MGES News
20 October 2019
Around the Castle
Good evening, Mt. Gallant!
What an awesome turnout for our second Knight Time Tailgate! Thank you for coming out to see our students in the spotlight! Special thanks to Lisa Baker, Tim Brannon, LaTonya Burress, Julie Mills, Kim Baskin, Ashlyn Miller, Ashley Allen, Katie Galvis, Melisa Smith, Nate Rambo, and PTA for making it all possible!
Our second grade students will take Cognitive Abilities Test or CogAT this Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. CogAT is a measure of reasoning abilities and not specific aptitude in reading, writing, or math. Testing will begin at 8:30a on these days. Please make sure your child gets a good night's rest, eats a low-sugar breakfast, and has an extra stress-free morning on testing days. Results of this assessment will be shared with parents.
Drop in this Wednesday from 8a - 8:30a to meet Officer Doster, our School Security Officer! Officer Doster has been a phenomenal addition to our Mt. Gallant family. Stop by if you haven't had a chance to meet him yet!
This week is Red Ribbon Week! See the flyer below to see how we're celebrating staying drug free. I hope you'll enjoy reading this Grade Level/Area edition of MGES News! There are so many wonderful things going on at Mt. Gallant. I am so proud of our learning community.
Let's have a great week!
Jacob Moree
PTA Needs YOU!
Please join me in signing up to either bring a dessert, drinks, or be a lunch monitor for our October duty free teacher luncheon! Please drop off drinks & desserts to the front office by 10am & lunch monitors report to the cafeteria by 10:15am. I know this is a day each month the teachers so enjoy & look forward to:) They do so much to help our Knights, so what better way to give back to the teachers & staff than by providing them a lunch all to themselves! Thank you in advance for your help!
Thank you!
Danielle Dunn, PTA
Collect your fundraiser items on October 21!
Kindergarten
SKILLS FOR THIS MONTH
- read grade level text with purpose and understanding
- recognize and name all upper and lowercase letters
- identify the author and the illustrator and define the roles of each
- draw, tell, and write about a single event
- count forward from 1-40
- identify 1st-5th positions
- identify shorter/longer
- five senses
TEACHER/PARENT CONFERENCES
Conferences will be on Monday, October 21st. Be sure to sign up for a time with your child's teacher!
IMPORTANT DATES
- Monday, October 21st: No School, Parent/Teacher Conferences
- Wednesday, October 23rd: Firetruck Visit
First Grade
ELA
· Reading: Reading non-fiction to reinforce foundational reading skills (phonics, vocabulary, word study)
· Writing: Writing informative/explanatory texts and working on the mechanics to write clear, complete sentences.
· Communication: Learning to participate in shared conversations with varied partners about focused grade level topics and texts in small and large groups.
Math
· Number sense: expand concept of numbers past 100, place value, and comparison of
quantities
· fluency of addition and subtraction facts through 20 with unknowns in all positions
· Solving real world/story problems using addition and subtraction with 3 whole number
addends
· Analyzing and drawing conclusions from various types of graphs
Science
· Exploring the sun and the moon
Social Studies
· Learning about the American government and democracy
Things to Remember
- Communication folders go home every Wednesday and should return on Thursday
- First quarter report cards go home October 28th
- Scholastic book fair will be in the media center November 4th-8th
- Thanksgiving lunch for 1st grade is November 20th at 10:50
- Thanksgiving holiday is November 27th-29th
Second Grade
In ELA we have been studying characters, setting, plot, and making predictions as we read. We continue to work on building stamina during independent reading, and will move onto reading more informational texts. We will be identifying and understanding text features such as index, headings, etc. Another focus is being able to ask and answer literal and inferential questions, as well as being able to retell what we read. We will also be learning how to write informational texts.
Math is moving right along! We have learned how to write numbers in standard and expanded form as well as being able to add and subtract 10’s and 100’s mentally. One of our major goals in 2nd grade is to become fluent in our math facts through 20.
We have learned about different types of communities, comparing Rock Hill in the past and present and community workers. Soon we will be studying all about the local, state and national government as we come closer to election time!
Our second grade scientists have been diving in to studying the properties of matter and how matter can change and will soon be studying push and pull, too.
