Ms. Kaley's Classroom Room 24

Hi Everyone!

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and some enjoyable time off!

We had a nice past week with our little reset right before the Thanksgiving break.  We enjoyed some group cooperative games/activities together, went over expectations again, and worked on our work cycle.  It was nice to have that right before break.  We still continued with cultural lessons in the afternoon to keep those lessons going.  We introduced some silent reading time and 3 activities to do at afternoon circle, and the day’s circle challenge.  Each day there will be a note on the morning board that states what the day’s circle challenge will be.  This past week we had challenges such as sit by boy/girl, shirt color, and if you could choose questions.  It helped mix our circle seating and put a little fun into the day.  Also, we introduced having an afternoon circle leader who will choose between a song, book, or game to do before we begin the afternoon part of our day.  They all really enjoyed that!

Book Reports were due Friday and we got through 6 of them on Friday.  We will do more projects when the kids get back from Music and PE on Monday afternoon and finish up with everyone’s this week.

Blue Reading Folder– Reminder to have those kiddos who take home a reading folder to have their homework in by tomorrow so I can hand out new hw sheets.  On Mondays when I give them their new hw sheets I leave them to be picked up on our black table outside our classroom.  If your child forgets to pick his or hers up or was absent, the folder will be right there.

December Holiday Feast!- Our classroom does a Holiday luncheon every year.  This year our luncheon will be December 14th.  It will begin at 12pm.  Parents and siblings welcome to come!  A sign up sheet for food to be brought will go out this week.  We’ll have each grade make something for the feast.  1st graders will make a soup, 2nd graders will make a bread, and 3rd graders will make a dessert.  If you would like to help out with cooking, we will be making these dishes the 13th and 14th.  1st and 3rd graders will get theres ready on the 13th and 2nd graders will make theres the morning of the 14th.

International Festival is December’s Home Project!- Every year, our school celebrates different cultures and facts about other countries and continents in the month of December.  On December 20th will be the  lower elementary date.  Upper elementary goes first on the morning of December 19th.  They start at 9am and go until 11am.  Some junior high will also present that day.  December 20th in the afternoon will our time to present.  We usually begin around 12:30 and go until 2:30, but I’ll make sure those times are confirmed for this year.  Projects will be on either the continents of Australia or Antarctica.

Expectations for Lower Elementary International Festival

1. Choose to present a point of interest from the continent of either Australia/Oceania or Antarctica
2. Have a visual presentation (trifold board, diorama, puppet show, etc.) Get creative!
3. Must have topic’s name displayed and be easy to see
4. Must have flag displayed
5. Must have a map displayed and geographical area highlighted that topic lives or comes from. (examples: If the topic is koalas, then the map will display where in Australia koala’s live.  If researching Tasmania, then Tasmania will be highlighted on the map.)  We are wanting students to know where they are talking about.
6. Have at least 10 facts displayed about their interest and know them in case questions are asked.  
7. Be able to give an oral presentation about their project.  
8. Food is allowed, but not required for project. 
9. Project is DUE December 20th.  Families welcome to come and see!

*Please let me know if your child needs support in getting their project completed (email me).  We can have your child work on it in class.

Up next for snack: Jaxston

 

Have a great rest of your weekend and upcoming week!

Cheers!

Ms. K

 

Hi Everyone!

Snack: Nobody has signed up for snack for this coming week!  Please take a look at our snack link to the right of this blog.

Assistant change: This week was Ms. Emilee’s last week.  Ms. Anna and I met on Friday to discuss what kind of transition we wanted to take place.  This coming week we will go back and do a mini renormalization.  It will help Anna understand the procedures and routines for our class, but also have the kids get used to her expectations that she is going to bringing to the classroom.  We will be doing cooperative team building games amongst work cycle.  The first half of the week will be dedicated to working together and relearning the expectations from the teachers and school rules.  The second part of the week will have the kids do a shortening work cycle to help our students utilize Ms. Anna so that when they come back after Thanksgiving break they know what to expect.  I’m very optimistic for what will transpire from this change.

Upcoming Week:

Monday– Original Art work form (That was handed out around the week of Halloween) is due tomorrow.

Tuesday– Box Top store

Wednesday– COW (computers on wheels) in the afternoon.  There will be another MyOn assignment that the kids will begin in class

Thursday– The school’s Gratitude Feast for members in our community will be going on that day.  It will also be a fire drill for the school. Ms. Lori will be in to read with a few of our students as well.

Friday– Book report #2 is due today!  We will get to around 6 book reports and then have the rest of the kids finish up when break is over.  Anna and I have a great plan for how Friday afternoons are going to go an we wanted to begin that process with the students this Friday.  We are also going to continue weaving.  Ms. Anna and I are thinking about creating a service project for our class that involves weaving.  Please bring back yarn for Friday.

 

Past Week:

I moved our room around in terms of the layout and the students really responded to that.  Having a change of the environment made for Ms. Anna’s transition an easier step.

Thursday we had the COW and students began their reading assignments from me.  I chose books that would enhance our Geography lessons for each grade level, as well as some Australia books for the level 2s and 3s.  Your child should have these books finished by today.  Most students were able to finish that afternoon, but level 2s and 3s had more books, so a few were still working on them.

3rd graders finished up their practice SAGE tests!  Tomorrow is a makeup day for only 3 students who either need to finish a test or because they were absent on testing day.

