Brimhall Readathon!

Check out this awesome video that BH parent volunteers made to get us ready for the big Readathon...

BRIMHALL READATHON VIDEO 

 I am so excited to READ, READ, READ with you all month!

*Way to go A! We are so proud of your acting skills :)

Election 2012

Today we started asking questions about the upcoming election. We are very excited- there are so many different vocabulary words to learn! Check out the beginning of our 4M Presidential Election 2012 Museum Exhibit... 

Here are some of the games we looked at earlier today: 

Roles of the President Game

On the Road to the White House

The Election Game

This is what we worked on after lunch:
The Democracy Project

Nepal Guest Speaker

Today, Ms. Elizabeth came in to teach us all about Nepal.

• We learned that Nepal is a country located between India and China
• Nepal is home to Mount Everest, the tallest mountain on earth

Please submit other facts your remember learning today in the comment section, I'll add them later this week!

 

Regrouping Subtraction Fun

We had a great time practicing regrouping subtraction today. Some of the 4M students decided to participate in a music video!

Way to go S for planning our awesome moves! A big thanks to W, C, and S for figuring out the lyrics. Impressive stuff 4th graders!

"Kick Off to the School Year" Kickball Tournament

We had a great time playing kickball on Friday morning. We practiced working as a team, encouraging others and playing fair.

What a great class!

"We've got spirit, yes we do, we've got spirit how about YOU!"

Spelling 9/24-9/28

No Excuse: (Need to spell correctly for the rest of your life)
number
no
way
could
people
my
than
first
water
been
  
4th Grade Words:(Need to know meaning AND spelling)

subway
subject
submerge
subset
subterranean
superhuman
superabundant
superb
supervise
surplus 

All About Circles

Here we are pretending to be a tether ball court. Notice the centerpoint (W), radius (W), diameter (G) and circumference! (D, J, Y, P and A) Awesome job 4M!

Today in math we studied CIRCLES. We compared circles to our favorite recess sport- TETHER BALL!

If we are trying to remember the different parts of a circle, all we have to do is think of a tether ball court.

Circumference is the measurement around the court= BOUNDARY LINE

Centerpoint is located exactly in the middle of the court= POLE

Radius is from the pole to the boundary line = ROPE ON A STRING

Diameter is the line that goes straight through the pole and touches on the other side = HALF WAY LINE

Who knew learning math terms could be so much fun?

Addition Practice

Are you having a tough time with your addition facts? Check out the following websites, videos and games. 

Helpful Addition Websites:

http://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/addition-tips-tricks.html

http://www.helpingwithmath.com/resources/math_facts/mat_basic_facts01.htm

Youtube Addition Videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkC3g0Bk8sk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdIzuGPRhRQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsWzVyCWfz0

Addition Games Online:

http://www.factmonster.com/math/flashcards.html

http://www.math-play.com/one-digit-addition-game/one-digit-addition-game.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/laac/numbers/ch1.shtml

FACTS FACTS FACTS!

This afternoon we practiced math facts galore. We realize that math facts aren't the most interesting to learn, but they are CRUCIAL (another word for really, really, REALLY important) for us to know in order to succeed in 4th grade math.

I strongly encourage you to practice these facts tonight at home. Remember... the link is in the upper right. It is labeled "Math Fact Practice".

Tonight is the perfect night to curl up with a good book. See you in the morning!

-Ms. McCormick

Searching for LINES and ANGLES in Pieces of Art

We had a great time in math today. Last week we worked on identifying different angles (our class perfected the angle dance).

Students know the difference between acute, obtuse, reflex and right angles. Students also worked on identifying different types of lines.

We can identify parallel, intersecting and perpendicular lines.

Today we applied these skills to some famous pieces of art (provided by Mr. Moore). Check it out!

4M RAZ Kids

Here is the link to sign into RAZ Kids. I look forward to seeing how many points each of you score this month.

