4th Grade Newsletter 2/26-3/12

 

⭐2/26/2026 - 3/12/2026 ⭐

4th Grade Newsletter

What We're Learning:

Math: TEKS 4.3D, 4.2G, 4.3E

Students will deepen their understanding of fractions and decimals by exploring key concepts like comparing, decomposing, and working with fractions and decimals to the tenths and hundredths. Students will learn to relate decimals to fractions, focusing on tenths and hundredths, and will compare fractions with different numerators and denominators using comparison symbols (> , = , <). They will also practice representing fractions on a number line as distances from zero and breaking down fractions in multiple ways to see how they add up to make a whole. Through hands-on activities, students will add and subtract fractions with like denominators and check if answers are reasonable by using benchmark fractions like 0, 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, and 1. Students will also solve problems using data from frequency tables, dot plots, and stem-and-leaf plots to apply what they’ve learned in real-world contexts. 



Link to Optional Math Homework PDF

RLA: TEKS 4.11C, 4.6.C, 4.6F, 4.9Diii, 4.10C, 4.10A, 4.11A, 4.11Bi, 4.7B
4.11C-revise drafts to improve sentence structure and word choice by adding, deleting, combining, and rearranging ideas for coherence and clarity.

4.6C- make and correct or confirm predictions using text features, characteristics of genre, and structures.

4.6F- make inferences and use evidence to support understanding. 

4.9Diii- recognize characteristics and structures of informational text, including organizational patterns. 

4.10C- analyze the author’s use of print and graphic features to achieve specific purposes. 

4.10A- explain the author’s purpose and message within a text

4.11A- plan a first draft by selecting fiction as the topic, purpose, and audience using a range of strategies such as brainstorming, freewriting, or mapping. 

4.11Bi- organizing with purposeful structure including an introduction, transitions, and a conclusion.

4.7B- write responses that demonstrate understanding of texts, including comparing and contrasting ideas across a variety of sources.



Science: TEKS 4.10A-C, 4.11A, 4.12A-C

In this topic, students learn about patterns on Earth. First, in Experience 1, they learn about Earth’s water cycle and differentiate between weather and climate. Then, in Experience 2, they identify the processes of weathering, erosion, and deposition. Finally, in Experience 3, they explore renewable and nonrenewable natural resources.

  • Erosion is the process by which particles are broken away and removed by water, wind, or ice. Deposition is the laying down of eroded particles.

  • The water cycle is the way that water moves around Earth in different forms.

  • Renewable resources are natural resources that cannot be used up or that can be replaced. Nonrenewable resources can be used up

In this topic, students learn about ecosystems. In Experience 1, students identify producers, consumers, and decomposers and explain how plants can use energy and matter to create their own food. In Experience 2, students describe the cycling of matter and the flow of energy through food webs. In Experience 3, students use fossil evidence to identify and describe past environments.

  • Certain animals and plants have developed the ability to adapt and thrive in changing ecosystems. Others perish or migrate to new locations.

  • Carbon dioxide is a gas in the atmosphere that plants and other producers use to make their own food.

  • Decomposers are organisms that break down dead plant and animal matter. They use matter and energy from waste and dead organism bodies


 
Social Studies:  TEKS 4.4A, 4.10A, 4.4B, 4.7B, 4.8B
Key Concepts:

  • The Civil War and Texas

  • Reconstruction

  • Settling the Texas Frontier 

  • Texas Railroads


4.4(A) describe the impact of the Civil War and Reconstruction on Texas 
4.10(A) describe how the free enterprise system works, including supply and demand  
4.4(B) explain the growth, development, and impact of the cattle industry such as contributions made by Charles Goodnight, Richard King, and Lizzie Johnson
4.7(B)^ identify and explain patterns of settlement such as the location of towns and cities in Texas at different time periods 
4.8(B)^ explain reasons why people have adapted to and modified their environment in Texas, past and present, such as the use of natural resources to meet basic needs, facilitate transportation, and enhance recreational activities 

 



Up Coming EVENTS for LHISD and SRE:



