Weekly Newsletter 8/28
Mrs. Smith- Fourth Grade, Union Elementary
If you were not able to attend curriculum night I have sent home a dismissal paper that needs to be filled out and returned. These will be kept in our emergency binder in our emergency back pack. It seems with our unpredictable Midwest weather lately we NEED to have our emergency plans in place. Our class did a fabulous job during our very long tornado warning on Wednesday. The expectation is that students are in position and silent. That's a tall order for 125+ fourth graders in a small space...EVEN FOR A SHORT TIME. So, I am very proud to report that your kids did an amazing job holding it together. I hope these storms have prompted conversations in your homes about safety and your own family emergency plans. I know they have in my house. The teenagers reluctantly agreed to huddle in the basement with their father while I was with your kiddos at Union. With 2 new drivers in our house we needed to review our expectations for car safety during storms as well. Ugh, this parenting stuff is stressful. The good news is: they all grow up eventually :)
Weekly Specials Schedule
Just a reminder... In case you are trying to make appointments or just trying to remember to lay out the gym shoes the night befor PE.
Monday- P.E. 10:45-11:15 (wear gym shoes)
Tuesday- Art 9:15-10:05
Wednesday- STEM 10:10-11:00
Thursday- P.E. 9:35-10:05, Music 10:10-11:00 (wear gym shoes)
Friday- Library 10:10-11:00
Recess: 12:30-1:00
Lunch: 1:00-1:30
Important dates
September 1: Jog A Thon Kick-Off during Lunches
September 5: No School- Labor Day
September 6: Dads Club Meeting, 7 PM in Teachers' Lounge
September 7: PTO Meeting, 7 PM in Cafeteria. Free Childcare Available
September 15: HotBox Pizza Night
September 19-23: Book Fair
September 23: PTO Movie Night 6:45 – 9:00
September 28: Jog-a-thon
Morning Work 8:50-9:10 M,W,F
Class & Team Building
Every child has their own unique personality and set of character traits. The better I know them the better I can work with them. The better they know each other the better they can work together.
Teams are now in the process of designing their team flag. They will also create a team cheer/chant that they can use to celebrate when they experience successes. We are focusing on encouraging words, acknowledging a job well done, and using tact and kindness when we need to express negative feelings.
Next week we will brainstorm and come up with a list of ideas for a class name. The students will use a whole group cooperative structure called "Spend a Buck" to narrow it down to just one name. This allows individuals to "vote" for choices by spending all of their 10 bucks. They can spend less bucks on their least favorite name and more bucks on their most favorite name. It's fast and fun and no one notices who you're voting for because everyone is busy spending their own bucks. Look for our class name on our Jog-a-Thon flag!
Science
Math
Literacy
Students will start their interactive vocabulary notebook and review reading goals for the school year. We will add a new Greek/Latin root or stem each week along with prefixes and suffixes. Our goal is to not only learn the meanings of these new "word parts" but to also use and apply them in new reading/writing situations.
I administered the upper elementary spelling inventory and have discovered that I need also give the lower elementary inventory to further assess the full range of spelling needs of all my students.
We will begin our exploration of narrative writing in writer's workshop. Volunteers for writer's conferences are welcome beginning week of Sept. 5 (pick your day on SignUp.com)
Sign up for Writing Conferences
1) Click this link to see our SignUp on SignUp.com: http://signup.com/go/CKc2w5
2) Review the options listed and choose the spot(s) you like.
3) Sign up! It's Easy - you will NOT need to register an account or keep a password on SignUp.com.
Note: SignUp.com does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact me and I can sign you up manually.
Social Studies
I will also be looking for about 4-6 parent volunteers to come in and get messy with us in the project room as we make our salt maps of Indiana. Please use SignUp.com if you are interested in helping on Thursday September 8th. I am also in need of 25 card board pieces (approximately 12" X 14"). Send in cardboard any day before September 8. We also need volunteers to make gallon size freezer bags of the dough. Each bag makes enough dough for approximately 3 students- so 9 bags should be plenty. If you are able to donate a bag of salt dough please use the link for SignUp.com or email me directly.
To donate salt dough:
Click this link to see our SignUp : http://signup.com/go/esWFWj
To help with the Indiana salt map project: http://signup.com/go/D5tziu