Saturday, November 30, 2013

American Education Week Thank You!!!

Just wanted to give a quick "Thanks" to all the volunteers who made it out for American Education Week right before break.  Instead of just saying thanks or making cards, our class decided to do this:

American Education Week Thank You 2013-2014

P.S. Hope you all had an excellent Thanksgiving and enjoyed some quality time with your families!

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Quick Notes

Parents~

Let me start by saying "THANK YOU" sooooo much for those of you who made it out to our Fore Family Golf Night on Tuesday.  It was a HUGE success, and it was just great to see most of our class just enjoying each other's company.  Hopefully you found it worth your time (and $:) ).  I'm so grateful to work at a school with such REAL and SUPPORTIVE families.

Tomorrow (Friday the 22nd) we will celebrate our 2nd class party of the year.  For this one, we voted to wear PJs, eat Nachos, and play some whole-class games for a while.  Sorry for the short notice, but we have a few kiddos who won't be around for those 2 days next week.  I've got the food/games covered, if you could just make sure your child comes in PJs (if they choose). 

We are currently in the middle of American Education Week and that has gone excellent so far.  We have a few more presenters, and I'll update more on that once completed (but obviously a thanks to all who have made it or will make it later this week/next week). 

Other than that, please keep checking with your child about their school days.  The easiest way is still to check their planners and not just for homework.  We'll be moving on to ALL X Facts up to 10x10 right after Thanksgiving break, so if you haven't started yet, get on it!  Thanks for all the support and have a great Thanksgiving break with your families!

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

A look ahead...

Here's a quick look ahead at some reminders and upcoming events:

1.  Conferences!!!  I'm very much looking forward to them over the next two days.  Please come with any and all questions, and please don't forget that your child is invited as well!  And please don't forget we have a 5-hour day on Thursday and Friday.

2.  Indoor Mini-Golf Night!  I just sent a note home today about a very cool opportunity for our class.  Please find the note and give it some serious consideration. I really try hard to build a family environment within the classroom, and now's your chance to help out and be part of that as well!

3.  As for our X timed tests, they are going well overall.  Our class average started at about 55 and now our average is around 105!!!  However, the last few weeks I know a lot of the students have leveled off and many have admitted it's because they haven't been doing as much with it at home.  Please stay help them stay focused on these "easy" facts for the next 2 weeks.  We will slowly transition into all the facts between Thanksgiving and Christmas break, so let's really lock down these first facts in the next 2 weeks.

4.  Over the next few days, I will (hopefully) put a link to the right on my blog that will take you to book reviews written by this year's class.  They have all published a review on a specific website, and I will post their link to it soon.  It's a very time-consuming task, but it is a very fun tool as the students can read each other reviews and help find better books to read themselves.

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

As 1st Quarter winds down...

I figured I would update 1 more time as 1st quarter comes to a close (report cards are available the last week of October...more info. to come).  Some general updates:

1.  Please make sure your students are prepared for this week's "Friday tests" as it will be the last for the report card.  We'll finish some testing Monday/Tuesday of next week.  The best way to help is to continue looking in their planners daily as I will always put "Study _____" for upcoming tests.

2.  Due to no Words Their Way (thanks to the shortened week), we will be spelling 1 word for Friday's test:  antidisestablishmentarianism.  No, I'm not kidding.  The reason behind this is more so the students know they can accomplish ANYTHING with a little hard work.  I've done it every year, and my students are always very successful.  Great class motivator, but clearly requires some studying at home. As one girl put it in class today, "If I can spell this, I really can spell anything if I study it long enough!"  I LOVE IT!

3.  Here's a link to the EXACT multiplication timed test sheets we use in class.  Feel free to print off and use at your own discretion...the students have been getting MUCH better, so thanks for the help at home!
http://www.math-drills.com/multiplication/mult_v100_0105_0110_all.pdf

Overall, I've been VERY pleased with the effort the class has been putting forth...now we just have to keep that momentum moving once the "newness" factor wears off :)  Have a great night!

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Party and other Tidbits...

Parents~
The party today was AWESOME!!!  Thanks for those who offered to donate!  We had EVERY SINGLE student in PJs, enjoying root beer floats, and watching a hilarious (even though it's outdated) video.  Obviously we couldn't watch the whole movie (stopped right at 30:00 mark), so I embedded it below so the students could finish on their own time.

In addition, the multiplication timed tests went well last week, and I'm hoping for even better results tomorrow.  Here's an activity they can do to reinforce those x0,1,2,3,4, and 5s:
Math Magician: http://www.oswego.org/ocsd-web/games/Mathmagician/mathsmulti.html
Please try to come out for Bingo Night, which is tomorrow here at LC from 6:00-8:00...Hope to see you there!  Have a great night!

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Just some updates!!!

Parents~

If you are seeing this message, let me congratulate you on successfully subscribing to the class blog!  Just wanted to send out a quick message with a few minor updates.  We have had our most successful week so far are close to finishing this week up.  Just a few reminders (aka "things you're hearing for the first time if your child needs help with their communication skills" :)  :
1.  This Friday is our 1st multiplication timed test.  The students will have 3 minutes to finish as many x1,x2,x3,x4, and x5 problems as possible.  I have been informing the students of these tests since the 1st day of school, so hopefully they've been working on the memorizing of them at home.

2.  We will have a "phases of the moon" quiz on Friday as well.  The students have a little flip study guide which we created in class to help them.

3.  Coming home TOMORROW will be a moon phases calendar with directions attached.  The students will monitor the moon on a nightly basis and record their findings.

4.  Book orders were sent home late last week and are due by September 25th.  Please take a look and consider if you haven't done so already.

5.  Just a reminder to please check your child's student planner and home folder EVERY NIGHT!  The most important day is probably Monday because that is when their tests from the previous night will be coming home.

I believe that's all for right now.  Sorry for the length, and hopefully you find this information valuable.  Have a great night and keep on keeping on!

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Welcome to Curriculum Night!!!

Thank you for coming tonight! Please have a seat in your child's desk. Take a moment to look at their All About Me packet. Also, if you want to use this time to write your child a note, feel free to do so in their notebook.  If you have any questions/concerns at the end, please write me a note on the index card along with the best way to contact you!