Merry Christmas!

From our families to yours, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! May your family be blessed this Christmas season with joy, love, and peace and filled 

with many blessings in 2019! 

Love, Mrs. Ezell and Mrs. Grucky 

This week...

• Wednesday, December 19th - Gift Mass @ 9:30 AM 
• Friday, December 21st - 4th Grade Christmas Party at 8:30 AM and noon dismissal - NO AFTERCARE THIS DAY!!!!! 

English Language Arts

We will be reading some fun Christmas passages and complete comprehension activities that go with them. In addition, we will read a story called, The Littlest Fir Tree from Reading A to Z. 

We will design a toy for Santa to add his workshop, and we will work on writing kindness hearts to spread a little Christmas cheer in honor of the Grinch and watch the movie, How the Grinch Stole Christmas. 

Social Studies

Reminder: Our Kartchner Caverns field trip is the Friday we return from break, Friday, January 11th. Permission slips went home last Friday. Please read the informative email that went home last week and let us know if you have any questions. 

Math

We are starting division with and without remainders. The students will use drawings to gain a deep understanding of the skill. 

Science

We are going to begin preparation for our Kartchner Caverns field trip. The students will learn about the geology of caves. 

Religion 

We will finish our Absolutely Advent book this week. It is a graded assignment.

Take a moment to pause and pray as we begin the Third week of Advent: 

God ever gentle, ever caring, you call us home from the exile of selfishness to the freedom of justice, the balm of healing, and the joy of sharing. Make us eager to join you in your holy work, as friends of strangers and victims, companions of those whom others shun, and as the happiness of those whose hearts are broken. We make our prayer through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

2 Weeks Until Christmas Break

Happy second week of Advent! Please take a moment to pause, reflect, and pray this daily prayer.

Dear Jesus, you entered our world on Christmas as the Prince of Peace. This Advent, as we strive to become the-best-version-of-ourselves, fill us with a deep and abiding peace. Help us share that peace with everyone we encounter, especially those who need it most. Amen

Looking Ahead...

• Tuesday, December 11th - School Christmas Concert for Preschool to 3rd Grade at Xavier at 6:30 PM
• Wednesday, December 12th - All School Mass at 9:30 AM for the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe 
• Wednesday, December 19th - All School Gift Mass at 9:30 AM - Please send in a new toy wrapped with the age and gender specifying who the gift would be for on the tag OR send in a fit card 
• Friday, December 21st - 4th Grade Christmas Party at 8:30 AM PLEASE NOTE THAT DISMISSAL IS AT NOON AND THERE NO AFTER CARE ON THIS DAY. 

Please follow the link below to the Signup Genius for the 4th Grade Christmas Party . 

Christmas Party

English Language Arts 

We will not be having any spelling words this week or next. We will resume in January.

Grammar - We will wrap up our skill practice with homophones.

Writing - We will be revising and editing our Christmas Gift paragraphs. Then, we will type them in the computer lab later on in the week. The students will bring a copy to share with you.

Reading and Social Studies - We will be reading a story from Reading from A to Z called, Holidays Around the World. We will be discussing how other countries prepare and celebrate Christmas. This will prepare us for a activity that we are doing with the second graders on Friday, December 14th.




Math 

We are using many strategies to multiply:  partial product, area model, standard algorithm, and tape diagram.

We are solving multi-step word problems using addition, subtraction, and multiplication. The students will be encouraged carefully read and reread what they are being asked to solve.

Science

We are Changing Matter with a focus on physical changes and chemical changes.

Religion 

We will be discussing Our Lady of Guadalupe in honor of her feast day on Wednesday, December 12th. We will continue to work in our Absolutely Advent books.

December is here!

Happy December to All!

Advent began yesterday and the countdown to Christmas break is officially on! During this busy time of year, we will pause daily as a school to pray The Examine. If you did not have a chance to read Mrs. Cavnar's message this past weekend in the e-blast, we encourage you to go back and read through it. It talks about the importance of pausing this holiday season. 

Looking Ahead....

• Monday, December 3rd - Feast of St. Francis Xavier - Mass at 9:30 am
• Wednesday, December 5th - Reconciliation  at 1:00 pm 
• Tuesday, December 11th - School Christmas Concert at XCP at 6:30 pm 
• Wednesday, December 19th - Gift Mass at 9:30 am 
• Friday, December 21st - 4th Grade Christmas Party and dismissal is at NOON

English Language Arts

There are no spelling words this week. Enjoy the week off!

Grammar - We will continue to talk about pronouns and frequently misused words such as there, their, and they're.

Writing - We will be working on the rough draft of our Christmas Gift persuasive writing project.

Social Studies

We will be taking a break this week from our Social Studies lessons to focus on our writing and a Christmas project.

Math

We are continuing to practice multiplication of  larger numbers by a single digit using the standard algorithm. The students will also solve word problems and use the model drawing strategy.

This week, we are pretesting the x4s. Early next week, I will test them for a grade. Practice, practice, practice!

Science

We are finishing our investigation from last week, Combining Matter by mixing liquids with liquids.

Religion

As part of our preparation for Advent, we are receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We are discussing the concept of Examination of Conscience. We are also working through a daily activity called Absolutely Advent.

