October 8 - 12

We have wrapped up our assessment window!  The students were very flexible as we worked our way through new reading assessments with them.  We are all glad to be done and can now focus on teaching and learning.

Academics

Math

We continued our October Number Corner activities. Fifth graders are working on identifying shapes based on different views of the object, order of operations, and observing the changes in the mass of two carrots. Fourth graders are connecting money to fractions, and continuing work with place value.  They are playing a fun game called Race to the Millions which is the Calendar Collector activity for this month.

 

We are wrapping up Unit 1 instruction and will begin Unit 2 next week.  

 

Word Study

Work study work is continuing. Along with learning how to spell their words,  students are required to learn the meanings. In addition, they learn the rule or pattern associated with their words. Weekly spelling tests incorporate all three of these aspects of word study instruction. Completed word study sorts and extra forms can be found on the team website.  

 

Writing

Our first writing genre is informational.  The students have continued doing a variety of brainstorming and writing about topics on which they have some expertise.  Students have also been responding to their read alouds book through writing.

 

Reading

We continued our first round of book groups this week. Book groups meet Wednesdays and Fridays with teacher led discussions. In this week’s discussions students talked about the characters of their books, the narrator and point of view, as well as some figurative language. These books groups last approximately three weeks.

 

Read Aloud

Mrs. S. Mead: Restart by Gordan Korman

We came to the end of this book! Chase was able to remember many things from his past, for better or worse. He was able to make right on the crime of stealing Mr. Solway’s medal, by returning it and confessing to what his former self had done. The lessons and themes of this book were complicated, and the students did a nice job discussing the balance between the importance of second chances, and the need to take responsibility for your actions even if you feel remorseful.

 

Mrs. K. Mead:  The Terrible Two by Jory John and Mac Barnett.

Miles has been losing the prank war dramatically. Everytime he tried to prank Niles, Niles was one step ahead of him thwarting his pranks before they even got started. Miles called Niles out for only reacting to pranks- not actually doing any pranks himself. Niles pranked Miles back by framing him for catapulting a pie in another students face. Miles received detention before and after school everyday for the rest of his time at Yawnee Valley Science and Letters academy. He was devastated so he didn’t see any other option when Niles said he could get Miles out of this mess if he agrees to team up with him and be his friend.  Miles went over to Niles’ house and he and Niles officially formed the Terrible Two. They began devising their first prank immediately. We are comparing this book to Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus to determine the characteristics of the realistic fiction genre.

 

Ms. Jeffrey: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Connor went to a store to get Aven gummy bears, which is one of her favorite snacks.  While he was at the store he caught someone filming him because of his tics. As a result when Connor got to Aven’s house he was in a very bad mood.  When she pushed him about what was wrong they had a big argument. Connor called himself a freak and was angry when Aven tried to console him. He left and Aven yelled at him that he should never come back.  Later she regretted what she said. She realized that this all happened because he had pushed himself to go to a public place to get gummy bears for her. The next day Aven wrote a top twenty list of bad things about not having arms.  Some of them were humorous but the last three were very serious and seemed to be a direct result of her argument with Connor.

Important Information/Happenings

Birthday Celebrations

Starting this year, the school is discouraging food celebrations, which includes sending in whole class snacks for birthdays. We will still be recognizing and celebrating students on their birthdays in other ways. We have generated a list of ideas for celebrating student birthday. You can see it here. If you have suggestions for your child's celebration please let us know.

 

Lunch Bunches

David Hoppe is the guidance counselor for our team this year. In an effort to get to know our students he will be running weekly lunch bunches in his office. If this is something you are not comfortable with having your child participate in, please let us know.

 

Practice Superstars

The following students completed all their practice on time and handed it in when they arrived in the morning.  Parents should check with their child about his/her classroom number.

 

Jeffrey: 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22

S. Mead: 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22

K. Mead: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20

 

Model Citizen

In addition to Practice Superstars we will select one student as Model Citizen each week from each of our classrooms.  We are always looking for students who demonstrate good character as well as work hard with school assignments. As recognition for being Model Citizen, students will receive a practice pass which can be used on one practice assignment. The practice passes do not have expiration dates. In addition, the Model Citizen may choose to have lunch in the classroom one day with 3 friends. Again, if you would prefer that your child’s number not be in the blog for this recognition please let us know.

 

Jeffrey: 12

S. Mead: 22

K. Mead: 6

Team Wish List

Any donations of the following items would be greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

 

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.  

 

Pumpkin Day

We are planning this fun-filled autumn celebration for Wednesday, October 31st. A short letter about Pumpkin Day was sent home on Friday, October 5th. We are asking each child to bring in a 4-7 lb. pumpkin. If families would like to send in an extra pumpkin to donate, that would be great!

Field Trip to UVM Ropes Course

We are planning to take the team to the UVM Ropes Course on Friday October 26th. A letter about this went home with your child on Friday, October 5th.

Proposed Field Trip to Boston

We have made tentative plans for an overnight trip to Boston on June 6 and 7.  We will be sending home a survey in the next week that outlines the itinerary as well as projected cost of this trip.

 

Upcoming Events

Parent Conferences (no school for students) October 18

School Holiday October 19

UVM Ropes Course October 26

Pumpkin Day October 31

 

October 1st - 5th

Academics are fully up and running with the first week of book groups. Students have been working hard and are engaged in their work!  

Academics

Math

Fourth graders continue to work on multiplication, factors and multiples.  Fifth graders continue to learn about volume and multiplication. We have started our October Number Corner Activities. Fifth graders are working on identifying shapes based on different views of the object, order of operations, and observing the changes in the mass of two carrots. Fourth graders are connecting money to fractions, and continuing work with place value.

 

Word Study

Work study work is continuing. Along with learning how to spell their words,  students are required to learn the meanings. In addition, they learn the rule or pattern associated with their words. Weekly spelling tests incorporate all three of these aspects of word study instruction. Completed word study sorts and extra forms can be found on the team website.  

 

Writing

Our first writing genre is informational.  The students have continued doing a variety of brainstorming and writing about topics on which they have some expertise.  Students have also been responding to their read alouds book through writing.

 

Reading

We started our first round of book groups this week. Book groups meet Wednesdays and Fridays with teacher led discussions. In this week’s discussions students talked about the characters of their books, the narrator and point of view, as well as some figurative language. These books groups last approximately three weeks.

