Friday, August 28

Thumbs up to another great week of 4th grade!

Thank you to everyone that was able to make it to our parent meeting last night! We love sharing information with parents and making sure 4th grade is the best year yet! If you were not able to make the meeting, we understand!  We just want to make sure communication is open so feel free to contact us anytime you have a question.


Please be sure to turn in Flat Rock permission forms ASAP. Money can be turned in later.  Remember to indicate if you need financial assistance.  The sooner when know that you have a need, the better chance we have of helping everyone.  I want every student to attend... money is not an obstacle! If you know of another obstacle that may be in the way of your child participating, please contact me right away!

We have switched from Math to Science and it has been going very well.  We are learning about landforms with a concentration on deltas, canyons and dunes. If you would like to know more, ask your child to log onto their Discovery Science Techbook and teach you all about it.

Math will start up again on Wednesday. Be looking for Data Binders on Monday with the Unit 1 Assessment and a Unit 2 Parent Letter!

Have a fantastic weekend everyone!  Looking forward to seeing you again on Monday.

(Week 4 pictures have been added to our PICTURE GALLERY.  Be sure to check them out!)

Thursday, August 27

Homework change for Tonight - Study Links 1.8.  Updates have been made to the Homework page.

We look forward to seeing all parents at the 4th Grade Parent Meeting this evening from 6-7.

Wednesday, August 26

Math students are MARVELOUS!!! We had such a good testing day! Students took the test serious and their scores show it!!  It will be just a few days before we are able to send tests home, just because some students are finishing up or fixing errors.  You should expect to see Math Tests come home in Monday's Data Binders.  Please look for them because it will be a great cause for celebration!

Remember, our parent meeting is tomorrow from 6-7 in the Needham cafeteria.  Please come join us to have all your 4th grade questions answered.

Tuesday, August 25

Homeroom: Orange and yellow papers are coming home today with information about Thursday's meeting and FlatRock.  Please look this information over.

Math:  Test tomorrow over Unit 1.  Students are bringing home their study guide tonight.  They had time to work on it in class, but even if they finished, I asked them to review it with a parent at home.  They were also encouraged to bring their Math Notebook and SRB home to help them with the answers.  If they have any difficulty they should circle that question.  There will be time to ask questions before the test in the morning.   Remember, if you need an additional copy of the Test Review, all homework is available on our website.

Monday, August 24

YEP! WE DID IT!!! Today we were able to take our cool class picture! It did turn out pretty cool!!  I am so glad everyone is back and healthy!  Check out more cool class pictures in Week 4 of our Picture Gallery.

MATH: The HOMEWORK page is updated on our website so be sure to check it out.  While you are there you might notice the Unit Review for tomorrow's homework. We will have our first unit test this Wednesday.

Friday, August 21

Wow!  What an incredible week!  It really flew by.  The students have done a great job adapting to 4th grade!  They know the expectations and they follow them!  I couldn't ask for a better class. If you would like to see some adorable pictures of our shining stars be sure to check out our Picture Gallery with new pictures from the week!  Be warned though! The smiles are contagious!

Sadly one picture you won't see in the folder is our class picture.  We have had a hard time keeping everyone healthy and at school this week.  Please encourage students to eat healthy, get good sleep, and wash those hands!  Nothing compares to soap and water for keeping the germs away!

We decided that we weren't meant to take our class photo until Monday anyway!  We just found out today that we will be getting a new team member on Monday, so it all worked out for the best!  His name is Austin and we are excited for him to join our team!!

Just a reminder that on Thursday, Aug. 27 there will be a 4th Grade Parent Meeting at 6pm.  The parent meeting will cover all things 4th grade. We will also be discussing Flat Rock, our overnight field trip. The trip is Sept. 10-11 and will be $60 per person. There will be financial assistance available. It is the most fun, memorable trip our 4th graders will experience!  We will be sending printed reminder home next week, but if you run into a team mate that might not be getting updates yet, please make sure they are informed about this important meeting.

Thanks for all you do and the wonderful children that you let me spend my days with!

Tuesday, August 18

Fourth grade is off to a very smooth year! The students are doing a great job implementing the 4th grade procedures and expectations.  They act like they are pros!

MATH: Today in Math we worked on the properties of quadrilaterals and quadrangles.  If you want to involve your child in a conversation about their school day, try asking them the following questions:

What is the difference between a quadrilateral and quadrangle? There isn't one! A quadrilateral is a 4 sided shape and a quadrangle is a shape with 4 angles.  Shapes with 4 sides have 4 angles.  Shapes with 4 angles have 4 sides.  quadrilaterals and quadrangles are the same. 

Is a Triangle a Quadrangle? No! Tri means 3. quad means 4. A triangle has 3 sides A quadrilateral had 4.  

What are two examples of Quadrangles? Square, rectangle, trapezoid, rhombus, kite, parallelogram.