As we enter into the first week of Advent, please pause and say this Advent prayer.

Lord of all,
you are a God of plenty, a Lord who provides
for us in our need.
As I begin these early days of Advent
help me to believe that you know what I need.
Give me the courage to listen to your voice
and the freedom
to open my heart to the graces you are
offering me to place my trust in you.

4 Weeks Til Christmas Break

Welcome back from our Thanksgiving break! We hope you enjoyed some quality time with family and friends. The next four weeks will be jammed packed with engaging lessons, fun activities, and most of all lots of holiday cheer!

Looking Ahead...

• Wednesday, November 28th - 3rd to 5th Grade Mass at Brophy @ 9:30
• Saturday, December 1st - Breakfast with Santa in the school gym from 8:30 to 11 am
• Wednesday, December 5th - Reconciliation at 1:00 pm 
• Tuesday, December 11th - Christmas Concert at Xavier for Preschool to 3rd grade
• Friday, December 21st - 4th Grade Christmas Party in the morning and dismissal is noon 

English Language Arts



We will have a regular spelling test on Thursday, November 28th. The students' spelling homework has been modified for this week since they did not receive it ahead of time.

Grammar - We will talk about Pronouns (We didn't have time to cover this skill prior to break.), and we will talk about frequently confused words.

Reading - Our focus this week is on Text and Graphic features. We will spend some time learning a cheer that will help us to remember the importance of the different features in an informational text. The students will have a quiz on Friday, November 30th. 

Writing - We will be discussing Persuasive Writing. We will be preparing to write a persuasive paragraph about a Christmas present. Students will research the item they desire, develop three strong reasons and support it with evidence, and then present it. I will share with the students that even though they may do an amazing job presenting their facts, I am not promising that Mom and Dad will be purchasing this item. It will be a great topic of conversation for you at the dinner table.

Social Studies

We will have some follow up discussions from our field trip from the Dairy Farm and create some questions about our 5 Cs for our jeopardy game. We will also talk about the guest speaker who visited us last week. Ms. Luna's daughter, Michelle, is a copper miner and was so gracious to spend the afternoon with us on Tuesday and shared some fascinating information with us.

Math

We are multiplying multi-digit by single digit numbers. The strategies we are using are: area model, partial product, standard algorithm,  and bonding.

Please practice the x4s in preparation for a one minute quiz next week. Please practice 4x0 to 4x12 - it has to be mastered.

Science

We are combining matter. We are mixing liquids with liquids, solids with liquids, and solids with solids. We are also measuring using a beaker and graduated cylinder and trying to establish which one is more accurate.

Religion

We are learning the prayer Salve Regina or Hail Holy Queen. The students will be tested next week.

We are also preparing to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation next week. We will make an Examination of Conscience and review the Act of Contrition.

Grateful

Happy Monday to All!

Please note that this week's blog post will serve as our post for the next two weeks; since next week is only a 2 day school week. 

We are grateful to each of you for love, support, and partnership this Thanksgiving season. Travel safe, enjoy time with family and friends, and most of all make lasting memories! Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours! 

Looking Ahead....

• Tuesday, November 13th to Friday, November 16th - Scholastic Book Fair is open from 7:30 to 3:30. ***The fourth grade will go and shop on Wednesday.***
• Thursday, November 15th - Field Trip to Grandview Dairy - students may wear jeans and their school uniform shirt. Please pack a sack lunch. MUST be in a brown bag or grocery bag for us to easily dispose of after lunch. 
• Friday, November 16th - Grandparent's Day Mass with Mass at 9:00 in the Church and dismissal at 11:30 am. Please send in a bag of canned food, which will benefit our SFX Angel Families and St. Vincent de Paul. 
• Monday, November 19th - Pie Baking Day at school 
• Tuesday, November 20th - St. Vincent de Paul field trip in the morning 

English Language Arts

Spelling - There will not be any spelling homework, words, or tests these next two weeks.

Grammar - We will look at the skill of Pronouns.

Reading - We will read a story from Reading A to Z called, Two Kettles. We do some comparing and contrasting to the first Thanksgiving and present day Thanksgiving.

Writing - We will continue journaling daily our Thankful Thoughts in preparing for our Thankful Texts project.

Social Studies

We will finish our virtual field trip of Arizona's 5 Cs. The students will then go on a webquest and learn all things Arizona!

Math

We are continuing with multiplication. We will be using the following strategies; place value chart, the area model, partial product, and the standard algorithm.

We will also be measuring our the ingredients in preparation for pie baking next week.

Beginning this week, we will have a weekly timed test on the basic multiplication facts. This week is 3xs: 3x0 to 3x12. This is a graded assessment. The students will do 20 problems in one minute.

Science

We are measuring matter using the triple beam balance. We may even have the opportunity to measure cotton lint and cotton seeds after our field trip.

Religion 

We are continuing to prepare for our service project next week.We will be tested on the Suscipe prayer tomorrow.

Hello November

Happy November to All of You!

The next 3 weeks in Fourth Grade are going to fly by, so please read our blog to stay current with what is going on! 

Looking Ahead....

