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Hi there. Happy Halloween!!! Be safe out there tonight! 

Thank you so much for all the birthday wishes and gifts. How sweet! 

Thanks also for all the holy cow creative treats for the bake sale!!!! We sold a ton, but still have some left over. We will sell the rest on Friday after dismissal. No need to make more, we just want to sell the rest! 

The fun jail, NE guest speakers, and dry ice science pictures are above. 

Today, we played many games in class that made us practice using that inferential reading skill. We also played one for main idea and supporting details. Ask your child who they had on their back at the end of the day that they had to ask yes or no questions for. Write their costume in the planner for $20 tomorrow. 

Tomorrow is another 1/2 day due to conferences. So far, all have been attended so that is awesome! I enjoy sitting and just listening to you talk about your kiddos. They are fantastic! 

Have a wonderful evening. 

Halloween Tomorrow Night! Normal Day In Here!

Hi there. Boy was a FANTASTIC day!!!!! I want to blog all about it, but have conferences right away today so this will be quick, quick.

The jail was super fantastic!!!! Pictures to come, but ask your kiddos to share!

We had a TON of fun experimenting with dry ice in our witches brew (apple juice). Pictures to come, but ask your kiddos to share. So much fun! So much learning!

We had two guest speakers today from our NE region!!! Pictures to come, but ask your kiddos to share. Ask which states they were from and write them in the planner for $20 tomorrow.

Bake sale is tomorrow!!!!! Please bring in items before school or to school. We will sell at our early out dismissal at 12:05! Yep that is right we are out at noon tomorrow. 4th graders can shop too. Real money needed (fake school money will not be accepted). :0) I can't wait to see all the fun treats everyone has planned!! Do I get a free treat (one of each) since it is my birthday????? :0)

Have a super night and I will blog so much more tomorrow!! What a day!!!

Off to Jail We Go!

Hi there. What a great and very busy Monday. We packed it to the max!!!

In Reading today we finished up our studies on Wildfire and practiced some old and new skills like fact and opinion, compound or simple sentences, words with multiple meanings, synonyms and antonyms, Proper nouns, and vocabulary. Wowzers! All from one little picture book. It was a cool book though!

We also worked on idioms today, with a Halloween twist. Kids were all given an idiom ghost and then had to find the matching monster that told what the idiom means. It was so fun, they asked to play it again. Awesome!!

In language, I put a picture of a very frightened little girl on the screen. Each student had to write a declarative, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory sentence about the picture. What they came up lead to some great discussions and laughter!

Spelling this week will be pretty much study only. We are going to do some Halloween things instead of book work this week. So, please study, study at home. There will still be the weekly test on Friday.

In math, we went over all the practice 3 by 1 multiplication problems we did last week. Then, we took a quiz. We discovered that kids were messing up with forgetting to regroup, not ADDing when regrouping, and/or not knowing our basic facts. Each student was given a multiplication chart at the start of this chapter. Some have lost it, and are now struggling with the basics. Urg. Organization pays off. Ms. Erickson said to put it on our clipboard for safe keeping. Idiom: I can lead you to water, but I can't make you drink.

We wrapped up the day with science. We began our water cycle tests. Kids were doing pretty well all around. However, when it came to the fill in the blank one with the science terms I can sure tell who read it over and over again at home from practice. It was the exact same test as we filled out together in the beginning of the unit. Kids will finish the test tomorrow if time allows.

For homework tonight, kids need to finish up their final draft of their raindrop story. We started them in class, and now they just need to finish it up. They should also read you the final copy aloud. If they do, write the word READ in the planner for $20 tomorrow. They also need to color their border on their fun weather front page. If kids need to go beyond the paper given, they know to use regular paper for that. You and I should see SIX clear paragraphs all indented. I modeled this in class, and it should not be new to them, as paragraph writing is a third grade writing skill. Some kids also needed to finish up their math coordinate graphing sheet.

Tomorrow is the field trip to the jail. We will leave right away. Those that have bought in need to be here on time tomorrow in order to not miss the bus. Those that did not buy in will have an alternate placement for the morning. We talked again today that they only have themselves to blame for not having the money to buy in. Some tried to blame their parents for not going to the pumpkin patch party on Friday. I put a quick stop to that discussion as I always tell them they should NEVER EVER rely on money outside of this classroom that they can earn themselves. ALL kids can earn more than enough inside these four walls without the blog or outside activities to buy into field trips. The money that you help them earn should all be EXTRA!!!! I know that they will make better choices next time.

Don't forget that bake sale on Wednesday. We have some fun field trips planned for the spring that will be funded partially from this. Please send in your yummy Halloween treats on Wednesday morning with your child. Thanks so much!

Lastly, our box top collection is going great. It is not needing to be rewarded anymore with fake money. Kids are bringing them in daily because they see them making a difference at school. That is awesome. So the $50 reward is no longer necessary. Keep sending them in though! They buy a TON of playground equipment for kids!!! Thanks!

Have a great night!

It's Halloween Week!!!!!

.png" width="320" /> width="244" /> Hi there. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Sorry to blog so late. My Uncle had a stroke this weekend and is now in ICU so my mind has been elsewhere. They are running tests, so please keep he and I in your thoughts and prayers if you do so. Thanks.

We had a great week last week. Our field trip to the Alberta Bair was awesome. In all my years, I have never been so proud of a group of kids as I was of both Bitterroot 4th grade classes. The kids even commented on how ill behaved some other schools were. They also learned why Mrs. Hankins and I preach and preach and preach why we put our hands down when a guest speaker is answering a question. Kids were literally jumping up and down and we were unable to see the actors much less pay attention to them. I was so proud of how well behaved our classes were. Way to go Bitterroot!!!! The show was also awesome! We learned a lot about doing our part to help Mother Nature save and protect our planet. It was a perfect tie into our Fallen Rock book.

