Thursday, October 31

Happy Halloween!

Team 33 did not let the rain stop them today!  We were rockin' in the classroom!  We finished the centers for the week. We reviewed the homework skills. We read at our Lexile, and we we worked on our goals.  GREAT DAY!

Tomorrow we will NOT have the week 12 assessment.  The students were asking for some clarification on a few learning objectives and I wanted to review a few more skills, so we decided to wait on the assessment until Monday.  That works well because I will not be in the classroom on Monday, so and the students already know how to take their assessment on Examview.  It will also give a few extra days for studying, which never hurts. 

Tomorrow is our classroom Fall Party from 1:30 - 2:00.  Of course, everyone is invited.  Hope to see you there. If you are able to come, I would like to encourage you to bring your smartphone.  We have created a digital bulletin board that we are very proud of.  All you will need to interact with it is a QR Code Reader.  If you do not already have a QR code reader on your phone, I would like to recommend i-nigma.  The link will take you to the Apple version, but it is also available for Droid, Blackberry and Windows phones; and it is free.  The fun you will have with the interactive bulletin board will be priceless.

Wednesday, October 30

You mustache good behavior to be a top dog!

Today was another incredible day in Team33.  We learned a lot and had fun too.  The Daily Journal interview went very well also.  Be sure to ask your child all the tools we talked about in the interview.

If you haven't already heard, Franklin has moved Trick-or-Treating to Friday to match our Fall party!  Well they actually did it due to weather concerns, but we won't tell anyone that ;)

Tuesday, October 29

Three More Top Dogs!

Team33 students really have become famous!  The Daily Journal called today and wants to come do another story on them.  They will be visiting our classroom tomorrow afternoon. This time they will be interviewing the students about all the technology they use, not just BYOD.  Once again, I think they will be amazed! Be sure you wear your best smile for tomorrow's interview.

The Homework page has been updated so you can print if you need an extra copy of tonight's homework.

Monday, October 12

Look who has CLIPPERIFIC behavior!

We are off and running with another exciting week.  We reviewed our Week 11 assessments, and recorded our data in the Feedback and Data Binders.  They are ready to be reviewed with parents.  Please fill out the reflection page with your student for homework tonight.  We also reviewed the Learning Objectives and looked at an overview of the week with the Week 12 Literacy Link. These documents and more are all available on our website: http://goo.gl/FX5ak

Just a reminder, our Fall Party is this Friday, November 1, from 1:30-2:00.  All family members are welcome!

Friday, October 25

Look who made the front page of the Daily Journal - TEAM33! I told you they would be impressed!

These and other great pictures are all available at the from the Daily Journal - Elementary school bridging classroom technology gap http://www.dailyjournal.net/view/local_story/Elementary-school-bridging-cla_1382675659/#.UmrJMtK-2uJ

Have a great weekend.  I can't wait to do it all again next week!

Thursday, October 24

Wow!  Your children are amazing.  I thought they would impress the Daily Journal, but I had no idea just how much they would impress me! They were using their personal devices to:

• Access Dictionay.com and Thesaurus.com while working on their riddles.
• Research additional information about Mt. Etna, and even found some cool facts that made the text we were reading outdated.
• Blog quality posts and comments to Kidblog.
• Read Online Reading Resources to meet their lexile goal.
• Create digital videos for our digital display in the hall.(Coming Soon)
• and even to access their grades on PowerSchool.

Once again, WOW!  I am not sure when the article is coming out in the Daily Journal, but watch for it! It's going to be a good one.

Later in the day Mrs. Deeter visited out room to talk to us about filling emotional buckets.  We all want to be Bucket Fillers. To learn more about filling buckets, watch this informative video:

I hope to see everyone tonight at McDonald's by I65.  The Needham Fundraiser is from 4:00 - 7:00.  I am planning on being there from 5:30 - 7:00.  (I told the students it might be 6:00 before I got there because my daughter needed a ride to the FCMS Football Game, but it has been cancelled, so I should be there by 5:30 to see all the kids who need to be at basketball practice by 6:00. Remember, costumes are encouraged, but not required.  It is really just an excuse to spend a little more time with you.

