March 22

Everyone, have a wonderful break!  I hope you have time for whatever brings you peace, relaxation, and joy!
See you in April! 

March 21

Happy First Day of Spring!  We will have to wait and see if March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb...

Mrs. Tracy will be taking over more of the daily instruction for the month of April.  I will be around to offer help and advise as needed.  She has been teaching math this week and has done a great job.  This time in the classroom is very important for a Master of education candidate and we are lucky to have such an experienced teacher in this role.

Please remember you homework and library books tomorrow!

Compliments and news today:
"Colin gave me encouragement during math." Seth
"I enjoyed reading a story with Aoife about snakes." Hannah
"Madeline asked me to play a game during recess." Savannah
"I liked learning about the combination clouds." Riley

Have a great Day!

March 20

We had another busy day, even with the late opening.  In math, we are learning different ways to show our understanding of addition and subtraction with double digit numbers.  We are learning the traditional algorithm:

We are also learning the flexibility of the open number line:

 We want to give young mathematicians many ways to express their understanding of addition and subtraction, but also teach them the most efficient ways to show their understanding.  Mrs. Tracy is doing an excellent job leading the students through this process.

Here are some compliments from the class today:

"I liked when Catalina said yes when I asked her to play a math game." Katie
"I had nobody to play a math game until Kora said yes!" Riley
"Evan shared a Pokemon drawing book so we could both draw during choice time." Seth
"I liked it when Hannah asked me to play Race to 100 during math time." Lainey
"Seth complimented my drawing and Sami played a math game with me...it was nice for him to ask!" Evan
"I liked it when Della played a math game with me." Grace
"I enjoyed playing a math game with Ava- Base Ten Triple Spin!" William

March 19

We had a busy day...we were learning more about clouds and the four main classifications of clouds. 

Here are news and compliments from the students:

"It was so nice when Evan shared his iPad with me." Cole
"Savannah and Aofie let me play Handfuls of Treasure with them." Grace
"Cole was very cooperative when we worked together on the iPad." Evan
"Evan complimented my basketball skills." Sami
"I enjoyed playing More or Less during math with Zac." Peter
"I really liked the song that explained fractions!" Kora
"Hayden was nice when he lost the game- he was a good sport." Della
"William was a great math partner today.  He always is fair when he plays." Bailey
"Zac and Peter read together with me during quiet reading." Riley

Have a great day!

March 18

Can you believe that Spring Break begins in less than a week?  I certainly can't!  Sometimes the days just seem to fly by...


Here are some compliments from the students:

"When Katie played with me during lunch recess, she was very kind." Savannah
"Someone in a different class was thoughtful in including me in a game during recess." Peter
"I liked building a fairy house with Aoife and Della at recess." Grace
"It was kind when Savannah offered to play a game with me at recess." Aoife
"Zac joined be when I asked him to play a math game." Teddy

Please turn in the permission form for the assembly ASAP if you have not already done it.

Have a great day!

March 14- Please read!

Hi everyone,
I was thinking recently about how much your children are growing a maturing as learners and as individuals.  Specifically, I've noticed that the students want the independence of having their own supplies in their own desk.  Managing supplies and materials is an important part of growing up, and I want to honor this stage in their lives.

We had a class discussion, and the students agreed that yes, they would like to manage their own supplies. They also pointed out that having less buckets on the table would give us more space to work.

We discussed keeping a small pencil bag in their desk with the following supplies in it:

1.  pencil (there are plenty of pencils here, but you can bring a fancy one if you want)
2. small hand pencil sharpener (we have an electric here, but feel free to bring one)
3.  glue stick (I have some here, but I am running low, so if you child wants a new one, and can donate the rest to the class, that would be wonderful)
4. A big eraser ( not needed, but nice for big erasing)
5. scissors (there are plenty here, so please don't go out and buy a new pair if you don't want to)
6. crayons ( your children are wonderful artists, and we are going through crayons like crazy!  I would suggest Crayola Twistables- they have beautiful colors, they do not get dull and one pack should last the rest of the year, but any pack of crayons would do!)

I do not want to cause any stress over this idea, but I want to honor the children and their wishes.  I have some money left in our class fund to purchase some items, but would be very grateful if students could bring these few things.  Most of these items can often be found at home.  Please do not feel as if your family has to go an buy all new things at this time.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Have a wonderful day.  Remember, bring homework and library books tomorrow!

March 13

Hi!

From the students:
"I really enjoyed the Hidden Picture (coordinate graphing) activity." Kora
"It was really nice when Kora shared a book with me during quiet reading." Savannah
"At recess, Della was a good sport and really friendly when we played a game." Aoife
"It was nice when Zac shared the iPad with me today." Peter
"I enjoyed sharing an iPad with Colin." Bailey

Many students enjoyed learning more about the water cycle today.  We labeled our project from yesterday and demonstrated our knowledge of the parts of the water cycle through writing and drawing.  Tomorrow...how clouds form!  :)

See you then!

