Synonym snowmen

We are making synonym snowmen to show exciting words to write with instead of boring words. By Alyssa

Toy Drive

The Dickinson student council is collecting unwrappped, unopened toys to donate to needy families in our area.  Please show your generosity and send a toy this week.

Today a letter came home regarding our Christmas party.  Please look for it in the Dolphin folder.

Please place swimsuits in a gallon sized baggie instead of a plastic bag.  The water will seep out of the plastic baggie and get the contents of their backpack wet.  Remind your child to hang up the swimsuit tonight to dry.  If students forget their swimsuit, we will not be making calls to parents to bring it up to school.  Students need to be responsible and bring the swimsuit to school themselves.

I have received so many dry erase markers...thank you, thank you, thank you!!

A--Dorable

After we wrote our final copy of the steps to blow a bubble, we decorated a paper plate face and used a blown up balloon as the bubble gum!! So CUTE!

Thanksgiving

Please check out the blog for pictures from last Friday's Multiplication Celebration.
Today, we wrote a "how to" piece on how to blow a bubble.  They loooooved chewing
bubble gum!  There are some pictures posted on the blog from them blowing bubbles
as well. 
I hope that you and your family have a very blessed Thanksgiving.  I am anxious and
so excited to see my grandparents.  I didn't think they were going to be able to make
it to Houston from Shreveport for health reasons, but they will be arriving tomorrow.  :))
It will be good to have a few days off, some amazing fellowship with family, and time
to make new memories!

How to blow a bubble

We are writing the steps to blow a bubble. Everybody was happy to chew gum in class. By Daniel

Division rap

We learned a rap to show the steps of division. By Mackenzie R.

Ice cream celebration

Ice cream celebration for learning multiplication.

Multiplication Celebration !!

We are having our Multiplication Celebration this Friday.  I will need some parent volunteers to help out at 2:00.  Please email me if you will be able to assist us.  Below is a list of items we need:

bowls (30) – Jessie

spoons (30) – Wesley

napkins (30)  - Babacar

Birthday Cake ice cream – Jordan

Cookie Dough ice cream – Tyler

Vanilla  ice cream – Lucy

jar of cherries – Aayush and Davan

caramel syrup – Stephen

chocolate syrup – Mackenzie R. and Kennedy

bag of M&M’s  - Cole and Mackenzie S.

Sprinkles – Brock and Cami

Can of whipped cream – Alyssa, Josh, and Justin

ice cream scooper – Zuzi and Danny

Please send the items as soon as possible.  I am so proud of the students for working so hard to learn their facts.  :))

Texas projects

Here are just a few of our Texas projects that we have been working on at home. By Cole

George Ranch

We had a wonderful time today at the George Ranch.  It was quite chilly this morning, but the kids were mostly good sports about it.  Our first stop was the Jones Stock Farm where we learned about outdoor cooking. Mr. Jones told us how they trade for many for their ingredients like flour, baking soda, and sugar.  As he was talking, he was mixing up the ingredients for cornbread.  We did get to sample the cornbread later...it was pretty good!

Next, Mrs. Jones brought us into the dog trot house and showed the kids how to start a fire with flint.  She also explained how to card cotton.

After that, Aunt Susie showed us around the farm.  We learned about the smokehouse, the chickens and even got to pet the hogs.

After lunch, we walked around the ranch.  The kids climbed a tree and many went exploring in the cemetery.  Unfortunately, one of the favorite places on the ranch was closed for renovations - the treehouse.  The kids were disappointed that they could not go in it.  We then quickly toured one of the mansions on the property.  
I hope that the students learned a lot about Texas history on the trip.  It turned out to be a very beautiful day!

Book Fair, Field Trip, and Rodeo Day

On Friday (see Cole's post below) we went to the Book Fair and made a Wish List of books. The library will be open late on Thursday for shopping. Please help support our library!


It's time for the annual Turkey Vote. The fifth graders have created turkey characters out of a variety of materials. For a quarter students may vote on their favorite turkey. The money raised will be used by the Student Council. You might want to take a peek at the turkeys on Thursday since your child will creating a turkey next year.


Speaking of projects, the Texas projects look awesome. I am so proud of the students for working so hard on their project. We will be displaying the projects in the library next week after the book fair is over.

For our field trip on Wednesday, students need to wear their orange class shirt.  They may wear jeans.  If a student is bringing his/her lunch, please pack it in a sack or bag.  We will not be bringing any lunch boxes on the trip.  If you are going on the trip, please follow the buses to George Ranch.  We will be leaving at around 8:40.  You will need to pay your own admission of $10.  Please email me if you will be attending the trip.

