// The Lives of Learners //

Update! Finally!

2009-10-18T19:29:00.003-05:00

Hello all:

I have gotten lots of emails so I thought I would take time to say hi to you all here. I am doing very well. I know that those of you who are at FPA are having a tremendous year with your new classmates and the wonderful Mrs. Chang as your teacher. I also know that those of you in new schools are having great years meeting new friends and getting to know new teachers. Someone sent me a link to your new blog, and I am always excited to read the posts and keep up with what you are doing.

I am still job searching. Growing up, I had two interests--one as a teacher and one as a person who helps teach business owners things about diversity and how to get along with others--isn't that interesting that even adults need reminders sometimes? I decided that I wanted to hang up my teaching hat for a little while and try something new. I don't know what career I will end up choosing, but I am lucky that I get the opportunity to decide that for myself.

Aaron and I got a puppy this summer--her name is Lucy. She is 3 months old. She is a Brittany spaniel. She has been lots of fun to take care of. We like to go on lots of walks. She loves to jump in the leaves and chase squirrels. I will post a link to my own online photo albums and you can see what I have been up to.

The actual website is: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jetshokin/

There are pictures of Lucy, and pictures of my trip to Africa. We had so much fun in Africa seeing lots of animals that I am only used to seeing in zoos!

Keep sending me emails--keep leaving comments on the blog, because I do see them and read them all. I hope I will be able to stop in sometime and see you. I might come and visit the Halloween party on the 31st. What are you all going to be for Halloween??

I will try and keep you all updated on my life here, so continue to check back. I miss you all so much. Thanks for thinking of me. Continue to be the shining stars you are:-)

Love, Mrs. E.

2009-06-09T21:33:00.001-05:00

Valley Fair pics will be posted tomorrow!

2009-06-08T17:21:00.002-05:00

Heads Up: Tomorrow is Free Dress Day!

Please remember to finish your map page for HW.
Today was a busy day. The auction was great fun. As I told you earlier today, I am so proud of your accomplishments and your growth this year. It has been a tremendous honor and privilege to be a part of your learning journey.

We did a bit of cleaning today--I hope you remembered to bring home your big bags of notebooks. We will do a little more tomorrow and Wednesday. We had our last Spanish, social studies and Health classes--can you believe it?

Enjoy your last Monday night of the school year! Get ready for a day of fun tomorrow:-)

2009-06-07T18:29:00.004-05:00

P.S. To answer a few email questions--yes we will finish up our Health unit tomorrow (Monday). I didn't reply to the emails because I didn't feel comfortable responding to an anonymous email address. We will not be discussing anything relating to Friday's topics. We will talk about HIV/AIDS and hygiene before I take time to answer any final questions. I am proud of you all for being so mature, and respectful.

2009-06-07T18:29:00.001-05:00

2.5 days of school left? Can you believe it?

Field Day

2009-06-04T16:34:00.002-05:00

Pictures from Field Day are posted. Click here for larger photo views. What a fun filled afternoon. You guys and girls were all amazing Survivors:-)

Remember that your Health packets are due tomorrow.
Our walk to the park is tomorrow afternoon--bring what you want for another afternoon of fun in the sun.

Families, please scroll below to the previous post for updates on our Human Growth and Development discussions.

HGD Updates

2009-06-04T16:25:00.000-05:00

Dear Families:

I wanted to update you on the conversation that took place today in our Human Growth and Development unit. We have been talking about emotions—those that are easy to handle and those that are more difficult. We talked about what can cause each emotion, and how our body physically responds to them. Today we focused on stress, grief and depression—three very deep emotions that can be difficult to deal with. We talked about healthy ways to deal with each emotion:
• Exercising
• Talking with someone
• Holding a pet
• Doing something positive for you—a hobby, taking a walk, watching TV
• Walking away from the situation and taking time to reflect on what’s happening
• Writing down thoughts in a journal or diary
• Squeezing a stress ball