HOMEROOM: Tomorrow is the day!  Not only will be get to take our MATH NWEA, we - cross your fingers! - will also get to take our class picture.  Be sure to bring those sunglasses!!

Monday, August 17

Today started off on a very sad note - we were missing 3 of our friends who are home sick.  There must be something going around and we don't like it!  We are hoping that everyone is back and healthy as soon as possible.  When everyone is here we will take our cool class picture, so be sure to leave those sunglasses in your backpack.

Tomorrow will also begin NWEA Assessments for our class.  We will take our Literacy Assessment tomorrow morning and our Math Assessment on Wednesday.  Please make sure students get a good nights rest and a nutritious breakfast in the morning.  We want to be ready to do our best.

Tonight's homework is listed on the Homework page. For Math students should complete Study Links 1.3.  For Literacy they should finish the rough draft of their personal narrative and their sunglasses picture if they aren't finished yet.

Friday, August 14

Amazing, Incredible, Wonderful, Marvelous... I could go on and on and on about these students!  They are kind, generous, helpful, fun, full of laughter!  I am so glad I get to call them my students! The worst part of the week was dismissal, because I had to tell them goodbye. This is going to be a really good year!  I can't wait to see them all again on Monday!

Just a few reminders for the upcoming week:

We will take our Literacy NWEA assessment on Tuesday.
We will take our Math NWEA assessment on Wednesday.

Our Cool Class Photo was postponed until Monday because we had a few friends who weren't there and the picture wouldn't be as good without them.

Thursday, Aug. 27: 4th Grade Parent Meeting 6pm
The parent meeting will cover all things 4th grade. We will also be discussing Flat Rock, our overnight field trip. The trip is Sept. 10-11 and will be $60 per person. There will be financial assistance available. It is the most fun, memorable trip our 4th graders will experience!

We are now accepting snack donations :) Students do not eat lunch until 12:40 and are invited to bring a snack each day. It's always nice to have extras for students that forget or do not have the means to provide. Pretzels, gold fish, fruit snacks, and crackers are always appreciated!

Thank you for all you do!!

Thursday, August 13

MATH: It was another crazy fun day in Math Block! We took notes on angles, triangles, and Quadrangles.  We even learned about "Just Right" Angles - you know, the ones that aren't too big or too small.  They are exactly 90 Degrees, and that is just right.  During the lesson, we had some great conversation and collaboration.  All that learning took a little extra time so we didn't quite get as far as we wanted.  Because of this, Homework for tonight was changed to "Find 10 Angles." Make sure some are big, some are small, and a few are "Just Right!"


HOMEROOM:  We have something very impressive to share with all our followers! On the first day of school we watched the video: Kid President's Pep Talk for Students and Teachers.  (If you haven't watched it you should..It's incredible.) In the video, Kid President gave us a homework assignment.  We needed to answer,"What do you want to teach the world?"  Well, our homework is done and we would love to share our answers with you.  Enjoy and share our video by going to:  https://youtu.be/RoV-CfldOj8

Wednesday, August 12

Today was a great day in TEAM 33!  We did another TEAM Building Activity.  Today we tried to make card houses.  This was one of my favorite pastimes as a child, but I am going to guess that kids today have better things to do with their time.  

Tonight, just for fun, they are supposed to find a deck of cards and ask a parent to help them make a card house - maybe even a mansion. 

MATH:  Math time was spent rotating to the 4 centers.  The kids did a GREAT job.  Tonight's homework is Study Links 1.2.

Tuesday, August 8

I have gone home every night doing the Happy Dance!  These students are amazing!  We laugh and learn, learn and laugh all day long!  They have taught me quite a bit just in the last few days! They have taught me their definition of RESPECT, RESPONSIBILITY, and what they expect form their classmates. There are adults that could not have defined their expectations as well.  Thank you parents for sending me the greatest students ever!

If you would like to see these definitions and more, please check out our website.  You can find them in the Picture Gallery. While you are there take some time to browse around and check out other links like the Homework page, Mrs. Moore's Page, and even our social media links.

Great Start to the Year!

What a great start to the year!!! TEAM33 learned a lot about each other the last two days. We also learned the responsibility and freedoms of being in 4th grade. I really think we are ready for a GREAT YEAR!  

This is the first of many posts that will be sent out via or blog to our website, Facebook, and Twitter. It should also be coming to your email. If you are reading this in your email please take a moment to send me a reply email. This will help reasure me that you are reviving the messages and that they are not being caught by a filter or spam blocker or some other technical error. 

I look forward to working with you and your child this year. I will work hard to keep you informed through email, Facebook, Twitter, and our Website. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns please don't ever hesitate to contact me. We are all on the same team!

Melisa McCain

Email: mccainm@franklinschools.org

Website: http://goo.gl/FX5ak

Facebook: NeedhamTeam33

Twitter: @NeedhamTeam33