Monday, November 14, 2005
Busy Day, Lots of Stuff
We didn’t get Writer’s Workshop today. We wished we could have writing because it’s fun to learn to spell words, and to work on our journal because we have a lot of things in our heads to write about in our journals, and sometimes our stories are published.
But we didn’t because of music and P.E. P.E. was really special because we got to go on the climbing wall, and we never, ever get to go on the climbing wall. We did in Kindergarten, but that’s it. Not in first grade.
Math was fun, too. We built stuff out of cubes with a partner, and the partner had to copy it. First we tried it with 10 cubes, then with 15, and then with 20. We did Daily Equation, too. We had to write an equation that matches the date. Today is November 14, so our equations had to equal 14. We had to think of a way to make 14, like 13+1=14.
Also, we finally got treats today, since the Packers won.
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Crossing Over
We got to go on the climbing wall again today! It was so fantastic! It was awesome! We got two tries to go all the way across. It wasn’t easy to do. It was hard to get up, and in the middle of the climbing wall there weren’t too many handholds, and when you don’t grab the handholds and just slide your hands on the rough wall, it could give you a scrape. Jesse’s arms felt like they were stretching out; after Jordan was done, it felt like he was still holding on to the handles on the wall, even after he let go; Abby’s hands hurt from doing it. Some people have gone across many times, but some people are still working on it.
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Book Fair
We got to visit the book fair today. The book fair is like a bookstore that comes to your school library. They have cases and cases of books. A book fair is a chance for people to buy books for families, friends, themselves, and teachers. Mrs. Yonkers and Mrs. Sullivan got all these shelves and tables and they filled them with books. Everyone got to choose some books that they want. We looked for the books we liked. We wrote the titles on our wish lists, along with the prices. We had to find the prices that said U.S. We will take our lists home and show them to our moms and dads and we’ll hope they will buy one for us. Part of the money for the books goes to our school library so they can buy new books.
Monday, November 14, 2005
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Week of Monday, November 7
Monday, November 07, 2005
Substitute P.E. Teacher
Today in P.E. we had a new substitute teacher. Her name was a German name, but she taught us how to count to 10 in Spanish. It goes like this: uno (1), dos (2), tres (3), cuatro (4), cinco (5), seis (6), siete (7), ocho (8), nueve (9), diez (10). She taught us a game: The boys stand in a line facing a line of girls. We found out there is one more girl than boy in our class: 11 boys and 12 girls. The boys get a ball and they throw the ball to the girl across from them. Kayla got to play with the teacher. They toss the ball back and forth and count the number of catches. That was one of our best physical education classes ever, but we still missed Mrs. Smith.
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Veteran’s Day
Our day ended with an assembly. It was about Veteran’s Day. Veteran’s Day is on the eleventh day of the eleventh month at 11:00 in the morning. That’s when they agreed to stop fighting. We sang The Star Spangled Banner and This Land is Your Land. Mr. Stocker taught us about the military, which is the Army, the Coast Guard, the Navy, the Air Force, and the Marines. Then he read us a book about Veteran’s Day. On Veteran’s Day, bells might ring, and many people are quiet for two minutes.
Substitute P.E. Teacher
Today in P.E. we had a new substitute teacher. Her name was a German name, but she taught us how to count to 10 in Spanish. It goes like this: uno (1), dos (2), tres (3), cuatro (4), cinco (5), seis (6), siete (7), ocho (8), nueve (9), diez (10). She taught us a game: The boys stand in a line facing a line of girls. We found out there is one more girl than boy in our class: 11 boys and 12 girls. The boys get a ball and they throw the ball to the girl across from them. Kayla got to play with the teacher. They toss the ball back and forth and count the number of catches. That was one of our best physical education classes ever, but we still missed Mrs. Smith.
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Veteran’s Day
Our day ended with an assembly. It was about Veteran’s Day. Veteran’s Day is on the eleventh day of the eleventh month at 11:00 in the morning. That’s when they agreed to stop fighting. We sang The Star Spangled Banner and This Land is Your Land. Mr. Stocker taught us about the military, which is the Army, the Coast Guard, the Navy, the Air Force, and the Marines. Then he read us a book about Veteran’s Day. On Veteran’s Day, bells might ring, and many people are quiet for two minutes.