We talked about unhealthy ways to deal with emotion:
• Drug and alcohol use
• Under eating
• Over eating
• Eating disorders
• Running away
• Making impulse decisions without taking time to think things through
• Pretending everything is okay—ignoring what is happening
• Suicide
• Physical abuse to yourself and others
• Gangs
• Violence

We then focused in and discussed each response—and how to make a good decision. We talked about the consequences of each choice. Per the curriculum, a part of our discussion was about suicide. The students had several questions about suicide. We talked about a lot about suicide prevention. We talked about what to do if you are concerned about a friend, or if a friend approaches you about suicide. We also talked about what you can do if you are feeling depressed. We came up with a list of tips and phrases to help with positive conversations:

• “I’ve been noticing that you are sad. I want you to know I am here for you and will listen if there is anything you want to talk about.”
• “Mom, Dad, I am concerned about my friend. I noticed that he/she is not him/herself. Here is why I think that…. I just wanted to let you know.
• “Can you help me?”
• If you don’t feel comfortable talking, writing things down is a great way to express yourself, and a good thing to give to a trusted adult.
• If you are listening to a friend in need, reassure them that you are here, you are not judging and that you care.
• Whenever anyone tells you something that makes you feel concerned, immediately tell a trusted adult.

We talked about bullying and teasing and the subject of Columbine came up. We discussed what happened and what schools are doing now to prevent similar situations from occurring. Our session was wonderful. The kids felt a sense of empowerment and felt like they learned many strategies and tips. They are feeling much more relaxed as they realize that we all feel the same “roller coaster of emotions.” I encourage you to sit down with your student and talk about what they are learning. As always, if you have questions or concerns, please feel free to email me or give me a call. I will send home an update after tomorrow’s discussion. We will be splitting the class into boys’ and girls’ groups. We will be discussing puberty, sex and personal body issues. If you would like lesson plans, I have copies available.

With much appreciation,
Joanna Etshokin

2009-06-03T19:57:00.003-05:00

PS: This blog will be up indefinitely. I will let you know when I will be making my final post, but all pictures and videos will still be accessible forever. You are more than welcome to download and copy any pictures that you would like.

Boca Chica

2009-06-03T19:40:00.003-05:00

Today was great fun. Boca Chica was muy delicioso! I was so impressed with how ambitious you were with your lunch--all of you tried so many great authentic foods. What was the best thing you ate at lunch?

Today we had our first Human Growth and Development discussion on emotions. We talked about how kids our age often feel like they are on emotional roller coasters. We talked about emotions that are easy to handle and those that are difficult to handle. We talked about what triggers emotions and how our body physically responds to each emotion. The kids brought home packets that I would love for families to go through and complete together. The packets are due Friday. I told the kids that they will receive one decision dollar for each assignment that parents and student completes together.

If you have any questions, feel free to come in and chat. If you would like a copy of my lesson plans, I have copies available.

Tomorrow is Field Day!! HELP--I need some suggestions for wacky beach attire to wear. What crazy accessories can you bring in for me to wear? You may come dressed in your beach attire. You will not need to bring a lunch--it will be provided for us. Come ready to have fun in the sun!

Maplewood Nature Center pictures posted

2009-06-02T20:51:00.003-05:00

We had so much fun at the Maplewood Nature Center. Check out all the pics I took during the day. We had lots of fun planting three rain gardens, and then doing a pond study. We found several plants and animals in the pond that indicated the water is healthy. We spent most of our day in the sun and fresh air. Thank goodness the weather was gorgeous and sunny. What was your favorite part of the day?

Are you excited for Boca Chica tomorrow? I am so excited to be able to share in your Spanish celebration experience with you. This restaurant is my all time favorite place to eat. You will all find something you will LOVE.

