Book Club Update: Moodle

All Book Clubs are now on Moodle. Please link to the site at http://moodle.brownsburg.k12.in.us/ and log into the site. It's also a link at the bottom of this blog.

Your username is the same as your SRI username. Your password is either my last name or your third grade teacher's last name. (We created/changed these, if necessary, with Mr. Grimes before break.) The "enrollment key" is [media] without any brackets.

Please plan to complete your reading assignments for the week by Monday, January 10. You must also complete at least 10 sticky notes or notes in a notebook by Monday, too, over the chapters you've read for the week. DO NOT READ AHEAD!

Please plan to complete your Moodle post for this week, too. I will provide time in class on Friday to complete the post should you not have access to the Internet over the weekend.

1/4/11 Update

Happy, Happy New Year! After a whirlwind of a vacation, a bit too fast for me-I'm sure many of the students agree, but nonetheless, we're back at it here in 5th grade in 2011 with 18 weeks of school remaining!

Colts spirit day on Friday! Wear as much blue as you can to show your spirit for their big playoff win against the Jets on Saturday!

TONIGHT'S HOMEWORK:

• Math--Study Link 6.1 page 121, due Wednesday
• Spelling--Packet due Wednesday and test on Wednesday
• Reading--See below regarding book clubs

NWEA:
We will take our winter NWEA test on Wednesday morning for reading. My hope is that the scores improve from the fall, however, we still have many skills to cover before May!

Collages:

We are working on collages from our last ten years of life. We will incorporate these works of art into a monologue-type speech during this month. Today was the last day for cutting out pictures and printing pictures from the computer. If more are needed, this is now a homework assignment for the students.

Book Clubs:
We started reading book clubs yesterday. One group is reading Ida B.with Mrs. Lengerich. Another group is reading Maniac Magee with Mrs. Low. And a third group is reading Eve of the Emperor Penguin with Mrs. Hill. Each book club has a separate reading assignment on the homework board at school. I will do my best to post it here, as well, just to keep everyone informed. All assignments listed below are due Monday, January 10.

Ida B.: Read through Chapter 6, use at least 10 sticky notes and ideas from bookmarks while reading, and check Moodle for a posted assignment (Internet access required, but can be accessed at school if needed).

Maniac Magee: Read through Chapter 8, use at least 10 sticky notes and ideas from bookmarks while reading, and check Moodle for a posted assignment (Internet access required, but can be accessed at school if needed).


Eve of the Emperor Penguin: Read through Chapter 2, use at least 10 sticky notes and ideas from bookmarks while reading, and check Moodle for a posted assignment (Internet access required, but can be accessed at school if needed).

12/17 Update

Enjoy a delightful weekend! We had a very busy afternoon--it was so fun to munch on some delicious snacks while snuggled up with a good book, magazine, or newspaper. The hot cocoa and apple cider hit the spot! Thanks to all parents that donated snacks, drinks, or supplies today for a very successful Book-In!

We are missing 3 Countdown novels. The set belongs to the Challenger Learning Center and was on loan to us for a few months. Unless I return those books, I am responsible for purchasing new ones to replace them. Please double check with you child about whether he or she turned in a book. Thank you!

We DO have school on Monday, but just two more days! We have Media Center on Monday, as well. We will work on our Native American webquest and "The Twelve Days of Christmas" math activity. Tuesday is our winter party beginning at 2:45. We will be at a school-wide sing-a-long beginning at 2. Please feel free to join us for both activities!

IRT Trip 12/16

Our field trip to IRT is tomorrow!! We are so excited to see the theater show and to eat at the food court. However, Old Man Winter might have other plans for us! A letter was sent home today on blue paper regarding a back-up plan if we should have a 2-hour delay on Thursday.  Here is something similar to what the note said, just in case you never see it tonight:

We will still go to IRT tomorrow even if there is a delay.  We will leave promptly at 11:00, so it's important that students and volunteers arrive on time. We will NOT be eating lunch at the Hyatt if there is a delay on Thursday, so eat a hearty breakfast. Bring a sack lunch or purchase one from the school cafe if we have a delay.

Keep your fingers crossed for great weather! Please encourage your child to dress nicely for the theater tomorrow. We discussed appropriate dress in class today as well as high expectations for behavior at the theater. Thank you for your help with these two matters!

12/14 Update

Please be diligent about checking the blog this week due to weather changes. There is a chance for more snow on Thursday morning, the day we are planning to go to IRT for "A Christmas Carol" and lunch. We will send home a note regarding a back-up plan by tomorrow, but please check here, too, so that I can get any needed information to parents!

NWEA Results are in . . . 100% of our class improved their math RIT score any where from 5 points up to 20 points!!! We are very excited (hence the screaming we did in class to celebrate)! However, we still have a lot of work to do in the second semester!

Vocabulary test on Friday over list #2 for "On My Honor" novel. This list is a bit harder than last week's list, so please be sure to spend some time studying the words and their definitions.

The kids are creating a collage of their last 10-11 years over the next week and into January. Many are using the ads and magazines to cut pictures for their collage creation. However, I strongly encouraged students to bring photos from home to use, as well.

No spelling until January!

12/10 Notes

Thanks to many parents, we have all the volunteers we need for Monday afternoon's scavenger hunt!

There is NO homework this weekend unless you need to finish your "A Christmas Carol" handout from Wednesday. It is due Monday.

We WILL NOT have a spelling list next week again. We will continue our lessons in January.

We WILL have a vocabulary list next week. The list will go home on Monday.

We will have a test over the novel On My Honor on Thursday before we leave for the field trip.

A note went home to parents and fifth graders regarding our winter party on Tuesday, December 21. If you did not receive the note and want to help Mrs. Falcone and Mrs. Blood, please contact one of them. falcone5@me.com or hblood26@aol.com. Thanks!

IRT Field Trip is Thursday, December 16. ALL students received a half-green sheet note regarding information about Thursday. It includes a note that students need to bring money for lunch: $5-$10 is more than enough. **If you are volunteering for the trip, please look for a green information sheet in your child's file folder today.

Friday, December 17 in the afternoon is our Holiday Book-In! Information went home last Friday about this special afternoon. Students plan to wear jammies and bring slippers, pillows, and blankets in backpacks for that day. We will have hot chocolate and a snack while reading, listening to holiday stories, singing holiday songs, and opening gifts from Mrs. Hill!

Recess Debate

Our class is working on oral communcation skills, forming an argument with evidence to support the argument, the art of persuasion, and point-of-view. We are doing this by debating an issue that matters most to our class at this point in the school year: RECESS! This is only a debate and a chance to discuss their concerns. It is not a place that will promote change for sure, however, a good place to begin a discussion!

We would like to invite families to the debate. It's Friday morning from 11:00-11:30 in the Science Lab (across from our classroom). It will be quick, but I'm certain it will be filled with many interesting points!