Friday, November 04, 2005
Newsletter 10
2005-2006 Room 302—Newsletter 10 http://room302.blogspot.com
November 4, 2005
Dear Families,
What a great party. Thanks so much to everyone for helping out. If you didn’t get a chance to be here, you can get a feel for some of it on the blog site. I still have a scale and some knives here, so if you’re missing either, please let me know. The next big thing is conferences. I’m hoping to hear from you about what you’ve noticed, and what you’re wondering, because you know your child best.
Here’s what’s going on…..
In reading….
I’m currently assessing the students, and I’ll share my findings at conferences. I’d like you to do the same thing at home, in a different way. I’m assessing for reading strategies and appropriate levels. I’d like you to assess for reading behaviors and attitudes: How often does he or she choose to read, and what types of things? Does he see himself as a reader. Does she have favorite authors, or stories that she rereads? I can get some idea of these things here, but I want to know what happens away from school.
In writing….
If you could see the huge variety of writing that happens every day, you would know why I dislike saying some kids are “meeting standards” and some kids are above or below. Some, but not all, of the things we’ve discussed this last week include rereading, a date on every page, “period-space-upper case” to end a sentence and start a new one, beginning-middle-end, showing and telling details, mixing capital and lower case letters, and using spaces between words. That is a lot to keep in mind, but we’re practicing; and we’re having fun doing it.
In math….
We started the next workbook in the series, which is Building Number Sense. My teacher’s guide says our emphasis will be “Counting quantities up to about 20, developing strategies for counting and comparing the number of dots in dot patterns and strategies for organizing collections of objects so that they are easy to count and combine, and using numerals to record how many.”
Conferences…
Please return the yellow slips as soon as possible, so I know the time I picked is good for you. If not, please let me know so we can plan another time.
Current Chapter Book Read Aloud…
Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne
Calendar…
Friday, November 4—Science Fair, Western Dance
Thursday, November 10—No school
Friday, November 11—No school
November 17-November 22—Early release days; conferences
Wednesday, November 23—Early release day
November 24 & 25—No school
November 29—Noah’s birthday
Sincerely,
Jeff
November 4, 2005
Dear Families,
What a great party. Thanks so much to everyone for helping out. If you didn’t get a chance to be here, you can get a feel for some of it on the blog site. I still have a scale and some knives here, so if you’re missing either, please let me know. The next big thing is conferences. I’m hoping to hear from you about what you’ve noticed, and what you’re wondering, because you know your child best.
Here’s what’s going on…..
In reading….
I’m currently assessing the students, and I’ll share my findings at conferences. I’d like you to do the same thing at home, in a different way. I’m assessing for reading strategies and appropriate levels. I’d like you to assess for reading behaviors and attitudes: How often does he or she choose to read, and what types of things? Does he see himself as a reader. Does she have favorite authors, or stories that she rereads? I can get some idea of these things here, but I want to know what happens away from school.
In writing….
If you could see the huge variety of writing that happens every day, you would know why I dislike saying some kids are “meeting standards” and some kids are above or below. Some, but not all, of the things we’ve discussed this last week include rereading, a date on every page, “period-space-upper case” to end a sentence and start a new one, beginning-middle-end, showing and telling details, mixing capital and lower case letters, and using spaces between words. That is a lot to keep in mind, but we’re practicing; and we’re having fun doing it.
In math….
We started the next workbook in the series, which is Building Number Sense. My teacher’s guide says our emphasis will be “Counting quantities up to about 20, developing strategies for counting and comparing the number of dots in dot patterns and strategies for organizing collections of objects so that they are easy to count and combine, and using numerals to record how many.”
Conferences…
Please return the yellow slips as soon as possible, so I know the time I picked is good for you. If not, please let me know so we can plan another time.
Current Chapter Book Read Aloud…
Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne
Calendar…
Friday, November 4—Science Fair, Western Dance
Thursday, November 10—No school
Friday, November 11—No school
November 17-November 22—Early release days; conferences
Wednesday, November 23—Early release day
November 24 & 25—No school
November 29—Noah’s birthday
Sincerely,
Jeff
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
Week of Monday, October 31
Tuesday, November 1, 2005
Fall Party
When we came in from recess everything was set up, and we were excited. There were black streamers and pumpkins up on the lights. There was a dancing pumpkin about 34 inches high. There was a big spider web in the corner with a spider on it. In another corner there was a hay bale and corn stalks.
There were lots of parents here. Some of the parents were dressed up in costumes. We put on our costumes, too. Then Mr. Kurtz put us in stations and we had to stay there until it was time to move to the next one. The parents were at the stations helping the kids do the stuff.
At the counting seeds station, we got up to 899 seeds, and there were still more. When we took out the pumpkin seeds, our hands were all gooey. We used chalk to decorate wind socks at table 5. We used a scale to weigh the pumpkins at table 4. At station 5 we had to see if the pumpkins would float, and all three of them floated, and you got to get some food. There were some Kit Kats, Oreos, twisty Cheetos, m&m’s, pretzels, juice, chips, cupcakes, carrots and dip, pumpkin muffins, and pumpkin seeds. A parent took pictures of everyone sitting on the hay bale, one at a time, and we got to take the pictures home. We also got to take home treat bags that people brought.
By the time it was done, we were tired, full of food (including seconds and thirds for some, with more food to take home), and some people even had stomach aches.
Thursday, November 03, 2005
The Hole Thing
Savannah lost a tooth. She lost it in the bathroom. Then she came back into the room and said, “I lost a tooth!” And then everyone was crowding around the door. It was the second one out on the top left. She likes the hole because she thinks it looks funny. She hopes another tooth will not grow in that spot.
Friday, November 04, 2005
Science Fair
The science fair was in two places. One was up on the stage, and one was in the library. There was a lot of cool science. First we went to the library and then we went to the stage.
In the library, Lukas’s was about “Why Do Barn Owls Puke?” We learned they puke because they eat the animals and the animal have bones inside. So the owls puke out the bones and the fur. It all comes out in a little fur ball. The owls don’t have hands, so they pick it up with their feet, and later they spit it out. There are two places. One is the place where the meat goes, and the other is the place where the bad stuff goes. And later they puke up the stuff they can’t have in their bodies.
We saw things other kids made, too. We saw things like a bottle rocket with an air presser to make it fly off, volcanoes, “what is sour,” a rocket, blue water, this thing that picks up litter, this little car pulling a big wheel thingy, paper airplanes, boats in the water, and a mouse trap with a magnet. All of these things will be on display again tonight for those people who are coming to the western dance. Yee haw!
Fall Party
When we came in from recess everything was set up, and we were excited. There were black streamers and pumpkins up on the lights. There was a dancing pumpkin about 34 inches high. There was a big spider web in the corner with a spider on it. In another corner there was a hay bale and corn stalks.
There were lots of parents here. Some of the parents were dressed up in costumes. We put on our costumes, too. Then Mr. Kurtz put us in stations and we had to stay there until it was time to move to the next one. The parents were at the stations helping the kids do the stuff.
At the counting seeds station, we got up to 899 seeds, and there were still more. When we took out the pumpkin seeds, our hands were all gooey. We used chalk to decorate wind socks at table 5. We used a scale to weigh the pumpkins at table 4. At station 5 we had to see if the pumpkins would float, and all three of them floated, and you got to get some food. There were some Kit Kats, Oreos, twisty Cheetos, m&m’s, pretzels, juice, chips, cupcakes, carrots and dip, pumpkin muffins, and pumpkin seeds. A parent took pictures of everyone sitting on the hay bale, one at a time, and we got to take the pictures home. We also got to take home treat bags that people brought.
By the time it was done, we were tired, full of food (including seconds and thirds for some, with more food to take home), and some people even had stomach aches.
Thursday, November 03, 2005
The Hole Thing
Savannah lost a tooth. She lost it in the bathroom. Then she came back into the room and said, “I lost a tooth!” And then everyone was crowding around the door. It was the second one out on the top left. She likes the hole because she thinks it looks funny. She hopes another tooth will not grow in that spot.
Friday, November 04, 2005
Science Fair
The science fair was in two places. One was up on the stage, and one was in the library. There was a lot of cool science. First we went to the library and then we went to the stage.
In the library, Lukas’s was about “Why Do Barn Owls Puke?” We learned they puke because they eat the animals and the animal have bones inside. So the owls puke out the bones and the fur. It all comes out in a little fur ball. The owls don’t have hands, so they pick it up with their feet, and later they spit it out. There are two places. One is the place where the meat goes, and the other is the place where the bad stuff goes. And later they puke up the stuff they can’t have in their bodies.
We saw things other kids made, too. We saw things like a bottle rocket with an air presser to make it fly off, volcanoes, “what is sour,” a rocket, blue water, this thing that picks up litter, this little car pulling a big wheel thingy, paper airplanes, boats in the water, and a mouse trap with a magnet. All of these things will be on display again tonight for those people who are coming to the western dance. Yee haw!
Saturday, October 29, 2005
Newsletter 9
October 29, 2005
Dear Families,
Here’s what’s going on…..
In reading….
We continue to work on book choice. I want them to choose carefully, but I also want them to realize that sometimes it’s not easy to tell if a book is good or not until they try it. Something that may help you as you choose books to read at home is the list of contenders vying for the Washington Children's Choice Picture Book Award. We’ll be reading these at school, and voting on our favorite, and I think you’d enjoy them at home, too. Many are worth rereading. The web site is http://www.wlma.org/Association/wccpba.htm
Title
Author
Steve Jenkins
Forest Explorer
Nic Bishop
Agent A to Agent Z
Andy Rash
Gator Gumbo
Candace Fleming
Alice the Fairy
David Shannon
Goldie and the Three Bears
Diane Stanley
Arrowhawk
Lola M. Schaefer
I Wanna Iguana
Karen Kaufman Orloff
Baby Brains
Simon James
Karate Hour
Carol Nevius
Beatrice Doesn't Want To
Laura Numeroff
King of the Cats
Aaron Shepard
Blizzard
Betty Ren Wright
Manana Iguana
Ann Whitford Paul
Catalina Magdalena
Tedd Arnold
Mighty Jackie
Marissa Moss
Crazy Hair Day
Barney Saltzberg
Mrs. Watson Wants Your Teeth
Alison McGhee
Elves and the Shoemaker
Jim LaMarche
Superdog
Caralyn Buehner
In writing….
One consequence of writing every day is that students start paying more attention to spelling, because all of a sudden it’s important. We’re working on teaching them strategies: like looking around the room for the word, thinking of a word they know that sounds the same, and stretching out the sounds and trying to match the sounds with letters that could make those sounds. When you’re helping them write at home, I encourage you to just tell them the correct spelling. This will help them maintain their focus on the most important thing: meaning. This will help them develop a personal “bank” of correctly spelled words they can use when they’re trying to spell a new word. If you find yourself spelling certain things over and over, like grandma or thank you, I’d suggest writing those down somewhere so the writer has them when needed.
In math….
Bismarck is the capital of North Dakota. Or is it South Dakota? But really, who cares? For most of us, this is just trivia. It has no personal relevance, so we don’t pay much attention. The fact is, all knowledge is trivia, unless there is some personal relevance. There are just too many things to know and learn, and it is actually one important job of the brain to filter out that which is irrelevant. We want our kids to learn math facts, so we ask: How do we turn them from trivial to important and personally relevant? I think one great way is with games, which is why we’ve been practicing Cross Out, and which is why it came home this week. Many students seem to enjoy this game, and my hope is that they’ll teach it to you, and it can be something you play now and then. If so, great. If not, there are other ways in—you probably have games right now that incorporate math at some level. Your child will choose those that have personal relevance and importance. Play when you get the chance—whether it’s at home, at a restaurant, or driving on a family trip through Bismarck, North Dakota.
Fall Party…
This will begin around 1:45 on October 31. Students (and anyone else—feel free to bring those siblings) may bring costumes. We’ll have them change after lunch recess, before the party. Some may need reminders to wear proper shoes for P.E. that day, too. Savannah’s mom has graciously volunteered to coordinate this, so I am forwarding offers of help to her. If you can contribute, please call her.
Current Chapter Book Read Aloud…
Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne
Wish List…
Wallpaper—We’d like to have wallpaper samples to use for an art project, so if you have access to one of those books we can use, please let me know.
Dice—someone told me that casinos give their dice away free after they’ve used them, so if you or someone you know is in Las Vegas (or another place where they do that) we would really appreciate any they could get for us. We find many uses for them.
Conferences…
You’ll see on the calendar that these are coming up in November. I plan to share what I’ve learned about your child, and I’d love to hear anything you’ve noticed, or questions you have. I’d also love to have the students here during the conferences, so they may take part. I find it much more powerful to talk with them and to them, rather than about them. They deserve to celebrate with us, and they deserve to hear what the next steps might be. I don’t plan on saying anything they can’t hear, so please plan to bring them. The sign-up sheets for conference times came home in the Thursday folders.
