WRITING
May to June - Peer Editing
We're learning to take our time and proofread our work for errors. By reading our classmate's work and giving positive feedback, as well as suggestions for improvement, we are helping each other out. We're also getting good practice reading written work with a critical eye. Hopefully, this practice will encourage us to proofread our own work for spelling and grammar errors and to look for ways to improve our written work.
Remember, strong written worrk is well organized. It includes a bold beginning, a mighty middle and a clear ending. Strong writing includes interesting and creative ideas and descriptive details. It also includes a variety of words and sentence structures. Good writing does not include spelling and grammar errors that make it difficult for readers to understand the meaning.
Please keep practicing journal writing over the summer break.
Remember, strong written worrk is well organized. It includes a bold beginning, a mighty middle and a clear ending. Strong writing includes interesting and creative ideas and descriptive details. It also includes a variety of words and sentence structures. Good writing does not include spelling and grammar errors that make it difficult for readers to understand the meaning.
Please keep practicing journal writing over the summer break.
April - Poetry
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/7/3/13735247/8641510.jpg?299)
We've been studying the Earth for Earth month and are taking this chance to write different kinds of poems. Here are the 5 poems we are writing:
ABC Poem
Acrostic Poem
Ballad
Haiku
Cinquin
We're planning to make individual poetry books to display on bulletin board.
ABC Poem
Acrostic Poem
Ballad
Haiku
Cinquin
We're planning to make individual poetry books to display on bulletin board.
February to March - Summarizing
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/7/3/13735247/1467993.png?258)
What Is Summarizing?
Summarizing is how we take a text and reduce it to the key ideas, the main points that are worth noting and remembering.
Steps in Writing a Summary:
1. Read the text
2. Re-read the text and highlight the MAIN Ideas (look at the topic sentence of each sub-heading)
3. Highlight any important details about each main idea.
4. Use a graphic organizer to divide the main ideas into separate paragraphs
5. Use a graphic organizer to write jot notes of the important details of each main idea
6. Begin your summary with a topic sentence that describes the overall main idea - in your own words
7. Write a paragraph for each main idea - in your own words. Include only the important details.
8. End your summary with a concluding sentence that restates the overall main idea and makes connections between ideas in the text.
What NOT To Do When Summarizing:
- Do not include information about the topic that is not from the text
- Do not make inferences based on your prior knowledge
- Do not include personal feelings or ideas about the topic.
Summarizing is how we take a text and reduce it to the key ideas, the main points that are worth noting and remembering.
Steps in Writing a Summary:
1. Read the text
2. Re-read the text and highlight the MAIN Ideas (look at the topic sentence of each sub-heading)
3. Highlight any important details about each main idea.
4. Use a graphic organizer to divide the main ideas into separate paragraphs
5. Use a graphic organizer to write jot notes of the important details of each main idea
6. Begin your summary with a topic sentence that describes the overall main idea - in your own words
7. Write a paragraph for each main idea - in your own words. Include only the important details.
8. End your summary with a concluding sentence that restates the overall main idea and makes connections between ideas in the text.
What NOT To Do When Summarizing:
- Do not include information about the topic that is not from the text
- Do not make inferences based on your prior knowledge
- Do not include personal feelings or ideas about the topic.
January - Finding your Voice
![Picture](/uploads/1/3/7/3/13735247/3912499.jpg)
For the next month, our focus will be on finding our voice in writing. Our voice is what distinguishes our writing from someone else's. Our voice is revealed in the emotions and feelings we express, the unique way in which we write and the particular words we choose. When I read your writing, I should get a sense of how the topic makes you feel and I should be able to know which piece of writing is yours, simply because your uniqueness shines through.
October to December - Writing Recounts
We are beginning a 6-week unit on recount writing. We have already been introduced to recounts so we know that a recount is a written work that describes the events of a real-life event that has taken place in the past. A strong recount should answer The 5 W's (who, what, where, when, and why).
Throughout this unit, we will be working particularly hard at trying to use the correct past tense verbs when recounting events that have already occurred. This has been identified as a common problem among all Grade 4 classes. A recount checklist was sent home along with last month's newsletter. Please continue to use this as a guide when writing recounts.
August to September - Developing Strong Ideas
Our first objective in writing this year is to brainstorm and discuss strong ideas for writing. We will open our imagination and write fiction stories about whatever we want; the future, outer space, a world with talking animals... the sky is the limit!
We will also learn that the simplest of things can become an interesting writing topic, so long as the writer uses descriptive words and explains the importance of this object. Students will be asked to bring in an object from home that holds a special meaning for them. We will use this object as the foundation of a piece of writing meant to show us how a personal touch helps make a piece of writing more interesting for the reader.
October to December - Writing Recounts
We are beginning a 6-week unit on recount writing. We have already been introduced to recounts so we know that a recount is a written work that describes the events of a real-life event that has taken place in the past. A strong recount should answer The 5 W's (who, what, where, when, and why).
Throughout this unit, we will be working particularly hard at trying to use the correct past tense verbs when recounting events that have already occurred. This has been identified as a common problem among all Grade 4 classes. A recount checklist was sent home along with last month's newsletter. Please continue to use this as a guide when writing recounts.
August to September - Developing Strong Ideas
Our first objective in writing this year is to brainstorm and discuss strong ideas for writing. We will open our imagination and write fiction stories about whatever we want; the future, outer space, a world with talking animals... the sky is the limit!
We will also learn that the simplest of things can become an interesting writing topic, so long as the writer uses descriptive words and explains the importance of this object. Students will be asked to bring in an object from home that holds a special meaning for them. We will use this object as the foundation of a piece of writing meant to show us how a personal touch helps make a piece of writing more interesting for the reader.