It was fun to listen to Austin's Star of the Week this week. He had some great things to share and the kids were really into his presentation! Great job Austin!!

This week is conference week. I am looking forward to visiting with all of you. If you have not returned your final slip confirming your time please do so tomorrow. In order to fit all of you in, we will have half days on Wed, Thurs, and Friday this week. Kids will be dismissed at noon. The book fair will also be going on at this time. What a great way to reward your kiddo for doing such an awesome job in class. :0) Or, you could get some early Christmas shopping done!!!

Fun Friday this week was a blast! We played Jenga in honor of Red Ribbon Week. How you might say??? Well, we tied it all together. When playing Jenga we told kids that every time they pulled out a block and stacked it on top it signified a choice to do drugs, tobacco, or alcohol. It made their life wobbly and unstable. Then when enough poor decisions were made, life tumbled over and broke. The kids were really able to see how dangerous a life that was not built on stable and positive decisions was.

It was time to nominate kids for the Purple Hand Cookie award this past Friday. The kids nominated their classmates. Natalie, Collin, Tyson, and McKenzy were nominated by their peers for going above and beyond with their acts of kindness this month. The votes were tallied, and Mr. Collin was selected as the winner for helping Mr. English clean up a HUGE mess in the boys bathroom one day. If you could have seen the smile on Collin's face when we gave him a standing ovation!!!! Priceless. He was so thrilled to win the cookie! Great job Collin, and what an honor for all the nominees to be nominated by their classmates. I would also like to take a minute and recognize three students that went above and beyond to show kindness to me as well this month. Brayden was kind by emailing a picture of his shield hanging in his bedroom to me. Made my day!!! Alyssa brought me hot tea on Friday morning when she knew I had a sore throat on Thursday. How super sweet!!! Finally, Natalie emailed me pictures of her giving her brand new nephew a bath in the hospital. Thank you for sharing that special moment with me!!! I am so honored to work with such a great group of kids!!!

This Tuesday we will be heading to the Jail. We will leave right away at 8:40 and return before lunch. Please feel free to meet us there.

This week is Halloween week. We will be doing fun activities around this subject area all week long, including nightly homework. What is your child going to be this year for Halloween? Write it in the planner for $20 bonus tomorrow. Love, love, love this holiday!!!!  If you attended the PTA Pumpkin Patch Party last Friday night, write that in the planner as well and I will give your child the $300 reward money for participating in a family function night at Bitterroot! Thanks for supporting that. I heard it was a great success!

Have a great, great night! Cya tomorrow kiddos!

Holy PINK!

Well, I am not sure I am typing what I am meaning to type as my eyes are all wacked out from looking at so much pink today! :0) What an awesome display of school spirit: "Drug's Stink, Wear Pink!" And...how cool are Miss. Natalie's fingernails!!! Love it girl!

This morning we had 4 students from Sr. High come and take us through their journey with drugs. Three of the four mentioned they started younger than your child right now. The 4th had a different case. His mother did drugs while pregnant with him. He then mentioned that his mom and her friends thought it was fun to blow marijuana smoke in his face when he was a baby and a toddler so he was often high at a young age. Can you imagine? He said that when he did drugs it is the only time his body felt normal so he kept doing it. When asked how we stopped, he said he did it himself. I have never been touched by a story like that before. I was not prepared to hear a story where a child was so innocent in a drug habit. My goodness. Talk about powerful. These four kids drove home the message today that you do drugs to fit in, but in the long run you end up alone and looking for all the people that said they were your friends. They all said their biggest regret was starting at a young age because they didn't know better. They also mentioned that they wished they would have had people come talk with them at this age, because it could have saved them a lot of hard times. THIS is why Mrs. Hankins and I do all of these things for your children!!! If we save even one life from Drugs by a student remembering an activity or a guest speaker they heard in the 4th grade, then we have done our job. Please, please continue to talk with your kids as they grow older and be as nosy as possible in their lives, friends, and activities. Just say no!!!

In math we expanded our multiplication to three digit by one digit. Homework tonight has four of these problems on it as well. They are really doing well with this. Next week, we will move to two by two! That is always fun!!!

We finished our water cycle stories today in class. We will write our final drafts tomorrow in class. They will be graded and put on display for your viewing pleasure during conference week. Please remind kids to bring in their fun raindrop person tomorrow as well.

Our character warrior shields and knights came home today. Would you do me a favor? Would you help your child find a very special place in their room to hang these up? They made goals on them for the year, and I would like them to see them each day before school. If you do this, and actually hang them up, please write the word WARRIOR in the planner for $50 tomorrow.

Our states and capitals test is tomorrow for the NE region. Is your child ready? We practiced today with the real test so they knew what it looked like!!! Please review those tonight one last time. Remember, they will get a word list to help with spelling.

Tomorrow is our field trip to Alberta Bair Theater. Everyone will be attending. We will leave after lunch and be back around 2. Due to lunchroom issues, can we PLEASE encourage your child to pack a lunch tomorrow as we need to eat in the classroom again. If not, kids can slip down and go through the lunch line.

We need all non-fundraiser fundraiser envelopes back by TOMORROW please. Thanks.

Don't forget the fun Pumpkin Patch Party this Friday put on by the PTA. It is always a ton of fun. A letter went home with all the details with your child earlier this week. Those that attend should write a note in the planner on MONDAY saying so, and I will grant your child the standard $300 reward.

Have a wonderful night with your very special kiddos!

Slipping Past Drugs is Easy!!!!!

Day three...awesome!!!