 

Read Aloud

Mrs. S. Mead: Restart by Gordan Korman

We’ve learned by hearing a few chapters through Chase’s eyes that he was in deed framed by Aaron and Bear for the incident that happened in the band room. Unfortunately for Chase, he doesn’t see a way out of it, other than to go along with Bear and Aaron’s story about seeing smoke and needing to use the extinguishers. However, sticking to this lie to keep himself out of trouble, ends up isolating himself from his new friends in the video club, not to mention Shoshanna who was just starting to trust him again. Chase is feeling lost, without any true friends, when the final blow to his self-esteem comes in the form of a memory, brought on by Bear and Aaron. Chase learns that it was in fact him who stole the Medal of Honor from his good friend, Mr. Solway at the retirement home. The worst part is, that Chase has no idea what he did with it.

 

Mrs. K. Mead:  The Terrible Two by Jory John and Mac Barnett.

This book is about a student named Miles who prided himself on being the prankster of his old school and has every intention of making a name for himself as a prankster at his new school. However, he learns quickly that this school already has a prankster and that prankster is good. Miles is been trying to outdo the school prankster but keeps failing. Miles then finds out that the prankster is really Niles- the School Welcoming Buddy who seems to be the principal's right hand man. Niles wants to form an alliance, which he has named The Terrible Two, but Miles has no interest and instead has started a prank war with Niles. This is a funny book from a previous year’s Dorothy’s List. We will be comparing and contrasting how both this book and Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus are realistic fiction.  

 

Ms. Jeffrey: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Aven meets Connor’s mom who is surprised to learn that Connor has attended support group meetings without her knowledge.  Connor gets upset with Aven for telling her mom and tells her to stop trying to fix him. It is becoming apparent that Connor has very low self esteem and blames himself for this disability.  Meanwhile, Aven has an idea to try to save the theme park. She encourages her parents to host an art festival at the theme park to try to encourage vendors to open up shop at Stagecoach Pass. Aven is very excited and is trying to encourage Connor to attend the festival but he is hesitant because of his tics.

Assessments

Most district fall assessments are complete, although we are continuing to administer the Fountas and Pinnell reading assessment. We have to find three levels for each child, and each time a child reads a book it takes an average of 25 minutes to complete the assessment.

 

Important Information/Happenings

Birthday Celebrations

Starting this year, the school is discouraging food celebrations, which includes sending in whole class snacks for birthdays. We will still be recognizing and celebrating students on their birthdays in other ways. We have generated a list of ideas for celebrating student birthday. You can see it here. If you have suggestions for your child's celebration please let us know.

 

Lunch Bunches

David Hoppe is the guidance counselor for our team this year. In an effort to get to know our students he will be running weekly lunch bunches in his office. If this is something you are not comfortable with having your child participate in, please let us know.

 

Practice Superstars

The following students completed all their practice on time and handed it in when they arrived in the morning.  Parents should check with their child about his/her classroom number.

 

Jeffrey: 1, 3, 4, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22

S. Mead: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22

K.Mead: 1, 5, 6, 10, 11, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20

 

Model Citizen

In addition to Practice Superstars we will select one student as Model Citizen each week from each of our classrooms.  We are always looking for students who demonstrate good character as well as work hard with school assignments. As recognition for being Model Citizen, students will receive a practice pass which can be used on one practice assignment. The practice passes do not have expiration dates. In addition, the Model Citizen may choose to have lunch in the classroom one day with 3 friends. Again, if you would prefer that your child’s number not be in the blog for this recognition please let us know.

 

Jeffrey: 16

S. Mead:

K. Mead: Mrs. Mead’s class will start Model Citizen next week.

Team Wish List

Any donations of the following items would be greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

 

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.  

 

Pumpkin Day

We are planning this fun-filled autumn celebration for Wednesday, October 31st. A short letter about Pumpkin Day was sent home on Friday, October 5th. We are asking each child to bring in a 4-7 lb. pumpkin. If families would like to send in an extra pumpkin to donate, that would be great!

 

Field Trip to UVM Ropes Course

We are planning to take the team to the UVM Ropes Course on Friday October 26th. A letter about this went home with your child on Friday, October 5th.

Proposed Field Trip to Boston

We have made tentative plans for an overnight trip to Boston on June 6 and 7.  We will be sending home a survey in the next week that outlines the itinerary as well as projected cost of this trip.

 

Upcoming Events

UVM Permission Slip Due October 12

Parent Conferences October 18

School Holiday October 19

UVM Ropes Course October 26

Pumpkin Day October 31

 

September 24-28

This was our first full week with team rules up and running! The students have done a fantastic job of reminding each other about the things we’ve agreed to do.

Academics

Math

Fourth graders continue to work on multiplication, factors and multiples.  Fifth graders continue to learn about volume and multiplication. Number Corner has continued with conversations around equivalent fractions, volume, patterns and our number system. As this was the last week in September, we will be starting new Number Corner routines with our groups in October.

 

Word Study

Students completed their first week of official word study groups. Along with learning how to spell their words,  students are required to learn the meanings. In addition, they learn the rule or pattern associated with their words. Weekly spelling tests incorporate all three of these aspects of word study instruction. Completed word study sorts and extra forms can be found on the team website.  

 

Writing

Our first writing genre is informational.  The students have continued doing a variety of brainstorming and writing about topics on which they have some expertise.  

 

Reading

The students continued building stamina with independent reading, and with finding books that will sustain them over multiple reading sessions. In addition, our first round of realistic fiction book groups will start on October 1st.

 

Read Aloud

Mrs. S. Mead: Restart by Gordan Korman

Chase has started to gain back favor with the Weber family, although that has been slow-going. Joel has returned from Melton Academy, but is still leary of Chase, which Chase understands. Everyone thinks the video project Shoshanna and Chase are working on with Mr. Solway is amazing, which angers Aaron and Bear even more than Chase simply hanging out with the video club. These seemingly small conflicts in Chase’s life all start to come to a head when a video Brendan and Kimbery are filming together in the music room is foiled by Aaron and Bear spraying fire extinguishers all over the room, and then acting as if it was Chase’s idea all along. We are now wondering whether Chase was in on this the whole time, or if he was set up...

 

Mrs. K. Mead: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

While Aven and Connor were arguing, Aven’s dad found the missing key to the desk hidden in the storage shed. When Aven opened the desk, she found the picture that had been missing from the museum. She realized that the picture was of her birth mother and a woman who worked at the diner, Josephine. Josephine turned out to be Aven’s grandmother and Joe Cavanaugh. Aven wasn’t sure how she felt about her grandmother putting her up for adoption after her mother passed away but in the end decided to get to know her grandmother. Overall, students enjoyed this book. We are now reading The Terrible Two by Jory John and Mac Barnett.   

 

Ms. Jeffrey: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Aven and Connor went to a support group for kids with Tourette’s Syndrome.  They met several other kids who struggle with tics like Connor. While there is definitely an element of humor to this book it also does a great job of teaching kids empathy for others.  The next day Aven was hiking behind Stagecoach Pass and found a necklace caked in the dirt that looked familiar to her. The students predicted it is somehow connected to the Cavanaughs and Aven.  

Assessments

Most district fall assessments are complete, although we are continuing to administer the Fountas and Pinnell reading assessment. We have to find three levels for each child, and each time a child reads a book it takes an average of 25 minutes to complete the assessment.

 

Important Information/Happenings

Birthday Celebrations

Starting this year, the school is discouraging food celebrations, which includes sending in whole class snacks for birthdays. We will still be recognizing and celebrating students on their birthdays in other ways. We have generated a list of ideas for celebrating student birthday. You can see it here. If you have suggestions for your child's celebration please let us know.

 

Lunch Bunches

David Hoppe is the guidance counselor for our team this year. In an effort to get to know our students he will be running weekly lunch bunches in his office. If this is something you are not comfortable with having your child participate in, please let us know.

 

Practice Superstars

The following students completed all their practice on time and handed it in when they arrived in the morning.  Parents should check with their child about his/her classroom number.

 

Jeffrey: 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22

S. Mead: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22

K. Mead: Mrs. K. Mead’s class will start homework superstars next week

 

Model Citizen

In addition to Practice Superstars we will select one student as Model Citizen each week from each of our classrooms.  We are always looking for students who demonstrate good character as well as work hard with school assignments. As recognition for being Model Citizen, students will receive a practice pass which can be used on one practice assignment. The practice passes do not have expiration dates. In addition, the Model Citizen may choose to have lunch in the classroom one day with 3 friends. Again, if you would prefer that your child’s number not be in the blog for this recognition please let us know.

 

Jeffrey: 8

S. Mead: 22

K. Mead: Mrs. K. Mead’s class will start Model Citizen next week

 

Team Wish List

Any donations of the following items would be greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

 

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.  

 

Field Trip to UVM Ropes Course

We are planning to take the team to the UVM Ropes Course on Friday October 26th. A letter about this will be coming home with your child by Friday, October 5th.

Proposed Field Trip to Boston

We have made tentative plans for an overnight trip to Boston on June 6 and 7.  We will be sending home a survey in the next week that outlines the itinerary as well as projected cost of this trip.

 

Upcoming Events

 

Parent Conferences October 18

School Holiday October 19

UVM Ropes Course October 26

September 17 - 21

The students continue to learn more classroom routines as we weave in more academics.  In addition, they finalized the team rules and they were very collaborative throughout the process.  

Academics

Math

Fourth graders are working on multiplication, factors and multiples.  Fifth graders continue to learn about volume. Number Corner has continued with conversations around equivalent fractions, volume, patterns and our number system.

 

Word Study

The students completed the practice week.  Next week we will have our first week of instruction. Students have been grouped based on their needs as shown on the assessments we administered.  Completed word study sorts and extra forms can be found on the team website.

 

Writing

Our first writing genre is informational.  The students have been doing a variety of brainstorming and writing about topics on which they have some expertise.  

 

Reading

The students have been working on building stamina with independent reading.  We will start the first round of book groups in a few weeks. The first genre will be realistic fiction.  

 

Read Aloud

Mrs. S. Mead: Restart by Gordan Korman

As Chase becomes more and more comfortable around his new friends in the video club, he becomes more distant from his former football buddies. Chase has also befriended an old man at the senior home named Mr. Solway, who once won the medal of honor during the Korean War. We have also discovered that Bear, Aaron and Chase once stole something very valuable, and that Bear and Aaron believe Chase has it in his possession, even if he doesn’t remember. Additionally, Mr. Solway’s medal of honor seems to be missing, and he believes he misplaced it.

 

Mrs. K. Mead: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Aven has an idea to try to save the theme park. She encourages her parents to host an art festival at the theme park to try to encourage vendors to open up shop at Stagecoach Pass. Aven is very excited and is trying to encourage Connor to attend the festival but he is hesitant because of his tics. As Aven tries to convince Connor to go, Connor is feeling more and more like a freak. This is due in part to someone who took a video of him at a store while he was buying Aven gummy worms. Connor doesn’t typically try to go to the store so this was a large gesture of his friendship. While trying to cheer him up, Aven and Connor get into a big fight about what they each think Connor can do. The fight ends with Aven yelling at Connor to leave her apartment and Connor walking out the door. We are wondering if/how their friendship will get repaired.

 

Ms. Jeffrey: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Aven met a boy named Zion who also feels like an outsider.  He feels left out because he is overweight so he eats his lunch outside.  Aven invited Connor over for dinner but he was reluctant because his tics sometimes cause him to spit food out of his mouth.  Aven’s mom convinced Connor it would be fine. Both Aven’s parents tried to make Connor feel better. In fact, Aven’s dad wore ski goggles to the dinner table!

Assessments

We continue to work through the assessment window with students.  If they have not already they will complete the Words Their Way assessment, the Fountas & Pinnell reading assessment, and our district fall math screener.   

Important Information/Happenings

Birthday Celebrations

Starting this year, the school is discouraging food celebrations, which includes sending in whole class snacks for birthdays. We will still be recognizing and celebrating students on their birthdays in other ways. We have generated a list of ideas for celebrating student birthday. You can see it here. If you have suggestions for your child's celebration please let us know.

 

Lunch Bunches

David Hoppe is the guidance counselor for our team this year. In an effort to get to know our students he will be running weekly lunch bunches in his office. If this is something you are not comfortable with having your child participate in, please let us know.

 

Practice Superstars

Each week we will recognize individual students who have turned in all of their practice on time during the previous week. As this will be listed online, we will use student classroom numbers rather than names. If you would prefer that your child not participate in this, please let us know.  We will let you know when we start to assign practice assignments.

 

Model Citizen

In addition to Practice Superstars we will select one student as Model Citizen each week from each of our classrooms.  We are always looking for students who demonstrate good character as well as work hard with school assignments. As recognition for being Model Citizen, students will receive a practice pass which can be used on one practice assignment. The practice passes do not have expiration dates. In addition, the Model Citizen may choose to have lunch in the classroom one day with 3 friends. Again, if you would prefer that your child’s number not be in the blog for this recognition please let us know.