Until next month…
Third Grade
Fourth Grade
ELA
Fourth graders started off the school year with a novel study of Sign of the Beaver. This book integrates with our social studies standard on Native Americans and serves as a basis for discussion and activity in ELA throughout the school year. We moved on in to plot of a story including beginning, middle and end as well as character traits and how plot changes and influences characterization throughout a story. We are now studying inferencing and are enjoying being “detectives” as we make inferences about our stories. After inferences we will look at theme, mood, and how an author’s choice of words impacts these things. We will then move in to studying nonfiction text during the second nine weeks. We have enjoyed writing narratives this nine weeks and will be working on spooky stories just in time for Halloween.
Math
Our school year began with reviewing and extending place value concepts. We learned about the magnitude of numbers up to the millions place. Standard and expanded form was included in this instruction. We then moved in to addition and subtraction. Patterns was the next unit of study. We are currently looking at multiples and factors of numbers as well as prime and composite. We will then move in to multiplication. Students will be expected to fluently multiply two digit by two digit and four digit by one digit numbers. If your student does not know basic multiplication facts fluently we would like to encourage you to work on these at home. Multiplication will be the basis for much of our math here on out. If students to not know basic multiplication facts these concepts will prove difficult.
Science
Organisms was the first science standard for this school year. We learned about the two classes of animals, vertebrates and invertebrates, and then broke them down further. We have also studied adaptations that enable certain organisms to survive in particular environments. Students looked at the various sensory organs that different organisms have and how those sensory organs help particular animals to function and live in their habitats. Inherited and learned traits of plants and animals was also studied this nine weeks. We will round out our study of organisms with life cycles of plants and animals as well as plant adaptations for survival. Our next unit of study will be weather.
Social Studies
How did the first Americans get to North America? That was the question that we learned about and answered first in social studies. We then moved in to the groups of Native Americans that originally lived across the United States. We looked at how they were the same, how they were different, and how where they lived in our country impacted their lifestyles. There were many reasons for exploration that we learned about next. We also looked at some of the early explorers that discovered and mapped out parts of North America. Settling of the United States by Spain, France, and England is the current topic of study. We will be moving towards conflict and causes of the American Revolution next.
Canvas
If you haven’t signed up for Canvas, please do. Canvas is the place to find the most up-to-date grades, notes, and assignments. We will use it a lot this year.
Fifth Grade
We have had a fantastic first quarter. Fifth graders have been diving into literature, making inferences, determining theme and plot, finding and using figurative language in their writing as well as talking and reflecting about text. In Math they have classified quadrilaterals, dived into decimals (writing, comparing, rounding, and determining patterns in place value). Social Studies has taken us back to the days of Reconstruction after the Civil War and now we are heading West as pioneers. Science has been a mixture of fun as we have experimented with mixtures and solutions, separating them and determining what influences dissolving rate. We went on a field trip to the Carroll School and heard from a primary source about life during the Great Depression at our very own Rock Hill Rosenwald School. The students enjoyed the hands on experience!
Our next quarter takes us to reading and analyzing nonfiction, multiplying and dividing whole numbers and decimals, continuing our journey of western expansion and then continuing down the timeline, putting ourselves in the shoes of large scale immigration during the 1900’s. Our next unit in Science has us investigating landforms and oceans.
How can you help your student?
1. Is there an area where your child needs an extra boost? Since laptops are coming home, students can spend 10-15 minutes a night working on Math or Reading in Moby Max. This program meets them where they are and helps them to grow in areas of weakness or extends their learning to higher levels.
2. Continue to review previous skills with students. It is important to spiral our math learning. You can review past Math tests with them and give them some similar problems. We are tracking their learning and forming small groups to reteach skills at school and it helps if they are practicing at home as well!
Special Areas
Art: Heather Gregory
During our second 9 weeks, the Art Room will be rocking!
Did you know that artists helped win WW2? Fifth graders will be learning about the “The Ghost Army” and these talented soldier artists from history. Fourth graders will be finishing up a unit on the ancient Greeks and moving into ancient Asian art techniques. Third graders have been learning about Rock Hill artist Vernon Grant, creating gnome S-elf-ies, and are looking forward to displaying our work at Christmasville. Second graders are learning about our great country this year. We recently studied the migration of monarchs by creating 2d painting. Next, we will transfer our knowledge into clay pieces inspired by this unique creature. First grade has been all about Fairy Tales recently, with royal self-portraits, pumpkins, and castle architecture. Finally, kindergarteners will be focused on season themed art while we practice using new art tools and materials. We will learn about owls for the fall and create snowy winter landscapes.
Computer Lab: Valildra Brown
Students have finished MAP testing for the nine weeks. When students come to the lab, they get a change to practice typing, math, and reading skills!
