We love to celebrate your child’s birthday or half birthday. If you would like to share photos, memories and stories about your child with our class in honor of their next circle around the sun, please sign up on the side bar under the Celebration of Life link.
Good Morning!
Thanks to all of our parents who volunteered for our field trip to the NHMU. It was a great success and the kids had a great time. The level 4 and 5 workshops were really fantastic! I will definitely plan this field trip again next year.
Because your children have a book report and their science fair question due next Tuesday, September 30, there will be no new IXL homework this week. They should continue working on the previous IXL homework if they have not already completed it.
We have been learning about what makes a complete sentence, and this week we are focusing on all the parts of the sentence that make a Great sentence. As such, we have studied strong verbs and how and when parts (aka prepositions). Your children will have homework tonight that will help them understand Dead Verbs (weak verbs and “be” verbs).
Our first Parent Teacher Conference is coming up October 13-15. Please sign up for a 30 minutes slot. The sign-up is available on the right-hand sidebar.
~Cheers
Our first science fair deadline is approaching. This week your students brought home a small packet of information which contained a parent letter, a science fair question submission form and the background research forms.
Today we discussed what it means to choose a topic and formulate a question for a science fair project. It is ideal if your student chooses a topic that they are already interested in, and then formulates a question they would like to find an answer to. I am linking the Science Fair Proposal Form in the event that your student has misplaced their copy. You will also find the background research form on the science fair page at the top of the blog.
Please avoid the last minute tears and tantrums by following our science fair schedule. Your children and I had a wonderful discussion about doing the project step by step and how it will eliminate the stress that so many of the students have experienced in the past. I was really thankful to all of the kids who shared their “last minute horror stories” with the group. As a parent, to a now 7th grade student who once attended MMA, I know how stressful it can be to wait until the bitter end to attempt a project.
Again, the schedule of due dates is on the science fair page at the top of the blog. The topic selection and question is due September 30th. The next deadline is October 24th when the Background Research Plan will be due. We will discuss this in class prior to the deadline to give the students more information. Please help your students stick to this schedule so that they can be successful at our 5th annual science fair.
Our classroom account was just upgraded without my prior knowledge. This means all student usernames and passwords have been changed. I will be working this weekend to reset them to what they were. Because this is a time consuming process, your students will not have access to IXL until Monday.
I apologize for any confusion this may cause you or your students. This was completely out of my control.
Thanks in advance for your understanding.
I have had several parents asking for clarification regarding how long, how much, to what end do your children need to practice IXL.
Hopefully this will clarify the misunderstandings and answer all of your questions. If not, please email me and I will try and clarify further.
Firstly, the IXL is meant to be a review of the lessons we have during our work week or a review of concepts that were taught last year. Your children should spend approximately 20 minutes each day on IXL. IXL awards a smart score (in the right hand bar of the page as your student is working) for correct answers.
I don’t know the exact algorithm for awarding points but I believe it is 10 points for each correct answer to 90 points and then one point per correct answer between 90 and 100. Missed answers result in points being removed from the smart score. The goal is to reach 100 points. If your child has been practicing for 20 minutes and they have not been able to reach a smart score of at least 80, this means they need another lesson. Please have your students record, in their planners, any section that they have been unable to pass off in that 20 minute time frame so that I can give them additional lessons.
If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.