 

Team Wish List

Any donations of the following items would be greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

 

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.  

 

Proposed Field Trip to Boston

We have made tentative plans for a trip to Boston on June 6 and 7.  We are unable to reserve programs at the New England Aquarium until October 1.  Once we have done that we will send information and a survey about the entire trip home to families.    

Upcoming Events

 

Open House          September 27 (Multi-Age Times 6:15 - 7:15 p.m.)

PTO Fun Run September 28

Parent Conferences October 18

School Holiday October 19

September 10th-14th

Students are settling into routines nicely. This week they did a lot of work around what we need in order to reach our hopes and goals for the year. This will lead into the creation of our team rules that we will refer to throughout the year. When we have agreed upon those rules, we will post them here!  

 

Some Games and Activities we've Played:

• Coseeki
• Copy Cat
• Alphabet Aerobics
• Number Freeze
• The Product Game
• Elevens

Academics

Math is now fully up and running in our classrooms. Students have been working on topics such as volume, models of multiplication, multiples, and factors. Number Corner has continued with conversations around equivalent fractions, volume, and our number system.

 

Next week, we will begin a practice week of word study. For this week all students will be completing the same work with the same words to learn the routine of word study. Students have been taking the Word Journey’s assessments this week. We will use this data to group kids by what they need for word study. Next week we will have a practice week of word study where everyone will work on the same words. This is to help build the routine and familiarity with assignments for students. Word study instruction will begin officially the week of September 24th.

Read Aloud

Mrs. S. Mead: Restart by Gordan Korman

Chase is starting to find a niche with a new group of friends, the video club. However, he is finding out that this group of kids is the last that he would have been seen with before his amnesia. His so-called football friends are not pleased that he is now hanging out with these “losers,” and Chase is feeling completely torn. He doesn’t want to betray the people everyone says were his former best friends, but he can’t for the life of himself figure out why he was friends with them in the first place.

 

Mrs. K. Mead: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Aven and Connor have become friends with Zion, the boy Aven sat with at lunch one day. Zion struggles with his weight and is often made fun of for being overweight. Aven asked Connor to go with him to a support group for kids with Tourette Syndrome. They meet many people and Aven finds herself feeling like she fit in somewhere. It is unclear if Connor was feeling the same way. Meanwhile the mystery of where the Cavanaughs are continues. After getting into the locked shed, Aven, Connor, and Zion found many drawings and objects marked ABC. The kids have many predictions about this including that the initials stand for Aven B. Cavanaugh.

 

Ms. Jeffrey: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Aven and Connor explored an old shed Aven had found at Stagecoach Pass. In it they found boxes of old papers, pictures and drawings.  One of the papers was labeled with the letters A, V, and N. There were also many pictures of tarantulas. The students predicted there is some connection between Aven and the Cavanaughs, the owners of Stagecoach Pass.  There have been a few different clues to support that prediction such as Aven being adopted from Arizona to Kansas. Henry, the old man working in the ice cream shop, talks to Aven about her love of tarantulas and being in rodeos.  However, she doesn’t like tarantulas and has never been in a rodeo. The students think Henry is confusing her for someone that looked like her.

Assessments

This week we gave the Word Journeys assessments to kids. During this assessment window they will also complete the Words Their Way assessment, the Fountas & Pinnell reading assessment, and our district fall math screener.   

 

Parent Hopes and Goals

If you still have this and would like your hope displayed alongside your child’s for the year, please send that in.  

 

Birthday Celebrations

Starting this year, the school is discouraging food celebrations, which includes sending in whole class snacks for birthdays. We will still be recognizing and celebrating students on their birthdays in other ways. We have generated a list of ideas for celebrating student birthday. You can see it here. If you have suggestions for your child's celebration please let us know.

 

Lunch Bunches

David Hoppe is the guidance counselor for our team this year. In an effort to get to know our students he will be running weekly lunch bunches in his office. If this is something you are not comfortable with having your child participate in, please let us know.

 

Team Wish List

Any donations of the following items would be greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

 

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.  

Upcoming Events

 

Open House          September 27 (Multi-Age Times 6:15 - 7:15 p.m.)

PTO Fun Run September 28

Parent Conferences October 18

School Holiday October 19

September 4-7

We continued on with learning routines and building community within our homerooms and across the team. The students have had a positive attitude and have worked hard to reach out and make connections with each other.

 

Some Games and Activities we've Played:

• Chase the Bunny
• Who’s Missing
• Just Like Me
• How Close to 100
• Last Person Standing

Academics

We have continued building some academic structures. Students began going to different classrooms for the first part of our math block, called Number Corner. These same groups will continue through the month of September. Currently, students are grouped by grade level, to match the layout of the Bridges math program.

Mrs. S. Mead: Restart by Gordan Korman

Chase is finding out that he was not a kind person before his fall. He is struggling with the mixed messages he’s getting from family, so-called friends, and other students in the school. It seems that he was loved by some, and truly hated by others. Chase also discovered that he and two of his good buddies orchestrated a “prank” that got quickly out of hand and endangered hundreds. His friends are still serving out community service sentences, and it scares Chase that he was a part of something that violent.

 

Mrs. K. Mead: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Aven is getting to know her new school. She is struggling to feel comfortable around people who did not grow up with her. She has been eating lunch in the bathroom but decides to go to the library one day. While there she notices a boy barking at her. After confronting the boy, his name is Connor, she discovers that Connor has Tourette Syndrome. They quickly become friends. After being friends with Connor for a few days, Aven ends up befriending another boy named Zion. Zion has been eating lunch alone because people make fun of his weight. We have discussed how Aven has changed since the start of the story and is becoming more comfortable with reaching out to new people at her school.

 

Ms. Jeffrey: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

Aven is struggling to settle in at her new school.  She will not eat lunch in the cafeteria because kids stare at her.  Aven has been eating in the bathroom and outside. One day she decided to eat in the library and while in there she heard a dog bark barking.  Aven discovered that a boy named Connor was the one barking. He was doing it because he has Tourette Syndrome. Aven and Connor immediately hit it off, perhaps in part because of their differences.  Aven told him a very creative story about how she “lost” her arms and the students were quite amused by it.