Wednesday, October 23

It was so much fun to hear the kids talk about their riddle homework last night. They seemed to have a good time making inferences with you, and did a great job using the clues.  The students really seem to be getting good at Making Inferences using the clues in text.  They are even working on making their own riddles so we can make inferences from their clues.  I can't wait to read them!  Stay tuned, they will be posted out our Kidblog pages.

Tomorrow will be another exciting day. A reporter from the Daily Journal, Mr. Tom Lang, will be visiting our classroom in the morning. He has heard how our students have embraced BYOD (Bring Your Own Decive).  The students have decided they will show him  how they access the resources on our Team33 Website from their own device; how they use their devices as a tool such as calculators, dictionaries, and thesaurus; how they checkout and read library books; and even how they play educational games like Minecraft.  I am sure they will impress Mr. Lang with their tech savviness. Please just remind them to make sure their devices are all charged and ready to go.

Tomorrow is also our October Dinner Date.  We will be meeting at the I65 McDonald's between 5:30 - 6:30.  Students are encouraged to wear their costumes for some trick-or-treat fun! I really hope to see everyone there, even if it just to enjoy the company and show off their outfit.

Tuesday, October 22

Today was very productive.  Students learned their new center groups, and then did a great job with their center work.  They made inferences to answer riddles, highlighted clues in text, and even learned how to make their own riddles.  Tonight they might need your help as they make more inferences using the clues found in riddles for homework.   They don't all have to be answered, just have fun with it.

Monday, October 21

It was so good to be back with all the kids today!!  I really did miss them! I heard so many Fall Break stories.  It sounds like a good time was had by all! Today we got right back to business!  Feedback and Data binders are headed home tonight.  We graphed our end of the 9 week data. Our reflection sheet is also a little different today.  It is reflecting over the past 9 weeks instead of just over last week.  Please take time to review this important information with your child.


This week's learning objectives:

• Make inferences using the clues in text.
• Create riddles that encourage others to make inferences. 
• Visualize what we have read.
• Categorize long and short i patterns in words.
• Increase spelling through the study of word parts

Thursday, October 10

Missed my team like crazy today, but learned lots of cool things we can try. If anybody wants to talk to me about how the day went, just click the link below to chat with me. I will be on starting about 5:30. I will check it throughout the evening.

Here is the link to the meeting: http://todaysmeet.com/Team33October10

Monday, October 7

"Barrette" you can't guess who is in the
Behavior Log  Hall of Fame.

Fall is here and it is beautiful! The end of the 1st nine weeks is here too!  I really cannot believe how quick this year is going.  Already 1/4 over :(

Today, students were given two important pieces of data.  One was their Week 9 test results. (The scores were incredible - so proud.) The other is the almost report card grades.  Each student has a sheet for Language and Reading that tell exactly what their grade is at this point.  If they do not like something about their score they can bring me the completed/corrected work tomorrow and I will fix their grade.  The only scores that are not changeable are the Weekly Assessments.  Students are able to check and change their answers once while taking the test so the score already reflects them having a chance to redo it.  The only scores that have not yet been accounted for is the Personal Narrative in Language and the Lexile Score in Reading.  Students have until tomorrow to finish their personal narrative and they also have until tomorrow to quiz on books at their lexile. Passing 1 book at your lexile =C, 2 books = B, 3 books = A, 4 or more books = A+, 0 books = F.  This includes all books read and passed since the beginning of school, except the Chris Van Allsburg Books.  If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email me.  Although I would encourage you to ask your child first - they generally know the answer.

Sunday, October 6

Dear Parents,

This week is full of important dates and exciting events.  I have listed some of them below, but remember you can always stay informed by checking the Classroom Calendar on the Website and reading the School Newsletter.

10/7 October Book orders due. For ordering information please refer to the Wednesday, Oct 2 Updates.

10/10-11 Mrs. McCain will be out of the classroom to attend an educational conference. Please direct any inquires through email and I will respond as quickly as I am able.

10/7/13 United Way Fundraiser begins. Donate your change to help United Way make a change in Johnson County.

