Week 8 News

No School Friday:
Friday is a teacher in-service day, so there is no school for students this day.

Singapore Videos:
The faculty at Archway Glendale has produced some helpful math videos that you may find helpful. They don't have many available for fourth grade, but I want to share them with you. You can find them here.

Homework Survey:
Thank you to those of you who took the time to fill this out. The fourth grade team takes time to review your thoughtful answers and take them into account when planning.

Upon reviewing the fourth-grade homework survey data, the majority of families are finding that homework is being completed within the suggested time (61%). About twenty percent of families are taking up to 90 minutes, and about another twenty percent are taking over an hour and a half. When all of the data is averaged, it looks like the average child is spending around 75 minutes a night on homework.
One common comment was that the homework load isn't too much, except when there are tests and quizzes to prepare for. There are three accommodations we are proposing to help resolve this concern.

The first is a student and parent accommodation. In the history and science notebooks, at the end of each unit or section, is the study guide for the next test. We recommend that students begin filling in this study guide as they learn new information. As they learn this information, their focus should be on solidifying their new knowledge. We also recommend that they make note cards with this information for a more effective study time. This way, they are working toward memorizing what is most important during the whole unit or section and not just in the last few nights before the test.

The second and third accommodation are teacher accommodations. First, instead of having the history and science study guides due the day before the test, they will be due at least two days before the test. This will provide students with more time to study the finished and corrected study guides. We will also be assigning parts of the study guide throughout the unit or section. Second, the two nights before any history or science test, students may use the 25 minutes of nightly reading time to study for the upcoming test.

For some families, these accommodations will not be sufficient to relive the amount of time being spent on homework. If you are finding that your child is still spending more than 70-90 minutes every night on homework, please reach out to your classroom teacher.

Best,
The Fourth Grade Team