• Wednesday, November 7th - All School Mass @ 9:30 
• Thursday, November 8th - Social Studies Salt dough Map Project at 8:30
• Tuesday, November 13 to Friday, November 16th - Book Fair 
• Thursday, November 15th - Grandview Dairy and Cotton Fields field trip 
• Friday, November 16th - Grandparents' Day: Mass at 9:00 AM and dismissal at 11:30 AM 
• Monday, November 19th - Pie Baking at school in the morning
• Tuesday, November 20th - St. Vincent de Paul field trip in the morning 

English Language Arts



There is no spelling homework this week and no spelling test. Enjoy the week off!

Reading - We will be reading a Biography this week and looking at the author's purpose of writing it. The students will have an assessment on Friday on this story and skill. 

Vocabulary - We will review key vocabulary that are commonly misused by students. For example, words that are homophones: sore and soar.

Writing - We will be journaling daily in class, Thankful Thoughts. We will take our thoughts and turn them into our "Thankful Texts" project the next two weeks.

Social Studies

We will continue looking at maps of Arizona, preparing for our Salt Dough Project, and begin our virtual tour of Arizona's 5 C's.

Last month, both 4th grade classes participated in the From Farm to football contest by submitting a video all about chickens. The video submitted by students in 4A was chosen as 3rd place!! Woohoo! The students will be awarded with a breakfast in early December hosted by Hickman's Family Farms.

Click below to see the video :).

Winning Video 

This month, the fourth graders have another opportunity to participate in this contest again by creating a video all about vegetables.

Math

We will multiply by 10s, 100s, and 1,000s. We are going to use the strategy of perimeter and area. We will also be using the place value chart.

Science

We are starting a new module: Chemistry, Matter, and Interactions. In the first investigation, the students will be measuring mass using a triple beam balance. There will be a vocabulary quiz on Friday of the highlighted words in the lab books.

Religion 

We will continue to work on preparing for our service project to St. Vincent de Paul.We are making Joyful Mystery illustrations, messages of encouragement to add to the candy bags, and we are going memorize the Suscipe.

Happy Halloween and All Saint's Day!

Good Afternoon to All!

Have a fa-BOO-ulous Halloween and loving All Saint's and All Soul's Day this week! 

A few gentle reminders:

• Wednesday, October 31st - Halloween Party at 2:15 pm 
• Thursday, November 1st - All Saint's Day Mass at 9:30 in the church 
• Friday, November 2nd - Dia de Los Muetos Celebration at Pledge and Prayer 
• Friday, November 2nd - 1st Trimester Ends 
• Thursday, November 8th - Salt Dough Map Project immediately following Pledge and Prayer: We are still in need of parent volunteers. Please contact Mrs. Ezell if you can help. 
• Thursday, November 15th - Grandview Dairy Field Trip
• Friday, November 16th - Grandparent's Day Mass at 9:00 am with dismissal at 11:30 am 
• Monday, November 19th - Pie Baking Day at school
• Tuesday, November 20th - St. Vincent de Paul Service Project in the morning 

English Language Arts

There will be a spelling test on Thursday, November 1st. 

Grammar - We are continuing to review simple sentences, compound sentences, and complex sentences. We will have a quiz on them this Friday, November 2nd. 

Reading - We are taking a break from Journey's this week and will resume with Lesson 10 next week. 

Social Studies

We are continuing to read about Arizona's early land and will begin to discuss the 5 C's. Last week, there was a typo when it said we were on Ch. 3; we are actually working in Ch. 2. Thank you for understanding.

Math

We are starting our third module; Multiplication and Division. We will begin by using the area model and perimeter. The students will also focus on arrays and how they relate to a multiplication fact.

Science

We are continuing work with the microscope. We will be making a model of a compound microscope. There will be a vocabulary quiz on Friday, November 2nd.

Religion

We are writing a prayer for our Saint in honor of All Saint's Day this Thursday. 4A will be focusing on St. Lucy and 4B will be focusing on St. Vincent de Paul.

We will also continue work on our Joyful Mysteries in preparation for the St. Vincent de Paul trip.

1st Trimester is Ending Soon

Happy Monday to All!

The 1st Trimester is ending soon; Friday, November 2nd. Please double check with your child that all missing assignments are turned in to the teacher.

Looking Ahead...

• Wednesday, October 31st - Buddy Meet and Greet at 10:30 am and 4th Grade Halloween Party @ 2:15 
• ***Please save and send in any extra Halloween candy. This will be used in our St. Vincent de Paul service project. Also, if you have not yet turned in your 2 yards of fleece, please do so by November 2nd. 
• Thursday, November 1st - All Saint's Day with Mass at 9:30.
• Thursday, November 15th - Field Trip to Grandview Dairy 
• Friday, November 16th - Grandparent's Day with Mass at 9:00 and dismissal at 11:30
• Tuesday, November 20th - Field Trip to St. Vincent de Paul from 8:30 am to 10:30 am

English Language Arts



Spelling - Students did not receive homework last week, but will today in class (Monday). It will be due on Thursday. They will have a spelling test this Thursday, October 25th. 

Grammar - We will be talking about the difference between a simple sentence, compound sentence, and a complex sentence.

