Week 23

Good evening! I don't know about you, but I'm LOVING the warmer weather today! I think I've had just about enough of the freezing temps and the ice. It looks like we might even get up to the 70s next week. Yippee!

On a personal note, I am now 99 days away from my due date! I think the kids are enjoying my outie bellybutton a little more than I am. (They keep asking if it will ever go back in, and I'm starting to wonder the same thing.)  If you haven't seen me lately, there's much more of me to love now.  My husband, Kris, and I are getting extremely excited about her arrival and are getting nervous about how fast time seems to be flying.

This week is filled with events, so let's get right to it.

1) Horizontal schedule resumes Monday.

2) The Book Fair is this week! Our class is scheduled to visit Tuesday to make wish lists and again Thursday to make purchases. Also, don't forget that the Book Fair will be open from 5:00-6:30 Tuesday evening if you want to shop with your kid.

3) Our Valentine's Day party is Monday at 2:00.  Thank you to all of the parents who have already sent $2.00 to Donna Downs for the craft. Also, thank you to everyone who volunteered to bring snacks and drinks for the party. If you have any questions or want to know how you can help, please contact Mrs. Downs at dldowns2u@sbcglobal.net.  Kids do not need to decorate boxes or bags at home this weekend. We will spend time in class on Monday decorating bags to hold their goodies and Valentines.

4) There are no clubs on Monday.

5) Portfolios go home Thursday. Your child's recent benchmark test scores will be included to give you a better idea of your child's progress. We are finishing QRI reading level testing this week, so that data will also be in the portfolio.

6) Recommitment letters are due this Friday. If you need another copy, please let me know a.s.a.p. so you have time to meet the deadline.

7) This week's Homework Menu has 2 options for the children. Both choices are writing activities to help the kids better prepare for the quickly approaching Writing TAKS. The Homework Menu is due Friday.

8) Your child should post his/her 20th book this week on the wiki. Many kids are catching up and are even getting ahead! Thanks for all of your support at home in the endeavor.

9) This week we have a Science and a Math Checkpoint. These are district tests to determine student progress. Once we have these results, I will communicate them to you.

10) If you haven't explored the TAKS links on my website lately, please do so when you get a chance over the next couple of weeks. There are full practice tests (with answer keys) you can print off to help your child at home as well as interactive study guides kids can use to practice their skills.

11) Your child does not need to blog this week.

12) We are still working on beating the 4-minute timers for our math drills.

Week 22

What a week! I hope your kids enjoyed their second Winter Break as much as I did.  It was so nice to have some downtime. The plan for this week is to pick up where we left off last week. Just scroll down to last week's post to update yourself on the news, homework menu, etc.


Here are the only new items to add:

1) Wednesday is an early release day. You need to make arrangements to get your child at 11:45.

2) Wednesday we will be taking a Reading Benchmark Test, and Friday we will be taking a Math Benchmark Test.

3) Recommitment letters go home this week. These letters help us know who will be returning and what open spaces might be available. Thanks ahead of time for making sure you get these back quickly.

4) Spring Pictures are this Thursday.

5) Our Valentine's Party will be Monday, February 14th, at 2:00. As soon as I have more information about this event, I will send it your way.

6) The Book Fair begins next week!

Week 21

Good morning! I just wanted to take a moment to thank a few people who have helped out lately. Thank you to Mrs. Foster for the wonderful baby towels and washcloths. We will definitely make use of them! Thank you also to Mrs. Bagley and Mrs. Miller who stopped by yesterday to help out with the pizza party. Things like that are so much easier with another set of hands on deck. I appreciate each of these women tremendously!

Here is the news:

1) Like last week, the kids will be writing an essay for their Homework Menu item. The Writing TAKS is now 5 weeks away, and we want the kids to be as prepared as possible. Because these assignments understandably take longer, the kids will not have a second assignment or a blog question for the week.

2) Dads and Doughnuts is this Friday from 6:50-7:30. This is a fun time for the kids to bond with their dads while eating some delicious, fat-filled snacks! If you did not buy tickets last week, contact the office to see what you need to do.

