What's Goin' On?

Dear families,

Greetings! I hope you are all well! We only have a short time until the end of the school year, and yet we have so much going on! Your children have been engaged in STAR testing this week. The fifth graders have been in my room. What a great group of kids! They're all respectful, kind, and motivated.

Today, from 1:00pm-3:30pm you are invited to visit your child's classroom to hear about all of the wonderful work your children have been doing.

Please mark your calendar for Tuesday, May 5th (6pm-7:30pm) for a parent meeting. Come and hear about great engaging activities for your kids during the summer and updates about I.A.The school will hold a raffle for $25 gas card, movie tickets, and an Arbonne Skin Care Basket. Your raffle-ticket is attached to your INNOVATIONS UPDATE. Updates are being sent home today with your child.

If you would like a yearbook, please stop by the office to complete your order. The orders are due on Friday, May 1st. On Friday, from 4pm-7pm there is also a "social". All upper grade classes are invited. Students can hang out with friends in the MPR, munch, dance, play board games, and do crafts.

Please make arrangements for you child's care on Monday, May 4th as this is a teacher professional day.

On Thursday, May 14th your children along with students in Jeremy's class are taking a field trip to the EcoCenter. The cost of this field trip per child is $10. Please send $10 to school by May 5th. A permission slip is in the INNOVATIONS UPDATE. Transportation is provided. We will be picked up an alternative energy bus.

Also in May on a Tuesday or Thursday, my Egypt & Japan Monday Mini-Project will be visiting the San Diego Museum of Man and the Mingei Museum. We'll eat lunch in the Japanese Tea Garden. Driver's are needed. Please contact me or Michelle. So far in the Monday Mini-Project your children have been uncovering a crime, by finding clues in an Egyptian and Japanese guide book. Next week we will be engaging in Egyptian and Japanese art and listening to music from both countries.

As you know in math we continue to use DI as a method of teaching. But in Language Arts for some time now, the students have had the opportunity to do independent reading. Along with the reading, they write daily summaries and work independently on grammar, editing, and comprehension skills. We use DI for spelling. For history
we have been studying the Revolutionary War. I have tried a number of approaches in order to make their study interesting. We are almost finished with "Liberty", an engaging movie series that reenacts the war. Mixed in are historians speaking about various general's personalities, military strategies, etc. Most students are making soldier recruitment posters. Early in the war, George Washington needed more men and recruitment posters were used for that purpose. Soldiers were promised land and money for service in the army!

I believe that is it for now. Please contact me with concerns or questions.

Sincerely,
Kim