Note-taking, Vocabulary & More

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4th graders have made great progress in their research projects this week. On Monday, the students generated a list of questions they’d like to answer as they read about their famous American. Questions ranged from ‘Where were they born?’ to ‘What obstacles did they face?’ and ‘What inspired them?’.

They also learned some rules for note-taking to help them write facts in their own words, to keep notes short and simple, and to keep notecards organized. Tuesday we were ready to give it a try! Using a page from a picture book biography, students read and took notes. Then we ‘compared notes’ to see how everyone did. On Wednesday, we practiced again with a passage on George Washington, and I met with each student about their notes. By Thursday, they were ready to dive into their actual biographies.

We read six chapters in The Tale of Despereaux this week. Some were read whole-class, some independently, and others in small groups with either Mrs. Bryant or me.

We also learned four more vocabulary words from the novel. Students will finish Book the Second on Monday and have our Book Club meeting on Wednesday.

In addition, students are preparing daily for the upcoming ERBs. We are solving analogies, reading passages and answering questions, and practicing a variety of questions and strategies as a class. See this week’s memo for the ERB schedule beginning April 6.

In social studies this week, students learned about the French-Indian War. They read an article with a partner, discussed advantages for both the British and the Frnech armies, organized events on a timeline, and more.

We also learned three morphemes this week, -en, -dom, and ped.

In Morning Meeting, we had fun with’ Good Morning, Ms. President,’ Back to Back, and 20 Questions. They shared about where their names came from and about their spring breaks, of course.

At today’s assembly, Ensworth celebrated all things dance. We had students on various dance teams from grades 4-12 perform, as well as several groups dancing in honor of Holi. It was AMAZING!! Congratulations to all our dancers!