3) Kids should now have 18 books posted on the wiki. Congrats to Kate who is the first child to successfully complete all 30 books from the required genres! What an accomplishment!

4) The kids have decided that they want to be the first class to beat the 4-minute timers in all math operations. The kids are pumped about this goal and want to accomplish it before any other class can beat the 5-minute timers. (A little pizza can sure make a group of kids aim high!) I am excited to see that they are all continuing to improve and are putting for their best effort even after reaching their original goal. Remember, there are printable drills and games on my website your child can access at any time.

Week 20

Good morning!

Our Writing Camp this week went extremely well! The kids are learning to fine-tune their skills as the TAKS test looms closer, and I must say I am feeling good overall about the progress we are seeing. Expect to see more writing assignments for homework in the near future as we continue practicing the writing process.

Our 5 Spelling Bee participants did an amazing job this week! We are proud of them for doing their best, being good sports, and representing us well! Way to go Carter, Lauren, Braden, Kate, and Reed!

I am proud to announce that our class is the first class in the school to have all 4 math drills conquered! Every student is now about to beat the 5-minute timer for all operations! Mrs. Simons almost cried when we told her and promised the kids a pizza party. As soon as I have a date and time set (probably a Friday around 2:00), I will let you know. If you are interested in coming and helping out in any way, please let me know!

Here are the things you need to know:

1) Vertical Schedule resumes Monday.

2) The 11 kids who completed 5 Bluebonnet books by last Friday will get to go to a banana split party in the library at 2:00 on Monday! If you have questions, please contact the librarian, Cathy Patterson.


3) This week's Homework Menu has just one activity for the kids to complete. The students will practice writing an essay based on a TAKS-type of prompt. The menu gives clear step-by-step directions of the processes we regularly use in class to develop our ideas and organize our writing. The Writing TAKS is now just 6 weeks away, so we are working hard to help these processes stick.

4) The kids do not need to post on the class blog again this week.

5) Your child should have 17 books posted on the wikispace. If your child needs a recommendation for a good book, he/she should go to the wiki and read the reviews from his/her peers!

6) The kids are all now working on 4-minute timers (or 3- or 2-minute timers) for their math drills! (I'm so proud of their hard work!) Our goal is for kids to have every fact entirely memorized and to move entirely away from finger-counting or skip-counting. Remember, there are games on my website kids can use to practice these skills as well as printable drills to use at home.

7) Kids overall are getting better at getting to class on time, but we are still having a few kids who regularly show up to class after the 7:45 bell. Please try to get your child to school as close to the 7:35 bell as possible so that he/she can take care of morning duties and prepare for the day.

I hope you have a wonderful week! Stay warm!

Week 19

Happy Sunday! I hope you are enjoying your long weekend with your children.


Here are this week's main events:


1) There is no school Monday in celebration of MLK Day!


2) This week's Homework Menu is posted now. As always, please encourage your child to begin his/her assignment early to avoid stress later in the week. Remember that your child can stay after school Tuesday for help if you fill out the Homework Hotline pass.


3) Your child does not need to post on the class blog this week unless he/she did not post last week.


4) Your child should have 16 books posted on the class wikispace. We have several kids close to finishing their 30-Books Goal! It's simply amazing! Thanks for all you are doing to help support your child's reading at home!


5) Thursday and Friday we will have a Writing Camp to help our students further prepare for the Writing TAKS Test. (Can you believe their test is only a month and a half away?) Students will rotate through classes to help them improve their introductions, conclusions, word choice, and focus. This week the kids will also receive their scores for the Writing Benchmarks from last week and will work to improve the essays that they wrote.


6) The Spelling Bee is this Wednesday. We have 5 students from our class who have qualified to compete! If your child is one of the kids participating in the Spelling Bee, please don't forget that there is a very important meeting immediately after school Tuesday. Please contact Amy Moore (amoore@burelsonisd.net) if you have other questions.


