Families~
1. Conferences are coming up the week of October 29th-November 2nd!!! I have sent final confirmation times out to everyone. PLEASE let me know ASAP if you cannot make the indicated time so we can reschedule.
2. Respect. As a class family this year, we have struggled with our consistency in which we show respect to each other and to teachers. It's been a slow grind and I understand the kiddos are only 8-9 years old. However, as I've told the students 100s of times now, I refuse to lower my high expectations just because they are not being met. I will remain flexible in HOW we meet those expectations. This week has been SOOOOO much better than the previous 2-3 weeks, so I'm optimistic that we've turned a corner. I think the kids have finally realized how much more fun we can have as a class if we just keep operating at a high level.
Please remind your child that you expect them to be giving 100% respect not just to Mr. Buono and their classmates, but also Specials teachers and TAs.
3. X Timed Tests. We are 3 weeks into our timed tests. We've been writing in our planners to study our basic facts, but a lot of our beautifully honest children have reported that isn't happening in every family. Now, some students have been working hard at home doing things like Flashcards, playing a game called Math Magician on the computer, printing of X quizzes from the Math tab of my blog, or finding other games to play with 2 dice with an adult at home. Those students who have made those choices feel sooooooo proud about their progress, which makes them feel confident, which makes learning fun, which turns into them always working hard, which makes them successful not just this year, but for the rest of their lives. Please help them at home with their facts by suggesting ways to study and how you can be a part of their learning.
4. Nightly Activities. I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but please keep positive conversations flowing about their learning. Checking/Discussing their planners (vs asking do you have homework) is a great place to start. In addition, we have about 10-12 students who have made AMAZING progress in both Reading and Math, and more importantly just in their attitudes towards learning and now embrace that Achievement Via Individual Determination mindset. It shouldn't be too much of a surprise to know that those are the students who have those conversations with an adult each night, log on to the blog to play Dreambox or MobyMax or even Typing Club, and study for their tests and multiplication facts. If you have been all over this throughout the year, then keep it going! If not, now would be a perfect time to start getting into a new routine :)
5. Students' Activities Outside of School. If your child participates in anything that is important to them outside of school (Sports, musicals, etc.) feel free to share their schedule/date of performance. I've already made it out to several students' activities and I enjoy it so much! Our school days are quite rigorous these days, and any chance I get to show the kids how much I care about them individually, I really try to take advantage of. After all, I started teaching 12 years ago because of how much I believe in and care about children, not because of how much I care about curriculum or the politics of education!!! Your child means so much to me, and I can't remind them of that enough.
Sorry so long, but as always, I appreciate the support from your end! It will help your child on their road to future independent success!
Friday, October 19, 2018
Tuesday, October 2, 2018
October Already???
Families~
WOW! October already!!! We are really rolling right now with our routines and expectations. The students have settled in nicely and they are feeling pretty good about meeting some of those high expectations we set at the beginning of the year. Here's a couple updates:
1. Conferences. Notes went home yesterday for times to sign up. Please send it back ASAP to ensure we find a time that works for you. As the note indicated, I LOVE for students to attend the conference as well - I've done that every year and it allows for FULL transparency between that perfect triangle we mentioned at curriculum night - student, parent, teacher together. If you wish for them not to attend, I support that choice as well :)
2. Personality types. Hopefully your child has come home and discussed their MBTI letters with you! They have explored all the links provided on the blog during class, and they have been VERY excited to learn about some possible strengths and weaknesses in themselves. In addition, the main reason we take the tests is to understand that not everyone in the class may think and feel the same way they do, yet we need to find a way to be respectful of ALL classmates thoughts/feelings. What a beautiful and important thought process when you consider the way the world is today!
3. Multiplication. Starting THIS Friday, we will be doing a 3 minute timed multiplication test for the rest of the year. We start with only the x0,1,2,3,4, and 5 fact families. This does include problems like 9x4, because it is a 4 fact. Please buy flashcards, find games through my blog or other websites, and encourage your students to practice whenever possible. We will have all facts MEMORIZED up to 10x10 by the end of the year, and hopefully these first "basic" facts memorized by Thanksgiving. We're looking to improve our score each week, so please assist at home any way you can!
4. Continued work at home. For the 178th time, PLEASE check their planners nightly as everything we are doing in class can be found in there. In addition, they can work on MobyMax, DreamBox, or Typing Club on a nightly basis.
WOW! October already!!! We are really rolling right now with our routines and expectations. The students have settled in nicely and they are feeling pretty good about meeting some of those high expectations we set at the beginning of the year. Here's a couple updates:
1. Conferences. Notes went home yesterday for times to sign up. Please send it back ASAP to ensure we find a time that works for you. As the note indicated, I LOVE for students to attend the conference as well - I've done that every year and it allows for FULL transparency between that perfect triangle we mentioned at curriculum night - student, parent, teacher together. If you wish for them not to attend, I support that choice as well :)
2. Personality types. Hopefully your child has come home and discussed their MBTI letters with you! They have explored all the links provided on the blog during class, and they have been VERY excited to learn about some possible strengths and weaknesses in themselves. In addition, the main reason we take the tests is to understand that not everyone in the class may think and feel the same way they do, yet we need to find a way to be respectful of ALL classmates thoughts/feelings. What a beautiful and important thought process when you consider the way the world is today!
3. Multiplication. Starting THIS Friday, we will be doing a 3 minute timed multiplication test for the rest of the year. We start with only the x0,1,2,3,4, and 5 fact families. This does include problems like 9x4, because it is a 4 fact. Please buy flashcards, find games through my blog or other websites, and encourage your students to practice whenever possible. We will have all facts MEMORIZED up to 10x10 by the end of the year, and hopefully these first "basic" facts memorized by Thanksgiving. We're looking to improve our score each week, so please assist at home any way you can!
4. Continued work at home. For the 178th time, PLEASE check their planners nightly as everything we are doing in class can be found in there. In addition, they can work on MobyMax, DreamBox, or Typing Club on a nightly basis.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)