Reading - We will be talking about Drawing Conclusions and Making Generalizations. We will look at our vocabulary words this week as well and focus on the skill of antonyms. There will be a reading comprehension test on Friday, October 26th and a vocabulary test as well. 

Social Studies

We will begin work in Chapter 3 of our Discovering Arizona textbook, which talks about different types of maps and Arizona's land. We will be preparing these next two weeks for our Salt Dough Map Project. This project will take place on the morning of Thursday, November 8th. We will need about 6 to 8 parent volunteers for each homeroom in the morning. Please email Mrs. Ezell if you are interested in helping out.(We'll start right after Pledge and Prayer.)

Math

We are finishing the metric measuring module this week. The students will have had practice with meters, liters, and grams.

Science

We are continuing using the microscope with focus on different levels of magnification. The students will have a vocabulary test on Friday.

Religion

We will pray the Rosary and talk about the Mysteries. The focus will be on The Joyful Mysteries. The students will be illustrating these as part of their service project.

Cooler Weather

Happy Tuesday to All!

We hope you enjoyed the extra long weekend and this beautiful, cool fall weather! While this is a short week, it is a busy one! Please continue to practice the states with your children. The final assessment is this FRIDAY! 

Looking Ahead....

• Wednesday, October 17th - All School Mass at 9:30 in the Church
• Friday, October 19th - Pizza Friday and 8th Grade Play at 2 PM or 7 PM
• Saturday, October 20th - 8th Grade Play at 7 PM
• Wednesday, October 31st - Simple Halloween Party for 4th Grade from 2:15 to 2:45 PM 

English Language Arts

Reading - Since our main focus this week is on Grammar and Social Studies, we are taking a mini break from our next Journey's lesson. We will resume next week with Lesson 9.

Spelling - We will resume regular spelling tests NEXT WEEK since this is our last week focusing on the 50 states.

Grammar - The students have been working hard on mastering thee skills of action verbs vs. helping verbs, verb tenses, subjects and predicates, common and proper nouns, complete sentences vs. run-on vs. fragment, and quotations. We will review these skills today and tomorrow and have our unit assessment on Thursday, October 18th.  I will have a study session this Thursday morning at 7:30 for anyone who needs some extra last minute help. 

Writing - Our postcards are complete and have been mailed out! Woohoo! Now, we just wait for our postcards to arrive. Stay tuned! Our next writing project will start in early November.

Social Studies

The 50 states test is this FRIDAY, October 19th!! Students will be expected to correctly locate and spell each state's name correctly! This test is worth 100 points! 



Math

We will add and subtract with metric measurements. The students need to be able to convert between meters, kilometers, and centimeters.

Science

We are still learning about the microscope. The students will have a vocabulary test on Friday on Investigation 3.

Religion

We will be discussing our upcoming Service Project with St. Vincent de Paul. During the month of October we study the Rosary. We will be illustrating the Joyful Mysteries to use as part of our decorations at St. Vincent de Paul.

Short Week Ahead

Happy Monday Everyone!

Thank you so much to everyone who we have seen so far for conferences and to those we will see this week. It truly is a partnership as we help our children grow spirituality, emotionally, and academically.

Gentle Reminders: 

• Wednesday and Thursday of this week are BOTH half days with dismissal at 1:15 PLEASE BRING A HEARTY SNACK
• Friday of this week and Monday of next week there is no school -- Happy Fall Break

Dates to Remember (since we know things can start to get busy this time of year)

• Wednesday, October 31st - Simple Halloween Party from 2:15 to 2:45
• Thursday, November 15th - Field Trip to Grand View Dairy (Vanderwey Farm)
• Friday, November 16th - Special Person's Day with dismissal at 11:30 AM 
• Monday, November 19th - Pie Baking Day at School
• Tuesday, November 20 - Morning Field Trip to St. Vincent de Paul - service project
• Friday, January 11th - ALL DAY Field Trip to Kartchner Caverns 

English Language Arts



We are going to really focus on grammar this week and review the following skills we have been covering for about a month now:

• subjects and predicates
• common and proper nouns
• action, helping, and linking verbs
• verb tenses
• quotation marks 
• complete sentences, run-ons, and fragments

There will be a summative grammar assessment on these skills next week, Thursday, October 18th. Students will receive plenty of study guide and review options in preparation for the test.

Reading - We will read lesson 8 this week and talk about the skill of Understanding Characters. There is NO test this week.

Writing - We are putting our final touches on the postcards, and they will be mailed out by Friday.

Social Studies

The Northeast Region quiz is TOMORROW!!!

Please, please, please continue studying ALL 50 states location and spelling. The 50 states quiz is Friday, October 19th. States ONLY not the capitals for the final test. 



The students received instruction last Friday about their States Menu Project. We will have in-class time this week, Wednesday and Thursday. Anything not completed in class is the students' responsibility to complete at home.

Math

We are finishing our first module. The students will be assessed on Wednesday, October 10th. Please review the module at home. Hot topics: rounding, adding and subtracting large numbers, place value, and tape diagrams.

Science

We are learning about the microscope. We will carry out this lesson through next week, so the vocabulary test will not be until next week.

