News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Jan. 30-Feb. 4

2012-01-27T13:23:00.000-08:00

Dates to Remember:
Tuesday, Feb. 14 Valentine's Day party
Monday, Feb. 20 No School Presdent's Day
Wednesday, Feb. 23 Spring Pictures
Tuesday, Feb. 28 Early Dismissal

Don't forget Cancer Smashers and been extended to Monday, January 30th. If you wish to donate on-line, please see link: http://www.goombaybash.com/Cancer_Smashers/

Totals: District 61: $10, 344.22
District 66: 6, 768.71

Also, be sure to watch the 10:00 news tonight on Channel 2. They will be airing a special segment on our Lakeview/Prairieview vs. Eisenhower/Lace Cancer Smashers fundraiser!

Math - In math this week, we will have a test over chapter 19 on Wednesday. They should bring their textbooks home to help them study and review the lessons in the chapter. On Thursday, we will continue our study of geometry and review similar and congruent figures and study line and rotational geometry.

Spelling - This week will be a review week. The students will be tested on words that they have worked with throughout theme 4.

Reading - The reading strategy that we will be studying next week is summarizing. When reading passages, it is not necessary to recall every word. Instead, we will practice using main ideas and supporting evidence to summarize a passage. While reading, a good reader finds the main ideas, whether they are stated or implied. Then, the reader must find supporting evidence to support the main idea. This support may be in the form of details, examples, explanations or descriptions.

We will also continue to work on our extended reading responses. The students will write a response to their reading passage.

English - We will begin a new unit on adjectives this week. The students will identify adjectives and the noun they describe. They will practice elaborating sentences that using adjectives.

Social Studies - How has erosion shaped the South Dakota, Badlands? The students will describe the landscape and climate of the Badlands 67 million years ago.

Science - There will be a test over the Human Body on Tuesday of this week. The students should know:

All vocabulary

Understand the steps of the digestive system

Understand the main functions and organs of each system

Know the purpose of platelets

Understand what happens if you fall and scrape your knee: what is torn, and how will the platelets help

purpose of the arteries, veins

purpose of white blood cells

Know the different kinds of joints in the body and be able to give examples of each.

Know the kinds of muscles, and how they work together,

What are four jobs of the bones
How are messages carried from your brain throughout your body

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Jan. 23-27

2012-01-20T06:11:00.000-08:00

Important Dates to Remember:
Wednesday, Jan. 25 -Early Dismissal 11:00
Friday, Feb. 3 - Movie Night (forms on line)
Tuesday, Feb. 14 - Valentine's Day party 1:30 Students may bring in Valentine's to pass out to the class.
Monday, Feb. 20 - No School President's Day

Math - We will begin a new unit in math on geometry. The students will identify, describe and draw points, lines, line segments, rays and planes. They will also classify, and draw right, acute, obtuse, and straight angles and identify, describe and draw intersecting parallel, and perpendicular lines. I will give a multiplication fact test on Friday of this week. They should know their multiplication facts 0-12.

Spelling - This week in spelling the students will be working with words that have the vccv pattern (vowel consonant consonant vowel) pattern. They will be responsible for writing their words 2 x's each on Monday, and workbook pages 59-61 throughout the week. I will check them each morning.

Reading - The reading skill that we will work on this week is the identification of character, setting and plot. Students will fill out story structure maps as they read fiction to help them organize their thoughts and identify the main characters, setting & plot.

English The students will have a test over verbs Unit 3 on Thursday of this week. They will bring homework home to do each day to help them review and practice.

Social Studies The students will understand the effect of changing the Chicago River flow on transporting goods from Lake Michigan. They will understand how locks and canals work and their importance to the transportation of people and goods from place to place.

Science - The students will use their knowledge of the human body to build their own body system. There is a test planned for next Wednesday over the human body. The students should begin reviewing the vocabulary this week, and going over the outlines in their binders.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Jan. 16-Jan. 20

2012-01-13T06:21:00.000-08:00

Dates to Remember:
Monday, Jan. 16 - No School
Wednesday, Jan. 25 - Early Dismissal
Monday, Feb. 20 - No School, Presidents' Day
Tuesday, Feb. 28 - Early Dismissal

Math - We will review the skills in chapter 8, and there will be a test on Thursday of this week over chapter 8. The fact timed test 0-9 will be on Tuesday of this week since we had MAP testing on Friday last week. Then we will move into geometry. The students will identify, describe, and draw points, lines, line segments, rays, and planes.

Spelling - In spelling this week the students will work with the final /j/ and /s/ sounds in words. They will be responsible for workbook pages 44-45. I will be checking each day to be sure they have their assignments done. Since we do not have school on Monday, on Wednesday, they will need to turn in their words written 2x's each. on Thursday, they will need to turn in W.B. page 44, Friday W.B. page 45 and be ready for their test.

Reading

The comprehension skill that we will be focusing on this week is drawing conclusions. Good readers use details in a story to draw conclusions about characters and events. Students may use graphic organizers to gather details from a story to draw conclusions. They will learn that it is possible to draw more than one conclusion from the same details.

We will also work be writing extended responses to show understanding of our reading.

English - This week in English the students will identify and write past tense verbs with helping verbs and irregular verbs. They will also recognize and use the different forms of the verb be. They will form contractions using verbs and the word not. There will be a test on Wednesday, January 25th over verbs, unit 3.

Science - The essential question this week is "How Does Your Body Think and Move?" This week the students will describe the jobs of the nervous, skeletal, and muscular systems. They will also describe how the muscular and skeletal systems work together to move the body.

Social Studies - We will be traveling into the Midwest Region this week. The students will be responsible for coloring in a Midwest Region map according to the guidelines. They will have a Map test on Friday, where they will have to identify the states in the Midwest, all the Great Lakes, and the Mississippi River.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Jan. 9-13

2012-01-05T14:08:00.000-08:00

Important Events
Tuesday, Jan. 10- MAP test Reading
Tuesday, Jan. 10 - In class practice Spelling B
Wednesday, Jan. 11 - In class Spelling B (winner and runner up will be chosen to participate in the whole grade spelling B on Friday, Jan. 13.)
Friday, Jan. 13 - MAP testing Math, 4th grade Spelling B
Monday, Jan. 16 - No School/ Martin Luther King Day
Friday, Jan. 27th - Family Bingo Night (Mrs. Cavoto will be there!) Information has been e-mailed about it with the form. Space is limited.

Math - In math this week the students will make and interpret bar, double bar, circle, and line graphs. They will also learn to identify, locate, and graph points on a coordinate grid and describe paths. There is a test over chapter 8 scheduled for Thursday, January 19th. There will be a division fact test 0-9 on Thursday of this week. The students should continue to practice their facts.

Spelling - We will have our practice spelling B in class on Tuesday, Jan. 10. We will have the next in class Spelling B on Wednesday, Jan. 11 when a winner and runner up will be chosen to participate in the whole 4th grade Spelling B which is on Friday, January 13. The students brought their lists home before the holiday, and they should have it in their binders.

The spelling lesson this week working with words that have a final long e sound. The workbook pages that they will need to work on throughout the week are pages 29-31. I have established a new routine, and I will check to be sure that the assignments have been completed each morning. So on Tuesday morning they should turn in their words written two times each. On Wednesday morning they should show me that they have finished the workbook page for that day. On Thursday morning they will show me they have completed the work for that day. The same will go for Friday, and I will collect one of the pages they have done throughout the week to grade.

Reading This week, we will be working on the reading target of identifying the problem and the solution. Most stories involve a problem for the character to solve, and the solution to the problem may come after others have been tried.

English - This week in English the students will learn to write verbs so that the verb tenses are consistent. They will also form the past and present tense form of the verb and choose correct present tense verbs for singular and plural subjects.

Science - What is the systems body's source of nutrients? (food) Which system is responsible for breaking down food into nutrients the body can use? (The digestive system) The students will learn about the digestive system, respiratory system, and the circulatory system this week.

Social Studies - The students will Use their knowledge of the Cherokee culture and their life in the 1500's before and after the Europeans came to draw and label a picture of their culture, or make a time line of important events in their lives at that time. They will follow a rubric and be graded on this assignment.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Class Jan. 2-Jan.6

2011-12-15T12:54:00.000-08:00

Dates to Remember:
Jan. 3 - Classes resume
Jan. 5 - Martin Luther King Assembly
Jan. 10 - Reading MAP test
Jan. 13 - Math MAP test

Math - This week in math the students will make generalizations from data taken from a graph. They will review the skills in chapter 7. There will be test over the skills in chapter 7 on Thursday of this week. If anyone needs extra help, I will be available at recess time every day except Wednesday.

Spelling - The students will work with words that have the sounds of /k, /ng/, /kw/. Workbook pages 9-11 need to be completed. There will be a test on Friday over these words.

Reading - This week we will be working on predicting outcomes. Readers can often guess ahead of time, or predict, what will happen in a story, based on information the author has given. Additionally, readers can change or adjust their predictions as they read.

English - Students will identify and use action verbs, main verbs and helping verbs in sentences. They will also identify and correctly use present, past, and future tense verbs.

Science - Before break, we had a High Tech, High Touch in class field trip. This was a great introduction to our Human Body unit. The students learned about the different organs in our body and were able to see and touch real organs such as a brain, heart and kidneys of different animals. We will continue our study on the Human Body. This week we will focus on how our body gets oxygen and nutrients. They will learn about the digestive system.

Social Studies - This week the students will learn about the Native Americans who settled in the Southeast. They will understand how the Cherokee have contributed greatly to the history of the Southeast. They will read about Sequoyah, a Native American who developed a writing system for the Cherokee.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Class Dec. 12-Dec. 16

2011-12-09T13:08:00.001-08:00

Dates to Remember:
December 15 - High Tech-High Touch in school field trip (Body Systems)
December 19 -- Winter Break Begin
January 3 -- Classes Resume
January 16 -- M.L. King Holiday -- No School
January 25 -- School Improvement -- Early Dismissal

As a special holiday treat, on Friday, Dec. 16th in the afternoon, we will be watching the movie "Homeward Bound". This is an adventure story of three animals (family pets) who get lost and travel across the country to find their way home against all odds. Mrs. Linde is bringing in treats and drinks for the children as her special holiday gift to them.

Math - This week the students will collect and organize data by conducting a survey and using a frequency table. They will also interpret and construct Venn diagrams to sort, describe, and classify data, along with finding the mean, median, and mode of a set of data.

Spelling - This is a review unit of theme 2. The students will work on pages 187-189 this week. The test will be on Friday of this week.

Reading - In reading this week the students will evaluate the text. They will think about the author's writing and decide if he/she did a good job of helping them to understand the story. They will also review the strategies used throughout the theme.

English- The students will revise and edit their descriptive paragraphs. They will be sure that they have an exciting hook and closing to their paragraphs, along with colorful language-usage of similes, metaphors and descriptive language.

Social Studies - There will be a test over chapter 6 on Thursday of this week. The students should study the following:
All vocabulary
Understand all the landforms found in the Southeast (wetlands, mountains, beaches, keys, islands, piedmont,)
Understand the differences between the inner and outer coastal plains(The inner coastal plains have a slightly higher elevation than the outer coastal plains)
Understand the climate of the Southeast
Understand the purpose of the lighthouses on the coast in the past
Know the animals of the of the swamps (Everglades), and the Coastal Plain, Piedmont, and Appalachian Mountains
Know how the logging industry works and what it produces
Understand the importance of the nonrenewable resource, coal
Be able to explain what a hurricane is(a violent storm that moves in a circular path and has high winds and lots of water) and how it can be dangerous( It can lift and throw heavy objects through the air, causes flooding, damage buildings)
Know the crops that grow in the Southeast and explain why they grow so well there.
What state would you like to visit in the Southeast? Explain two reasons why?

Science We will begin a unit on the human body this week. The "Big Idea" is to stay alive, people depend on body systems that work together. Our first lesson the students will learn how the body gets oxygen and nutrients.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Dec. 5-9

2011-12-01T10:40:00.000-08:00

Dates to Remember:
Thursday, December 8 - Science test Chapter 3
Friday, December 9- bowling field trip, Math test Chapter 6
Thursday, December 15 - High Tech body systems in school field trip
Monday, December 19 - Winter Vacation begins
Tuesday, January 3- Classes resume

Our BOWLING FIELD TRIP to Brunswick Zone is scheduled for the afternoon of Friday, 12/9. Students may bring money to purchase snacks at the bowling alley. Brunswick Zone is offering a concession special: 2 slices of cheese pizza & a 16 oz. drink for $3.23 (including tax). Please keep in mind that we will be going bowling after lunch.

Thank you to all who sent in items for our Celebration of Knowledge party of Winn Dixie. We had a wonderful party with egg salad sandwiches put together with fancy toothpicks, pickles, "Dump" punch, and "Litmus Lozenges".

Math This week the students will learn how to change units of time including years, months, days, and hours. There will be a quiz over lesson 6.1-6.4 on Wednesday of this week. The students will also measure temperature and changes in temperature in degrees Fahrenheit and degrees Celsius along with identifying and naming negative numbers by using a number line and counting techniques. There will be a test over chapter 6 Time and Temperature on Friday, December 13th.
Here are a couple of games that the children may enjoy playing to help them with their telling time and elapsed time skills.

TIME CLOCK: http://www.primarygames.com/math/timeclock/start.htm

CLOCK RACER GAME: http://justkidsgames.com/play.php?ClockRacer

Spelling This week in spelling the words will have the different sounds that /or/ and /ur/ can make. Workbook pages 167-169 will be assigned and checked daily for completion. The test will be on Friday of this week.

Reading Our reading strategies for this week are questioning, categorizing and classifying. Recognizing the question a story may raise is a good way to make sure you understand it. Also, as people read they wonder about the things they are reading and they form questions in their mind. Good readers usually do this without thinking. The students will practice the questioning strategy this week. Classifying involves grouping like items, and categorizing involves naming the group. Grouping the items makes it easier to remember them. Students will also classify and categorize information in the stories they read this week.

English This week we will continue to learn about writing descriptions. The students will learn about similes and metaphors and colorful language to help them describe how things feel, taste, sound, smell, and look like. As they are doing their independent reading they should look for passages that show examples of colorful language. They can bring things they have found at home that show examples of colorful language. The students will begin writing descriptions of animals that are found in the Southeast Region.

Science In science this week we will have a test over chapter 3, Adaptations, on Thursday of this week.

The students should know:
All vocabulary
Study the sheets in their folders
Know the stages in the life cycle of a tree and why each stage is important (see their folder for the picture of this that they drew)
What can scientists learn about animal fossils
Understand what will happen to animal or plant populations if their habitat has changed in some way. What will happen if their basic needs have not been met?
Understand learned behavior and know examples of a few
Understand what happens during hibernation
Know animals meet their basic needs
Know the behavioral and the physical adaptations animals have to survive
Know some extinct animals and plants (see pictures of extinct animals and plants that we drew in class)
Know how and why animals adapt (give examples)
Know how plants meet their basic needs

Social Studies Ask your children what a hurricane is and what the effects of a hurricane can be. (It is a violent storm with strong wind and heavy rains. It can cause flooding, and send large objects flying through the air. It can uproot trees and damage buildings.) The students will also learn about the wildlife and the resources of the Southeast Region.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's room November 21-Dec. 1

2011-11-18T15:42:00.000-08:00

Dates to Remember:
November 23 -25 No School/Thanksgiving Break

November 28-Dec. 2 Conferences
Dec. 1 Celebration of Knowledge party for Winn Dixie
Dec. 2 - No School/Conferences

Math There will be a test over chapter five on Tuesday of this week. That grade will go on Trimester 2's report card. We will begin a new chapter on Time and Temperature. The students will estimate and tell time to the nearest minute and second. They will calculate elapsed time on clocks and calendars. Also, they will change units of time including years, months, days, hours, minutes, and seconds. I will continue to give timed fact tests. They will be tested on their division through 5's on Dec. 1.

Spelling There will be no spelling this week. Next week we study words with the r controlled sounds of ar and er. They will have to complete a spelling page or activity each day. The workbook pages are 152-154. There will be a test on December 1.

Reading - Over the next couple of weeks we will be reviewing the skills that we have gone over since the beginning of the year. The students will also work on summarizing and making generalizations. In writing summaries, the students will learn to pick out the main points or events of a story or passage and concisely put them in their own words. In making generalizations the students will learn that generalizations are broad statements that are true most of the time, and are based on fact or good reasons, and may include words like always or most.

We will finish up Winn Dixie. The students will do a Reader's Theater with it. Our Celebration of Knowledge Party will be on Thursday, Dec. 1. Some of the students have volunteered to send in an item for the party. They have marked it on a sheet in their folders. Please send the sheet back if you can or can not send the item in. Thank you so much for your help.

English- We will begin a descriptive writing unit this week. The students will learn to write using similes and metaphors. They will understand what colorful language is. They will understand that this is language that helps you visualize the writer's thoughts and puts pictures in your minds They will find this colorful language in the books that they read. They should bring in any examples they can find in magazines or books that they read from home.

Science - This week and next the students will learn how the behavior of animals help them to meet their needs. They will learn about instincts and learned behaviors and how they help animals survive.

Social Studies - There is a map test on Tuesday of the Southeast. The students will learn how the barrier islands are formed and compare and contrast the elevations in the Southeast. They will describe the climate of the Southeast and examine hurricanes there.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Nov. 14-18

2011-11-09T15:19:00.000-08:00

Dates to Remember:
November 23, 24, 25 -- Thanksgiving Holiday -- No School
November 28 - permission slips for the movie Because of Winn Dixie due in
December 1 - Celebration of knowledge party in the a.m. in class
December 2 -- Parent/Teacher Conferences -- No School

Math - This week in math the students will use the strategy predict and test. Sometimes you can make an educated prediction to solve a problem and then test your prediction to see whether it fits the probable conditions. It is a good strategy to use when one condition depends on another. They will also write, solve, and graph inequalities that include variables. A test is planned for Tuesday, November 22 over chapter 5.

Spelling The students will be working with words that have the different sounds of 00 in them-wood and roof. They will be working on workbook pages 137-139. There will be a test on Friday of this week.

Reading -This week, we will once again focus on the reading strategy of making inferences. Authors do not always tell the reader everything. They may give clues instead. The reader must use the clues and their own knowledge to make inferences about people and events.

We will finish reading Winn Dixie this week. There will be a vocabulary quiz on Thursday. We made a T chart with the vocabulary words so that they can use that as a study tool. They should know the definitions of the words as well as being able to write the words in a good sentence. They should practice writing good sentences.

English - This week the students will work on writing titles correctly. They will review using quotation marks correctly and writing with commas. There will be a test over unit 5 on Wednesday of this week. There will be homework each night to help your child review the skills.

Social Studies - We will begin a unit on the Southeast Region. The students will identify and describe the different landforms in the Southeast. Their colored map will be due on Tuesday, November 22, and they will have a map quiz on that day as well.

Science - In science this week, the students will distinguish between learned behaviors and instinctive behaviors. They will understand how behaviors of animals help them to meet their needs.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Nov. 7-11

2011-11-04T05:49:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:

Monday, November 7 - All School Roller Skating Party - 3:45 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.All students attending the roller skating party need to check in at 3:45 to get their hands stamped before
Friday, November 11 - No School/Veteran's Day
Friday, November 18 - End of the First Trimester
PBIS & PTO Power Paws Community Service Project - 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. PV-Gym
Wednesday, November 23 thru Friday, November 25 -No School/Thanksgiving Break
Monday, November 28, thru Thursday, December 1,Parent/Teacher Conferences Begin
Tuesday, November 29 - Report Card Issued Online
Wednesday, November 30 - Late Night Parent/Teacher Conference 3:05 to 7:30 p.m.
Friday, December 2 - No School - Parent/Teacher Conferences

Math - This week in math the students will write, evaluate, and solve multiplication and division sentences. They will use the order of operations to find the value of expressions. There will be a fact test on Thursday over all the facts. The students should be working on them all week. It is so important for them to know their facts as we move into problems that have a higher level of difficulty.

Spelling - In spelling this week the students will be working with words that have the sounds of ou and ow. There will be a test on Thursday of this week since there is no school on Friday.

Reading - This week, we will focus on the reading comprehension skill known as sequence of events. Recognizing the order of events in a story makes it easier to understand the story. Clue words such as first, later, then, and finally signal sequence.

We will continue to read Winn Dixie. There will be a vocabulary and comprehension quiz over chapters 11-26 on Thursday, November 17. The vocabulary words will go home at the beginning of the week. They should begin to study now so that by test time, it will just be a simple review.

English - The students will work on using commas in sentences correctly. They will identify quotations in sentences and use quotation marks before and after a direct quotation, and they will understand the difference between a direct and indirect quotation. There will be a test over chapter 5 on Wednesday, November 16th.

Science - We will begin a new unit this week. The essential question is How do the bodies of animals help them meet their needs? What are the basic needs of living things? (food, water, air, and shelter) How do adaptations help living things meet their needs? (They needs certain adaptations to survive: body parts and behavior )

Social Studies - This week in social studies the students will show their knowledge of the Narragansett culture by drawing a picture showing specific items of their culture in it.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Oct. 31-November 4

2011-10-27T13:32:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:
Thursday, November 3 - Picture Retake Day
Monday, November 7 -All School Roller Skating Party - 3:45 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Friday, November 11 -No School/Veteran's Day
Wednesday, November 23 -Friday, November 25 No School/Thanksgiving Break
Monday, November 28, - Thursday, December 1-Parent/Teacher Conferences Begin

Math - There will be a math test on Friday of this week over chapter 4. The students should bring their books home and study the lessons in the chapter as well as the worksheets that they have in their binders. I encourage the students to use the break apart method if they do not have their 6, 7, 8, and 9 facts memorized yet. For example: 8 x 7 break it up into 8 x 5 = 40 and 8 x 2 = 16 then add the two answers. If they are doing division of higher numbers and do not know their facts yet, I encourage them to use subtraction to get to their answer. For example: 63 divided by 9 keep subtracting 9 until you get to 0. Then add up the 9 that you subtracted and that is your answer. Hopefully they will see that if they memorize their facts it is much easier than having to do the other methods, but at least they have a strategy to use if they don't know their facts. Please look in their folders for the results of their 1-5 review of concepts. This will help them know which skills they need to focus on too.

Spelling - The word patterns for this week are short and long vowel sounds. The students should be able to recognize the signs for the long and short vowel sounds. The pages for the week are 99-101. If they pass out of the pretest, then they will work on alternate activities assigned each day.

English - This week in English we will work on abbreviations and using commas correctly. There will be an abbreviations quiz on Friday of this week. The students should know the abbreviations for the following words: Mister, (Mr.) Junior (Jr.), Senior (Sr.), Doctor (Dr.), married woman (Mrs.), any woman (Ms.), Road (Rd.) Street (St.) , Avenue (Ave.) , Boulevard (Blvd.) , Company (Co.), Post Office (P.O.) , Illinois ( IL), all the days of the week and all the months. They should start making note cards now to help them study.

Reading - We will continue to work with making predictions and inferences this week as we read our book Because of Winn Dixie. There will be a vocabulary and comprehension quiz on Wednesday of the week over chapters 1-10. The vocabulary words have been sent home for the students to study. The should know the definitions as they were used in the story, and be able to write the words in a good sentences .They should reread some of the chapters to be sure they understand the main events that have happened so far.

Social Studies - This week we will learn the culture of the Native Americans who once lived in the Northeast Region, the Narragansett and the Iroquois. The students will learn and understand how their life changed after the Europeans moved in.

Science - The students will learn about the life cycles of animals. They will order and describe the stages of an animal's life cycle. They will describe how some animals grow and develop. There will be an open book quiz on Thursday of this week on chapter 2 lesson 3.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Class October 24-28

2011-10-21T15:03:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:
Thursday, October 27, Early Dismissal 11:00 a.m.

Friday, October 28 Halloween Parade Starts 1:00 p.m. Halloween Parties - 1:30 p.m.
Bingo Night 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. Multipurpose Room

Math- Thank you for helping your child review and practice their facts. This week in math the students should review their square's, 2's and 5's. They should practice their 3's, and 4's this week. I will be giving a fact test to review all of these facts on Friday. The students will understand and apply the properties of multiplication. They will work with multiples, and be able to solve division and multiplication problems. A test is planned for Wednesday, November 3 over chapter 4.

Spelling - This week is a review of the words we have had so far. The students should be working on workbook pages 87-89 throughout the week. They will be due on Friday. There will be a test on Friday. I will give a pretest on Monday. Those students who pass will do an alternate list and have alternate activities for the week.

Reading - This week in reading we will review the skills that have been taught so far. We will concentrate on making predictions, and noting details as we read our book Because of Winn Dixie.

English - In English this week, we will begin a review unit on capitalization and punctuation. The students will review the different kinds of sentences and how to punctuate them. They will also review capitalizations of proper nouns.

