The Harrahill Herald
Mrs. Harrahill's News for January 18th-22nd, 2016
Anderson Grove's Purpose & Direction
Purpose: The purpose of Anderson Grove Elementary is to prepare all students to achieve their greatest potential and to positively impact the future.
Direction: In collaboration with families and community, our direction is to support and prepare all students for success through high expectations and individualized learning in a safe and positive environment.
Values & Beliefs:
Family Atmosphere
Collaboration and Communication
Integrity
Continuous Improvement
3 Be’s – Be Safe, Be Respectful, Be Responsible
Anderson Grove's "Be Known"
Anderson Grove is Known for Being a. . .
Collaborative
Dedicated
Positive
Community
School-Wide Expectations Focus of the Week: Arrival
Be Safe
-
Walk around building and in hallways
Stay on the designated walking areas
Keep hands, feet, and objects to self
- Greet others appropriately
- Arrive on time
- Have necessary supplies
- Go directly to walking club or classroom
Notes from the Editor
- Homework: There will not be any homework this week. Students should practice their spelling words each day for 15-20 minutes, as well as read for 20-30 minutes per day.
- Report Cards: After seeing your child's report cards, please return the envelope back to school no later than Wednesday, January 20th.
- Auction Day: Students brought home with them an orange letter about Auction Day (2/4) in Friday Folders. We'll be introducing these in great detail this week. If you or your child has questions, please feel free to contact me with any further questions. Also, I am in need of two parent volunteers to assist in Auction Day. This will be from 2:00-3:00 on February 4th. If you are interested, please email me.
Say What?! - Mrs. Wilson, Speech-Language Pathologist
Figurative Language Fun
At Anderson Grove students are exposed to a variety of figurative language terms. Figurative language, also known as literary devices, are found in daily reading as well as reading comprehension CSAs. These terms also help to make our writing more interesting!! Check to see if your child knows the difference between simile and metaphor. Just in case you need a little reminder… A simile is comparing two things using “like” or “as.” An example of a simile is, “The teacher was as sweet as apple pie on the first day of school.” A metaphor is comparing two things without using “like” or “as.” An example of a metaphor is “The ocean was a raging bull during the storm.” See you if your child can come up with other similes and metaphors!
Local Listings
Jan. 22 - Movie Night in the gym @ 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Jan. 28 - 100th Day of School 3rd grade fashion show! (pending weather)
Jan. 28 - Skate Night at Skate City @ 5:00-7:00 p.m.
Feb. 2 - Market Day projects and Auction Day donations due to school
Feb. 3 - Market Day!
Feb. 4 - Auction Day!
Feb. 12 - NO SCHOOL
Feb. 15 - NO SCHOOL (Staff Development)
Feb. 16 - Parent-Teacher Conferences @ 3:20-7:40 p.m.
Feb. 18 - Parent-Teacher Conferences @ 3:20-7:40 p.m.
Specials Schedule
Tuesday (Day 2) - P.E.
Wednesday (Day 3) - Guidance
Thursday (Day 4) - Art
Friday (Day 5) - Music
Current Events
**Note: Our students are part of a group helping to pilot new reading, writing, and spelling programs. We will be using a comprehensive reading, writing, and spelling program called JOURNEYS from Houghton-Mifflin-Harcourt. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me.**
Reading
At Home: While reading with your child, work on determining the message of the text. Sometimes this can be a life lesson, like in fables and folktales. It can also be what is most important about the topic. You can pay attention to the way the author organized the information/story to think about the message.
Example - In reading groups, we read about the daily lives of the Cherokee. The text was organized with an introduction, then taught about the Cherokee people long ago to today. Students gathered that the message was as follows: although times have changed and some parts of the Cherokee's life has changed, many of their traditions have lasted through time.
Writing
At Home: Read through a newspaper article or nonfiction text with your child. Use a highlighter (if possible) to look at an individual paragraph and identify its main parts:
- topic sentence - what the paragraph will be about (main idea)
- facts, details, & examples - supports the topic sentence
- definitions - sentences or phrases that the author has included to help the reader understand new vocabulary
- concluding statement - a wrap-up of what the paragraph was about (topic sentence rephrased)
Spelling
At Home: When your child practices this week's words, make sure he/she is saying each word aloud. Students often become confused between r-influenced vowel patterns like -ar (i.e. cARpet) and the -r pattern (i.e. cRept). They have two distinct sounds.
Social Studies
At Home: Discuss some possible business ideas with your child. Does he/she have a talent or skill that would make for a good or service? In the past we've had students create rainbow loom jewelry, bookmarks, masks, origami objects, and duct tape you-name-its. We even had face painting and manicures! Help your child think of some possibilities for Market Day. Remember: Students may not spend more than $10 on materials for their business and must pay/offer help at home to family members that help in this project!
Math
At Home: As your child practices measuring from home, look to see if he/she can accurately measure (to the nearest whole or half inch/centimeter), keep accurate track of measurements when using a tool multiple times (i.e. ruler), and adding up all sides accurately to find the perimeter. We've had some students struggling with which units and tools go together for the U.S. Standard and Metric Systems.