Week of January 23rd, 2017

Symphony Day Field Trip

This Friday, Edna Maguire's 4th graders will participate in the Marin Symphony's Symphony Day concert!  We are already preparing for how to be an attentive, respectful audience and are really looking forward to the show! We have a packed schedule on Friday, which means that we will have to each lunch on the way home from the field trip.  If your child has a hot lunch order for Friday, please cancel it and send a bagged lunch instead.  That way, they will be sure to have time to each their lunch. Please be sure to pack a snack as well, so everyone can nibble on something before the show. Thank you for your help with this! 

Edna's Interactive Art Show

February 6-10, 2017
 
Starting Monday, February 6, the multi-purpose room will be transformed into a vibrant art gallery, where you can peruse magnificent original works from EVERY Edna student. Throughout the week, students will participate in special Kiddo! Art classes held in the MPR. The classes are open to family members, so plan to join your junior Picasso or Rodin for what's sure to be a fun and exciting art project! Please see the schedule below for your classroom's date and time. You're also invited to join us in "the gallery" for a special evening reception on Wednesday Feb 8th from 5:30-6:30pm.

Please join us for our special interactive art class! Come to the MPR on Monday, Feb 6 from 2:15-3:05pm to join in the fun. I hope to see many of you there!


Wax Museum Project

As you may have inferred by this point, the Wax Museum project is a big one! This is fourth grade's big at home project of the year. Thank you for all of the support you've already given your children in researching their character and for checking in with your children to make sure they are meeting deadlines.  

Speaking of deadlines, here are the remaining deadlines for this project. Be sure to mark your calendars for the big event on February 16th.


Friday, Jan. 27th:       Research and Planning Packet DUE

Friday, Feb. 3rd:        1st Draft of Monologue DUE

Friday, Feb. 10th:        Final draft of monologue DUE
                                   Poster DUE
Monday, Feb 13th:       Picture of Costume DUE (by email or in person)

Tuesday, Feb. 14th:        Locations Assigned

                          First “Rehearsal” + Information

    Session (during school)

Wednesday, Feb. 15th:   Rehearsal (during school)

Thursday, Feb. 16th:       Rehearsal (during school)

                           6:00pm WAX MUSEUM!!!

In library class today, Mrs. Monge gave a fantastic lesson on how to start your monologue with a hook. The kids practiced these strategies verbally and should have a lot of great ideas for speech starters. For your reference, I've typed up the ideas from our lesson's chart below.

IDEAS TO START YOUR MONOLOGUE

1. USE REPETITION

Most babies... Most babies... Most babies weren't _____________.
Imagine... Imagine... I didn't have to imagine. I'm _____________.

2. ASK QUESTIONS

Have you ever...?
Can you imagine...?

3. DESCRIBE A SCENE

The hot sun beat down on me all day as I...
The water splashed viciously in my face as my arms tore through the pool...
Thousands of bright, beady eyes were on me as I took the stage to...

Please support your child with writing this monologue as you see fit. I appreciate your support and the kids do too! I will be giving feedback and editing support once I receive the rough drafts next week. Then, students will type their monologues and start memorizing them. It's a very exciting time!

Please email me as any questions arise about this project. I'm happy to help however I can.

Dance with Alan (Thanks Kiddo!)

Last Friday, we started the first of 10 dance lessons with the wonderful Alan Scofield.  Alan has been teaching dance in Mill Valley since I was a student here, and he is truly an institution.  We had a blast doing a Start Wars themed dance and learning some disco moves!  You all must be modeling these moves at home, because they were quick studies! :) 

Please mark your calendars now for the 4th grade dance performance at 2:00pm on Friday, April 7th.  This is the day before spring break.  I know that it's tempting to pull your children out of school early for travel plans, but please make a concerted effort to be in school on April 7th.  The kids love dance class and are so excited to perform for you! It will truly be a performance you will not forget, and neither will they!

Week of January 9th, 2017

Happy New Year and welcome back to school! I look forward to seeing your kids' smiling faces in the morning. We will ease back into our school routines and brace for a week of rainy day recess! I'm very excited about the coming weeks with these fun fourth graders. 

