Dr. Johnson's Reading Blog

I wanted to let everyone know (or remind) that next week is PASS Testing. We will be testing on May 14th, 15th, and 16th . All testing will start in the morning. It will be important that you make sure your child gets to school on time. You may also want to make sure your child gets plenty of sleep. Other than that, don't do anything that might be too out of the ordinary. Sometimes kids don't react well to change and that could affect how they do on their tests. During those three days we'll take it pretty easy academically. We will still have explorations time, we will use some time to prepare for the next day's test, and blow off some restlessness with a few minutes of extra recess. Once testing is completed, your 4th graders will start preparing for Graduation in which the 5th graders will "pass the torch." Exciting times! Thanks for all your support, Scott Johnson

Happy Easter - First, I wanted to let everyone know that this coming week is Ms. Hinson's final week with us. She has been a great student teacher who has really enjoyed working with all the students. I will be talking with the students on Monday to see how they would like to celebrate her final week with us. Most likely this will be on Thursday since Friday is our big field trip. Our field trip to Brattonsville is this Friday. I will be sending out additional information, a schedule for the day, as well as contacting chaperones. Enjoy the rest of your evening.

Thank you to everyone who was able to make it to Friday gathering. I am posting our slideshow presentation for those who were not able to make it. Friday Gathering Slideshow Also, don't forget we have Curriculum Night this Thursday at 7:15. We will be discussing math.

I admit it . . . I'm have never been good at keeping everyone up to date on what's going on in the class. But I guess late is better than never. Here are a few notes before I share what's going on in class. We have our final 4th grade gathering this Friday at 2:20. We also will be heading to the Sandhills Library on Friday. Next Thursday, March 14 is Curriculum Night. We will most likely focus on math. Thank you for making Student-led conferences such as success. When students share it is just as much of a surprise to me as it is to you. This year's group of students were such strong speakers. We should all be proud! Math We have finished working on how to solve multiplication problems using a variety of strategies including the traditional algorithm (that's the one you and I grew up). One of the things parents can do to help out in this area is to help their child get their multiplication tables memorized. One website that helps do this is  https:/...

First of all, we have a new USC undergraduate intern who is joining us this semester. Her name is Kolbie Hinson and she will be with us full time. If you stop by the classroom make sure you say hello. I wanted to share some of the things we are working on in class: Math We are finishing with converting metric units (millimeters, centimeters, kilometers, milliliters, liters, etc.). By the end of this week we will be moving into multiplication and multiplication strategies. Social Studies We have just completed our study of the first colonies. We are moving into the French and Indian war before our larger study of the Revolutionary War. Science This week we are doing several demonstrations on the moon and its phases. This will move us toward earth's rotation and how its rotation and tilted axis effects our seasons. Read Aloud Currently we are reading the book Chains  by Laurie Halse Anderson. It is a historical fiction story that deals with slavery and the Revolutionary...

Hi Families - We have finally made it to the last week before Christmas Break. Here is a few things you need to know about this final week. 1) This is our week for gathering (Dec. 16-21). Since Friday is a half day, our gathering will be on Thursday at 2:20 pm. We will be sharing about our study of Jamestown, our weather unit, and some students want to share poems they wrote. These three things will easily take up our 20 minutes of gathering! 2) As I already mentioned, Friday is a half day. I told students that Friday will be an optional pajama day. We might do a movie, play games, extend explorations time, and enjoy ourselves before the break. This final week will be about finishing projects before we go to our break: 1) In reading, we completed reading  Blood on the River.  Now we are almost through When You Reach Me . This book won the Newberry Award several years ago. I read this book because it has many details that must be paid attention to in order to understa...

Thank you to all the grandparents who were able to join us on Friday. I have included some of the pictures of the kids and their grandparents.