Assessments

In the coming weeks, we will continue administering a few fall assessments. These include Words Their Way and Word Journeys. These are both word study assessments that will be used to guide our first round of instructional groups. In addition to word study assessments, students will take a fall math assessment.  We will also administer the Fountas & Pinnell reading assessment with all students.

 

Parent Hopes and Goals

If you still have this and would like your hope displayed alongside your child’s for the year, please send that in.  

Birthday Celebrations

Starting this year, the school is discouraging food celebrations, which includes sending in whole class snacks for birthdays. We will still be recognizing and celebrating students on their birthdays in other ways. If you have suggestions for your child's celebration please let us know.

 

Lunch Bunches

David Hoppe is the guidance counselor for our team this year. In an effort to get to know our students he will be running weekly lunch bunches in his office. If this is something you are not comfortable with having your child participate in, please let us know.

Team Wish List

Any donations of the following items would be greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

 

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.  

 

Upcoming Events

Picture Day September 14th

Open House          September 27 (Multi-Age Times 6:15 - 7:15 p.m.)

PTO Fun Run September 28

 

The First 3 Days

We were pretty busy the first three days of school last week! There is so much to learn and set up together. The students have done a wonderful job working together to play some games, and learn each other’s names.

 

Some Games and Activities we've Played:

• Digit Place
• Pica Ferme Nada
• Close to 100
• A Warm Wind Blows
• Last Person Standing

 

We’ve also worked hard to incorporate some routines into our classrooms that will be in place each day throughout the year.

 

Routines we've introduced and practiced:

- moving furniture as a group

- setting up circle for morning meeting

- using library cards to sign books out of our classroom library

- signing up on the board (or taking a number) if the teacher is busy and students need questions answered

- using the parking lot

 

Academics

Although our regular academic blocks are not up and running yet, we have introduced a few components to the students. We have incorporated interactive read aloud, as well as some independent reading and/or writing into our afternoon literacy time. Below are the read aloud books each homeroom is doing, along with a quick synopsis so you can ask you child about the story!

 

Mrs. S. Mead: Restart by Gordan Korman

Chase Ambrose is a football star at his middle school; loved by some, and hated by many because of his bullying behavior. However, at the start of this book, Chase doesn’t know any of this. He falls from his roof and hits his head so badly that he has amnesia. He doesn’t remember anything about his former life, and is appalled when he starts to learn about the kind of person he was. Chase wants to have friends, real friends, and he is starting to learn that it’s not easy to change the way people think of you.

 

Mrs. K. Mead: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

This book is on the current the Dorothy Canfield Fisher list.  This is the story of Aven, a thirteen year old, who recently moved from Kansas to Arizona.  Aven’s father took a job running an old theme park named Stagecoach Pass. The move was hard for Aven because she had always lived in the same town and gone to the same school.  What makes the move harder for her is that she was born without arms and people are always surprised when they first meet her. Aven has a great sense of humor about it and even makes up stories about how she “lost” her arms.  

  

 

Ms. Jeffrey: Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

This book is on the current the Dorothy Canfield Fisher list.  This is the story of Aven, a thirteen year old, who recently moved from Kansas to Arizona.  Aven’s father took a job running an old theme park named Stagecoach Pass. The move was hard for Aven because she had always lived in the same town and gone to the same school.  What makes the move harder for her is that she was born without arms and people are always surprised when they first meet her. Aven has a great sense of humor about it and even makes up stories about how she “lost” her arms.  

 

Assessments

In the coming weeks, we will be administering a few fall assessments. These include Words Their Way and Word Journeys. These are both word study assessments that will be used to guide our first round of instructional groups. In addition to word study assessments, students will take a fall math assessment.  We will also administer the Fountas & Pinnell reading assessment with all students.

 

Parent Hopes and Goals

If you would like us to display your hopes and goals for this school year please send them to us by Friday, September 7.  

 

Birthday Celebrations

Starting this year, the school is discouraging food celebrations, which includes sending in whole class snacks for birthdays. We will still be recognizing and celebrating students on their birthdays in other ways. If you have suggestions for your child's celebration please let us know.

Team Wish List

Any donations of the following items would be greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

 

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.  

Upcoming Events

Picture Day September 14th

Open House          September 27 (Multi-Age Times 6:15 - 7:15 p.m.)

PTO Fun Run September 28

We are busily getting ready for the beginning of the school year and wanted to share some important information with you.

 

Summer Letters

Last week we sent summer letters to students.  Please let us know if you have not received one by the end of this week.

 

Team Website/Blog

Each week we will update the team website with a blog post about classroom happenings, important team information and upcoming events.  

 

Student Allergies

We have some students on our team with severe, life-threatening allergies to tree nuts.  That means foods containing tree nuts or foods processed in a facility with tree nuts will not be allowed in the classroom.  Please read food labels carefully. In addition, whole class snacks for birthdays and celebrations should be gluten free.

 

Please plan to pack your child's snack in a separate bag or container to keep the snack away from any lunch items containing tree nuts. Everyday students will leave their lunch boxes in crates in the hallway.  Please let us know if you have any questions.

 

New Family Back To School Meetings

We are committed to establishing a strong parent/school connection.  Therefore, we are offering meeting times on Wednesday, August 22 to parents of students new to our team.  This is an opportunity for parents to share with us any information they would like us to know about their child.  If the offered times do not work for you, we are happy to correspond through email.

 

Here is the link if you would like to sign up for a time to meet with us.

 

If families have questions about the team or the upcoming school year we will answer those at the orientation on Monday, August 27.  

 

Back to School Orientation for Parents and Students

We have scheduled a parent/student orientation for Monday, August 27th at 5:30 p.m. in the FMS library We will share information about the curriculum, expectations, and much more.   New and returning families are welcome to attend. Hope to see you all there!

 

School Supplies

On the first day of school students will be provided with a pencil case or drawer, a calculator, a clipboard, and a pair of scissors.  In addition, we have classroom sets of markers, colored pencils, crayons, pencils, and erasers.

Below is a list of additional school supplies that would be helpful for your child to have during the school year.

• one 1” binder
• one 2” binder
• several pencils - regular #2 or mechanical (extra lead if your child is bringing mechanical pencils)

If you are unable to get binders for your child, we have binders that are available for students to borrow.  If your child chooses to borrow binders from us, it is with the understanding that he/she takes care of them and gives them back at the end of the year.

Team Wish List

Any donations of the following items would be greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

 

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.

