Weekly Newsletter

Reminders and Announcements:

2016-2017 School Year:  Tuition Contracts were sent home today.  Please sign and return by Friday, April 29th.

3rd Quarter Grades:  Report cards went home today as well.  Please sign the back of the envelope and return it on Monday.  The white report cards can be kept at home.

Family Envelopes:  It seems like many students are not returning their Family Envelopes.  If you have lost your envelope, please email Mrs. Lopez at , and she will make you a new one.

A look at our week…

Religion:  In Chapter 22, the students learned about the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love, and the Beatitudes.  They also learned that the saints were models of a life of virtue.  In this chapter, the students will learn that Jesus calls us to be His disciples.  This week we will be working on projects involving the virtues.

4th Grade Language Arts:  This week we began by asking, “How can media be a distraction?” In the fantasy selection The World According to Humphrey, we read about a pet hamster who changes a family’s leisure habits. We’ll also read the informational advertisement Make the Switch, which persuades us to make some changes in our own leisure habits.

Next week’s…

• Target Vocabulary: politics, intelligent, disorderly, approve, polls, legislature, amendment, candidates, informed, denied   (Vocab homework can be found vocab.)
• Vocabulary Strategy: Adages and proverbs
• Comprehension Skill: Cause and effect— figure out how events cause other events or are caused by other events
• Comprehension Strategy: Infer/ predict—use your own knowledge or clues from the text to understand unstated ideas
• Don’t forget our class has a Quizlet account with the Vocabulary and Spelling words for both 4th and 5th grade.
• Spelling:  See Focus Wall (Homework assignment can be found here.) Please note: The challenge words are included in our weekly Spelling tests and must be included in the homework.

5th Grade Language Arts:  This week we found answers to the question, “What does it mean to have good instincts?”  In our main selection, a historical fiction story called Tucket’s Travels, Francis Tucket must find safety in the desert for himself and two orphans as they flee a band of outlaws.  We also read the technical text Wild Weather, and learned what causes the most extreme types of weather events.

Next week’s…

• Target Vocabulary:  reasoned, margins, envy, upright, bared, spared, nerve, banish, astonished, deserted    (Vocab homework can be found vocab.)
• Vocabulary Strategy:  Reference materials
• Comprehension Skill: Theme- examine characters’ qualities and motives to recognize the theme
• Comprehension Strategy: Infer/predict- use text clues to figure out what the author means or what might happen in the future
• Don’t forget our class has a Quizlet account with the Vocabulary and Spelling words for both 4th and 5th grade.
• Spelling:  See Focus Wall (Homework assignment can be found here.) Please note: The challenge words are included in our weekly Spelling tests and must be included in the homework.

4th Grade Math:  Chapter 9 Adding and Subtracting Fractions

Please note: Khan activities are assigned on a weekly basis.  They must be completed by Friday of each week.  As we enter the 4th Quarter, I will be increasing the amount of practice assignments to prepare the students for next year.

4th Grade AM Group: Chapter 11

5th Grade Math:  Chapter 8 Adding and Subtracting Decimals

Please note: Khan Academy activities are assigned on a weekly basis.  They must be completed by Friday of each week.  As we enter the 4th Quarter, I will be increasing the amount of practice assignments to prepare the students for middle school.

5th Grade Tiger Lily Group:  Chapter 12 Metric Measurement, Area, and Volume

Social Studies:  In the beginning of Chapter 6, we will describe political, religious, and social institutions of the Middle Colonies and identify individuals responsible for founding the Middle Colonies.

Upcoming Important Dates and Events (Tests are only added on a weekly basis and subject to change):

Tuesday 4/26: Business Author Illustrator Work(BAIW) projects due

Wednesday 4/27: 8am Mass, Bake Sale, 5th Grade Math Ch 8 Test, 2:30pm Dismissal

Thursday 4/28:  4th Grade Math Ch 9 Test

Friday 4/29:  L.A./Spelling 5.22 Tests

Saturday 4/30:  10am 2nd Grade First Holy Communion

Tuesday 5/3:  7:15pm May Crowning (Mandatory for all students)

Thursday 5/5: 9am Rosary

Friday 5/6: 12noon Dismissal

For an up-to-date version of our school calendar please visit https://stmesc.org/students-and-families/school-calendar/.