We watched the Little House on the Prairie movie today. Kids were sure quiet when it got to the parts where Albert made some pretty surprising choices. We made a HUGE list of all the people that were effected by Albert's choice to use the drug Morphine. The list was 20 people long!!!! Then I asked them to take out the name Albert in the title of our poster: Albert effected whom? Then I asked them to replace the name Albert with their own name. Who would be effected by them? Would their list be longer than 20? That kinda brought it home. Today was a very powerful day!!!!

We enjoyed slipping past drugs today by wearing our slippers. Ask your child which slipper belongs to Ms. Erickson. If they can tell you write the color of it in the planner for $20 tomorrow.

Tomorrow is Drugs stink, wear pink. Kids are encouraged to wear as much pink as possible. It is also Pack the Place in Pink night at Skyview!!! What a great way to promote drug free and breast cancer free lives. Three students, Natalie, Tyson, and Daniel won free t-shirts today in class by doing random acts of kindness and one of their classmates wrote it on a slip. Their slips were drawn from the bucket of many!!! WooHoo!!! It pays off to be kind to others...ALWAYS!

This morning we had a special guest speaker, Katy from New York. She was from a small city up by the Great Lakes area. If your child can tell you the name of the city write it in the planner for another bonus $ tomorrow! We sure learned a lot about our NE region. We will be hearing from others next week from Connecticut and Maine as well. Fun!!! Test is Friday...yes like in 2 days!!!

Have a great night!

Red Ribbon Week Day 2

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Hey there.

Another busy day in E4. Right off the bat we brought Red Ribbon Week to life once again. We had a group of Skyview kids come in and talk about the club called SADD. It stands for Students Against Destructive Decisions. They shared how their club puts on fun activities for all students like the Corn Maze, bowling, and an end of the year lock in party! They are all about being friends to everyone, and about saying NO to drugs, alcohol, and negative choices. They are leaders in their school, and many kids trust them enough to bring them their problems. These kids help other kids make choices that are positive for long term instead of short term. I encourage you to remind them to join this club when they get to Skyview. Sounds like a great organization to be involved in!!!!

After that, we went right into our Safety assembly. Mr. English and Mrs. Neese brought in some instructors from the Marital Arts Academy of Billings. With the recent event in Cody where the young girl was lured into a car by a stranger using a "lost puppy" tactic, they wanted to just remind kids about stranger danger and how to defend themselves. As you can see from the slide show, McKenzy shows us the best way to ward off a predator. Have your child show you how to say no and yell for help if approached by a stranger. It was very powerful. If they can do it with a serious face and tone, write NO in the planner for $20 tomorrow. They encouraged us as parents to practice this at home, so kids get past the silly part of it and focus on the real deal. The instructors said that the most powerful weapon on a kids body is their voice. They also shared and demonstrated that if grabbed by a stranger, your kid should sit down and start kicking and yelling for help. This usually brings enough attention that the attacker will flee. Scary stuff, but so so real and Cody is just a hop, skip, and a jump away from us. :0( Hopefully, your child will feel more safe now if they are ever in this situation.

In math we are continuing to review and work on those two by one digit multiplication. Seems like the kids are doing well with it when they have their multiplication charts nearby. However, there are many that will struggle on the NWEA and MONTCas test when they are not allowed to use those anymore. They need to memorize their facts. We will start one minute timings next week. Kids will not be allowed to use the charts then either. Practice, practice, practice.

Our water cycle stories are coming along. Daniel and Alyssa shared theirs in class today. Hilarious!!! All other kids shared theirs with a partner. We wrote Drippy's condensation paragraph today to model my expectations for today's homework. Kids should have their raindrop in the sky tonight and joining up with others to form a cloud. Next up tomorrow, precipitation! Remember, all raindrop crafts are due this Friday. Please, please, please continue to edit those each night. I see lots of parent marks for spelling and grammar issues and I am loving it!!! I couldn't do it without ya!!!

Just a reminder that next Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are half days for conferences. I will send home your conference time tomorrow. I tried very hard to get the time that everyone asked for. If you can't make it to the conference at the given time, please call the OFFICE as they make all the changes. Thanks.

Next Wednesday is also Halloween. We don't do costumes at Bitterroot. It is business as usual, except their teacher (me) will be one year older. Yep, I was born on Halloween!!! Was I trick or a treat??? Knowing this might explain some things to you huh!!! We will have our bake sale as planned. So many of you committed to baking and that is so, so awesome!! Please send the treats in that morning with your child. We just don't have room to store them otherwise. Remember, the sky is the limit on that Halloween creativity!!! Thanks so much for your help. Bake sales always help pay for those fun field trips we take.

Tomorrow we will give drugs the slip! Kids may wear their slippers to school tomorrow for $50. It is also the day we will watch our Little House on the Prairie movie. We will serve popcorn and a drink (caffenee free). This is a great day, because we get to see how drugs not only effect that drug doers life, but the entire families. We will discuss that issue at length tomorrow after the show.

Well, enjoy the stache and drug free show! You will also see the kids climbing the Empire State Building (ask them!) and we also stopped at the Hershey Chocolate Factory in Hershey, PN today in class. Yum! Have a wonderful night!

Red Ribbon Day One!!!

Hi there. It was great to see all the school spirit today in room E4! No drugs, No alcohol...NO SWEAT! Great job everyone for wearing those sweatpants and all the RED!!!!

We started off the day with listening to the story of Enrique "Kiki" Camerena. DEA Dunlap shared with us why we even have Red Ribbon Week. Ask your child to tell you the story tonight. (Dinner Table Discussion Question). If they can, write DUNLAP in the planner for $20 tomorrow.

Tomorrow, we will be talking about ways we can avoid going down the path of drug use. The SADD group from Skyview High will be here.

Tomorrow's spirit day is We mustache you to not do drugs. Kids are encouraged to wear a mustache to school tomorrow. Be creative. There are ways to avoid a trip to Walmart. One thought, kids need to come to school on Wednesday WITHOUT a mustache, so make sure they are washable. Hmmmm....I wonder if there are any RED mustaches out there????? How cool would that be.

Keep studying those states and capitals for the NE region. The test is THIS Friday.

Homework: Write Part 3 of the Water Cycle Story: Evaporation. We wrote an example together in their science notebooks in class today. They need to use that as a guideline. This paragraph should all be about their trip while evaporating!!!!

Have a great night, and JUST SAY NO!!!

It's time to JUST SAY NO!!!!!

Hi there. Happy Sunday! I hope you all enjoyed the LONG break. I presented at the MEA conference both days with Rusty from schooltoolstv.com. That is the one minute show we watch at our CC meetings every morning. It was great to hang with him and get inspired all over again!!!

It is Red Ribbon Week this week, and that means lots of fun learning, guest speakers, and special shows by Rusty! This is one of my favorite weeks of school! Real life learning...yep that is right up my alley. Here is the schedule for Monday.

Monday, Oct. 22:

*Bitterroot Spirit Day: “Saying No To Drugs is No Sweat!”-Wear your sweats to school today!!! (Earn $50)

*DEA Agent Dunlap speaking to us about what Red Ribbon Week is and the history behind it. He will also share how he goes undercover to break up drug deals in our community. He will stress how character is a huge part of his job.

*Dinner Table Discussion Question: Who is Enrique “Kiki” Camarena and why do we have Red Ribbon Week?

I would like to add that if kids wear red with their sweats tomorrow, I will double their reward. Wearing red just helps us remember why we call it Red Ribbon Week!!!! 

This week, we will also be having a couple of guest speakers from our NE region we are studying. I found one from Maine and one from New York. Kids will be able to question/answer them to find out how MT is different or similar to those regions. I like to do this to bring what they have been studying alive. We will finish our NE tour this week as well. Don't forget that the NE states and capital's test is THIS coming Friday. We have been studying in class, and will continue to do so this week. Please continue at home as well. 

The water cycle unit in Science will also wind down this week. Hopefully, kids were able to work on their raindrop people over the long break. We will finish writing their stories for homework this week. Please continue to edit them each night with your child. Their final drafts will be written in class. Please have your child bring in their raindrop person on FRIDAY, but not before. We will have our final test next week on the water cycle. They should have brought home the practice test that we filled out together last week. I told them to read it as their bedtime story over and over again. Have you seen it? If so, write the word CYCLE in the planner for $20 tomorrow. We have done so many activities with this though that they really should have no problem passing this test if they have been paying attention in class. Study, study though. 

VERY IMPORTANT: If your child brought home their water cycle story they were asked to redo it. Upon reading them on Friday, there were many that were rushing, not following the modeled example, too messy, or didn't make any sense. They were told that they needed to start completely over and complete the assignment for introduction and collection ONLY! No one should be evaporating, condensating, or precipitating yet!!! I pulled them aside and made sure that they understood my expectations and that they were to get it done over the break. If they come back without it, they know they will spend their freetime (recess) doing it. Please ask your child if they are one of the kids that needs to redo this. If so, they will have their science notebooks in their backpacks. Not sure...call or text me and I will tell you if they are one. Thanks!

In reading, we will finish up Boy in the Girl's Bathroom. We will then move into a small book on wildfires again. This book has tons of reading and language skills webbed into it that I am excited to teach the kids!!! Even figurative language will come back to haunt us! Yay!!!!!! Tis the time of year to be haunted! 

In Math, we will begin multiplication. We will go straight into two digit by one digit. I am hope, hope, hoping that they all remember their basic facts! If not, this is going to be quite challenging for them. Yikes. Please pull out those flashcards, wipe off the dust, and practice them throughout the week. Thanks. As always, we will review all learned skills throughout the week. 

As you can see, spelling words are back and new. We will have our normal test on Friday. 

NILE was a success!

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Hi there. 

As you can see, we had a great time learning all about Montana at the NILE today. All the information learned will come in handy soon during our MT History lessons. Kids got to learn all about both the livestock and the crop side of MT Agriculture. They even got to drink some milk, have some fresh popcorn, and take home a honey stick. Fun! They also all got a free NILE rodeo admission ticket. I do have some extras if anyone needs one. Our first field trip sure was a success! Great behavior by all too! Well done Team Erickson. A HUGE thank you as well to Mrs. Hoke for coming along with us and helping out!!! If your child can tell you one of the 5 major crops found in Montana write it down and earn $20 tomorrow. 

Thank you to everyone for all the wonderful comments about how happy you are to have the blog back, and the special Snoopy drawing was great too! More than that, thank you for all your encouraging words about understanding my teaching style and all of your support!

Today, the kids are coming home with their second piece of the raindrop story for homework. We are now in the collection stage of the water cycle. They need to be doing some kind of activity on Earth and collecting with other raindrops in some fashion. They also need to end this paragraph by getting near a heat source to prepare for the next stage...evaporation! But they are NOT to evaporate yet. Please have them read it to you later tonight and correct any errors you can find. I will collect and read these over the break. We will then pick up with evaporation next Monday. Please continue to have them create their raindrops at home. Creativity and effort is key. It should not have been done last night and thats it. They need to really create the raindrop that matches their story with details from their story as they continue to write it. Please keep them at home until I ask for them to come back to school. Thanks. 

Tomorrow is a half day. We will spend it by walking to our off site evacuation site with the entire school. If this were to happen for real, you would get an automated call informing you that we have evacuated off campus and where to reunite with your child. It is the Morman church on Wicks. You will NOT get a call tomorrow, as we are just practicing the walk over and back. Kids will be dismissed at noon tomorrow. Please arrange with your child how to get home before they leave for school tomorrow. 

Tennis shoes for gym and evacuation walk are needed tomorrow. 

I think that is about it. Have a great night. 

The Blog Is Back!!!!!!

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Well folks, you spoke and I listened!!! Thank you so much for all the feedback in the planners this morning about wanting the blog to continue. I am going to make it work. It may not be as extreme as I used to, but I do see the value in continuing it. Plus, I love that you love it!!!! So, here we go again!

Today, coming home with your child is the conference request sheet. The sheet says they are due back next Monday, but Mr. English would like them back by this Wednesday instead. Those that do, will earn $50. We will be scheduling them the following week and another slip will come home stating the day and time of your conferences. If you have multiple children here, we try very hard to have back to back conferences for you. It is important that you fill out a first AND second choice that you are available. I will also be gone for part of a day to attend my own children's conferences at another school. Gotta love scheduling...yeehaw!

Also coming home today, is the information/permission form for Red Ribbon Week. Please read through it and then fill out the back page to return to school. Hang the informational part on your fridge, but please have your child return the back page to me tomorrow. Those that do, will earn $50. If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to call, text, or write anytime.

Today in class, we talked about the difference between mean and strict. There have been accusations made that I am a mean teacher. All weekend, I reflected on this statement. I don't feel that I am mean to kids, but obviously some do. I am going to continue to reflect on this and try different things to help those feelings go away. I have taken this statement very hard and very serious. I have always thought of myself as strict. I hold children accountable to the T, but I also model grace and forgiveness. I am a huge believer in every day is a new day, and say it often in class. I know that I can come across as gruff and not listen to excuses, and I am putting plans in place to correct that way of thinking. In emails, texts, or blog posts I am usually typing in a hurry and just want to get the facts delivered to you. I apologize if I ever sound demeaning or like I am telling you how to parent your child. I am talking in general statements, and never mean to hurt anyone's feelings. I want your child to come to school and feel safe to be the best thems they can be!!! If you or your child have had or are having any issues with this topic, please, please schedule a meeting for us to sit down and talk through it. I don't want anyone (parent or student) to feel that I don't enjoy them or like them and would like to solve these issues as soon as possible. If you want to write a nice note too, that is always welcome and fun to read. :0)

Today in class, we also had a fun guest. Mrs. Grewell (my future mother in law) came and taught the class some very fun water cycle plays. We had a blast as you can see. Mrs. Grewell used to teach the gifted and talented program in Laurel. She recently retired and is loving coming into her grandkids classes and now mine. :0) A HUGE thank you to her!!!! It was kinda weird to hear the kids say Mrs. Grewell, knowing that this time next year that will be my name! :0)

Tomorrow is our field trip to the NILE. Due to the fact that the lunchroom is not up and running until 11:15, and that is the time we get on the bus to leave, kids MUST bring a sack lunch tomorrow from home. Please remind them. We will have to eat in our classrooms before we go. As always, they may NOT bring soda in their lunch. Thanks. Kids also need to wear comfortable walking shoes and dress for the weather. Think layers. If we get hot, we can always shed clothing. Thanks. PS-You signed the permission slip a long time ago! I have everyone's! :0)

Lots and lots of papers were passed back today. Make sure your child is bringing them home for you to see. I always tell them that parents are there to help. If they see that kids don't do well on something, they can go over it again at home.

I have posted some other pictures in the slideshow above along with Mrs. Grewell's plays. You can see that more and more people are finding those Fallen Rock signs. Awesome!!! Keep looking, they are everywhere...even in Cody, Wyoming...right Natalie?????? WooHoo! There are also the pictures of Mr. Ashcraft's visit last Friday. He is back from Spain!!!!! It was pretty cool to listen to his adventure and see more pictures. He even brought us back some chocolate from Spain. Yum! We will miss following him each day of facebook, but we are glad he is back on US soil!

Homework tonight and for the next few nights is science. Students will be writing a story step by step, piece by piece. Today in class, we wrote an example of the introductory paragraph. They all copied it down in their science notebooks. Now, tonight they need to write THEIR introductory paragraph about THEIR raindrop. The raindrop will eventually go through all the stages of the water cycle, but tonight they are just introducing it to us. All stories should start out with Once upon a time...After they write it, they need to bring it to you to make grammar and spelling corrections. They will eventually write a final draft, so they need to have your help editing it as they go. It is also important that they don't rip out their stories from their science notebooks. Each day, we will write an example paragraph and then they will bring home theirs to write. I also sent home the actual raindrops today. At home, they need to transform their raindrop into a character (preferably the one in their story). They can be as creative as they want. My only rule is it has to hang on the wall in the hall and can't be too heavy. They sky is the limit on the creativity!!! Have fun with this. The characters will not be due until next week sometime and they should stay at home until I ask for them. We want them all to be a secret surprise!!!! Fun!

Lastly, today in CC meeting, Rusty posed the question...How do you keep track of your homework? We made a poster describing what a 4th grade planner should look like. Please look at the poster again above with your child and discuss it. These are my expectations of a 4th grader when it comes to filling our a planner and using it correctly. If you do do this, please write the word PLANNER in the planner for $20. If your child can tell you the answer to Rusty's question then write that in the planner as well, for another $20 bonus.

Have a wonderful evening, and again it is good to be back online with all of you again!!!

Ms. Erickson

Goodbye.

