Welcome to Fourth Grade in 4-M Room 216

1. Welcome to Fourth Grade in 4-M Room 216 Thornell Road Elementary School Curriculum Day

2. Information about Mrs. Magioncalda I have taught for 20 years, and this is my 19th year in Pittsford! I went to Villanova and Nazareth College. I have a Bachelor’s in English and Writing and a Masters in Elementary Education from Nazareth. I have taught many grade levels: Young K, Kindergarten, First, Second Fourth, and 7th grade at a Middle School. Fourth grade is my favorite grade! It is a great year of growth and development for students!! I live in Fairport with my husband John, 3 children Emma, Jenna, and Andy, and our two cats and one dog.

4. New York State Next Generation Learning Standards for ELA and Math We have moved toward this new set of revised English Language Arts and Mathematics Learning Standardsin 2017. Educators are moving away from what has been essentially a teacher lecture centered classroom to a more collaborative classroom where teachers work as facilitators. Students are more active participants in learning. Mathematics 1. Focus strongly where the Standards focus 2. Coherence: Think across grades and link to major topics within grades 3. Rigor: In major topics, pursue conceptual understanding, procedural skill and fluency, and application with equal intensity English Language Arts 1. Building knowledge through content-rich nonfiction and informational texts 2. Reading, writing and speaking grounded in evidence from text, both literary and informational 3. Regular practice with complex text and its academic vocabulary

5. English Language Arts • ELA Standards – Broken into Categories • Reading Literature • Reading Informational Text • Reading: Foundational Skills • Writing • Speaking & Listening • Language • Reading Literature Standard Example • Determine the theme of a story, drama or poem from details in the text; summarize the text • Teachers keep track of introduction of standard • Standard is then reinforced and practiced through a variety of sources at different points of the school year • Evidence is gathered to show student progress towards independence with the standard • Word Study • Standard for Spelling: Spell grade appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed. • Word sorts to promote pattern recognition and use • Dictionary skills • Root word study (Latin & Greek) • Word Study/ Spelling will mainly be done at school with a weekly homework sheet and test on Friday

6. Close Reading • Reading Units: Dynamic Character, Author’s Craft, Mythology, Independence or Treason (Revolutionary War), Walk in Their Shoes (Immigration) • Emphasis is on Close Reading which is a shift in how kids think about the meaning of a selection. The shift is away from their opinions and toward thinking about the Author’s viewpoint. This is done through a study of the use of text features and Author’s craft, among other things. • Close Reading of Texts happens in 3 steps: • Previewing the Text • Reading for the Gist • Engage in Purposeful Rereads • Collect Evidence • Find patterns and make Claims • Understand content and texts more deeply

7. ELA–Writing Units Narrative Opinion (Persuasive Essay) Expository/ Informational Poetry • Skills Learned Include: • How to plan, revise, edit, and rewrite with teacher support. • Sentence structure and paragraph writing within content areas such as Social Studies or Math • How to use spelling and punctuation conventions correctly. • How to use technology to produce and publish writing.

8. Math • NYS Standards for Mathematical Practice • Multiply or divide to solve word problems involving multiplicative comparison, e.g. by using drawings and equations with a symbol for the unknown number to represent the problem, distinguishing multiplicative comparison from additive comparison. • Significant emphasis on strategies and flexible thinking. There are 26 standard that reference strategies and 5 standards reference algorithm. • It is expected that students know and have fluency with • math facts in all four operations!

9. Social Studies • Review of map skills • Major geographic features of New York State • The Haudenosaunee • Early explorers to New York State • Colonial New York • New York’s role in the Revolutionary War • The Erie Canal • Immigration • Industrial Revolution • Local and state government • Focus on: • The past creates who we are. • Change occurs over time. • Society manages its scarce resources. • Authority provides stability. • Where you live affects how you live.

10. Science • Taught by Mrs. Becky Nunn in the science room • Electrical Circuits • Land and Water • Ecosystems • Motion and Design • All questions about science should be addressed to • Mrs. Nunn at Rebecca_Nunn@pittsford.monroe.edu.

