Tuesday, August 26

Need some homework help? My Nonfiction Text Features mini-book: http://youtu.be/s5u_lmH_lhw?list=UUQ074hlQFdXXOwDFivO2SRg http://

Monday, August 25

Is today really over?  I can not believe how fast our days go!  Today we began with feedback and data.  The feedback was reviewing the Week 3 assessment.  Student's seemed to do really well with the Reading and Social Studies portions of the assessment.  The Language Arts portion was based on our posts in Kidblog. Most students did a great job, but a handful were not satisfied when they graphed their data, so they are working to improve their posts and scores.  Tonight, please review your student's data with them from their Feedback and Data Binder.  The Week 3 assessment should be in the front pocket, the NWEA Data is also now included, their Literacy Progress chart is updated, and you can also check out their feedback on the blog post by having them log into their Kidblog account.  The link is on our TEAM33 Webstite.

Friday, August 22

Today was a very exciting let down!  It was very exciting because we found more clues about the whereabouts of Harris Burdick.  We also learned to use the library of congress information on the back of a title page to help us identify a book as fiction or nonfiction.  It was a let down because we used the information to find out that The Mysteries of Harris Burdick is fiction. There really is not a Harris Burdick that went missing. It was just a story made up by Chris Van Allsburg. He is such a sneaky writter, but I guess that is what makes him a wonderful author!  But, now we have all decided that instead of taking a field trip to go find Harris Burdick, we want to take a field trip to the Library of Congress.  What a neat place!! 

Here is a link to a virtual tour of the Library of Congress.  Have fun exploring!

Just a reminder to make sure your calendar is marked for Wednesday, August 27th parent meeting.  We will reviewing 4th grade expectations and procedures along with giving out important infromation about our Flat Rock field trip.  If you are unable to attend, we will send a packet of information home.  As always, contact me anytime with questions, comments and concerns. 

Wednesday, August 20

Today we did it!!  We had a successful round of center rotations in both blocks.  When I say successful, I mean SPECTACULAR!  The students did such a good job with collaboration, staying focused, and using educational time wisely!  What a GREAT group!

Tonight's homework is to read from their Lexile books.  Students should be reading 20-30 minutes every night.  Tonight they should try to extend their reading time to 45 or 60 minutes to build stamina.  That does not have to be 60 minutes straight.  I suggest breaking it up into 20 minute sessions with the last 20 minutes right before bedtime.

Tuesday, August 19

Ok...so we didn't get as far as we wanted to today; but we did get a quality education!  We began by meeting a friend who taught us about the importance of short term goals. Quigley is a great guy, but sometimes the choices he makes causes him to have a really "Un-Quigley Day." After hearing stories of his day we all decided to make a few short term goals of our own:

• Get organized.
• Be a good listener.
• Plan your time. 
• Do your work.

We also came up with some great long term goals.  Be sure to ask your student about their goals!

Monday, August 18

Today was a great beginning to another wonderful week!  We worked through our Feedback and Data Binders and are ready to fill out a Reflection Page with our parents.  Parents please be sure to review the Week 2 Test in the front pocket of the binder.

In the Purple Take Home folder you will also find the Week 3 Literacy Link Newsletter which outlines our learning objectives, activities, and homework.

You might also want to start checking out our Week 3 Picture Gallery by photographers Harlin and Joseph.

I'm looking forward to another great week!!

Friday, August 15

Amazing! Marvelous! Wonderful! Stunning! Fabulous! Impressive! Fantastic!
All of these adjectives describe your children and our laughter filled week together.

We have completed our first full week and I can't wait to do it all again next week!

Here are a few of my favorite smiles from the week, but you can check out all our great pics in the Picture Gallery: