First of all, I would like to thank Mary Hind, Mobi (Jane) Pennock, and Lorraine Thorpe for the fantastic compliment party they hosted for us last week! Check out the beautiful cake! The children worked hard to earn enough compliments to have the party. Way to go, boys and girls! We are already well on our way to a second party. Keep up the great behavior!
"Never settle for less than your best! You are responsible for you!" This is our class motto that we recite each morning and talk about frequently. The children and I have agreed that these aren't just words to recite but words that we live by in our class. Therefore, the children and I have agreed that sloppy work will no longer be acceptable, whether done in the classroom or on homework. If the child and I agree that they did less than their best in terms of neatness, the assignment will need to be redone. I anticipate that the "neat writer of the day" award will become very competitive and that is a good thing!
The gift drive bins are in the hallway outside our classroom and need filling! What a great way to make the holidays brighter for families in need and, at the same time, reinforce the life skill of generosity with our children. Don't forget the gift drive ends on Friday, the 14th. The children will be carrying the gifts to the athletic center that morning. The joy of giving will never be so evident! Here's a great big THANK YOU to Mobi (Jane) Pennock and Mary Hind for spear-heading this gift drive for our class. You should have received an email from Mobi (Jane) detailing the gift drive. Please let me know if you did not receive it.
The children are also getting excited about our upcoming pajama party! It will be on Thursday, December 20th, beginning at 8:30 a.m. with a breakfast buffet! Your child may wear his/her pajamas to school that morning. They may stay in their PJs the rest of the morning or you may send in a change of clothes for them. If your child is wearing slippers with the PJs, please be sure to send in sneakers and socks to change into as we will be having PE that morning. We will be going to the Lower School Holiday Sing in the theater at 11:00. All parents are welcome to join us for the pajama party (you may come in your PJ's too) as well as the holiday sing. Dismissal will be at noon that day!
Even with all of the excitement of the season, we are still working very hard in our classroom. Here is a glimpse of what is going on this week:
Word Work: This week we continue working on the long vowel/silent e rule, focusing on long i words. Ask your child about that shy, silent e and how he causes the other vowel to stand up and say its name! Our high frequency words (word card words) are very, could, have, make, and any. Please remember that your child should be practicing reading and spelling these words each night. Having your child compose sentences using these words is excellent practice. Ask your child what my rule is about writing sentences. Hint - it has to do with your child's age.
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| Matthew, Ben, Cyrus, and Ryan practice making words during Word Work. |
Writer's Workshop: We have begun our realistic fiction unit. We began by defining realistic fiction (made up stories that could really happen), reading stories to decide whether or not they are realistic fiction, and talking about characteristics of realistic fiction. During this unit, we will focus on characters that are true to life (yet drawn from the writer's imagination) and behave in realistic ways, vivid and detailed settings (place and time) that are possible, plots that engage the reader and spark a sequence of events, and problems and solutions that are central to the plot.
Math: Ask your child about "FACT POWER" as we are working on many different strategies for addition and subtraction. "Fact Power" cards will begin coming home in a baggie every Tuesday. They are to be practiced daily and returned to school on Friday. Beginning in January, your child will have to mentally solve an addition (or subtraction) fact to enter the classroom each morning! We will also continue working on telling time to the quarter hour. Telling time is a skill that requires lots of practice. Please practice this often with your child throughout the year. We will be taking the unit 4 assessment this week. Look for it and the family letter for unit 5 to be coming home at the end of the week.
Science: We are into our unit on the solar system! Ask your child about earth's closest star. We are learning a lot about it! If you have not brought the 4 inch styrofoam ball and empty toilet paper tube, please do so as soon as possible. Thank you to those of you that have sent in extras! If anyone has anything that you would like to share with us about the solar system, please let me know! Our next field trip will be to the Science Center/Planetarium on February 5. It will be a great culminating experience!
Volunteers this week:
- Wednesday - Library checkout - Sharon Cannella and David Richardson - 2:10
- Thursday - Math Game - David Richardson - 10:30
- Friday - Art - Charlene Hosseini - 9:15
- Friday - Parent Reader - Kristen Danielson - 2:15
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| We celebrated Cyrus turning 7 years old last week! |
Have a terrific week!
Susan
The concept with this is fantastic.
ReplyDelete"Never settle for less than your best! You are responsible for you!"
However, I'd suggest changing it to:
"Never settle for less than my best! I am responsible for me!"
That makes it even more personal and something they can say to themselves outside of class.