Hi there. This will be a very sad post to write. Due to time restraints this year, I just can't seem to get the blog done after school anymore. As a mom myself, that was the only time I had to do it. I am not sure of the reasons why this year is so different, but it is. So, this is my final post. I am also not able to keep up with the weekly grade reports either. Our school does a midterm and a report card. At open house, you received a way to get online and access your child's grades at anytime. That would work the same as the weekly report. If you didn't get one or have misplaced it, please contact the office for a new one or help finding your way through the program. I, personally, have never used the parent side of it myself. I have always taken pride in going above and beyond, but this year I have different priorities.

After the end of this quarter, I will also be changing my behavior system. We will not be using the money system or the Owl anymore. I will just be dealing with behaviors one on one as they arise.

I want to thank all of you for loving the blog and reading it daily. You can sure still check in anytime you feel the need through face to face, phone, text or email. I will, as always, alert you of any concerns I have with each child individually.

I will miss blogging daily as it was kinda my journal of our day.

Respectfully,
Ms. Erickson

PS-The Red Ribbon Week letter/permission slip is at the printshop and will be sent home with students on Monday. :0)

WE are on the BUS!!!!

Hi there. I have so much to say, but no time to say it. I have had meetings after school, and that is not normal for me. I will get caught up over the weekend. Homework tonight is to study the NE states and capitals with a parent. Practice matching the state with the capital and then use the take home maps to point to the location of each state. Kids also brought home their update on their class money system status. Please look, discuss, sign it, and have your child return it tomorrow. You will also find an Energy Bus Positive Word slip. We read the Energy Bus for Kids book today. It is all about staying positive and making goals. It is also about actually closing our eyes and visualizing ourselves doing the goal. For example, I had the kids close their eyes, picture themselves at the Metra, and actually walking across the stage to get their high school diploma. We also visualized ourselves doing the job we want to do in the future. Now, they picked ONE word that reflects what they are going to visualize themselves achieving in the near future. We all shared our word, and why we wrote them. It was a great lesson!!! If your child does their homework and shares both papers with you, please write HOMEWORK in the planner for $50 tomorrow. Thanks for all you do at home and all your support at school!!!

Have a great night!

Loving the fresh air!

Hard day. Staff meeting now. Ask your child about the new raindrop project coming up next week. If they can tell you about it, write the word RAINDROP in the planner for $20 bonus tomorrow. Have a good night.

Water Cycle Crazy!!!!

What a fun day! We started and ended with the water cycle. Hey, does that mean we went in a cycle ourselves???? Hee Hee! The kids are loving the song I found to help them learn the 4 parts of the cycle, three types of clouds, and what happens when warm air meets cold air! Watch the youtube with your child and listen to them sing. Too darn funny!!!! If you do, write the name of the Uncle that they lost in the hurricane in the planner for $20.

In math we moved onto algebraic equations. Instead of working with three things, now we added an equal sign and a solution. Kids practiced solving them using the inverse operation and getting the variable alone. Holy cow that sounds like high school doesn't it!!!!!! The great news is, these 4th graders got it!!!! They were solving pretty complex equations. We will quiz out on it tomorrow! :0)

Yesterday I forgot to explain the two pictures of the kids in the opposite gender bathrooms. As you know we are reading a book called There's a Boy In the Girls Bathroom. Yesterday, we read the chapter where Bradley ends up in the girl's bathroom to hide from the bullies. After reading it, we predicted what the boys and girl's bathrooms would look like. Then, we went in and compared and contrasted! As you can see, it was a pretty fun field trip! Hmmmm....will they remember this book? I think so!

Has your child made their flashcards yet for their states and capitals? Please encourage them to study that daily. They received their blank maps today along with a filled in one. They are designed for you to sit together on the couch or at the table side by side. You say a state, and they point to it. Please don't write on them as that will make them a one time use. They can also quiz themselves using the answer key. We will make flashcards for school tomorrow in class.


Homework tonight is Fruit Stand. I have noticed that the kids are still having trouble getting the least amount of coins. This sheet focuses on this skill directly.

Have a wonderful night!

Fun and Packed Day!

This free digital slideshow created with Smilebox

Hi there. As you can see above, we have been having a lot of fun learning in the 4th grade! This is the best part of teaching for me. Kids get to learn, but they also have fun doing it!!! Don't we wish high school and college was like that? I know I do. 

In the slideshow, you will see all the knights that were turned in. Didn't they turn out cute???? You will also see your kids on their Read About computer program that we do daily in reading. Does your child have headphones yet? They need them as this program has volume. You will also see our science we did today. We started the water cycle today. I wanted to know what they kids already knew, so I passed out a matching game with the different parts and vocabulary words on them. In their groups, they had to match each vocabulary/concept word with a picture and a definition/description. After about 10 minutes of trial and error, I then showed them a funny song that we will memorize that said many of the terms. I then gave them about five more minutes to change any they wanted to change. Then, we did the puzzle together to correct. Kids will need to be able to complete the puzzle by themselves at the end of our unit. You will also find Miss. Chloe in her birthday hat and Robby being an amazing star of the week. Thanks for the birthday treats Chloe! Yum!!! 

We also started taking our tour of the NE region. I have now posted the NE states and capitals off to the right. I advised the kids to make flashcards putting the state on one side and the capital on the other. I did not get the blank maps to them. I will tomorrow. I also suggested they go to the dollar store sometime this week, and purchase a USA map puzzle. Putting them together will help learn the locations. Please start having the kids study these. The test on the NE region will be in two weeks. 

Homework tonight is a counting money practice paper. 

Have a wonderful night!! 

Upcoming Week

Hi there.

