Mr. Coe's News and Information

• No homework this weekend! But feel free to spend some time reading your Battle of the Books books when you get some free time.

• Mr. Coe's Math class will have a BIG test over chapter 5 (multi-digit multiplication, functions, graphing, and algebra) this coming Tuesday, Jan. 30. We started reviewing for this test in class today. We will spend most of Monday in Math class reviewing, too.

• I'm sending home STAR Test Record Reports today with students. STAR Testing calculates your child's current Grade-Level Equivalency in reading... it determines where your child is as a reader, based on national norms, compared to other 4th graders. These 1-page reports will give you a quick overview of your child's reading scores over the course of this school year, from Sept. 1 through Jan. 26.

• How to interpret the Test Record Report: I tend to focus on the Grade Placement number in comparison to the GE (Grade Equivalency) number. Everyone's Grade Placement is 4.48. Why? Because, we're almost in the 5th month of 4th grade, which would be exactly 4.5. So your child, if he or she is reading at-grade-level should be reading at or above 4.48 on the GE line on his or her report. About half our class is reading at this level or above! Many others are close, or have been at or near grade-level several times on recent tests.
  

• It's natural for STAR scores to go up and down some. But even a quick look at your child's progress should reveal if they're growing as a 4th-grade reader or not. There's really only one sure-fire method to help your child improve as a reader: get them to read! Visit the library; read together at night; have your child summarize his or her reading with you at dinner-time. But whatever you do, get your kid to read, read, read! That's the only way to grow!