Social Studies The test over chapter 5 is now on Wednesday of this week. The children should know:
All vocabulary
location of Niagara Falls
The importance of Niagara Falls to the Northeast
What Mountain ranges make up the Appalachian Mountains
What NE state does not share a border with the Atlantic Ocean
The largest Finger Lake
What conditions do grapes need to grow? (see sheet in folder)
What are the coastlines like from Maine to New Jersey?
two Challenges that threaten the fish population in Chesapeake Bay
What are ways that people of Chesapeake Bay can help save the Bay?
Which State in the Northeast Region would you like to live in? Give two reasons why you would like to live there.

Science - In science this week the students will learn about the life cycle of a plant. They will understand pollination and its importance in the life cycle of a plant. You may want to ask your child to explain photosynthesis to you.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room October 17-21

2011-10-13T15:22:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:

Thursday, October 27, Early Dismissal 11:00 a.m.
Friday, October 28, Halloween Parade Starts 1:00 p.m. Halloween Parties - 1:30 p.m.

Math This week in math we will begin a new unit on multiplication. The students will relate repeated multiplication to addition and repeated subtraction to division. They will use the inverse relationships between multiplication and division. They should be reviewing their multiplication facts 0-12. I will give a mixed review 2 minute fact test to see who knows their facts already on Monday. I will be sending home sheets daily for them to practice their facts. There will be fact quizzes throughout the week. Next week they should know their 2's, squares, (2x2, 3x3 up to 12 x 12 ) and 5's.

Spelling This week the students will be working on homophones. Homophones are words that sound alike but have different meanings and are spelled differently. There will be a test on Friday and workbook pages 67-69 will be assigned. If the students passed out of their pretest then they will do the activities assigned.

Reading In reading this week, the students will focus on noting details in a story. They will learn that details may give information, explain ideas, and reveal characters' feelings. They will also work on the Question comprehension strategy. Good readers ask themselves questions about important ideas as they read. The students will practice asking questions about the text that can be answered as they read the text and finish the story.

We will apply the skills we are learning as we read the book Because of Winn-Dixie.

English- There will be an English test on Wednesday, October 19 over chapter 2, Nouns.
The students should use the end of the chapter reviews to help them study for the test.

Science - The children will learn about the life cycles of some plants this week. We will conduct and Investigate t find out if seeds need water to sprout. Throughout the week we will record our observations on a chart. What process do plants use to make food, using energy from the sun? The students will understand this process of photosynthesis.

Social Studies - The students will understand where some of the resources come from in the Northeast and the products that are made from them.

There will be a test over chapter 4 Land and Water of the Northeast on Tuesday, October 25th.

We will have a resource day on Thursday. Would any parent like to volunteer to bring in pancakes for the class? Since Maple syrup comes from Vermont, we will eat pancakes with real maple syrup. We also, need 1 can of jellied cranberries. Cranberries come from South Carver, Massachusetts. The third thing we need is crab sticks, which we will cut into little pieces for a taste. Crab is just one kind of seafood that is fished from Chesapeake Bay.
Please let me know if you can bring in anything and which item you would like to bring in.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Oct. 3-7

2011-09-28T15:09:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:
Monday, October 10 - No School/Columbus Day
Tuesday, October 11, 2011 No School/Teacher Institute

Math -This week in math we will review the addition properties and writing and evaluating addition and subtraction expressions (lesson 3.1 and 3.2). They will write and solve addition and subtraction equations, and they will solve problems using the work backward strategy. The students will practice writing explanations on how they solved their problems. They may need some extra help with explaining what they did and why they solved the problem the way they did.

Spelling - This week in spelling the students will be working with words that have the short "u" as in brush/ "yoo" as in juice/ "oo" as in threw. Workbook pages 52-54 will be due on Friday, unless your child is in the pretest group, and then they should be ready to turn in their activities for the week. There will be a test on Friday.

Reading This week in reading our story is “Finding the Titanic” by Robert D. Ballard.The reading strategy that we will focus on is text organization.Many non-fiction authors organize their selections in time order.They also use features such as headings, pictures, captions, and charts to help the reader better understand the information.

English The students will practice writing with nouns. They will learn to combine two short sentences with the same predicate to create a sentence with a compound subject. They will also identify singular and plural nouns, and write plural nouns correctly.

Social Studies -The students will have homework to color a map of the Northeast Region, which will be due on Wednesday. It is very important that they follow the checklist they are given to be sure that they include all they need in their map and color it correctly. This is a homework assignment that will be graded. They will then take a map quiz on Thursday. They will have to place all the states and bodies of water correctly a map. If they can spell all the words correctly, they will earn an extra point. If they learn all their capitals, they will earn 2 extra points. So they could earn a total of 3 extra points for this quiz.

Science - The following concepts will be covered over the next couple of weeks. How are animals classified? with backbones (vertebrates) without backbones (invertebrates) What are the five groups of vertebrates? Can you tell some facts about each group? (fish,mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles) What are some of the groups of invertebrates? (sponges, mollusks, worms, arthropods) Which is the largest group of invertebrates? ( arthropods- these are insects, crustaceans, and spiders)

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 26-Sept. 30

2011-09-23T14:23:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:

Tuesday, Sept. 27 - 2nd Magazine turn in day
Thursday, Sept. 29 - Picture Day; 3rd magazine turn in day
Friday, Sept. 30 - Early Dismissal, 11:00 a.m.
Mon. 10/10 - No school; Columbus Day
Tues. 10/11 - No school; Teacher Institute

Math This week in math the student will work on the problem solving skill deciding whether they should give an estimate or an exact answer. They will also add and subtract 3 & 4 digit numbers with regrouping. This would be a good time to review their basic addition and subtraction facts. There will be a test on Thursday over the skills in chapter 2.

Spelling This week the pattern is long and short i and long and short o. They should work on w.b. pages 37-39 throughout the week. If they passed the pretest, they will work on different activities.

ReadingWe will focus on the reading strategy, author's viewpoint. Author's viewpoint refers to the author's opinion, ideas of what is important or attitude. The author might give their opinion directly or you might have to infer the information by reading clues or other information that the author provides. Here is a great link to practice author’s viewpoint: http://www.studyzone.org/testprep/ela4//authorsviewpointp.cfm

English - In English this week, we will begin a unit on nouns. The students will learn what a noun is and distinguish proper nouns from common nouns.

Science - This week in science we will begin a new unit on classifying plants and animals. The students will observe the function of a plant stem and describe the structures of vascular and non vascular plants as well as fungi.

Social Studies We will have a test over chapter 2 lesson 3 & 4.
The students should:
study all vocabulary
study the main concepts in the book
know the three levels of government
know the three branches of government, where they are housed, who makes up that branch, and their roll or main job
know at least 3 responsibilities of the U.S. citizens
Know what their responsibility as a child is to be a good citizen
study the sheets/the patriotic quest is important
understand why people should vote
understand why people pay taxes

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 19-23

2011-09-15T12:58:00.001-07:00

Things to Remember:
Tuesday, Sept. 20 - 1st Magazine turn in day
Tuesday, Sept. 27 - 2nd Magazine turn in day
Thursday, Sept. 29 - Picture Day; Final Magazine turn in day
Friday, Sept. 30 - Early Dismissal 11:00 a.m.

Math- We will begin a new chapter this week. The students will understand and use the inverse relationship between addition and subtraction to solve problems. They will also round whole numbers through millions. On Wednesday ask them to tell you about the "nosy neighbor" and how that can help them round numbers. Estimating sums and differences will also be covered.

Spelling This week will be a review week of words the students have already had. The test will be on Friday. They will get a list of activities they need to finish each day in their spelling journal. They will be asked to turn in one of those activities on Friday. I will be looking for proper spelling, capitalization, and end marks in the activities they accomplish.

Reading- This week, we will continue to focus on story structure. The children will also explore character and setting in depth. When your child is reading at home, you can practice and review story structure by asking them to identify characters, setting, and plot (which includes the problem, sequenced events, and the solution).

English - The English test has been moved to Thursday. Understanding the complete and simple subject and predicate is very difficult. Any extra help that you can give your child with this will help them a lot. Look for homework to come home to help them practice.

Science - There will be a test over the scientific method on Wednesday of next week. They will need to know the steps of the scientific method and be able to give examples of each step. They can look in their folder at past sheets that we have filled out.

The children have been very busy investigating their worms. After the weekend, your child may need to bring in a new worm. They will let you know if they think that they will need a new one.

Last Friday they were given an assignment to make a worm track for our worm races. The students will need to follow the guidelines on a sheet to make their track. Tracks will be graded based on the accuracy of those guideline. Did they follow the directions carefully? These tracks will be due on Thursday of this week. We will have our worm races on Thursday.

Social Studies This week the students will learn about our Constitutional Rights. They will identify two ways that a person can become a citizen of the U.S. They will identify three types of services that are paid for by taxes, and three responsibilities of U.S. citizens.

There will be a test in Social Studies on Tuesday, September 27. It will cover the information from Chapter 2 only lessons 2 & 3. The students should be sure to review the vocabulary and the important review questions from each section. There are very important papers to go over in their social studies folder: The Social Studies Quest 1, 2, 3, and 4 and Review of lesson 3 sheet. It will be very important for them to know the things on these sheets.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 12-16

2011-09-08T14:37:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:
Monday, September 12, Magazine Kick-Off - 1:15 p.m. gym
Tuesday, September 13, Beginning Band Sign-Up - 3:00 to 8:00 p.m. - Band Room
Wednesday, September 14, Beginning Band Sign-Up - 3:00 to 8:00 p.m. - Band Room
Friday September 30 - Early Dismissal

Math There will be a test over unit 1 on Friday of this week.The students should bring their books home to study. I will also send home a pretest so they can get a look at what their real test will look like. They should also look over the sheets in their math folders for a review.

Spelling - This week the pattern is long and short "a" and "e". A pretest will be given on Monday. Test on Friday. Any assistance you can give your child with writing their cursive letters correctly would be very helpful.

Reading - This week, we will focus on story structure. We will use a story map to look at how a problem and its solution affect the story’s plot and characters. When your child is reading at home, you can practice and review story structure by asking them to identify characters, setting, and plot (which includes the problem, sequenced events, and the solution).

English The students will learn about the subject and predicate of a sentence and simple subject and simple predicates of a sentence. They will identify and edit run-on sentences. There will be a DOL quiz on Tuesday of this week. A review will be sent home on Monday. There will be a test over unit 1 The Sentence on Tuesday of next week. The students will have homework throughout the week to help them review the concepts of this unit.

Science- We will begin our worm unit this week on Tuesday, so the kids should bring in their worms and habitats on Tuesday. As we progress through our worm unit the students will continue to learn about the scientific method.

Social Studies - This week the children will learn about the three branches of government. They will understand the role of each branch and where they are housed.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 5-9

2011-09-02T13:00:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, September 5, No School/Labor Day
Tuesday, September 6, Fourth and Fifth Grade Curriculum Night - Parents Only - 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Monday, September 7, Beginning Band Parent Meeting - 7:00 p.m. - Multi-Purpose Room
Tuesday-Wed. September 13-14 Beginning Band Sign up from 3:00-8:00 p.m

Math - Mrs. Cavoto's Class
This week we will review reading, writing, and identifying the place value of numbers through millions. The students will also compare and order numbers through millions.

Spelling - This week in spelling we will continue to work on commonly misspelled words. The pretest for this lesson will be given on Tuesday, 9/7. Students that score 95% or better on the pretest will receive a different list of spelling words for the week with 10 words on it. They will do specific activities to go with those words. They may choose to take the spelling test with their new words and earn extra points on their grade, or they may elect not to take it.

A test will be given on Friday for those students who do not score 95% or better and during this week they will be given activities to do with their 20 words. A sheet will come home with the activities for each day explaining them. All activities are due on Friday. The test will be on Friday unless there is no school, and then we will have it on Thursday.

Reading This week in reading the students will learn to use skimming and scanning skills to locate answers. During science, social studies, and reading, the students will be given tasks where they have to locate answers in the text. They will practice highlighting key words in questions or clues, and then skim the headlines, subtitles, captions, and passages to help them find the answers to those questions.

English - This week in English we will continue to work on Sentences. There will be a DOL quiz on Friday. This quiz will cover capitalization and end marks in the different kinds of sentences (commands, questions, statements, exclamations). I will give them sentences that need to be edited and they will need to edit them.

Social Studies - We will continue to study U.S. Government and they will work on their "Patriotic Quest" for lesson 2.

Science - Students will understand the steps of the Scientific Method. We will prepare for our worm unit. They should be thinking of a good spot to find a nice juicy worm that they can bring into class. I will let the children know when they should bring them in. More information will follow.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room August. 29-Sept. 2

2011-08-25T15:56:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:
Friday, September 2 Intramural sheets due to Mrs. Cushing
Monday, September 5 No School/Labor Day
Tuesday September 6 Fourth and Fifth Grade Curriculum Night - Parents Only - 7:00 p.m. in the multi- purpose room
Wednesday, September 7 Beginning Band Parent Meeting - 7:00 p.m. - Multi-Purpose Room
Welcome to Fourth Grade! Please feel free to e-mail me with any questions you may have.

Math - We will begin the year with understanding place value. The students will model, read, write, and identify the place value of whole numbers through millions. They will understand that the position of the digit determines its value. They will also compare numbers through millions. They will know how to write the expanded form, standard form, and written form of a number into the millions.

If you need to know how a skill has been taught in class, you can refer to their math binder. Please keep all papers in their math binder. We will clean them out at the end of a the chapter together. They should only take out the papers that are in the take home side of the binder.

Spelling Each student will be given a pretest on Monday. A list will go home in their spelling binder each Monday with the new word pattern. Every day they will be given a homework assignment to complete at home. Tests will be given on Friday. If it is a short week then the test will be on Thursday. No tests will be given on a three day week. Please see the sheet that will come home on Monday of this week explaining the spelling program.

English - This week the students will review what a sentence is and the different kinds of sentences. (statements, questions, exclamations, and commands) They will practice writing sentences correctly during Daily Oral Language (DOL).

Reading This week in reading the students will review and practice their reading strategies as they read the story The Pumpkin Runner by Marsha Diane Arnold. The reading strategies that we will focus on are : preview/infer, phonics/decoding, question, monitor/clarify, summarize, and evaluate.

Science- In science this we the students will participated in a textbook scavenger hunt. This will help them become familiar with the different parts of their book. They will learn the tools of inquiry which they will be using throughout the year and safety rules they will need to follow when participating in science class.
The children will also be working on the study skill of locating answers. They will learn how to find clue words that they can use to help them skim for answers in the titles, subtitles, captions, and highlighted words, as well as the paragraphs.

Social Studies We will begin a U.S. government unit this week. The students will understand what the Constitution is and why it is important. They will identify the three levels of government.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 31-June7th

2011-05-27T09:20:00.000-07:00

Weekly Reminders:

*No school on Monday.
*Talent show Tuesday, 1:00-2:00

*"We're Bowling" Wednesday - Fourth grade bowling trip in afternoon.

*"Take it Easy" Thursday - Bring a board game to school. 4th grade talent show 12:20-1:00

*"Film Festival" Friday - We will sit back and enjoy a film.

*Last day of math and reading on Friday.

*"We Made It" Monday, June 6 - All-school picnic & Sky Dogz assembly.

*"That's All Folks" Tuesday, June 7 - Report cards and yearbooks issued.

On Film Festival Friday we are in need of popcorn and a drink. Would anyone like to volunteer to make popcorn or send in Capri Suns? Just send me an e-mail if you can, and I will get back to you. Thank you.

I want to thank the parents and students who participated in the Walk for Japan. It was wonderful to see so many families coming together for such a great cause.

American Red Cross for Japan:

The raffle for Japan has just begun. A letter was sent home on Wednesday, with the list of raffle items and raffle tickets. If you wish to participate, just fill in the tickets, put them in an envelope with the money, and return it to your classroom teacher. All tickets must be turned in by June 3rd. We will have the raffle at the all school assembly on June 6th. Thank you so much for your support.

Spelling - We have finished our spelling units for the year.

Reading - As we wrap up reading class for the 2010-2011 school year, we will review all the strategies we have covered. Friday will be our last day of reading.

We will watch the movie Charlotte's Web and compare and contrast the book to the movie.

Math - We will continue to work with fractions this week. The students will review equivalent fractions and reducing fractions to their lowest forms. Please continue to help your child with this skill. Over the summer, please continue to work on multiplication and division facts. This is very important for them to be successful next year. Thank you for all of your support this year in helping your child with fourth grade math.

Social Studies - The students will learn about the states in the West. They will choose a state in the West to do research and create a poster with their information.

Science - This week in science we will compare particle sizes in different types of soils and describe what soil is-how it forms and how soils differ.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 22-May 27

2011-05-20T14:16:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Mon. 5/30 - Memorial Day - No school
Wed. 6/1 - 4th grade bowling
Sat. 6/4 - Market Day
Mon. 6/6 - Picnic and Sky Dogz assembly
Tues. 6/7 - Last day of school;dismissal @ 9:30

Don't forget about our 2 Mile Walk for Japan. I am excited that there are so many students and parents from class participating. I look forward to seeing everyone. Remember if you want to go, but haven't signed up, you can come and pay when you get here.

Math - This week in math we will continue to work with fractions. The students will review how to find equivalent fractions and to reduce fractions to their lowest form. They will compare and order fractions with like denominators. The students should be prepared for a test over these skills in chapter 15 on Thursday of this week.

Spelling - This week the pattern to look for is the schwa sounds in the final part of the word. The students will have a pretest on Monday and final test on Friday. The pages to work on for the week are pages 237-239.

Reading - Next week, in addition to reviewing all reading strategies, students will be focusing on identifying the elements of fantasy and realism. Students will learn that fantasy involves events that could not happen in real life, and that realism involves events that could happen or that have happened in the past.

We will continue to read Charlotte's Web this week. There will be a vocab/comp. test on Thursday of this week. More information will come home with your child.

English There will be a test over pronouns on Wednesday of this week.

Science The students will learn about the rock cycle. They will learn about Sedentary and Metamorphic rocks this week. They will identify their own rocks.

Social Studies The students will review the early culture of the Navajo, They will illustrate how they made a living, what their homes were like and how they were governed.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 16-20

2011-05-13T12:16:00.000-07:00

Things to remember:
Tues. 5/17 - 4th grade band concert;7:00 pm
Mon. 5/30 - Memorial Day - No school
Wed. 6/1 - 4th grade bowling
Sat. 6/4 - Market Day
Mon. 6/6 - Picnic and Sky Dogz assembly
Tues. 6/7 - Last day of school;
dismissal @ 9:30

Don’t forget to sign up for the 2 mile Walk Day on Tuesday, May 24^th at Prairieview School. All proceeds from the event will go to the American Red Cross to help the victims of the earthquake in Japan. There will also be a raffle to help raise money for the cause, and any donations would be appreciated. (gift cards, sport items, games, services, small goodies). Anyone who would like to volunteer on May 24^th, please e-mail Mrs. Cavoto ccavoto@ccsd66.org or Mrs. Sulima Ssulima@ccsd66.org to let them know.

Math This week in math we will have a quiz over diving 2 digit numbers with one digit numbers with and without remainders on Tuesday, May 17. This is lesson 11.1 and 11.3 in their textbook. Any help you can give your child is greatly appreciate. I will let them use their fact chart for this, but they have to know the steps in long division.

Reading - Next week we will focus on the reading target skill of comparing and contrasting. Comparing means showing similarities. Contrasting means showing differences. By comparing and
contrasting one thing with another, readers can remember more of the information.

Spelling - Next week our words will be a review. The pre-test will be on Monday and the test on Friday.

English- This week we will continue working with pronouns. The students will use I and me correctly. They will also use and write singular and possessive pronouns correctly in sentences. A test is planned for Tuesday, May 24 over pronouns.

Science - The students will review how to identify minerals next week. They will then be given minerals to identify. They will understand and identify the different types of rocks: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic. We will have rock day on Wednesday of this week. The students should bring in a rock that they find in the yard or at the park.

Social Studies - The students will study the culture of the Navajo people. They will describe the "Long Walk" and they will understand how the Navajo Council governs th Navajo Nation.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 9 - May 13

2011-05-05T13:32:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Fri. 5/13 - Early Dismissal @ 11:00
Wed. 6/1 - 4th grade bowling
Mon. 6/6 - Picnic
Tues. 6/7 - Last day of school;
dismissal @ 9:30

I have some disposable cameras that I need volunteers to have developed. I
have taken pictures of your children throughout the year, for their end-of-
the-year memory books. If you are willing to have one developed, please email me. Thank you.

Math - This week in math we will begin chapter 11. The students will review division and then they will learn to divide with remainders and divide with two digit by one digit. Any help you can give your children with this would be greatly appreciated.

Spelling - No spelling this week

Reading - Our focus in reading this week is on the reading strategy of monitor/clarify. Students should monitor how well they understand a story. If they don't understand something, they can reread or read ahead for help.

We will practice this strategy as we are reading our new Book Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. Since there are many new vocabulary words in this story, the students will be encouraged to use the context to help them understand the meaning. They will be doing vocabulary activities to help them build their "word power".

English - We will continue our unit on pronouns. The students will understand and identify subject and object pronouns. They will also practice writing with pronouns.

Science - We will have a test this week over chapter 17, Simple Machines. The students should study: All sheets in their folder, use their textbook and be sure to understand the main concepts from each lesson, answer the questions at the end of the chapter to help review.

They should know:
All vocabulary
How scientists define work
Understand how a wheel and an axle work together to be a simple machine
Know the six simple machines and what they are made up of
Which simple machine does not change the direction of the force
What simple machine would you use to pry something off of something else
What simple machines would you use to help you lift and move heavy things from one place to another

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 2-6

2011-04-29T06:43:00.000-07:00

Things to Rememeber:
May 13 Early Dismissal
May 16 All School Concert at 9:00
May 17 Fourth Grade Beginning Band Concert at 7:00 on at Lakeview.

The students may buy Life Saving Grams to help the people of Japan. Information went home with them today. This benefit begins on Monday and goes through May 25. Send a Life Saving Gram today! If you want more grams to send out, you can print them from the Prairieview website or just ask a teacher. Thank you!

Math - This week in math the students will multiply 3 and 4 digit numbers and money. The students will learn multiplying numbers with zeros and multiples of 10, 100, and 1,000. There will be a test over chapter 9 and lesson 10.1 on Friday of this week. There will be a fact timed test for all students on Thursday. They should be studying their facts. They will not be able to use a calculator on this test.

Spelling - This week the spelling words will have silent consonants. If you pass the spelling pretest with a score of 19 out of 20 points or higher, you do not have to complete the workbook activities. You will need to work on alternative activities from the sheet given to you by your teacher using your 10 alternate words. You may take a final test over your new words to earn 2 extra points to your grade.

Reading Our reading strategy for next week is making inferences. Readers must make inferences, or "read between the lines,"when an author doesn't tell the reader everything. Readers can do this by applying what they already know to story clues given by the author.

English We will begin a unit on pronouns this week. The students will identify pronouns in sentences and distinguish between singular and plural pronouns.

Social Studies This week the students will identify a nonrenewable resource in the Southwest. They will describe how the technology of the Southwest has impacted the United States. There will be a test covering the Southwest land and resources chapter 10 on Friday of this week.

The students should know:
All vocabulary
All key concepts from the lessons
How the Grand Canyon was formed
Understand the role of erosion in the continued formation of the Grand Canyon
Why is the Grand Canyon a national park
Why do people visit the Grand Canyon today?
What is the climate like in the Southwest Region
How does the Saguaro adapt to life in the desert?
How does the Saguaro help the animals of the desert and how do they help it?
What is a nonrenewable resource? Give example of the one very important one found in the Southwest.
What technology industries exist in the Southwest?
Nuclear energy and laboratories are in in what Southwest state?
Very Large Array?

Science The students will investigate inclined planes. They will explain how a screw and wedge change the way work is done. They will make their own screws. There will be a test over simple machines chapter 17th on Tuesday, May 10.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 25-29

2011-04-21T11:51:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Tues. 4/26 MAP testing
Thurs. 4/28 - Family Reading Night
Fri.4/29 - MAP testing
Fri. 5/13 - Early Dismissal @ 11:00

Please remember to send in your
Box Tops! The final collection is
April 29th.

Math This week in math the students will be estimating products of two, three, and four digit by 1 digit multiplication and then finding the product. There will be a test on Tuesday, May 1 over chapter 9 and lesson 10-1.

Spelling This week the students will work with words that have unusual spellings. There will be a test on Friday of this week. Workbook pages 213-215 are due on Friday. Those students who pass the pretest may take the final test on their words for extra points. They will have activities assigned for each day of the week to work on.

Reading Our reading target for the week is to identify topic, main idea, and supporting details. Topic is what the whole text is about. The main ideas are important points about each topic. Each paragraph can have its own main idea. Supporting details are facts and examples that support each main idea.

