Mrs. Ochieng's Weekly News
December 13, 2019
Mark Your Calendar!
Friday, December 20th - PTO Spirit Day- PJ Day
Friday, December 20th - Classroom Winter Parties 2:15-3:00pm
December 21st-January 5th- No School Winter Break
Monday, January 6th- School back in session
Thursday, January 16th - 2nd Grade Winter trip to Flat Fork Creek Park (10:00am-11:30am)
Next Week's Related Arts Schedule
Tuesday, December 10 - Music
Wednesday, December 11 - Art
Thursday, December 12 - P.E. and Library Checkout
Friday, December 13 - Global Studies
Luke Gilligan, Fishers High School Wool Enthusiast and Entrepreneur
Lost and Found
Cold Weather
We Are Learning...
Project Work
Antibias Work
- We asked each student to picture in their head one of these professionals (doctor, pilot, scientist, teacher, or athlete). Then they had some time to draw the picture that was in their brain. We encouraged them to add details to their picture.
- We looked at what we drew based on each group. So, we called all the scientists up to the front and asked them to move to one side of the line if they drew a male and the other side of the line if they drew a female. Then we did the same for skin color (the two categories we used were white and non-white). Mrs. B. kept track of who was in each group and tomorrow we are going to look at the data and see what we notice/thing/wonder about it.
- Today, we got together again and looked at the data we collected from the pictures we drew on Tuesday. Based on what profession they drew, they told us if the gender and race of their person. Then we put that data into pie charts and looked at them today.
- We put the data out on tables with blank paper for them to write things they notice, what they wonder, questions they have, etc. I posted picture of each chart along with the comments on Seesaw.
- Then, we came together and had a conversation in a community circle about what we noticed, wondered, or thought about what we saw. Here were some of the words students said:
- “Every chart I was studying there were more boys than girls and more white than non white.”
- “Because a lot of us are white.”
- “There are more white people that are in here.”
- “Normally white people don’t draw black people they draw white people. Girls normally draw girls and not boys.”
- “You see more white pilots on TV shows than non-white.”
- “Might be more boys than girls and more white people than black people (in our class).”
- “This reminds me of something we talked about in our class – stereotypes.”
- We then talked to them about bias – that we all have a bias inside of us that comes from what we see around us (TV/Radio, movies, video games, things/people we see daily in our lives, what we pick up on from the activities we do, the places we go). We explained that our bias can impact what we think and what we believe and that sometimes we have to fight against our bias because it can make us think/believe things that aren’t true.
- We will continue our discussion next week and read a story where they can try to identify the bias of the characters.
- We are very proud of these 1st & 2nd graders for being brave and having these conversations that are sometimes difficult.
Reading
We have been working on analyzing characters based on their traits. This week we really worked on understanding feelings vs. traits and proving a character's traits based on text evidence. We also worked on plot. We identified different events that were key to the plot of the story.
Writing
This week in writing began to uncover our opinions about the books we read. Students gathered more of their favorite books. They used these books to look at titles, covers, and lessons the story teaches us. Students continue to write letters to other readers trying to persuade them to read these favorite books. Students then picked one letter they had written and decided who and where they would deliver their letter.
Phonics
Math
A Moment with Mrs. Chadwell - The TCE Global Studies Instructor
Information from the PTO
Did you know there are lots of ways you can support the TCE PTO just by shopping where you already shop?
Check out these easy directions to get your accounts set up and help TCE PTO provide so many different programs at TCE, including extra-curricular activities, professional development for teachers, classroom parties, and so much more!
Kroger Community Rewards (on desktop)
1. Sign in to your account by clicking the person on the top right hand corner of the screen
2. Once you are signed, click “My Account” under your profile tab.
3. Click “Community Rewards” on the left hand side of the page.
4. Type in “Thorpe Creek Elementary School” or use the school code “SX876”
5. “Hamilton Southeastern Schools Foundation” will appear.
6. Click “Enroll”
7. Happy shopping!
Shoparoo (on phone)
1. Download “Shoparoo” Application
2. Click “Sign Up”
3. Enter your “Email Address”
4. Click “Get Started”
5. Search “Thorpe Creek Elementary School”
6. Click “Confirm Your School”
7. Enter your “First Name” and your “Last Name”
8. Select your child's “Grade Level”
9. Once you have completed the above steps, its time to start scanning! To get started, click “Camera” button highlighted in green at the bottom of the screen. Align the receipt and click the blue camera button. Click “Done”. Preview receipt picture and click “Looks Good”. There is a 2 step “Who went on this trip” multiple choice question that needs to be answered. Click “Done” button. Receipts need to be scanned into the application within 2 weeks of purchase date.
10. Happy Shopping!
AmazonSmile (on desktop)
1. Go to www.amazonsmile.com
2. Type in your “Email” that is attached to your Amazon Account
3. Click “Continue” button
4. Type in your “Password” that correlates with the Email you entered in Step #2
5. Click “Continue” button
6. Under the “ Select a Charity” Box, use the search bar labeled “Or pick your own charitable organization” to look up “Thorpe Creek Elementary PTO”
7. Click “Select” button next to Thorpe Creek Elementary PTO
8. Check the box labeled “Yes I understand that I must always start at smileamazon to support Thorpe Creek Elementary PTO
9. Click “ Start Shopping” button
10. Happy Shopping!
Box Tops for Education (on phone)
1. Download “ Box Tops for Education” application
2. Click the “Next” button twice and the “Got It” button
3. Click the “Sign Up for Free” button at the bottom of the page
4. Enter your “Email Address”, create a “Password”, and “Confirm Password”
5. Click the “Blue Arrow” button
6. Review the Terms and Conditions. When finished, click the “I Agree” button at the bottom of the page
7. Type in “Thorpe Creek Elementary School” in the search box
8. Click the “Blue Arrow” button
9. Fill in your “ First Name”, your “Last Name”, “Your Birth date”, and your “Zip code”
10. Click the “Blue Arrow” button at the bottom of the page
11. Click the “Let's Go” button
12. After completing the above steps to get registered, you are ready to begin scanning receipts that contain Box Top Items! To get started, click the “Scan” button highlighted in blue at the bottom of the page. Align the receipt and click the white check mark button at the bottom of the page. The application will do a scan for Box Tops.
13. Happy Shopping!
NWEA Information
Library Volunteers
Library volunteers are needed to help with shelving and checking in books in our TCE Library. Volunteering in the library is fun and the schedule is flexible! If you are interested in volunteering, please reach out to Mrs. Hopper, TCE Librarian (lhopper@hse.k12.in.us).
*A safe visitor background check is required for all school volunteers. For more information on background checks, visit https://www.hseschools.org/services/other/school-safety/visiting-and-volunteering.
Mrs. Casey Ochieng
Email: cochieng@hse.k12.in.us
Location: 14642 E 126th St, Fishers, IN, United States
Phone: 317-594-4310
Twitter: @MrsOchiengTCE