Calendar…
Friday, October 28—Early Release Day
Monday, October 31—Fall party (afternoon)
Friday, November 4—Science Fair, Western Dance
Thursday, November 10—No school
Friday, November 11—No school
November 17-November 22—Early release days; conferences
Wednesday, November 23—Early release day
November 24 & 25—No school
November 29—Noah’s birthday
Sincerely,
Jeff
Conference Request Form
October, 2005
Dear Parents and Guardians,
As we near the end of the first report card period, plans are being made for parent-teacher
conferences. In order to accommodate conferences, children will have early dismissal on each
of the following days:
Thursday, November 17 Friday, November 18
Monday, November 21 Tuesday, November 22
On each of these days, students in will be dismissed at 12:15. Parent-teacher conferences will be scheduled on these afternoons. Before establishing our conference schedules, it would be extremely helpful to have an indication of your availability during these dates/times. Every effort will be
made to schedule your conference at a time you indicate as being available. Please note that we
will be able to offer a limited number of conferences on the evening of Thursday, Nov. 17. Please indicate your availability by circling "yes" or "no" for each date below and return this to school
by Tuesday, November 1. As soon as conferences are scheduled, you will receive notification of
your conference date and time.
• Thursday, November 17 YES NO
• Friday, November 18 YES NO
• Monday, November 21 YES NO
• Tuesday, November 22 YES NO
Student Name:______________________________ Teacher :______________________________
Sibling(s) : ______________________________________________________________________________
Other information that would help us in scheduling your conference(s):
*** Our Annual Bookfair will also happen during conference week…more information to follow…***
Monday, October 24, 2005
Week of Monday, October 24
Monday, October 24, 2005
Jesse is Back in Time for P. E. and Music Fun!
It’s a good thing Jesse came back today for P.E. and music because if he wasn’t here, then he would have missed all the Halloween fun. We did a new Halloween song in music called Five Little Jack-O-Lanterns.
In P.E. Mrs. Smith taught us a game. All four walls in the gym had Halloween labels, like Bat Cave, Pumpkin Patch, Spider Web, and Trick or Treat. We had to run to the one she said, when she said it. And she sometimes tricked us by saying something we didn’t expect.
We did another Halloween game in P.E. We pretended that the huge green rectangle was a house, and there were bean bags in there that we pretended were candy. Four people were it. The rest of us had to try to get the bean bags, but if the people tagged us when we were running, we had to drop the candy and go on the other side of the green line and try again. The game was done when the bean bags were all gone. Tomorrow will be the Spider Obstacle Course.
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
ESCAPE FROM THE SPIDERS!
We went to the spider obstacle course today in the gym. Mrs. Smith set it up. Some fifth graders were there to help us. So was Taylor’s mom. There were lots of challenges. Some were easy, and some were harder. We had to work our way through without touching the spiders, or the webs, or bells, or balloons, or bowling pins, or pumpkins, or ghosts. There was a table you had to crawl under without touching the bell. There was a maze to go through. Then you had to go through the hula hoops, under the jump ropes on our tummies on little square scooters, tiptoe through the pumpkin patch, climb under the net, and walk across the balance beam without touching the spider. At the end we all got certificates from Mrs. Smith that said “I escaped from the spiders at physical education.” We felt tired, excited, and happy.
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Partners
Mrs. Willard-Reid’s class came over to play Cross Out today. We let them sit in our chairs and we sat on the floor to watch Mr. Kurtz and Mrs. Willard-Reid play the game in front of us. Then each class lined up, and Mrs. Willard-Reid paired us off so that we could play with someone from across the hall. Some people were in groups of three. We started playing and everyone had fun. Then we cleaned up, and they went back, and we all did math happily ever after.
Friday, October 28, 2005
Half Day
We had a lot of fun on our half day. A half day is where you spend only half of the day at school. We’re at school until just a little while after lunch. Then we leave school and do other things, like play with our friends, visit each other, read, go fishing, and go to daycare.
At school this morning we made a wall story about our Halloween costumes. We had to write our names, draw our Halloween costumes, and print what they were. The most popular costume was a witch. Seven people picked that costume. And three people will be zombies. The other costumes were cheerleader, Indian, Scream, Darth Vader, goblin, knight, gatekeeper, The Thing, dragon ninja, fairy, Belle, and Batman. Those are great costumes, and it will be FUN on Halloween!
Jesse is Back in Time for P. E. and Music Fun!
It’s a good thing Jesse came back today for P.E. and music because if he wasn’t here, then he would have missed all the Halloween fun. We did a new Halloween song in music called Five Little Jack-O-Lanterns.
In P.E. Mrs. Smith taught us a game. All four walls in the gym had Halloween labels, like Bat Cave, Pumpkin Patch, Spider Web, and Trick or Treat. We had to run to the one she said, when she said it. And she sometimes tricked us by saying something we didn’t expect.
