Dear Fourth Grade,
This week we got to actually do some of my favorite fun stuff with fractions. Turning mixed numbers into improper fractions is incredibly satisfying. After that, adding and subtracting fractions with like denominators seemed lackluster. We also spent some time playing with the magic of the number 1. In the world of fractions, 1 gets really interesting because it can be 6/6 or 213/213 or 10/10. We can change the number without changing the value. Of course, this is particularly useful when trying to figure equivalencies, but it also is just fascinating and special on its own. We reviewed that anything multiplied by 1 is itself, and therefore a fraction multiplied by 1 would be itself. BUT! I can change 1 without changing the value, so I can find equivalent fractions to 2/3 by multiplying it by all kinds of 1’s, like 2/2 to get 4/6 or by 100/100 to get 200/300. So simple, and so elegant and magical!
In language arts skills lesson we have started our new all-class read aloud book, The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich. It is a fiction book about an Anishinabe girl, and hooks into our Manabozho stories from the fall as well as our regional geography work. During lunch time, I continue to read the children’s biography of Dr King to them. They also should all be reading a book for pleasure as well. So many stories! Which reminds me… We’re working on a book recommendation list as we spoke about in the fall parent evening, so that we can share with each other great and appropriate reading material ideas.
UPCOMING EVENTS
- Gr 4 Adult Night – Wednesday, Feb 6, 7:00 pm. This will be an important touchstone meeting for the very busy winter/spring schedule. Please plan on attending.
- P-T Conferences – March 14 and 15 (and probably some other options, too)
- Festival of Spectacles – Saturday, April 6. Block this entire morning and afternoon for our class play and the class play of all the grades 1-5. More details as they develop!