Religion

We are working on the notion that small actions can create lasting good. Our "Ambassador Program" with the other classes will begin this week.

Click below to watch the video that our students watched in class.

Small Acts of Kindness Video 

Hello October!!!!!

Happy Monday All! October is here and the cool weather is right around the corner! Yippee!

Looking Ahead....

• Monday, October 1st to Thursday, October 11th - Conferences 
• Friday, October 5th - Jesuit Heritage Mass at Brophyy at 9:30 - No students will be allowed to leave the gym during Mass. Please see the school's eblast for any questions. 
• Saturday, October 6th - School Auction 
• Wednesday, October 10th and Thursday, October 11th - Half Day - dismissal @ 1:15
• Friday, October 12th and Monday, October 15th - NO SCHOOL

English Language Arts



Grammar - We will working on action, helping, and linking verbs. We will discuss verb tenses, and we will continue to review common and proper nouns.

Reading - We will be working on understanding the difference between Fact and Opinion. We will have Google Classroom Homework on Thursday, October 5th, which will take the place of a test grade.

Writing - This week, we will write our "sloppy copy" postcard message to a school in another state. We will review them for errors, and then neatly write them out on Arizona postcards. We will mail them out and await the return of the postcards from the other schools across the country.

Social Studies

The students will be assessed on both the states and capitals tomorrow, Tuesday, October 2nd in the Southeast Region.

Coming Up.....Northeast Region Quiz = Tuesday, October 9th



Coming Up...ALL 50 STATES (spelling counts) = Friday, October 19th 

Math

We are subtracting very large numbers with a great deal of regrouping. The students are also using tape diagrams to model word problems.

Science

We are continuing with Lesson 2: Refraction. The students will be observing convex and concave lens.

The lab book is due on Wednesday and the vocabulary test will be Friday.

Religion

Our focus is on the Act of Love. The test will be Friday, October 5th. 

We are working on the school-wide Pop Tab Collection. Some students will be ambassadors to different classrooms to assist in understanding this project.

Conference Time

Hello Families,

This is a reminder that our Parent-Teacher Conference begin this week before and after school. We will be sending home a list of the sign-ups as a reminder. There are still some open slots if you need to sign up.

Looking Ahead...

• Wednesday, September 26th - 3rd-5th grade Mass @ Brophy Chapel - 4th Grade leading 
• Saturday, October 6th - School Auction 
• Wednesday, October 10th - Half Day dismissal at 1:15
• Thursday, October 11th - Half Day dismissal at 1:15
• Friday, October 12th - No School 

English Language Arts



This week, we will continue to look at the difference between Common and Proper Nouns. The students will have a "let's check-in assessment" to see how we are doing on Wednesday.  We Will then move to the grammar skill of Verbs.

In Reading, we will look at the skill of Story Structure. There will be a reading test on Friday, September 28th. 

Writing - We will all be working on publishing our State Reports this week. We will begin to talk about the details of our Postcard Exchange.

Social Studies

The students will be assessed on both the states and capitals in the Midwest Region, tomorrow, Tuesday, September 25th. 



Then, we will begin to look at the Southeast Region. The quiz on the Southeast region will be Tuesday, October 2nd.

Math

We are subtracting large numbers and using tape diagrams to model our word problems.

Science

We are starting our second module: Microscopes and Magnification. This week we are exploring lenses: the human eye and a hand lens. We are looking at the clarity on how things are viewed, or resolution.

Religion 

Fourth Grade is leading Mass this Wednesday at Brophy Chapel.

We are finishing up our Rosary Poster Contest pictures to honor our Blessed Mother Mary (Our Lady of Czestochowa).

States and Capitals

Happy Monday Everyone!

We are in week 3 of our states and capitals lessons. This week's focus is the Midwest Region. I am sure by now you have heard our famous, "Tour the States" song. It is quite catchy and has a good beat to it. All the students received flashcards last week for ALL fifty states and capitals. Below are a few names of some amazing apps to download for extra practice. All the apps are FREE!!

APPS: 
50 US States - American Quiz 
States and Capitals Quiz
States - The States and Capitals 

MUSIC INFO FROM MS. NEMETH 
Students are suppose to be practicing regularly from home using the FREE app on the iPad.  The app is called: Music Studio, and it is free. CLICK HERE to see what it looks like!
No iPad? practice in music room available: Monday-Friday 7:30 A.M.;Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: 3:00-3:30.

Looking Ahead...

• Thursday, September 27th - Altar Server Training for NEW servers at the Parish
• Saturday, October 6th - School Auction @ 6:00 PM 
• Wednesday, October 10th - Altar Server Training for NEW servers at the Parish

English Language Arts



We will continue to look at the difference between fragments, run-on sentences, and complete sentences. We will also begin to review Proper Nouns.

Writing - We will be revising and editing our state reports this week.

Reading - This week is all about Tall Tales. We will be talking about ways author's over exaggerate things by watching a short video, Paul Bunyun. We will also read Stormalong. The students will have a reading comprehension test on Friday, September 21st. 

