Quotable Quotes

"To be or not to be, that is the question."  This is probably the most famous quote in the English language.

Fourth graders are learning how to use quotation marks correctly.  Quotation marks are used to show the exact words that someone says.  They are also used for certain types of titles - poems, short stories, newspaper or magazine articles, chapters in books, and songs.

Homework today:

     1.  Spelling:  copy spelling words neatly in cursive.

     2.  Math Miss W:  5-3

                   Mr. Spaulding:  RW39

     3.  Read for half an hour.

     4.  Get parent initials

It's Spooky Halloween Week at Sespe!

Welcome back to another fun-filled and exciting week of learning at Sespe School!  This Wednesday students who wish to participate are invited to wear a safe and appropriate costume to school.  We will have a brief parade at 8:30 A.M. to show off and enjoy each other's costumes.

Academic vocabulary words this week are: select, selection, section, passage, and segment.  Students are learning to use these words in both their spoken and written language.

Our Greek or Latin root this week comes from the Latin word manu, meaning 'hand.'  There are several words in English related to this root:  emancipate, manacles, manager, mandate, maneuver, manicure, manual, manufacture, and manuscript.

In math we are continuing our study of the basic algebra concepts of expressions, equations and variables.  Students should practice single digit multiplication facts every day at home, and also review the order of operations used when solving equations.

Our spelling words this week all feature vowels in two syllable words:
1.  product
2.  credit
3.  napkin
4.  dentist
5.  comment
6.  cannot
7.  suggest
8.  within
9.  glacier
10.  infect
11.  progress
12.  topsoil
13.  princess
14.  rewind
15.  joyful
16.  echo
17.  expert
18.  bargain
19.  stencil
20.  predict

Homework for today:
     1.  Spelling p. 48-49
     2.  Math  Miss W:  Worksheet 5-2
                    Mr. Spaulding:  RW37
     3.  Read for half an hour.
     4.  Get parent initials.

Fall Carnival This Evening

Today's homework:
     1.  Spelling practice test.
     2.  Math  Miss W:  RW37 and PW37
                    Mr. Spaulding: RW36
     3.  Study science review sheet.
     4.  Read half hour.
     5,  Get parent initial.

Sports Jersey Day

Today Sespe School was visited by the Alternative Governance Board, or AGB.  They are here to observe our school and make helpful suggestions for improvement.  We are always seeking ways to make Sespe even better!

Today was also Sports Jersey Day, as part of our Red Ribbon Week activities.  Its fun to see all the different sports our students are involved in.

Tomorrow is music at lunch day, and tomorrow evening we will have our annual Fall Carnival at San Cayetano, from 5:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M.

Today's homework:
     1.  Study Science Review Sheet.
     2.  Math Miss W:  RW37
                   Mr. Spaulding:  RW35
     3.  Read for half an hour.
     4.  Get parent initials.

Wear Red Day

Today students wore red to show their support for healthy drug-free life styles.  Tomorrow is Sports Day, so wear a sports jersey to school.

Fall Carnival will be at San Cayetano this Thursday, October 25th, from 5:00 to 8:00.  Fun, food and prizes!  Bring the whole family to enjoy a Fillmore tradition.

This week fourth graders are learning how to identify main ideas and how to summarize.  We are also learning about the order of operations in math.  We are finishing our science unit on Living Things, and starting our social studies unit on Early People in California.


Today's homework:
     1.  Spelling p. 45.
     2.  Math  Miss W:  RW36
                    Mr. Spaulding:  RW34
     3.  Study Science Review sheet.
     4.  "A Risky Sea Journey" worksheets.
     5.  Read half hour.
     6.  Get parent signature.

Red Ribbon Week

This is Red Ribbon Week!  The following activites are planned to encourage Sespe students to live drug free and healthy lifestyles.

1.  Monday:  Wristband Day
2.  Tuesday:  Wear Red Day
3.  Wednesday:  Sports Day - wear any sports jersey, shirt, or uniform
4.  Thursday:  Music at Lunch
5.  Friday:  Pajama Day

Our Greek or Latin root this week is 'ped', meaning 'foot', as in pedal or pedicure.  Our Academic Vocabulary words for the week are identify, identical, and identification.