We are gearing up for another busy week packed with learning. In math we are getting more and more into algebra. Last week the kids learned how to solve algebraic expressions. This week they will get into writing expressions and solving algebraic equations using opposite operations. Wow! It seems they are learning a lot more a lot sooner than I ever remember. You? We will end the week by testing out of Ch. 2. Then, we hit multiplication and division. Last year, they mastered all their basic facts, and now we will expand that knowledge by doing two digit by one digit, three digit by one digit, and then two by two and three by two. Yikes! In my experience, kids generally grasp these concepts quickly or very slowly. The good news is, they do all eventually get it. Yay! So, please help at home by bringing back out those flashcards and sitting at the table each night quizzing your child on their basic facts. Help them by brushing off the cobwebs on the facts from 0 x 0 to 12 x 12. We will spend VERY little time in class reviewing these. If they don't have the basics, they are really going to struggle over the next two chapters, and I mean REALLY.

In Regional SS we have completed our geography challenges for the US and are now moving into our first US region: the North East. Kids will be taking a train tour (via CD) across the 11 states in this region and learning about particular areas, locations, and cities. We will even stop at Hershey, Pennsylvania. Yum!!! With this study, we will also begin our states and capitals quizzes. The quiz will be in two weeks. I have listed the 11 states and their capitals off to the right. If it were me, I would make a set of flashcards with the state on one side and the capital on the other. Kids will need to be able to match them together. They will have a word list to choose from, so spelling will have to be correct off that list or they will get half off. The second part of the test is knowing the location of each state. I will send home a laminated blank map on Monday. This will help kids by being able to write and wipe off the names of the states and then check them on a filled in map (also being sent home on Monday). We will be doing this with all 5 regions of the US and at the end they will be tested on all 50 US states. We will study some in class and play some games with them, but practice at home will be crucial as well. Please make this part of the nightly homework. There are also some fun games online to learn all 50 states. I have them posted on the blog off to the right.

We will continue to move forward in our MT History studies as well. We are done with the basics, and now are moving to the Native American Indians found in MT and their history. This is one of my favorite parts because their life is so interesting to me.

In science, we finished up our wildfire unit. We will now move into the water cycle. We have a pretty fun art project that helps kids learn the stages of the cycle, and just wait till you hear the song we have in store to learn it. Love it!!! Kids will also have a home project to create their very own raindrop to go with their story. Creativity is key, which is why they bring it home to create. If we do it at school, experience shows that we end up with 20 raindrops looking exactly the same. I will show them examples and post them on the blog as well. They will write their story in sections adding onto it each night for homework. Since there is 20 of them, and one of me I will ask that you proofread their story and make spelling corrections each night so their final draft that they will write in class will be all ready to go. Kids will share their stories aloud with the rest of the class. These are super fun to hear all the different adventures they come up with. More direction on this to come as we start.

In spelling, we will be back to normal. The new list is off to the right. The review tests didn't go that well. That tells me that kids are just memorizing rather than learning for long term learning. We will be brainstorming how to correct this in class.

In language, we will move from nouns to verbs. Action verbs are first on our list. Fun!

In reading, we will be testing out of heritage. The kids finished their historical fiction readings in their small groups on Friday. They will test on their level. The test will not be on the stories they read, but the skills they learned throughout the unit. They learned predicting using a strategy, author's purpose, types of questioning, main idea and supporting details, figurative language (similes, metaphors, personification, idioms, and onomatopoeia), and determining inferences. We will then take a break from the small groups and go back to finish up our Boys in the Girls Bathroom novel. The kids are loving hearing about the adventures of Bradley and Jeff. We will be taking a trip to the bathrooms this week and doing a compare and contrast activity when going in the opposite gender's bathroom. Don't worry, we clear it out first. :0) It is always funny to see their reactions and hear how different the bathrooms are. Oh to be a kid again.

Speaking of field trips. I started to collect the money needed for the two trips. I also collected for the upcoming movie, popcorn, and juice for Red Ribbon Week. So, kids that paid for everything gave me $1500.00. Those that didn't have that, paid what they could and still have time to save for the others. If a child can't pay for the trips they will stay at school. Many kids paid in full. Others are starting to see that not having their planners signed and moving owls daily are becoming an issue. We go on quite a few trips in the 4th grade so they will have other opportunities. At the end of October we will have our store and then all students will start their money over with the $500 start up amount, putting everyone on equal playing ground once again and a fresh start. As I have said in recent posts, the kids are getting so much better at making positive choices, but so many kids lost a TON of money in the beginning that they may be short in the long run. If they stay at school, they will have an alternate placement and place to stay for the time we are gone. Permission slips for the three field trips and information on all our Red Ribbon Week activities will be sent home later next week. We are getting pretty excited about all the fun activities and guest speakers we have lined up for your kids to learn about saying NO to drugs and alcohol in their near future. It is such an important week! If you smoke or drink, even occacionally, at home be ready for some questions from kids. It happens every year. We tell them like it is, and we stress that when turning 18/21 they will have the choice of smoking and drinking, but we talk a lot about responsible drinking vs irresponsible drinking. Each night we will post a dinner table discussion topic for you to have an open and honest conversation with your kids about what we talk about in class.

For team-building this past Friday, we played board games in class. We stressed being a good sport and playing in a cooperate group. Man, these kids did great! I didn't have to talk to one person about talking politely to others and not argue. Very cool for me to see!!!! Those that had their owls on my desk or couldn't buy in read a book.

Well, have a wonderful weekend!

Happy Birthday Brayden!

Hi there. Happy Thursday!!!

