Weekly Update!

Dear Families,

We are careening towards the end of the year and there are many events to know about!

Before I get started with the list, I do want to take a moment and thank you all for your acknowledgements during "Teacher Appreciation Week", "Mother's Day", and my birthday. Near the end of the year, everyone starts running "out of steam"; however, hearing your words of caring in person, through emails, greeting cards, and your beautiful children has been sustaining. Bravo!

OK, back to business! First on the agenda is student-led conference week. Monday, the 23rd through Thursday, the 26th are all half-days. School will last until 12:30pm on those days and conferences will follow. A sign-up sheet is attached to my big table at the front of the room. Please remember to bring your child to these conferences as they will give you a tour of their learning and of course, I will be there to meet with you afterwards.

There will be no school on Friday, May 27th due to a Teacher Professional Day and on Monday, May 30th for Memorial Day!

I am going to be setting up a field trip to the zoo which will be at no cost to students. The date I have in mind is June 2nd. I will need drivers and will let you know details next week. Mark your calendar!

Monday, June 13th is field day for all of I.A. Students will be engaged in relay races, obstacle courses, balloon toss (my station), etc...I need the following supplies donated: 250+ water balloons as every child at I.A. will participate, buckets to hold premade balloons - as many as possible, and volunteers to help run this station and make balloons. Calling all volunteers!

Finally, on Friday, June 17th I would like to have a potluck picnic in our nearby park! I need volunteers to sign up to bring entrees, salads, beverages, fruit, and desserts. It would also be nice to see some Frisbees, balls, and picnic blankets come on that day as there only a few picnic tables. I will post a sign-up sheet on my big table at the front of my room as of Monday, May 23rd!

In our classroom, students are working on writing a "Response to Literature". This is being closely guided by me and is based on a short story, "The Stranger", by Chris Van Allsburg. The genre is fantasy! We are also continuing to edit authentic writing by students as a whole group, and researching for our Passion Projects. So far students' passions are being presented by informational reports, power points, posters, tri-fold posters, and video. I have requested that all students interview an expert or ask an expert to present their expertise in front of the class. The kids can't wait to get started on their projects each and every day! Finally, in math your children are doing a fantastic job of converting fractions into decimals and percentages!

I believe that is it for now! Contact me anytime via email or in person.

Weekly Update!

Dear Families,

On my last BLOG, I mentioned POLS being held on May 23rd-26th. Oops! What I should have said was that those dates are the week of student-led conferences. They are all half days, so students in my room will be dismissed at 12:30pm. A schedule for conferences is taped to my big table and ready for your sign up! Like our previous conference, your child will be giving you a tour through their current learning and afterwards, you can meet with me with any questions. In addition, Friday May 27th is a staff development day - so kids are off!

Parents, please discuss with your children what materials they need for their Passion Project (tri-fold poster, materials for a diorama, help making a video, materials for a book, poster board, etc...). These projects are due June, 3rd with many steps between now and then.

Please contact me with any questions or comments through my email or personally in the classroom

Kim

Update from 3rd/4th Grade!!!!!!!!!!1

Dear Families,

We did it! Testing is over and I am very happy to say that your children did a good job following my test prep instructions.

We are off and running on some new projects that students are working on in groups. The first is a project in math called the "Earth in Numbers". Students are researching information such as the highest mountains, longest rivers, biggest oceans, biggest deserts, fastest insects, etc.....students will be converting kilometers to miles, hours to days/years and more. After researching, they will be creating charts, graphs, and posters. I'm expecting beautiful, collaborative work.

The second project we are delving into is our "Passion Project" Students have been asked to come up with 3-5 passions and are doing some minor research in order to pick their primary passion which they will be married to through the end of the year. Included in the project will be a five-paragraph expository report and students will be asked to create a visual explanation of the ideas they are researching within their topic.

Presentations of Learning will again take place during the week of May 23-26. These will be half days for students. There will also be a teacher professional day on Friday, May 27th.

On Tuesday, May 24th and Thursday, May 26th, there will be a scholastic book fair, so you may want to check in with your children regarding books they may want to purchase.

Report cards will be handed out on the last day of school - Friday, June, 17th 2011.

I think that is it for now. Please contact me in the classroom or by email with any questions you may have.