Hello 4th Grade Families,
We have many updates for you about what we are doing, and the support needed from
home in the coming weeks as fourth graders get deep into their research projects.
Please read through this post carefully for FAQ and other need-to-knows.
What is the International Fair?
The International Fair is a celebration of learning around guiding questions:
How does our shared need for water connect us to the global community?
How do people, communities and corporations use their power for good?
How do we celebrate the collective power of people positively impacting our world?
How should problems in the world we have identified be addressed?
What is International Fair and when does it take place?
The International Fair provides a platform for our students to become experts on topics
of interest and communicate their learning to an audience. Before the project share,
students will begin the event with an opening ceremony for parents on March 22, 9:15
a.m. in the Performance Commons (downstairs in the new LS building). After this
short presentation, we will move as a group over to the gym where students will share
their work.
What is the theme of this year’s fair?
Stories of Water and the Environment. Each student chose a topic of interest to explore
through the lens of water and the environment. The topics vary greatly and we hope
you have already heard details through the sharing assignments in homework. Look
for more homework of this nature over the next two weeks. The planner is linked here
Teachers will assist students to go beyond fact-finding, asking questions that encourage
them to think creatively, find connections, and share/advocate/discover applications for
the wider community.
What can parents do to help before, on the day of the fair, and after it is over?
Talk to your children about their projects! Ask questions and support them as they do
homework. Come to the fair on March 22nd, enjoy their projects, celebrate their
successes, and reflect on their journey with them. Volunteer to help set up/take down
their space in the gym, or guide student visitors around the fair after other parents have
left (look for an email in the next few weeks from your room parent).
What are the main components my child is responsible for in this project?
Research Paper
The children raised inquiry questions that helped to direct their research, and their
research papers answer these questions.
Poster Board
The children are considering what they hope visitors will take away from the fair.
Their tri-fold poster board provides a way for them to display visual materials,
important information, and guiding questions that advance their thinking.
Response to research
Students are thinking about how visitors can interact with their projects. They want
to capture the attention of visitors and make an impact on them. Examples might
include an experiment, a piece of art, poetic reflection, a call to action, or a game.
What can I do to support my child at home?
Talk to them about their projects; support them in finding reading materials, review
their research papers, and explore possibilities for responses to their research. You
can help your children think about what they're going to wear and get them ready
for March 22nd. They have the option to dress in clothes that enhance their topics,
but their outfits do not need to be elaborate. We can give the children ideas here at
school about clothing; please send us your questions.
We look forward to March 1st and 2nd to talk about your child’s progress and goals.
Warmly,
The 4th Grade Team
We have many updates for you about what we are doing, and the support needed from
home in the coming weeks as fourth graders get deep into their research projects.
Please read through this post carefully for FAQ and other need-to-knows.
What is the International Fair?
The International Fair is a celebration of learning around guiding questions:
How does our shared need for water connect us to the global community?
How do people, communities and corporations use their power for good?
How do we celebrate the collective power of people positively impacting our world?
How should problems in the world we have identified be addressed?
What is International Fair and when does it take place?
The International Fair provides a platform for our students to become experts on topics
of interest and communicate their learning to an audience. Before the project share,
students will begin the event with an opening ceremony for parents on March 22, 9:15
a.m. in the Performance Commons (downstairs in the new LS building). After this
short presentation, we will move as a group over to the gym where students will share
their work.
What is the theme of this year’s fair?
Stories of Water and the Environment. Each student chose a topic of interest to explore
through the lens of water and the environment. The topics vary greatly and we hope
you have already heard details through the sharing assignments in homework. Look
for more homework of this nature over the next two weeks. The planner is linked here
Teachers will assist students to go beyond fact-finding, asking questions that encourage
them to think creatively, find connections, and share/advocate/discover applications for
the wider community.
What can parents do to help before, on the day of the fair, and after it is over?
Talk to your children about their projects! Ask questions and support them as they do
homework. Come to the fair on March 22nd, enjoy their projects, celebrate their
successes, and reflect on their journey with them. Volunteer to help set up/take down
their space in the gym, or guide student visitors around the fair after other parents have
left (look for an email in the next few weeks from your room parent).
What are the main components my child is responsible for in this project?
Research Paper
The children raised inquiry questions that helped to direct their research, and their
research papers answer these questions.
Poster Board
The children are considering what they hope visitors will take away from the fair.
Their tri-fold poster board provides a way for them to display visual materials,
important information, and guiding questions that advance their thinking.
Response to research
Students are thinking about how visitors can interact with their projects. They want
to capture the attention of visitors and make an impact on them. Examples might
include an experiment, a piece of art, poetic reflection, a call to action, or a game.
What can I do to support my child at home?
Talk to them about their projects; support them in finding reading materials, review
their research papers, and explore possibilities for responses to their research. You
can help your children think about what they're going to wear and get them ready
for March 22nd. They have the option to dress in clothes that enhance their topics,
but their outfits do not need to be elaborate. We can give the children ideas here at
school about clothing; please send us your questions.
We look forward to March 1st and 2nd to talk about your child’s progress and goals.
Warmly,
The 4th Grade Team
