Newsletter January 30 - February 3

Hi parents!  I hope that everyone has had a wonderful weekend!  We wrapped up our unit on Explorers and Colonization last week.  It was a great unit with a lot of fun activities and the students really learned a lot.

I am so proud of my class for their accomplishments in reading this year!  Last week, we discussed how many novels we have read so far and couldn't believe that we had already read 7!  They have worked hard and have risen to the challenge of any novel I've asked them to read.  I am especially proud of them during our reading of The Witch of Blackbird Pond.  While the book was above grade level, they all approached the story with enthusiasm and determination.  They did a great job of analyzing the text and characters.

Our next novel is also a bit above grade level, but it is an exciting story that truly captures the spirit of America during this period in history.  I know that the children are going to love it.  For the at-home reading this month, I encourage you to read with your child, as the text can be a bit difficult.  This book is also divided into parts, with smaller chapters within and the chapter numbers repeat for each new part.  Thus, for homework assignments, I will give the part and chapter numbers along with the page numbers.  If you have any questions about which pages your child is to read, please feel free to text me!

News to Know

• Will Rester is this week's snack helper.  Emmy will be next week's helper.  Also, I have finished out the schedule for the rest of year.
• Please send money for this Friday's field trip and your child's book for this unit if you have not already done so.
• We will be making barometers on Thursday, so if you have a small coffee can, please send one.  I know that these are difficult to find, so if you do not have one, do not worry.  We may just make one barometer as a class.

Language Arts

We will begin reading our new book.  We will continue our study of adjectives with articles, adjectives after linking verbs, and proper adjectives.  We will have a short quiz on adjectives and articles on Tuesday.  We will also continue to work on our blogs.

Math

We will take the Topic 10 test on Monday.  I reviewed with the students on Friday, and they all seem to have a good grasp of the material.  We will then begin Topic 11: Congruence and Symmetry.  This is a short, easy topic and we should finish it on Thursday.  Depending on how the students are doing, we may test this topic on next Monday.  I hate to give two Monday tests, but I will only do it if the students have a good understanding of the topic and can take the test without having to study over the weekend.  We will discuss our options on Thursday and I will let you know by Friday what we plan to do.

Science / Social Studies

We had so much fun studying weather last week!  We made rain gauges and wind vanes.  After the rain on Thursday, our gauges showed us that it had rained 1 inch!  This week, we will be making anemometers and barometers.  We will create our chart to compare weather in other cities.  We will also continue studying the fifty states.  We will begin by learning the names and locations of the states in the Southeastern US.

Update

Hi parents!  I sent home school newsletters Friday, but I have one left over.  If your child did not receive one, please let me know and I will send it.  It includes important information about next Friday's field trip.

Also, our class is in need of lined paper and eraser caps.  If you can send either of these items, it would be greatly appreciated!  Thanks so much for all you do!

Newsletter January 23 - 27

Hi parents!  I hope that you all have had wonderful weekends!  This will be our last week of the unit on Exploration and Colonies and next we will be starting something new.  This has been such an interesting unit and the students have learned so much about the founding of America.  The colonial day Friday was a huge success.  Thanks to all who organized and helped out.  The kids had a fantastic time!

News to Know

• Quinn is this week's snack helper.  Will Rester will be next week's helper.
• Students will need an empty soda bottle for a science project this week.  Bottles should be clear and can be any size.

Language Arts

We will finish reading The Witch of Blackbird Pond this week.  The students have truly enjoyed this novel and we have had some great conversations about it.  I'm so proud of them for taking on difficult books.  We will begin discussing adjectives this week.  We will have a vocabulary test on Friday.

Math

We will continue our topic on geometry.  This week, we will discuss angles, polygons, triangles, quadrilaterals, and making generalizations.  We will take the Topic 10 test sometime early next week.  I sent home some flash cards with the students last week as this topic is full of new vocabulary.  While the students will not be able to use these flash cards on the test, they are welcome to use their notes.  I have encouraged the students to transfer any vocabulary they wish into their math journals.

Science / Social Studies

We will begin studying weather this week.  We will be setting up our own little weather station to record local weather.  We will also be comparing our weather to the weather in other cities.  We will begin looking at the map of the United States and learning the names and locations of our 50 states.

Newsletter January 17 - 20

Hello! I hope that you have all had a lovely and relaxing holiday weekend! We have an exciting week ahead of us!

News to Know

• Courtney is this week's snack helper. Quinn will be next week's helper. I will have the new schedule up next week.
• I will be sending out information about the book for the next unit sometime near the end of this week. I have narrowed it down to two books and need a couple more days to decide.
• Lunch menus for February are due this week.
• If your child does not have a laptop, or his/her laptop is broken, please have it fixed soon. We are going to be working on our blogs and Power Point presentations in the coming weeks.

