Medcalf Minutes
September 8th - September 11th
Anderson Grover Purpose and 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
Notes From Mr. McMahon
Notes from Mrs. Gingerich
Parents…
I am super excited to be working with your student(s) this year! This is my 9th year as a counselor!! I have previously been a counselor in Blair, Nebraska, and then at Parkview Heights and Rumsey Station. Before I was a counselor, I taught Kindergarten for 5 years in Johnston, IA. Thanks for welcoming me here at Anderson Grove….
3rd grade is currently working on a unit called “Personal Responsibility”. The goal of the unit is to help students understand that they are responsible for their learning. They are in charge of their learning and for doing their best in school. We are also working on helping them to understand that attitude has an effect on their learning and the learning of those around them. The book that we will be reading and going over together in class is called “The 7 Habits of Happy Kids” by Sean Covey. There is an adult version of this book as well! I highly recommend both versions!!
Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns this year! Thanks for sharing your student(s) with me!!
Notes from Mrs. Medcalf
Also, please note that tomorrow is library check out day. If your child has a library book at home, please send it back so they can check out a new one!
Specials Schedule
Wednesday - Day 5 - PE
Thursday - Day 6 - Art
Friday - Day 7 - Music
A Peek at our Week
In Class: Using poetry, readers will continue to practice the reading strategy of "Plan & Monitor". We will continue to preview and make predictions about our text and learn a but more about the elements of a poem.
At Home: Please help your child become a better reader by giving them time to read at least 20 minutes a day. Your child can tell you their predictions about the text by previewing the title of the book or chapter, think about what you'll read, stop at various times throughout the reading to make predictions about what will happen next, and read to find if predictions were correct or incorrect.
Writing
In Class: Writers will continue to generate story ideas this week by thinking of people and places that are important to them. We will also discuss that writers need practice to get better, just as athletes do in sports. Athletes often set goals to improve their performance and we will do the same! We will record our goals and this will be a topic we discuss frequently as we conference about our writing.
At Home: Practice our strategy at home. Ask your child to think of a place that matters to him/her, a place they have frequented often and have many stories to tell about. This should be as simple as the backyard, driveway, kitchen, or living room at home. Ask your student to think of several memories they have that happened at this location. Ask them to retell the story to you using signal words (first, next, then, after, finally)
Math
In Class: Mathematicians will continue to add and subtract 2-digit numbers using the "add and subtract by place value" and "add and subtract one number in parts" strategies. We will practice these strategies as we play a game called "Close to 100". We will also continue our practice of using an open number line to solve d-digit addition and subtraction equations.
At Home: Take a look at these sites to practice addition and subtraction facts:
Social Studies
In Class: Students will learn more about the early days of our nation. From the events leading up to the American Revolution and how our colonies became states. It was not an easy road for our young nation and there were disagreements along the way. However, the rules established to help the new states became the foundation of our current government.
We will also look at the three branches of government, our checks and balances, as well as the levels of government and the responsibilities of each.
At Home: Check out these sites to learn more:
American Revolution: http://www.wartgames.com/themes/american/revolution.html
Branches of Government: http://www.congressforkids.net/games/threebranches/2_threebranches.htm
Spelling
In Class: Students will study their second list of spelling words, continuing to look at the pattern of words with a short a and short o sound. Here is our list: transform, promise, onward, manage, honest, conference, busybody, advice, satisfy, bothered, common, problem, dollars, model, jobless.
At Home: Your child should practice his spelling words every day for 10-15 minutes. your child can practice spelling on a whiteboard, in a notebook, or online at http://www.spellingcity.com/BeckyMedcalf/