I can't believe it is already November! We had a wonderful class party yesterday. I hope your child had lots to share about the fun we had. Our students and I are very grateful for all of the work, time, and donations that were put towards making this an enjoyable afternoon for us all! A special thanks goes out to Ms. Flum and Ms. Menard for orchestrating our class Fall Party. Thanks also to the volunteers who helped with each station, and of course to everyone who pitched in to help cover the cost of supplies. If you attended the party and have any pictures, please send them to me in an email this week. I am in the process of compiling them in a video to share with all of our families.
Students will begin Art class this Tuesday. Ms. Thurman is asking for donations of large and thick cardboard for a project students will be working on.
We are also 'wrapping' up our unit on graphing in math, and are in need of some fully intact and not-so-messy candy wrappers. I was thinking that everyone might have this already, so please send one or two with your child by Tuesday.
On Friday, students received their November Reading Logs. Students are aware of this month's Reading Log Challenge, but please let me know if you have any questions or comments.
I have added Raz-Kids reading to the Reading Log. A quick link to the Raz-Kids website can be found on the ScootPad and Other Learning Links page of this site. The Reading Log Challenge will include the Raz-Kids reading from both home and school. When your child reads at home on Raz-Kids, just write Raz-Kids on the reading log and indicate the time spent listening, reading, and taking quizzes. I will view their report at the end of the month to see if they accomplished their required amount of text read on Raz-Kids for the Reading Log Challenge. Please see the card in your child's blue communication folder for their password.
Students are also asked to read a book or article about magnetism this month. This can come from any source, but Wonderopolis may be a good choice. I also showed students how to use the 'Kid Friendly Search Engines' to find other online texts on magnetism as well. Please consider working with your child and searching for articles on the internet using these search engines. You might also take this opportunity to discuss the importance of internet safety with them. A quick link to Wonderopolis and the search engines mentioned above can be found on the Wonderopolis and Kid Friendly Search Engines page on this site.
Students are also asked to read a poetry book from the Oxford Owl website. A quick link to the Oxford Owl website can be found on the ScootPad and Other Learning Links page of this site. I have created a class log-in for Oxford Owl to make this easier for our families. It doesn't matter if you use your own personal log in or the log in for our class. Just mark the title of the poetry book on the reading log, and indicate that it was from Oxford Owl.
Oxford Owl Log-in:
Click on 'My Class Log-In'
My Class Name: weberclass
My Class Password: cougar1
At the top of the reading log, you will notice the amount of points required for your child to earn a Book It! certificate for a free pizza from Pizza Hut. I gave a lot of these out on Friday, and am hopeful to give out even more at the end of this month!
Our ScootPad homework will continue as usual, and don't forget about the student blogging opportunity. Students can earn extra points on our Class Dojo for 'Seeking Opportunities to Learn' just by participating! It will be available for another week before I change the writing topic.
This Tuesday, your child will have a Parent Teacher Conference form, and a November Scholastic Book Order in their Tuesday Folders. Please return the Conference form as soon as possible- I will create my schedule on a first-come-first-serve basis. Also, the Scholastic Book Order will be placed at the end of the month. Please visit the Welcome Page of this site for a quick link and our special class code for placing a book order. You may also order books by filling out the form on the back of the order form, and sending money in with your child at school. Please remember to write your child's name on the order form.
I saved the best part for the end! For those of you who have made it this far, I would like to direct your attention to our Newsletter where you can now find a slideshow of our almost-daily class journal entries that students are creating using an iPad app called 'Kid Journal.' This will be updated periodically. Every student will have an opportunity to create one, so don't be alarmed if you don't see a journal entry by your student at this time. Enjoy!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions, comments or concerns.
Highest Regards,
Gina Weber
"Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much." -Helen Keller