Guidance: Cameron DeLong
Hi! My name is Cameron DeLong. I am the school counselor at MGES! I’m originally from Conway, SC. I completed my undergraduate studies at Presbyterian College and earned my Ed.S. from the University of South Carolina. This is my third year at Mount Gallant and I am so excited to continue helping your students learn and grow!
For the first few weeks of school, we have been working on getting to know each other, learning what a school counselor does, building community, friendship, and working on social and emotional learning. Please feel free to contact me with any questions!
During October, students will be learning about their emotions and how to regulate these feelings. As emotions are a factor in making good choices, I have structured our year so that this coincides with our Red Ribbon celebration. During this time, students will learn the importance of making good choices and the difference between positive and negative peer pressure.
During November and December, students will be begin the Erin's Law unit. Additional information will follow in regards to this curriculum. Please feel free to contact me with any questions! I look forward to helping your child learn and grow!
Library: Melisa Smith
We had a great start to the year! For our “Make Reading Your Goal” Reading Challenge, we had 110 Knights participate! Thank you for encouraging your child to read every day!
As we look to the 2nd nine weeks, 1st-3rd graders will have an author visit with Jonathan Miller. Mr. Miller is a SC author, and he will be visiting the castle on November 14th! During class time, our K-2 students will begin focusing on nonfiction texts. 3rd-5th grade students will begin looking at research skills and tech tools.
Music: Katherine Galvis
Kindergarten- 2nd grade will start learning more about melody! They will identify sounds that go upward, downward and stay the same. Students will also learn more complex rhythm patterns according to their grade level. And finally, students will study dynamics! This is a fun one! Dynamics determine the volume of our sound. Our students will learn all of these skills through fall/harvest/Thanksgiving songs, and American folk songs.
Our 3rd graders will continue working on their Veterans Day Program, which will be performed on Thursday, November 7th at 6:00 pm. The will then start studying note names on the treble clef, and playing instruments in response to rhythms containing eighth, quarter, whole notes, and their corresponding rests.
4th Grade will start a unit in choral music and vocal technique. Students will sing rounds, cannons and in two parts. Students will also explore major and minor tonalities.
And our 5th grade will complete their bucket drumming unit, and move on to playing holiday music with classroom instruments. The students will participate in activities that include singing, movement and instrument playing within one class!
What can you do at home?
Our entire school is learning Bill Wither's, "Lean On Me". This is great song about friendship and support. Our students are really enjoying the song. I would love if you could sing it together as a family at home! Also from time to time, feel free to ask your students to share the songs they are learning in class. They can perform for you!
Physical Education: David McKeown
For the first 9 weeks, we focused on setting expectations and gym procedures as well as working on our overhand throwing skills. We practiced taking our first of 3 FitnessGram tests which will be returned to the students in the spring so that they can check their progress on their fitness levels. During the second nine weeks, we begin looking at team sports in all classes and continue FItnessGram tests.
Upcoming MGES Spirit Night!
Support our PTA which directly supports our Knights by taking a break from the kitchen and enjoying dinner out... with us! Proceeds from your purchase will benefit our children!
October 29 - Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers
November 20 - Hwy 55 Burgers, Shakes, & Fries - 5 - 9p
Coming up:
October
21 - Parent Conference Day
22 - District SIC Meeting, Central Office, 6:30p
22 - 25 - Red Ribbon Week
23 - Meet Officer Doster! Join us for coffee from 8a - 8:30a!
24 - TK ceremony, 8:30a (by invitation only)
25 - Fourth Grade Field Study
28 - 1st Quarter Report Cards Go Home
29 - Spirit Night at Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers
30 - GT Field Study
November
4 - 8 - Scholastic Book Fair
7 - Young Readers Day (guest readers)
7 - Veterans Day Performance (6:00 pm)- 3rd Grade
14 - Author Visit: Grades 2-3
14 - SIC Meeting at 5:15p; PTA Meeting, 6p
14 - PTA Lunch & Desserts
19 - Thanksgiving lunch (K, 2, 4)
20 - Thanksgiving lunch (1, 3, 5)
20 - 2nd Quarter Progress Reports Go Home
20 - Spirit Night at Hwy 55 Burgers from 5 - 9p - Tell your server you're with Mt. Gallant!
21 - TK ceremony, 8:30a (by invitation only)
27 - 29 - Thanksgiving holidays - District closed