Watts Up in Fourth Grade

I hope everyone had a great week and is ready for the busy week ahead. A few reminders about this week: 

• STAAR Writing Benchmark- Tuesday 1/24
• Science Space Science TEKS Check- Wednesday 1/25
• Talent Show rehearsal- Tuesday 1/24
• GCISD PTA Council Roundtable Discussion- Thursday 1/26

Headphones/Earbuds

At the beginning of the year, we asked our scholars to bring in a pair of headphones or earbuds to use in class. Over time, a lot of our scholar's headphones have either broken, been lost or taken home and never returned. We use our ipads almost daily and often need headphones to be successful. Please check with your scholar to make sure they have a working pair of headphones/earbuds at school. 

Thank you!

School Board Recognition Month

It's School Board Recognition Month and our scholars were able to take part in thanking them with hand made Thank You cards. GCISD says 'Thank You!' to our All-Star Board Members! Click here to read all about the wonderful school board members who serve GCISD!

Notes From Nurse Kendra

If your child comes home in clothes/shoes from the nurse's clinic, PLEASE wash and send these clothes back as soon as possible. All of our clothes are donated to the clinic and we are currently very low on clothing. These clothes are kept as a courtesy to parents, so they do not have to supply extra clothes for students during the school day.

We could use your help to donate any elastic-waisted pants that are in good condition. If you find some of these while cleaning out closets, we would LOVE your donation!

Also, a scoliosis screening for all 5th graders will be done at school on Thursday 1/26.Please remind female students to wear an undergarment (sport bra or swimsuit top) under their shirt that day.

Donations Needed For Discovery Station - Can You Help?

We are in the process of expanding our MakerSpaces in the library to include another station for our Cannon Cubs to visit as part of this month's Book of the Month Design Challenge and we would LOVE any donations that you are willing to provide!!

For this station of "Discovery through Disassembly", our Cubs will explore by taking apart old electronics. If you can donate any of the following for this station, please drop the items off in the front office this week. Please note that these items will NOT be returned! Thank you so much for your help!!

• Old computers 
• Old cell phones
• Cameras
• Hair dryers
• Toasters
• Please note - no large screen TV's can be accepted

You are invited to attend a Legislative Roundtable Discussion!

WE WANT AND NEED YOUR VOICE! Please join your fellow GCISD PTA members on January 26th for a Legislative Advocacy Roundtable Discussion hosted by the Grapevine-Colleyville ISD Council of PTAs.

MEET and TALK with YOUR area legislators and staff and pick up advocacy tips to use throughout the current 85th Texas Legislative Session.

· Thursday, January 26, 2017 from 6:30-8:00pm (childcare not provided)
· Light refreshments provided
· PDEC (Professional Development and Education Center): 5800 Colleyville Blvd., Colleyville, TX 76034

We will give a brief overview of our district PTA's top 5 issues for our legislators to address: 1) Reduce STAAR emphasis, 2) Oppose vouchers and ESA programs, 3) Adequate school funding, 4) Pursue a new accountability system that is valid, reliable and balanced and 5) Clarify the role of school districts on cyber-bullying. (Handouts with more information on each issue will be available at the event.)

Pre-registration is not required, but is highly recommended so we can get a headcount and plan appropriately. To register, scroll down to find your school and RSVP at the following site:http://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0d45a9a72ca46-legislative.

For questions, please contact your local PTA Legislative Advocacy Chair or President or Doug Noell, GCISD Council of PTAs Legislative Chair

GCISD SPECIAL PROGRAMS EXPO - February 13th

From engineering challenges to advanced academics to language immersion and early childhood education, GCISD offers a world of opportunities for students. Families are invited to learn more about these opportunities at the Special Programs Expo on Monday, February 13 from 5:00 - 7:30 p.m. at Cross Timbers Middle School. The expo will feature stations showcasing our STEM programs, ASPIRE Academy and Dual Language programs. Also, at the Expo, families may also learn about the tuition-based Pre-Kindergarten program, iUniversity Prep and Collegiate Academy. In addition to program stations, presentations focusing on the instructional components and benefits of these programs will also be delivered.

To learn more about the programs that will be showcased at the Expo, click here.

Upcoming TEKS check!

On Wednesday, January 25th, scholars will be having their next TEKS check in Science. I will be sending home their Science journals today. This can be used as a tool to study. I will also be adding assingnments for them to use on STEMscopes if they would like to use them. Today in class, scholars watched a series of videos that addressed some of the concepts that we have learned throughout the unit. This can be found HERE and also used to study. Please let me know if you or your scholar have any questions. 

Science Update

It has been awhile since I have posted about science so here is what you may have missed!

The Water Cycle

After our last TEKS check, scholars began to learn about the water cycle. Scholars have been learning about the water cycle for years so this was not a new concept for them. We began learning how the water cycle does not always happen in a perfect "circle." Each scholar was a water droplet for the day and travel around to different places depending on the number they rolled. A lot of scholars spent a great amount of time in the clouds of in the ocean. It was good for them to see it is not always a perfect cycle starting with evaporation, and going full circle perfectly. 

After spending some time reviewing all the stages of the water cycle, scholars had to prove to me what they had learned. We partnered with second grade and our scholars we tasked with making a product to teach a second grader about the water cycle. In paris, they could make anything from a stop motion video, music video, coding game, diorama, comic book, or even a play. It was exciting to see my scholars have a chance to be creative while learning the water cycle. When second grade starts their water cycle here in a month or so, we will be sharing our products and hope to help our second graders out. 

If you never saw your scholars project, have them show you! (I'm not sure how to get them on here!)

