Stafford's Scoop

Hi Parents,
Sorry I had a computer problem yesterday that didn't allow me to update the blog. When this happens, I'll just email assignments to you. I just wanted to remind all of you to come join the fun tomorrow night at the Zach Book Fair. They have amazing books this year. Many of our Book Bowl books are for sale if you'd like your child to have his/her own personal copy. I hope to see you there. I am scheduled to read at 6:30p.m. to the kids.
Thank you to those of you who are donating small items to our weekly treasure box. I just can't tell you how much the kids love being selected to get a prize. I appreciate your support in this.
Quick update for reading: We finished Pollyanna and are just working through some non-fiction material this week focusing on main idea, sequencing, comparing and contrasting. Your child will have a StoryWorks magazine to use. This is the publication you helped us purchase at the beginning of the year.
In math, no matter whose class you are in, please work with your child on multipication facts. They are so important to know.
We are on Unit 5 Spelling (long i sound). We are working on the components of a friendly letter in grammar.
We are continuing to write paragraphs in class. Instead of taking each final paragraph home, I'm having the students put them in their writing binders in their desk. If you ever want to see them, you can ask your child to bring the binder home for a night or stop by in our class.
CORE: We are working on Maps/Globes this week. It has been a blast trying to locate different areas in the world by their global map coordinates. Ask your child what he/she has learned this week.
If you have any questions, please never hesitate to call or email.
Fondly,
Liz

Stafford's Scoop

Hi Parents,
How do you like the new look of the blog? I had heard from a few of you that the red/black combination was hard to read. I hope this one is better for you. Thanks for keeping up with our blog. Remember, you can send me comments on this about homework or anything you would like to. I've told students to ask you to check it or show them how to from home. They may also make comments on our blog.
I hope you enjoyed your three-day weekend. We have a short, yet busy week ahead of us.
In Math: My class is working on Organizing Data and mastering multi-digit addition and subtraction. We are using bar graphs and line plots to organize data. Our new class volunteers who will come and help on Fridays are Kim Smith and Cheri Soulier. Thanks so much. We will begin next Friday the 30th of Sept.
In Reading: We are almost finished with Pollyanna in class. Please be sure to have your child spend part of his/her time of reading outloud to you. It is the best way to improve their fluency...practice, practice, practice. Even if they spend 5 minutes reading aloud to you and the rest silently, that will help.
In Spelling: We are on Unit 4: long e sound. In grammar we are simple and compound subjects, dates, months, and days. Your child will bring home the spelling sentences tomrrow, which will be due on Friday.
In writing: we have just finished reviewing paragraphs. We will spend some time refining this skill and strengthening our quality of writing of it.
In CORE: Your child received a Study Guide tonight for the test tomorrow. We will review again before the test. Then we'll culminate our Chemistry unit with a little Coke and Mentos experiment! Watch the blog for pictures of it!
In general: I would like to thank the Rauwerdink family for donating fun items to our treasure box. The students loved the new choices they had on Friday! If anyone else finds themselves at the store or just running across neat, gently used items in your house that you would like to donate, we SERIOUSLY appreciate them!
Please, as always, contact me if you need anything. Let's make this a great week!
Fondly,
Liz

Stafford's Scoop

Hi Parents,
Well, I believe we are in full swing now for school. Thank you for all your emails inquiring on how your child is doing. Remember that I said at Back To School Night that it takes a while to settle in and become comfortable with the daily routine and the homework pace. If your child is struggling to stay organized, please help him/her by just double checking all the homework etc. is in the backpack before you sign the planner each night. This will get easier in the next few weeks!
What's Up This Week:
Math: see your child's teacher's individual blog
Reading: We are still working through Pollyanna and learning to write complete answers for all comprehension questions. We are also focusing on "Inferencing" this week.
Spelling/Grammar: We will be doing Unit 3 on Long A sound with vowel pairs. Grammar will focus on differentiating between subject and predicate.
Writing: We will apply what we have learned about parts of speech and writing detailed sentences by writing paragraphs.
CORE: We will continue doing chemistry experiments and demonstrations to model the concepts of volume, density, mass, saturation and crystalization. We have the Chemistry unit test coming up next week.
I will send in the Book Order for the books you have chosen online for your child from Scholastic.
Thanks to all the volunteers who started this week. I look forward to seeing everyone each week.
Fondly,
Liz

Stafford's Scoop

Hi Parents, YEA! We made it through our second week of school. Now we get to rest and have fun for three days! Don't forget, there is no school Monday! Thanks to all of you for coming to learn about our class this week. I hope our routine is more clear for you now. What's Happening in Class? VOLUNTEERS:We will start this week. I'll send you a confirmation of your day and time this weekend. I still need more volunteers for reading on Wednesday at 10:00-11:00, a Friday Folder preparer, and anyone else willing to help us in writing. Please email me if you think you can help us in any of these areas. MATH:We will continue in our first unit on Geometry. Remember to expect homework Monday through Friday. For specifics in your child's math class, go the link below for his/her teacher. If you are in my math class, I will send home an email form on Monday so I can start a Distribution List of my math class. READING: We will continue reading Pollyanna and working on the comprehension and vocabulary sheets. We are trying to have all kids take an AR test on their first book by the end of next week, so be sure to have your child read over the weekend. SPELLING: We will be working on unit 2 this week. Because it is a short week, the sentences will be assigned on Wednesday and due on Friday. We will also work on our Grammar unit 2 and take a test on that Friday also. The rule for Spelling will be LONG A (with an open syllable or the silent e). The grammar rule will be common nouns and capitalization review. READ ALOUD: We are reading a beautiful book I found called Floramel and Estaban. I am surprised and thrilled the students like it so much. They will be able to take an AR test on it when we finish! WRITING: We are working on Sentence Structure and parts of speech. CORE: We will continue working in chemistry. This is such a fun unit. Please ask your child about what experiments we do during the week! THINGS TO REMEMBER: -Turn in book bowl forms -Go online and order scholastic books (the green sheet in your child's Friday Folder has the easy instructions in it. -I will email you with volunteer times for this week. Thanks for sharing your child with me! Have a wonderful weekend! Fondly, Liz