Extra Practice at Home

Lately, I have gotten several requests from parents about ways that they can continue to support their child's improvement at home.  I have created a list of resources that I hope will be helpful to you!  None of these are required, but they will all provide extra practice that can be done at home.  Check out these resources if you're looking for ways your child can work at home to improve!

·      English/Language Arts:

o   Online

§  Lexia: Students can use the badge inside their Homework folder (or their gmail login) to log into Clever, then select Lexia Core 5.  This program provides reading and word study support in a variety of ways.

§  Reading A to Z (Raz Kids):  Students can use the badge inside their Homework folder (or their gmail login) to log into Clever, then select Learning A to Z.  This program provides reading and word study support in a variety of ways. 

o   Read and write:  Any reading/writing practice that students do helps them improve.  Students can read aloud or silently, alone or with you.  After they read, you can discuss the book with them, asking them to summarize what happened, predict what might happen next and make connections to the book.  This might mean asking what the book reminded them of and making a connection to another book or something personal.  For example, I Survived the Great Chicago Fire might remind me of my family vacation to Chicago last summer and I Survived Pearl Harbor.  Students can write new and interesting words in a journal as they read and you can help them look up their meanings and usage.  Students can also write responses to the discussion questions listed above to practice writing.  Writing a sentence or two about each book they read in a notebook summarizing key events or describing characters is great!  For more information about finding books at your child’s instructional reading level, see this blog post: https://mrssawin.blogspot.com/2018/10/leveled-book-list.html

o   Reading Response Homework:  The homework that students are asked to complete each week will provide opportunities to practice reading and writing.  Each week, there is a “big question” to focus on which is related to the kinds of skills students are learning at school.  You can work with your child to read and edit his/her work to improve writing skills.  Look for correct grammar, punctuation and spelling and make sure the response answers the “big question”.

·      Math:

o   Online

  Dream Box: Students can use the badge inside their Homework folder (or their gmail login) to log into Clever, then select Dream Box.  This program provides math support in a variety of ways.

§  McGraw Hill/Everyday Math: Students can use the badge inside their Homework folder (or their gmail login) to log into Clever, then select McGraw Hill.  This program is provided by our Math book company and provides games and practice tools.  You can also print homework and find more information about the lessons we are doing in class.  The Student Reference Book provides definitions and the eTools have fraction circles, Base-10 Blocks and more. 

§  Khan Academy: This free website provides extra practice and enrichment opportunities by grade level or skill.  You can find more information at https://www.khanacademy.org/

o   Fact Practice:  Many 4^th graders are still working on mastering their basic addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts.  Practicing these out loud together, with flashcards or in writing is great to improve fact fluency. 

o   Everyday Math Homelink:  Completing each night’s math Homelink will help practice the skills which we have worked on that day.  By the time these Homelinks come home, your child has seen this concept three times already: once in my lesson, once in a small group and once in independent practice.  This last practice should help solidify the skills at home.