10/9/13 Wednesday is a corporation wide PJ Day in celebration of United Way donations.
              Cookie Dough Fundraiser DUE

10/11/13 – Report cards available for online viewing on PowerSchool.  Students may use their regular login or parents may create a login for themselves.

Oct. 14-18, 2013 - Fall Break

10/24/13 - Dinner Date and PTO McDonald’s Night - Wear your costume, hang out with friends, and raise money for Needham.

Nov. 1, 2013 - Classroom Fall Party

Friday, October 4

We had a ball today.  Students did a wonderful job on the Week 9 assessment, and then they had time to work on posting their personal narrative to our Kidblog page.  Recess was a little soggy outside so we stayed in, cleaned our desks and watched Kid Snippets. They are hilarious!  If you have a chance you may want to have a laugh and watch some yourself.

Tomorrow is the parade!  I hope to see everyone there showing their Bulldog Pride.  We are meeting at 12:30 in the middle school parking lot.

Thursday, October 3

Today was a wonderful of education.  Both Team Shoultz and Team33 deserve recognition for their wonderful transitions.  They have really caught on to transitioning from center to center and room to room "quickly and quietly." That means more education and, as we all know, more education equals more money!

Tomorrow we will have a short assessment and then spend time finishing up projects.  With the end of the grading period coming up, I want to make sure everyone has the opportunity to make their grade the best it can be.  The assessment will include the following learning objectives:

Literacy Learning Objectives for Sept 30- Oct 1, 2013 - Week 9

• Identify sequence of events.
• Determine text importance.
• Identify and create personal narratives.
• Categorize long and short a patterns in words: ai, aCe, ay, short a, Opening a (u)
• Increase spelling skills through the study of word parts.

PARADE IN JUST 2 DAYS!!

Just a quick reminder that third and 4th grade students and parents will be showing their bulldog pride this Saturday at the Franklin Fall Festival Parade.  All parents and family members are welcome.  (Any student below 3rd grade must be accompanied by an adult.)

We will meet at the Franklin Community Middle School parking lot in the bus parking area.  We will be in Corral D.  Please note, you will not be able to drive into the parking lot.  All students will need to walk into the parking lot to meet the group. Just look for the purple.

Everyone should wear as much Needham gear and purple as possible. Any candy donations are appreciated.

All students should be picked up at the Caisson Drive & S. Main Street parking lot, by the skate park.

Parade Route

Start: Franklin Community Middle School, 625 Grizzly Cub Drive.  Banta street east to Walnut Street, south on Walnut Street to Jefferson Street, east on Jefferson to Home Ave, south on Home Ave. to Caisson Drive.

End: Caisson Drive & S. Main Street parking lot.

Wednesday, October 2

Dear Families,

Encouraging reading is one of the most important things we can do to help your child succeed. It can be tough finding the right books to keep them interested, which is why I am so excited that our class will be participating in Scholastic Reading Club this school year.

With Scholastic Reading Club:

• Every book you buy earns FREE Books for our classroom library
• You can choose from handpicked, grade- and reading-level-specific books for your child
• You'll find the best values on a variety of formats, including eBooks

Each month, your child will bring home Reading Club flyers. Together you can choose from books hand-selected by teachers and experts, and then order online or by returning your order form and payment to me.

If you choose to order online, you will have access to many more titles and can pay by credit card.

If This Is Your First Time Ordering Online:

•  REGISTER at scholastic.com/readingclub
•  ENTER the Class Activation Code at the bottom of this email
•  CHOOSE from thousands of print titles, value packs, and Storia eBooks
•  SUBMIT the order to me by the due date listed on the website
•  EARN FREE Books for our classroom too!

Shop Online: scholastic.com/readingclub
One-Time Class Activation Code: MKKJQ

Thank you for your support,

Mrs. McCain

Tuesday, November 1

Welcome to October!  (How did we get here already?)

I hope everyone can take some time to check out our new Reading Comprehension Strategies page on the website! It is full of great information and informative student videos.  Check it out tonight and use the strategies as you complete your homework on A Need to Build.