Then--Field Day. Wow...what a busy few days. Don't forget to wear island/beach gear. What are some of your ideas for fun beach gear? I need some suggestions for clothing items to wear and what accessories to bring...the crazier the better:-)

2009-06-01T20:26:00.002-05:00

WOW! Welcome to the last full week of school. Where has the year gone? We have a busy and fun week ahead of us. Tomorrow we will be going to the Maplewood Nature Center. We will leave school at 9:30 and will be back at 2. Wednesday we are off to Boca Chica to celebrate your Spanish accomplishments. We will be gone from 11:45-1:45. Thursday afternoon is our lunch and field day. I am excited for a hot dog and potato chip grill out before starting some fun competitions. Tomorrow we will be signing up for individual events. Friday afternoon will be our time in the park. Feel free to bring towels, games, books, music, snacks, etc. We will relax, play games and have fun with our friends.

This week we will be finishing up final reading assessments. Thank you for doing your best! Tomorrow afternoon we will be working on final writing assessments. I do have grades for your Oregon Trail journals. I was so impressed with your creative writing! I hope you proudly showed your families your Greek myth grades. You all worked so hard and learned so much.

Have a great night. I am back to working on school work.

2009-05-28T21:13:00.002-05:00

Are you ready for a surprise tomorrow at 2:45? Bring tennis shoes!

Homework: 30 minutes of math.

Mythical Magic!

2009-05-27T19:29:00.004-05:00

Hello!

Can you believe that tomorrow is already Thursday? Where did the week go? You all have done a great job with your NWEA testing--I have been SO impressed with the amount of growth. Our overall averages have gone up by 10 points!

As promised here are some pictures from yesterday's myth museum. You all looked great. And just think--you have your Halloween costumes all ready to go for next year! Haha. Can you imagine trick or treating in your togas?

We spent today reviewing some social studies terms--especially world geography and geographic features.

Please remind your parents of all of our upcoming events next week. We are still in need of volunteers for our field day. Volunteers are needed on June 4 from 12:15-3:15 p.m. Please check the main lobby for a large poster that has a list of items that we need for field days. All items will be returned.

Let's hope for some warmer weather tomorrow. Please remember to check the weather and dress appropriately--we will be going outside every day.

Thank you all for trying so hard each and every day. There is no homework tonight--enjoy your Wednesday! (This is the benefit of testing week)

2009-05-26T22:06:00.003-05:00

Hi Friends--I had an unexpected family issue this evening. All is well---please look for a post tomorrow.

I am so proud of your myth presentations today! Pictures will be posted tomorrow:-)

2009-05-23T18:34:00.002-05:00

I hope you are all having wonderful weekends. If you need any last minute help with your myth projects, feel free to email me.

What are your weekend plans? Let me know the fun things you have been doing. Thank you for being wonderful hosts on Friday to our new friends from SAA. I know they really enjoyed rock painting and eating ice cream with you.

Happy Thursday

2009-05-21T21:17:00.003-05:00

Gosh--I need to get better about posting earlier in the evening for you all. The weather is so nice--I find myself being outside later and later with each day.

First of all: HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAVEN!

I want to compliment everyone on making it through a week of NWEA reviewing. I have so much confidence in all of you--I know you have learned so much this year, and I know you will do so well on your tests next week. Thank you for sticking with me, and for your willingness to work. Your efforts will certainly pay off.

You should have brought home your permission slips for Boca Chica. I am so excited. I hope I get to go with you and listen to your Spanish conversations. It was fun listening to you all today speak in Spanish with your small groups. It is amazing to see how far you have come--some of you from knowing just a few words and phrases to being able to carry on fluent conversations.

Remember to bring your permission slips back for the Maplewood Nature Center.
I am still looking for volunteers to help with Field Day on June 4th. Please see this week's newsletter for more information.

Put the final touches on your speeches! I can't wait to hear them tomorrow. Have a wonderful evening.

I, for one, can't wait to sleep with the windows open tonight.

2009-05-20T20:50:00.002-05:00

Hello!

Short post tonight. For more of an update, you can read the newsletter in today's Wednesday folder. After all--there is a big American Idol finale that I need to be watching--that way I can keep up with your conversations tomorrow:-) Who do want to win?