March 12

Hi everyone!
We learned about condensation and evaporation as part of the water cycle today.  Water vapor condenses on a cold cup!  Ask  your child about condensation.

Compliments from the class:
"Calvin knew all about coins!" Mrs. Tracy
"I liked how Savannah played Jump-a-Ten with me." Madeline
"When I could not a play a math game with Seth, he was really understanding about it." Cole
"I liked it when Bailey asked me to play the math game, Handful of Treasure." Colin
"Cole and Colin liked how I played a game with them at recess." Seth
"Catalina was a nice friend when she played with me at recess." Savannah

Please check take home folders for a paper that needs a signature.

See you tomorrow!

March 11

Hi everyone!  Thanks to all of the parents who volunteered in the art room today!  We had a great time finishing our self portraits.

There is a Book Fair in the second gym after school all this week.

Here are complements from today:
"Savannah was really thinking hard about math today during Number Corner." Mrs. Tracy
"Savannah and Aoife were really nice and polite at recess." Madeline
"Calvin and Colin were really nice when they let me join their game at recess." Seth
"I really enjoyed learning the new math game. "25¢ or Bust"." Grace and others!
"It was really nice when Seth played "25¢ or Bust with me." Colin
"Hayden showed that he really cared about his classmates during math when he problem solved about how he could help the other kids think about being quieter during math." Mrs. Robb
"It was really nice when Colin played "Jump a Ten" with me." Sami

Homework went home today.  See you tomorrow!

March 7

Hi everyone!  Please remember:  Book orders are due tomorrow!  Also homework and library.
We had another fun busy day.  We were so glad for the sun! 
Here are some ideas we had:

"It was nice when Evan played the new math game 'Jump a Ten' with me" Seth
"I enjoyed playing 'Jump a Ten' with Seth because he was a good sport when I won," Evan
"It was really nice to play the new math game with Della because she plays by the rules and she is a good sport." Grace
"I enjoyed playing a math game with Hannah." Aoife
"Della shared a book with be during quiet reading." Savannah
"I enjoyed playing 'Caterpillar Fill and Add' with Colin" Cole

"Really enjoyed making paper helicopters to test wind direction!" Ava...and many others!  We also created a compass rose to understand wind direction.
Here are some pictures of our wind direction experiment. 

March 6

We have a new student teacher in the classroom!  Mrs. Tracy has joined us from now until the end of April.  She is an experienced art teacher and is working on her Master's degree at University of Portland.

We had a great presentation from On-Point Credit Union.  We learned about money, spending, and saving, and even got our own little piggy bank...fun!

News and compliments from the kids:

"Aoife jumped in and helped another student when someone needed help with an idea." Mrs. Robb
"I liked the On-Point presentation" Hanna and many others
"At recess Della shared her umbrella during recess." Grace
"Sami helped me get a good idea for writing" Riley
"Colin said thank you when I gave him some ideas about guinea pigs." Bailey
"Madeline played Caterpillar Fill and Add with me" Savannah
"I like my new piggy bank!" Madeline and lots of others
"Catalina said yes when I asked her to play a math game." Katie
"I really enjoyed the book 'How much is a Million." Evan

See you all tomorrow!

March 5

Hi everyone!  Sorry no blog yesterday...I was home taking care of my sick son.  He had a little snuffy cold, but is feeling much better now.

Just a note, book orders are due on Friday.  Our ordering code is L6VB8.  There are many incentives to ordering on-line.

The iPads are a big hit so far.  We developed some guidelines for their use.  At this time, the apps being used are not connected to the district wireless network.  If we were to use the wireless network in the future, be assured that there are strict filters on any internet searches.  According to the district Acceptable Use Policy,

"In accordance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), the District will use technology protection measures on the network to block or filter, to the extent practicable, access to visual depictions that are obscene, pornographic and/or harmful to minors."

News from the students:

"It was nice when Aoife played Caterpillar Fill and Add with me when nobody else would." Savannah

"I liked playing the math game with Savannah because she didn't make a big deal out of it when I won." Aoife

"Colin helped me out a little during math when I was stuck." Seth

"I'm glad Della came back." Grace

"Sami helped me with the iPad when I had a question." Evan

"I enjoyed playing Caterpillar Fill and Add with Hayden." William

 

Ava, Grace, Cole, and others enjoyed our science time today.  We talked about how thermometers work (moving molecules) and experimented with temperatures.  Our own hands heated up the temperature gauge! 

March 1- Read Across America!

All I can say about today
Is that we celebrated Dr. Seuss in a way
that hopefully thought us a thing or two,
about books and reading and sharing too...

Enjoy the pics!

 See  you Monday!