Content Areas
Language Arts
Students in my classroom experience a differentiated environment for California Common Core Language Arts instruction. Students in my classroom participate in reading rotations to help them in a variety of subjects related to Language Arts. On Monday, students are introduced to a skill to practice throughout the week such as sequence, plot, main idea, compare/contrast, author's purpose and making inferences. They also are given vocabulary and spelling words for the week. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, students rotate between 6 stations. Each day they visit two stations for 20 minutes. The stations rotate between Grammar, Skill Practice 1, Skill Practice 2, Vocabulary Review, Spelling Football, Read with Teacher and Time for Kids. Students are responsible for turning in various classwork assignments during the week and are quizzed on their vocabulary and spelling on Friday.
For Language Arts, students also participate in class-wide read alouds and literature circles. Throughout the year students read their own individual novels and complete book reports and various writing assignments associated with the reading.
In writing, students complete short term and long term writing assignments that coincide with the Common Core State Standards. Students will go through the writing process which includes teacher created pre-writing sheets, drafting paragraphs, peer editing, self editing and teacher editing in order to help them complete a final and published paper. Students utilize Google Apps for Education to peer edit and to receive individualized feedback from me to make their writing as detailed and clear as possible. Students writing topics include book reports, re-imaginations of stories read in language arts, persuasive essays on student choice topics, and expository and information writing on topics such as California missions and where they would time travel to.
Students in my classroom experience a differentiated environment for California Common Core Language Arts instruction. Students in my classroom participate in reading rotations to help them in a variety of subjects related to Language Arts. On Monday, students are introduced to a skill to practice throughout the week such as sequence, plot, main idea, compare/contrast, author's purpose and making inferences. They also are given vocabulary and spelling words for the week. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, students rotate between 6 stations. Each day they visit two stations for 20 minutes. The stations rotate between Grammar, Skill Practice 1, Skill Practice 2, Vocabulary Review, Spelling Football, Read with Teacher and Time for Kids. Students are responsible for turning in various classwork assignments during the week and are quizzed on their vocabulary and spelling on Friday.
For Language Arts, students also participate in class-wide read alouds and literature circles. Throughout the year students read their own individual novels and complete book reports and various writing assignments associated with the reading.
In writing, students complete short term and long term writing assignments that coincide with the Common Core State Standards. Students will go through the writing process which includes teacher created pre-writing sheets, drafting paragraphs, peer editing, self editing and teacher editing in order to help them complete a final and published paper. Students utilize Google Apps for Education to peer edit and to receive individualized feedback from me to make their writing as detailed and clear as possible. Students writing topics include book reports, re-imaginations of stories read in language arts, persuasive essays on student choice topics, and expository and information writing on topics such as California missions and where they would time travel to.
Math
Since Math was never my strong suit in elementary and high school, I have a passion for making the Common Core math curriculum accessible and engaging for all students. Students in fourth grade tackle a variety of difficult concepts in math, such as 4 digit by 1 digit and 2 digit by 2 digit multiplication, long division and adding, subtracting and multiplying fractions. All students write in a math notebook throughout the year that contains notes and examples of each topic covered. This way when we review topics, they have a place to refer back to. Students also watch Youtube videos in order to be introduced to certain topics in a more engaging way.
In order to practice skills, students frequently engage in white board practice. This allows them to work through problems prior to their homework and for me to work one-on-one with students who are struggling on a concept. Students also frequently participate in a variety of partner and group games to learn skills. This way students are engaged with the material and have a peer and teacher they can also learn from. Students are involved in a variety of problem solving and more recently have been working on project based learning in math, especially in geometry.
Since Math was never my strong suit in elementary and high school, I have a passion for making the Common Core math curriculum accessible and engaging for all students. Students in fourth grade tackle a variety of difficult concepts in math, such as 4 digit by 1 digit and 2 digit by 2 digit multiplication, long division and adding, subtracting and multiplying fractions. All students write in a math notebook throughout the year that contains notes and examples of each topic covered. This way when we review topics, they have a place to refer back to. Students also watch Youtube videos in order to be introduced to certain topics in a more engaging way.
In order to practice skills, students frequently engage in white board practice. This allows them to work through problems prior to their homework and for me to work one-on-one with students who are struggling on a concept. Students also frequently participate in a variety of partner and group games to learn skills. This way students are engaged with the material and have a peer and teacher they can also learn from. Students are involved in a variety of problem solving and more recently have been working on project based learning in math, especially in geometry.
Social Studies
The focus of my social studies program is making sure students understand the past in a fun way that also builds their skills for the future. At the fourth grade level, I want students to begin to use a variety of sources to research and learn about important events that have happened in California history. I gradually release responsibility on research projects by having students work in partners for various projects and then move to independent research. Students take their research and turn it into Powerpoint presentations, dioramas, reports and projects. The main focus of the fourth grade research is the Mission project. During this project, students research using books and the Internet and end up producing 3-4 page papers on their missions after comments and feedback from me throughout the process. They also create a visual aide which can be a model, Minecraft mission, video or Powerpoint presentation.
I also want students in fourth grade to be introduced to note-taking. This is why I have them take notes on lessons with my assistance before having them dive deeper into the content through research. I think that by modeling the note taking process, they will be better prepared for future research.
Lastly, I believe that students need to experience social studies. It is for this reason that we go on field trips to various places that align with what we are studying. I also have students participate in a Gold Rush day in which they pretend they are pioneers. We walk to school, make butter, pack lunches from the time, play games and pan for gold. This way students truly understand what life was like in that time.
The focus of my social studies program is making sure students understand the past in a fun way that also builds their skills for the future. At the fourth grade level, I want students to begin to use a variety of sources to research and learn about important events that have happened in California history. I gradually release responsibility on research projects by having students work in partners for various projects and then move to independent research. Students take their research and turn it into Powerpoint presentations, dioramas, reports and projects. The main focus of the fourth grade research is the Mission project. During this project, students research using books and the Internet and end up producing 3-4 page papers on their missions after comments and feedback from me throughout the process. They also create a visual aide which can be a model, Minecraft mission, video or Powerpoint presentation.
I also want students in fourth grade to be introduced to note-taking. This is why I have them take notes on lessons with my assistance before having them dive deeper into the content through research. I think that by modeling the note taking process, they will be better prepared for future research.
Lastly, I believe that students need to experience social studies. It is for this reason that we go on field trips to various places that align with what we are studying. I also have students participate in a Gold Rush day in which they pretend they are pioneers. We walk to school, make butter, pack lunches from the time, play games and pan for gold. This way students truly understand what life was like in that time.