The students will finish reading Earthquake Terror this week. There will be a vocabulary test on Friday of this week. The students will make their vocabulary word list on Monday and those will be the words they are tested on. They should be able to write the word in a good sentence so that I can tell that they have a good understanding of the meaning of the word without it being a definition. They should also know the definition of the words and be able to complete sentences using their words correctly.

English In English there will be a test covering adverbs on Friday of this week. The students will have homework through the week to help them review the skills in chapter 7.

Science - The students will learn about the pulley and the wheel and axle. How do these simple machines help people do work?

Social Studies - The students will learn about the history of the Grand Canyon and the people of the Canyon- the Anasazi, Pueblo, and Havasupai. They will also understand why the Spanish explorers came to the Grand Canyon.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 18-22

2011-04-15T09:52:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:

April 21 - Early Dismissal - Students dismissed at 11:00

April 22 - No school

Math We will have a test over chapter 24, probability on Wednesday of this week. They should study the worksheets in their binders and bring home their math books to study the extra practice in their textbooks. They should be studying their multiplication facts also. This week there will be a time test on Thursday. We will begin a chapter of multiplication of higher numbers.

Spelling This week the students will be working with three syllable words. They will need to work on pages 193-195 throughout the week. They are due on Thursday of this week. If they passed out of the words on the list with no more than one wrong, then they will need to do the activities assigned on the activity sheet in their binders.

Reading - This week in reading, we will be focusing on two important skills: following directions & summarizing. When reading a passage that describes how to complete a task, readers should look for clue words such as first, next and finally to clarify the order of steps. They also must understand that steps must be followed in the correct order in order to complete the task. Summarizing involves retelling a story in your own words, and including only the most important events. All students will study these skills using appropriate instructional-level materials.

We will continue to read Earthquake Terror and work on journal questions which reinforce the skills above.

Language We will continue our work with adverbs. The students will practice using the words good and well, and they understand how to use negatives correctly in a sentence.

Science The essential question this week is "How do Simple Machines Help People do Work?" The students will investigate levers. They will define work and simple machines and explain how a lever changes the way work is done.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 11-15

2011-04-08T06:41:00.001-07:00

Things to Remember: April 14 - Prairieview Open House/Book Fair - 6:30-8:00 p.m. April 21 - Early Dismissal - 11:00 a.m. April 22 - No school April 12 - all fourth grade students will be taking the OLSAT (Otis-Lennon School Ability Test) test. This test is designed to measure abstract thinking and reasoning ability. Please make sure that your child eats breakfast & comes to school well rested that day.

Math - On Wednesday, April 13, there will be a test on chapter 23 perimeter, area, and volume. There are many papers in their folder that they can use as study tools. The students should review these skills at home. We will also review possible outcomes. They will express probability as a fraction and find all possible combinations and arrangements in probability situations.

Spelling: This week in spelling the pattern continues words with the Vowel Consonant Vowel pattern. (VCV). The assigned workbook pages for the week are pages 175-177. Those students who pass the pretest with no more than 1 wrong will do the assigned activities for the week. (They do not have to do the workbook pages.) They can earn extra points on their grade if they take the test on their new words at the end. Reading: This week in reading our class will also be reading Earthquake Terror By Peg Kehret. We will practice the reading strategies that have been learned since the beginning of the year. We will also focus on understanding different genres, specifically pourquoi tales. Pourquoi is a French word meaning "why". Pourquoi tales are stories that tell how, long ago, something in nature came to be. Often times these tales contain animals or natural forces that speak or have personalities. English The students will continue to work with expository writing. They will focus on organizing their writing and using different kinds of supporting details to elaborate their ideas with. They will finish working with a partner to write an expository essay on what they would do with a robot if they had one. They will then write an essay on their own telling about their own personal hero. Science Science projects are due on Tuesday of this week. They should be prepared to give an oral presentation of their invention. We will go over how to do that in class, but they need to prepare and practice it at home They will be given an oral presentation grade in English on it. We will be writing Social Studies We will begin our tour of the Southwest. The focus will be on the Grand Canyon. The students will learn how the Grand Canyon was carved out by erosion caused by the Colorado River.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room March 21-25

2011-03-18T13:43:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Spring Break-week of February 28

I hope everyone has a wonderful spring break!

Math - There will be a test on Wednesday of this week covering chapter 22, measurement. They will need to know how to convert the units of measure. They will be able to use their calculators. Text page 626-627 are good pages to use for extra practice. They will also learn to estimate and measure perimeter and use a formula to find perimeter.

Spelling- This week in spelling the students will be working with words with vowel consonant vowel patterns (VCV patterns). They will be assigned WB pages 144-146 in their workbooks. If they get 100% or 1 wrong on their pretest, they will follow an activity sheet for the week.

Reading -Next week in reading, students will be focusing on the skills of identifying fact and opinion, and evaluating. A fact is a statement that can be proven to be true. An opinion tells what a person thinks, believes or feels. Good readers should be able to identify when an author is using a fact or an opinion in a story. Evaluating text involves considering how well the author expresses and supports ideas. Students will be practicing these skills while reading the third story in our “Heroes” theme, Lou Gehrig, The Luckiest Man.

We will have a vocabulary test on Thursday of this week. The students should know the meanings of the words and be able to use them in a good sentence.

English The students will continue to work with expository essays. They will learn different ways to support their ideas in the their essays. After completing, our class expository essay, they will be given a new prompt and practice writing their own hooks this week.

Science - On Monday, I will introduce the "Invention Convention" project to the class. The children will have until Thursday to plan out and draw a diagram of their invention. On Thursday, I will meet with each child to discuss and approve their inventions. After my approval, your child can begin constructing their invention. These projects will be due on Tuesday, April 12.

Social Studies - This week we will be writing "mini reports" on places, landmarks, and people from Illinois. The students will use the computer and other resources to help them find information.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room March 14-18

2011-03-11T10:03:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Don't forget to change your clocks this weekend
Monday, March 14 - Roller Skating Party 3:45-6:30
Tuesday, March 15 MAPS parent meeting 6:30-7:30.
Monday, March 28 - Friday, April 1 - Spring break

Spelling - This week in spelling the students will work with words that have the final y changed to an i. They will be responsible for completing pages 129-131 in their workbooks. If they passed out of the pretest they will have to do the three activities that are assigned.

Math This week in math the students will estimate and measure the customary weights of objects and change units of weight. They will also estimate and measure the customary capacity of containers and change units of capacity. We will begin to study the metric system and estimate and measure metric length along with changing metric linear units by multiplying and dividing.

Reading- This week the students will read about Gloria Estefan, a famous singer whose acts of kindness have made her a hero to many people. Our strategy will be making judgments. Making Judgments involves deciding whether or not a character's actions are appropriate for a situation. Readers can ask themselves, "Do I agree with this? Is this right or fair?

English This week the students will compare using the words more and most with adverbs. They will also use the words good and well correctly.

We will begin writing expository essays this week. The students will brainstorm ideas and organize them. We will practice writing a "hook" that will grab the readers attention.

Social Studies - This week we will begin a unit on the Southwest. The students will have a map project to do this week. It will be due on Thursday. There will be a map test on the Southwest on Friday of this week. Along with the states they will have to be able to label the Rio Grande River, the Grand Canyon, and the Gulf of Mexico.

Science - The students will understand how energy changes form from potential energy into kinetic energy. They will understand the sources of electricity- hydroelectric power, geothermal energy, solar power, and wind turbines.

There will be a science test on Friday of this week.

To study:
All vocabulary
All main idea questions at the end of each section in the book
Four ways to light a bulb
How to build a small electric generator
Understand magnetism and how it works
Two kinds of energy
Four sources of energy
Understand a parellel and series circuit and be able explain how they work
What things make good insulators and conductors

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room March 7-March 11

2011-03-03T11:09:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, March 7 - No school on Monday, Pulaski Day.
Wednesday, March 9 - ISAT Science Part 1 & 2
Tuesday, March 15, MAPs Parent Meeting,6:30-7:30.
Monday, March 28-Friday, April 1 - Spring Break

Math- We will begin a unit on measurement this week. The students will use customary units to measure to the nearest inch, half inch and quarter inch. They will also use custormary units to measure weight.

Spelling - This week in spelling the students will work with words that have suffixes and prefixes. Workbook page 109-111 are due on Friday. All tests and spelling pages need to be done in cursive beginning this week.

Reading - We will be using the predict/infer strategy, as well as cause and effect. Thinking about story events and personal knowledge helps readers predict likely events. With cause and effect, students will focus on why story events happen and what happens as a result.

You may want to ask your child if they have a red pen for grading in reading. If not, that is something they should remember to bring to class with them.

English - We will continue our work with adverbs. We will also begin a unit on expository writing.

Social Studies - Our test on chapter 9 will be on Friday, March 10. To prepare for the test, review the following items:

All main ideas/concepts from the lessons
All vocabulary
Understand the Ojibwa way of life
Know the accomplishments of the explorers Joliett and Marquettte
Major Midwestern cities that began as forts or trading posts
What it was like for the Midwestern pioneers when they arrived in the Midwest
John Deere's accomplishments
What were Lewis and Clark's goals? Who hired them?
Understand how the steamboats effected the life of farmers in the Midwest
Advantages of shipping by railroad rather than by steamboat

Science - ISAT testing this week.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Feb. 28-March 4

2011-02-25T12:47:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, Feb.28 - Wed. March 2 Parent teacher conferences
Tuesday, March 1 -ISAT Testing Begins
Tuesday, March 1, 2011 Report Cards Issued
Friday, March 4, No School/ Parent Teacher Conferences
Monday, March - March 7 No School Casimir Pulaski Day

Remember: Since this is a testing week, the students should try to get plenty of sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, and bring a healthy snack.

Math - ISAT Testing. This will be a great time to work on multiplication and division facts at home.

Spelling - No spelling this week.

Reading - ISAT testing - Work on Poetry at home. Plan on doing one activity an evening for your poetry booklet. Poetry Booklets are due on March 8.

English- This week Adverbs will be introduced. The students will know that adverbs tell when, where, and how. Many adverbs begin with ly.

Science - You may want to ask your child about the electromagnets that we made in class last week. What did we use to make them? What did they do? What do they make a compass do?
What are some ways that electro magnets are used in our everyday life? This week we the students will learn about generators and motors - How are they alike and how are they different?

Social Studies - The students will be able to explain some of the events that forced the Native American tribes in the Midwest to give up their land. They will compare and contast a home built out of sod and one built out of logs by the settlers and understand some of the difficuties the settlers faced in farming the land.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Feb.21- Feb. 25

2011-02-18T15:14:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
February 21 -- President's Day -- No School
February 24 - Picture Day
February 25 -- End of Trimester
Week of Feb. 28 -Conferences
March 1 -- Report Cards
March 4-No School

Math- In math this week the students will identify, classify, describe , and make solid figures.

Spelling- We will be working with words that have ed or ing ending. Workbook pages 252-254 will be due on Friday of this week.

Reading -In reading this week our continued target genre is poetry. The students will understand the elements of poetry, and they will work with figurative language such as simile, metaphor, personification, and idioms. A poetry project will be assigned and the students will be working on that in class and at home over the next couple of weeks. Along with poetry, the students will also be working on writing extended responses which will connect with their reading passages.

English - In English this week, The students will learn what an adverb is. They will learn that adverbs tell how, when, and where.

Social Studies - In social studies the students will learn why the Europeans came to the Midwest in the 1600's. They will identify roles of Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette in the fur trade, and understand the role fur trading played in the development of towns in the Midwest.

Science- This week the students will compare different kinds of magnets. How are they alike and different? How are a magnet's magnetic force and magnetic field different?

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Feb. 14 - 18

2011-02-11T06:07:00.001-08:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, February 14 - Valentine's Day party beginning at 1:30
Monday, February 21 - No school -Presidents' Day
P.T.O. Dine-out at Noodles & Company
February 24 - Spring Pictures
Friday, February 25 - End of Second Trimester
February 28 - ISAT Testing begins this week
Tuesday, March 1 - Report Cards issued
February 28 - Parent Teacher Conference Week

Spelling - The students will be working with compound words this week. The workbook pages that are assigned and due on Friday are pages 217-219. If students pass out of the pretest then they will work on three activities which are due on Friday.

Reading - In reading this week our target genre is poetry. The students will understand the elements of poetry, and they will work with figurative language such as simile, metaphor, personification, and idioms. A poetry project will be assigned and the students will be working on that in class and at home over the next couple of weeks. Along with poetry, the students will also be working on writing extended responses which will connect with their reading passages.

Math - This week in math the students will identify, classify and describe quadrilaterals.
They will also identify, draw and label parts of a circle. Along with that they will review similar and congruent figures.

English - This week in English the students will write the past tense of irregular verbs and be able to recognize the different forms of the verb be (am, is, are, was, were,). The test on verbs will be on Friday of this week.

Science - This week the students will learn about conductors and insulators. They will discover what happens when a current reaches a conductor and an insulator. They will also understand how a switch works to turn on and off a current.

Social Studies This week we will learn about the early culture of the Ojibwa and describe the ways Ojibwa culture has changed since the mid - 1600's. The Ojibwa have maintained important cultural traditions and have contributed to the culture of the Midwest.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Feb. 7-11

2011-02-04T14:37:00.001-08:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, February 14 - Valentine's Day Party will begin at 1:30. The students may bring Valentines to share with everyone. There are 24 students in class.
Monday, February 21 - No School, President's Day
Friday, February 25 - End of 2nd trimester

Math - In math this week we will begin a unit on geometry. The students will identify, describe, and draw points, lines, line segments, rays, and planes. They will also measure classify, and draw right, acute, obtuse, and straight angles. There will be a fact test on Friday. PLease help your child study for their facts.

Spelling This week in spelling the students will work with words that have the vccv (vowel consonant consonant vowel )pattern. They will learn that when you have two consonants surrounded by vowels you divide between the two consonants then sound out the words.

Reading This week we will begin our study of Poetry. We will focus on some of the elements of poetry including rhyme, sensory words, figurative language, and wordplay. The children will also begin a poetry project. In this project, the children will be learning about and writing nine different kinds of poems. Time will be given in class, but students will also need to work on this project at home. We will be working on Poetry and Figurative Language for the next few weeks.

Your children should show you the notes in their binders. I need them to return a permission slip for the movie Winn Dixie. Also some students volunteered to bring something in for our party on Friday of this week, and I will need a response back from those parents to be sure it is okay.

English - We will continue to study verbs this week. The students will learn to spell verbs in the past tense and identify and write past tense verbs with helping verbs. There will be a quiz to see if the children can identify verbs and helping verbs in a sentence on Tuesday of this week. A test over verbs chapter 3 is planned for Wednesday, February 16.

Social Studies - This week the children will review the water and land of the Midwest. There will be a test on Thursday of this week over chapter 8.
The students should know:
All vocabulary
Understand the main concepts of each lesson in the chapter
Understand why the Midwest is an important agricultural region
Describe the Badlands millions of years ago
What was the cause of the temperature change of the Badlands
Products of Wisconsin and Illinois
Be able to explain how the Great Lakes were formed
Explain how a lock works and why they were built
Advantages and disadvantages of shipping by barge
Name the 5 Great Lakes
Explain why the prairie better for farming than the Badlands

Science - We will study static and current electricty and the students will recognize how electricty moves in circuits.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room January 31 - Feb 4

2011-01-28T07:12:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Friday, Feb. 4- Movie Night
Monday, Feb. 14th - Valentine's Day Party - 1:30
Monday, Feb. 21 - No School President's Day
Thursday, Feb. 24 - Spring Pictures
Friday, Feb. 25 - End of 2nd Trimester
Monday, Feb. 28 - ISAT testing begins - Parent Teacher Conferences

There will be a Valentine's Day party on Monday, February 14th. The students may bring in valentines to pass out to everyone if they wish. There are 24 students in class.

Spelling This week is a review of spelling words. The workbook pages that need to be done by Friday are pages 79-81. If your child passed out of these words then they need to do three activities with their new words.

Reading The reading strategy that we will be studying next week is summarizing. When reading passages, it is not necessary to recall every word. Instead, we will practice using main ideas and supporting evidence to summarize a passage. While reading, a good reader finds the main ideas, whether they are stated or implied. Then, the reader must find supporting evidence to support the main idea. This support may be in the form of details, examples, explanations or descriptions.

In Mrs. Cavoto's reading class we will be finishing up Because of Winn Dixie. The students will have a test covering vocabulary and comprehension of the stories in the book. More information will be sent home regarding the vocabulary next week. We will have a party to celebrate the completion of our novel. The party will be just like the one that the main character, Opal, had in the story. I will be asking for volunteers to help. More information will come home next week.

Math This week in math the students will read and interpret bar graphs, double graphs, and circle graphs. They will also learn how to read a coordinate grid. There will be a fact test on Friday. The students should be studying their facts.

English We will continue to work with verbs this week. The students will choose correct present tense verbs for singular and plural subjects. They will also form present and past tense verbs.

Science - We will begin an Electricity unit this week. The essential question is What is electricity? The students will demonstrate how to construct a simple electrical circuit.

Social Studies This week in social studies the students will explain why the Midwest is an important agricultural region. They will identify the rainfall in the Midwest and explain how it affects the growth of crops.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room January 24-28th

2011-01-20T12:33:00.001-08:00

Things to Remember:
Tuesday,January 25 - District Spelling B at 10:00
Monday, February 14 - Valentine's Day Party will begin at 1:30. Students may bring in valentines, but they should be sure to bring for everyone in the class.
Monday, February 21 - No school - President's Day

Math - The students will use line plots to create data. They will use data to create tally charts and line plots. We will have a test covering the skills in chapter 7 on Friday of this week.
Please help your child study by using the reviews in the chapter. They should bring their book home to use throughout the week.

Spelling - The pattern to study is the vowel consonant consonat vowel pattern. Workbook pages 59-61 or 3 activities for those who passed out of the pretest will be assigned for the week and due on Friday. There will be a test on Friday.

Reading - The reading skill that we will work on this week is the identification of characters, setting, and plot. Students will fill out story structure maps as they read fiction to help them organize their thoughts and identify the main characters, setting, and plot.

English - This week in English we will begin a unit on verbs. The students will identify and use action verbs in sentences. They will identify the main verb and helping verb in a sentence.

Science - The students will learn about the muscular system this week and understand the work that muscles do. They will learn about three types of muscles and their jobs. There will be a test covering The Human Body on Thursday of this week- Chapter 4.

The students should study:
All vocabulary
All sheets in their binders
All main idea concepts in the text.
Understand the different kinds of joints in your body
Understand the three kinds of muscles and their jobs
Understand how muscles move
Understand the steps of the circulatory and digestive systems
Be able to explain the flow of blood and how it moves from heart to lungs- know the role of the arteries, capillaries and veins. Use diagram on page 174 to help.

Social Studies This week in social studies the students will read and interpret information from line graphs. They will learn about The Badlands of South Dakota and how they were formed. They will describe the climate and landscape of the Badlands 67 million years ago and understand how the climate has changed.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Jan. 16-21

2011-01-14T07:04:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, January 16 - No School Marting Luther King Jr. Day
Tuesday, January 17th - PTO Dine Out Fundraiser at Papa Passero's

Thanks to Mrs. Lupie and Mrs. Daly for chaperoning our field trip to Argonne. The field trip was a great success and the people at Argonne said that we were the best behaved school they have ever had there.

Congratulations to our classroom spelling B winners -Winner David Peter and Runner-up Sarah Schehovic. Our grade level spelling B will be on the afternoon of January 18th.

Math - In math this week the students will learn how to organize data using the mean, median, and mode. They will also use line plots to organize information.
**Please continue to practice math facts. We will have a fact quiz on Friday of this week.

Spelling- This week we will be working with words that have the final j sounds and s sounds. There will be a test on Friday.Workbook pages 44-46 / three activities for the kids who tested out of the list of words are due on Friday.

Reading The comprehension skill that we will be focusing on this week is drawing conclusions. Good readers use details in a story to draw conclusions about characters and events. Students may use graphic organizers to gather details from a story to draw conclusions. They will learn that it is possible to draw more than one conclusion from the same details.

English - There will be a test on Wednesday covering adjectives this week. That is unit 4 in our textbook. The students will bring homework home that will help them to practice using adjectives correctly. There are review sections at the end of the chapter that they can use for extra practice.

Science - In science this week the students will study how their body thinks and moves. They will describe the jobs of the nervous, muscular, and skeletal systems. They will also describe how the muscular and skeletal systems work together to move the body. A test is planned for Thursday, January 27 covering chapter 4 The Human Body.

Social Studies- This week the students will review how the Great Lakes were formed. They will explain why the flow of the Chicago River was changed and the advantages of shipping by water.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Jan. 10-14th

2011-01-07T15:08:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, Jan.10- Reading MAPs testing on Monday (homeroom students)
Tuesday, Jan.11- Field Trip to Argonne Labs on Tuesday, 9:30-1:30. Bring brown bag Sack lunch, Wear long pants - no skirts or shorts please
Wednesday, Jan. 12 - Dan Kirk Juggler Assembly .
Thursday, Jan. 13 - Math MAPs testing on Thursday (homeroom students)
Monday, Jan. 17 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day No School

Please don't forget to send in permission slips for our field trip to Argonne on Tuesday. All students need to be sure to wear pants that day and bring a brown bag lunch.

Spelling B There will be a practice, in class spelling B on Thursday, Jan.12 of this week. There will be another spelling B on Friday, Jan. 14th, where a winner and runner up will be chosen to participate in the whole grade spelling B which will be on Wednesday, January 19. The students should have the spelling lists in their binders.

Spelling- This week the students will work with words that end in y and have the long e sound. Workbook pages 29-31/or activities are due on Friday. Test Friday.

Math - This week in math we will work on new skills to help them collect and organize data. They will learn to use a frequency table and interpret and construct venn diagrams to sort, describe, and classify data. They will also learn to find the mean, median, and mode of a set of data. The students should keep practicing their multiplication facts. I will be testing them periodically. Those who know their multiplication facts are moving on to division facts.

Reading - This week the children will work on identifying the problem and solution of a story as they are reading. Most stories involve a problem for the characters to solve. The solution to the problem may come after others have been tried.
**Mrs. Cavoto's class in reading will continue to read Because of Winn Dixie. There will be an open book quiz over chapter 1-10 on Friday of this week. A list of vocabulary words to be studied will go home on Monday.

English - We will continue our study of adjectives this week. The students will add er to adjectives to compare two things and est to compare more than two things. They will also compare using more, most, good, and bad. There will be a test on Wednesday, January 19th covering chapter 4 adjectives.

Science - The students will understand the job of the respiratory and circulatory systems. You may want to ask them later in the week if they can tell you: What causes movement of the chest when a person moves? (movement of the diaphragm and movement of the ribs) What does the diaphragm do? ( It allows air to enter the body and then leave it.) What component of air is needed by all of the body's cells? (oxygen) Which blood vessels carry blood away from the heart? (arteries) Which kind of blood vessels carry blood back to the heart? veins

Social Studies We will begin our tour of the Midwest Region this week. The students will fill in a map of all the states in the region. They will have an assignment to color and label a map of the Midwest Region. It will be due on Wednesday of next week. There will be a map quiz on Thursday. They will have to put the states and bodies of water shown on their sheet correctly on a map. They will be given extra points for knowing the capitals.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Jan.3-Jan. 7

2010-12-17T14:01:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Thursday, Jan. 6 - Argonne Permission Slips due on Thursday
Tuesday, January 11 Field trip to Argone Labs
Monday, January 17 - No School Martin Luther King's Birthday.

Spelling - This week in spelling the the skill will focus on the words that have the k sound. The students should pay close attention to the different ways that words are spelled with the K sound.

Reading - This week we will be working on predicting outcomes. Readers can often guess ahead of time, or predict, what will happen in a story, based on information the author has given. Additionally, readers can change or adjust their predictions as they read.

The students will begin reading Because of Winn Dixie. They will apply many of the reading strategies they have already learned as they read this wonderful story of a young girl and the many different friendships she aquires when she moves into a new town.

English - We will begin a unit on Adjectives this week. You may want to ask your child. What is an adjective and to give you an example of one.

Math- This week we will review of the skills the students have learned in chapter 6. They should be able to tell time. They should know how to recognize half past and quarter past the hour. They should understand elapsed time on the clock and be able to read a thermometer and calendar. They should be able to solve problems using a thermometer and a calendar. All the skills in chapter 6 will be covered. They should bring their text books home to study the skills. There will be a test on chapter 6 on Thursday of this week.

Social Studies - The children will review the culture of the Cherokee tribe of the Southeast. They will describe how the Cherokee lived before the Europeans came to North America. They will evaluate how the Cherokee culture changed after the Europeans came to the Southeast. They will learn about the Trail of Tears.

