The Falcon Flyer
OCTOBER 2023
Greetings Falcon Families!
We are looking forward to a great second semester of the school year and this is a perfect time to review some of our expectations. At C.J. Hicks, the instructional day begins promptly at 7:35 am and we believe that a Falcon who is well rested and on time for school is off to a successful start. Please support our teaching and learning efforts by discussing and reinforcing our R.I.S.E. school-wide behavior expectations and our digital citizenship expectations at home. Please also check your child's red communication folder each Wednesday and review their grades in the Parent Portal at least once per week. By continuing to work together, we can ensure that our school is a great place for everyone to work, learn, play, and grow.
Sincerely,
Dr. Erica Wakefall
LEAD | LEARN | LOVE | GROW
GREETINGS READY FAMILIES!
This month, we will be continuing our fall Theme. Spiders and pumpkins are our themes for October. We will continue to learn all about the season of fall, and we will do many activities with spiders and pumpkins. Our colors for the month are orange and black. The shape of the month is the triangle. Our focus letters are S and P. The numbers for the month are five and six. The book of the month is The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle. You can find this book on YouTube and share it with your child (https://youtu.be/p6s1vs3LzM0?si=t-SSwOan7YcvFG-s).
We will also enjoy sharing the familiar song, The Itsy-Bitsy spider, and the Five Little Pumpkins finger play. We will continue to talk and look for the many signs of fall by using our five senses while we are outside for recess. We will explore the parts of the pumpkin, learn about how it grows, and even taste some pumpkin seeds. At the end of the month, we will wrap up our unit by taking a field trip to the pumpkin patch.
Thank you!
The READY Team
GREETINGS PRE-K FAMILIES
Pre-K is looking forward to all the fun activities we will do in October! We are excited to get to work in our garden with our new agriculture teacher, explore the life cycle of a pumpkin, use pumpkins to explore numbers and letters, learn about the farm, and take a field trip to the farm. Our students are enjoying working one-on –one with our literacy tutor, Ms. Michelle, strengthening their phonics skills. Please continue to read and work with your child daily on upper and lowercase letter recognition, number recognition, and name writing.
Thank you!
The Pre-K Team
GREETINGS KINDERGARTEN FAMILIES!
It is hard to believe we are already in the 2nd quarter of school this year! We wrapped up quarter 1 with an exciting field trip to the Pumpkin Patch. Thank you for your support in making this trip a success and we thank all the parents that attended and chaperoned. In reading this month we are beginning to learn about characters, setting and main events and then using these elements to retell familiar stories. You can support your child with this by reading stories with them and have them identify the different elements. In math, students are learning to count numbers to 20 and represent the count with a written numeral. You can count different objects with your child at home to help them practice. In Science, we are beginning our unit about the difference between the day and night sky. There will even be a solar eclipse this month that students will have the opportunity to use in their learning. The first GKIDS report will be sent home to students on October 27th. If you have questions about this report after you receive it, please reach out to your child’s teacher.
Thank you,
The Kindergarten Team
GREETINGS 1ST GRADE FAMILIES!
As we continue to grow our scholars, we need your support and help at home to ensure their growth!
In reading, scholars are learning to retell stories and determine the central message or lesson of that story. They will also be learning how to use illustrations and details in a story to describe the characters, settings and events.
- In writing, scholars will engage in informational pieces as well as participate in shared research to write about a topic.
- In math, scholars are continuing their learning about addition and subtraction strategies. As well as patterns with shapes and numbers.
- In science, scholars are learning all about weather and the patterns weather can have.
- In social studies, scholars will begin to learn about famous historical figures such as Thomas Jefferson, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark with Sacagawea.
Friendly Reminders:
- Please send a dry snack with your scholar daily.
- Homework is located by the month in your scholar’s homework journal. All assignments should be completed in the journal.
We appreciate all your support! If you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact your scholar’s teacher.
Thank you,
The 1st Grade Team
GREETINGS 2ND GRADE FAMILIES!
With the finish of our first quarter, we are excited to continue to see our scholars grow. This quarter we will begin work on the following skills:
Reading: We are focusing on fables and folktales. Looking at various cultures and traditions, determining the central message, lessons and morals.
Math: We are looking at length and measurement. We will investigate the customary units for measuring length: inch, foot, yard.
Social Studies: We will begin learning about Georgia’s first people. Students will learn about the lives of the early Cherokee and Muscogee.
Science: We will begin to understand the patterns of the sun and the moon and the sun’s effect on Earth
Friendly reminders:
- Students need to read 20 minutes per night.
- School starts promptly at 7:35. If you are planning for your student to eat breakfast, it is best for them to arrive to school by 7:15.
- The weather is changing, and we love to go outside. Please send a jacket or sweater.
We appreciate all your support! If you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact your scholar’s teacher.
Thank you,
The 2nd Grade Team
GREETINGS 3RD GRADE FAMILIES!