We worked really hard today reviewing for NWEA testing--I know you will all do so well:-)

I will try and post a bit more from school tomorrow. Remember that your Spanish projects are due bright and early tomorrow morning.

If the weather is nice we can try and eat lunch outside tomorrow. Today was too hot and too windy.

What are your plans for Memorial Day? I am going to be running in a half marathon this Sunday in Stillwater and then going to a BBQ.

Tonight is a no homework night:-) Enjoy your night off. Go Kris! (he gets my vote tonight on Idol:-) )

2009-05-19T20:25:00.002-05:00

I felt like we had yet ANOTHER productive day. Our discussion about Chinese immigration in the 1840's was incredible and so grown up. I felt like I was leading a high school discussion. I am very excited to start our posters advertising California in the 1840's tomorrow.

Art with Mrs. Lisa was fun. It was fun to shade and tint self portraits. It will be exciting to see the final products displayed all together.

We are really working hard to prepare for NWEA tests. We did some multiple choice spelling assessments, and have been working hard on reviewing literary devices. All students should be bringing home their study packets to go over definitions at least a couple times this week. We continue to review good test taking strategies and how to relax our minds and bodies.

Tomorrow, I will send out a more formal notice--all families are welcome to attend our living myth museum on Tuesday, May 25th from 2:30-3:15 p.m. in the gym. Come and introduce yourselves to our gods and goddesses:-)

Homework: If you have math do not work for more than 15 minutes tonight, work on Spanish and myth projects, practice spelling and map labeling.

The home stretch

2009-05-18T17:42:00.002-05:00

Hello,

What beautiful weather we are having. I love it when the sun is out, and it stays lighter much later. I really enjoyed seeing many of you on Saturday at the carnival. Congratulations to Mady and JO for winning the soccer basket and the Italian basket. Thank you to all families for your support and donations--both of which helped make the carnival a success.

We had lots of friends who participated in various activities this weekend:
Alexandra was in ANNIE
Carly had a swim meet
Haven recently got her red/black belt
Mady, Rachel and Emma had soccer games
Marselienna, Haven and Cole had band practice (check out their website)
Haley had a spring dance competition

(If I forgot anyone, email me so I can get you up here. These are what I remembered from our morning meeting today)

We are reviewing for the NWEA test--we are working hard on literary terms. Students should have a packet that comes home each night for them to look over.

We also made a huge list of testing strategies, and I typed them up for each student to take home. They should have them in their back packs

Students should also have a final checklist/rubric for their Greek mythology project. All requirements are listed, along with final due dates and a guideline sheet for MLA bibliographic citations.

Please remember to return spelling lists tomorrow so I can make copies of them and check your five choice words.

There will be no major homework this week so you can focus on getting your Spanish and myth projects done. We will have a spelling test and the US states test on Friday. I will eliminate math homework this week to help with stress levels:-)

Notes about Human Growth and Development went home today. Check backpacks.

Have a great night. Tell your families about our fun cooking project.

A checklist of things

2009-05-14T20:09:00.002-05:00

Alright my friends--a quick post in between an afternoon run with Mrs. Sloot and Mrs. Chang, dinner and a night of season finales on TV:-)

I felt like we had an especially productive day today. We learned so many things. The kids like when I make checklists of things we have to get accomplished in a day, so I thought I would make a quick checklist of things we accomplished in 6.5 hours:

learned the relationship between the words, "account, " "accounted for, " and "version"
came to understand the Cherokee experience on the Trail of Tears
learned about the beginning of the Gold Rush
labeled all of the US states on a blank map
began to learn about Chinese immigration to California during the 1840's
did small group work in math and took an in depth look at angles, formulas of 3D shapes, experimental vs. theoretical probability and geometrical solids
learned about Stargirl's feelings for Perry in our read aloud
enjoyed a warm afternoon break outside with the 2nd and 3rd graders
enjoyed 45 minutes of Spanish and singing "Tengo Verano" with Ms. Kim

Thank you to everyone who donated to our carnival basket. The final basket looks great. Look for it Saturday at the carnival. We can't wait to see you and your families between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. I will be in my room doing tattoos. My husband will also be with me.