Science - This week in science we will begin a new unit on The Human Body. The Big Idea is "To stay alive, people depend on body systems that work together." This week the students will describe the functions of blood vessels and describe how oxygen and nutrients travel through the body.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Dec. 13-17

2010-12-10T15:09:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
December 16 - Bowling Field Trip (afternoon)
December 17 - All School Field Trip to the Tivoli (It is a good idea to Bring your lunch to school - lines will be very long for those who are doing hot lunch on this day.)
December 20 - Winter Break begins
January 3 - Classes Resume after Winter Break

Happy Holidays to Everyone!

The permission slip and fee for the Tivoli field trip is due by Monday, 12/13.

There is a test in PE on Tuesday, 12/14. The test will cover the bowling unit.

Math - This week in math we will work on changing units of time. They will learn that when you change a large unit of time, like hours, to a small unit of time, like minutes, you will need to multiply. You will be able to use the reteach sheet and other sheets in their folders to help them with this skill. They will also practice reading a thermometer in Celsius and Fahrenheit. There will be a quiz on the multiplication facts on Friday of this week. They should be reviewed every night.

Spelling - There will be no spelling test this week.

Reading The first strategy that we focus on this week in reading is making inferences. A writer doesn't always explain every fact or detail about when writing a story. The writer expects that readers will fill in missing information from their own experience. Good readers do this by putting together what they already know and what they have read to make the best guess they can. When readers add information from their own experience to what is stated in a text, they are making an inference. We will also study the reading skill of comparing and contrasting. Students will practice comparing pieces of literature that are similar and different.

Social Studies - We will have Southeast Resource Day on Wednesday of this week. Would anyone like to volunteer to bring in some of the food that is produced from the Southeast. It would be great if they are sent in ready to eat. Examples of food: Oranges, rice, peaches, grapefruit, Orange juice, peach jam and crackers, popcorn. Just send me an e-mail if you would like to send in something. I am open for other suggestions.

The children will learn about the Native Americans of the Southeast, the Cherokee, this week. They describe how the Cherokee lived before Europeans came to North America. They will evaluate how Cherokee culture changed after Europeans came to the Southeast.

Science - There will be a test on Chapter 3 on Wednesday of this week. All lessons will be covered. They should study all the sheets in their science binder along with their textbook.
They should:
Know all vocabulary
understand the basic needs of all living things
understand learned behavior &be able to give examples of learned behavior
understand instinct behavior & be able to give examples of instinctive behavior
understand what happens during hybernation
adaptations of different animals and how it helps the animals
understand the life cycle of a tree/know the stages and tell what happens in each stage (use the diagram we made in class to help you study or the book has a whole page on this)
understand the causes of animal populations shrinking in certain areas
What can fossils tell scientists about things that lived long ago?

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room December 6-10

2010-12-02T12:40:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, December 6 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m.
Wednesday, December 8 - 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m.
Friday, December 10 - Movie Night - 6:30 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore

Don't forget about our School's Serivce Drive to help the needy families living in Darien. Please send in new toys/games, food, and or toiletries to school. All items are due by Dec. 13th. Thank you so much for your help.Thank you to those who have already sent items in.

Thank you to those who have been turning in their paper to the recycling bin. Just a reminder that no cardboard boxes should be put in the bin. Thank you.

Math We will begin a unit on telling time this week. Please have your child practice reading the analog clocks in your house. You might ask them question like: If we have to be at school at 7:45 and it takes 15 minutes to get to school, what time should we leave the house? They should be able to tell time to the nearest minute and second. We will also work on elapsed time. If the show starts at 4:00 p.m. and ends at 11:30 p.m. how long is the show?

Spelling - This week in spelling we will continue to work with r controlled words. Test on Friday.

Reading - Next week our story is A Very Important Day, by Maggie Rugg Herold. Many different families prepare for one very important day; becoming a United States citizen.
Our reading strategies are questioning, categorizing and classifying. Recognizing the question a story may raise is a good way to make sure you understand it. Classifying involves grouping like items, and categorizing involves naming the group. Grouping the items makes it easier to remember them. Students will classify and categorize the many characters and countries named in the story to help understand the story better.

Language Arts - The students are working on the final drafts of their descriptive paragraphs. There will be a test on Friday over the different types of figurative language that we have been studying: hyperbole, similes, personification, metaphors. They should be able to identify the type of figurative language and write an example of each.

Social Studies - There will be a test on Chapter 6 covering the Southeast land and resources. They should study all sheets in their binders along with the information their text.
They should know and understand:
all vocabulary
landforms of the southeast
highest elevation
climate
weather in Florida
hurricanes/what they are, what they can do 3 details to describe both
lighthouses
animals of the southeast -what area they live in
logging industry
resources/ what and where they are found
products/ what and where they are found

Science - We will review the behavioral adaptations of animals. The essential question this week is: How do living things of the past compare with those of today? The students will describe how plants and animals have changed over time. They will study the reasons for extinction. There will be a science test on Wednesday, December 15th over chapter 3.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Nov.22-Week of Nov.29

2010-11-19T06:37:00.001-08:00

Things to Remember:

November 23 -- Report Cards
November 24, 25, 26 -- Thanksgiving Holiday -- No School
December 3 -- Parent/Teacher Conferences -- No School

I hope you all have a happy Thanksgiving!

Holiday Service Project
The students of Project Challenge grades 3-5 are participating in a Lion's Club Holiday Drive. We are looking for donations such as new toys, new games, toiletries, and food for the needy families in the Darien area. If you wish to participate you will need to bring the donations in by December 13. Remember that some of these families live right here in Darien. So let's help these families have a happy holiday season.
PLEASE DONATE!

Paper Recycling Fundraiser Comes to Prairieview: We are happy to announce we can now raise money for our district by recycling paper! You can help us out, too! Please collect any paper you are going to throw away or recycle (office and school paper, newspaper, magazines and catalogs, and construction paper---no cardboard!) and send it in with your child to school or drop it off at the green and yellow Paper Retriever bin in the Lakeview parking lot (near the fence by the Prairieview playground). The bin is available for drop offs 24/7. The more paper we recycle, the more money we can make! Do something good for our schools AND the environment! Thank you! member:

Spelling: For the week of November 29th, the pattern this week will be words with the r controlled vowels that are : ear, eer, ar, are, air - Watch out for heart, weird, and scarce. They have different spellings than the regular r controlled words.

Reading - Over the next couple of weeks we will be reviewing the skills that we have gone over since the beginning of the year. The students will also work on summarizing and making generalizations. In writing summaries the students will learn to pick out the main points or events of a story or passage and concisely put them in their own words. In making generalizations the students will learn that generalizations are broad statements that are true most of the time, they are based on fact or good reasons, and may include words like always or most.

Math- The students will learn to write, solve, and graph inequalities that include variables. An inequality is a mathematical sentence that uses symbols <, >, ≠, =, and shows a relationship between two quantities that are not equal, for example 4 > 3. Please continue to have your child practice their multiplication and division facts.
There will be a math test covering chapter 5 on Thursday of this week. Please review all the work in their folders. There will be a review sheet sent home this week too.

Language Arts - The students are learning about figurative language and how to use it in their writing. This week they learned about similes, metaphors, personification, and hyperbole, and they read books to find examples of figurative language in their reading. They will continue to practice using figurative language effectively in their writing.

Science - Why do we say that living things follow a cycle? They are born, grow, reporduce, die, and decay, and their nutrients are often taken up by plants, which then grow, reproduce, and so on. The plants provide energy so animals can complete their life cycles. The students will understand that growing, dieing, and decaying are all apart of a living thing's life cycle. We will also learn how behaviors of animals help them to meet their needs. The students will learn about instinct, hibernation, migration, and learned behaviors.

Social Studies -The students will be able to describe the climate of the Southeast, and they will examine hurricanes. They will study how the climate of the Southeast changes as you move north? We will also learn about the wildlife and resources of the Southeast. The students will describe the importance of protecting endangered species. They will identify ways in which resources of the Southeast are used.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Nov. 15-19

2010-11-10T12:47:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
November 24, 25, 26 -- Thanksgiving Holiday -- No Schoool
December 3 -- Parent/Teacher Conferences -- No School

If anyone has any pieces of material to send in for an art project that would be great. We are looking to cut about 1 inch squares from them for our scarecrows.

Conferences Nov. 29-Dec.3- Notices will be sent home. Please send them back to confirm your time with me. If you need to change just let me know.

Math - The students should continue to practice their multiplication facts. I will be giving timed tests on Friday to review the multiplication facts. Once they have shown me they know their multiplication facts, I will test them on their division facts. This week the students will learn the properties of multiplication: Associative, identity, Zero property, and Commutative Property. They will also practice writing multiplication and division expressions.

Spelling - Words spelled with oo may have different sounds. They may have the sounds as in tool, or wood. Workbook pages 137-139 are assigned this week. The children who have pretested out will choose the three different activities to do with their words. WB pages and activities are due on Friday.

Reading - We will work on making inferences and evaluating during reading this week. Good readers should always think about their reactions to what they are reading and why they are reacting that way. This strategy is called “evaluating”. As you are reading the story think about these things: How does the author make the story come alive and make you want to keep reading? What was entertaining, informative, or useful about what you read? How did you react to the story? Did you agree or disagree with what you read? How well did you understand what you were reading? Did you enjoy reading it?

English - This week we will begin descriptive writing. The students will learn how to use colorful language to make their writing come alive. They will work with similes and adjectives as they find them in their reading as well as using them in their writing.

Social Studies The students will identify and describe major landforms in the Southeast. They will be able to explain how barrier islands are formed, and compare and contrast the landform elevations in the Southeast.

Science - This week we will begin a unit on Adaptations. The students will study how the bodies of animals help them meet their needs. What are the basic needs of all living things? (food, water, air, and shelter)

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Nov. 8-12

2010-11-05T07:35:00.001-07:00

Things to Remember:

Thursday, November 11 - No School Veterans' Day
Friday, November 12 -- End of Trimester
Tuesday, November 23 -- Report Cards
Wednesday, November 24, 25, 26 -- Thanksgiving Holiday -- No Schoool
Friday, December 3 -- Parent/Teacher Conferences -- No School

Tuesday, November 23, 2010 will be picture retake day. Any student that did not have their picture taken prior to this date may do so. They will be required to have a picture envelope with money to have a picture taken. Any student wishing to have a picture retaken will have to return the original picture packet for a retake.

Spelling The ou sound which can be spelled with ou or ow and the o sound which can be spelled with aw, au, or a before l will be the focus this week. There will be a test on Friday.

Math - There will be a test on Friday of this week over chapter 4 lessons 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.7, 4.8. They should also understand even and odd numbers. They should know that: When you multiply two even numbers you get an even number. When you mulitiply two odd numbers you get an odd number. When you multiply an even and an odd number you get an even number.

Reading This week, we will focus on two important reading strategies. The first reading strategy that we will discuss is to make predictions, or educated guesses about what will happen next in the story. The second reading strategy that we will apply is the use of inferences, or the ability to figure something out even though it isn't exactly stated in the story. Additionally, we will focus on sequencing events in literature.

English We will work on Possessive plural nouns this week and then review for the test which will be on Wednesday of this week. The test will be on nouns which is chapter 2. Homework will come home each night for the kids to practice. There is lots of extra practice at the end of the chapter.

Science In science this week the students will have an open book quiz which will cover the concepts that they have learned in chapter 2 lesson 2 & 3.

Social Studies - We will travel to the Southeast Region this week. The students will fill in a map for homework. They will be given a checklist so they know what to include in their maps. There will be a test on the states and the bodies of water in the Southeast Region on Friday. Extra points will be given if they can label the capitals of the states.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room October 25-29

2010-10-25T12:53:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, October 25, 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m. Chess Club Last Names - A-G & S-Z - 2:30 to 3:25 p.m.
Wednesday, October 27, 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m. Chess Club - Last Names - H-R - 2:30 to 3:25 p.m.

Friday, October 29, Halloween Parties - 1:30 to 2:25 p.m. Students should bring their costumes to school and change here.

Math - This week the students will work on their multiplication skills. A letter will go home each day explaining what the students should work on for that night. Please have your child practice those facts until they know them automatically. Then sign the sheet and have your child return it to class. We will assess the students and then send back the sheet so that will say let you know the facts they need to practice or if they mastered the problems of the day.

Reading Mysteries will be the focus in reading for all fourth grade students this week. We will begin by learning vocabulary words that are typically associated with mysteries, such as "suspect", "evidence" and suspense". Students may practice the definitions of the vocabulary words by completing a crossword puzzle at the following website:
http://www.eduplace.com/kids/hmr06/gr4/activities/pdf/gr4_th1_xword.pdf.
All students will read & study, "The Case of the Purloined Pachyderm". While reading this mystery and other mystery stories, students will be studying the format of a mystery, and using the reading strategies of monitoring and clarifying..

English- We will begin chapter two, Nouns. We will focus on common and proper nouns along with singular and plural nouns.

Social Studies -There will be a test on chapter 4 on Tuesday of this week. The students should study all the sheets in their folders
They should know:
All vocabulary
largest of the Finger Lakes
The difference between the Maine Coast line and the New Jersey Coast Line.
The problems that challenge Chesapeake Bay and some of the ways they have tried to solve the problem.

Science- We will be learning about photosynthesis and the life cycle of the plant. We will focus on plants that reproduce from seeds and plants that reproduce from spores.

Spelling- This week is a review lesson. The test will be on Thursday. Make sure your child studies all thirty words. There are no challenge words this week. The workbook assignment will also be due on Thursday.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Oct. 4-Oct.8

2010-10-01T12:33:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Friday, October 1 - Bingo Night - 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. - Multi-Purpose Room
Monday, October 4 - 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m.
Chess Club - Last Names A-G & S-Z - 2:30 to 3:25 p.m.
Wednesday, October 6 - 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m. Chess Club - Last Names - H-R - 2:30 to 3:25 p.m.
Friday, October 8 - Taffy Apple Orders are due
Monday, October 11 - No School/Columbus Day

Math -This week in math we will review the addition properties and writing and evaluating addition and subtraction expressions (lesson 3.1 and 3.2). Throughout the week the students will write and solve addition and subtraction equations. They will also use patterns to find a rule for a number relationship and write an equation for the rule (lesson 3.3 and 3.5) There will be a test on Friday which will review addition and subtraction with regrouping and estimation along with the skills from chapter 3 lessons 3.1, 3.2, 3.3.

Spelling - This week in spelling the students will be working with words that have the short "u" as in brush/ "yoo" as in juice/ "oo" as in threw. There will be a test on Friday.

Reading This week in reading our story is “Finding the Titanic” by Robert D. Ballard.
The reading strategy that we will focus on is text organization.
Many non-fiction authors organize their selections in time order.
They also use features such as headings, pictures, captions, and
charts to help the reader better understand the information.

English The students will learn to capitalize and punctuate abbreviations for titles, addresses, months, and days. They will be writing a short story on Thursday which I will use to assess their knowledge of capitalization of people, places, pets, and things along with abbreviations and ending punctuation.

Social Studies - If anyone has any special things that they have collected from a trip to any state in the Northeast Region please feel free to send in to share with the class. The students will be making maps of the Northeast Region which will show the different mountain ranges that make up the Appalachian Trail in the Northeast Region. They will also learn about the differences in the coastline as they travel from Maine to New Jersey.

Science - The following concepts will be covered over the next couple of weeks. How are animals classified? with backbones (vertebrates) without backbones (invertebrates) What are the five groups of vertebrates? Can you tell some facts about each group? (fish,mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles) What are some of the groups of invertebrates? (sponges, mollusks, worms, arthropods) Which is the largest group of invertebrates? ( arthropods- these are insects, crustaceans, and spiders)

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 27-Oct.1

2010-09-23T15:31:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, September 27 - 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15-7:50 a.m.
Chess Club - Last Names A-G & S-Z - 2:30 to3:25 p.m.
Tuesday, September 28- Last Magazine Turn-In Checks made out to Dist. 66 PTO - Customer Keeps Pink Copy
Wednesday- September 29, 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m.Chess Club - Last Names H-R - 2:30 to 3:25 p.m.
Thursday, September 30, Picture Day
Thursday, September 30, thru Sunday October 3, 2010 Cozzi Corner - District Eat-Out - see link below http://www.ccsd66.org/PTO/FundRaisers/cozzi.pdf

Math - This week in math we will have a test over chapter 2 on Tuesday. The children should review the sheets in their math folder. They should bring their textbooks home to study lessons 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 and 2.6. They should know the break apart method using addition from lesson 2.4.

Spelling- This week the students will work with frequently misspelled words and review some of the more difficult words from the past two units. The challenge words this week go with our social studies unit and are the names of some of the places we will be learning about in our new chapter.

Reading- The fourth graders will be reading Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say. They will focus on the reading strategy to determine author's viewpoint. Author's viewpoint refers to the author's opinion, ideas of what is important or attitude. The author might give their opinion directly or you might have to infer the information by reading clues or other information that the author provides. Here is a great link to practice author’s viewpoint: http://www.studyzone.org/testprep/ela4/o/authorsviewpointp.cfm. The vocabulary for the week is: bewildered, surrounded, reminded, longed, homeland, marveled. Your child can practice these words at: http://www.eduplace.com/kids/tnc/ewordgame/index.html?grade=4&theme=1&selection=2. We will also work on the skill of putting words in alphabetical order.

English - In English this week the students will practice writing different kinds of sentences. They will learn to combine sentences that have the same subject. They will also review capitalization of people, pets, places and things.

Social Studies- We will be traveling to the Northeast Region this week. The students will fill in a map of the Northeast states and bodies of water. They will be given a homework assignment to fill in and color a map on their own. A grading sheet will go home so that they know how to color their map and what is expected. There will be a quiz on Friday. They will have to identify states and bodies of water in the Northeast Region. Extra points will be given to those who can identify the capitals of the states.

Science- We are wrapping up our worm unit. The children should be busily working on their worm track. The guidelines of the track went home with them on Tuesday so they know how they will be graded. They need to bring back worms and their track on Thursday of this week. Some children have volunteered to bring in extra worms if your child can not find one.

There will also be a quiz on the scientific method on Wednesday of this week. The students will need to know the steps of the scientific experiment and be able to identify the steps with examples given. For example: I predict that a worm will like a moist surface more than a dry surface. They would have to know that this is the hypothesis.(The steps are in their science folder)

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 20-24

2010-09-16T14:03:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, September 20- 4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m.
Choir Contracts due to Miss Wyse,
Cheer and Dance Clinic Permission Slips Due
Tuesday, September 21-Magazine Turn-In -Checks made out to Dist. 66 PTO - Customer Keeps Pink Copy
Wednesday, September 22-4th and 5th Grade Choir - 7:15 to 7:50 a.m.
Friday, September 24- No School/Teacher's Institute

P.E. - There is a P.E. test on Wednesday, September 22.

Math- This week in math the students will review front-end estimation of numbers. They will learn how to use the "break a-part method", a mental math strategy to help them add and subtract numbers. The students will also add and sbutract 3digit and 4 digit numbers. Lessons 2.3, 2.4 and 2.6 will be covered this week.

Spelling This week in spelling the pattern is long and short e and long and short a. They should pay attention to the letters that form the long sound in each of the words. Is there a pattern? A pretest will be given on Monday of this week.

Reading This week, we will finish reading Akiak by Robert Blake. We will continue to focus on story structure. The children will also explore character and setting in depth. When your child is reading at home, you can practice and review story structure by asking them to identify characters, setting, and plot (which includes the problem, sequenced events, and the solution).

English- The English test is going to be held off until Wednesday. We need another day to review the subject and predicate of a sentence. They should bring their books home to begin studying for it. There are many review activities at the end of the chapter that will help them to practice.

Social Studies-The students willl be practicing their study skills this week as they prepare for the chapter 2 test which will only cover lesson 2 and 3 on Friday. They should be sure to review the vocabulary and the important review questions from each section. There are very important papers to go over in their social studies folder: The Social Studies Quest and Review of lesson 3 sheet. It will be very important for them to know the things on these sheets.

Science We have been squirming ahead in our worm unit. You may ask your child what they discovered about worms so far this week. Do they like damp or dry surfaces better? Do they respond to touch? How do the different parts of the worm respond to touch? How does your worm react to light?

The directions for their worm tracks will go home next week on Tuesday or Wednesday. After the students discover the results of their tests, They will be able to create the best worm race track.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 13-17

2010-09-09T07:10:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, Sept. 13 - New Band Members Parent meeting

PE - A soccer test is scheduled for Wednesday, September 22nd. A study guide will go home on Friday. Please help your child review for this test.

Math There will be a test over unit 1 on Tuesday. Lessons 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, and 1.5 will be covered. The students may bring their textbooks home to help them study. They should also look over the sheets in their math folders for a review.

Spelling - This week the pattern is long and short "i" and "o". There are 5 challenge words added to the list. They will get a bonus points on their point card for spelling them correctly on the test, but they will not be graded on those words.

Reading -This week, we will read a story called Akiak that is written by Robert Blake. Akiak is about a world-famous Iditarod Race that takes place in the Alaskan wilderness. While we are reading, we will focus on story structure. We will use a story map to look at how a problem and its solution affect the story’s plot and characters. The children will also be working with the following vocabulary: blizzard, checkpoint, courageous, experienced, musher, and rugged. You may want to have your child review these key words with the e-game at http://www.eduplace.com/kids/hmr06/gr4/gr4_th1_sel1.html.

English The students will learn about the simple subject and simple predicates of a sentence. They will identify and edit run-on sentences. There will be a test over unit 1 The Sentence on Friday. The students will have homework throughout the week to help them review the concepts of this unit.

Science- The students will have a quiz on Wed. over the tools of inquiry and safety rules in the science lab. They should review their introductory lesson 1 and their safety rules sheet in their binder to help them study for the quiz.

We will begin our worm unit this week. We hope to begin on Tuesday, so if the kids have their worms and habitats done by then that would be great. As we progress through our worm unit the students will learn about the scientific method.

Social Studies - This week we will review the three branches of government. The students will understand ways that a person can become a citizen of the U.S. They will identify three types of services that are paid for by taxes, and understand three responsibilities of U.S. citizens. The children will make a T-chart to help them learn and study their vocabulary words.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 7-10

2010-09-03T14:33:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, September 6, 2010 No School/Labor Day
Tuesday, September 7, 2010 Fourth and Fifth Grade Curriculum Night - Parents Only - 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Monday, September 13, 2010 Beginning Band Parent Meeting - 7:00 p.m. - Multi-Purpose Room

Math - Mrs. Cavoto's Class
This week we will focus on reading and writing and identifying the place value of numbers through millions. They will also compare and order numbers through millions. Any extra help you can give your child through this unit would be great for them.

Spelling - This week in spelling we will continue to work on commonly misspelled words. The pretest for this lesson will be given on Tuesday, 9/7. Students that score 90% or better on the pretest will choose a challenge list of spelling words for the week. A test will be given on Friday for those students who do not score 90% or better.
Please refer to the new "All About Spelling" sheet coming home on Tuesday. This one may clear up any confusion you may have about the spelling procedures in class.

Reading This week in reading the students will learn to use skimming and scanning skills to locate answeres. During science, social studies, and reading, the students will be given tasks where they have to locate answers in the text. They will practice highlighting key words in questions or clues, and then skim the headlines, subtitles, captions, and passages to help them find the answers to those questions.

English - This week in English we will continue to work on Sentences. There will be a DOL quiz on Friday. This quiz will cover capitalization and end marks in the different kinds of sentences (commands, questions, statements, exclamations).

Social Studies - We will continue to study U.S. Government and they will work on their "Patriotic Quest" for lesson 2.

Science - Students will understand the steps of the Scientific Method. We will prepare for our worm unit. They should be thinking of a good spot to find a nice juicy worm that they can bring into class. I will let the children know when they should bring them in. More information will follow.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Aug.30-Sept. 3

2010-08-24T21:29:00.000-07:00

Dates to Remember:

Friday, September 3 Intramural sheets due to Mrs. Cushing
Monday, September 6 No School/Labor Day
Tuesday, September 7 Fourth and Fifth Grade Curriculum Night - Parents Only - 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Monday September 13 Beginning Band Parent Meeting - 7:00 p.m. - Multi-Purpose Room ber:

Welcome to Fourth Grade!

Please feel free to e-mail me with any questions you may have.

*Don't forget to review the rules in the Parent Handbook with your child and please sign and send the green sheet back to school with him/her. The handbook can be found on the Prairieview web page.

*All 4th and 5th grade students have the opportunity to sign up for Intramural Games. This is a "free" after school program that allows your child to stay active. Permission slips will be sent out next week. Please return these to Mrs. Cushing by Friday, September 3rd.

Last week we spent much of our time organizing our things and getting to know each other. The children spent the first day learning about the PBIS program and the three behaviors that we will be working on all year. You may want to ask them to tell you about the three "B's" they learned about.(Be safe. Be responsible. Be respectful.)