 Friday will be Rodeo Day at Dickinson.  Students may dress in western wear.  We will have many fun activities for the students to participate in.

Book fair

The book fair is next week. Today we making our wish list. We hope that our parents buy a lot of books. By Cole

B-I-n-g-o

Lots of students had good behavior the first nine weeks. We liked playing bingo with the first graders.By Alyssa

Thank you !!

Thank you for attending your child's conference!  It was great to talk with you about your wonderful child!  If you took home the report card envelope, please sign the back of it and return it along with the sticker card.

Students can begin bringing their Texas Project on Wednesday.  Please make sure that your child's name is on the project.  I can't wait to see their creativity!


Thought this was funny!  I clean up plenty of kids' messes throughout the day too in our classroom!  :))  I'm sure plenty of you moms can relate:

GT Program Nominations – due December 16th, 2011

To nominate a student for the 2012-2013 G/T Program, you need to fill out a nomination form.   The last date to turn in G/T Nomination forms is December 16, 2011.  Nomination forms can be found in the front office or online under the G/T tab on the Dickinson website.  If you have any questions, please contact Liz Harden, G/T Facilitator. eharden@lcisd.org

Explorer camera

We studied explorers. We made cameras to show what the explorer saw on his life. By Mackenzie S.

We went on a Geocache !

On Friday, the students went on a Geocache to find a treasure.  (it was really just a figurative language puzzle) 

Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the geocache (container) hidden at that location.  They enjoyed the activity although they went to only one hidden location per group, I promised them that we would do more geocaches this year.

More Read-A-Thon pictures

Here are some more pictures of the kids reading with their first grade buddies from Mrs. Tinker's class.

Types of writing

Students read paragraphs to see if they were persuasive, expository, or narrative. By Mackenzie S.

Read-a-thon

We read books to our 1st grade buddies this morning. We are excited to have Mrs. Tinker's class as our buddy class. By Wesley

Red Ribbon Week

This week is Red Ribbon Week and Mrs. Reaves has scheduled different themes for each day.  Today the students were encouraged to wear a red uniform shirt.  Tomorrow is team shirt/jersey day.  Wednesday students may wear jeans with a regular uniform shirt.  On Thursday the students may wear camouflage.  On Friday students may bring a pillow, slippers, and a small blanket.  We will be reading with our buddy class (Mrs. Tinker in 1st grade) from 8-9.
Also, the district is holding a canned food drive this week. I will give the students a ticket who bring in a canned good.

Has your child started on the Texas Project?  Remember the project is due on November 3rd.

The bond election will be held on November 8th.  The students brought home a bond election pamphlet today.  Please read it carefully!  There is early voting October 24-November 4.

              ************Guest Blogger************
I am going to have the kids show some ownership in this blog.  The student of the week will use my Ipad to take pictures each day and write a couple of sentences about the photo.  So, the following Monday, you will see even more pictures of the kids.  This week's student is Wesley.  (if your child has already been chosen student of the week, then he/she will be able to be the guest blogger later on in the year)  Many thanks to Dickinson's  Computer Specialist, Jennifer Mitchell, for this wonderful idea.  I am so excited about this!!!!!

We will take our class picture on Tuesday, October 25th.  Please send your child to school in a red uniform shirt and khaki bottoms.

Onomatopoeia

Today we chose words that show onomatopoeia. The students wrote their sound word in bubble letters then decorated their card. We are going to use onomatopoeia to make our stories more creative!

Texas Projects

Texas project information will be coming home tomorrow.  The project will be due on November 3rd.  Please remember that it is your child's project...not yours!!

We will have a Social Studies test on Friday.  Study guides were filled out today.  Please have your child study each night.  Also, please sign the study guide and have your child bring it on Friday.  They get tickets for a signed study guide.

Facts tests are going well!  Many students are well past the 4's.  It would be helpful for you to make some practice facts tests at home for your child to complete.  When you all are driving in the car, turn off the radio and call out facts.  Have your child make flashcards or practice on multiplication.com.

If you eat at Little Caesar's Pizza, please send in the proof of purchase ticket.  If we have 100 proofs of purchase, we will get a pizza party.

In Science we are studying energy and in Reading we will begin reading Bunnicula. 

We participated in a listening activity.  The students were given directions to draw "Miss October" !!  Here are some photos of her:

The students wrote a descriptive paragraph about a scarecrow.  The stories are very creative!!

Conference Letters

Conference letters came home on a bright orange paper today in Dolphin folders.  Please sign the letter and send it back as soon as possible.  We will meet at the end of October to discuss your child's progress and the first report card.

Please continue to sign and return facts tests.  The good news is that all students have passed their "2's" !!  If your child has been on a fact for more than 2 days, then please study, study, study with them!