 

Summer Learning Packet for Incoming 5th Graders

At the end of the year some of the returning (soon to be) fifth graders were given a summer learning packet.  This packet contains reading, writing and math work based on what the students learned in fourth grade. We encourage students to complete the packet as a way to maintain their learning from last year. As an incentive we will provide one practice pass each month during the upcoming school year to those students who complete the packet completely.

 

Important Dates/Events

August 24           FMS Ice Cream Social @ 3:15 p.m.

August 27           Multi-Age Orientation @ 5:30 p.m. in the FMS library

August 29           First Day of School

September 3        Labor Day - No School

September 14      FMS Picture Day

September 27      FMS Open House (Multi-Age Times 6:15 - 7:15 p.m.)

September 28      FMS PTO Fun Run

We had a very busy week!  Thank you to Mr. Guenther (and colleagues) for working with the classes on water quality.  The kids really enjoyed it.

 

Academics

Math

We continued the geometry unit this past week. Students learned about different polygons and how to classify them based on their properties.  In addition, they learned how to identify lines of symmetry and draw lines of symmetry in polygons.. Students who showed proficiency with these concepts on the pre-assessments worked on some enrichment activities on polygons and symmetry.

 

We continue to use a number talk as a way to teach students computation strategies.   We are looking for them to build efficiency and flexibility.

 

We want to remind families that students’ instruction is based on what they show us they are ready for on pre-assessments, and the groups they are a part of are flexible and will change from day to day.  

Math Stars

We are done Math Stars for the year.  

Reading

The students are doing some choice partner reading for the remainder of the year.

Read Aloud

Mrs. S. Mead: Waste of Space, by Stuart Gibbs

Kira and Dash were able to get into Chang’s room to search it, and what did they find? A syringe with cyanide still in it taped to the bottom of his table! Of course, as they were about to leave to find Nina, Chang appeared in his room, and confronted them. The three of them together talked about the reality of Chang keeping this syringe if he really was the killer, and the two children tended to believe him. So now the question has become, not only who tried to kill Lars, but who is so determined also to frame Chang for it? The clock is ticking, as there are only 15 hours until the first rocket takes people back to Earth, and this mystery is never solved.

Mrs. K. Mead: Hello Universe, by Erin Entrada Kelly

We finished this book midway through the week. Kaori, Gen, and Valencia used a finding ritual to try to find Virgil. At the end of the ritual Valencia was able to to put together all of the clues she had seen along the way to realize that Virgil was in the well that she had passed on the way to Kaori’s. They were able to get Virgil out of the well but he was not able to say hi to Valencia because he was too shy. On his way home, he was able to stand up to Chet and then also able to tell his parents that he did not like being called Turtle. Finally on the last page of the book, Valencia got a text message from Virgil that said hello. In the end we thought the book resolved all of the problems nicely but we would have liked to have heard one more chapter from Chet’s perspective as we were hoping to see a change in his thinking towards people who are different from him.

Ms. Jeffrey: Theodore Boone Kid Lawyer by John Grisham

We finished the book last week and the ending was very exciting!  Julio’s cousin, Bobby, met with Judge Gantry and told him everything he had seen the day of Mrs. Duffy’s murder.  Using a picture taken at the crime scene, he was able to identify Mr. Duffy as the man he saw go into the house at the time of the murder.  Judge Gantry declared a mistrial and ordered the prosecution to file new charges immediately. Bobby will be a witness in the new trial. Omar Cheepe, the bad guy, working for Mr. Duffy suspects Theo was somehow involved in the discovery of this new witness.  The author left us wondering many things at the end and hopefully students are interested in reading the next two books in the series.

Writing

Students in Ms. Jeffrey’s class continued working on narrative writing.  They chose one narrative idea and published it.

 

Students in Mrs. K. Mead’s room have started working on their own fairy tales. They have read many mentor texts to use as inspiration!

 

Students in Mrs. S. Mead’s room are wrapping up their work on narrative writing. They chose one of their four personal narratives and are taking it through the rest of the writing process. Students are typing, editing and polishing their pieces.

Word Study

We completed word study instruction last week.

Science

We continued with the Earth Science unit.  As part of this unit students will learn about changes in the Earth’s surface through erosion, weathering, volcanoes, earthquakes, etc. Students participated in the first of two engineering kits in this unit. This one centered around soil types and construction. The groups worked together (or are still working together) to create a bridge called a TarPul that can carry the weight of two people across a river. They had to consider things such as soil composition, village traditions for the people living near the river, and bends in the river where erosion would be most rapid.

 

Ms. Jeffrey’s class wrapped up a water distribution Mystery Science exploration.  They began the Water Water Everywhere EiE kit. This begins with the story of a girl named Salila who lives in India.  She discovers the pollution in the Ganges River and wants to save a turtle and find ways to improve the water quality in the river.

 

Mrs. S. Mead’s class continued learning about the water on Earth.  We moved on with the last EiE kit of the year: Water, Water, Everywhere! The students continued working in their teams and were all able to test their first filter model. This week we will be wrapping up this science unit with at least one more full test after they have had time to modify their designs once more.

Mrs. K. Mead’s class is beginning an engineering task that focuses on water quality and filtering out water! Mr. Guenther’s visit fit right into this work!

Puberty Unit

The fifth graders began the puberty unit.   Each day they have work or questions to go over with an adult at home.  We are asking that the adult sign the student papers each night. Thank you!

 

Important Happenings/Information

 

Enterprise Day

Enterprise Day is scheduled for Tuesday, June 12 from 9:45 - 10:45 a.m. in the cafeteria.  Parents are welcome to join us and should check into the office upon arrival.

 

Students should be working on their products outside of school.  Next week we will talk with students about fair pricing for their products considering factors such as time needed to make the products, cost of materials as well as competition.  

 

Summer Learning Packet

Interested parents should complete this survey by May 25.

 

Fairbanks Museum

On Thursday, June 7 we will leave FMS at 7:30 a.m.  Students should arrive no later than 7:15 a.m. We will congregate in the gym first.

 

Any child who has ever experienced motion sickness should have taken Dramamine or something comparable at home that morning.  We will have motion sickness medication on hand to give to kids for the bus ride home. We plan to arrive back at FMS between 4:00 and 4:30 p.m.  Please be flexible with your schedule that day should we arrive earlier or later. An email with directions on how to sign up to receive a text message from us using the Remind App went out last week.

 

Thank you to everyone for supporting this trip! If you haven’t sent in your donation, please do so.  The cost per person is $52. Checks should be made payable to FMS.