Here are the plans for the week:

Math - We will begin the year with understanding place value. The students will model, read, write, and identify the place value of whole numbers through millions. They will understand that the position of the digit determines its value. They will also compare numbers through millions. They will know how to write the expanded form, standard form, and written form of a number into the millions.

If you need to know how a skill has been taught in class, you can refer to their math binder. Please keep all papers in their math binder. We will clean them out at the end of a the chapter together. They should only take out the papers that are in the take home side of the binder.

Spelling Each student will be given a pretest on Monday. A list will go home in their spelling binder each Monday with the new word pattern. Every day they will be given a homework assignment to complete at home. Tests will be given on Friday. If it is a short week then the test will be on Thursday. No tests will be given on a three day week. Please see the sheet that will come home on Monday of this week explaining the spelling program.

English - This week the students will review what a sentence is and the different kinds of sentences. (statements, questions, exclamations, and commands) They will practice writing sentences correctly during Daily Oral Language (DOL).

The children will also be writing an expository essay on something they are wild about.

Reading This week in reading the students will review and practice their reading strategies as they read the story The Pumpkin Runner by Marsha Diane Arnold. The reading strategies that we will focus on are : preview/infer, phonics/decoding, question, monitor/clarify, summarize, and evaluate.

Science- Last week in science the students participated in a textbook scavenger hunt. This was to help them become familar with the different parts of their book. This week they will learn the tools of inquiry which they will be using throughout the year and safety rules they will need to follow when participating in science class.
The children will also be working on the study skill of locating answers. They will learn how to find clue words that the can skim for in the titles, subtitles, captions, and highlighted words, as well as the paragraphs.

Social Studies We will begin a U.S. government unit this week. The students will understand what the Constitution is and why it is important. They will identify the three levels of government.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 24-May 28

2010-05-21T12:47:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Tuesday, May 25- Special Junior Achievement session about money
Wednesday, May 26 - Our last Jr. Achievement session with Mr. Simpson
Friday, May 28 - Fourth grade bowling trip
Tuesday, June 1, School Picnic
Wednesday, June 2, Last day of school and report cards issued

This will be the last Newsletter of the year. It has been a pleasure working with your children this year. Thank you for all of your support. I hope you have a wonderful summer vacation.

Math- This week in math we will continue our work with fractions. The students will be adding and subtracting fractions with like denominators. They will also be adding and subtracting mixed numbers, and fractions with unlike denominators.

Remember to practice your multiplication and division over the summer. It is so important for continued success in fifth grade. If the kids know their facts, the other concepts are much easier.

Spelling - We will not have a spelling unit this week. All grades are in for spelling.

English - The students will learn about adverbs this week. They will identify adverbs in sentences and recognize if they tell how, when, or where about the verb.

Reading - Our mystery unit will continue. The children have been doing a wonderful job working in their agencies on drawing conclusion and supporting these conclusions with evidence. They did an excellent job of writing stories using their vocabulary words and acting them out.

Social Studies- The students will learn about the Land in the West Region this week. They will identify the largest system of mountains in the United States. The will compare and contrast mountain ranges of the west and tell where they are located. They will also compare geysers to volcanoes.

Science - This week in science the children will learn about the Changes to Earth's Surface. Some of the Essential Questions that we will be studying are: What Are Some of Earth's Landforms? What Causes Change to Earth's Landforms? What are Fossils?

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 17-21

2010-05-14T09:07:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:

*Tuesday, May 18, Beginning Band Concert in the evening at Lakeview.
*Thursday, May 19, Cadet Band/Choir concert at 1:00
*Thursday, Fifty State Challenge (optional).
* Tuesday, May 25 Junior Achievement session (about money)
*Friday, May 28 Fourth grade bowling trip
*Monday, May 31, No school
*Tuesday, June 1, School Picnic
*Wednesday, June 2 Last day of school and report cards issued

Math- This week we will have math placement tests on Tuesday and Thursday. These tests are not graded. We will have a test on Friday of this week covering fractions. The lessons 15.1, 15.2, 15.3, 15.4 and 15.5 in their textbook will be covered.

Spelling - We will be working with lesson 35 this week. This will be the last spelling lesson of fourth grade. Lesson 35 is a review unit. The children should focus on the rules of each lesson. The lesson 35 test asks the children to identify the misspelled word in each row.

English - The children will share their persuasive writing trying to convince me that they should have an extra recess. They write their final persuasive essay on Monday. They will be graded on the content and conventions of their paper.

Reading- Last week the students got into their Detective Agencies and chose a name for it and themselves. This week they will be reading, listening, and watching many mysteries. We will be discussing the elements of a mystery and important "detective" vocabulary. Throughout this study we will also review all the reading strategies that we have covered in fourth grade.

Social Studies This week the students will learn about the early culture of the Navajo people and their life today. They will describe "The Long Walk" and explain how the Navajo Council governs the Navajo Nation.

There will be an open book quiz on lesson 1 on Thursday of this week.

Science- There will be a science test over chapter 7, The Rock Cycle, on Friday of this week. What to study: Notes in binder, all vocabulary, main concepts and essential ideas.

The students should know:
*All vocabulary
*Know the physical properties and what they would show: luster, texture, hardness, streak, magnetism
*Know the layers of the Earth and what each layer is made mostly of
*Property of all soil horizons
*Understand weathering and erosion and the causes of each
*How are mountains and sink holes formed?
*How does the color of soil determine it origin?
*How are rocks alike and different? Be able to give 3 ways
*Know the three groups of rocks and how they are formed

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 10-May 14

2010-05-07T13:20:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:

*Monday, May 10 All students need to bring a sack lunch and drink on Monday. We will be eating in the classroom before we go to the Robert Crown Center. Students may want to bring a second snack for when we return in the afternoon.
*Friday, May 14th all poetry books are due.
*Friday May 14th Early Dismissal at 11:00
*Friday, may 28 *Bowling field trip May 28 (after lunch).
*Monday, May 30 No school
* Tuesday, June 1 All-school picnic
* Wednesday, June 2 Report Cards issued - Last day of school Spelling

Math - This week we will continue the study of fractions. The students will review equivalent fractions, compare and order fractions and mixed numbers, and read, and write mixed numbers. We will have a test on Thursday of the following week over fractions. Chapter 15 lessons 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5.

Spelling- the suffixes ment and ness are added to words to form nouns. Test on Friday.

Reading - We will begin a unit on mysteries this week. The children will be reading, watching, and listening to many mysteries. We will review the elements of a mystery. The class will also review all our reading strategies throughout this unit. The children will also have time during to use our classroom computers to work on their poetry books. All poetry books are due on Friday, May 14. Don't forget to turn in reading folders.

English - In English this week we will continue to work on persausive writing. We are finishing up a persuasive essay that we have written together. Then they will write a persausive essay with a partner. Finally they will be ready to write a persausive essay on their own which I will take as two English grades- the content of their essay, and conventions (capital letters, punctuation, spelling)

Social Studies - This week the students will review the different climates of the Southwest and how the saguaro has adapted to desert climate and why it is important to the desert animals. They will also identify a nonrenewable resource in the Southwest and describe how technology of the Southwest has impacted the U.S.

There will be a test over Chapter 10 The land and Resources of the Southwest on Friday of this week. The students should prepare for this test by reviewing all vocabulary,
understanding the end of the lesson reviews:main concepts
studying the papers in their binder

Focus on:
Vocabulary
how the Grand Canyon was formed
causes of the continued changes in the Canyon
why it is a national park today
why do people visit the Canyon today
what is the climate in the Southwest mostly like
what is a desert
understand how the saguaro has adapted to living in the desert
how does the saguaro help life in the desert
nonrenewable resource of the southwest (oil)
understand the different technology in the Southwest
understand what technology each state in the Southwest has
How do oil and technology play an important role in the economy of the Southwest?( Oil and technology has led to new business and jobs, which have given people another way besided farming to make a living. More people move to the area and this all helps improve the economy.

Science: This week in science the students will learn more about erosion and how erosion and weathering affect rocks. They will also compare particle sizes in different types of soil and describe what soil is. They will explain how soil forms, and how soils differ.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 3-8th

2010-04-30T14:01:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:

Monday, May 10th- Robert Crown Field tirp. Students will need to bring a sack lunch and drink. We will eat in our classroom prior to our scheduled lunch time.

Thursday, May 7- Pet Rock Day- The students should find a rock they would like to bring into class to classify and identify. We will also give them names and make homes for them.

Smencil Sales: Students from Project Challenge have started a fundraiser for the ASPCA, a foundation to stop animal cruelty. The kids will be selling Smencils® (scented pencils) for a 1.00 each. The pencils will be sold each morning in the grade level areas. The sales will start Friday April 30th and go through May 28th. We will track our sales on the bulletin board by the multi-purpose room. For every twenty dollars we raise, one food bowl will go up on the bulletin board. So please help save our animals. Buy Smencils.

Math - This week in math we will be working number theories. The students will find factors and multiples using arrays and number lines. We will also use divisibility rules for 2, 5, 10, and 25. They will also identify, describe, extend and make patterns. The focus will be on lesson 14.1, 14.2 and 14.3.

Spelling - We will be working with words that have tion in them. Test on Friday.

Reading - The children are doing a wonderful job on their poetry books. This has been a great activity to help us review our figurative language skills. Their poetry books are due on May 14th. They will have some time to work on them this week, but they may need to work on them at home too.

English - There will be a test on Tuesday over pronouns. The students will have a homework assignment to help them review. They should study the end of the chapter pages to help them prepare as well.

We will begin persausive writing this week. Can they think of a time when they have tried to presaude you to do something for them or with them?

Science - This week the students will learn what the rock cycle is and how it works. They will have a quiz on it on Thursday of this week over the rock cycle.

Social Studies - The students will have a map quiz on Wednesday of this week. They will have to put the Southwest States correctly on the map. They will also have to include the Colorado River, The Rio Grande, and The Gulf of Mexico. They will have a map to color in and label for Tuesday. They should be sure to follow the rater on that, so they include all they need in it. That will go home on Monday.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 26-30

2010-04-23T13:57:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:

Tuesday, April 27-Straight A's recognized
Wednesday, April 28 -Second Jr. Achievement session

Don't forget to keep track of your reading folder. They should be turned in after 7 days of reading.

Math This week in math we will continue to work on long division. They will divide 3 digit numbers and money by 1 digit numbers. Lessons 2.2 They will also divide 3 digit numbers by 1 digit numbers where there are zeros in the quotient. There will be a test on long division on Chapter 11 lessons 11.1, 11.3, 11.5, 11.6 and 11.7 and chapter 12 lessons 12.2 and 12.3.

Spelling This week the children will spell words with le.

Reading - We will continue working on our review of figurative language and clarifying as we read. We will begin a poetry project this week. The children will be writing all kinds of different poetry.

English - In English this week the students will identify object and possessive pronouns in sentences. They practice using I and me in a sentence and they will combine pronouns and verbs to write contractions.

*There will be a test on Tuesday, May 4 covering pronouns chapter 6.

Science This week in science the students will compare the different kinds of rocks-sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic. They will understand the different ways in which they were formed. They will understand what the rock cycle is and model the steps in the rock cycle.

Social Studies - We will have a test over the culture of the Ojibwa Indians on Tuesday of this week.
They should study the information on pages 256-259.

They should know:

Where did the Ojibwa live? They moved from the Atlantic Coast to the northern Great Lakes region.

How did the Ojibwa use the natural resources (trees, lakes/rivers, forests) of the land they settled in?

Why were canoes so important?

How did the Ojibwa earn a living?

What did the Ojibwa do for fun?

How did they get their food?

Why didn't they farm?

How did fur trade change Ojibwa culture? What were the advantages/disadvantages(They became less self-sufficient)

Explain the life of the Ojibwa today.

How do they keep their heritage alive today?

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 19-23

2010-04-16T17:05:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
*Wednesday, April 21 4th Grade Talent show
*Wednesday, April 21 - Junior Achievement .
*Thursday, April 22 - Earth Day- Wear Earth Day shirts or colors of nature (ex. green or brown).*
*Thursday, April 22 -Early Dismissal on Thursday, 11:00
*Tuesday, April 27 Straight A's

It was great seeing many of you at the Spring Open House. The children were so proud and excited to share all their wonderful work with you. I want to thank you all for attending

Math - In math this week we will continue to work on long division. They will divide 1 digit numbers into 2 and 3 digit dividends. Any help at home is greatly appreciated. We will cover lessons 11.1, 11.3 and 11. 7. We will also work on lesson 12.2 dividing with money and dividing 3 digit numbers by 1 digit numbers when there are zeros in the quotient. That is lesson 12.3. The children should be ready for a quiz on Tuesday to show understanding of dividing 1 digit into a 2 digit dividend. See their binders for examples of the problems we have been doing in class.

Spelling- This week the students will be learning about plural possessives. When a plural noun ends with s, add only an apostrophe to make the possessive form ( ex. farmers' crops) When a plural noun does not end in s, add 's to make the plural form (ex. children's toys).

Reading - We will begin a poetry study this week. This unit will review all types of figurative language. The children will be making their own poetry book.

Social studies - This week we will continue to study the culture of the Ojibwa tribe. There will be a quiz over this on Thursday of this week. They should bring home their books and use the information in their binders to study for this quiz.

Science - We will begin our Earth Science unit this week. We will be studying the Earth's formations. They should know the 9 landforms and be able to describe them. Mountains, hills, valleys, canyons, plains, plateaus, deltas and dunes and islands.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 12-17

2010-04-09T13:42:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:

Monday, April 12 - Turn in reading folders if they were not turned in last week
Tuesday, April 13 - Inventions, Contract, & Grading Rubric due Tuesday.
Thursday, April 15 -Spring Open House 6:30-8:00.
Thursday, April 22 Earth Day- Wear Earth Day shirts or colors of nature (ex. green or brown).
Thursday, April 22 Early Dismissal at 11:00.
Tuesday, April 27 -Straight A's recognized

Math - In math this week, we will review multiplication of 2 and 3 digit numbers and with money. I will give a short quiz on Monday over multiplication of 2 & 3 digit numbers. There will be a test on Wednesday of this week. It will cover lessons from chapter 9 and 10. These are the lesson that will be covered. 9.1, 9.2, 9.4, 9.5, 9.6 10.1, 10.6, 10.7.

Spelling -This week our lesson is on possessive nouns. A possessive noun shows ownership. It is made by adding 's to a singular noun. Do not change the spelling of the base word when you add the 's.

Reading - In reading fourth graders will continue to work on personification and self-questioning. We will continue our work with porquoi tales. The students will do choral readings and write their own.

English - This week in English the students will learn about pronouns. They will identify subject pronouns and object pronouns and substitute them for nouns in sentences.

Social Studies We will begin a chapter to learn about the people of the Midwest Region.
The students will learn about the Ojibawa culture and describe the the ways that it has changed since the mid-1600's.

Science - This week the students will learn about the inclined plane, screws, and wedges. We will be investigating with cars and ramps. There will be a test over chapter 17 on simple
machines. The test will be on Thursday of this week.
The students should know:

All vocabulary
Study the main concepts from the book
Study the worksheets in folder
the scientific explanation of work
understand all the simple machines and what they are made of
know a few examples of the different simple machines and understand how they can make work easier
What simple machine works with a wedge
understand where the fulcrum is on different levers and what it may look like

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 5-9th

2010-03-24T18:56:00.000-07:00

Welcome Back!

Things to Remember:
Monday-April 5th school resumes
Thursday-April 8 Otis Lennon Scholastic Ability Test
Tuesday, April 13th Inventions due
Thursday, April 15 - Prairieview Open House

Math - This week in math we will work on multiplying 3 & 4 digit numbers and money by 1 digit. They will also multiply numbers with zeros by 1 - digit numbers. We will also work on multiplying 2 digit numbers by multiples of tens using place value and mental math, and 2 digit and 3 digit numbers and money by 2 and 3 digit numbers.

A math test is planned for Tuesday, April 13th over Chapters 9 & 10.

Spelling- The prefixes mis and dis - Do not change the spelling of the base word when a prefix is added.

Reading - In reading this week the focus will be on the Genre of Pourquoi Tales. Pourquoi Tales are folktales that explain how something in nature came to be. Pourquoi is a French word that means "Why." We will introduce and develop understanding of personification. Self-questioning will be the reading strategy for the week.

English - We will review the process of writing an expository essay. They will write an essay on their own that will be graded using the state rubric.

An English grade will be given on their Convention oral presentation. They should practice giving their presentations at home.

Social Studies The students will explain why the Midwest is an important agricultural region. They will undestand the need for irrigation on some farms and identify the rainfall in the Midwest and how it effects the growth of plants. They will be able to identify many crops grown in the Midwest,Central,and Great Plains. **A test is planned for Thursday, April 8th over chapter 8.

The students should prepare for the test by:

Studying all vocabulary and main concepts from the book. They could make a T-chart or use note cards to help.

The should know:
why the flow of the Chicago River was changed
why the Midwest is an important agricultural region
difference between badlands today and millions of years ago
why climate changed in the badlands
understand irrigation
products of Wisconsin
products of other states in the Midwest
how the Great Lakes were formed
the five Great Lakes
How a lock works
advantages/disadvantages of shipping by barge
prairie/badlands good for farming? Which is better?

Science - In science this week the students will continue to learn about simple machines. They will investigate pulleys and wheel and axles. They will explain how they work and how they change how work is done.

Remember to look at the invention calendar to keep up to date on what needs to be turned in and when.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room March 22-26

2010-03-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

Plan Ahead:
*March 25- Field Trip to the Museum of Science and Industry-Bring $8.00 or a sack lunch.
*Week of March 29 - Spring Break- Students will return on Monday, April 5
*April 13 - Inventions, contract (with a neatly-drawn colored diagram on back), and grading rubric due. Students need to be prepared to present their inventions to the class. An English grade will be take on their Oral presentations as well as a science grade.
*Thursday, April 15 - Spring Open House. Inventions will be displayed in the fourth grade classrooms during this event.

*Invention Convention - The children will receive an informative letter, contract and rubric on Monday for our annual Invention Convention. They will need to brainstorm an everyday problem and develop an invention to solve this problem. On Thursday, the children will need to bring in their signed completed contract for my approval. They should not begin building their invention until they have my approval.

Math - In math this week we will begin a unit on multiplication of higher numbers. We will review the vocabulary product, factor and multiple. The students will use a basic fact and a pattern to multiply mentally. They will estimate products by rounding factors or using compatible numbers and then finding the product mentally. They will multiply 2, 3, and 4 digit by 1 digit numbers and money by 1 digit numbers. Lessons 9.1, 9.2, 9.4 and 9.5 will be covered.

Spelling- This week the students will review words that have the prefix un and in. Un and in mean the opposite of or not.They should know that the spelling of a word does not change when a prefix is added. Test Friday.

Reading - This week we will wrap up our novel study. The students will have a vocabulary quiz on words from their novel on Friday of this week. They should know the meanings of the words and be able to write them in a good sentence.

Fourth grade students will be reviewing the strategies of clarifying and inferring this week. We will be using a biograpghy called Louis Braille, The Boy Who Invented Books for the Blind. The vocabulary will include: pinpricks, patterns, succeeding, discouraged, simplified, and institute. This reading selection is from our anthology. It is included in a theme called Problem Solvers.

English We will continue to work on our expository writing. The students will work on their closings this week and then put the informaton from the graphic organizer into a rough draft format. They will not take this model to a final draft. Then they will be ready to work with a partner on their next writing. By the end of the week they should be ready to write an expository essay on their own.

Science - This week in science we are beginning a unit on simple machines. The students will learn how simple machines help people do work.

Social Studies - We will review lesson 1 and the students will have an open book quiz on " The Great Lakes and other waterways that connect the Midwest to the world".

The students will learn about the landscape and climate of the Badlands 67 million years ago and why it changed. The will define erosion and describe the way it changes the land. They will define prairie and describe the types of life that live there.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room March 15-19

2010-03-11T12:38:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:

*Monday, March15 - Max and Erma's District fundraiser
*Tuesday, March 16 - Roller Skating Party 3:45-6:30
*Thursday, March 25- Museum of Science and Industry
* Monday, March 29- First day of Spring Break

Spelling - This week is a review week. The words that come home this week follow the pattern of the words that will be tested. They should study the pattern and bring home their workbooks to see some of the other words in the review unit to study. It will be a multiple choice test.

Math - This week in math the students will learn about the metric units of measure. They will learn about metric mass and capacity and how to convert those measurements. They should learn the rule for converting measurements: Larger unit to a smaller unit - multiply, smaller unit to larger unit - divide.This will make it much easier for them.
**There will be a test over measurement, chapter 22 on Friday of this week.

Reading In reading this week, we will continue to read our novels. The reading strategies we will focus on are summarizing and making connections. Don't forget to keep track in your reading log and turn it in.

English - This week we will continue to work on expository writing. After evaluating hooks from a variety of literature and understanding what they are and how they are used, we will write a hook together for our essay: What animal would make a good house pet? After writing the hook, the students will take their organized ideas and formulate 2 key ideas from it. They will then learn how to use different kinds of support to elaborate on those ideas.

Social Studies - This week we will begin a unit on the Midwest Region. The students will learn about the water and land of the Midwest. There will be a map quiz on Thursday of this week. They will have a homework assignment to fill in the midwest map. They should follow the direction sheet to do this.

Science - The students will learn why the force of gravity is important. The will obsere the forces involved in circular motion. They will identify several natural forces including gravity and friction, and explain weight and how it is measured.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room March 8-12

2010-03-05T06:19:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
March 8-12, Parent Teacher conferences
March 9 - Report cards issued
March 12 - No School
Monday, March 15 - District Eat Out Fundraiser at Max & Ermas
Tuesday, Mach 16 - Rollerskating Party
Thursday, March 25 - Field Trip to The Museum of Science and Industry

Volunteers are needed to help chaperone the field trip to the Museum of Science and Industry. Please let me know if you can join us.

Raise a Reader Challenge:
Look for the flyer that was sent home Friday. It announces a reading incentive program that Prairieview is encouraging called “Raise a Reader.” Parents sign up your child starting Monday the 8th by going to:
http://www.parents.com/reading/prairieviewschooldowil
All students who sign up will get to put their first name and teacher's name up on the bulletin board in the front hallway. So join the fun and keep reading!

Math - In math this week we will continue to work with our measurement unit chapter 22. The students will learn to change linear customary units. This is a difficult skill and your child may need extra help at home with this. They will also learn about customary weight and capacity. There will be little quizes throughout this unit to test the skills they learned the day before. Lessons 22.2, 22.3 22.4, 22. 6, and 22.7 will be covered this week.

Spelling- This week the words to study have ture. The other words to know are words from social studies and science.

Language - This week we will begin a unit on expository writing. The students will review the elements of an expository essay. We will work together through each step of the process of writing an expository essay.

Reading - In reading this week we will begin a new novel study. There are two different books that we will be reading in class. Ask your child what book he/she is reading. During our novel study we will be focusing on the reading strategies. This week the children will review previewing/predicting, making connections, and visualizing. They will also work on their vocabulary development.

Social Studies - The students will be able to explain why Atlanta is an important transportation center and identify the causes of growth in Southeastern cities. There will be a test over Chapter 7 on Tuesday, March 9.

The students should study: The worksheets in their folders and the main ideas of the textbook.

They should know:

*All vocabulary

*Important people: Sequoyah, Davy Crocket, George Washington, Rosa Parks, Danile Boone, Juan Ponce de Leon, Robert LaSalle, Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther King, Jr. Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Jackson

*Important places: Roanoke Island St. Augustine, Florida

*Explain: how the Cherokee had to adapt there way of life after the Europeons arived,

*Causes of the civil war,

*How Martin Luther King, Jr. protested segregation

* Reasons for moving into cities in the Southeast now

Science There will be a science test on Thursday of this week. The students should study all the sheets in their folder and the main ideas in their textbook.

They should know: *All vocabulary

They should understand:

* Energy stored in a battery

*Series/parallel circuts - How do they work?

* Understand how different kinds of energy are produced/ hydroelectric Power, Geothermal Power, Solar Power

*Good conductors/insulators

*How electric generators work

*Two kinds of energy

*Four sources of energy

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room March 1-5

2010-02-26T12:44:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
March 1 - No school - Casimir Pulaski Day
March 2-March 5 - ISAT testing
March 5 - End of 2nd Trimester
March 8 - 10 Parent Teacher Conferences
Tuesday, March 9 - Report Cards
Friday, March 12 - No School

ISAT Testing: Please make sure your child gets plenty of rest and has a healthy breakfast each morning. We will be testing in the morning and afternoon. Your child may want to bring an extra snack and/or drink to help keep them focused for both tests each day.

Spelling - This week the rule is when a word ends with sh, ch, x or s, add es to make the plural form. When a word ends with se, ce, ze, or ge, drop the e and add es to make the plural.

There will not be a spelling test this week.

Language Arts - This week the students will choose a fable to practice and perform in front of the class.