We did another Halloween game in P.E. We pretended that the huge green rectangle was a house, and there were bean bags in there that we pretended were candy. Four people were it. The rest of us had to try to get the bean bags, but if the people tagged us when we were running, we had to drop the candy and go on the other side of the green line and try again. The game was done when the bean bags were all gone. Tomorrow will be the Spider Obstacle Course.
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
ESCAPE FROM THE SPIDERS!
We went to the spider obstacle course today in the gym. Mrs. Smith set it up. Some fifth graders were there to help us. So was Taylor’s mom. There were lots of challenges. Some were easy, and some were harder. We had to work our way through without touching the spiders, or the webs, or bells, or balloons, or bowling pins, or pumpkins, or ghosts. There was a table you had to crawl under without touching the bell. There was a maze to go through. Then you had to go through the hula hoops, under the jump ropes on our tummies on little square scooters, tiptoe through the pumpkin patch, climb under the net, and walk across the balance beam without touching the spider. At the end we all got certificates from Mrs. Smith that said “I escaped from the spiders at physical education.” We felt tired, excited, and happy.
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Partners
Mrs. Willard-Reid’s class came over to play Cross Out today. We let them sit in our chairs and we sat on the floor to watch Mr. Kurtz and Mrs. Willard-Reid play the game in front of us. Then each class lined up, and Mrs. Willard-Reid paired us off so that we could play with someone from across the hall. Some people were in groups of three. We started playing and everyone had fun. Then we cleaned up, and they went back, and we all did math happily ever after.
Friday, October 28, 2005
Half Day
We had a lot of fun on our half day. A half day is where you spend only half of the day at school. We’re at school until just a little while after lunch. Then we leave school and do other things, like play with our friends, visit each other, read, go fishing, and go to daycare.
At school this morning we made a wall story about our Halloween costumes. We had to write our names, draw our Halloween costumes, and print what they were. The most popular costume was a witch. Seven people picked that costume. And three people will be zombies. The other costumes were cheerleader, Indian, Scream, Darth Vader, goblin, knight, gatekeeper, The Thing, dragon ninja, fairy, Belle, and Batman. Those are great costumes, and it will be FUN on Halloween!
Friday, October 21, 2005
Fall Party Supply Sheet
Fall Party
Monday, October 31st at 1:45
Sign Up For…..
____ Chips (any kind) ____ fruit
____ Juice Boxes ____ sweets
____ 1 bag M&M’s ____ plates or napkins (circle which one)
____ 1 roll orange or black streamers ____ I would also like to help at the party.
Student Name: _______________________________ Parent Name ________________
E-Mail Address: _________________________________ Phone: _________________
To help, just print this out, fill it in, & send it back to school.
Please send or bring items to school the day of the party.
Thursday, October 20, 2005
Newsletter 8
2005-2006 Room 302—Newsletter 8 http://room302.blogspot.com
October 20, 2005
Dear Families,
Here’s what’s going on…..
In reading….
Every time I read a book out loud, I always start with the title and author (and often the illustrator). This means that I end up mentioning the chapter book author a lot. Inevitably someone asks “Why do you say that every time?” Here is my answer: I want them to be aware of what we’re reading each day, and who wrote it. I want them to be aware of authors, and to have favorites, and to perhaps look for more books by the same author when they are choosing books for themselves. And when someone asks them the title and author of the current chapter book, I don’t want their answer to be “I don’t know.” I encourage you to mention title, author, and illustrators when you’re reading aloud each night.
In writing….
We continue to use our shared writing each day (usually) as a way to take ideas from the entire class and work them into one coherent (I hope) story. This means choosing from a range of topics, and then thinking about the piece from beginning to end. Here is a great place for us to work on exciting beginnings, appropriate endings, details that will create pictures in the minds of our readers, and a host of other things that writers worry about. Some have asked again for the address of the site where I publish those each time, so I’ve added it to the top of the newsletter. As always, we appreciate your feedback: it’s encouraging to know that there is an audience out there reading our work.
In math….
We’re finishing up the first unit, and getting ready for the next one. We’re also learning a new game that helps teach number combinations, called Cross Out. After we’ve played awhile, I’ll send a copy home, for those that would like to play there.
Field Trip…
We’re set to visit the post office tomorrow. If you have filled out your paperwork, please feel free to join us (even if you haven’t heard back yet). We’ll probably leave as soon as we can, but by 9:15 at the latest.