Thursday night homework: log into Thinkcentral.com from home and read lesson 5: Stormalong

Social Studies

This week our focus is on the Midwest Region states and capitals. We will talk about the 5 Great Lakes as well. Please remember that SPELLING COUNTS for each state's name.Our quiz will be next Tuesday, September 25th. 

Math

We are adding and subtracting larger numbers. We are using our rounding skills to check if our answers are reasonable. We are using tape diagrams to model our word problems.

Science

This week we are culminating our Human Body Module with a performance assessment and a paper / pencil assessment. In the lab on Tuesday, we will do the performance assessment and the other assessment will be Wednesday.

Religion

The Act of Hope quiz is tomorrow, Tuesday.

We will be preparing for the Mass that 4th grade is leading next week.

Work Hard, Play Hard

Happy Monday to All,

We hope you had a fun weekend as college football is in full swing and the NFL season kicked off! Last week, our classes began discussing our From Farm to Football participation. This program is free to us and is brought to us by Hickman's Family Farms and the Arizona Cardinals. Budda Baker, safety for the AZ Cardinals, is this year's representative. Each month, he will send a video to the schools across Arizona talking about pigs, chickens, cattle, and more! Most importantly, he always includes a message for the students and the message this month was, "Work Hard means you get to Play Hard." 

Let us encourage our students to work hard in class and put forth their best self, so that when it is time to play or rest they can truly enjoy it. Let us continue to have conversation with our students about time management, a skill that is quite difficult at this age, but so vital. If we can do anything for our fourth graders this year it will be to help them learn time management and stay organized. It is also important that they use their class time wisely, utilizing their agenda daily, and keeping their accordion file organized. Let us partner together to help our kiddos by not doing it for them, rather helping them learn how to do this by modeling and having conversation about what is expected of them at school. 

On a different note...Be aware in our email is a link for our Parent-Teacher Conferences. Yes, it is that time of year again! We will be sending out a Signup Genius link for you to use. We have lots of slots to accommodate seeing every family. 

Looking Ahead..

• Wednesday, September 12th - All School Mass @ 9:30
• Friday, September 14th - Free Dress IF you donate a gift card to the Auction 

English Language Arts



This week we will be talking about Theme and how we identify a Theme in a story and/or play. We will read a play called, The Power of WOW, which will tie in our Religion standards as well as the community comes together to lend a helping hand. 

Grammar - We will be talking about fragments, run-on sentences, and complete sentences. Students will be working on this skills for the next three weeks as well as other grammar skills. At the end of the three weeks, students will have a summative assessments on the concepts taught. Throughout the next three weeks, we will have informal assessments to check for understanding. 

Our famous person conversation project is due Wednesday, September 12th. 

"The goal of summative assessment is to evaluate student learning at the end of an instructional unit by comparing it against some standard or benchmark."

Writing - We will continue working on our State reports. This week, we will begin the rough draft process. 

Social Studies

This week, the students will learn all about the states in the West Region. They will be assessed on BOTH the states and capitals in this region on Friday, September 14th. Spelling of the each State's name correctly DOES count. For the capitals, students will be given a list of the capital cities and need to write the name of corresponding state. 

Math

We are continuing to round multi-digit numbers to any place value. We are using the number lien strategy along with the standard algorithm. 

Science

We are finishing up The Human Body with the study on the Digestive System. 

There will be a vocabulary quiz on Friday. 

Religion

Altar Serving training for NEW servers is September 27th OR October 10th at the Parish. In order the students to serve at a school Mass, they need to be trained at the Church.

We are working on the Act of Hope this week, and we will test on it next week. 

Happy Labor Day

Hello Everyone!

We hope you enjoyed your long weekend! We are back and ready to roll into September! This week, we begin our Decision Making program. Decision Making is an awesome program that helps our students process through making the right decision.

English Language Arts

We will continue working with Lesson 3. Last week, we experienced some technical difficulties with Think Central, our online portal, but we are hoping it is back up and running this week. We will work on the skill of Cause and Effect. Students will be assessed on this story on Friday, September 7th. 

We will continue talking about Quotation Marks. ALL students received directions for their grammar project. The project is due Wednesday, September 13th. 

Social Studies and Writing

Students will begin to research and learn about their assigned state.

Next week, we will resume learning about and be quizzed on the states in the West Region.

Math

We will be rounding numbers to the nearest 100, 1,000, and 10,000.

Science

We are continuing our study of The Human Body and this week's focus is the Circulatory System. We will have a vocabulary quiz on Friday, so start studying today.

Religion

We will be studying the Theological Virtues of Faith, Hope, and Love. This week we will memorize the Act of Faith.

Happy 4 Day Weekend !

Hello Families,

This week, we have a four day school week and same with next week, which means a 4 day weekend! Enjoy! 

A friendly suggestion; please consider turning off the  low-grade alert on Gradelink. Please wait until you see the paper in the Friday Folder, have conversation with your child regarding the reason for missed points before sending us an email. It is super important to be seeing the work first hand before we can address it. 

Looking Ahead...