Weather

Right before winter break, our scholars started our unit on weather. In fourth grade, scholars are expected to be able to look at a weather map and be able to make predictions based on that weather map. We focus on types of fronts and how they move. Weather is always an exciting unit for scholars because it is something that is very real to them. It was fun to watch it snow and how their conversations included cold fronts and weather symbols.

The past week, scholars spent time creating a weather map of their own and they had the opportunity to give a three day weather forecast based on the map they created. It was exciting to see scholars so excited about weather and have fun using the green screen! Check out our BlendSpace of all the different videos.

Watts Going on in Fourth

I hope everyone had a great three day weekend! Sorry for the lack of updating the blog. We will be back to posting more regularly to make sure everyone is updated on what is going on at Cannon. 

2017-2018 Calendar Survey

On Thursday, January 12, the district included in The LEADer, the district's e-newsletter, a link to a brief survey that asks four questions regarding the student-teacher calendar. In case you missed it, I have included a link to the survey. These questions will help us determine what is most important for our parents, teachers, students and community members. The survey will be open until 4 p.m. on Friday, January 20. Once the district has collected the information, a proposed calendar will be recommended to the District Excellence Committee prior to the Board of Trustees vote on Monday, February 27. We are working diligently to finalize the 2017-2018 school calendar and we appreciate your patience as we work to create the best calendar to cultivate student success.
SURVEY IN ENGLISH
Mark Your Calendars- Legislative Roundtable Discussion

Get Started on Spring Cleaning! 

We are in the process of expanding our MakerSpaces in the library to include another station for our Cannon Cubs to visit as part of this month's Book of the Month Design Challenge and we would LOVE any donations that you are willing to provide!!

For this station of "Discovery through Disassembly", our Cubs will explore by taking apart old electronics. If you can donate any of the following for this station, please drop the items off in the front office this week. Please note that these items will NOT be returned! Thank you so much for your help!!

• Old computers 

• Old cell phones

• Cameras

• Hair dryers

• Toasters

• Please note - no large screen TV's can be accepted

Book of the Month: Steve Jobs

This month's STEM book of the month highlights the life of Steve Jobs. Check out what our scholars will be up to once they read! Book of the Month SMORE

Lone Star Leadership Academy -4th thru 8th Graders

Outstanding students from across Texas meet in Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin/San Antonio, or Houston/Galveston for a week of fun, learning, leadership development, and visits to unique and historically significant Texas destinations. Each day students explore notable Texas sites, learn about unique careers from professionals at sites visited, and develop their leadership abilities during leadership groups with their facilitators. All adult facilitators, one for every ten students, are Texas teachers. In addition to improving their leadership abilities, participants gain self-confidence and independence and develop new friendships with other high-achieving students from across the state. For more information or to request a camp application, visitwww.educationinaction.org/lone-star-leadership-academy or contact admissions@educationinaction.org or 817-562-4957.

You're Invited- Legislative Roundtable Discussion

WE WANT AND NEED YOUR VOICE! Please join your fellow GCISD PTA members on January 26th for a Legislative Advocacy Roundtable Discussion hosted by the Grapevine-Colleyville ISD Council of PTAs.

MEET and TALK with YOUR area legislators and staff and pick up advocacy tips to use throughout the current 85th Texas Legislative Session.

· Thursday, January 26, 2017 from 6:30-8:00pm (childcare not provided)

· Light refreshments provided

· PDEC (Professional Development and Education Center): 5800 Colleyville Blvd., Colleyville, TX 76034

We will give a brief overview of our district PTA's top 5 issues for our legislators to address: 1) Reduce STAAR emphasis, 2) Oppose vouchers and ESA programs, 3) Adequate school funding, 4) Pursue a new accountability system that is valid, reliable and balanced and 5) Clarify the role of school districts on cyber-bullying. (Handouts with more information on each issue will be available at the event.)

Pre-registration is not required, but is highly recommended so we can get a headcount and plan appropriately. To register, scroll down to find your school and RSVP at the following site:http://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0d45a9a72ca46-legislative.

For questions, please contact your local PTA Legislative Advocacy Chair or President or Doug Noell, GCISD Council of PTAs Legislative Chair. 

GCISD Special Programs Expo

From engineering challenges to advanced academics to language immersion and early childhood education, GCISD offers a world of opportunities for students. Families are invited to learn more about these opportunities at the Special Programs Expo on Monday, February 13 from 5:00 - 7:30 p.m. at Cross Timbers Middle School. The expo will feature stations showcasing our STEM programs, ASPIRE Academy and Dual Language programs. Also, at the Expo, families may also learn about the tuition-based Pre-Kindergarten program, iUniversity Prep and Collegiate Academy. In addition to program stations, presentations focusing on the instructional components and benefits of these programs will also be delivered.

The applications for dual language, STEM academies and tuition-based pre-kindergarten will be available online beginning Tuesday, Feb. 14 and are due by Friday, March 10. If more applications are submitted than the maximum number of students each campus may accept, then a lottery will be conducted on Friday, March 31, and streamed live on the district's website. More information will be available on the website after the Expo. Please note that if your child is currently attending Cannon through a previous year's lottery, it is not necessary to apply for the lottery again, as their placement will remain at Cannon through 5th grade.

To learn more about the programs that will be showcased at the Expo, click here.

Unit 3- Humanities Cornerstone: Informed Decision Maker: Is Texas a “Dream Destination”?

Students were put in charge of developing a campaign to help these empresarios bring other states’ citizens and immigrants to Texas. They considered all options and possible solutions to convince outsiders to “Come to Texas!” in the 1800’s. Scholars did a great job creating persuasive posters or recorded commercials to convince people to come to Texas!