Social Studies - The students will understand the impact the Civil War had on the Southeast. They will describe how the Southeast changed during the Reconstruction. They will also analyze the development of the Civil Rights Movement.

There will be a test over Chapter 7 on Tuesday, March 9. The students should study: The worksheets in their folders and the main ideas of the textbook.

They should know:
*all vocabulary
*important people: Sequoyah, Davy Crocket, George Washington, Rosa Parks, Danile Boone, Juan Ponce de Leon, Robert LaSalle, Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther King, Jr. Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Jackson
*important places: Roanoke Island St. Augustine, Florida
*Explain: how the Cherokee had to adapt there way of life after the Europeons arived, causes of the civil war, how Martin Luther King, Jr. protested segregation, reasons for moving into cities in the Southeast now

Science- This week the students will describe the uses of chemical and mechanical energy and how chemical energy can be changed to other forms of energy.

There will be a test covering chapter 15 on Thursday, March 11. The students should review all papers in their binders, understand the main ideas in the book and all vocabulary.

More information will follow.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Feb. 22-26

2010-02-19T06:36:00.001-08:00

Things to Remember:

Monday, March 1- No school Casimir Polaski Day
March 2-March 5 - ISAT Testing
Friday, March 4 - End of second trimester
Friday, March 12 - No school Parent teacher conferences

Thank You!

I want to thank Mrs. Caldarazzo for organizing the Valentine's Day party, Mrs. Schmidt and Mrs. Melendez for sending in the drinks and treats, and Mrs. Mendoza and Merrinete for organizing the games. It was wonderful having all your help.

Conference notes are going home this week. Spring conferences are scheduled with the math teachers. If the homeroom teacher feels a conference is necessary you will be contacted as well.

Math - In math this week the students will work on their problem solving skills. They will practice using a calculator to solve problems. They will solve math problems and then write an explanation using a T-chart to show what they did and why they did it. They will have a test on Thursday covering this. To help them study, they should review the papers that we do throughout the week. They will have homework each night that will help them practice.

Spelling The rule this week is to use tch immediately after a , short vowel in a one-syllable word. Use ch in most other words.

Reading -This week in reading the students will study and compare the genres of fairytales, folktales, fables, and myths. They will choose a fable to practice and perform. They will continue to read passages and write responses to them.

English - The students will review their knowledge of the different styles of figurative language : onomatopoeia, similes, metaphors, rhyme, and idioms. There will be a quiz on Friday over this.

Social Studies - In social studies this week, the students will identify the causes of the civil war and explain its effects on the Southeast.

Science - In science this week we will study energy uses and their sources. The students will also describe the uses of chemical and mechanical energy and how chemical energy can be changed to other forms of energy.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room February 15-19

2010-02-15T22:14:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:

Friday, February 19 Classroom Reading club party/Folders due on Thursday FEb. 18
Friday, February 19 Six Flag Great America Reading Club sheets due
Tuesday, February 23 - Movie Night permission slips due
Thursday, February 25 -Spring Picture Day
Friday, February 26 Ozzie Reading Club sheets due
Friday, February 26 Movie Night

Math - The students should bring home their text books to help them review for the quiz covering lessons 21.1(faces, edges, vertices, and identification of solid figures) 21.3 (Patterns of solid figures) and 21.4 (different views of solid figures) in chapter 21.

Reading - This week in reading the students will continue to work on author's purpose and motivation. The students will work on writing an extended response to a passage using the text and their own ideas. This involves the students using evidence from the text and then making inferences on their own to explain what the evidence means. They may be bringing this home to work on. They have samples in their reading binders that we have done together. Any help that you can give them on this would be great.

Reading folders are due on Thursday of this week.

English - The test over adjectives will be on Thursday, instead of Wednesday this week. Look for homework to come home that will help the students review.

Science - In science this week the students will learn about different kinds of energy and where it comes from. They will investigate variables that affect the amount of potential energy an object has. They will recognize that energy can change forms and that electricity can be produced by energy transormations of different kinds.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Feb. 8-12

2010-02-07T17:33:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:

Friday, February 12 - Valentine's Day Party 1:30-2:15

Monday, February 15 - No School President's Day

Friday, February 19- Classroom Reading Club Party - Six Flags Reading Club deadline

Thursdy, February 25- Spring Pictures on Thursday

Friady, February 26 - Ozzie's Reading Club deadline

Friday, February 26 - Movie Night

Math - There will be a quiz on Tuesday over congruent and similar figures, symmetry, and finding patterns. These are lessons 20.1, 20.3, and 20.6 in chapter 20 of their textbook. They should review their 3 times tables. They will have a test over their 3 facts on Friday.

The students will identify, classify, describe, and make solid figures this week.

Reading - This week in reading the students will read and compare different genres. They will identify the author's purpose and motivation for writing a passage. We will work with figurative language and the students will learn about onomatopoeia and idioms.

English - We will continue our work with adjectives this week. The students will learn that a, an, and the are adjectives. They will also learn how to make comparisons using er and iest and more and most. They will also learn to write the correct forms of good and bad. A test is planned for Wednesday, February 17 over adjectives.

Social Studies - This week the students will learn about the early history of the Southeast. They will learn about some of the early explorers and what they originally set out to accomplish. Did they accomplish their goals or not? They will learn about St. Augustine, the first permanent European setlement in the U.S., and they will learn about Roanoke, " The Lost Colony".

Science - In science this week we will explore magnetic fields. The students will discover that magnetic forces are strongest at the poles. They will learn that the earth has two magnetic poles. The north magnetic pole and the south magnetic pole. The needle in a compass is a magnet. The colored one-half of the needle points to the north magnetic pole of the earth.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room February 1-5

2010-01-29T13:16:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:

Tuesday, Feb. 2 -No school on Tuesday - Teachers' Institute.

Thursday, Feb.4 - District spelling bee on Thursday, at 1:00

Friday, Feb. 12 Valentine's Day Party 1:30-2:15

Monday, February 15 No school - Presidents' Day.

Friday, February 19-Six Flags Reading Club deadline

Thursday, February 25 - Spring Pictures on Thursday,

Friday, February 19 - Classroom Reading Club party

Friday, February 26 - Ozzie's Reading Club deadline

Friday,February 26 - Movie Night

Math - This week in math we will review circles. There will be a quiz on circles and quadrilaterals on Wednesday (lessons 19. 6 & 19.7). The children should recognize the diameter and radius of a circle and understand how to figure out what they are when given the length of one or the other. They should understand and be able to recognize the different quadrilaterals. They should use their text book and their worksheets to help them. We will begin chapter 20 on motion geometry. The students will identify congruent and similar figures. They will identify, predict and describe the results of transformations: translation (slide), rotation (turn) and reflection (flip). They will also identify, describe,extend, and make geometric patterns. Lessons 20.1, 20.3, 20.6 will be covered.

Wednesday, February 3- quiz circles and quadrilaterals

Friday, February 5 - quiz division 9

Tuesday, February, 9th - quiz Lessons 20.1, 20.3, and 20.6.

Spelling - The spelling rule/pattern of the week. Words that have 1 syllable, 1 vowel and end with 1 consonant are called 1 + 1 + 1 words. Double the final consonant of a 1 +1 +1 word before you add an ending that begins with a vowel, such as ed or ing. Do not double the final consonant of a 1 + 1 + 1 word when you add an ending that begins with a consonant.

Reading - In reading this week, we will continue to work on our reading responses. We will also work on the skill of making inferences. The children will be reading fiction and nonfiction genre to help them understand and practice this skill.

English - We will begin a unit on adjectives this week. The students will identify adjectives that tell what kind and how many. They will also practice writing adjectives before the verb be and after.

Science - In science this week the students will understand that electrical conductors allow electric charges to move through them easily and insulators do not. They will experiment to find out which materials are conductors or insulators.

Social Studies - In social studies this week the children will learn about the native American tribe, the Cherokee, whom lived in the Southeast. They will understand their way of life before the Europeans came to North America, and how their culture changed after. They will identify the Trail of Tears and its impact on the Cherokee.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Jan. 25-Jan29

2010-01-22T14:16:00.000-08:00

News to Remember:
*January 29 -Family Reading Night Permission Slips due
*January 29 - PTO Bingo Night
*February 2 - Teacher Institute
*February 15 - No School

Math - This week in math the students will classify triangles and quadrilaterals. They will also understand what a circle is and learn about the different parts of a circle. There will be a test on Wednesday over their 8 division facts. There will be a quiz on Friday over lessons 1-5. They should review those lessons in their textbooks to help them study.

Spelling - Pattern/Rule: Words that have 1 syllable and 1 vowel and end with 1 consonant are called 1 + 1 + 1 words. Double the final consonant of a 1 + 1 + 1 word before you add an ending that begins with a vowel, such as ed or ing.

English In English this week the students will learn about the special verb be: am, is, are, was, were. They will also review contractions with not.
*There will be a test over verbs on Friday of this week. Unit 3. The children will have homework throughout the week to help them review verbs.

Science - We will begin a new unit this week on electricity. The students will investigate how to light a light bulb. They will also explain static and currect electricity.

This Thursday our class will have Mr. Lee's Science Magic. Mr. Lee will visit our classroom for most of the day to do many activities with us on electricity. Please have your child wash their hair the day or night before. They should also refrain from using hairspray, gel, mousse, etc. Clean, dry hair will work best with one of the experiments.

Reading - The children will be working on a written response to go with the story Lou Gherig.
They will also work on the strategy of using the context to help them determine word meaning, and they will be reading several passages on the same topic to find similarities and differences within the information in them.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room January 19-22

2010-01-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

News to Remember:
*Tuesday, January 26 Permission slip for PV Bingo Night permission slips
*Friday, January 29 PV Bingo Night
*Friday, January 29 Family Reading Night permission slips due

Math This week in math we will begin a geometry unit. Lessons 19.1, 19.2, 19.3 & 19.4 will be covered. The students will learn about points, lines, rays and angles. They will use geoboards to help them understand the difference between right angles, obtuse, and acute angles. They will also review perpendicular, parrallel and intersecting lines using the geoboards.

There will be a short quiz on Thursday covering lines, rays, and angles. They will need to identify the the different kinds of lines perpendicular, parrallel, and intersecting. They will also need to identify rays and the different angles: right angles, obtuse and acute angels.

Spelling - Unit 17 is a review of lessons 10-16. Please note: The children will be tested on any words (not necessarily the words listed below) from lessons 10-16. They should study the rules from the units. The test will ask the children to find the word in each row that is misspelled, it will not be a regular spelling test.

Reading The students will read a biography of Lou Gherig. They will work on the skill of cause effect and fact opinion.

English - The students will continue their work with verbs. They will review spelling verbs in the past tense, the past with helping verbs and irregular verbs. They will begin the writing process for a new expository writing topic. They will choose a person in their life who is a hero to them and write an expository essay about this person.

Social Studies- There is a test scheduled for Wednesday, January 20th over chapter 6, The Land of the Southeast.
Your children should study: all papers in their binders, review lesson in the back of the chapter, and review all vocabulary

Focus on:
landforms of the Southeast and their elevations compared to each other (which one has the lowest, highest, etc)
climate of the Southeast & Florida
understand what a hurricane is, how it forms, and be able to give examples of how it can be destructive
purpose of lighthouses
know some resources of the Southeast and what they are used for
know the animals of the southeast region and the areas of the Southeast they live-( example: alligators- swamps of Florida)
know the crops/product and resources of the Southeast region and where they are found (Example oranges are mostly grown if Florida, coal is found in Kentucky and West Virginia)

Science A science test is scheduled for Friday, January 22 over chapter 3.
The children should study: all vocabulary, all papers in their binders, lesson reviews at the end of the chapter

Focus on:
all vocabulary
how plants & animals meet their basic needs
understand the difference between learned behavior and instincts (be able to give examples)understand hibernation and what happens to an animal when it goes into hibernation
extinction(know examples of plants and animals that are extinct and not extinct from the book)adaptations and how they are used
migration
Life cycle of a tree and the importance of each stagen (study picture in their binder)
How do fossils help scientists know the size of an animal or how it moves or eats?

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room January 11-18

2010-01-07T12:57:00.000-08:00

Dates to Remember:

January 18 -- M.L. King's Birthday -- No School

February 2 -- Teacher's Institute -- No School

February 15 -- President's Day -- No School

March 1 -- Casimir Pulaski Day -- No School

March 12 -- Parent/Teacher Conferences -- No School

IOWA Testing will be done this week. Please be sure to have your child eat a healthy breakfast and get a good night's sleep.

Math - This week the students will use line plots to review and organize data. There is a quiz covering mean, median, and mode on Thursday and a test over chapter 7, lessons 1, 2, 3, and 4 on Friday.

Reading News: Don't forget the the minutes that you have spent reading for the independent reading in class can be used to fill in your Great America and Ozzie's Reading Club incentives. You just need to be sure to turn in all of them. Please turn in Ozzies form after you complete two weeks. So that I can award the progress of getting around the bases.

Social Studies- There is a test scheduled for Wednesday, January 20th over chapter 6 The Land of the Southeast.

Your children should study:
papers in their binder
Review lesson in the back of the chapter
all lesson reviews
all vocabulary

They should know:
landforms of the Southeast and their elevations compared to each other (which one has the lowest, highest, etc)
climate of the Southeast & Florida
understand what a hurricane is, how it forms, and be able to give examples of how it can be destructive
purpose of lighthouses
know some resources of the Southeast and what they are used for
know the animals of the southeast region and the areas of the Southeast they live-( example: alligators- swamps of Florida)
know the crops/product and resources of the Southeast region and where they are found (Example oranges are mostly grown if Florida)

Science A science test is scheduled for Friday, January 22 over chapter 3.

The children should study:
all vocabulary
all papers in their binder
lesson reviews at the end of the chapter and lessons
all vocabulary

They should know:
all vocabulary
how plants meet their basic needs
understand the difference between learned behavior and instincts (be able to give examples)
understand hibernation and what happens to an animal when it goes into hibernation
extinction(know examples of plants and animals that are extinct and not extinct from the book)
adaptations and how they are used
migration
Life cycle of a tree and the importance of each stage
How do fossils help scientists know the size of an animal or how it moves or eats?

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room January 4-8

2010-01-03T19:44:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:

Monday, January 4- Hot lunches increase to $2.50

January 11-15 - IOWA testing

*No spelling unit during the week of January 11.
Monday, January 18 - No school Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday

Don't forget to keep track of your reading days in your reading folder. These times can also count for the "Read to Succeed" program to earn a free ticket to Great America.

The next reading party date is scheduled for January 8. All reading folders should be in by January 7th.

Math- This week the students will learn how to survey, collect, and organize data using a tally chart and table. They will practice reading Venn Diagrams and placing numbers correctly in a Venn Diagram. They will be introduced to the mean, median, and mode of a set of numbers. Chapter 7 Lessons 7.1, 7.2, and 7.3 will be the focus. Please have the students practice their division 5 & 6's this week. They will have a test on their 5 division on Wednesday and their 6 division on Friday.

Spelling This week the rule/pattern: Many words are spelled with the letter group ough. this letter group can be pronounced in several different ways. A few words are spelled with the letter group ould.

English - This week we will review verbs. The students will learn about main verbs and helping verbs. They will review how to write verbs in the past, present, and future.
They will review their letter writing skills and they will be writing thank you letters this week. Letter writing skills will be tested on Friday of this week.

Reading The students will learn summarizing skills this week. They will understand the elements of a good summary. They will practice writing gists which are very short summaries of a passage.

The students will also focus on the genre of biography. They will read a biography of Gloria Estafon.

Science Our new unit is on adaptations. Living things are adapted for survival in their environment. This week the students will study how the bodies of animals help them meet their needs. They will investigate different beak shapes and how they handle different foods. They will name the basic needs of living things. They will understand how adaptations help living things meet their needs.

Social Studies The students will study the land formation and resources of the Southeast. They will understand the importance of the Mississippi River. They will understand how barrier islands are formed and compare and contrast landform elevations in the Southeast. They will make models of the land forms to help them see the differences.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Dec. 14- Dec. 18

2009-12-11T15:46:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Thursday, December 17- 4th Grade - Bowling - p.m.
Friday, December 18 -Tivoli Theater in Downers Grove - Unaccompanied Minors Student/Staff Holiday Celebration
Monday -December 21, 2009 thru Friday, January 1, 2010Winter Break
Monday, January 4-Classes Resume

Please be advised that as of January 4, 2010 there will be a price increase in the student hot lunch program. The price of hot lunch will be $2.50 per meal.

Serivce Project
Thank you so much for all the wonderful gifts and generous gift cards. Your response was amazing. I am sure this will help bring some joy to our family and perhaps take their minds off the suffering they have been through with a sick child and financial difficulties. I hope everyone has a happy holiday and enjoys their winter break.

Math - This week our test is on Thursday over chaper 6. The students should bring their books home to use the reviews and extra practice at the end of the chapters to help with studying. They will not be tested on lesson 6.5 or lesson 6.7. They need to know all the other lessons. Any assistance you can give them to practice these skills is appreciated. I will continue to give tests on their division facts. They should study their 4, 5, 6, and 7 division facts for next week.

Spelling - The lesson this week is on ow & ou words. The letters ou are usually found at the beginning or in the middle of a word. The letters ow are usually found at the end of a word or followed by one n, one l, or the lettters er. No test will be given on Friday.

English - This week the students will be writing paragraphs. Their focus will be on using proper punctuation, a main idea and writing many descriptive details to support the main idea.

Reading- The students will read the article "Wildfires". The focus will be on finding main ideas and supporting details of paragraphs.

Social Studies - This week the students will learn about the land of the Southeast. They will identify and describe major landforms in the Southeast

News From Mrs. Cavoto's class Dec. 7-11

2009-12-06T19:23:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Tuesday, December 8
* Gifts for our service project are due
*Field trip to Drury Lane on Tuesday. We are encouraging the children to dress nicely.
*Home Run Inn pizza lunch on Tuesday (for those who ordered). Please bring a drink.

* Thursday, December 17 - Bowling field trip
*Friday, December 18 - Trip to The Tivoli Theater
*December 21 - January 1- Winter Break - Return to school on January 4.

Math In math this week, the students will review telling and writing time to the second. They will also review elapsed time. There will be a quiz over elapsed time on Tuesday of this week. They should bring home their books to review this lesson in the book. Also this week they will show elapsed time on the calender and understand how to change units of time. They may need your help in reviewing these concepts, because they are difficult to understand. Lessons 6.2 through 6.6 will be covered this week. We will skip lesson 6.5.

The students will need to bring their books back and forth from home to school this week, so they can review at home, but we will also need them in class.

There will be a math test covering the skills in chapter 6 on Thursday, December 17th. The skill in lesson 6.5 will not be on the test.

Spelling- This week in lesson 14 the spelling rule is letters au are usually found at the beginning or in the middle of a word.

English- We will begin a unit on verbs this week.

Reading- We will finish reading A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. The children will participate in a readers theater and act out the play. They will also summarize the story and fill in a story map which shows the sequence of important events and the main elements of the story. They will work on writing a response for the story to show how Scrooge changed from the beginning of the story to the end. They will have to use evidence from the story and their own ideas to show how he changed.

Social Studies - This week the students will begin learning about the Southeast. They will fill in a map for homework which will be graded, and they will have a map test on Thursday to show they know the states in the Southeast and can place them correctly on the map. They are not responsible for spelling of the states for a grade, but I will give points on their point card if they can spell them all correctly. They will earn extra credit points for knowing their capitals.

Science In science this week the children will learn about animal life cycles. They will understand the life cycle of a sea horse and they will understand metamorphosis and the life cycle of a moth.

The test planned for Wednesday of this week has been changed to Friday, December 11.

The students should:
know all vocabulary
study all sheets in their folders
be able to identify a plant that produces seeds and one that produces spores.
What does a seed contain that a spore does not? (food that helps the embryo grow until the new plant can make its own food)
Understand and know the Life cycle of a flowering plant, butterfly and sea horse
examples of direct development
tubers

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Class November. 23-Dec.3

2009-11-20T13:13:00.000-08:00

IMPORTANT DATES:
November 30-Dec 2 Conferences
Dec. 1 Year book orders due
December 4 -No School
December 1st – report cards handed out
December 4th – No School
December 8th - Field Trip to Drury Lane
December 8th – Last day to turn in gifts for our holiday service project

Service Project -Each year Prairieview School adopts needy families of cancer patients who struggle financially. This year we have a special family which includes a 10 year old boy who is struggling with cancer. I will send a letter home with more information. The economy is difficult right now, but if you are able to brighten Christmas for this family in any way, it would be greatly appreciated!

YEARBOOKS: Now’s the time to place your orders. Yearbooks are $10.00 and the deadline for your order is Tuesday, December 1, 2009. No orders will be accepted after that date. Please make checks payable to Lifetouch. Please make sure your student’s name, teacher’s name and grade level are marked on the order form. If you have multiple students, please fill out one for each child. Yearbook order forms went home with your child on November 12th. If your child loses it, you can send an envelope with the following information on it: student’s name, teacher’s name and grade level, along with a check made payable to Lifetouch for $10.00. It is very important that you put this information on the envelope; Lifetouch does not know who your child’s teacher is. Prairieview Yearbook orders were not paid at registration!

Math - We will review the predict and test problem solving strategy. The students will then write, solve and graph inequalities that include variables. They will also find a rule for a number relationship and write an equation fo the rule- Lesson 5.6 & 5.7. On Wednesday, December 1, there will be a test over chapter 5. The students should bring their books home so that they can review and study the skills throughout the chapter. They will bring home a pretest, which will help them review for the test as well.

I will be giving timed test for multiplication every week. Students should continue to study their facts.

Spelling – There will be no spelling this week! The week of November 30th there will be a test on Thursday of that week. The rule for that week is that letters aw are found in many one-syllable words. They may come at the end of the word or just beefore l or n.

Reading - Over the next couple of weeks the studens will be working on sequencing and summarizing. We will begin reading A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. The children will understand Charles Dicken's motivation for writing the story. They will study character traits, and see how the main character changes throughout the story. They will compare the clothes and homes of the rich and poor today to those in England in the 1800's. They will understand the effect that A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens had on how people celebrated Christmas throughout the world.

English - We will review writing plural nouns that end in y and irregular plural nouns. The students will also review singular and plural possessive nouns.

**There is an English test scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 3 over chapter 2 Nouns. The students should bring home their textbooks to review the lessons at the end of the chapter for extra practie.

Social Studies - Test on Tuesday, Nov. 24th.
The students should know:
All vocabularystudy all sheets in their
did the Europeans trade with the Native Americans?
Cause of the American Revolutionfirst capital of the U.S.
Where is Ellis Island and what happened there?
What are reasons for immigrants coming to America?
Women's rights reformer
Why do women want the right to vote?
Which cities began as ports?
What do Philadelphia, New York City and Boston have in common?
Important people of the Northeast and why they are famous
Thirteenth Amendment & Nineteenth Amendment
differences between Philadelphia today and in the past

Science This week in science the students will study the life cycles of some plants. They will observe how seeds germinate and describe the life cycle of a flowering plants. They will describe how plants reproduce using only spores.

Please bring in a tuber, a potatoe, to class on Tuesday, November 24th. The more eyes it has the better.

We will also study the life cycles of some animals. They will observe the stages of a animal's life cycle and describe the stages. They will also understand how some animals grow and develop.

A test is planned for Wednesday, December 9th over chapter 2.
The students should know all vocabulary and study all sheets in their folders.
They should be able to indentify a plant that produces seeds and one that produces spores.
What does a seed contain that a spore does not? (food that helps the embryo grow until the new plant can make its own food)
Understand and know the Life cycle of a flowering plant, butterfy and sea horse
examples of direct development
tubers

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room November 16-20

2009-11-13T14:48:00.000-08:00

IMPORTANT DATES:
Tuesday, November 17th – Rollerskating Party
Thursday, November 19th – Picture retakes (child must have their picture packet with them)

Holiday Service Project - We are once again going to be involved with the holiday service project helping families who have a child with cancer. Information will be coming home very soon.

YEARBOOKS: Now’s the time to place your orders. Yearbooks are $10.00 and the deadline for your order is Tuesday, December 1, 2009. No orders will be accepted after that date. Please make checks payable to Lifetouch. Please make sure your student’s name, teacher’s name and grade level are marked on the order form. If you have multiple students, please fill out one for each child. Yearbook order forms went home with your child on November 12th. If your child loses it, you can send an envelope with the following information on it: student’s name, teacher’s name and grade level, along with a check made payable to Lifetouch for $10.00. It is very important that you put this information on the envelope; Lifetouch does not know who your child’s teacher is. Prairieview Yearbook orders were not paid at registration!

Math - This week in math the students will write and evaluate division and multiplication expressions and equations. They will also learn the order of operations to help them solve problems. I will teach them the saying "Please Meet Dear Aunt Sally" to help them remember the order parenthesis, multiplication, division, addition and subtraction. We should be covering lessons 2-4 in chapter 5 this week.