Last night the kids had some unusual homework. They were to make a sign for our upcoming bake sale to raise money for all our fun field trips that 4th grade goes on. The bake sale will be on Wednesday, October 31st (Halloween) at the early out dismissal. We will have one on primary side and one on intermediate side. We will just divide the goodies up so we have some of each on both sides. We will need your help baking and bringing in the goods. We would like to keep it with the Halloween theme so spider cupcakes, ghost cookies, whatever. Be creative...kids love it. If you are a pinterester just go to pinterest.com and put in the word halloween snacks and walla there are a million. Or you can google Halloween snacks pinterest and it works too. You don't have to be a pinterest member to see others ideas. There are some good ones. Too fun. Store bought stuff is fine too for those non-bakers. Please do NOT bring in the treats until the morning of the 31st. We have no room to store them for more than a day. Just wanted to give you plenty of time to plan ahead. Healthy snacks are also welcome!!! Can anyone make a broomstick out of a carrot??? All goods will be 50 cents and all money will go to the 4th grade fund. Thanks for doing this!!! If you are planning to help out by making a batch of something please write the word Halloween in the planner for $50! Thanks.

Homework tonight is a math review sheet on place value. I am still noticing some kids getting value and place value confused. Constant review helps. Please feel free to check it over and discuss those that are missed. It is a HUGE help to get one on one help to fix these small confusion issues, and I don't always have a chance to pull aside during the day.

The end of the quarter is coming up in a little over two weeks. Please check tomorrow's grade report and look for missing assignments that need to be done over the weekend.

Another Happy Birthday to Brayden. I finally got his picture! Robby also robbed the bank of $500 this morning for his emailed picture of yet another Fallen Rock sign. Man, they are everywhere in Billings!!

PTA fundraiser envelopes came home today. They are trying something new this year. Instead of selling a product like cookie dough or trinkets they are just collecting donations. So, it is a non-fundraiser fundraiser. All the information you need is on the envelope itself or inside on the information sheet. We love our PTA at Bitterroot and they help out a lot in the 4th grade classrooms. Please consider making a donation. Envelopes are due back by Oct. 17th. Thanks.

Have a wonderful evening!

LET IT SNOW!!!!

Yippee!!!!! We were super excited to visualize all the firemen out there jumping up and down with joy this morning as the HUGE snowflakes fell! It is supposed to continue to be colder and wet for the next day or so. Please continue to dress warmly. Let it snow, and snow, and snow!!!!

I am another $500 in the hole. Mr. Collin has found yet another Fallen Rock Sign. Good for you Collin and mom!!!!

Today in CC meeting we talked about the difference between positive and negative attention and being a class clown. Rusty said it pretty straight today in our schooltoolstv.com show. He said: Negative attention is NOT funny. It is rude, disrespectful, and mean. We spent a good 15-20 minutes on it. Then, three hours later we went to lunch. When I picked up the kids I was greeted by the lunch aide. She stated that she had to talk to my class about making loud farting noises and then laughing at one another. Urg! So, they got their wanted negative attention and my disappointment. So sad. I was proud of those that didn't laugh and didn't participate in the class clown behavior. Please ask your child what a class clown is and name one way they can get POSITIVE attention from a teacher in class. If they can tell you, write CLOWN in the planner for $20.

Due to the rain we had indoor recess today. Kids worked on their left over homework from reading groups and spelling. So....if your child has this for homework I would be concerned. That was an extra 20 minutes to work. There are some that are NOT using their independent work time wisely. I do not and will not leave my reading group to refocus a child. If they don't use their time wisely, they will need to accomplish the missing tasks at home before they meet in small group the next day.

All that being said, I was just telling Mrs. Hankins today that this group rocks! They are really coming along and getting used to the routines and expectations in Ms. Erickson's class. I have seen them grow already, and to me it is still early in the year. Yay! Each kiddo is unique and wonderful in their very own way. Some of those wonderful ways might irritate me to death, but at the end of the day I wouldn't trade a one of them. They are all special!!!!

Tomorrow is library. Please help get those books in the backpack so they can check out new ones or renew them if they are not done yet.

Have a wonderful night!

SNOW TOMORROW!!! DRESS WARM!!!!

Could it be true???? The weather man says that snow is coming tomorrow and Thursday. Please dress warm. We will go out for recess. Slush, slush, slush.

The sub report was a good one from Mr. Brown and from the students themselves. Yay!!! I love this group!

Two kiddos have robbed me of $500 already. :0) Andrew and Sebastian have found the Watch For Fallen Rock signs around town and taken their picture with it. I have shown them to the class, and we all know where they are now. Kids may not take their locations. They must find their own. Both signs were around the rims. They are all over town and across the USA. Be on the lookout. If kids get a picture with the sign and it is emailed to me, I pay them $500 for the home school connection!!! I have also emailed them to the author (I told him not to post anywhere!). He is loving it!!!!! Watch for the T-shirts that my class helped design to come out for sale soon. Our class is getting a special price cut! They are sweet!!! How fun!

Happy Birthday to Brayden!! He slipped out without me getting his picture in the fun birthday hat. I will get him tomorrow. :0) Thanks for the yummy cupcakes! Have a great birthday night!

We have gotten the results back for the box top class contest going on. Ms. Erickson's class is dead last. AHHHHHHHH!!!!! Please send, send, send them in. Cut them off anything and every thing. :0) If your child brings in some tomorrow I will double the normal reward to $100 instead of the standard $50. All they need is one. But, send in many! :0)

Our origami hurricanes and puffy glue paint hurricanes came home tonight. If your kids share those and explain them to you write the word HURRICANE in the planner for $20 tomorrow. Some forgot them at school. Drats.

Up in the hall now is the character warriors. They are too cute!!! I sure can see a difference in many attitudes and problem solving skills since we have done this unit. They are really becoming character warriors and learning to ward off evil negative choices. Yay!!!!!

Remember, there are no new spelling words this week. It is a review week. Kids either know them or don't. I will pick 20 from their previous lists. There will still be a bonus challenge word as well. They have been working with the words all week in their spelling review assignments.

Have a wonderful evening!