Also, don't forget the Wine Gala is May 29th from 7-10 p.m. You may purchase tickets for 15 dollars a piece by sending in the slip from the PTA. You may bring the slips to the front desk.

Homework: Spelling test tomorrow, remember that veggie lasagna is for lunch tomorrow!

"Labeling all the 50 states on a map" test will be next Friday. I will send home practice packets tomorrow.

LOVE 105 FPA Shoutout!

2009-05-13T20:50:00.006-05:00

Here is our shout out! What do you think????

We got a radio shout out!

2009-05-13T19:50:00.002-05:00

Hello all. I just came back from a very windy run outside. I love how it stays light so much later these days. It was so fun to have our radio DJ friend, Tyler come and visit. He was one of the Dj's who gave us the tour of the big three radio stations. He has been a close friend of mine for almost 10 years, and he and his wife live nearby in Woodbury. It was fun to teach Tyler the cup game. He did give us a shout out on the radio. I do have the clip in my email box right now--it sounds great. I am waiting to hear back from him on whether or not I can post it on the website without breaking any copyright rules. I will post it as soon as he gives me the OK--otherwise, I will still play it for you tomorrow in class.

We learned so much today, especially in music. I know it is always interesting when Mrs. E. is the music teacher--see how much your parents know about Baroque music. Ask them if they know what the difference between an oratorio and an opera is.

I wanted to give your families a heads up about a very exciting event happening on May 22. From 12:30-3:30, new families from Saint Andrews will be spending the afternoon with us. We will have visitors in our room, watching our class, the new students will participate in Mix It Up, and we will end the day with a special DQ treat. Your families are invited to attend school with you that afternoon as well to meet and greet new SAA families. We are very excited to welcome them.

Have a great homework free night. You wrote a list in your planner about what you CAN do if you want to work ahead. See you tomorrow!

PS. All GO GREEN basket items are due tomorrow.

Windy Tuesday

2009-05-12T20:08:00.003-05:00

Another busy day. Our last few weeks together are certainly flying by. We started the day with a little spring excitement. This morning, there was a mysterious, gas-like smell in our building. Xcel Energy and the fire department were out to investigate the smell--they turned off the gas, had us air out the building, and determined that nothing dangerous was present. Xcel will be back tonight when the gas is turned back on.

We had a great discussion about the ancient Greek soap opera, otherwise known as the Trojan War. We had fun going through the events leading up to the war and learning about such famous characters as Helen of Troy, Agamemnon, Achilles, Paris, Odysseus, and King Menalaus.

We had math outside this morning to get some fresh air, while the building was being aired out. It was a fun change of scenery and the warm weather was inspiring.

We are really in need of GO GREEN gift basket donations--all donations are due by Thursday.
We are looking forward to seeing you at the carnival on Saturday for fun, food and good times!

Please take note of the upcoming Wine Gala fundraiser at the end of May. I will send home a date and time reminder in tomorrow's newsletter:-)

Have a great night.

Homework: finish math, Spanish sheet due tomorrow (the crossword puzzle is optional), practice spelling

2009-05-11T20:26:00.002-05:00

Happy Monday!

We had a great day today. We had a great discussion about how geography can affect a culture--paying particular attention to the ancient Greeks. We also had time to do more research for our living myth museum coming up on May 26. I was able to check in with almost everyone, and it looks like you are well on your way to presenting some fabulous information.

I never had a chance to ask you what you thought of the activity that Erin C. did with you on Friday. Erin did a lesson with the kids about how we present ourselves, and people's initial perceptions of us. The kids had fun filling in different sheets about their classmates.

I hope all of your moms liked their t-shirts. I remember giving one to my mom and she wore it so much, the paint wore off!