We will be having a Math test on Wednesday over multiplication and division.  If you want your child to practice from our math textbook, please go to pearsonsuccess.net   We did some work from the online textbook last Friday in the computer lab.  Students should know their username and password (it's their ID # used twice)  Please let me know if you are having difficulty logging in.

In Science we are studying energy. In Social Studies we are studying Native Americans that lived in Texas long ago.  Remember the Texas project we talked about at Parent Night?  Well, information about the project will come home on October 10th.  The project will be due the week of Halloween.

Here are a couple of more pictures of the students playing Math games:

If you have any empty parmesan cheese canisters or regular Pringles cans...please send them.  I will use them to make more math games.

Facts tests have begun!!

Yesterday we began our facts tests.  Students all began on their 2's.  If all 2's were correct and they got the test signed, they moved onto their 3's.  PLEASE sign the facts tests every night and return it to the paper clip inside the agenda.  Students will have about a month and a half to get through their 12's.  Sometime before Thanksgiving we will have a Multiplication Celebration by making ice cream sundaes!!  :))

Thank you to the Huey family and the Hass family for sending in a box of cereal.  The students used  cereal to show how particles are arranged in a solid, liquid, and a gas.  Here is a picture of some hard working students:

Of course, their favorite part was getting to eat the leftover cereal !!

Also, thank you to the Hass family for the large bottle of hand sanitizer.  We need it.  There are sooo many germs going around.  :((

This Friday is the last day of September which means the last day to earn AR points for Free Dress.  The goal for September is 6 points.  The Free Dress day will be Tuesday, October 4th.  I will attach a letter in students' agendas on Monday if they qualify for Free Dress.

Also, next week I will be sending home conference information.  Conferences will be October 27th and 28th. 

Thanks for coming to Parent Night!

It was good seeing so many of you on Parent Night.  If you were unable to attend,
the 4th grade power point is on our team page.  Please read through it and let me
know if you have any questions.


We will vote for Student Council class representatives on Thursday.  All permission slips are due tomorrow. 


Since we have Friday off from school, our Spelling and Wordly Wise tests will be on Thursday.  We will also be having a SS test on Thursday.  There will be a  SS review game on the team page by Wednesday so your child can review for the test.  We will also be completing a study guide.


In Science we are studying matter.  We will be doing an activity with Fruit Loop type cereal to show the differences in the structure of particles.  A donation of a box (or bag...it can be the cheap kind) would be greatly appreciated.


In Math we will be beginning multiplication.  PLEASE have your child practice their facts at home.  You can use flash cards, call out facts to them while driving in the car, or even go to multiplication.com to practice.  Timed facts tests will be starting soon!!


Have a fantastic week!!

We love math games!!

The students enjoyed playing a variety of math games on Thursday

to review for Friday's test.

Science Lab

We visited the Science Lab and discussed the

many different tools and lab equipment.

4th grade t-shirt

This is the t-shirt the 4th graders will be wearing this year.  Our class will have orange shirts. Please send all t-shirt $$ by Wednesday.  Parents may order a shirt as well.

Parent Night

I hope that you all will be able to attend Parent Night on Wednesday at 6:00.  Mrs. Mumphord will give opening remarks and introduce the Dickinson staff.  Then there will be 3 opportunities for you to visit your child's teacher(s).  The first one is from 6:20-6:40, then 6:45 - 7:05, and last 7:10 - 7:30.  The fourth grade teachers will be presenting our information as a grade level.  So, please come to room D1 in our 4th grade hallway to hear our presentation. 

This year students have a "Garden of Reading" list (in lieu of the Bluebonnet list).  I have stapled the list in their agenda near the blue behavior chart.  I have checked out some of the books from the public library for students to borrow.  I will be getting more next weekend.  I am encouraging students to read as many of the books as possible.  Also, Mrs. Preas will have some of the titles for sale on Wednesday night in the library.

4th Grade Goals

On the first day of school the students wrote goals that they had for 4th grade.  As students reach a goal, they will remove it from the chart.

Circle Map People

Students created a circle map about themselves.  In the larger circle are things about themselves.  (family, pets, favorites)  They then used construction to make a head, arms and legs.

Welcome to 4th grade !

Dear Parents,
I am so thrilled to be your child's teacher this year.  We will be working hard, yet having fun as well.  It is my goal to have a new blog post every weekend.  Last year, I sent an email to all my parents each Sunday and this year I am trying a blog for the first time!  I like to send updates and reminders to my parents each week.  It is very important that we have frequent communication with each other. 
Please remember to sign the behavior chart in the back of the agenda each weekend.
If students miss 2 or less words on their Spelling pretest on Monday, they do not have to take the Spelling test on Friday.