Martin's Memos
Volume 2, Issue 6: October 5, 2018
This Week
Parents,
Please read through this information carefully and let me know if you have any questions! I've included the link to the Meadows FAQ sheet. Please contact me if you have any questions. Many more decisions are still to be made and we will try and communicate that in a timely manner.
There are more book sets listed if anyone else is still interested in donating!
To ensure that we maintain and grow a positive school culture, we ask that your first point of contact for any academic and social concerns regarding your child be addressed with their teacher. This will aid us in making sure you are receiving accurate information and that we can help with any issues immediately.
While we appreciate the connectivity social media brings, sometimes it can also bring misinformation and negativity. Thank you for helping us provide a positive learning environment in which the students are nurtured and supported.
Thanks!
-Ms. Kate Martin
Transition to Meadows
Positivity Project
"Open minded people don't care to be right, they care to understand. There's never a right or wrong answer. Everything is about understanding." -Unknown
Photos of the Week
Elements of Reasoning
Elements of Reasoning
A Case Study of Christopher Columbus
What Did We Learn This Week?
Positivity Project (P2)/Character Education: Open Mindedness
Math: Students continued in their math groups.
Yellow- I can understand rational numbers.
Green- I can x and / fractions and decimals.
Orange- I can complete operations involving decimals.
Social Studies (5th): I can act as a historian and learn how Europe influenced US history. Students learned about Europe's Exploration and how they interacted with the Native Americans.
Reading: We continued to make generalizations and reason about change. Students will also reason about events and situations. In our small groups we used the "Notice and Note" strategy when reading. This week we focused in on the "Tough Questions" signpost.
Writing: We continued our persuasive writing essays. We'll use the Dagwood model to create our drafts and elaborate on our reasons. Next week's root word is "log" which means word, idea, reason, or speech.
Looking Forward to Next Week...
Positivity Project (P2)/Character Education: Identifying and Appreciating Others
Yellow- I can understand rational numbers.
Green- I can x and / fractions and decimals.
Orange- I can complete operations involving decimals.
Social Studies (5th): I can act as a historian and learn how Europe influenced US history. Test on Friday 10/12.
Reading: We will continue to make generalizations and reason about change and reasoning. We'll continue learning the "Notice and Note" strategy. We'll continue reading The Secret Garden.
Writing: We will continue our persuasive writing essays. We'll use the Dagwood model to create our drafts and elaborate on our reasons. The students will also integrate "Ethos, Pathos and Logos" into their persuasive essays!
Book It!
We can start for the month of October a little late! Our "prorated" October amount is 625 minutes. :) Students complete the log and a parent needs to sign to confirm they read that amount of minutes.
Logs need to be turned in by the last day of each month. This is when I'll be passing out the "Free Personal Pan Pizza" coupon!
Willing to Donate? We Need Books for Book Clubs/Literature Circles!
Thank you for your consideration!
The Boys in the Boat (Young Readers Edition) (Need 5 copies) Amazon Thrift books
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (Need 5 copies) Amazon Thrift books
Thanks to those that purchased copies for the GATE program! :)
The Marx Family, The Billings Family, The Broughton Family, The Nowinski Family, The Lavallee Family, The Niezgoda Family, The Anderson Family, The Weadock Family, The Schaefer Family, and the Wloch Family!
Vision and Hearing Screening
Hearing Screening will be done, also by OCHD, on 10/12, 10/15 and 10/16. They will screen K, 2nd, and 4th graders.
Continuous Important Reminders...
Khan Academy: What is it? When should my child use it?
In class, the students use it if/when they finish their in-class math lesson with me. However, sometimes I ask that the students do this instead of homework pages. Students can always log on at home and work on it anytime.
Avondale GATE Internal Applicant Information Nights
Next Information Night for Internal Families: Oct. 24th.
Other Helpful Information:
-November 1-15 is the Internal Application Window. Online application and forms will be online during that window.
-Current students in GT program do not need to reapply.
-Students that are in Avondale Schools through school of choice but are not in the GT program are considered internal applicants.
-Students that have a sibling in the GT program and they want to apply but are not currently in Avondale Schools are school of choice applicants. These students must wait for that application window in the spring.
-The school of choice information nights are January 29th and February 7th.
-The school of choice application window is February 6-March 8.
Standards-Based Grading
3 = Meeting or Exceeding Grade Level Standards
2 = Adequate Progress Toward Grade Level Standards
1 = Limited Progress Toward Grade Level Standards
Please note that more detailed information will follow from Avondale Administration prior to report cards.
Fall Conferences
Box Tops!
Class Schedule
Ms. Martin’s Class Schedule
8:35-8:50: Morning Work/Welcome
8:50-9:40: Writing Workshop
5th Graders:
9:40-10:26: 5th Grade Specials
10:26-10:35: Snack (Healthy, Nut-Free)
10:35-11:30: Science/Social Studies with Ms. Martin
4th Graders:
9:40-10:35: Science/Social Studies with Ms. Gierman
10:35-11:21: 4th Grade Specials
11:21-11:30: Snack (Healthy, Nut-Free)
4th/5th Graders Return to their Teacher:
11:30-12:30: Math Workshop
12:31-12:53: Lunch
12:53-1:15: Recess
1:15-2:30: Reading Workshop
2:30-2:45: 2nd Recess
2:45-3:30: Enrichment
Woodland follows an “ABC” specials schedule. Tuesday, September 4th will start with “A” day and continue from there.
4th Grade students travel as a class together to specials. Their specials schedule is:
A-PE B-Music C-Art
5th Grade students are split among the three regular 5th grade classes. Their specials schedule depends on the teacher they attend specials with. It may change during the year.
Phou: A-PE B-Music C-Art
(Koen, Nicholas)
Davison: A-Art B-PE C-Music
(Xavier, James, Blair, Georgie)
McNaughton: A-Music B-Art C-PE
(Luca, Kayla, Aapratim, Annabel)Upcoming Important Dates
Normal School Hours: 8:32 - 3:39 (GT dismissal 3:34)
Half Day Hours: 8:32 - 11:45
Oct. 8: Woodland Picture Day
Oct. 11 & 12: ROARS Store
Oct. 25: Elementary Conferences 4:30-8pm
Oct. 31: Halloween Party/Parade (More info to come from room parents)
Contact Me
Email: kate.martin@avondale.k12.mi.us
Website: katemartingt.weebly.com
Location: 6465 Livernois Road, Troy, MI 48098, United States
Phone: (248) 537-6900
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100017787916756
Twitter: @katemartin84