Welcome to the Fourth Grade
Fourth Grade is an exciting year. Much of fourth grade will involve cementing concepts learned in
previous years; but much will also involve exploring newer concepts, ways of learning, and study skills
that will help the students become even more self-sufficient in their future schooling.
We will begin the year with a newly adopted language arts program, entitled Treasures. This program is similar to Open Court. This will be a transition period for language arts as we will then move away from Treasures and on to core literature and much later in the year, to literature circles. In Math, we will begin the year with a review of place value through the millions place. In Social Studies, the primary focus for the year will be on California -- it's geography, history, economy, oand so on. For Science, the fourth grade students will be participating in a science rotation.
Meet the Teachers
At Pali we are so fortunate to have a great group of fourth grade teachers who inspire, encourage and challenge our students to be the best that they can be. Our wonderful teachers are:
Christy Haga
Christy Haga grew up in Southern California. She attended Cal State
University Northridge where she earned a Bachelors degree in Sociology
and her teaching credential in Elementary Education. She earned a GATE
Certificate from Cal State University Fullerton. She began teaching in
1997, and came to Palisades Elementary in 1998. She loves being a
teacher and feels very fortunate to be working at such an amazing
school. When she is not teaching, she enjoys jogging, reading, playing
with her dog, and spending time with her family.
Loan Panza
Loan Panza was born in Vietnam. Her family came to the United States as
refugees when she was 2 years old, and she was the first in her family
to graduate from college. Go Bruins! This is her 9th year at Pali
Elementary -- where she has taught 4th, 3rd, and 1st grades. Since she
was a teenager, Loan has worked with children -- as a babysitter, summer
camp counselor, tutor, and volunteer at a children's center and the
children's ward at a local hospital. This has brought her to her two
true callings as: a teacher and a proud mother of three--Mika, Rolan,
and True--with her husband, Robert.
check out Mrs. Panza's class website
Madeleine Walker
Mrs. Walker has taught at Palisades Elementary for 15 years. Prior to that, she taught third grade
at Carlthorp School in Santa Monica. Mrs. Walker has a BA and a MA in Education. She recently
earned National Board Certification, an advanced teaching credential. Certification by the National
Board for Professional Teaching Standards is a rigorous process which evidences job-embedded
professional learning and provides opportunities for teachers to grow as leaders. Mrs. Walker
teaches a 4/5 combination class this year. In addition to her teaching duties at Pali, she is the
English Language Learner Coordinator, student council advisor, a human resources committee member,
and a Governing Council member. When Mrs. Walker is not busy at school, she enjoys spending time
with her husband and two daughters in their home in Santa Monica.