Writers Write

This year in Room 9, we have been using Write This Way from the Start - The First 15 Days of Writer's Workshop, by Kelly Boswell. Kids have been learning great writing strategies, from generating writing ideas, to identifying and using writing tools, to knowing if they're finished or not finished with a piece of writing, to spelling strategies, to conferencing with a teacher, to reflecting, to ......

This afternoon during our lesson on "Writers Live Differently," kids enjoyed their independent writing time. I so wanted to conduct writing conferences with some of my kids, but I refrained from doing so since every one of my students was diligently writing in his and her writing journals. (I didn't want to interfere with their putting pencil to paper.) Here they are, hard at work!

Extra Help for Our Topic 1 Math Test

Last Wednesday morning, six Room 9 students got out of bed earlier than usual to come to school for extra help in preparing for their Topic 1 math test. They arrived at 7:15 for help with comparing numbers, understanding place value, rounding, using expanded numbers, writing number names, etc. Here are the Room 9 early risers hard at work! (By the way, their hard work paid off. Their Topic 1 test scores were outstanding!)

Remember: Wednesday, September 26 is Picture Day!

Dear Students,

Make sure you bring your smile with you to school on Wednesday!

2018-2019 Room 9 Back to School Night

Dear Parents/Grandparents,

Thank you so much for attending tonight's Back to School Night at Fox Hill. Your presence made the evening a huge success in Room 9. Below is my presentation from tonight, including our "Building a Room 9 Community" video. Enjoy!

Genre Study

Recently, the kids in my ELA class researched a number of literary genres. The genres the kids researched included mysteries, realistic fiction, biographies/autobiographies, fantasies, and graphic novels. Their task was to create a poster that included:

• characteristics of their genre
• finding books of their genre from a Scholastic Book flyer
• identifying any other books of their genre they have read

Yesterday, they presented their posters and research to their classmates. The kids did a great job researching and presenting!

Back to School Night ~ Thursday, September 20 at 6:30 p.m.

Writing Journals Runway

This past Friday, students "strutted their stuff" on the Room 9 red-carpet runway as they shared their decorated "Writing Journals" with each other. A fun time was had by all! Enjoy their wonderfully decorated journals, while relishing their superb dance moves.

Today's Book Buddies Kick-Off Session

Today, Room 9 4th graders visited Ms. Keefe's kindergarten classroom, beginning our year-long Book Buddies program. Throughout the school year, 4th graders will read to their kindergarten book buddies once a week. At today's kick-off session, after being introduced to their kindergarten buddies, Room 9 students jumped right into reading to their new friends.

The excitement shown on the faces of the kindergarteners and 4th graders during their time together was energetic! If our first session is any indication, this year's Book Buddies will be rewarding for both kindergarteners and 4th graders alike.

New Members of Room 9's Community of Learners

I am pleased to announce new members to this year's Room 9 community. After spending the summer on holiday, Hershey and Caramel, our two adorable gerbils, have finally returned to Fox Hill. They appear to be having some difficulty in acclimating themselves back in Room 9 after spending the summer on holiday. Yet, I'm sure with their fluffy bed, scrumptious food, delicious spring water, and tender loving care by Room 9 students, Hershey and Caramel will soon realize the comforts of home! Welcome home, Caramel and Hershey...

Caramel (left) and Hershey enjoying their return home to Room 9!

Scholastic Reading Club Book Order ~ September 28

Dear Families,

This year in Room 9, students will have an opportunity to purchase books at affordable prices through the Scholastic Reading Club. With their own books, students will grow as readers, while helping Room 9 earn free books and resources throughout the year. Today, I will be sending the monthly Scholastic flyer home with your kids. Please discuss the opportunity to purchase books with your 4th grader. You can order books in two ways: (1) by completing the form in the flyer and returning the form to Room 9, or (2) by ordering online (https://clubs.scholastic.com). If the latter, please remember to include our class activation code. That way, Room 9 will get credit for purchases and will earn free books and more for the classroom.

The Room 9 Class Activation Code is: NB6B8.

I will be submitting our first order on September 28, so please return your completed form and payment by that date, or order online by then.

Thanks,
David

Whole School Assembly ~ September 7

This morning, Fox Hill School's new principal, Mr. Rosenblatt, led a whole-school assembly in the Fox Hill cafeteria. At the assembly, Mt. Rosenblatt introduced himself to the student body, and introduced a whole school signal we will be using at Fox Hill this year for getting students' attention to become quiet. The signal starts with a teacher saying, "Fox Hill Friends," then students respond with "Talking Ends." We practiced it a few times during the assembly with great success. Mr. Rosenblatt ended the assembly by asking the gathering, "Ready for some fun?" Then we danced....

Today's "Lunch Bag" Presentations

This year's first homework assignment for Room 9 students was for them to fill "Me" Lunch Bags with items meaningful to them. Today, students presented their lunch bag items to classmates. This activity gave students an opportunity to learn a little bit about their peers. I was very impressed with each student's presentation! (Note: I will add additional photos to this post when other Room 9 students present their "Me" bags.)

Boy, It Was Hot in Room 9 Today!!!

While today was exceedingly hot, uncomfortable, and sticky in Room 9, the kids hung in there like the troopers they are. We all kept hydrated which made the day somewhat bearable. This afternoon, the kids posed for two photos; one a sophisticated pose, the other a rather silly one.

Parents and grandparents, which photo do you prefer?

Room 9's "Sophisticated" Students

Room 9's "Silly" Students

Day 1 Down | 179 Days to Go!

I am pleased to report that Day 1 went off without a hitch in Room 9! The kids were attentive, focused, and excited to start their Grade 4 journey together.

As students arrived to class this morning, they each wrote an adjective on our white board describing "how you are feeling right now." Their responses at 8:00 indicated a number of anxious/nervous students.

However, just 5 hours later, when I repeated the exercise, student responses were vastly different, i.e., the butterflies had subsided. During Closing Circle, a number of students indicated they were "tired." It was a long, hot day in Room 9, but every student left Room 9 with a smile on his/her face!

September 4, 2018 (first day in 4th grade)