Systems of the Body!

The students have been working on their body systems projects and they turned out so well!

Each group completed a poster and a model of their system.

On display in the hallway.

Bente and Unai's muscular system.

Malcolm and Connor's respiratory system.

Oliver and Simon's digestive system.

Queen and Ian's circulatory system.

Andrew and Danielle's nervous system.

Daniel and Adrienne's skeletal system.

I will try and upload the videos of the presentations when the internet is working a little better!

ISKR's Health Class Movie!

We learned all about common Rwandan diseases with this fun rap!

Math Ninjas!

We have been practicing math facts all year, but now it is time to get serious! Ninja serious.

We are starting again from the x2s, and going all the way to x12 and x2-12. Each time a student passes a test (2 minutes to do 40 problems), they move up a ninja belt color!

We will generally do one level a week, but if they do not pass a level, they will be able to re-take the test in their own time that week, or during testing time the next week. Most students have passed the white belt (x2) and have moved on to working toward the yellow belt (x3). 

Students are making flashcards and practicing in class, but practice makes perfect! Help your child study at home by testing them with their flashcards!

Ways to practice:

1. Practice flashcards! Go through them as quickly as you can by yourself or with a family member or friend. Put the cards you got wrong in one pile. Practice them extra!

2. Write out your facts. Go through the progression...3x1=3, 3x2=6, 3x3=9, etc. The more you write them, the more it will be solidified in your brain!

3. Use the tools and clues we discuss in class. x2 is doubles! x3 is doubles+1 of the number (8x2=16. 16+8=24. 3x8=24!)

4. Practice with fun online games!

Here are some fun websites where students can practice their math facts. These are good on the computer, but also great on an online ipad (touch screen!)

*If you have any other great sites, please let us know!

Online flashcard practice:

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

Meteor Multiplication - solve multiplication problems to defend your spaceship!

http://www.mathplayground.com/ASB_MeteorMultiplication.html

Multiplication Grand Prix - solve problems to win the race!

http://www.mathplayground.com/ASB_GrandPrixMultiplication.html

Penguin Jump - solve problems to jump the icebergs!

http://www.mathplayground.com/ASB_PenguinJumpMultiplication.html

Tug Team - Answer facts to win at tug-of-war:

http://www.mathplayground.com/ASB_TugTeamMultiplication.html

More games:

http://www.fun4thebrain.com/mult.html

More Typing Practice!

** Make sure you have the correct finger placement. No picking with only your pointers!!! **

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/
http://www.gamequarium.com/keyboarding.htm
http://games.sense-lang.org/

The Week in Photos: January 13-17

We have been very busy since school started back!

In 4th math, we have been studying geometry and shapes that are congruent. To illustrate the concept of a translation or a slide, we made tessellations! (This was something I did in 9th grade geometry, so when it was in the curriculum, I was super excited! The 4th graders proved they could do it!)


A simple note card becomes...

tessellation by Bente

Oliver's tessellation

Daniel's tessellation

Tessellation by Danielle

Tessellation by Simon

We began a unit on the human body. First, we learned about plant and animal cells and how they are alike and different. 

Adrienne's cells, side by side.

 Bente's animal cell

Queen's plant cell

We learned that cells make up tissues, tissues make up organs, and organs make up organ systems. Then teams were assigned body systems. They worked together to research information to put into a poster, presentation, and visual representation (human body)!

Andrew and Danielle work on the nervous system.

Malcolm and Connor research the respiratory system.

Simon and Oliver work on their digestive system poster.

Ian and Queen study the circulatory system.

Daniel adds bones to his skeletal system model. 

Bente and Unai make their muscular system poster.

Ian and Queen get to work on their heart.

On Thursday, we headed down to the Middle School to join Mr. Riley and the 7th graders. They taught us how to look at slides under a microscope! We looked at human blood cells, a bee leg, corn starch, a peacock feather, and a fern spore!

Adrienne looks on.

Connor looks at human blood.

Simon's turn!

Unai observes and sketches.

Adrienne focuses on her peacock feather.

Oliver's turn!

Bente takes a look.

In writing, we started an expository informational text: writing about expert topics! This way, we can practice our writing skills while teaching each other about what we know.

Unai separates his facts into categories.

Daniel checks his facts.

We also did an experiment with yeast cells, which left our room smelling...interesting...

:)

Queen's Weekly Update: January 17

In class this week we did mad minute and we also learned all about adverbs.

But the most fun was reading A Long Walk to Water, it’s a book about two kids named Nya and Salva who both… Read the book!

By Queen

Cool Body Websites!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/index_interactivebody.shtml

https://sites.google.com/site/misswebbs4thgrade/science-websites/human-body

http://www.apples4theteacher.com/elibrary/bodybook.html

http://www.kidskonnect.com/subjectindex/31-educational/health/337-human-body.html

http://www.kidsbiology.com/human_biology/

http://kidshealth.org/kid/htbw/RSmovie.html

http://kidshealth.org/kid/closet/movies/MSmovie.html?tracking=59983_G

http://kids.discovery.com/tell-me/science/body-systems

December

Photos from the last week of school before break.

Holiday concert! Can you find our class?

We had a mini holiday fair and made crafts from countries around the world.

Ian works on a Mexican "God's Eye" ornament.

Oliver colors an Indian Rangoli design.

Daniel shows off his woven coaster.

Students each researched a holiday of light from around the world, created a character that celebrated that tradition, then wrote a children's book informing kids about the holiday. We shared them with our second grade buddies on the last day of school!

Daniel and his reading buddy share stories.

Bente listens to her buddy's story.

Danielle and her buddy share their work.

NaNoWriMo Author's Tea

The students worked extra hard to finish their novels. Next was time to share at the Author's Tea!

Andrew

Ian

Bente

Connor

Adrienne

Simon

Daniel

Oliver

Unai

Danielle

Malcolm