• Wednesday, August 29th - Jesuit-Stronger Breakfast at 8:00 at the Parish Hall 
• Wednesday, August 29th - Mass of the Holy Spirit at 9:30
• Friday, August 31st and Monday, September 3rd - NO SCHOOL 

English Language Arts



We do not have any spelling words or homework this week. We are beginning our study on the fifty states, and spelling of each state's name correctly will count as our spelling practice. 

We will be learning all about Quotation Marks this week. As the week progresses, students will learn about their grammar project that is centered on the use of Quotation Marks.

We will be talking about the reading skill of Cause and Effect. This week's story is full of rich details, so we will be covering it for two weeks. Students will have in class work as well as homework through Google Classroom that go along with this story. Students will be assessed on this story next week on Friday, September 7th. 

The students WILL have vocabulary homework this week. All directions will be reviewed in class on Tuesday and homework will be due Thursday.

Social Studies



We begin our journey around the 50 States by stopping in our first region, The Southwest. The students will need to know how to properly locate each of the four states on a map, spell each state's name correctly, and match the state's name to its corresponding capital city. The students will be assessed on this on Thursday, August 30th. 

We will be storing all of our 50 States work in our Region Book. The Region Book is to stay in the students accordion file at all times. We will be using it over the next five weeks.

Math

We are working on comparing greater numbers and rounding to the nearest 10, 100, 1,000,...

Even during our short weeks, the Dreambox goal is 40 minutes and 5 lessons. The report will be from Sunday to Friday regardless of the no school day.

Science

We are continuing in the Human Body, and our focus will be on the Respiratory System. We will have a vocabulary test on Thursday instead of Friday.

Religion

This week is the Mass of the Holy Spirit, which is a tradition at the beginning of the school year for all Jesuit schools. We will go over the SLEs and symbols of the Holy Spirit.

Settling In

 Hello Families,

The students are beginning to settle in as are we. Our routines will soon become second nature for everyone. A few gentle reminders:

• The Friday Folder will go home on Fridays and MUST be signed and returned every Monday.
• The PRIDE pass will go home every Friday and MUST  be signed and returned every Monday.
• There is a nightly reading log; however it is not due until August 30th - Your child should be reading 20 to 30 minutes daily and you should be signing off on it.
• Dreambox is a weekly assignment as well. The Dreambox week begins Sunday and ends Friday night.  

TOGETHER we will all get through the bumps and things will begin to smooth out. We like to refer to this as our "groan zone". There may be some "growing pains" these next few weeks, but it will all be worth it in the end and we will help our children reach the growth zone. Remember, we are here to help in any way, so please reach out if you need anything.

Looking Ahead...

• Wednesday, August 22nd - Back to School Night at 6:00 PM in 4A for both Fourth Grades (We will send out our PowerPoint via email for any families who are not able to join us that evening.) 

English Language Arts



There will be a spelling test on Thursday, August 23rd. 

We will have a grammar test on the skills of Subject and Predicate and the 4 Types of Sentences on Friday, August 24th. 

Reading - We will talk about the skill of Author's Purpose. Students will be working on in-class tasks that will take the place of a test grade.

Writing - We will edit and revise our personal narrative this week. We are getting closer to publishing our work.


Social Studies

We will begin learning about the 5 Regions of the United States. The students will have a mini quiz on Thursday, where they will be asked to label each region on a blank map of the USA. 



Math

We are working on larger numbers and place value. We are working on the concepts of standard form, expanded form, and word form. 

Our weekly Dreambox homework is graded. 

Science

We are continuing our unit on the Human Body with a focus on The Skeletal and Muscular Systems. 

Religion 

The focus is God's Amazing Creation. The students and I are discussing ways that we can make a difference in taking care  of our world. 

Welcome to the 2018-2019 School Year!

Hello Families,

Welcome to the 2018 - 2019 school year! We are excited and ready to begin this fun-filled, academic journey with you and your child this year. Each week, you will receive an email from us that will have our link to this blog. This is our weekly newsletter and way of communication. Please be sure to open the link each week and read what is transpiring in our classrooms.

The purpose of this blog is to keep you informed on the weekly skills being covered. You also have access to field trip dates and class parties, which can be found under that tab along the top of the page. You have access to the Fourth Grade behavior procedures under the PRIDE Pass tab. You can also access our weekly schedule under the tab along the bop.

Looking Ahead....

• Wednesday, August 15th - All School Mass in the Church at 9:30 - note the new Mass time
• Wednesday, August 22nd - Back to School Night in our classrooms at 6:00 PM
• Thursday, August 16th - STAR Reading and STAR Math Tests in the morning for both 4th grade classes 

English Langue Arts



Spelling - Each week, students will be given a spelling pre-test on the Friday before the new week begins. If the students gets a 100%, he/she does not need to take the spelling test the following week. Spelling tests occur every Thursdays. ALL students are responsible for completing the spelling homework regardless if they received a 100% on the pre-test or not. Spelling homework is due Thursdays.

There will be a spelling test this Thursday, August 16th. 

Grammar - We will start our year off  by reviewing what makes a sentence complete or incomplete.

Reading - We will begin work in our Journey's reading textbook by reading a small excerpt from Because of Winn Dixie, which was our summer book. Students will review the skill of story structure.

Writing - We will begin our year with writing a personal narrative about our summer adventures.

