Letter for Fourth Grade Families

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Heading home this week:

 Asheville City Schools
Academically - Intellectually Gifted Program
____________________________________________________________________________
Ira B. Jones Elementary
September 2016
Dear 4th grade Parents and Supporters:
Welcome back to Jones for what promises to be an outstanding year! I’m excited and pleased at the excitement and positivity that abounds at Jones. I think we all share the goal of Best Year Ever!


Fourth grade AIG services began September 6, which means I’ll see Monday’s students next week. In the meantime, here’s a blurb (or three) about what’s going on in AIG:
Explicit in all our work are the paideia principles of discourse. Students worked with me a lot last year to hone ways to work together in productive conversations. I’ll provide more examples as the year progresses.
Advanced Subject Group Reading
We’re beginning with Where the Sidewalk Ends, the Shel Silverstein poem. Students will have an opportunity to review last years expectations for our time together and contribute to our discussions. This year we’ll warm up to short story work with Junior Great Books and hopefully read a novel or two, as well.


Advanced Subject Group Math
Challenge will be the theme for this group. I’ll be drawing from a number of resources to provide challenging math work for these students. Initially, they will work in small group activities, but this will vary as the year progresses. Look forward to stumper problems and an extended unit on algebra! Check out the blog for one specific result from our math challenge.
Enrichment Study Group / Comprehensive Study Group
These students have begun by reviewing the procedures involved in seminar work. We’ve done this by a review of the CUBS rules beginning with a formal seminar. The concluding work of this time is for students to develop their own acronym describing proper Jones behavior. I’ll share out as we move forward.
I’ll communicate via emails, notes, blog posts, and the occasional tweet. Check out the info below.
Please never hesitate to contact me with questions, comments, or concerns. Thanks for your support of the AIG program!
I remain yours
Sincerely,


John M. Pruett
828.350.67233
@pruett_john





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