Here are this week’s spelling list. If you’re not sure which group your student belongs to, ask them! In class they have all known which group they are in (it’s the color of cardstock their list is on), so they should be able to tell you at home!

Red (beginning sound only) – lips, kick, jug, well, log, key, jump, wing

Orange – pot, dog, hot, hop, log, frog, top, job, mop

Yellow (beginning sound only) – whip, thumb, wheel, thorn, whale, think, whisker, thirteen, whistle, thimble

Green – use, jump, tube, shut, huge, club, rude, just, drum, put, cute

Blue – might, quick, why, write, bright, sky, rise, quit, flight, right, since, shy, white, try, sight, twice

Tidbits:

1 – Tomorrow, Monday the 22nd is the last day to turn in Original Works! Ms. Rachel kindly offered to come in one more day to pick up any orders that might be late, so please bring yours in if you haven’t yet! Thank you to everyone who has ordered already!

2 – Tomorrow is also picture day! Students still need to be in dress code for the day, but you are welcome to send in a change of clothing if you would like them to take their pictures in something else.

3 – Ms. Jane will not be returning to our classroom. This means that our normal workflow will have to be adjusted since there will only be one adult in the room. I ask that you please be patient with me as I navigate this new (and hopefully temporary!) phase in our classroom. On a related note, if you know any qualified individuals who would be interested in a 25-hour per week job working with our wonderful class, please have them contact the office or me!

Recap

I saw most of you last week for Parent/Teacher Conferences and I don’t have much to add at this point. I hope that all of our students were able to rest and be rejuvenated during fall break so that they are ready for a full week of learning this week!

Because of our field trip last Friday and our short week this week, we are continuing our spelling lists from last week so that all our students have time to adequately practice before our test on Wednesday. We still begin a new list next week.

Tidbits:

1. Sign-ups are almost full for our first round of Parent/Teacher Conferences! 21 of our 26 families have signed up so far… thank you! If you still would like to sign up, you can follow this link: https://www.trackitforward.com/site/389525/events
2. This week is also Fall Break, so our schedule is as follows: Early Out Monday-Wednesday (school dismissed at 1 PM) and NO SCHOOL on Thursday and Friday.
3. Pizza Fridays began last week (but we weren’t at school to get our pizza) and I will be sending home order forms tomorrow! Money is now due on TUESDAYS rather than Wednesdays as in years past.
4. Original Works orders are due this Wednesday. You can either send your order form and payment with your child to class or drop it off in the office.
5. The Book Fair is also this week! Our class will be attending a preview in the library on Monday morning. The book fair is open 1 PM – 7 PM Monday-Wednesday of this week, so feel free to stop by either before or after your conference time!

Recap

Last week was very busy and full! We had a fun-filled field trip to Gibson’s Green Acres Dairy Farm and also the Fall Festival at school. In class, we began wrapping up our home project presentations (just a few more to go!), participated in another wonderful botany lesson with Ms. Rachel and also got a do a fun group activity with Ms. Karen’s class. Our third graders baked us a delicious cake from scratch using their recently-practiced volume measurement skills and we learned about the American flag as well as common and proper nouns.

I look forward to seeing most of you over the next few days!

Good morning, parents! Today I have a few brief items to bring to your attention.

1 – We received information from Gibson’s Green Acres Dairy Farm that our times tomorrow have changed slightly. I’m so sorry for the last-minute notice. We need to meet at North Shore at 9:45 AM and we will be done around 12:45 PM. I will also be sending out an email about this so that I reach as many parents as possible.

2 – Pizza Fridays begin this week! I was just given order forms at the end of the day Tuesday and with all that’s going on this week (fall festival, field trip) and since we won’t be at school on Friday to get our pizza, I decided to wait until next week to send home the order forms. I will send them home with your student on Monday so that you can select which weeks you want to purchase pizza. The order form includes all dates for the rest of the year.

3 – With the weather changing, inside shoes are very important. If your child does not yet have a pair of inside shoes, please send them as soon as possible. Crocs or slippers make great options!

Thank you all for all you do!

Did you know that pill bugs (roly poly bugs) aren’t insects but crustaceans? It’s true! They have gill-like structures to breath and are related to shrimp. Did you know that most geodes sold in stores have been artificially injected with color? It’s true! These are just a few of the fascinating facts that we have learned from our home project presentations on change. So far, we have seen less than half of the presentations and are looking forward to seeing the rest this coming week! We have all loved learning about different plants, animals, rocks and people in our classroom and I have been so impressed and proud of our presenters. It’s clear to see they have put so much work into their projects and they have all been confident and excited to share what they know with their friends.

In addition to home projects, this past week we created our original artworks that came home on Friday, completed our second week of spelling and talked more about timelines of our own lives and the AD/BC (or BCE/CE) timeline of the Earth. We learned about the internal systems of fish, external characteristics of porifera, prefixes, estimation and so much more. It is a joy to teach the children and especially to see when they have “lightbulb” moments of connection and understanding.

This coming week we have our field trip to Green Acres Dairy Farm during the day on Friday, the Fall Festival after school on Friday and another botany lesson with Ms. Rachel to look forward to! It should be a busy and rewarding week!

Finally, some more important Fall Festival Information!

Purchase your tickets online at: https://squareup.com/store/mapa-9

Any tickets/wristbands purchased online will be available for pickup at the “ticket drive-thru” or at the will call booth the night of the festival. Pre-sale prices are good now thru October 11th.

