Update 2/7/22

Hi Families!

Quick notes to know:

• 2/8 and 2/15 3:45 – 4:45 p.m. February Pokemon Club
• 2/11 February Natural Leaders Assembly (Virtual)
• 2/17 Early Release and Valentine’s Day parties 
• 2/18 No School- Teacher institute day
• 2/21 No School- Presidents Day
• 2/25 No School- Endof Second Trimester/ Teacher institute day

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• Our green challenge is to Empower and learn about Sustainable practices. Students had an amazing time cooking and eating the vegan sweet potato brownies. I heard feedback that they were delicious, thick and fudgy. I will share the recipe below in case you would like to try it.

SWEET POTATO BROWNIES 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sweet potato purée (see instructions)
• 2/3 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup sunbutter (or peanut or almond butter)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 ½ Tbsp avocado oil (or sub melted vegan butter, melted coconut oil, or olive oil)
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder or cacao powder 
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2/3 cup oat flour 
• 1/4 cup dairy-free chocolate chips (optional)

Instructions

1. To make sweet potato purée, halve sweet potato and brush the cut sides with oil (optional). Add to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 375 F (190 C) for ~25-30 minutes or until tender to the touch. Move to one side of pan and wrap the parchment paper over top to steam. Let steam for 5 minutes. Then peel away skin and mash in a mixing bowl (or food processor). Set aside.
2. Adjust oven temperature to 350 degrees F (176 C) and line an 8×8-inch baking pan (or similar-size pan) with parchment paper. Set aside.
3. To a large mixing bowl, add sweet potato purée, maple syrup, almond butter, vanilla extract, and avocado oil and stir to combine.
4. Add cacao powder, sea salt, and baking powder and stir to combine. Then add oat flour and stir until a thick, scoopable batter is achieved (see photo).
5. Transfer batter to your parchment-lined baking dish and spread into an evenlayer using a spoon or rubber spatula. Then top with pecans and chocolate chips (optional).
6. Bake on the center rack (at 350 F / 176 C) for 28-32 minutes. The brownie edges should appear slightly dry and a toothpick inserted into the center should come out mostly clean (a few crumbs are okay, but it shouldn’t be overly gooey). Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for 30 minutes – 1 hour.
7. Lift out of pan and slice. Enjoy warm or room temperature. Store leftovers covered at room temperature up to 3 days, in the refrigerator up to 5-7 days, or in the freezer up to 1 month. These brownies are delicious on their own but elevated with a scoop of dairy-free ice cream

• Valentine’s parties will be held on our early release day (2/17) 
  • Mrs. Otte is planning some very fun activities for the students! She will be reaching out regarding party donations needed. Any food or treats sent in for the party must be individually wrapped servings. At this time, we cannot have classroom volunteers inside the classroom. Students are welcome to send Valentines in to share with their classmates (we have 24 students). If you send Valentines in, please be sure to send one in for each child. Students can feel free to label their valentines “To my friend” or to each individual classmate if they like.  Thank you! 
• Are you looking for adventure this spring break or summer? Check out the national parks program, Every Kid Outdoors which provides a FREE national park pass (allowing free entrance!) to every U.S. 4th grader. Here is a little about the program, “To help engage and create our next generation of park visitors, supporters and advocates, Federal Land Management agencies, launched the Every Kid in a Park initiative. The immediate goal is to provide an opportunity for each and every 4th grade student across the country to experience their federal public lands and waters in person throughout the school year.”  If you would like to learn more about the program or get your FREE pass, please visit this website.

 NEXT WEEK:

Reading and Writing,  

This week we will have our normal spelling homework and groups with a test scheduled on Friday. Students should follow the normal spelling homework schedule this week.  Next week, due to institute days, valentine parties, Presidents day, we will start one spelling list between 2/14 and 2/15, then we will work with the spelling sorts throughout the week and next with our test on 2/24. 

In writing,

We are continuing our unit on persuasive writing. Students have been working on recognizing persuasive elements in mentor texts. Students have also written short persuasive texts to try it out on their own. Now, we will start writing a persuasive essay. Students will start the rough draft of the introduction, body paragraphs (support reasons) and conclusion. Then, we will work on revisions and a final draft. This essay and the phases of it will last the rest of the trimester. 

We have also started a pen pal project with another elementary classroom in Virginia. Students learned the aspects of letter writing and we applied it to our first letter to our penpals. Our hope is our penpal class will exchange letters with us throughout the rest of the year. 

In reading,

We will spend this week working on informational articles about dog sled racing and the Iditarod. It is the 50th race anniversary of the start of the Iditarod! These articles and activities will help us build background knowledge for our next novel, “Sled Dog School” by Terry Lynn Johnson. “Sled Dog School” is about an eleven year old boy who needs extra credit in math. One of the options is to start a business and he decides to use his family’s passion for sled dogs to open a dog training school. We will start reading this novel next week. Students will work on comprehension questions and activities throughout the story. Chapters and assignments will alternate from being read aloud and completed together to reading and completing assignments independently. This chapter book will span several weeks to complete.

3rd grade Math,  

We are finishing Unit 4 which focuses on measurement concepts and skills. 

This week, we are finishing Module 3. Module 3 focuses on the concept of fractions. Students will review the concept that fractions must be fair shares. Then they will extend their study of fractions, begun in first and second grade, to include new models and concepts. At the end of this week, we will start module 4, planning to complete it by Tuesday, 2/15. Module 4 will be a review of fractions, time, and length. Students will also be completing a study guide which will be handed out this week. Our unit assessment is planned for 2/16/22.

4th grade math,  Hello 4th grade families! 

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at aluckey@pccharterschool.org. 

 Science/Social Studies,  

Students are starting a unit on electricity. Students will learn about open and closed circuits and how electricity travels. They will also learn about what materials conduct electricity and what will not. 

Ms. Naomi will guest teach a fun and hands-on lesson about animals hibernating. Students will have to problem solve how to keep their pretend animals safe and warm outside.

We are continuing phenology and solo spots, alternating each week. Please make sure your student is prepared to be outside on a regular basis with warm outdoor clothing. 

I hope you have a wonderful week!