 

Spare Time and Sand Hill Park Field Trips

On Monday, June 11 the fourth graders will go to Spare Time.   Parents who are chaperoning can ride the bus with us or meet us at Spare Time.  We will leave FMS at about 8:45 and return by 11:30.

 

On Thursday, June 14 the fifth graders will go to Sand Hill Park.   Parents who are chaperoning can walk to the park with us or meet us there.  We will leave FMS by about 10:30.

Fifth Grade Moving On Ceremony

On Wednesday, June 13th, we will have the fifth grade moving on ceremony. This is a “graduation-type” ceremony where we officially say goodbye to our fifth graders as they head to middle school in the fall. This will start at 9:00 am at Essex Middle School, and we recommend arriving at least 15 minutes early, as it is usually packed.

 

End of the Day Pick-Ups

It’s important that we ensure students’ safety at dismissal time. One of our responsibilities is to make sure students who are being picked up go with an adult that has permission to take them. In order for this to be the case, the child’s parent either needs to send a note/email that day, OR the adult has to be placed on a“pick up list” with the office. This can be done by emailing Arthea Leggett (aleggett@ewsd.org).

 

There are many students who are picked up regularly by adults who are not actually on that child’s pick-up list. We need to be diligent about this, so please take the time to email Arthea with the names of anyone who has your permission to pick up your child from school so that we can be as efficient at dismissal time as possible!

 

Student Allergies

We have some students on our team with severe, life-threatening allergies to tree nuts.  That means foods containing tree nuts or foods processed in a facility with tree nuts will not be allowed in the classroom.  Please read food labels carefully. In addition, whole class snacks for birthdays and celebrations should be gluten free.

Please plan to pack your child's snack in a separate bag or container to keep the snack away from any lunch items containing tree nuts. Everyday students will leave their lunch boxes in crates in the hallway.  Please let us know if you have any questions.

Team Wish List

We go through many of these things throughout the year, so any donations are always greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes Colored Card Stock

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

Responsive Classroom

If you are interested in learning more about this approach to teaching children, you can check out their website! There are great articles about how children learn based on their developmental age, as well as classroom routines and expectations that are aimed at teaching children how to treat each other, work hard, and take responsibility for their part in a community of learners.

 

Responsive Classroom

Band and Orchestra

It is each student’s’ responsibility to get to his/her lessons on time. While at lessons, students will likely miss instructional time in the classroom. We will continue to discuss with the students the importance of making up the class work that they miss while they are at a lesson. If they miss direct instruction they will have to see us at recess and/or quiet time to catch up on the material.

Practice Superstars

The following students completed all their assignments on time last week.

Jeffrey: 1, 3, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 23

S. Mead: 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22

K. Mead: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 12, 14, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23

Model Citizen

Jeffrey: 17

S. Mead: 5

K. Mead: 2

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.

Upcoming Events

June 4     All library materials due back

June 5       Parent Night at EMS for new sixth graders 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.

June 6       FMS Field Day

June 7       Fairbanks Museum field trip 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

June 11     Fourth Grade field trip to Spare Time  8:45 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

June 12     Enterprise Day 9:45 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.

June 13     Fifth Grade Moving On Ceremony 8:45 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. at EMS

June 14     Fifth Grade field trip to Sand Hill Park  11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

June 14     Last day of school

Everyone is getting excited as we get into the last four weeks of our school year together. It doesn’t seem possible that there is so little time and so much still to do!

 

SPECIAL VISITOR: On Friday of next week, Mr, Guenther will be bringing visitors to our classrooms to do work testing water quality. He has asked that each student bring in 1 liter or 16 ounces of water from around their home. The water can be from a faucet, a nearby pond or stream, a puddle- wherever really! (Please no pool water). Please send these in with students throughout next week.

 

Academics

Math

We began our Geometry unit this past week. Students started with an introduction to some basic geometry terms, moved into types of lines, and ended the week with classifying and measuring angles. Students who showed proficiency with these concepts on the pre-assessments continued an exploration into volume and/or some algebra.

 

We continue to use a number talk as a way to teach students computation strategies.   We are looking for them to build efficiency and flexibility.

 

We want to remind families that students’ instruction is based on what they show us they are ready for on pre-assessments, and the groups they are a part of are flexible and will change from day to day.  

Math Stars

Students continue to work on Math Stars. Below are a few reminders about how this program works.

• Students should work independently.  Parents should NOT offer any assistance.
• We recognize the problems are challenging but this program teaches students perseverance.
• We go over the problems together on Thursdays in a group session. Sometimes students can also follow-up individually with their teachers with specific questions.
• This is an optional program so students can do a few or all of the problems.  If they have a busy week they don’t have to do any Math Stars.

 

Final orders need to be turned in by Friday, June 1.

Reading

The students completed mystery literature circles.   This was our last official round of book groups for the year, although more reading is coming their way in these last few weeks!

Read Aloud

Mrs. S. Mead: Waste of Space, by Stuart Gibbs

We learned that the base has to be evacuated starting in less than a day, so Dash, Kira, Violet and now Zan are on the hunt to find the murderer before time runs out for them on Moon Base Alpha. To make matters more interesting, Zan finally revealed her true form to Dash, and explained that although her species has figured out how to travel through telepathy, they have not learned how to leave their planet, because they are completely an aquatic species! That really blew our minds!

 

Mrs. K. Mead: Hello Universe, by Erin Entrada Kelly

Virgil is still stuck in the well and is trying to find a way to get out. Valencia went to her appointment with Kaori and has joined her in her search for Virgil. They are really seeming to get along and Kaori even referred to Valencia as her friend. Chet found his snake and when he grabbed it, it bit him. He was convinced that it was a poisonous snake and that he was dying until Valencia, Kaori and Gen came across him in the forest and set him straight. Now the search for Virgil continues!

Ms. Jeffrey: Theodore Boone Kid Lawyer by John Grisham

The Boones shared everything they know with Judge Gantry.  He said at this point in the trial there cannot be new witnesses even if Julio’s cousin was willing to come forward with what he knows.  Theo and his dad went golding at Waverly Creek and were checking out the area where Julio’s cousin had been sitting the day of the murder.  It was then they noticed Mr. Duffy was watching them through binoculars. In addition, Mr. and Mrs. Boone are working to find an apartment for Julio and his family.  They hope to find a good immigration lawyer who can help Julio’s cousin stay in the country.

Writing

Students in Ms. Jeffrey’s class continued working on narrative writing.  They are drafting a few different narratives including one focused on the top ten best things about living in Essex.  