Ticket Drive Thru dates will be: October 8, 9, 10, & 11 in the north east corner of the North Shore parking lot from 2:45-3:30 pm or October 8 & 10 from 8-8:30 am

All of our events couldn’t be as great as they are without the help we receive from our amazing volunteers! Postings for Volunteers to help with Fall festival are on Track It Foward, and our booth is on List 1.

Some students have asked for their spelling lists to be sent home, so from now on I will be posting them on the blog for anyone who wants extra practice. This week we will be doing spelling tests on Thursday instead of Friday due to our field trip.

Red Group (beginning sound only): fox, can, hose, deer, fan, horn, cow, dice

Orange Group: nap, wag, cap, rag, map, bag, tag, flag, lap

Yellow Group (beginning sound only): cheese, sheep, ham, chief, shave, house, shoe, chain, chop, house

Green Group: chop, hole, hot, stove, come, hose, joke, rock, rose, some, broke, spot

Blue Group: thumb, new, due, knew, junk, do, clue, sew, flew, plump, dew, blue, truth, stew, brush, stuck

I sent home a yellow packet yesterday with you child’s original art and instructions on how to order. The items for purchase make wonderful gifts for the upcoming holiday season and are a terrific fundraiser for our classroom. In the you will find ideas on what you can order with your child’s art on it. For example, I am ordering a Christmas tree ornament for each my own children to commemorate the year and then letting them each pick one other item of their choice (they want a keychain, a notebook and a dog tag). If you are ordering, please make sure that you return the art with the order form in the yellow folder. They can do more than one piece of art for different items. Your child’s other siblings are welcome to do an art piece and you can order items with their art. Just make sure you identify what art you would like on the item. All original art pieces will be returned.

 What is Original Works?

Turn your child’s art into high-quality keepsakes (mugs, tote bags, pot holders, quilt blocks, ornaments, pillowcases, keychains, night lights, etc.). This fundraiser benefits your child’s classroom directly.

What if my child didn’t do or complete their art?

Complete it now! Art needs to be on plain 8.5”x11” paper (cardstock is best for durability–ask Ms. Christina if you need some!). No 3-D art (glitter, pipe cleaners, etc.) and no copyrighted art. Must be original! Whatever you turn in with your payment will be considered complete.

What if my child made/wants to make more than one piece of art?

If your child would like to create a piece of art in addition to what they created in class (for example: something more specific for grandparent gifts, etc.), they are welcome to do that! You need one order form per piece of art (if you need an extra, ask Ms. Christina!). The order form needs to be filled out and taped to the back of your child’s art.

What if I have a child who wants to participate and isn’t at MMA?

Anyone can submit art. All you need is an order form and to designate which teacher you want to benefit!

How do I pay?

Write a check made to Original Works and attach it to the order form or write your credit card number on order form.

When are orders due?

Art, order forms, and payment must be returned to the front office by October 17^th.

What needs to be on the art?

Your child’s name, teacher’s name, and a T designating the top of art must be written on the back of each piece of art.

When will keepsakes arrive?

Friday, November 30^th!

Questions?

Email rachael.bush@gmail.com

I sent home a yellow packet yesterday with you child’s original art and instructions on how to order. The items for purchase make wonderful gifts for the upcoming holiday season and are a terrific fundraiser for our classroom. In the you will find ideas on what you can order with your child’s art on it. For example, I am ordering a Christmas tree ornament for each my own children to commemorate the year and then letting them each pick one other item of their choice (they want a keychain, a notebook and a dog tag). If you are ordering, please make sure that you return the art with the order form in the yellow folder. They can do more than one piece of art for different items. Your child’s other siblings are welcome to do an art piece and you can order items with their art. Just make sure you identify what art you would like on the item. All original art pieces will be returned.

You might notice that your child’s artwork features the silhouette of a tree, but it’s not just any tree. It is a Kentucky Coffeetree. Last year, each Lower Elementary teacher chose a Utah tree grown as a symbol/mascot for the classroom. Ms. Lana chose the Kentucky Coffeetree for us in Room 23. Never heard of it? Let me tell you about it! The Kentucky Coffeetree is native to (you guessed it!) Kentucky, but it now grows throughout the United States. Part of the wide distribution is due to Native Americans purposely bringing seeds with them as they traveled and migrated due to the tree’s usefulness. They used the tree’s beans as food and also as part of religious ceremonies and other uses. Today, the tree is known for being tolerant, adaptable, hardy and pest-resistant in addition to being beautiful and used by cabinet-makers and woodworkers.

Like the Kentucky Cofeetree, I hope all of us in Room 23 can learn to be more tolerant, adaptable and resistant to hardship. I also hope we can all express our individuality within the boundaries of kindness, which is why I chose to let each child decorate their tree as they wanted to.

Lastly, I have a favor to ask. I would love to have a quilt block (one of the ordering options) from each member of our class to make a quilt for our classroom either as a wallhanging to beautify our space or as a weighted/comfort blanket (or possibly floor cushions) for our peace area. Of course, this is not required, but I would like all of the children to feel the pride of knowing they contributed to our classroom. The quilt blocks are inexpensive and I would so appreciate if you consider adding that to your order so that I can create this for our room.

I will create a separate post with FAQs about the Original Works program, including important dates.