesday.  If you would like your child to view the address please return the permission slip that was sent home on Friday.  If you do not wish for your child to view the address please return the permission slip with a statement that you do not wish for your child to view the address.  I no permission slip is returned the student will not view the address.  Students not viewing the address will be assigned a different activity which they will complete in a 4th grade teacher's room where the address is not being shown.

Sally Foster Fundraiser Update:

     The coupon books are on sale for $20.

Reading Log:

     This week students will begin having a daily reading log as part of their homework.  I am asking that student's read 20 - 30 minutes nightly and complete a short writing assignment based on what they have read.  They do not have to complete a book to write about it in their Reading Log.  The Reading Log assignments will be set up similarly to the spelling assignments. Students will have a sheet in their binder that will describe their Reading Log assignment for Mondays, assignment for Tuesdays, etc. If students are unsure of what to do please refer to that sheet.

Math:

     For the next two weeks we will be working on place value.  We will be focusing on reading numbers correctly, identifying which numbers are in the ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten-thousands, hundred- thousands, and millions place, as well as describing words in standard, written and expanded form. We are also working on problem solving daily.

Language Arts/Reading:  

     We will continue working in our Writer's Notebook and practicing editing in LA.  We will continue reading "Lost and Found" by Andrew Clements and work on character development and plot.

Science:  

     We will continue our unit on Matter.  This week we will be discussing mass and weight, volume, and states of matter.  We will be conducting several experiments related to these topics.

 

These are the week's spelling words:

1. property

2. buoyant

3. volume

4. solid

5. liquid

6. gas

7. skate

8. blade

9. safe

10. shape

I have combined some of the words we will be using in science with a few words that follow a common spelling pattern. I am hoping this will benefit all students.

Upcoming Events:

Presidential Address to Children: September 8th 11:00 am

Extended Day Classes will Change: September 14th

LDC: September 14th - September 25th (We will be working on writing.)

Next Library Day: September 15

Open House: September 15th - 4th Grade is from 6:00-7:00

Sally Foster Fund Raiser Packet Due: September 18th

Field Trip to Children's Museum: September 22nd

Library Day: September 29th

Possible Field Trip to Recycling Center: October 1st

Thank you for all that you do!

Sincerely,

Mrs. Zirczy

In the Swing of Things!

Dear Parents,

 

     I have had a wonderful first week with your children!  We are officially in the swing of things despite my absence on Monday due to a sinus infection.  I am enjoying all of the students personalities. They are a very bright and outgoing group!  Here are a few weekly procedure details that I need to share with you: 

Agendas:  I have students write their homework in their agenda each morning as soon as they arrive and settle in.  I am asking that you sign their agenda each night.  This is so I know that you are aware of what homework was assigned and any additional information that I might need to pass on to you via their agendas.  It is very important that students have their agendas with them each day.

Homework:  Students will have reading reflection journal assignments (starting next week), spelling assignments, and at least one other assignment each night for homework.  I do not give homework on Fridays unless we are working on a large project, or students have not completed all of their work from the week.  If for some reason your child is unable to complete their homework please write a note on their homework page and they can complete it either during class or the next evening.

Spelling Words:  I will send spelling words home on Fridays for the next week.  I only send 10 words home because I send words that are relevant to the vocabulary we are learning in class.  The vocabulary words are sometimes more difficult than traditional spelling words.  Daily spelling homework will help the children prepare for the Friday spelling tests, because we will not spend much time in class working on the actual spelling of these words although they will come up often in discussion.

Conduct:  I will send a weekly conduct chart home on Tuesdays.  There will not be a daily conduct grade in the agenda, however please be aware that if there is a major problem during class I will either send a note, or give you a call that day to let you know specifically what happened.  I give all students one warning per day. If they continue to break classroom rules, they receive a check.  At the end of the week 0-1 check is an E (Excellent), 2-3 checks are an S (Satisfactory), 4-5 checks is an N (Needs Improvement), and more than 5 checks is a U (Unacceptable).  I ask that a parent/teacher conference is scheduled if a student gets a U, or has more than on week in succession with an N.

Snacks:  I allow students to eat a small, healthy, mess-free snack each day around 10:00.  Feel free to send a snack with your child if you think that they may get hungry during the morning.  You may also send water for them to drink in the classroom. 

E-mail:  My e-mail is: rzirczy@houstonisd.org .  Please feel free to e-mail me at any time and I will do my best to get back with you in a timely manner.

Important Times:  Students need to be in the classroom at 8:00am, unless they are Safety Patrol members.  My conference time is 9:15 – 10:00. Lunch is from 11:48-12:18 with recess immediately following.  Students are dismissed at 3:00

This week's spelling words are:

1. matter 

2. line  

3. ray  

4. point  

5. segment  

6. obtuse  

7. acute  

8. vertex  

9. basic  

10. complex  

 We are working on cursive a few times a week in class.  By November students will be expected to do spelling homework as well as spelling tests in cursive.  I feel that it is very important for students to practice reading and writing in cursive.

Sally Foster Fund Raiser:  It is my understanding that the large coupon book is $35. The Sally Foster representative wanted me to make sure and pass along that the coupon book is for purchase and is not free.  All other instructions are in the packet. If you have any other questions about the fund raiser I will do my best to find the answers for you. 

Upcoming Events:

Labor Day: September 7th - no school

LDC: September 14th - September 25th (We will be working on writing.)

Next Library Day: September 15

Open House: September 15th - 4th Grade is from 6:00-7:00

Sally Foster Fund Raiser Packet Due: September 18th

 Library Day: September 29th

I am sure there are many more upcoming dates I am forgetting, but I will continue to update them as I hear about them.

Please feel free to e-mail me any time with any questions or concerns.  Thank you for you warm welcome back this year!  I am looking forward to working with you and your children!

Sincerely,

Rebecca Zirczy