I want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for the thoughtful holiday class gift that I received before the break. I was greatly touched by your generosity.  I feel incredibly lucky to teach in a community where I am so supported and appreciated by my students and their parents. Thank you, thank you!

There are many exciting events coming up soon for our class! Please read on for the details.

California Wax Museum!

This week, I will introduce the California Wax Museum Project. The Wax Museum is a quintessential fourth grade experience! Over the course of this project, every student will learn a great deal about a famous Californian and push themselves to write an engaging monologue in an attempt to capture the voice of their assigned Californian. The project culminates in an exciting celebration of their hard work and all that they've learned.  All fourth grade families are invited to join us on Thursday, February 16th at 6:00pm to watch the students perform their monologues.  

This project begins with each student picking a famous Californian. Next, they will research that person and write a monologue about that person’s life and why he or she is so special to California. After that, they will design a background and costume for their Californian’s monologue presentation. Finally, on February 16th, they will present their monologue to families at our California Wax Museum! Please let me know if you have any questions as we move forward with this project.

Project Timeline

Monday, Jan. 9th:     Project Introduced

                       Character Selection Started

Thursday, Jan. 12th:    Top 5 Character Choices and 2-3

    Sentence Explanations DUE

Friday, Jan. 13th:        Characters Assigned

Monday and Tuesday, January 16th and 17th: NO SCHOOL

 

Friday, Jan. 27th:        Research Packet DUE

                        Sketch of Poster DUE

Friday, Feb. 3rd:        1st Draft of Monologue DUE

Friday, Feb. 10th:        Poster DUE

Final Draft of Monologue DUE

Monday, Feb. 13th: Costume picture DUE 

(by email or in person)

Tuesday, Feb. 14th:        Locations Assigned

                          First “Rehearsal” + Information

    Session (during school)

Wednesday, Feb. 15th:   Rehearsal (during school)

Thursday, Feb. 16th:    Dress Rehearsal (during school)

                           6:00pm Wax Museum!!!

February Talking Calendar Assignment

Due to the scheduling of the California Wax Museum project, the February Talking Calendar assignment will be completed in class. I didn't want the students to become overwhelmed with several long term projects going on at once.  The students should focus their efforts at home on doing their personal best on the Wax Museum project in the coming weeks. Please let me know if you have any questions!

Sutter's Fort

This is a reminder to mark your calendars for the mandatory parent meeting about Sutter's Fort, which will be held on January 25th, 2017 at 6:30pm. At least one parent from each family needs to attend this meeting to ensure that your family knows how to prepare for the trip.  I look forward to seeing you there and sharing lots of important information about this wonderful adventure!

Marin Symphony Day Field Trip

On January 27th, our class will go on a short field trip to the Marin Civic Center to participate in Symphony Day with the Marin Symphony. All 4th graders in Marin County have been invited to this concert which will feature world famous violinist Midori performing a movement of Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto. 

Thanks to those of you who have returned signed permission slips and signed up to drive! I will be in touch this week with more details about the trip. Please return these forms as soon as possible if you have not done so already. 

A Touch of Understanding

The 4th grade team is looking forward to a visit from A Touch of Understanding on January 31st, 2017.  On this special day, the students will hear from individuals who have disabilities about their experiences and how their disabilities have affected their lives.  They will also have the opportunity to try out tools that disabled people utilize, such as wheelchairs and canes. They will learn about prosthetics and how they can be used to help a wide range of individuals. We will also talk about invisible disabilities, such as dyslexia and autism.  Every year, this presentation has a huge impact on our fourth graders. It's a Kiddo! funded program and I am so grateful to take part in it each year. 

Two messages from this program stand out loud and clear to me:

Though some people may look differently than you or use tools that you do not, they are still the same on the inside. They have the same kinds of thoughts and feelings that you do.

Even when life presents you with extreme challenges, as long as you do not give up on your dreams, you can succeed.

After our special day with A Touch of Understanding, please ask your child about their experience with the program. I am confident that you will be blown away by what they share with you.

Interactive Art Show

This year's Interactive Art Show for our class will take place on Monday, February 6th from 2:15-3:05pm.  All parents are invited to join us for this creative event and make some art with us!  Jackie LaLanne, our art teacher, and I would love to see you there!