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February 23 – Updates

Feb23

Good Morning!

I can hardly believe we are through the month of February already.   Science fair is over, and we are heading into the month of March with a  new book report coming up.   The book report genre for March is mystery, adventure or science fiction and the report type is student choice.  I would love to see the creativity they put into their last choice reports shine through again this time around.  Book reports are due March 27.

6th level students have a state study that is due this Friday, February 27.  They have had some time in class to work on this project, but will need to finish up at home.  The criteria for the state study was handed out at the end of January.  If you have not heard about this from your 6th grade child, please ask them about it.

Last week we started IXL homework assignments again.  Because of the craziness of science fair and things happening in my own life, I did not post the assignment to the blog.  The students should have written the homework in their planners, however.  This week there is a new IXL assignment which will be posted on the blog and in class for your children to record.  Please talk to them about their homework.  It is important that they are spending at least 20 minutes a night on the homework.  If they need extra help, please have them ask in class.  The goal is 100 points.  If your child is spending longer than 20 minutes on each section and still has not acquired at least 80 points, this means they need additional help on the concept.  Please have them make note of this and Ms. Kari and I can help them during class time.

Our 5th grade maturation program is coming up.  Permission slips were sent home a month ago.  If you have not received a permission slip from your child, please ask them about it.  We need these signed and returned no later than tomorrow.  I am still missing a couple.

 

SAGE Writing Tomorrow

Feb1

Good Evening.

Just a reminder that your children are taking the SAGE writing assessment tomorrow afternoon.  Please ensure they get a good night sleep, eat a healthy protein packed breakfast and have a nice lunch packed.  Please do not send sugary snacks as this will not feed their brains in a manner that will enable them to be their best.

Once the test is complete, they will need to have something quiet to work on while the rest of the class finishes.   Please make sure they bring a book or have a doodle journal to draw in.

They have been working hard during their practice, I know it will pay off on their assessment!

 

Room 24 Updates

Jan16

Whew!  This week flew by in a flash.  I know time is moving quickly when the children comment that they can’t believe it is already mid-January.

First and foremost, students should be using their peer edit papers to revise and refine their essays on Utah Compose.  I cannot stress how important this practice at home is.  I hope we have worked out all of the log in bugs by now.  If you are experiencing any problems with the site, please let me know.  Most students have been able to login, complete their essays and submit them without problem.  The final draft of the essay, having made revisions based on peer edits and my online input, is due Tuesday, January 20th by 8pm.  We will have a brand new prompt available Wednesday, January 21st.  This will give your children 2 more weeks of practice before the writing assessment February 2.

4th grade students have begun a metric conversion unit.  Some of your children are so excited about the ease of the metric system that they are prepared to write letters to the government saying we should switch from our method of standard measurement.  I’m behind them 100%!

5th grade students are working independently on math practice that is challenging to them.  The majority of the work I am seeing is division using the standard algorithm. Please ask your children what they find challenging and work on it with them.  Although we don’t have specific IXL or SAGE math assignments coming home, you can still log in to IXL with your child and see what they need help with.   Ask them what they find challenging in class and do a practice work with them!  It will benefit them greatly if you are working with them at home on concepts they find challenging in school.

6th level students began a unit on ratios and proportions.  So far all students who have been present for the lessons are making great progress.  Each day that we have a lesson, your children will bring home a printed homework assignment.  In most cases, there will be fewer than 5 problems as homework.  The culminating activity for our unit is going to be SPECTACULAR!!  I’m so excited and I hope your children will be excited too!

Our botany units have the students excited about fruit, nuts and seeds, photosynthesis, and monocots and dicots.  Please ask your children about these important plants and plant processes.  One of the most exciting things about MMA is the extensive botany exposure. Without plants, there would be no life on earth!

In honor of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, we have been discussing the timeline of the civil rights movement.  I am so thrilled to hear your children’s input and feedback.  There truly is hope for humanity in our children.  The deep discussions we had this week would make you, as parents, proud of your children.  They are kind, caring, thoughtful and extremely sympathetic to the plight of those who have been treated unfairly in our nations history.   I challenge you all to take some time on Monday, January 19th, to study the life of MLK and the civil rights movement.

Please watch the blog for sign ups for February Parent Teacher Conference.  These conferences will be student led.  This is an opportunity for your children to share with you what they have learned and what accomplishments they are proud of.  It seems like a long time since our last meeting in October and at the same time it has passed in a flash!  Please watch the blog for sign ups for Parent Teacher Conference.  I will have a WeJoinIn link posted by early next week.

Have a wonderful weekend!