Volunteers…
Speaking of volunteering, the process is longer than one might think. If you’ve gotten a letter of clearance from the district, that’s the first step. The next step is for staff here to check references, and that is proceeding as rapidly as possible. A letter will come home when you’ve been confirmed, and I’ll give you a call so we can get you in here with us as soon as possible. We appreciate your patience in this.
Fall Party…
This will begin around 1:45 on October 31. Savannah’s mom, Kim has graciously volunteered to coordinate this, so I am forwarding offers of help to her. If you can contribute, please call her.
Current Chapter Book Read Aloud…
Winnie the Pooh
by A. A. Milne
Calendar…
Friday, October 21—Cameron’s birthday
Friday, October 28—Early Release Day
Monday, October 31—Fall party (afternoon)
Friday, November 4—Science Fair, Western Dance
Sincerely,
Jeff
October 20, 2005
Dear Families,
Here’s what’s going on…..
In reading….
Every time I read a book out loud, I always start with the title and author (and often the illustrator). This means that I end up mentioning the chapter book author a lot. Inevitably someone asks “Why do you say that every time?” Here is my answer: I want them to be aware of what we’re reading each day, and who wrote it. I want them to be aware of authors, and to have favorites, and to perhaps look for more books by the same author when they are choosing books for themselves. And when someone asks them the title and author of the current chapter book, I don’t want their answer to be “I don’t know.” I encourage you to mention title, author, and illustrators when you’re reading aloud each night.
In writing….
We continue to use our shared writing each day (usually) as a way to take ideas from the entire class and work them into one coherent (I hope) story. This means choosing from a range of topics, and then thinking about the piece from beginning to end. Here is a great place for us to work on exciting beginnings, appropriate endings, details that will create pictures in the minds of our readers, and a host of other things that writers worry about. Some have asked again for the address of the site where I publish those each time, so I’ve added it to the top of the newsletter. As always, we appreciate your feedback: it’s encouraging to know that there is an audience out there reading our work.
In math….
We’re finishing up the first unit, and getting ready for the next one. We’re also learning a new game that helps teach number combinations, called Cross Out. After we’ve played awhile, I’ll send a copy home, for those that would like to play there.
Field Trip…
We’re set to visit the post office tomorrow. If you have filled out your paperwork, please feel free to join us (even if you haven’t heard back yet). We’ll probably leave as soon as we can, but by 9:15 at the latest.
Volunteers…
Speaking of volunteering, the process is longer than one might think. If you’ve gotten a letter of clearance from the district, that’s the first step. The next step is for staff here to check references, and that is proceeding as rapidly as possible. A letter will come home when you’ve been confirmed, and I’ll give you a call so we can get you in here with us as soon as possible. We appreciate your patience in this.
Fall Party…
This will begin around 1:45 on October 31. Savannah’s mom, Kim has graciously volunteered to coordinate this, so I am forwarding offers of help to her. If you can contribute, please call her.
Current Chapter Book Read Aloud…
Winnie the Pooh
by A. A. Milne
Calendar…
Friday, October 21—Cameron’s birthday
Friday, October 28—Early Release Day
Monday, October 31—Fall party (afternoon)
Friday, November 4—Science Fair, Western Dance
Sincerely,
Jeff
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Week of Monday, October 17
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Mckayla is back from visiting her Aunt Lisa in California, and Jasen is back from being sick. We’re glad to have both of them here.
We got to visit Mrs. Roessler’s room and the library today. In Mrs. Roessler’s room, we heard a nonfiction book that told what puppies can teach us. Then we played with puppets and we talked about feelings using our puppets. Everyone got a puppet to use, but we didn’t get to keep them.
Next was library. We got to hear a book there, too. Mrs. Sullivan read us a nonfiction book about trees and leaves called Leaves on Trees. Then we got to check out books: Four people got nonfiction books. Fifteen people got fiction books. Ten people got chapter books. Eight of the chapter books were Junie B. Jones books by Barbara Park. Five people got drawing books. Seven people got books they can read by themselves. Fourteen people got books they want someone to read to them. And six people picked out books, but they have to get them tomorrow when they bring back their other books. This seems like a lot of books, but some people checked out two.
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
Cheese Puff Party
We came in to the music portable and sat at our seats. Mrs. Couch put some music on and gave us the Cheese Puffs. It was for a special party because we got all our letters.
We earn the letters each day, and when we’re all done earning them, we get to have the party. We have to spell the words “Awesome Music.” We can get one letter each day. We earn the letters by doing a great job in music. That means raising our hands, singing the songs, doing the motions, not messing around, and doing what Mrs. Couch says.
