Week 15

Thank you to all of the parents who made time this week to come in and meet with me and your child. I am excited about the goals that have been set and the progress the kids are making!

Also, I wanted to take time to thank Mrs. Foster and Mrs. Downs for bringing me drinks and lunches this week. I'm not sure if it's because I'm pregnant, but these two women completely made my day with their acts of kindness. Thanks for going out of your way to do this for me, ladies!

Here are this week's happenings:

1)  This week's homework menu has 2 activities. The first activity is due Friday and requires the students to finish the bare books they have been working on already. The second activity is due the following Friday and requires the students to create a diorama of the Alamo. Please encourage your child to use supplies around the house for this activity. (Your child's goal should be to spend no money to complete this.) Last year kids were extremely creative with this project, and I can't wait to see what this group will do!

2)  Our field trip to the Rangers Ballpark is this Friday. Please remember that:

• children and parents need to bring a (peanut-free) sack lunch,
• parents must pay $8.00 at the door,
• students must ride the bus to the ballpark and back to the school,
• if parents are going, I need to know now, and 
• if parents are going, they will be responsible for chaperoning small groups of children.

3)  We will be doing several different assessments over the next 2 weeks for report cards. It is very important that your child is at school everyday ready to learn and work hard.

4)  We are beginning to have a problem with tardies. Friday six different students came into the classroom after the 7:45 tardy bell. Please make sure your child has enough time to get from your vehicle to the classroom before this bell rings. Thank you for your help with this.

5)  Students should post their 13th book this week on the wikispace.

6)  Students need to post a response on the class blog by next weekend.

7)  We are getting closer and closer to meeting all of our 5-minute timed math goals. Please remember that there are printable drills posted on my website you can use at home. If your child has not yet met these goals, he/she needs to be practicing every single day.

Week 14

I hope everyone had a great week off and a terrific time with your families!  I spent some much needed time in Oklahoma and feel refreshed and ready to tackle this week.

Thank you to all of the parents who went on the field trip with us.  You were absolutely amazing!  I have never had such a smooth trip, and that is due primarily to your hard work and cooperation.  Thanks for your involvement and for your wonderful example to your children.

Here are this week's happenings:

1)  Your child needs to bring his/her trip pictures and trip journal to school tomorrow.  We will be using these throughout the week.


2)  Vertical Schedule begins again tomorrow.


3)  Conferences are this Thursday.  I will remind your child of you assigned time slot tomorrow.  Please don't be late since these conferences are planned one right after another.

4)  This week's Homework Menu is now available for you to print off.  The spelling assignment is due Friday, but the bare book assignment is due next week.

5)  Our kids are doing great overall on their timed math drills!  Our goal is for all kids to meet the 5-minute math goals before Winter Break.  This means that if your child has not yet mastered these skills yet, your child needs to spend the next 3 weeks really focusing on practicing and memorizing these facts.  I have place some printable drills on my website for easy access.

6)  Your child should be working on his/her 12th book this week.  As a class, we have now read 244 books so far this year!  Incredible!!

7)  Your child needs to post a response on the class blog by Sunday.