Spelling This week the rule is when an ending is added to a verb that ends with consonant + y, change the y to an i unless the ending ing.

Reading Reading folders should be turned in by Wednesday of this week. Our Reading Club party will be on Friday.

In reading this week, we will continue to study problem and solution in both fiction and nonfiction passages. The students will be assessed on this. They will also work on vocabulary words and finding the synonyms and antonyms of words.

All students need to have their silent reading books that I have approved finished by Monday and in class on Monday. We will begin a project with them on Monday.

English -The students will review nouns this week. They will understand the difference between common and proper nouns. There will be a short quiz on nouns and identifying common and proper nouns.

Science This week the students will continue to study about heredity. They will also learn about the life cycles of plants.

Social Studies - The students will learn about abolitionists from Philadelphia who met to form the American Anti-Slavery Society. They will learn about the thirteenth ammendment that made slavery illegal in th U.S. The students will explain similarities and differences between the abolitionist movement and the women's rights movement.

The test scheduled for Friday has been changed. It will now be on Tuesday, November 24.
The students should know:
All vocabulary
study all sheets in their folders
understand the Iroquois Confederacy
What did the Europeans trade with the Native Americans?
Cause of the American Revolution
first capital of the U.S.
Where is Ellis Island and what happened there?
What are reasons for immigrants coming to America?
Women's rights reformer
Why do women want the right to vote?
Which cities began as ports?
What do Philadelphia, New York City and Boston have in common?
Important people of the Northeast and why they are famous
Thirteenth Amendment
Nineteenth Amendment
What are the differences between Philadelphia today and in the past?

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Nov.9-13

2009-11-08T17:24:00.000-08:00

IMPORTANT DATES:
Wednesday, November 11th - Veteran's Day - Day off!
Tuesday, November 17th - Rollerskating Party
Thursday, November 19th - Picture retakes (child must have their picture packet with them)

Math - In math this week the students will continue to review their multiplication facts. I will be reviewing and testing their facts throughout the week. Our math test is on Tuesday over chapter 4. A preview of the test will go home for them to study. We will be going over a review sheet in class. This review should help them to know what to focus on as well.

English - Our English test will be on Tuesday, November 10th. Understanding the complete predicate and complete subject and the simple subject and simple predicate of a sentence is very difficult. Your child may need help in reviewing this skill. There is a great review at the end of chapter 1 in the text to help them review.

Reading - In reading this week the children will continue to work on understanding problems and solutions. They will be finding the problem and solutions in both fiction stories and non-fiction articles.

Social Studies - This week the students will identify events leading from colonization up to the founding of the United States. They will understand why immigrants came to the U.S. and when. They will also learn about a few immigrants who have contributed much to our nation. A test is planned for Friday, November 20th over chapter 5.

Science- The "Big Idea" in this new chapter is that living things inherit traits, grow, and develop according to life cycles. This week the students will learn about heredity. How do parents pass on traits to their offspring? What is the difference between inherited and learned traits?

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Nov. 2-6

2009-10-30T14:03:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, November 11th - Veteran's Day - Day off!
Friday, November 20th End of Trimester 1

The Halloween Celebration was a success! Thank you so much for sending in supplies to decorate the pumpkins with. I couldn't believe the creative pumpkins that we had. The children all did an excellent job.
In addition, thank you to those parents who sent in the drinks and snacks. The kids really enjoyed them.

Roller skating permission slips were handed out last week. There is a limit of only 175 participants allowed. It is on a first come, first serve basis. If your child is planning on attending, please return the slip right away.

There is a PE test scheduled for Tuesday. The study guide went home. Have you seen it yet? If not, please ask your child about it.

Spelling The Rule/ Pattern this week is to make the plural form of a noun that ends with vowel + y add the letter s. To make the plural form of a noun that ends with consonant + y change the y to an i and add es.

Math - In math this week the children should be ready to be tested on their squares, 2's, and 5's on Monday. Rather than give this test to them orally, I will give them a test where they will have to write their answers down.

In class this week they will learn their 3's,4's,6's,7's,8's times tables. Remember that these facts will be tested through the 12's so they will need to add 10, 11 and 12 on to their fact sheets. Each night they should be reviewing and studying. We will be working on lessons 4.7, 4.4, 4.8 and 4.5 in that order. They will work on problem solving skills: understanding when to multiply or add in a word problem, and the break apart method to help them solve problems. For example: 9 x 4 you can break apart if you can't remember into 5 x 4 = 20 4 x 4 = 16 than add them together or since 4 is a double, you can do 9 x 2 = 18 and 9 x 2 = 18 than add it that way.

English The children will work with the simple subject and simple predicate of a sentence. They will also identify run-on sentences and know how to correct them.

There will be an open book quiz on Friday of this week to check for understanding of the following skills: Identify and punctuate commands, exclamations, statements and questions, recognize if a sentence is or is not a sentence (It needs to have both a subject and a predicate for it to be a sentence) identify the complete subject and predicate and simple subject and predicate of a sentence and identify and fix run on sentences.

There will be a test on chapter 1 on Tuesday of next week, November 10.

Reading This week we will go over the reading response which will culminate our literature books. The new skill this week will be problem/solution. They will be reading passages and finding the problems and solutions from the passages. They may be bringing home work that they have done in class for parents to look over and help them proofread before they turn them in.

Social Studies - This week the children will learn about the people of the Northeast. They will learn about the Native American tribe that settled in the area before the English settlers moved in. They will describe key events that affected the Narragansett way of life once European settlers arrived.

Science - This week the children will finish their invertebrate posters. They will learn more about insects. There will be a test on Friday over Chapter 1 in science.

The children should know:
All vocabulary
Study all the sheets in their folders
building blocks of life
nucleus
understand vascular/nonvascular plants
different ways plants reproduce
understand bacteria traits/ how are they helpful
know the 5 classes of vertebrates and be able to give examples and at least 2 characteristics of each
understand arthropods and what they include

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room October 26-29

2009-10-23T15:46:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT DATES:
Thursday, October 29th – Halloween Celebration in the afternoon
Friday, October 30th – Teacher's Institute

A permission slip went home regarding “all” field trips that will be taken this year. Please sign the form (on each line) and return the form with one check by October 27th.

Halloween will be celebrated on October 29th in the afternoon. The children should bring in a costume to change into. The parade will begin at 12:30. The afternoon will then consist of a snack, a pumpkin decorating contest, and an assembly. Your child can bring in things from home to help decorate their pumpkin (no push pins please). In addition, if your child would like to bring in something to pass out to the class on that day, it is fine. We will be “sending” home these items.

Spelling - No test this week.

English- We will continue our work with sentences. What makes a sentence and the different kinds of sentences. Understanding the subject and predicate of the sentence is a difficult skill so any help you can give your child on this will would be great.

We will be working on a reading response this week that goes with their literature book. I will be sending home their books for them to reread certain chapters over again to keep the ideas fresh in their minds.

Reading - The children will be wrapping up their literature books this week. They are completing different activities from the story. We will culminate our units by watching the movies that go along with the books. If anyone has the movie Because of Winn Dixie could you please send it in with your child? The kids will be able to sit and eat lunch in the classroom and watch the movies.

Don't forget to turn in your reading folders after 7 days of reading.

Social Studies - There is a test scheduled for Thursday of this week. I will be sending homework home with the children to help them review for this test. There are many important papers in their binders that they should study. They should definitely review the true/false sheet that we have been using throughout the chapter to confirm the knowledge that we have gained.

To study for the test:

Know all vocabulary
Do the review at the end of each lesson
Study all sheets in their social studies binder
Where is Niagra Falls located
Why is Niagra Falls so important to the NE
Understand what Hydropower plants do
What mountanin ranges make up the Appalachian Mountains
What NE states no not share a border with the Atlantic Ocean
Where do grapes grow and why do they grow well there
The largest Finger Lake
Know the differences of the Maine Coast and the New Jersey Coast
The challenges that threaten the fish in Chesapake Bay and how people can help save the bay
Know how the Green Mountains and the White Mountains are alike and different be able to give a couple of differences and similarities

Science This week in science our Essential Question is "How are Animals Classified?" Ask your child how animals are classified. Can they tell you the five groups of vertebrates and the different traits for each? They should be able to answer these questions by the end of the week.

Math - Last week in math the students learned what division and multiplcation are. They also took notes in their journals and diagramed the parts of a multiplication equation ( factors, products) and a division equation (divisor, dividend and quotient) They should be able to recognize these parts. They learned that multiplication is repeated addition and division is repeated subtraction. They are inverse operations. In addition, they worked with fact families. This week the students will be responsible for studying their facts. We will start with the square numbers. 2 x 2, 3 x 3, 4 x 4 up to 12 x 12. etc. They will be expected to know them for Tuesday. I will test them on just those facts when they come to class on Tuesday. They will be responsbile for studying each night on a different fact. A letter will come home explaining. Wednesday will be the 2's plus the squares. Thursday will be the 5's plus the 2's and the squares. Friday we will not have math so they will have lots of time to practice their 2's, 5's, and squares before they are tested on Monday on the 3'x plus the 2's, 5's, and squares.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room October 19-23

2009-10-18T19:38:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT DATES:
Tuesday, October 20th – Art to Remember Order Packets are due
Wednesday, October 21st – Early Dismissal
Thursday, October 22nd – Book Fair – 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.
Friday, October 30 - Teacher institute No School

A permission slip went home last week regarding “all” field trips that will be taken this year. Please sign the form (on each line) and return the form with one check by October 27th.

Halloween Party Schedule of Events:
October 29th
Kids should bring their costumes to school to change in.
12:30 parade.
1:00-1:30 Treats/ Pumpkin decorating/contest- in the classrooms - If anyone has any materials that can be used to decorate pumpkins please send them in.
1:30-2:15 Halloween story teller

Spelling- This week is a review unit of lessons 1-7. The children will be tested on any words from lessons 1-7.(not neccessarily the words listed on the spelling list sent home) The test is a multiple choice test. The children will be asked to find the word in each row that is misspelled.

Reading - This week the students will finish their literature books. They be assessed on their ability to use clues in the story to show character traits. They will also show their understanding of the sequence of events and problems and solutions in specific chapters. Understanding cause/effect relationships will also be studied this week.

English- The children will use an editing checklist to proofread and revise the descriptions of their special things. They will then write their final descriptions.
The students will also be working on sentences. They will learn about the subject and predicate of a sentence.

Social Studies - We will be studying the resources of the Northeast region. I am looking for volunteers to bring in:
grapes (washed and ready to eat)
jellied cranberries(taken out of the can and sliced ready to be served)
maple syrup
frozen mini pancakes (I will microwave them)

If anyone would like to send in one of these items for Wednesday please let me know.

A test over chapter 4 in social studies is planned for Thursday, October 29. Get a head start on studying. This week begin to review the vocabulary and
Know:

how the Great Lakes and Niagra Falls were formed
why Niagra Falls so important to the people of the northeast
what mountain ranges make up the Appalacian Trail
what the northeast coastlines are like as you begin north and move your way south. What are the different states (Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey) along the coast known for?
the main resources of the northeast and the state they come from

Science - This week the students will make plant books. They will review the differences between vascular and nonvascular plants. If anyone has a fern with spores on the back side of the leaves, we would love for you to send in a leaf or two. You may want to ask them what the three main parts of vasucular plant are ( roots, stems, and leaves)
What are the three main types of vascular plants?(flowering plants, plants with cones, and ferns that reproduce by spores)

Math - A test over chapter 3 is planned for Tuesday of this week. A pretest will go home on Monday for practice. We will then begin chapter 4 a unit on multiplication and division. The students will learn that muliiplication is repeated addition and division is repeated subtraction. They will learn the vocabulary quotient, dividend, divisor, product, and factor. Chapter 4, lessons 1 and 2 will be the focus this week.

Next week in math the students will be held responsible for learning specific facts each night. A sheet will go home explaining what they will need to do. The first night they will need to know their square numbers: 2 x 2, 3 x 3, 4 x 4 etc. (If you want to have your child begin studying, that will give them a head start)

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room October 13-16

2009-10-09T15:29:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT DATES:
Friday, October 16th – Movie Night
Wednesday, October 21st – Early Dismissal
Thursday, October 22nd – Book Fair – 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.

Spelling This rhyme will help you spell words that have the letters i and e:
i before e except after c or when sounded like a as in neighbor and weigh.

Math There will be a test covering chapter 3 on Tuesday, October 20. Lessons 1-5 will be covered on the test. There will be a quiz on Wednesday over lessons 1-3 to help the children review and know what they need to practice. The children will be learning about the "Working Backward" strategy and finding the pattern/rule of a set of numbers.

Reading We will continue reading Charlotte's Webb and Winn Dixie. The students will be working on their comprehension skills. They will learn about the climax of a story and the plot and subplot. Both groups will have a vocabulary quiz. The Charlotte's Web group will have a quiz on Wednesday, Oct. 14 (They have their vocabulary words in their folder) and the Winn Dixie group will have a vocabulary quiz on Friday of next week.

English - The children have been working on their descriptive writing. They have written their leads, and have started to write their details. They are being encouraged to write using "colorful language". This will make their writing come alive for the reader and paint pictures in the readers' minds.

Science I hope your child came home and taught you the cheer we learned to help them remember how scientists classify the 5 kingdoms of living things. "FBPAP"- ask them to tell you what it means and what they know about each kingdom. This week the students will study the difference between vascular and nonvascular plants.

Social Studies This week the students will learn about the Appalachian Trail and the mountains that make up the trail. They will create a map key to show the mountains and place them in the correct state on a map. They will also compare/contrast the coastlines of the different states in the northeast. They will add these features to their keys and include them in their maps.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Class October 5-9

2009-10-02T16:23:00.000-07:00

Important Dates:
Sat. 10/3 - Market Day pick-up
Tues. 10/6 - Progress reports
Mon. 10/12 - No School Columbus Day

Reading folders are due on Thursday, October 8. Our reading party will be on October 9th. The students who have 4 weeks of reading logged by Thursday will be able to participate. The students will eat their lunch in the room and watch a movie. I will provide popcorn and a drink.

***I will be sending home a poem every Monday for the children to practice reading each day. They should practice reading with expression and fluency. On Friday, they will be tested to see how fluently they can read the poem.

Math - This week we will begin a unit on algebra. The children will learn the commutative, identity, and associative properties. They will then learn the difference between expressions and equations and understand what variables are. Remember to look in their folders for papers that will explain what they have been learning in class if you are not sure how to help them. They can also take their math books home. If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail me.

Spelling: The words this week are contractions. An apostrophe takes the place of one or more letters that have been taken out. Homework each night is to write the words one time each. You might want to look over the words after your child has written them. Often times students are misspelling the words that they are writing.

Reading: We will continue our novel studies of Charlotte'sWeb and Because of Winn Dixie. We will be working on character studies, story mapping, and vocabulary.

English: The students will work on descriptive writing this week. They will learn about "colorful language '"(language that paints pictures in their minds as they are reading)

They should look for colorful language as they are reading and bring it in to share with the class.

On Tuesday the children should bring in something from home that is special to them. This should be something that can fit in a paper bag/jewel bag. They will bring it home when they are done, but it needs to be at school for awhile.

Science: We will move into the world of living things. The students will learn to classify and understand that scientists classify living things into 5 kingdoms. You should ask them what the kingdoms are by the end of the week.

They will learn that all living things are made of cells. They will make a model of an animal cell. We will be using raisins, malted milk balls and jellybeans in the model. If your child should not handle any of these things please let me know.

Social Studies: The map test is on Tuesday of this week. The students need to place the states correctly on the map. They also need to put the bodies of water Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, and the Atlantic Ocean in the proper place on the map. I will give extra points of they know their capitals.

By the end of the week, you may review with your child how Niagara Falls was formed and why it so important: ( It was formed about 12,000 years ago when the earth was covered with glaciers. As the glaciers melted they carved out the Great Lakes and the Niagra Gorge. Then the Niagara River spilled into the Gorge and it created Niagara Falls.) It is so important because the running water turns the generators which create hydroelectricity. It is the largest supplier of electricity for New York State and it generates enough power to light 24 million 100 watt light bulbs.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 28-Oct. 1

2009-09-25T14:10:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT DATES:
Tuesday, September 29th – Magazine turn in day
Thursday, October 1st – Picture Day
Saturday, October 3rd – Market Day pick up

We are participating in a Bullying Program each day this week. Please ask your child about it later in the week.

Math This week in math we will go over adding and subtraction greater numbers. They will have to round first to get an estimate and then solve the problem. Both will be expected for their answers.

We will have a math test on Thursday of this week over chapter two. The children may keep their books at home for the week. They should focus on lessons 1,2,3,4 (just the break apart method) 5, and 6.

Spelling Many words are spelled with the letters "oi". These letters are usually found in the middle of a word.

Reading The children are working on using their vocabulary words in "good" sentences and drawing pictures to go with them. They should be able to visualize what they wrote about in their sentences and then draw a picture to go with it.

This week the students will begin reading a literature book. They will either read Because of Winn Dixie or Charlotte's Web. Both books are excellent in developing characters' personalities, and different relationships between the characters.

Science In science this week we will have a test over Introduction - Getting Ready for Science. This will be on Wednesday of this week instead of Tuesday as mentioned last week. A review sheet will come home on Monday.

They should :

Use the sheets in their science binder to help them study.

Know:
All Vocabulary
They should understand the difference between making an inference and hypothesis.
steps of the scientific method and the correct order
how to find the volume of a solid
understand the tools for inquiry and what they are used for
when are different times you might make a prediction in your every day life
understand what you are doing when you compare things
understand variables and why they need to be controlled in an experiment
understand what communicating the results of an experiment means
understand how models may be used and why we need to use them

Social Studies We will begin a unit on the Northeast region this week. The students will bring home a map with a rubric on how to fill it out. I will be giving them a grade on this map.

They should study the states and the bodies of water in the Northeast. They will have a map quiz on Friday. If they learn the capitals I will give extra points toward their grade.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 21-25

2009-09-18T16:14:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Monday: Students can still turn their book orders in on Monday.
Tuesday, September 22nd – Early Dismissal at 11:00
Tuesday, September 22nd – Magazine turn in dayFriday, September 25th – Magazine turn in day

Does you child want to eat lunch in the library and talk about their favorite book? More information about this will come home on Monday. Please look for this informational sheet.
Please remember that we collect box tops, soup labels, and pop tabs in the school!

Math This week in math the students will learn about the "break apart" method to help them solve addition and subtraction problems. They will continue to use mental math strategies to help them solve problems. They will estmate addition and subtraction problems that have 3 and 4 digit numbers. There will be an open book/quiz on lessons 1-4 in chapter 2 on Friday.

I know there may be confusion on the estimation. I tell the children that if there is no direction as to what place value to round to that they should always round to the greater place value. Also, when estimating, they should always round first. Then add or subtract the numbers they have rounded.

Spelling Many letters are spelled with the letters - ea. Remember that the letters -ea have different sounds.

English This week we will review how quotation marks are used and how to write titles correctly. Look for homework to come home to help them review the skills.

There will be a test on Friday to over chapter 5.

Reading This week in reading the children will read a story called Akiak. This is about the Iditarod race in Alaska. If you have any information about this race, please send it in. The students will study vocabulary words that go with this chapter. The strategy we will work on this week is visualizing. We will review the story elements: setting, characters, plot, problem and solution.

Science Last week the students made models of buildings. You may want to ask them why engineers and others who design things make models before they build the real thing. This week we will do an experiment and review the steps of a scientific experiment.

The science test is planned for Tuesday, September 29. More information will come home later in the week.

Social Studies This week in social studies the students will continue to use their study skills to highlight important information in the text and skim to find the answers. All students should have completed the Patriotic Quest and should have it in their folders to study. This is a very important study packet. They also have started to make their T-chart with vocabulary words. They can study this as well.

The test over Chapter 2 lesson 2 & 3 is on Thursday, Sept. 24.

The students should know:

All vocabulary
Know all information on the "Patriotic Quest" including the graphic organizer page
Know responsiblities of U.S. children as citizens
Know responsiblities of all 18 years and older U.S. citizens
What do taxes pay for?
Why is it important for Americans to vote?
Which branch of government would you like to be a part of and why? Be able to give 2 examples explaining your reason.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Class Sept. 14-18th

2009-09-11T15:13:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT DATES: September 14th – Beginner Band Parent Information Meeting (7:00 pm)

Scholastic Book Orders will go home on Monday. They are due by Friday. Remember to only send a check made out to the particular book club.

If you would like instructions on how to get into the online science book please let me know.

Spelling- The rule this week in spelling is when a word ends in silent e, do not drop the e before you add an ending that begins with a consonant.

English There will be a DOL quiz on Friday of this week. The students can bring their notebooks home to know the skills we have been working on for the last couple of weeks. They should be ready to find errors in capital letters in people, places, and things along with end marks in different kinds of sentences, exclamations, statements, questions, and commands.

This week we will work on using commas correctly in sentences and quotation marks. A test is planned for Wednesday, Sept. 23 over the skills in Unit 5.

Reading- In reading this week the students will work on root words and prefixes and suffixes. I will be checking their silent reading books to be sure they are reading chapter books at this time. They will apply the skills they have been learning as they are reading their books.

Social Studies The students will work on their study skills.They will learn how to use a Tchart to study vocabulary words, and they will use the reading strategy of skimming as they use key words from the questions to find answers in the text. They will also use the titles and subtitles to help them locate answers in the text.

**A social studies test is schedule for Thursday, Sept. 24 over chapter 2. More information will come home next week. They can begin studying the vocabulary from the chapter and the worksheets that will be in their folders next week. They should study the "Patriotic Quests" that they completed.

Science The students will learn that making models will help them answer questions about science. Models help people better understand how parts work togther. They can also help with finding problems before the actual building. They will investigate this by making their own model of a building.

Math We will begin a new chapter this week over addition and subtraction of larger numbers. They will learn about rounding and estimation. These skills are very difficult and any extra reinforcement from home will be helpful. They will also have addition and subtraction fact tests on Friday so they should practice those at home.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room Sept. 7- 11

2009-09-04T15:47:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT DATES:
September 11th – Magazine Kick Off Assembly
September 11th – Back to School Bingo Night
September 12th – Market Day Pick Up
September 14th – Beginner Band Parent Information Meeting (7:00 pm)

Spelling The rule this week is when a word ends with a silent -e, do not drop the -e before you add an ending that begins with a consonant. There will be a test on Friday over the unit words. Homework every night is to write the words one time each.

English This week the students will go over capitalization of names of places and things. They will also go over abbreviations.

*** There will be a quiz over abbreviations of the days of the week and the months on Friday of this week. They will bring home a review sheet to help them practice on Wednesday.

Reading The students are using their predication skills to solve "Puzzlers". They are given a made up word which stands for something. They have to use the clues that I give them to figure out what the word is. You might want to ask them about the "Puzzler" that we did on Friday. Ask them what "The Blog" was. It will surprise you. Ask them how they figured out what it was.

They will also be working with prefixes, suffixes and rootwords this week along with figuring out probable outcomes to a story by using context and picture clues.

Science This week the students will discover what certain observation tools are used for. They will also practice finding the volume of a solid object.

Social Studies We will begin our government unit this week. The students will complete a "Patriotic Quest" as they use their textbook to locate information about our country's government.

Math - This week the students will work on the problem solving strategy using logical reasoning. Please refer to their folder for examples of different ways to use logical reasoning if your child needs help.

***There will be a test on Thursday of this week over Chapter 1. They will have homework that will help them to review the concepts that were taught through out the chapter. They should also bring their textbook home on Tuesday evening to study and keep it at home until Friday. They will not need to bring it to class until Friday.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Class Aug. 31 - Sept. 4

2009-08-29T08:11:00.000-07:00

Things to remember:

Thursday, September 3rd – Curriculum Night – 6:30 p.m.
Friday, September 4th – Intramural Sheets are due. If your child is interested in joining morning intramurals (to play games), please return the permission slip by Friday.

Last week we spent much of our time organizing our things and getting to know each other. The children created their classroom constitution which they will follow throughout the year. They worked on an expository writing informing everyone what they are "Wild About". You will be able to read these when you come to the curriculum night on Wednesday.

Here are the plans for this week:

Spelling Each week the students will be given a pretest on Monday. A list will go home in their spelling binder each Monday. Every day they will be given the homework assignment to write their words one time each. I will collect them every morning. Tests will be on Friday, unless there is no school on Friday, then the test will be on Thursday. If there are only 3 days of school no spelling test will be given that week.

Reading We will work on the preview and predict strategy and understanding author's view point. The students will bring home a reading assignment later in the week to complete at home.
I will ask them to read aloud the story to a parent or sibling etc. and then complete a workbook page. Feel free to assist if needed. I will send home the "Read to Succeed" independent reading folder on Tuesday. Instructions are on the front of the folder and I will go over this during Curriculum Night.