7) Almost all students are now working on a 4-minute timer for our math drills! The kids are all improving and working to beat their best times. If your child has not yet conquered this task, please continue to have him/her practice daily. Remember, there are printable drills on my website for you to use at home.

Week 18

Good evening! Can you believe it's already 2011? We have had a great week back, and the kids are learning new things already. I love how they have jumped straight back into the groove of things. We really do have such a sweet group of kids, and they make my job so much fun.

I want to take a moment to thank all of the parents who helped with the great party we had before the break! Thanks for spending your time with us and for providing such yummy snacks and great gifts. You continue to bless me and my family tremendously!

Also, I want to thank Mrs. Gee who has volunteered her time in the classroom and Mrs. Johnson who has once again spoiled me by bringing me lunch this week. You guys are the best!

Here's what you need to know this week:

1) Report cards go home Monday. Remember as you look at them that the overall grades cover all First and Second Nine Weeks objectives. In order to receive an M as an overall grade in a subject, your child must have had Ms in 90% of the objectives covered thus far. I love how comprehensive and specific this report card is. I hope that the specific feedback you will see will help you know exactly where your child needs to focus his/her attention to improve. As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

2) This week's Homework Menu is now posted. Your child only has a Spelling assignment, so hopefully this won't take too long to complete. Don't forget that the Homework Hotline is available on Tuesday for your child if he/she needs extra help or time.

3) Your child should be completing and posting his/her 15th book this week. Our class as a whole has now read over 350 books this year! It is simply amazing to see how much they have done and how well they are doing in all subjects as a result of focusing on these skills.

4) This week your child needs to post a response on the class blog.  Several kids have not completed the last 2 responses and should work on that as well.

5) Your child will be taking a Writing Benchmark test on Thursday this week. This is a practice TAKS test to help us know better how to help your child prepare for the upcoming TAKS test. The real Writing TAKS Test will happen during the first week of March, so we are definitely down to crunch time.

6) Almost all students are now working on a 4-minute timer for our math drills! The kids are all improving and working to beat their best times. If your child has not yet conquered this task, please continue to have him/her practice daily. Remember, there are printable drills on my website for you to use at home.

7) Our Nine Weeks Awards Assembly is Friday at 8:00.  I will send you an email today if your child will be receiving an award.

Week 16

Only one week left! (Can you believe it?) This week will be filled with assemblies, assessments, and parties. It's going to be fun! Also, this Wednesday I have my sonogram to (hopefully) find out if I'm having a boy or girl!  I'm going out of my mind with anticipation!

Here are the big events:

1)  This week's homework menu is due this Friday. The kids just need to finish creating their dioramas. I can't wait to see what they produce!

2)  Our Christmas party is Thursday at 2:00. Please remember that each child needs to bring a book for the book exchange we will be doing that day. Here are the directions again that Mrs. Downs sent you: For the gifts, the students will have a random book exchange.  The teachers have asked that the students choose a new, grade-appropriate, book that costs no more than $5.00.  Please wrap the book and label it “from a boy, to a boy” or “from a girl, to a girl”.  Send the wrapped book the week of the Party.  The gifts will then be exchanged through a game that will be played at the party.

3)  Friday is an early release day! Please make arrangements to pick up your child at 11:45 that day.

4)  We are still having some problems with tardies, but the numbers are decreasing. Thank you for getting your child to school as close to 7:35 as possible.

5)  Students should post their 14th book on the wikispace this week. The students will not be assigned additional reading over the Break, so the two weeks off should be a great time for your child to get caught up and/or ahead.

6)  Every week more children are mastering their timed math drills!  I am so proud of their hard work. If your child still has not mastered all 4 areas, please help him/her practice daily. Remember, there are printable drills on my website to help out.

7)  We will not have a blog question for the kids this week.

8)  We are finishing up assessments for report cards this week. It is extremely important that your child is here each day this week.

9)  Our OUTDOOR Christmas Assembly is Friday at 10:00. Kids can wear jeans and a red shirt that day.