Home School News
May 2016
Parents:
With only three weeks of school left, our final newsletter is here! I’d like to wrap-up the school year with a few more units of study, assessments, and of course, a little fun!
You may have noticed that I changed the format of the spelling test to make it more challenging. Everyone was getting A’s, so I decided to incorporate everything we’ve learned this year about forming a complete and proper sentence into the test. For the remainder of the year, we’ll also work on decoding and comprehension strategies in reading. In Math, we have covered everything a 2nd grader should know, as well as many 3rd grade concepts. The last thing we will work on is Elapsed Time.
As for homework… 2nd grade is the first year of “real” homework for us, so we played around with a few different techniques. My main goal was to teach them how to be responsible for their own work. To keep it simple, I only sent home material that was already covered in class. Feel free to let me know your thoughts on how we can continue to improve in this area.
I definitely want to thank you so much for reminding them, reprimanding them, and helping them complete their homework in general. Parents have such a huge impact on a child’s success in school. When you are actively involved in your child’s education, they get higher grades, perform better on tests, and have less behavior problems in class. So, THANK YOU so much for being such great parents!!!
Spotlight on A'Lasia!
Please join me in honoring our school’s 1st class Treasurer and Rookie of the Year!
Although A’Lasia didn’t start the year out at the head of her class, she worked hard & earned a spot at the top.
Instead of always participating in morning recess, she would often spend her time practicing math facts. She was able to quickly adjust to the “home school way”, becoming 1 of 3 students that had completed all of the GA Standards by March.
A’Lasia also had the highest score on both essays for the 2nd grade writing portfolio. :-)
You Go Girl!!
Important Dates
May 2nd - Ms. Raven's B-day
May 5th – Ice Cream Social & Playday, McDonald’s in Riverdale, 1:00 – 2:00pm.
May 6th – Fundraiser Field Trip - TBD
May 9th - Taye's B-day
May 11th - Field Trip to Noah’s Ark Animal Sanctuary, Locust Grove 11:30am-3pm. Be sure to dress for the outdoors & pack a lunch!
May 18th - Field Trip to Piedmont Park. We’ll be joining our GCA friends for field games w/the teachers, nature hikes & dancing! Be sure to dress for the outdoors & pack a lunch! 11am-2pm
May 20th - Last Day of School
-End-of-Year Award Ceremony & Picnic at McCurry Park in Fayetteville. 11am – 1pm. I would love for the parents to come out, if possible.
Summer Learning
The last day if school is Friday, May 20th. We will be closed for summer break, but feel free to give me a call if you need help finding something productive for your child to do.
Children can lose up to 25% of their math & reading skills over summer vacation.
You can help prevent this by ensuring they stay educationally active over break. Trips to places like the museum, theater, and national park are all important to your child’s learning & development. I will send them home with a few workbooks, but please make sure they:
1. Complete all pages of the math book
2. Read 20 minutes/day
3. Practice their math facts for 20 minutes/day (addition, subtraction, multiplication & division).
4. Go out and explore. It can be as simple as classifying bugs in the backyard to taking a hike up Stone Mountain.
A few local camps are below. Many fill up quickly, so apply as soon as possible. Some offer need-based scholarships.
Clayton County Rec Center: http://www.claytonparks.com/
Four locations - $55.00/wk, includes meals, from June 6 – July 29th (7am-6pm).
Riverdale Center: http://www.riverdaleculture.com/
Performing Arts Summer Camp - $80/wk, includes meals, from June 6 – July 29th (7am-6pm).Youth Life Center – Club Xhell, Riverdale: http://www.clubxhell.com/
Academics & Art – $75/wk, May 23rd – Aug 5th (6:30am -6:30pm)
The Year In Review
Our students are developing in a period where Georgia schools, colleges, and businesses are demanding more than ever before. People across the country are worried that our public school system has not equipped our children with the tools they need to compete in a global world. The Common Core State Standards are supposed to help fix this. I won’t go into my opinion on Common Core, but I will share with you what it is supposed to do:
1. Give a clear picture of what students should know at each grade level
2. Develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills
3. Measure student progress throughout the year
These Common Core basics were already incorporated into the k12 curriculum that I have taught for the past seven years. However, preparing for the GA Milestone Test with students who have not been required to think on a higher level can be a challenge.
Throughout the year I have given them many problem-solving opportunities. By having a smaller setting, we can dig deeper into understanding and explaining concepts vs. briefly covering a lot of material. Ms. Raven may introduce a topic one day, and I will go back and reinforce it the next day. Sometimes we spend two weeks on one topic. This helps them to really understand what they are learning in the deepest way possible. In class, we are able to connect real life with the subjects they are studying.
This method of laying down a foundation that serves as an educational compass works. Most of the returning students have exceeded the state expectations and are already working on the next grade level! As a whole, the students nailed math facts, wrote impressive essays, and met their reading goals. I’m very proud that all of them have made improvements and are developing into mathematicians, budding writers, and critical thinkers. I am already looking forward to having them back next year!