Feb. 26 Spring Pictures

Feb. 26 Grade Level Newsletters Sent to Familes @4:00pm

Feb. 27 Student Holiday/Staff Full Campus Work Day @7:30-4pm

Mar. 2 Texas Independence Day

Mar. 2-31 GT Testing Grades 4-5 Testing Window

Mar. 2-6 Read Across America Week

Mar. 3 SRE PTO Meeting 7:30-8:30 @Ranch Hub (Across the Street)

Mar. 5 Santa Rita News Newsletter Sent to Families

Mar. 6 Student Holiday/Staff Work Day

Mar. 10 PTO Growth Mindset Presentation (2 Presentations) @8am for campus, 6pm for community

Mar. 13 Student Holiday

Mar. 13 Spring Parent Conference Day

Mar. 16-20 Spring Break

Mar. 23 4th 9 Weeks Begins!

Mar. 26 Santa Rita News Newsletter Sent to Families

Mar. 27 PTO Mother/Son Event! Lucky Strikes 4-6pm

Pre-Order TODAY!


Safety is our first priority. Cell phones in school zones and in car lines are not only against the law, it puts our kids and staff at risk. Your cooperation is needed and appreciated.


Please do not park at or near crosswalks as it blocks our ability to see oncoming traffic and creates a hazard for crossing guards and students crossing the street.


The first few days of school are exciting for everyone. We often have 2-3 times the number of cars dropping off and picking up than the rest of the year. Thanks for your patience as we worked through these first couple of days getting back into our routines.


Morning Arrival:


  • Please form one lane and do not go around other vehicles or cones or run over our cones.
  • Do NOT drop off students in the bus parking lot to avoid our car rider line. That parking lot is reserved for our staff and students with special circumstances.
  • Do NOT drop off students by the black Panther walker near Braun and Vista Porta Loop.
  • Please follow staff and sign directives.
  • It is imperative that you pull all the way forward in the morning before letting your child out of the car. This allows us to try and fill up our parking lot as much as possible and alleviate traffic from Santa Rita Boulevard as soon as possible.
  • Please be kind to our staff members and use appropriate language in the presence of children.
  • If you are a walker, please cross the street at the designated crosswalk locations ONLY.


Afternoon Dismissal:


  • Please form 2 lines in the afternoon. Please remember the inside lane will go straight into the neighborhood off of Vista Porta Loop. The outside lane will turn left down Braun.
  • Please remain in your vehicle at all times.
  • Please follow all staff directives and signs.
  • Please do not come up to the building to receive your child. All students will meet parents at their designated crosswalk and their vehicle.
  • Please be kind to our staff members and use appropriate language in the presence of children.




SRE Digital Citizenship

Families,


Students at SRE have been learning about digital citizenship in library classes. Students are learning how to balance time online, how to be kind to others while on devices, and how to keep their private information safe. Please continue to discuss online safety with your children.


LHISD Library Website

Library Services Website


We are excited to share the LHISD Library Services website. We invite you to view the page to find information regarding all 11 of our state-of-the-art libraries, the book selection process, and frequently asked questions. You will also find a list of proposed book purchases for elementary, middle and high school. These books will be posted for 10 school days. If you would like to provide feedback or input on any of the books listed, we invite you to complete the Feedback Form that can be found on the Library Services website. After the books have been posted for 10 days, a committee, including campus and district staff, will review the comments to determine approval for purchasing.


Thank you!


After School Care at SRE!

Need Afterschool care? The Y Afterschool is here to give your kids supervised fun as soon as the school bell rings, till 6:30pm!

In Y Afterschool your child will have the opportunity to participate in programs such as enrichments, crafts, STEM activities, and so much more! A snack is provided for students daily.

Registration is available online.



Ricardo Rios
Site Director | Licensed Child Care
Phone: 512-246-YMCA
rrios@ymcactx.org
ymcactx.org | The Y.™ For a better us. Follow us:


Watch D.O.G.S.