~Cheers

 

Utah Compose Reminder

Jan7

The new Utah Compose writing assignments are now available.  Please remember to have your children work on their Utah Compose assignments at home.  The assignment will be visible when your student logs in.  The current writing prompts are as follows:

Level 4 – Help from Clouds: Write an essay explaining how clouds can help us to predict weather. Read the article and view the video before you begin your graphic organizer. Be sure to use science words and other information from the article and the video.

Level 5 – How do Banks Work? : Read the webpage. Try the compounding calculator. Then write a letter to a younger brother, sister, or friend, explaining how banks work. Be sure to explain how banks have money to loan and how they make money.

Level 6 – Origin of the Alphabet: Read Part 1 and Part 2 of the article about the alphabet. Then, in your own words, explain how the alphabet came into being. You may use facts from the reading. Be sure that your summary fully and accurately explains the origin of the alphabet.

I carefully selected these prompts to draw on background knowledge that your children already have from our math, science and history lessons.

This assignment is due next Tuesday, January 13th,  so that we can peer edit and give feedback.  Your child will have one more week to revise and edit before submitting a final draft on Tuesday, January 20th.  Your children can submit as many drafts through Utah Compose as they would like in order to improve their writing with feedback given through the website.  I will also be checking their writing and giving feedback through the website.

When a draft is submitted, your child will receive a score with a breakdown of why they received that specific score.  The essays are graded on a scale of 1-5 in each of 6 categories: development of ideas, organization, style, word choice, sentence structure and conventions.   For each category lessons will be suggested in order to improve the essay, thereby improving the overall score your child receives.  I highly recommend your child take a look at the lessons.  They are in the form of games and exercises designed to address each particular writing trait.   In the past, the students have quite enjoyed the lessons.  After viewing a lesson, your child should go back to their essay and apply what they have learned.

Thank you for supporting your child in completing this homework assignment.

Happy New Year!

Jan2

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone has enjoyed the holidays.  I know they can be hectic and stressful at times, but I trust you worked in some time for relaxation as well.

Firstly, I want to thank all of the generosity you and your children showed Ms. Kari and me.   The gifts, though not necessary, were much appreciated.  Thank you.

Secondly, the start of a new year always brings with it many resolutions or goals to improve.  As such, we will be reviewing the goals your children set prior to our first parent teacher conferences and re-evaluating where we are in terms of reaching those goals.  In addition to goal setting, your children will be cleaning and organizing their three-ring binders.   It is my expectation that your children will bring these binders home with them nightly, in order that you can see what they are working on each day.  The use of the binders as an organizational tool for the children’s daily work is nice, but I have found that they are becoming a dumping ground for incomplete work.

In bringing home the binders each day, my hope is that you can work with your children to help them organize their work.  It will also give you a better idea of what your child is doing on a daily basis and also see if there is unfinished work that needs to be completed. We will be discussing this new expectation on Monday and you can look for your child’s binder Monday evening.

J.A. Biztown, an annual 5th grade field trip (and new 6th grade students), is taking place January 29th.  Biztown is a wonderful experience that your children will not want to miss.  More information will be coming home the first week of January.  As a heads-up, Biztown is located at Discovery Gateway in SLC and transportation to and from this field trip will be the responsibility of the parent.  We will need 2 parent volunteers to help during the day at the location.  The parent volunteers will be responsible for helping the students run the business they have been assigned to.  This is a wonderful way to fulfill some of your volunteer hour requirements, as well as being a part of a great business experience with the students at our school.

The link below will give you an opportunity to read more about the Biztown experience.  http://ja-utah.org/programs/jacity/

A view of Town Square at JA Biztown

Looking ahead:

Cultural: We will star out the new year with a botany unit followed by geography.

Math/Language: Our mornings will consist of continued work in math and language with dedicated work on our writing skills.  Although we have worked on our writing skills in the classroom using paper and pencil, and Utah Compose was introduced to the students in November, it very quickly fizzled out.  We will be spending renewed attention on writing in order to be prepared for the SAGE writing assessment taking place in February.   This means that your children will be required to complete an essay (outline, rough draft, peer review) each week.  This will require your children to spend time on the computer each night at home.  Writing assignments will be given Wednesdays and all steps are expected to be completed Tuesday night in order to facilitate group discussions Wednesday mornings.  After the peer review and discussion during class, they will be given until the following Tuesday to complete a final draft.

As a reminder, the book report for the month of January is a Biography.  The expectations can be found under the Book Report page at the top of the blog.  The due date for this is January 30th.    For those students who have not begun the experimental process for science fair, we will be discussing this on Friday, January 9 in order for your children to be adequately prepared for science fair the 3rd week of February.

Enjoy the last few days of the holiday break!  I look forward to seeing all your children on Monday.

~Cheers