This week in group lessons:

Level 1s: *No afternoon group lessons because of Botany and COW in the afternoon on their group days.

Level 2s: Naming angles

Level 3s: Fractions equivalency

Weekly writing- graphic organizer was due

Monthly Botany: Ms. Rachel’s monthly Botany lesson took place this past Tuesday afternoon

 

This week in cultural: Geography

Level 1s: About maps and kinds of maps, continent and oceans naming on map

Level 2s: Faults and folding of the Earth from tectonic plates moving

Level 3s: Atmosphere review, 7 weather elements, and kinds of fronts

 

Reminder that towards the end of this week (Thurs. and Fri.) the weather will be getting chilly.  Please provide coats and outside garments for your child to wear at recess.

 

Have a great upcoming week and rest of your weekend.

Blog is back up and working this week!

Reminder: Ella has snack this coming week (Week 13)

Last week the school’s administration and I made the decision to go through with an assistant change.  Ms. Emilee has been great support for almost 2 years, but with her other other job and the needs of our classroom, we are looking for what is best for our class.  Ms. Anna, who many of you know from the office, was the one who approached me and wanted to be back in our classroom.  3 years ago, Anna, was my wonderful assistant, and I am very excited to have her back.  She will still also take care of our school’s athletic program from 3pm-4pm and during the morning studio hours when I am teaching 3rd grade studio.  She will also be our class in the afternoon hours on Friday too!  Ms. Emilee’s last day will be this coming Thursday (the 10th).  

 

Upcoming Week:

Friday is a Professional Development afternoon for the teachers, so dismissal is at 1pm this week.

Monday is the last SAGE practice test for 3rd graders.  They will be taking their Math test from 10:45am-12:00pm.  3rd graders will stop and clean up at 10:10, so they can get their recess in before testing.  Again, they are allowed a snack and their water bottle.

The computers on wheels (COW) cart is back in our room this week!  Thursday right after lunch until dismissal, students will be doing IXL lessons from lessons they have received in the classroom and also begin their first MyOn assignment that I will create.  Our first one will be an in class assignment.  Assignments not completed by the end of the day will be due by Sunday.  Since cultural is Geography this week, each grade will read assigned geography books that I pick from the MyOn library and each student will do a simple assignment in conjunction with the reading.

I signed our classroom up to have Officer Childs’ do a simple DARE presentation that will be 30 minutes long.  Officer Childs is our usual officer that patrols our school.  I put in for him to come in Friday, so we’ll see what day works out best for the other 2 classrooms he’s presenting to also.

Reading Folders!  If your child has been doing the take home reading folders, I only received 2 back this past Friday (Janessa and Hunter).  Monday is that cushion day where they can turn it in and still be considered on time.  I give out the new homeworks on Mondays.  Have a look and maybe a chat with your child who is doing those folders to make sure they get them in.  I still make copies for those kids who aren’t turning them in, so I am hoping they make it home.

Please have your child be working on a Non-Fiction book choice (MyOn books allowed).  Here is the project list for book reports:

Book Report Presentation Choices

*You may only do 1 choice once

 

___Book cover

___Oral report to the teacher and/or class

___1 page written report

___A wanted poster for a character in your book

___Poster advertising your book

___Design a bookmark

___Make a poem about your book

___Create a picture book about your favorite parts from the beginning, middle, and end

___Create a video about the book

___Dress up as favorite character and tell about the book

___Create a mobile with 5 events

___Write and draw an alternative ending

___Create a timeline with at least 10 events

___Draw a map describing places

___Create a travel brochure

___Make a puppet show explaining your book

___Create a board game

___Diorama of a scene

___Do a 1 page report about the author

___Create a week long journal as if you were the character

 

Box Tops will be NEXT Tuesday!  (Nov. 15th)

Past Week:

Thank you to our room mom, Alicia, and for Susan who helped set up beginners crochet.  The kids who had needles found the needles a bit difficult, but they learned a crochet style with their fingers. I gave a lesson on straw weaving and most students found great success between the two lessons.

Individual lessons are moving and goovin according to your child’s needs.  During Friday’s PD, I will be working Anna on who is where and what can be continued and what could use some reworking to help support our schedule.

In leveled group lessons this week:

Level 1s: Penny review, 2D curvilinear shapes and quadrilateral shapes (4 sided shapes)

Level 2s: Naming fractions, simple money adding word problems, intro to angles (right, obtuse, acute, and straight)

Level 3s: Working with numbers that having missing addends, sums and unknowns

Weekly Writing: Personal Narrative graphic organizer.  Our students are going to be working on a Personal Narrative story about a favorite memory.  I gave a lesson on how to use a simple graphic organizer.  It is due this Tuesday afternoon right after lunch.  I have the students keep in a folder on shelf so it doesn’t go anywhere and get lost.

In cultural this week: Zoology/Physiology

Level 1s: All about the vertebrate: Fish! (What is a fish, internal/external parts of the fish, Different kinds of fish)

Level 2s: The eye: How do we see, external/internal parts of the eye, paper parts of the eye book/model)

Level 3s: Platyhelminthes (flatworms) and Nematodes (roundworms, such as parasites): What are each, what do they do, and simple parts of each.  We didn’t get a lot of time with the roundworms, so we’ll pick back up with a review on them next Zoology week.

 

Have a great upcoming week!  Happy upcoming Election Day!

Cheers!

Ms. K