We have wrapped up quarter one and we have officially started on quarter two of teaching and learning. Please talk to your scholar about actively engaging and participating in class to ensure your scholars understand and grow throughout the school year. Please be reminded that all students will have homework nightly and it should be completed nightly to review material learned in class. Please make sure you scholar returns their laptops daily to school.
Quarter 2 Standards:
- Math: Students will use part-whole strategies to solve real-life, mathematical and division problems with whole numbers within 100.
- Science: Students will learn about how to obtain information about the physical attributes of rocks.
- Social: Students will learn about the European Exploration and what obstacles, motivations and accomplishments explorers encountered. At the end of unit students will create a performance task known as trading cards for each explorer they have learned about.
- Reading: Students will learn about how to tell the point of view of a story, look at text structures of an informational text and learn how to find character traits of character through drawing inferences in a story.
- Writing and Grammar: Students will work on opinion writing and students will be learning how to use and for regular and irregular verbs.
Upcoming Field Trips:
- Oct 20- STEAMLAND Field Trip
- December 15- Fernbank Natural History Museum
Please be sure you have submitted a signed permission slip form or your scholar to be able to attend.
Daily Reminders:
To ensure a successful and productive month, here are some important daily reminders for both students and parents:
- Attendance: Please make sure your child attends school regularly and arrives on time. Consistent attendance is essential for their academic progress.
- Homework: Encourage your child to complete their homework assignments promptly. If they ever struggle with a particular assignment, don’t hesitate to reach out for assistance. All assignments will be on Canvas.
- Communication: Open lines of communication between home and school are vital. If you have any concerns or questions, please feel free to contact me via email or on Remind. Also, Red folders will be sent home every Wednesday. Please review all material inside and send it back signed on Thursday.
Thank you,
The 3rd Grade Team
GREETINGS 4TH GRADE FAMILIES!
As we close our first quarter, we want to thank you all for your support during the first 9th weeks. As we enter quarter two, we are asking for your assistance with speaking to your scholar about putting their first foot forward daily. Please be reminded scholars have homework nightly. The homework is a review of what was taught in class. Please ensure they complete it nightly. Devices will only be sent home when scholars are assigned homework on their device. Otherwise, the devices will remain in the classroom. The following will be covered during the second nine weeks of school:
- Math- Multiplication comparison statements, multiplication of 2 by 2 and multi digit numbers by 1-digit numbers, word problems, division, and fractions/decimals.
- ELA- Progressive verbs, opinion writing, drawing inferences, cursive writing, multiple meaning words, text structure, and interpreting information presented visually.
- Science- What causes day and night and seasons, moon phases, technological advances in telescopes, and attributes of planets and stars.
- Social Studies- Challenges of a New Nation and Expansion of New Nation Resources
4th grade has three upcoming field trips.
- October 17th - High Art Museum
- October 30th - Stem Field trip to DATE Academy
- November 17th - Georgia Aquarium
Please be sure you have submitted a signed permission slip in order for your scholar to be able attend. If you have any questions or need assistance with assignments assigned to your scholar, please reach out to your child’s homeroom teacher.
Thank you,
The 4th Grade Team
GREETINGS 5TH GRADE FAMILIES!
As we bring the first quarter to a close, we ask that you continue to encourage your scholar to do their best. We would also like your help stressing to the scholars to continue to show their RISE BEHAVIOR daily. We have been very busy these past months. The scholars have been learning many new concepts and reviewing some old ones. We have been working on various comprehension skills in reading. In math we have being working on Volume, Order of Operations and Customary Measurement Units. Please encourage your scholar to do their best on all assignments and assessments.
October 23rd will be an IL day (Independent Learning Day). Scholars will have learning activities to complete each day. Scholars will be giving explicit directions on how to login and complete their work each day. As a reminder, please help motivate your scholar each day for continued success. Encourage them to complete all daily assignments. With your help, we look forward to a great second quarter.
Thank you,
The 5th Grade Team
The CJH Front Office staff members look forward to assisting you throughout the school year. Please call the school or send an email if you need assistance.
We will always be happy to meet the clinic needs of our students. Please contact our school nurse, Mrs. Berlinda Alexander, if you have any questions regarding the clinic.
RCPS participates in the National School Lunch and Breakfast programs and offers free or reduced-price meals to eligible students. Please contact our cafeteria manager, Mrs. Kimberly Barrett, if you have any questions regarding school meals.
We look forward to supporting our students and families throughout the school year. Please contact our Parent Liaison, Mrs. Dawn Smith, if you have any questions about school policies and procedures.
C.J. Hicks Elementary School
Email: cjhes@rockdale.k12.ga.us
Website: cjh.rockdaleschools.org
Location: 1300 Pine Log Rd NE, Conyers, GA, USA
Phone: 770.483.4410
Twitter: @CJHicksElem