Greetings Parents from IA!

Dear parents and students,

So much is happening at school these days, I'm thrilled with the progress we are making as a school and in my classroom. The Direct Instruction is going well - most have gotten the hang of group response. The wonderful thing about it is, children are learning to focus for longer periods and to think more quickly. I recently had a parent tell me that her daughter has never progressed this quickly in math! Yeah!!

Your children are also starting another project. We are researching animals in the country they previously researched. They will be investigating the animal's physical features, adaptations, habitats, predators, and prey. In addition the fifth graders in my class will be describing through writing, and/or a poster their animal's physical structures for respiration and digestion. This is part of the fifth grade life science standards. We are also engaging in another art project . The students were asked to draw their animal from photographs and use colorful torn or cut paper to create their animal in its habitat. The drawing was a bit intimidating for them. We will keep at it.

This brings up our next field trip. We will be going by bus to the San Diego Zoo on Tuesday, October 28th. We will depart at 8:15 and return at 2:45. All children must sign a universal field trip form. They were sent home last week. Please get those into the school as soon as possible. The students will have the opportunity in most cases to see their animal up close and personal. I'm going to send drawing paper and pencils with each student if I get enough clip boards. In other words, I need clipboards! I only have three of my own, so if you have some hanging around home, could you get them to me before next Tuesday. That way the students will have the opportunity to practice drawing. You will also need to send $6.00 a child for transportation. This field trip is scheduled over lunchtime, so if you cannot provide your child with a bag lunch, please include an additional $3.25 for a Kroc bag lunch.

We are also attending classes at the Rueben H. Fleet Center's Animal Grossology Exibit on Tuesday, November 4th. Your children will learn about animal adaptation (perfect for their reports) and have the opportunity to dissect owl pellets! The same as above applies for lunch. However the transportation cost for this trip is $9. Please make sure these details are taken care of so your children are able to experience this educational opportunity!

Wednesday morning in class from 8:15-8:55 is free, so we have been reading folk and tall tales. The students would like to turn the tall tale we read today into a play. This means we are going to need some help from parents. For some of the props, cardboard will do (big pieces for a boat, large octopus, and waves). We also need poster board for signs and some parent help in making costumes (one for Pa, the Young Boy, three Villagers, Stormalong/mail character, and numerous sailors). I would like the play to be video-taped and we want background music and sound effects. Any help is appreciated! The children are so excited! Please e-mail me at kim@innovationsacademy.org with possible materials.

I think that's it for now. Thank you for you continued support. I appreciate your help in and out of the classroom.
Kim

Another update from Kim!

Dear parents,
Your children finished their country reports last week and we will be sharing them with other classes next week. In the meantime, I will be reading and grading them. For our next project, your children have expressed an interest in researching the animal life in their countries (we will be covering science, language arts, and art standards). They will be learning about the animal's physical characteristics and adaptations, their habitat or loss of, and their animal as a predator. Of course, one of the topics we will be discussing is the endangerment and extinction of animal species. They will also have the opportunity to engage in another art project using torn and cut paper, as well as pastels. I will be bringing a sample in on Tuesday for them to look at to get some ideas for their own work. Again, this is an opportunity to sell art and donate the funds to animal reserves or other animal causes.
We will be taking a field trip to the zoo on October 28th which will give the kids additional opportunities to perhaps see one of the animals they are reporting on. We will need parent volunteers to chaperone this trip. For my class, four volunteers would be perfect. Please let me know ASAP by emailing me at kim@innovationsacademy.org.
We are also going to have a Halloween celebration on Halloween day. Our costume parade will take place in the morning at 8:15. After that we will be writing and presenting scary stories as well as playing some games and trick-or-treating in the classroom. If you would like to be a part of our celebration and/or donate scary decorations, candy, or any other Halloween type of item - again let me know!!
Please remember that although we have a no homework policy, if your child chooses not to complete his work in class, it will be sent home for completion there. And also, please encourage your child to read at home. I would like to set a reading goal for our class and will be sending a reading log home soon. Please ask your children to start writin down the titles and authors of the books they are currently reading so we can add them to our log.
I hope this helps to keep you informed. You can email me anytime with questions, concerns, and feedback!
Happy reading,
Kim