WATCH D.O.G.S. Santa Rita Elementary School


@Dads: 3 Steps to Sign Up


1. Background Check: Submit your Liberty Hill ISD Volunteer Application


https://apps.raptortech.com/Apply/MzQ0OmVuLVVT


2. PTO: Complete your Santa Rita Elementary PTO Google Form


https://www.sres-pto.org/membershipform


3. SignUpGenius: Request your Volunteer Day

http://sres-pto.org/volunteer


PTO will send a confirmation email invite

(Check your spam folder)



GT Website

Please check out the link below to view the SRE GT website and learn more information!


https://sites.google.com/libertyhill.txed.net/kids parent support/home


We Need You!

We will have lots of opportunities to get involved this year.


Be a volunteer! Get started by completing the volunteer application online. It must be updated every school year.


Join our PTO! Membership is free. Nowhere else can you get so much for so little! We have the best parent partners ever!! Check out their website for volunteer opportunities, Spirit Nights and more!


Calling all Dads! WatchDOGS is a unique organization that partners the school with male role models. It's an incredible opportunity to volunteer at Santa Rita while getting a sneak peak into your child's school day. It's an experience you won't want to miss, and you will make an big impact on your own child and so many others!


Student Reading Mentors Needed! Enjoy working with children, love reading and want to make a big impact on a child's life? Education Connection is just for you!! Consider investing just 30 minutes a week, and bless the life of a child.


More opportunities to come soon!


Lost and Found

We ask that you label all lunch boxes, water bottles, and jackets. This will help us to get lost items back to your child.


Specials Rotations:



Attendance

  • Communication is key! We are here to support you.

  • Our campus attendance goal is 97%

  • 90% attendance or better!

  • Arrival after 7:40 requires you to check your child in the front office

  • Please send a doctor’s note when your child is at an appointment

  • Vacations or traveling to other countries are not considered excused absences

  • For family loss, excused absences are for the travels days needed the day before, day of services, and day after. All other absences outside of these 3 days is not excused absences.

  • Truancy Measures initiated: when absent 3 days or parts of days in a 4-week period


If you need to report an absence, please CLICK HERE

Bell Schedule & School Calendar

Doors Open: 7:00

Students eating breakfast will go to the cafeteria.

If not they will go to their grade-level hallway.

1st Bell: 7:20

Students can go to class

Breakfast is still open


Tardy Bell: 7:30

Class begins

Exterior doors close

Breakfast ends

Please arrive on time

Dismissal Bell: 3:15

Helpful Tips

  • Please do not let tardies become a habit. Our car rider line is running smoothly, and we are eager to start the day off right.
  • The school encourages families to label their students' items such as water bottles, jackets, lunch boxes, etc. Let's work together to keep our lost & found empty.
  • Around 3:15, our car rider line will close. After that, students can be picked up at the front office.
  • If you need to pick up your student, please do not assign them as a walker. We have a car rider line for those picking up.
  • Continue to follow traffic patterns, staff guidance, and crossing guards.

Parents & guardians, please remember that if your child is not in the building by 7:30am, then your child is considered tardy and must be walked into the building by an adult. We are having students crossing crosswalks unattended and we have students being dropped off on the sidewalk and they don't know their teachers’ names. All SRE staff report to classrooms at 7:30 am. After this time, your child is your responsibility due to no available staff supervision.


Families, please check your child's backpack and school items each morning to make sure they have everything that they need. There have been many forgotten items brought to campus after instruction has begun. Here are some tips to support with this:


  • Have backpacks packed every night
  • Use sticky notes as reminders
  • Have students complete an inventory checklist- backpack, snack, water bottle, lunch, etc.
  • Have your child develop a routine of organizing items to ensure that nothing gets left behind


TRAIT OF THE MONTH

February: Perseverance


At SRE, students are expected to show responsibility for their work and actions. Be Safe! Be Respectful! Be Responsible!


Important Information:

TRANSPORTATION:

If you need to make a transportation change for your student, you MUST 
e-mail: srestransportationchanges@libertyhill.txed.net, by 1 pm in order to make that change.  Teachers will not be able to accept written notes, emails, or phone calls for transportation changes.