Hands-on Learning, Health & Johnny Appleseed Day

Thank you to all of the families who were able to make Open House.  I hope you found it worthwhile. If you were not able to make it, please feel free to contact me about any questions you have about ThinkMath! or how our classroom runs each day.

On Monday, Allie Tomason, Abby's mother, visited to teach us about the "Scrub Club."  She taught us how to appropriately clean our hands.  She also provided information about how appropriate hygiene helps to keep us healthy and 'in school.'  Each student received a poster with healthy steps to washing hands. Thank you Ms. Tomason! 

On Thursday, we celebrated Johnny Appleseed Day by connecting his legacy to each content area:

• In Reading, we compared the fairy tale we read in our Imagine It! book to the folk tales told about Johnny (Chapman) Appleseed. 
• In Math, we created rulers and discussed standard and non-standard units for measuring the necessary depth to plant seeds.
• In Social Studies, we looked at the map of Johnny Appleseed's route and noted where Michigan is located relative to it.
• In Science, we planted tulips and discussed plant life cycles and the importance of planting.
• In writing, we wrote about the life of our tulip bulb. 

We also tasted some apples and watched a Johnny Appleseed video during snack.  It's been a great week to learn!  

Aarrh! Pirate Day, Open House and Spelling

TALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY
Thursday was Talk Like a Pirate Day at SPS.  We had a lot of fun learning about Pirates.  It was a perfect way to introduce geography as we talked about map skills and the seven continents. 

 

OPEN HOUSE

South Pointe Scholars' Open House is Tuesday, September 24th at 6:00 p.m. or 7:00 p.m.  

-students last names beginning with A-K @ 6:00-7:00 pm

-students last names beginning with L-Z @ 7:00-8:00 pm

Please come in and check out our Think Math! curriculum and learn ways to support your child's progress in math.  

 

SPELLING

Spellingcity.com is updated.  Your child will be studying the same word types (either SS or WW) unless you hear otherwise.  If you have any questions, please let me know.

Ipads, Writesteps, NWEA, Constitution Day, and gradebook

We had a wonderful opportunity to borrow the "ipad cart" last week. Students partnered up to explore four aps: spellingcity, tangrams, opposites, and cursive writing.  Ipads and the educational aps are a great way to reinforce the concepts we are learning in school (spelling patterns) and to try new things (cursive).  The students were learning and having fun.

For writing, we are using the program WriteSteps.  It is a wonderful program that incorporates creativity, purposeful writing, review, and language concepts.  Students have decorated their writing notebooks and have also wrote every day for an extended period of time.  As we build their writing endurance, we use their individual writing to persuade, inform, and entertain.

I have updated the online gradebook with your student's scores from last week.  You can access it through the SPS website.  You will need to login to visit your child's grades.  Be sure to double click the bar graph for information about individual scores.  The assessments will be returned in your child's Monday Mailer with their score on it.  Homework, workshop work, morning work, etc. that is returned to you should have a checkmark, smile, or a note.  Items with notes/check/smile rather than a point score are reviewed for participation points and are used to inform future instruction.

Constitution Day is Tuesday, September 17th.  We will be comparing our class contract to the United States Constitution and learning about the history of such an important document.

Our class will take three the NWEA MAP tests this week:  Reading is Wednesday at 9:30, Math is Thursday at 9:30, Language Usage is Friday at 9:30.   The results will be shared soon after.

Thank you for a great week!

Class Contract & First Homework Packet

During the first week of class, we co-created a class contract.  We talked about how we want to be treated by the teacher, how the teacher wants to be treated, how we want to be treated by others, and how we will treat others in times of conflict.  Once we all agreed upon the terms, we wrote them down and signed the contract. It will be posted in our room and we will refer to it a lot this year.

Please stop in, sign the contract if you agree, and talk with the students about it.  

You should receive the first homework packet in your child's Monday Mailer.  We went over the homework and completed a few problems together to be sure it could be done independently.  Please let me know how your child does with homework this week.  

A happy start

So the past two days reminded me of a Shel Silverstein's poem:

"So just give me a happy middle.  And a very happy start."  We have had a very happy start.  Thank you for your decision to attend South Pointe Scholars!  I am so glad your child is in our school and especially in our class.

Here is what we've been up to:  

We listened and responded to: Have you Filled a Bucket Today?,

worked with a partner on Task Cards (a decision-making activity),

sorted by size (without being asked)

discovered counterparts (without directions or prompts),

took a few 'brain breaks' and much more!

In reading, we are comparing The Little Red Riding Hood to The Wolf's Story.  In math, we are looking at extending and explaining patterns.  In Science, we are exploring healthy foods, activities, and routines.  In writing we are reviewing paragraph format, and writing main ideas and supporting details.

Thank you again for your partnership.  I am so impressed with your diligence in returning forms and getting your students to school on time, in uniform, and supplied with materials. Bring on the "happy middle!"  

Please note that pictures are Friday, September 6th.  Also, homework and planners will go home beginning Monday, September 9th!