Social Studies

We will review the 7 continents and 5 oceans. Students will have a quiz on correctly locating the oceans and continents on Friday, August 17th. Spelling will not count as the words will be provided to them. 

Math

We are working on number sense and the concept of "ten times as much as". The students are using the place value model.

Science

We are starting in the STEM Lab, and our first module is the Human Body. The first investigation will be covering the Nervous System.

Religion

Wednesday, August 15th is a Holy Day of obligation in the Church. We will be talking about the Assumption of Mary. We will discuss the difference between the Assumption, the Ascension, the Immaculate Conception, and the Annunciation as these are often confused.

Happy Summer! (almost)

Happy Monday Families,

Please note that this will be our last blog post of the school year. 

We would like to extend our deepest gratitude to each of you for your support, love, and partnership this year. Your children have grown academically and spiritually. We wish you all a safe, fun, and relaxing summer vacation. 

Coming Up.....

• Wednesday, May 23rd - End of the Year Mass and Awards at 8:30 in the Church
• Friday, May 25th - End of the Year Breakfast Party in 4th grade classrooms

English Language Arts

This week, we will finish reading Stone Fox. We will wrap up our novel study with activities involving a wide variety of reading skills.

We will write letters to the incoming 4th graders.

We will shore  up our grammar skills with some work on commas and basic punctuation.

Social Studies

We will continue to talk about economics,  create a budget and plan for a family vacation.

Math

We will continue to the end of the year working on addition and subtraction of fractions. 

Science

We will be reviewing key concepts from the year.

Religion

We will review parts of the Mass, Mass protocol, and discuss the importance of full active participation in the Mass.

May Crowning

Hello Families,

This Wednesday, May 9th, we gather as a school community to honor our Blessed Mother Mary. Mass is at 10:30 in the Churc. 

Thank you to all the parents who came out last week for our Book Tasting Party. It was a HUGE success! If you weren't able to attend, no worries. I have included below some pictures from the event. 

Looking Ahead...

• Tuesday, May 8th - School viewing of the Spring Concert @ 9:00 AM - Evening performance is at 6:30 PM at XCP 
• Wednesday, May 9th - STAR Math test in the morning 
• Wednesday, May 9th - All School Mass - May Crowning 

English Language Arts

We will continue reading Stone Fox and completing our daily activities associated with each chapter.

A few pictures from last week's Book Tasting Party.

Social Studies

We will begin the last two units of Social Studies, which are economics and the Three Branches of Government.



Math

We will be continuing to add and subtract fractions. We will be using mixed numbers and all the answers need to be in simplest form.

Science

We are finishing our Human Body Unit.

Religion

We will talk about May this week and incorporate a Mother's Day activity.

A Special Thank You from Mrs. Ezell

I wanted to take a moment to thank each of you for all of the love, support, and generous donations you made towards the purchase of my new IrisVision glasses. For those of you who do not remember,  I have been visually impaired since age 12, and currently I use low-vision assistive technology to help me in my daily activities. With advances in technology, there has been the creation of IrisVision glasses. IrisVision has teamed up with Samsung and several universities such as UCLA, Cal Berkeley, and John Hopkins, to create these amazing glasses though the use of virtual reality goggles and magnifiers. The glasses will assist people who are visually impaired to see things easier. My vision is normally 20/240 (legally blind is 20/200) and with the glasses on my vision is 20/30. I am in complete awe as these will change the way I do and see things on a daily basis. Additionally, I am in awe at the generous donations people have come forward with to help me purchase these glasses. I am humbled and touched by the love from your children and your families. I will forever be grateful to each of you for this gift. The glasses are arriving today and I will be using these last few weeks of school.....yay!!!!

Hello May

Can you believe that May is here already!? We have a busy week ahead of and it is a short one. 

Looking Ahead...

• Tuesday, May 1st - Viewing of the movie, Screenagers, required for ALL Fourth Graders. Please arrive by 5:45 in order to check in with teacher. There is a required assignment that will follow the movie, which will be entered as a grade under Religion. 
• Wednesday, May 2nd - Move-Up Day: 4th graders will go to 5th grade
• Thursday, May 3rd - Frosh Follies Play at 10:00 at XCP
• Thursday, May 3rd - Book Tasting Party at 2:00 pm - all parents are welcome to join us 
• Friday, May 4th - NO SCHOOL 

***STAR Reading will be on Wednesday, May 2nd in the morning. 

***STAR Math will be next Wednesday, May 9th in the morning. 

Please make sure they are well-rested and well-fed. We want them to do their best and take it seriously. 

English Language Arts

This week we begin our reading of Stone Fox. Each day we will read a chapter from the book and follow it up with small group discussions and journal entries. At the end of each week, we will work on vocabulary and reading skills that go along with the chapters we read.



Social Studies

We will finish up our Life on a Mission Journal Entries.

Math

We are continuing our work with Fractions. We will be adding, subtracting, and putting our answers in simplest form. We will also be working with mixed numbers.

Science

We will be studying the Digestive System.

Religion

We will be discussing the movie, Screenagers. There will be a family assignment that goes home Tuesday night that ALL students must be complete by Friday, May 11th.