Parent Survey:

Q3W8

“Frodo: I wish the Ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened.

Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.”

In a rigorous academic environment, it is natural for scholars to encounter moments when the work feels heavy or the expectations feel high. This quarter, for example, our 4th graders are memorizing one stanza each week of the thirteen stanzas of Paul Revere’s Ride. Of course, learning the lines to a poem does not exactly carry the heavy weight of traipsing over Middle Earth taking an evil token to the fires of Mordor, but to a 10-year-old, it may as well be! That is no small ask. There may be evenings when it feels tedious or challenging. Yet as Aristotle reminds us, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” Steady, daily practice—reciting, reviewing, refining—forms not only strong memories but strong minds. Meaningful learning requires effort and even struggle; it is through that pathos that children develop coping skills, self-reliance, and the confidence that comes from doing something difficult well.

While we cannot always choose the challenges before us, we can choose how we respond. We want our scholars to choose virtue over vice when learning feels hard: diligence over laziness, courage over complaint, integrity over shortcuts, and perseverance over quitting. Sustained academic rigor builds independence, a growth mindset, and the ability to make wise choices under pressure. Just as importantly, we encourage our students to strengthen one another along the way—offering encouragement, celebrating progress, and modeling resilience. When scholars embrace challenge with character and consistency, they are not only mastering poetry or content; they are forming habits of excellence that will shape who they become. Thank you for partnering with us in cultivating both the intellect and the virtue of your children.

4th Grade News:

Absences and Make-Up Work:

As a general reminder, teachers are not able to provide homework or classwork in advance for planned absences such as vacations. Much of our daily learning includes direct instruction, guided practice, discussion, and collaborative activities that can only happen in the classroom and cannot be meaningfully recreated in advance. In addition, many assignments are designed to be completed during class time and are not able to be sent home. When scholars return, they are responsible for checking posted assignments, gathering missed notes, and completing required assessments within the allotted timeline.

With the number of illnesses and absences in general we have seen in 4th grade over the past few weeks, please note that scholars have the same number of days absent to complete late work. After that window, any missing assignments will receive a zero. Consistent attendance is essential for academic success, as each day builds on the next. It is also very important that scholars are in school for the full instructional day and are not regularly dismissed early, as frequent absences or early pick-ups significantly impact learning and the learning environment. Thank you for partnering with us to prioritize strong attendance habits.

CURRICULUM:

ELA:

POETRY "Paul Revere's Ride" stanza 8 is due this Friday, February 27th. This poem spans 13 weeks (into Q4) and culminates in a grade-wide reciting of the poem in entirety for the parents.

This Poem is a behemoth of a memorization task for scholars. It should be taken seriously and can be enjoyable to accomplish such a task. In Fourth Grade, we do not have any "at-home" projects per se. Consider the memorization and recitation of this work a 13 week-long project endeavor. It can even become a family practice to memorize the weekly stanza.

Helpful Practices for Memorization:

-Listen to the poem in it's entirety, daily

-Analyze the stanzas for the poetic elements including identifying the particular rhyme scheme

-Scholars should write out the stanza memorization for the week (hang it on the bathroom mirror)

-Illustrate or act out the stanza

-Look up unfamiliar words or phrases to understand the meaning

-Re-write that section in your own words (modern language)

-Perform a word while another person says every other word until scholar can say it independently

-Practice reciting in the mirror

-Make up body or hand motions to certain lines and phraes

-Write the stanza out on a whiteboard and erase a word or phrase

-Tell yourself everyday, "I can memorize this, and so did the Fourth Graders before me!"

LITERATURE This week we continue reading "Prince Caspian" by C.S. Lewis. This week we will read chapters 11-13. We will read chapter 12 in reading groups on Wednesday.

In the COMPOSITION program for the week we will circle back to analyzing the elements of 5 paragraph essay writing including becoming skilled and proficient at making a graphic organizer to write an essay.

In GRAMMAR, we will work from AASA test preparation materials.

Comma Review

In LATIN AND GREEK ROOTS we have 2 roots this week:

Q3 W8 Roots

Mon

tempus/temporis = time (Latin)

tem per a ture (n) a measure of the warmth or coldness of something

tem po ral (adj) pertaining to time

tem po rar y (adj) for a limited time

con tem po rar y (adj) living at or occurring at the same time (cum=together,with)

ex tem po ra ne ous (adj) speak or act at the time without preparation (ex=out)

Tues

annus = year (Latin)

an nu al (adj) – yearly

an ni ver sa ry (n) celebration marking the turning of a year (verto, versum-turn)

bi an nu al (adj) occurring twice a year (bi-two)

bi en ni al (adj) every two years

per en ni al (adj) lasting through the years (per-through)

Math:

In Math, we finish Chapter 8 area and perimeter concepts in our 4B Green and Blue Math books on Monday. Chapter 9 will begin on Tuesday, our next chapter on Geometry and measuring angles.

Measuring Angles

Geometry Concepts

History:

In History in W8, we will finish our journey in African Kingdoms. We will review on Tuesday and take the Comprehension Check on Thursday 2/26. Students will answer the following prompt- “Describe the role of trade in the development of African kingdoms and Empires. Include 5 different examples of how trade helped these kingdoms and empires grow and develop. Include at least 3 different kingdoms.”

W6:

Video on Mali

W5:

Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe

The Ancient Aksom City of Meroe

Science:

This week in Science, we are studying how people use natural resources to produce energy, with a focus on solar energy, geothermal energy, and energy innovations. Scholars will learn how solar cells convert sunlight into electricity, how geothermal heat from inside the Earth can generate power, and why efficiency and innovation matter when considering costs and benefits. We will also review renewable and nonrenewable resources in preparation for next week’s Comprehension Check (Week 9), practicing vocabulary, cost-benefit thinking, and strong written paragraph responses. Our Big Question guiding the week is: How can people use Earth’s resources to produce energy efficiently and safely?

Should you switch to solar?

Why don't we cover the desert in solar panels?

How do solar panels work?

Iceland's secret power

The solution to our energy problem is...

Remember, the blog is updated weekly. Be sure to come back frequently to see any upcoming events or changes in fourth grade.