Today's homework:
     1.  Spelling workbook p. 44.
     2.  Study Science Chapter 1 Review Sheet
     3.  Math  Miss W: RW35
                    Mr. Spaulding:  RW33
     4.  Read half hour.
     5.  Get parent signature

What is a Compound Sentence?

Fourth graders are learning about sentence structure.

Key vocabulary includes: subject, predicate, complete subject, complete predicate, simple subject, simple predicate, comound subject, compound predicate, simple sentence, compound  sentence, and complex sentence.  That's a lot to learn about!

Today's homework:
     1.  Spelling practice test.  Copy misspelled words correctly three times.
     2.  Math  Miss W:  RW33
                    Mr. Spaulding: RW32
     3.  Read for half hour.
     4.  Get parent signature.

Don't Get Caught in the Food Web!

Fourth graders are learning about food webs in an environment.  Key vocabulary words are:  food chain, food web, herbivores, carnivores, omnivores, producers, consumers, and decomposers.







Today's homework:
     1.  Copy spelling words in cursive.
     2.  Math  Miss W:  RW32
                    Mr. Spaulding:  RW31
     3.  Read for half hour.
     4.  Get parent initial.



Here is an example of a multi-paragraph essay about My Favorite Season:

Back In School Again

All good things must come to an end!  Fall break is over and we are back in school.

The academic vocabulary for this week are the words effect, affect, and impact.

Our Greek or Latin root for this week is tele meaning far or distant, as in telephone or telescope.

Today's homework:

     1.  Spelling workbook p. 33.
     2.   Math  Miss W RW31
                     Mr. Spaulding PW31
     3.  Read for half an hour.
     4.  Get a parent initial.

Venn Diagrams

Today we worked on making Venn diagrams to compare and contrast three different trickster tales.

Today's homework:
     1.  Spelling practice test.  Copy misspelled words correctly three times each.
     2.  Math Miss W:  SR3
                   Mr.Spaulding:  RW9
     3.  Read half hour.
     4.  Memorize poem.
     5.  Get parent initial.

Food Chains and Food Webs

Food chains show how energy flows from one organism to another in the form of food.  Food webs show how food chains are linked in an environment.  Fourth grade students are learning a lot about life science!

Today's homework is:

     1.  Race to the South Pole worksheet.
     2.  Math  Miss W:  RW12
                    Mr. Spaulding: RW8
     3.  Work on memorizing "An Autumn Day" poem.
     4.  Read half an hour.
     5.  Get parent initial.

Trickster Tales

This week we are concentrating on trickster tales from different cultures.  We read the Aesop's fable the "Fox and the Crow" yesterday, and the Native American tale "How Bear Lost His Tail" today.

We are also working on memorizing and reciting the short poem "An Autumn Day."

An Autumn Day

Pumpkins in the cornfield,
gold among the brown,

Leaves of rust and scarlet,
trembling slowly down;

Birds that travel southward,
lovely time to play;

Nothing is as pleasant
as an autumn day.

Homework for today:
     1.  Copy spelling words in cursive.
     2.  Math  Miss W:  RW10 and PW10
                    Mr. Spaulding:  Round to the Nearest Hundred worksheet.
     3.  Work on memorizing the poem "An Autumn Day."
     4.  Read for half an hour.
     5.  Get a parent signature.

Here is an example of a graphic organizer for an essay on "My Favorite Season" by Daniela:

Another Science Lab Monday

The academic vocabulary word for this week is "outline" in all its senses:

     outline:  (noun) a line or shape that shows the outer edge of something

     outline:  (verb) to draw the edge or shape of something

     outline:  (noun) a written summary that shows the main points or ideas of something

     outline:  (verb) to give the main points or ideas of something

Our Greek or Latin root this week is "trans" in words such as transport, transfer and transform.

Today's homework is:

    1.  Spelling workbook p. 40.
    2.  Math:  Miss W's group:  RW9
                    Mr. Spaulding's group:  Rounding worksheet
    3.  Read half an hour.
    4.  Get parent initial