 

Students in Mrs. K. Mead’s room choose their favorite beginning and started writing. They are finishing up their narrative to share with a third grade class next week. Next week students will focus on fairytales and folktales. They will be reading some mentor texts before taking a go at writing an original fairy or folktale!

 

Students in Mrs. S. Mead’s room continued working on narrative writing. We continued this week with more prompts about their own experiences. They are continuing to work in their writer’s notebooks to generate some possible story starters related to their own lives.

Word Study

Students continue to work on a variety of spelling features.  They have a word study choice board in their literacy binders.  The choice board and forms are all posted on the team website.  In addition, the completed sorts for each group can be found in the word study section of the team website.  The week of May 29 will be the last week of word study instruction.

Science

We continued with the Earth Science unit.  As part of this unit students will learn about changes in the Earth’s surface through erosion, weathering, volcanoes, earthquakes, etc. Students participated in the first of two engineering kits in this unit. This one centered around soil types and construction. The groups worked together (or are still working together) to create a bridge called a TarPul that can carry the weight of two people across a river. They had to consider things such as soil composition, village traditions for the people living near the river, and bends in the river where erosion would be most rapid.

 

Ms. Jeffrey’s class began learning about water distribution on Earth.  They are working on a Mystery Science activity designed to help them understand how little of the water on Earth is actually freshwater.

 

Mrs. S. Mead’s class continued learning about the water on Earth.  We moved on with the last EiE kit of the year: Water, Water, Everywhere! The students tested various filter materials with different types of contaminated water. They also began building their first filter model!

Mrs. K. Mead’s class completed their graph on how much of each type of water there is on Earth. They were surprised at how little available fresh water there is compared to how much salt water there is on earth. Next week, we will begin the EiE Water, Water Everywhere kit which focused on water filters.

Puberty Unit

The fifth graders will complete a puberty unit on Wednesday, May 30.

 

Important Happenings/Information

 

Summer Learning Packet

We sent an email last week about this packet.  Interested parents should complete this survey by May 25.

 

Fairbanks Museum

On Thursday, June 7 we will leave FMS at 7:30 a.m.  Students should arrive no later than 7:15 a.m. Any child who has ever experienced motion sickness should have taken Dramamine or something comparable at home that morning.  We will have motion sickness medication on hand to give to kids for the bus ride home. We plan to arrive back at FMS between 4:00 and 4:30 p.m. Please be flexible with your schedule that day should we arrive earlier or later.  Next week we will send an email with directions on how to sign up to receive a text message from us using the Remind.

 

Thank you to everyone for supporting this trip! If you haven’t sent in the permission slip yet, please do so.  The cost per person is $52. Checks should be made payable to FMS.

 

Chaperones will need to complete the volunteer process outlined on the EWSD website in order to participate in this trip. Filling out this form should only take a few minutes.  We are asking that parents who indicated an interest in chaperoning on the initial survey send their child’s homeroom teacher an email confirming their intention to join on the trip. That way we'll know which names to look for in the database.

 

Spare Time and Sand Hill Park Field Trips

On Monday, June 11 the fourth graders will go to Spare Time.  Parents should send the permission slip and $10 to us by Friday, May 25.

 

On Thursday, June 14 the fifth graders will go to Sand Hill Park.  Parents should send the permission slip (double sided) to us by Friday, May 25.

Fifth Grade Moving On Ceremony

On Wednesday, June 13th, we will have the fifth grade moving on ceremony. This is a “graduation-type” ceremony where we officially say goodbye to our fifth graders as they head to middle school in the fall. This will start at 9:00 am at Essex Middle School, and we recommend arriving at least 15 minutes early, as it is usually packed.

 

End of the Day Pick-Ups

It’s important that we ensure students’ safety at dismissal time. One of our responsibilities is to make sure students who are being picked up go with an adult that has permission to take them. In order for this to be the case, the child’s parent either needs to send a note/email that day, OR the adult has to be placed on a“pick up list” with the office. This can be done by emailing Arthea Leggett (aleggett@ewsd.org).

 

There are many students who are picked up regularly by adults who are not actually on that child’s pick-up list. We need to be diligent about this, so please take the time to email Arthea with the names of anyone who has your permission to pick up your child from school so that we can be as efficient at dismissal time as possible!

 

Student Allergies

We have some students on our team with severe, life-threatening allergies to tree nuts.  That means foods containing tree nuts or foods processed in a facility with tree nuts will not be allowed in the classroom.  Please read food labels carefully. In addition, whole class snacks for birthdays and celebrations should be gluten free.

Please plan to pack your child's snack in a separate bag or container to keep the snack away from any lunch items containing tree nuts. Everyday students will leave their lunch boxes in crates in the hallway.  Please let us know if you have any questions.

Team Wish List

We go through many of these things throughout the year, so any donations are always greatly appreciated!

DCF books (click on this link for titles) Ziploc bags (snack, quart or gallon) colored Sharpie markers Vis a Vis markers Post It Notes Colored Card Stock

Expo markers Kleenex paper plates paper bowls plastic spoons

Responsive Classroom

If you are interested in learning more about this approach to teaching children, you can check out their website! There are great articles about how children learn based on their developmental age, as well as classroom routines and expectations that are aimed at teaching children how to treat each other, work hard, and take responsibility for their part in a community of learners.

 

Responsive Classroom

Band and Orchestra

It is each student’s’ responsibility to get to his/her lessons on time. While at lessons, students will likely miss instructional time in the classroom. We will continue to discuss with the students the importance of making up the class work that they miss while they are at a lesson. If they miss direct instruction they will have to see us at recess and/or quiet time to catch up on the material.

Practice Superstars

The following students completed all their assignments on time last week.

Jeffrey: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23

S. Mead: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 21

K. Mead: 1, 3, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23

Model Citizen

Jeffrey: 12

S. Mead: 1

K. Mead: 10

Parent Volunteers

There is information posted on the EWSD website for parents interested in volunteering.  Here is the direct link.

Upcoming Events

May 28    Memorial Day - no school

June 4     All library materials due back

June 5       Parent Night at EMS for new sixth graders 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.

June 6       FMS Field Day

June 7       Fairbanks Museum field trip 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

June 11     Fourth Grade field trip to Spare Time  8:45 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

June 12     Enterprise Day 9:45 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.

June 13     Fifth Grade Moving On Ceremony 8:45 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. at EMS

June 14     Fifth Grade field trip to Sand Hill Park  11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

June 14     Last day of school