11. Homework • About 40 minutes of homework per night • Nightly math homework (may include worksheet and/or fact practice) • 20 minutes of reading • Spelling • If your child is putting in a solid work time and still not completing work, or if you find yourself having to provide an unusual amount of extra help, please make a note on the assignment so that we can follow up with re-teaching if needed • If your child is absent the work will be ready for him/her when he/she returns (this includes vacations) • Set up a good routine for homework, please provide quiet place and be “around” to provide a parallel role model. • Encourage your child to be independent but please review their agenda with them regularly – Must initial and enter reading minutes on reading log each week.

12. Specials in 4-Mag • Physical Education (3 x 40 minutes) • Mr. Bischoping & Mrs. Hill • Music (2 x 40 minutes) • Mrs. Rice • Art (2 x 40 minutes) • Ms. Lubbers • Computer (1 x 45 minutes) • Mrs. M. and ITS when needed • Library (1 x 40 minutes) • Mrs. Autovino & Mrs. Ramesh

13. Snack Time Daily, in the morning Healthy snack – One item to be eaten in 10 minutes or so. (Fruit, veggies, yogurt, granola bar, etc.) School Rule from the Nurse: NO Sharing Food due to possible allergies! Please see letter regarding snack in folder.

14. Behavior Management Mindfulness, Growth Mindset, The Golden Rule, Community Building Circle and Responsive Classroom Class & Individual Rewards Homework Punch Passes The Thornell Road Way

15. Birthdays/ Star Student Week No Treats per school wellness policy Send in a book or game to “treat” the class Can be on birthday or ½ birthday Can coincide with Star Student Week to give us two reasons to celebrate! Please see schedule for Star Student week.

16. House Keeping Early Pick-up: If possible, please make your child’s appointments outside of school. Missing class work is disruptive to the learning process for all students. If you should need to take your child out of school early please plan to arrive early enough to allow your child time to gather his/her belongings and walk to the office. Late Arrivals: Please try to minimize this as it is disruptive to our learning and kids come in already missing some instruction. (We start right away with a special or warm up work and review.) Bus Changes: Send a note to school or e-mail by 10:00 AM. Please cc Please do not send your child to school with expensive electronics. The ONLY electronics we allow at school are Kindles, Nooks or other reading devices.

17. Coomunication & The Remind App This year in addition to notes, emails, and phone calls, I’ll be using Remind to send updates about important class information.To sign up for 4th Grade Wise Owls notifications, please email mrsmagionc@mail.remind.com

19. Fourth Grade Events • Halloween Parade and Party, Thursday 10/31 • Colonial Craft Day, Friday, February 7 • Gonondagan – October 30 • Colonial Belle – May 18 • Valentine’s Day Party 2/14 • Genesee Country Museum – June 18 • Bubble Day - Fourth Grade Picnic – June 22

20. All teachers have superpowers… but we are still only human. We sometimes forgit or make a misteak. Please know that we appreshiate your polite reminder or note so that we can fix the situashun. Also… We promise to only believe 50% of what your kids tell us about you, if you will only believe 50% of what they tell you about us!

21. Thank you for coming! Here’s to a GREAT year!

22. Next Generation Learning Standards • What are they? • State-led effort that established a single set of clear educational standards for kindergarten through 12th grade in English language arts and mathematics. (Replaced goals that varied widely from state to state) • The standards are designed to ensure that students graduating from high school are prepared for college or to enter the workforce • The standards are clear and concise to ensure that parents, teachers, and students have a clear understanding of the expectations in reading, writing, speaking and listening, language and mathematics in school. • To find out more, go to: • http://www.nysed.gov/next-generation-learning-standards OR • https://www.engageny.org/next-generation-learning-standards Focus on rigorous core academic content mastery along with competencies like critical thinking, reasoning, communication and collaboration

23. The revised New York State Standards aim to reimagine the educational framework for English language arts and mathematics, with the goal of better supporting educators in their instructional practice and to provide additional guidance on achieving a vision of 21st century literacy. It is the intention of the Board of Regents that these standards serve the intended function in our schools: preparing our students to become lifelong learners and thinkers, as well as active participants in civil, community and professional endeavors. Additional introductory information about the new standards is available here: Preface to the New York State Next Generation English Language Arts and Mathematics Learning Standards.