4M RAZ Kids

Our class username is 4McCormick. Once you sign in, you can find your account and read away!

-Ms. McCormick

First Day of School

We had a great first day of school. The new 4th graders worked on the following:

* Addition timed test
* Brimhall Bengal pride expectations
* What is math? brainstorm
* Routines, routines, routines!
* Lunch pin number practice
* Bus # practice

We also had our first library session with Ms. Zbacnik. Students checked out books and are bringing them home to read tonight.

See you bright and early!
-Ms. McCormick

Meet the Teacher Night

Welcome to Meet the Teacher Night!

I am so excited that you are here. I have been looking forward to meeting you. Check out the "To-Do" list on your desk and take a peek around the room.

The 4th graders from last year wrote you a note on the easel.

We are going to have a fantastic year together.

-Ms. McCormick

This is where you will turn in assignments and do lunch count every morning.

Check out the new addition to our classroom library!

Our classroom supplies

1. We took the Math MAP test in the 4/5/6 hallway. We spent 2 hours and 25 minutes in the computer lab working on math!

2. It was a beautiful day outside. We went on a run after recess.

3. We watched Turtle: The Incredible Journey. Tomorrow we will create different events and put them in chronological order.

4. Our day ended in music with Mrs. Sharp.

I am just so happy about your MAP test this morning. You all put forth your best effort. The growth you have made this year is HUGE. You are ready for 5th grade :)

1. In math we did 6 mini-lessons to prepare us for tomorrow. I was so impressed on how focused ALL of you were! We are becoming professionals at multiplying and dividing!

2. In literacy we partner-read and practiced reading fluently. A lot of us are working on pausing at the correct punctuation

3. I did a "book talk" on Egypt. Some of the books I shared included, The Egypt Game, 100 Facts: Pyramids and The Hieroglyphs of Ancient Egypt.

4. We ended our day by running for 9 minutes in Phy. Ed. You all did a FANTASTIC job. Everyone ended the 9 minutes at a running pace.

Remember, you get to take the MAP Math test tomorrow. This test will show how hard you have worked at math in 4th grade. You are expected to do very well. Have a great night, get some good rest, and I'll see you tomorrow morning.

-Ms. McCormick

1. This morning we took our end of the year Reading MAP Test. Students did a wonderful job. It is so much fun to see the growth each of you had made in reading this year.

2. In math we discussed multiplying and reducing fractions. Fraction homework due tomorrow!

3. This afternoon in literacy we continued to work on our creative writing project. We took our ideas from yesterday, and started organizing them into topics.

4. We ended the day learning how to play Frisbee golf. I am really looking forward to the Minnesota Birthday Party tomorrow. Parents are encouraged to join us from 1:30-3:00!

1. In math we took a test on number sense and dividing with two digit numbers. Our MAP Math test is next Thursday. This Friday we will take the Unit 12 Math Test

2. Ms. Tami stopped by and we finished The Secret of Zoom. What a fantastic ending!

3. In literacy we continued our work with conjunctions.

4. We started our end of the year creative writing project- Students brainstormed about what they will be doing twenty years from now.

1. In math we studied Unit Rates. Students completed Lesson 12.6 in their math journals. 4M students practiced adding and rounding decimals. We also plotted points on a graph to make a shape.

2. We started studying Minnesota's history. We learned about primary and secondary resources. We look forward to reading stories about Minnesota's past later this week.

3. In literacy we learned about conjunctions. A conjunction is a type of word that links other words or clauses in a sentence.

4. This afternoon we performed our music concert for the entire school. You guys did a really nice job.

The concert tonight is at 6:30. My room will be open at 6:00. Students should come to my room and then we will go to the concert together. Wear dark pants, and a colorful t-shirt!

Check out this new website I discovered!

http://wonderopolis.org/

Perhaps we can learn about Poetry Slams during snack tomorrow :)

Yesterday we celebrated Administration Assistant Day AND took the first part of the math MCA. What a great day!