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Grade 4 - Mrs. Ternan

Claire TernanWelcome to Fourth Grade! Hands-on activities are an integral part of the program. I think the best part of teaching at St. Chris is the students; they are enthusiastic, curious, and eager to learn. If you have any questions or concerns, please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

 

Mrs. Claire Ternan has been teaching at St. Christopher School for over thirty years, mostly in the 4th grade. She is certified in elementary education and English. Although she has her Masters in Writing and Literature, her greatest love is the teaching of science. Mrs. T has a grown son and daughter, both of whom graduated from St. Chris, and three grandchildren, one in Brookline, MA and two in Santiago, Chile.

 

January News

Happy New Year!

It's a new year and that means new activities in science.  We've started a unit in physcial science and are conducting experiments in static electricity.  The students will try to recreate the observation of ancient Greek scientist, Thales, who lived 2,000 years ago.  They will charge a "magic rod" and try to pick up feathers, threads, and even try to separate salt and pepper. We'll also discuss and learn about electrons and protons, negatively and positively charged objects, and how static electricity, current electricity, and magnetism are related.

On to reading...Literature and writing are being linked. We're reading " how and why stories," and students are presently writing their own imaginative pieces about nature.

In math we've doing some pre-algebra and are learning about order of operations. Students have also discovered how to figure out their academic averages, finding the mean of a series of numbers. Of course, we're still practicing math facts on a weekly basis.

We've delved into Jesus' Jewish roots and studied and recited the "shema" which is the first half of the great commandment.

I love your kids and love working with them. Keep up the good parenting.

Until next time... Mrs T

 

 

December News

Hello Everyone!  4T is studying Advent and getting ready for Christmas. We left Moses in the desert, temporarily, and we switched to the New Testament. Jesus is on his way, and John, his cousin, will be telling the crowds "After me comes he who is mightier than I..." We are preparing ours hearts and souls, as we count down to Christmas. Thursday, December 15th, is the annual Christmas Pageant. On Friday, December 16th, there will be a Penitential Service, and on Thursday, December 22nd 4T will have their Christmas party. 

The assigned book report this month is to read a Christmas book. Directions for the project have been sent home. The choices are a poster or a book conference with the teacher. No vague answers to discussion questions will be allowed!! Please continue to have your child read every night at home.

The whole school got a chance to view the science, ecosystem projects. A dozen of them were brought to Barnes and Noble for viewing, and several others are on display in the case in the lobby. I learned new facts from the oral presentations, and that's always fun for me. Cool

We're starting division in math, and I'm adding a healthy dose of word problems to keep the students mentally sharp. I hold a "math clinic" every Wednesday at 8 am, so send your child in if he/she needs a little extra practice.

In writing, the students have been working on descriptive paragraphs of cities that they've visited. They really are avid travellers, and it's interesting what sights and sounds they remember from their trips. I've also added dictation sentences to the weekly spelling test.

We'll have our second spelling bee of the year this Thursday and Friday. (Lessons 7 through 12) I'm working on adding the 100 most misspelled words for elementary students to the lists at www.spellingcity.com  I'll need a few more days for that, but in the meantime you might like to visit the spelling site to give your student extra practice with the weekly words.

We're metaphorically hiking the Appalachian Mountains into West Virginia and down to Georgia. We'll be enjoying a virtual trip down thanks to National Geographic and our state of the art projector. The students did well on the Northeast states test, and now we're beginning the study of the Southeast.

Questions or concerns?  Send me an email.  Until next time...

Mrs. T

 

 

 

November News

Not only are 4th grade students working hard, they are also creative and clever.  Book reports were shared on Friday. I was impressed. The criteria this time was to dress a gourd as a literary character from a fiction book read, and deliver an oral report from that person's point of view. A few of these imaginative figures are in the display case in the lobby.

Science projects were handed out on Friday, also. Each student was randomly assigned an ecosystem such as a desert, rainforest, swamp, coral reef... They are asked to research their ecosystem either in the library or online, create a diorama with at least five living things, and submit a paper with interesting facts about their chosen organisms.

On Wednesday of this week we'll be planting tulip bulbs obtained for us by Sue Sheehy, Natalie's mom, in 4M. Last year we planted 100, and with this year's 90 our display in early spring should be spectacular.

We've enjoyed our visits from Sister Elizabeth; she's always so enthusiastic to see the children, and the children respond in kind.  Both 4th grades will be making a fall craft, with a Thanksgiving theme, for "Meals on Wheels."

One of my goals is for the students to have strong math skills.  Drill, drill, drill. The Eno board is a big help here.  We've finished subtraction and we'll be going on to multiplication this week.  Math homework is usually given nightly.

There will not be a regular book report this month, but students are always asked to read at least 20 minutes nightly. They will be recording observations, in complete sentences, of course, in their journals.

Our first spelling bee of the year was held, and Matthew Thibault was the champion.  Hurray for Matt!Wink

In social studies, we're still studying the Northeast. We've had a test on the New England states, and now we'll be going on the the Mid-Atlantic.

 

 
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