Y4 Sports Day
Posted by year4
On Tuesday the Discovery College Year 4 students competed against students from DBIS and Renaissance College in a variety of enjoyable activities. The weather was beautiful and fun was had by everyone involved. Thank you to those parents who were able to come along and cheer on our students. For those who were not able to make it, you can check out some photos from the day below.
Our Next Unit
Posted by year4
Time is flying by, and we are ready to move into our second unit of inquiry for the year. The students have done a great job throughout our first unit learning about strategies for resolving conflict and devising ways to make DC a more peaceful community. Our next unit begins their journey into research.
In this unit students will be inquiring into the process it takes to get food from the farm to our dinner tables. Throughout this inquiry, they will be reflecting on the affect this process might have on how they choose the food they eat.
Central Idea: Communities have systems for production and distribution which affect the choices people make.
Lines of Inquiry:
- The systems for producing and distributing food.
- The reasons for different production and distribution methods.
- How we choose the food we eat.
Language
In writing, students will be learning about explanation texts. They will inquire into the features needed for this type of writing and have many opportunities to ‘explain’ different systems. They will focus on the structure and organisation of their writing as well continue to focus on writing grammatically correct sentences and paragraphs.
Students will be reading a lot of non-fiction texts and learning a process for researching. They will explore the features of non-fiction texts and begin to use those features to help them gather the information they need.
Near the the end of the unit, students will work in a group to create a visual presentation using Google Slides to demonstrate their understanding of the food process. They will be thinking about the visual impact of their slides for this presentation, as well as how they can give a successful oral presentation.
Mathematics
Students will continue with the addition and subtraction unit which they have recently begun. They will focus on the following:
Throughout this unit, students will spend time practicing the different mental strategies to add and subtract. They will also have the opportunity to apply these strategies when solving open-ended problems.
Camp is Coming
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As hard as it is to believe…Y4 camp is just around the corner. Everyone should’ve received an e-notice this week about camp as well as a request for parent volunteers. This year we are hoping to have eight parents attend camp with is, so please fill in the form if you are interested and available to attend.
You might have noticed that we have a camp page here on our website. Click on the ‘Camp‘ tab at the top of the website (or click here) and you will see the kit list for students as well as a schedule for our three days. This will also be where you will find regularly updated pictures of camp when we are away.
Y4 camp is an amazing time for students and we are really looking forward to it. If you have any questions about camp, or about being a parent volunteer, please contact Kris Stanhope (kris.stanhope@dc.edu.hk).
Homework and Email in Year 4
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Each week students get their homework emailed to them. Although we always review the homework in class before it goes home, our expectation is that students open their email at home to remind themselves and ensure they are completing all activities. Please also remember that the homework is always available on our Year 4 website under the ‘Homework’ tab – blogs.discovery.edu.hk/year-4/homework
Logging into email has been difficult for some students who, although they know how to access their email on our computers at school, are unsure how to get to their email on a home computer. Therefore, we wanted to provide you with a little information so you are able to help them.
Basically each student at DC has a Google email account. So, in order to sign into their email they will need to go to google.com. Once there, no matter the type of computer or browser, they can proceed to sign into their account in the top right corner.
If you were unaware that your child has their own email or have some concerns about that, we suggest you discuss internet safety with your children and regularly check their emails with them. Please also take a few minutes to look at the presentation from the Parent information Evening regarding email that was provided by Mr Leithhead last year. Click here to see the presentation.
If you have any further questions or concerns please feel free to your class teacher.
Parent Fair
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Thank you to those parents who were able to join us for the Parent Fair. We hope you enjoyed it and learned a lot about Year 4 at DC.
If you weren’t able to join us please find the slideshow below as well as a video of the Year 4 students making plans to be ‘Better Than Before’.
Reading at Home in Year 4
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In Year 4, students are still expected to read at home each night, but there are a few differences from last year. First of all, students will need to record their home reading in their diary. Each evening they should note the title of the book as well as the pages they have read. Afterwards, students will need an adult or older sibling to sign their diary to confirm the reading took place. We encourage all families to allow students to take responsibility for this themselves.
This is what it should look like in the diaries:
Another difference this year is that students are able to choose which books they want to read, rather than selecting from levelled tubs of books like last year. So they could choose library books, books from home, or books from school.
We believe strongly that being a strong reader and enjoying reading is an essential part of learning. We ask for your support in encouraging your child to read and helping them remember to record their reading in the diaries each night. If you wanted to be involved further than that, you could read to your child or have regular discussions with them about the books they are reading.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your class teacher..
Welcome to Year 4
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We hope that your children have had a happy and interesting start to the new school year. Our aim over the first couple of weeks of school is to ensure everyone gets to know each other, students are comfortable in their new classrooms, and that they are all feeling positive about school.
First, here’s how our Year 4 team is organised:
Our Year 4 EAs are amazing and play a huge role in your child’s education. They were all with us last year and are very experienced, committed and talented.
Here’s the rest of our fabulous teaching team:
Please remember to contact us if you have any concerns or questions. It’s easiest to reach us by email:
Kris Stanhope (4KSE) – stanhk2@dc.edu.hk
Anna Sherriff (4ASF) – sherra1@dc.edu.hk
Mark Steed (4MSD) – steedm2@dc.edu.hk
Sarah McDavid (4SMD) – courts1@dc.edu.hk
Our Very Own Author in Year 4
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Humza, a student in 4DMI, has written and published a book called “The Ant and the Hud Hud”. Not only is it amazing to see one of our Year 4s becoming a published author, but he is also choosing to sell his books to raise money for charity.
All proceeds from the sale of his books go towards The White Helmets. Click here for more information on The White Helmets and their bravery.
You can contact Humza’s father to purchase a book using the email address in the picture below
Congrations and well done, Humza!
Year 4 at the DC Sports Day
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We had a great time at the DC Sports Day. Thank you to all the parents who came and cheered us on. If you weren’t able to make, the talented Mr Macheski put together a great video specifically for Year 4. Enjoy!
Year 4 Energy Experts
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The Year 4s had a great morning learning about energy as they took part in a number of different demonstrations and activities all focussed on helping them to understand the various forms of energy.
Check out the photos below:
