Beginning tomorrow, all students will have access to the Utah Compose writing tool.  This is an internet based writing program designed to help students improve their writing skills.  This website replaces Utah Write, a site that level 5 students have used in the past to help prepare them for the DWA (direct writing assessment).

Each week your student will receive a writing lesson during class and a writing assignment that will need to be completed at home.  They will have some time to utilize the computers in class, but because of the limited resources in the classroom and time during the day, students will need to do a portion of the work at home.

All students will be logging in and resetting passwords tomorrow in order to be able to utilize this great resource at home.  At that time, we will be learning how to navigate the site and begin the first writing assignment.  The more time they are able to spend with this resource, the better they will do on the assessment and the better their writing will become.

Feel free to email me with any questions you may have.  As always, if you do not have access to the internet, we will make arrangements for your student to have time during class.

In other news, our school has decided to participate in the interim testing for SAGE.   Our class will test Tuesday, November 11 and Tuesday November 18.  This will enable the children to experience a form of the test, before they have to take the test in the spring.   In addition to the testing, students will be doing practice assignments in class utilizing the SAGE portal.  This practice will help them become familiar with the site and the types of questions they will encounter on the SAGE Summative.

This week we will also be discussing the expectations for the next book report (due November 21).  This month the students will be doing a scrapbook page book report.  All information for this report and the expectations (with a rubric) will come home this week and will be available on the blog.  I was so excited with the creativity and thoughtfulness the students put into October’s report!   We had sandwiches and wardrobes, posters and puppet shows.  Your children are so clever!

With the weather cooling off, please be sure your children are dressed appropriately. Unless there is lightening or extreme freezing temperatures, all students go outside for recess everyday.  Students who do not have appropriate clothing, will not be allowed to stay inside.  Make it routine for your children to check the weather.  4th level students are studying weather in science so this would be a great practical extension on their weekly science lessons.

~Cheers