Today we also did the songs called Clapping Land and Going to the Zoo. It was a fun time in music. We left happy.
Friday, October 21, 2005
A Busy, Busy Day
Cameron turned 7 years old today. It’s her birthday. It was fun. We sang Happy Birthday to her (cha, cha, cha). We ate the cupcakes and drank the CapriSun she brought to celebrate. (But Lukas brought his own. It’s not a cupcake; it’s a blueberry muffin that his mom made. She made it a long time ago, but she said he could have it.) Cameron got a radio and a doll for her birthday in the morning before school.
We walked across the street today, also. We used the crosswalk, and we went to the Black Diamond Post Office. It was for a field trip. Donna opened the door for us and we went inside. We waited in line until Kim opened the door that let us into the back where they sort all the mail. And we got to see all the mail they sort. The mail is usually on a big, metal, silver cart that they use for sorting, but today it only had one box full of mail on it. Kim showed us where the people who don’t have mailboxes come to get their mail.
Next we got to go up front, and one of the workers showed us different kinds of stamps, like old cars, flowers, presidents, birds, movie stars, American flags, and Disneyland.
Finally, we went outside to see the mail trucks. We got to see how big the inside is back. We got to see what the front looks like, too. We found out that they get to drive with the doors open. And one of the trucks had dog bones in it because the mail carrier likes to feed dogs. There were also chains inside the truck so if it snows, she can hook them on the tires so she doesn’t get stuck.
Then we left. We loved it so much. We wish we could go back some day.
Mckayla is back from visiting her Aunt Lisa in California, and Jasen is back from being sick. We’re glad to have both of them here.
We got to visit Mrs. Roessler’s room and the library today. In Mrs. Roessler’s room, we heard a nonfiction book that told what puppies can teach us. Then we played with puppets and we talked about feelings using our puppets. Everyone got a puppet to use, but we didn’t get to keep them.
Next was library. We got to hear a book there, too. Mrs. Sullivan read us a nonfiction book about trees and leaves called Leaves on Trees. Then we got to check out books: Four people got nonfiction books. Fifteen people got fiction books. Ten people got chapter books. Eight of the chapter books were Junie B. Jones books by Barbara Park. Five people got drawing books. Seven people got books they can read by themselves. Fourteen people got books they want someone to read to them. And six people picked out books, but they have to get them tomorrow when they bring back their other books. This seems like a lot of books, but some people checked out two.
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
Cheese Puff Party
We came in to the music portable and sat at our seats. Mrs. Couch put some music on and gave us the Cheese Puffs. It was for a special party because we got all our letters.
We earn the letters each day, and when we’re all done earning them, we get to have the party. We have to spell the words “Awesome Music.” We can get one letter each day. We earn the letters by doing a great job in music. That means raising our hands, singing the songs, doing the motions, not messing around, and doing what Mrs. Couch says.
Today we also did the songs called Clapping Land and Going to the Zoo. It was a fun time in music. We left happy.
Friday, October 21, 2005
A Busy, Busy Day
Cameron turned 7 years old today. It’s her birthday. It was fun. We sang Happy Birthday to her (cha, cha, cha). We ate the cupcakes and drank the CapriSun she brought to celebrate. (But Lukas brought his own. It’s not a cupcake; it’s a blueberry muffin that his mom made. She made it a long time ago, but she said he could have it.) Cameron got a radio and a doll for her birthday in the morning before school.
We walked across the street today, also. We used the crosswalk, and we went to the Black Diamond Post Office. It was for a field trip. Donna opened the door for us and we went inside. We waited in line until Kim opened the door that let us into the back where they sort all the mail. And we got to see all the mail they sort. The mail is usually on a big, metal, silver cart that they use for sorting, but today it only had one box full of mail on it. Kim showed us where the people who don’t have mailboxes come to get their mail.
Next we got to go up front, and one of the workers showed us different kinds of stamps, like old cars, flowers, presidents, birds, movie stars, American flags, and Disneyland.
Finally, we went outside to see the mail trucks. We got to see how big the inside is back. We got to see what the front looks like, too. We found out that they get to drive with the doors open. And one of the trucks had dog bones in it because the mail carrier likes to feed dogs. There were also chains inside the truck so if it snows, she can hook them on the tires so she doesn’t get stuck.
Then we left. We loved it so much. We wish we could go back some day.