Language Arts

We will continue reading The Witch of Blackbird Pond. On Wednesday, we will research Puritan pastimes and try our hands at shucking corn. We will wrap up verbs this week and take a short quiz on Friday. We will also continue writing our narratives.

Math

This week we will begin our topic on geometry. We will be discussing solid figures, shapes, lines, line segments, and angles. I am encouraging students to look for examples of geometry in their daily lives. On Wednesday, students will be asked to bring in an example of a particular solid. I will give them more information tomorrow.

Science

We will be wrapping up our discussion on the way different forces shape the earth this week. We will experiment with landslides and asteroids. We will take a short quiz on Thursday.

Newsletter January 9 - 13

Hello! I hope that everyone has had a great weekend! Our new unit got off to a great start last week. The students are so excited to learn about the early explorers and how our continent was discovered. Our class has really gotten into The Witch of Blackbird Pond and we have had some great discussions so far.

News to Know

• McCall is this week's snack helper. Courtney will be next week's helper.
• We will be making candles on Wednesday. If you have any old crayons that you no longer use, please send them. Thanks!

Language Arts

This week we will read chapters 6 - 12 of our book. Students will have reading homework on Tuesday night. We will study linking verbs and take a test on action, helping, and linking verbs on Thursday. We will begin prewriting for our narratives. As student narratives will be based on things that have happened to them, this is a great time for you and your child to discuss some of the major events of his/her life.

Math

We will finish Topic 9: Patterns and Sequences this week. The students have really enjoyed this topic and are now looking for patterns everywhere. This week we will discuss translating words into expressions, geometric patterns, equal or unequal, and acting it out and using reasoning to solve problems. We will take the Topic 9 assessment on Friday.

Science

We have an exciting week ahead of us in science. We will be discussing and experimenting with earthquakes, volcanoes, mountain building, floods, and landslides.

Newsletter January 3 - 6

Hello! I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New Year! We had a very merry Christmas and have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the newest member of our family, Hugo. We had a wonderful break, and I am excited to get into the next unit. The hallway is looking great! I think the kids are really going to enjoy this one.

News to Know

• Summer is this week's snack helper. McCall will be next week's helper.
• As we are starting a new semester, it is a good time to replace any supplies that your child may need. I know that many of the children are out of crayons, markers, and scissors.

Language Arts

We will begin reading our new book on Tuesday. I am so excited about this book...it has an interesting plot and a great protagonist. I think the kids are really going to enjoy this one. We will have a vocabulary test on Friday. We will begin a unit on narrative writing and students will write a story about their life. We will study helping and linking verbs this week.

Math

We will begin one of my favorite topics this week: Topic 9 Patterns and Relationships. We will be looking at picture patterns and sequences, extending tables, and writing rules for situations. This topic is a chance for students to really extend their thinking and I have some fun activities planned. I encourage you and your child to look for patterns in your daily lives.

Science

We will continue our topic on weathering and erosion this week. We will create our own landforms and then subject them to erosion. We will also look for evidence of erosion around our school.

Newsletter December 12 - 16

Wow! It's hard to believe that our year is half over. I have had such a great year so far. I have truly loved getting to know all of your children and we have had a wonderful time together. They have all worked hard this semester and I'm so proud of all they have accomplished. I cannot wait to see what the second half of the year will hold for us.

I have been blessed with so much this year and cannot tell you how grateful I am and how much I love working at BDS. It is an awesome place...I feel so lucky to be a part of it. I hope that you all have a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!

This week we begin our Christmas unit. The hallway looks fantastic; the kids are going to be in awe tomorrow morning. We will have our Christmas performance on Thursday evening at 6 PM. Please see the school newsletter for more details.

News to Know

• Lola is this week's snack helper. Summer will be snack helper when we return from break.
• Report cards will be sent home Monday. Please contact me if you have any questions.
• The conceptual posttests are often difficult and cover material from throughout the unit. I always encourage the students to try their best and I grade the tests on a curve. While it may look like the students are struggling with the questions, a comparison of their pretest and posttest answers will show that they are actually learning a lot about each topic and I am grading them accordingly. Students also receive conceptual grades for various projects and participation in activities. The conceptual posttest counts as only a small portion of the students' final grades for conceptual.
• Friday will be a half day and dismissal will be at 12 PM. Students are allowed to wear pajamas on this day.
• I am still looking at books for the January unit. I will be in touch soon with information about the book I've chosen.

Language Arts

This week I will be sharing one of my favorite childhood books with the students: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson. It's a hilarious and heartwarming tale that I know the kids will love. We will also review grammar concepts with some fun, Christmas-themed lessons.

Math

We will wrap up Topic 8 and take a test on either Tuesday or Wednesday. It is important that students continue to study their multiplication facts over the break. Mastering their facts will make future topics much easier for them.

Conceptual

This week we will learn about other countries' holiday traditions as well as our own. It promises to be a fun week!

Science / Social Studies

We will finish up our timeline project.