English The students will begin with unit 5. They will review the different kinds of sentences and the proper punctuation of each. Throughout the week they will be given DOL (Daily Oral Language) to complete. A quiz over those skills will be given a week from Friday. This first quiz will cover using end marks and capital letters in sentences correctly. A heads up for the following week- the students will need to know how to correctly abbreviate and write the days of the week and months of the year.

Science- Last week in science the students participated in a textbook scavenger hunt. This was to help them become familiar with the different parts of their book. This week they will learn the tools of inquiry which they will be using throughout the year. They will learn about standard and nonstandard units of measure and discover the advantages of using standard units of measure. They will learn about how to measure volume in liquids and solids.

You may want to review how to find the volume of a solid with them (Length x Width x Height). This will be tested and it is difficult for some to understand. They will be able to use a calculator. Open book graded assigments are given at the end of lessons. I will guide them through the first couple of lessons showing them how to locate answers.

Math This week the students will read and write numbers into the millions. They will need to write the numbers in three different ways: standard form, written form, and expanded form. Samples of these forms are in their binders. They will also work on comparing numbers into the millions. They will have homework every evening. If possible they should be working on their multiplication facts to keep them fresh in their minds. This will make it easier for them when we begin doing higher level multiplication skills.

If you need to know how a skill has been taught in class, you can refer to their math binder. Please keep all papers in their math folder. We will clean them out at the end of the chapter together. They should only take out the papers that are in the take home side of the binder.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room August 25-28th

2009-08-24T14:48:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Fourth Grade!

It was so nice meeting all of you at the District Open House on Monday. I can tell that we have a wonderful class, and I am looking forward to an exciting year in fourth grade.

Here are just a few reminders:

Your child may bring in a healthy snack each day. This should be either a 100% natural juice or one healthy snack. Remember we have a nut free room.

They will get their hot lunch number when they come to school on Tuesday. I will have them write it down in a special place so that they won't forget it.

Curriculum Night is scheduled for Thursday, September 3rd, starting at 6:30 p.m. in the multipurpose room. This is a very important evening that will highlight some important 4th grade information. I hope you can make it!

If you have any questions or concerns or need to contact me the easiest way is through email – ccavoto@ccsd66.org

News from Cavoto's Room June 1-June 5

2009-05-29T19:41:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT NEWS:
June 1st – Movie Monday afternoon – bring stuffed animals/pillow
June 2nd – Board Game Tuesday
June 3rd- Beach Party Assembly for 4th grade – Wear your Hawaiian Gear
June 4th – Field Day and PTO Sponsored Picnic – a hot dog lunch will be provided to your child
June 5th – Report cards issued – dismissal at 9:30

I can't believe the end of the year is here. It really has gone by so quickly. I want to thank all of you for your positive support throughout the year. It has been a pleasure working with you and and your children. I know that they are all ready for 5th grade. Don't forget to check out the District website for ideas of educational sites and reading lists to enjoy over the summer.
Remember to keep practicing your division and multiplication facts. It will make for an easier transition into fifth grade math.

This week is going to be a whirlwind of activities and the children will be quite busy throughout with all the activities as you can see above.

YEARBOOKS will be handed out to students on June 5th. Any student who did not purchase a yearbook may do so on a first-come-first-serve basis on June 5th. They will go on sale after morning announcements. The cost will be $10.00. Children wishing to purchase should have the exact amount. Checks can be made out to Prairieview. There is a limited supply. Prairieview yearbook orders were not paid for at registration. A flier was sent out in November, and orders were due by Monday, December 1st

The students will be making their memory books this week. If they want to bring in special stickers, stamps, or even markers to help them decorate their books, they may do so.

Language Arts -In Language Arts class this week the students will be sharing their poetry and expository essays with the class. We will continue reading and evaluating stories written by Chris Van Allsburg.

Science This week we will review and discuss our Earth's landforms and how they change.

Social Studies We will finish our unit on the West region.

Math- This week the students will continue to review long division.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 26-May 29

2009-05-22T13:43:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT NEWS:
May 29th – Fourth Graders bowl in the afternoon
June 1st – Movie Theater Monday – bring your pillow!
June 3rd – Beach Party Wednesday

Spelling The final spelling unit of the year is changing words to nouns by adding the suffixes ment and ness to form nouns. There will be a spelling test on Friday.

English- The students will learn the proper way to use negatives in a sentence. They will also learn about prepostiions. We will have a test over adverbs on Thursday of this week.

They will write a final draft of their expository essay this week.

Reading The students will finish their poetry books this week. They will read the story Jumanji and The Stranger by Chris Van Allsburg. We will continue to look closely at the detailsof the setting and characters in his stories and compare and contrast them.

Science In science this week the students will review the landforms of the Earth. They will understand what causes changes in the Earth's landforms- volcanoes and earthquakes. Ask them to tell you about Mt. Vesuvius.

Social Studies The students will learn about the Western Region of the United States. They will have a map test on the States and bodies of water in the West Region of the U.S. on Thursday of this week. They will also finish their scrapbooks.

News from Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 18-May 22

2009-05-15T12:36:00.000-07:00

Important News:

May 21st – All School Concert
May 25th – Memorial Day
May 29th – Fourth Graders Bowl in the afternoon

Students receive pictures at the end of the year for their memory book. If any parent is willing to develop a roll of film for this cause, please let me know. Thank you!

**My reading party will be on Friday of this week. All reading folders are due on Thursday. This is part of your grade, so please get them turned in if you want full credit for your independent reading.

Spelling- The unit this week is on words that end with the letters tion. There will be a test on Friday of this week.

Reading- This week we will continue our work with poetry. The new genre this week will be fantasy, and we will be reading many of Chris VanAllsburg books. We will review many strategies and skills that have been taught since the beginning of the year.

English We will continue our work with expository writing. The students will write an essay describing their favorite part about school. We will also begin a short unit on adverbs. The students will identify adverbs in sentences and recognize whether an adverb tells how, when, or where abou the verb.

Social Studies- This week the students will explain how cattle raising helped the economy of the Southwest develop. They will describe the roles of cowboys and cowgirls in the Southwest. The will identify the route of the Chisholm Trails and explain the role it played in the cattle trade. They will also contrast ranching in the Southwest in the past with ranching in the present.

A test over chapter 11 will be on Friday of this week.
The children should:

review and study the papers that are in their binders
know all vocabulary
know the main ideas and review questions from each lesson
know Navajo homes - what & how built
Long Walk
Spanish Missions - purpose
Spanish influence on the Southwest
understand the jobs of the cowboys
understand irrigation and how it changed Arizona
understand the affect of air conditioning on the Southwest

Science This week we will begin a new unit. The students will study some of the Earth's landforms. They will identify and describe major landforms and explain how these landforms develop. The will learn the what causes changes to the Earth's landforms.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 11-May 15

2009-05-08T13:10:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT NEWS:
May 11th – Robert Crown Center field trip – bring a sack lunch!
May 12th – Stanley the Bear Assembly

**For those students in my reading class, do not forget to turn in your reading folders.

**If anyone would like to help out with developing roles of film, I would greatly appreciated it. Just send me an e-mail to let me know. Thank you.

Spelling - The spelling pattern this week is words that end with a consonant and le.
There will be a test on Friday.

Reading- In reading this week the students will share the poems that they chose last week with the class. They will be assessed according to their fluency and oral presentation along with their ability to show they understand the elements of a poem. They will begin writing different kinds of poetry this week.

Elements of a poem: rhythm, rhyme, stanzas, lines, figurative language(similes, metaphors, personification), imagery, description using senses (touch, smell, taste, see, hear), word play (repetition of sounds, tongue twisters)

English - In English this week the students will continue to work on expository essay writing.
They will continue to work on elaborating and having their voice come out in their essay.

Science We will have a test over the concepts and vocabulary in chapter 7 on Friday, May 15. To help prepare for the test the students should study: all sheets in their science binder, the review at the end of the chapter, and all main concepts and vocabulary from the lessons.

They should know:
all vocabulary
the physical properties of soil
substances and the amount that make up the Earth's crust
soil horizons
know the different tests for identifying minerals
causes of weathering and erosion
how mountains and sinkholes are formed
similarities/diferences between rocks and minerals
different rocks and how they are formed

Social Studies - In social studies this week, the students will learn about the Spanish influence in the Southwest and the effects of missionaries on some of the Native Americans. A test over chapter 11 is planned for Thursday, May 21st.

Math There will be a test over multiplication of 2 and 3 digit numbers on Wednesday of this week. The students should bring their books home and study chapter 10. They should review each evening to help them prepare for this test. Knowing their mulitplication facts is so important for their success. Please continue to help them practice their facts. I will be giving a 3 and 4 multiplication fact test on Friday of this week.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room May 4-May 8th

2009-05-01T13:39:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT NEWS:
May 9th- Market Day Pick Up at PV – 9:30-10:30 am
May 11th – Robert Crown Center field trip – bring a sack lunch!

Thank you to all who brought in food items for the Woodridge Food Pantry. We were able to collect over 1500 pounds of food!

I could use help with getting film developed. If anyone would like to volunteer to take a couple of rolls for developing, please let me know. I would greatly appreciate it.

Spelling When a plural noun ends with s, add only an apostrophe to make the possessive form. When a plural noun does not end with s, add 's to make the possessive form.
Ex. Farmers' crops -children's toys

Reading - Along with working on summary writing, the children have been reading and writing Pourquoi tales. They will finish writing their tales and share them with the class this week.

English We will continue our work with expository writing. The students are working on elaboration of details and their voice shining through. They are also working on their closings this week.

Science In science this week, the students will review the rock cycle and learn how weathering and erosion affect rocks, and how it changes the land.

Social Studies - This week in social studies the students will learn about the people of the Southwest. They will learn about the Navajo who lived in Arizona for hundreds of years and the Spanish who established cities and missions in the Southwest. They will also learn about cattle raising and how that helped the economy of the Southwest develop.

Math In math this week the students are working on multiplication of 2 digits by 2 and 3 digits. They will multiply using estimation and money. A test over 9 X's will be on Friday of this week.

A test over chapter 10 is planned for Wednesday, May 13th.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 27-May1

2009-04-24T14:10:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT NEWS:
April 29th – Family Book Club Night - 6:30 pm
April 30th – Buona Benefit Night
May 4th – Robert Crown Center field trip – bring a sack lunch!

There is still 6 weeks left for this trimester. This is the time of year that I see some students start slipping into summer mode and not trying as hard. Please keep an eye on your child and talk with your child if you see this happening.

This is the last week we will be collecting box tops for the year. Please have any box tops in by Thursday. Thanks!

Spelling This week the spelling lesson is on possessive forms of nouns. The possessive form of a noun shows ownership. Make the possessive form of a singular noun by adding 's. Do not change the spelling of the base word when you add 's.

Reading In reading this week the children will begin a new unit on Pourquoi Tales. They will learn about personification through the genre of these tales. They will also particpate in a Reader's Theater activity. They will bring these home to practice reading them.

The children should not forget to turn in their reading folders. All folders are due by May 21.

English - This week the students will continue writing their expository essays. The prompt they had was to write about someone who is their role mode. They have all brainstormed and organized their ideas. Most of them have written their leads, or indtroductions. This week they will work on writing down their ideas and adding elaboration.

Science-This week in science the student will learn about sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. They will identify some of them according to their physical traits. They will also learn about the rock cycle.

Social Studies The students will learn about the different areas in the southwest and the plants and animals that live there. savanas, wetlands and desserts. They will also learn about the nonrenewable resources of the southwest and how technology of the Southwest has impacted the United States.

A test is planned for Friday of this week. The students should study the notes in their binder (any sheets sent home).
They should know:

All vocabulary and main concepts reviewed at the end of each section
How was the Grand Canyon formed
Why was the Grand Canyon made into a National Park and by whom?
Why do people visit the Grand Canyon today?
Understand the climate of the Southwest
Understand how the Saguaro adapts and survives in the desert and how it helps other wildlife
Technology in the Southwest and the states that it is in (see wb page 72 in folder)
How do oil and technology play an important role in th economy of the Southwest? See Graphic organizer in their folders

Math - In math this week the students will have a test over chapter 9. Please help them review the skills from this chapter. They will begin a unit on multiplcation of higher numbers. They may need help and extra practice at home on this. I will be giving test on their 8x's tables on Friday of this week.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room April 20-24

2009-04-17T13:07:00.000-07:00

IMPORTANT NEWS:
April 21st – Rollerskating Party
April 24th – Early Dismissal

Prairieview is having a food drive to collect food for the Woodridge Pantry. Non-perishable donations can be brought in through the 24th. Any items would be appreciated!

Tuesday marks the mid point of the trimester. If you haven't checked grades on line in awhile, please do so. There is still time to bring up grades!

A permission slip to the Robert Crown Center will go home on Monday. Please sign and return it this week.

Spelling Our spelling test will be on Thursday of this week. Unit 28 will cover the prefixes un and in.

Reading In reading this week the children will finish working on their summaries for their literature books. The children then will begin a new unit on Pourquoi Tales. They will learn about personification through the genre of these tales.

English - In English this week the students will write an expository essay. They will begin by reviewing what expository writing is. They will be given a prompt and then together we will go through the process of organizing the essay

Science - In science this week we will begin a unit on Earth Science. The students will identify minerals as they study their physical properties. They will also study the traits of igneous rocks.

Social Studies In social studies this week, the students will learn about places and climate in the Southwest. They will discover how the Grand Canyon was formed, who lives their now and Why people go to visit there.

Junior Achievement will begin this week on Thursday. This is when a member from the business community comes in to work with the children in our school.

Math This week we will continue to work on multiplication. The students will learn how to multiply using 3 and 4 digit numbers and money. They will also multiply with zeros.
Please work with your child in helping to learn their multiplication basci facts. I am giving the test on multiplication of 7's on Monday. I did not feel they were ready on Friday to take the test.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room

2009-04-09T14:16:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:

April 13th- Inventions are due
April 15th - All 4th graders will take the OLSAT test
April 16th - Spring Open House - 6:45-8:00 P.M.
April 17th - Movie Night

Prairieview is having a food drive to collect food for the Woodridge Pantry. Non-perishable donations can be brought in through the 24th of April. Any items would be appreciated.

Movie Night permission slips went home last week. Please get these in right away if your child plans to attend.

Family Book Club Night is Wednesday, April 29th at 6:30 P.M. Simply go to the Center Cass 66 website, click on Prairieview and read more about this great school event. You can then print a registration form and send it in. Please note that registration has been extended.

Spelling- This week is a review week. The test on Friday will be a multiple choice test. The students need to know the pattern rules from chapters 19 through 25 to be able to find the misspelled word in the group of words given.

Reading - The students need to turn in their reading folders this week. Our reading party will be on Friday, April17th.

This week the students will work on the reading strategies of finding important details in a story and compare them to the unimportant details. This will help them with their summarizing skills. We will also finish our discussion on our literature books.

Language - A test over pronouns will be on Thursday of this week. The students should review the skill lessons at the end of the chapter in their books. They will also finish their Just Look books.

Social Studies - The students will wrap up their research on Illinois this week and complete their reports.

Science- There is a test over chapter 17, simple machines, on Tuesday. The students should remember to study all the sheets in their binders as well as the vocabulary and main concepts throughout the chapter. Look at last weeks blog for more detail.

All inventions are due on Monday, April 13th.

Math- This week we will begin a multiplication unit. It is really important for the children to know their math facts. Please have the students review their facts each night. We will begin the unit by multiplying numbers with multiples of 10. They will learn to estimate and use compatible numbers to help them use mental math to solve problems. The students will also multiply using 2 digits. We will begin multiplication timed tests again this week. We will start will the 7 times tables. The students have been working on their division 7 facts, so this should be easier for them. A 7 multiplication test will be given on Friday of this week.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Class April 6-April 10th

2009-03-27T14:15:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
April 7th – Teacher Institute – No School
April 10th – No School
April 13th – Inventions are due
April 16th – Spring Open House

Roller skating permission slips went home. They are due by April 17th. Only 175 students will be able to attend. Please get them in right away!

Family Book Club Night is Wednesday, April 29th @ 6:30 p.m. Simply go to the Center Cass 66 District website, click on "Prairieview", and read more about this great school event! You can then print a registration form and send it in. Please note that registration has been extended.

Spelling- No spelling test this week

Reading - Those students who are reading Riding Freedom should be ready on with their book discussion sheets on chapters "In the Middle" and Chapters 6 & 7. Those students who are reading Behind Rebel Lines should be ready with their book discussion sheets on chapter 6-8. They are due Monday, April 6. We had a couple of days in class the week before break to work on this assignment, so many students probably already have this completed.

Don't forget to keep track of your reading in your folder. The reading that you are doing at home for your literature book can be counted on your reading folder.

English - The students will identify possessive pronouns in sentences and combine pronouns and verbs to write contractions. A test over Unit 6 Pronouns will be on Thursday, April 16th.

We will continue to write our Just Look books this week. Most students are finished with their research and are now organizing and typing up their information.

Science - In science this week the students will learn about other simple machines and how they help people do work. They will investigate inclined planes and explain how screws and wedges change the way work is done.

A test is planned for Tuesday, April 14th over chapter 17.

Things to know:
All vocabulary and essential ideas from the chapter
Be able to give examples of what scientists say that work is
What makes a wheel and axle a simple machine?
Know examples of how or when a pulley can be used
Be able to identify the simple machines - how they work and what they are made up of
Understand how a fulcrum works
Understand how force works

Social Studies The students will finish their Illinois research and writing this week.

Math - In math this week the students will learn about solid figures. They will identify different solid figures and compare the edges, faces and vertices of different solid figures. They will build a pyramid and a cube. A quiz will be on Wednesday over these concepts.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Class March 23-March 27

2009-03-20T14:57:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:

March 27th - All school Field Trip to Tivoli on Friday (bring lunch if you can since everyone will be eating at the same time the hot lunch lines will be long)
March 30-April 3 - Spring Break
April 7 - Teacher Institute ( no school)
April 10 - No School

Spelling - This week in lesson 25 the students will study words with the ending ture. The spelling test will be on Thursday of this week.

English - The students are working on expository writing. They will research information from the resources that they have found on their topic. They will take notes and organize their information. It would be very helpful for them to print out any information they can find on line about their topic and bring it to school.

We will not have an English test on Thursday of this week as noted earlier. It is postponed until after spring break.

Reading The students have chosen the books they would like to read for book clubs. If they did not get their first choice this time, they will get in next time. They have begun preparing their discussion sheets. They need to finish reading chapters 1-2 and complete the discussion sheet by Monday. We will have our first Book Club on Monday.

Science - In science this week the students will find out how a pulley and a wheel-and-axle help people do work.

Social Studies The students have been learning about Illinois as we continue our tour of the Midwest. They have chosen an important place, person, or thing about Illinois to research and report on.

Math This week the students will continue their study of geometry. The focus will be to review the concepts of congruent and similar figures. They will review how to make a shape flip, turn or slide to match another shape. Symmetry will be studied as well. A quiz over these concepts will be given on Thursday along with a division 6 fact test.

News From Mrs. Cavoto's Room March 16-20

2009-03-12T09:53:00.000-07:00

Things to Remember:
Mr. Lee will be in Mrs. Cavoto's Room on Tuesday, March 17
Monday, March 30-Friday, April 3, 2009 Spring Break

Spelling - The pattern this week is in making plurals. When a word ends with sh, ch, x, or s, add es to make the plural. When a word ends with se, ce, ze, or ge, drop the e and add es to make the plural.

Reading - This week the students will be assessed on the strategy of making inferences. We will begin our book clubs this week. The students will choose a book to read for book club. They will prepare their first discussion sheet by Wednesday. I will guide them through this. We will review the types of questions that were discussed in the beginning of the year: Right There, Think and Search and On Your Own. We will also review writing summaries. Their summaries should include the main events told in order using transition words. They should not have too much or too little information, but just enough to get the main idea and events that have happened in that part of the story.

English- The students will identify object and possessive pronouns in sentences. They will use I and me correctly in a sentence. A test is scheduled for Thursday, March 26 on pronouns Chapter 6.

The students will begin a research project this week. The first step in the process is for them to brainstorm any person, animal, or special landmark they would like to learn more about. After that they will find their resources- books, encyclopedias, interenet sites etc. From there they will conduct their research.

Science - This week we will begin a unit on simple machines. Simple machines change the way that work is done to help people accomplish tasks. The Essential question this week is "How do simple machines help people do work?"

Look for the information on "Invention Convention" to come home on Wednesday.

Social Studies - The students will finish their Midwest scrapbook pages this week.

Math The math test over Chapter 19 has been rescheduled for Thursday, March 19 of this week. The children should study the sheets in their binders. They should also study all the homework sheets in their binder over chapter 19. They should bring their books home to review. Please have the children practice their division 5 facts. There will be a test on Friday of this week on their division 5's.

News From Cavoto's Room March 9-March 13

2009-03-05T07:33:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Monday, march 9 - Confernce week begins
Tuesday, March 10 - Report cards go home
Thursday, March 12 - School Improvement Day 1/2 day of school
Friday, March 13 - No school /Conferences

Spelling - No spelling test this week.

English - We will begin a unit on pronouns this week. The students will identify pronouns in a sentence. They will distinquish between singular and plural pronouns.

Reading We will continue our work with making inferences. We will finish the story Skylark, and the students will listen to and read other stories in which they will have to make inferences about characters actions based on clues from the story and their background knowledge.

Social Studies- There will be a test over Chapter 9 on Thursday of this week.

The students should study:

All vocabulary
Early life of the Ojibwa
Explorers of the Midwest and what they are known for exploring
John Deere
How the pioneers survived when they came to the Midwest
Midwestern cities that were trading posts
Why a water route to the Midwest was important
Steamboat purpose
Compare advantages to shipping by rail vs steamboat
Why the Ojibwa relied on game instead of farming for their main source of food
Goals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Why Cahokia nd St. Louis were good places for trade
Compare the two main types of homes that early Midwestern pioneers built. Be ready to describe them and tell where and how they were built Tell the advantages and disadvantages of a sod house.

Science- There will be a science test on Tuesday of this week over chapter 16. This chapter has many difficult concepts to understand so any extra help parents can give their children is appreciated.

Things to know:

All vocabulary
Measuement of force of gravity on an object
The force taht resists motion between objects
What happens when you increase the force on an object
Understand the concept of gravity
Two things that are measured to find speed
Why is the gas pedal in a car called an accelerator?
Why do we need friction? Give specific reasons. What are examples of friction?
What things can reduce friction? Explain why.
Inertia - understand what it is and how it works
Understand the difference between mass and weight

2009-02-27T07:23:00.000-08:00

Things to Remember:
Tuesday, March 3-Monday, March 9 - ISAT testing
Monday, March 9 - Conference week
Tuesday, March 10- Report cards go home
Thursday, March 12 - School Improvement Day 1/2 day of school
Friday, March 13 - No School/Conferences

ISAT Testing Begins
Here are suggestions on how parents can help their children prepare for the ISAT:
Make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep before the tests
Make sure your child eats a healthy breakfast the days of the test/healthy snack to school
Let your child know that he or she should take the test seriously and do his or her best
Talk to your child about what to do while taking the test, including:
Paying attention to directions
Asking questions about directions if they are unclear
Reading each question carefully
Eliminating wrong answers right away, concentrating on remaining choices
Double checking answers

Language Arts: The language arts classes will not be meeting this week. The students should be reading each night and keeping track of their reading in their folders.

Math - No formal math classes will be meeting this week.

Social Studies This week in social studies the children will describe the Cahokia as the early trading center of the Midwest. They will identify the goals of the Lewis and Clark expedition.

A test is planned for The following Wednesday, March 11 over chapter 9. The students should know:

All vocabulary
Early life of the Ojibwa
Explorers of the Midwest and what they are know for exploring
John Deere
know how the pioneers survived when they came to the Midwest
Midwestern cities that were trading posts
Why was a water route to the Midwest important
steamboat purpose
compare advantages to shipping by rail vs steamboat
Why did the Ojibwa rely on game instead of farming for their main source of food?
Goals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Why Cahokia and St. Louis were good places for trade
Compare the two main types of homes that the Midwester pioneers built. Tell how they were like and how they were different. Be ready to tell as much as you know about it.

Science This week the students will use a spring scale and a balance to understand the difference between weight and mass. They will also understand that friction is a force that resists or opposes, motion between objects that are in contact. They will learn how friction can be controlled.

A test over chapter 16 in science will be on Tuesday, March 10th. This chapter has many difficult concepts to understand and we will be reviewing them all week.

They should know:

All vocabulary
measurement of force of gravity on an object
the force that resists motion between objects
What happens when you increase the force on an object
understand the concept of gravity
what 2 things must be measured to find speed
Why is the gas pedal in a car called an accelerator
Why do we need friction? What are examples of friction?
What can things can reduce friction? Explain why.
inertia- understand what it is and how it works
undersand the difference between mass and weight