Not much new to report from our classroom. Remember to fill in your five spelling words and bring back your spelling sheets tomorrow for me to copy. Your 5 sentences on how geography impacts the Greek culture are due tomorrow.

Heads up...you have a Spanish project due May 21st. If you have questions, remember to ask Ms. Kim tomorrow.

Go-Green theme basket donations are due on Thursday! Thanks for your support.

Have a great night. The weather is great for a walk, or bike ride.

PS. Tyler is stopping in tomorrow!

Thursday!

2009-05-07T20:19:00.003-05:00

We had a busy day today. We started the day with a fun all school assembly run by the Student Council. We also had our all school picture taken outside this morning. Math was a little different for us this morning...rather than work on contracts, we split into small groups and spent some time learning how to work through the math investigations at the end of each chapter. It was nice to switch our routine up a bit, and to get the kids working in small collaborative groups.
We spent time making some Mother's Day surprises which are sure to be a hit with our moms. The kids will be bringing them home tomorrow.

In social studies, we talked about what was happening in the rest of the United States during the early-mid 1800's while we are traveling the Oregon Trail. We used the textbooks and learned about nationalism, the Monroe Doctrine and the Trail of Tears. We took notes together and then spent time alone practicing our note taking strategies. We will have a quiz tomorrow on the information we learned--all notes that students took are fair game to use on the quiz:-)

In Spanish, Senorita Kim introduced a project due on May 21st. Ask your student about the details.

Homework tonight: Math, finish note taking, read for 20

2009-05-06T20:42:00.002-05:00

Hi Friends,

I hope you are enjoying no homework Wednesday nights. I just got back from a great run around Colby Lake and then my husband and I spent sometime doing some gardening. We were having fun watching the neighbors get everything set up for the Woodbury Days Garage Sale this weekend. Are any of your families having a garage sale? I am looking for a kitchen table and chairs. Let me know if you see any for sale.

We had a busy day. We finished our discussion on Greek heroism--we compared three heroes and their character traits. We also took a reading comprehension quiz on the myths we read.

We are starting a music unit on classical, romantic and baroque music styles. Today we talked about the purpose behind composing a piece of music today vs. 200 years ago. We listened to Beethoven's 5th Symphony, the Hallelujah Chorus and Papageno from Mozart's, "The Magic Flute."

Remember that tomorrow is the all school assembly--do you think we won Boxer this time?? Then we have our all school picture outside. Keep bringing in those carnival basket donations. We have some great items so far.

Can you believe the weekend is getting close? What plans do you have for Mother's Day?
Shhh--don't tell. Tomorrow we will work on a special something for our moms:-) I went shopping and bought all of our supplies. We will have fun.

Have a great night.

If you are looking for something to do--you may work on math, read for 20 minutes and spend time with your families:-)

2009-05-05T17:23:00.004-05:00

Hello:

Thanks for all your help and hard work today. It made my day back at work so wonderful. I appreciate all of your concerns and well wishes. I am hoping after a good night's sleep, I will be back to my full self tomorrow.

I hope you had fun planting the vegetable garden with Mrs. Chang yesterday. We will have to go out there later this week and do some weeding. I already see weeds popping up. A big thank you to Mr. Don for framing our garden and preparing the top soil for us. I expect many good things to come from the garden this summer.

It was really interesting to compare and contrast our ideas of heroism with the ancient Greek's ideas of heroism. Your group work today with this activity and discussion was AMAZING.

Remember to bring in your donations for our theme basket (GO GREEN) by May 14th. We already have a few fun items. Remind me to show you tomorrow.

Homework: math, Spanish sheet, finish reading myth and then highlighting examples of heroism, and the most important thing--REMEMBER T-SHIRT SIZES! We need them for an activity we will be working on this Thursday. :-)

PS. I told Tyler that we had a thank you card for LOVE 105 and a couple of FPA t-shirts for Ben and him. He is very excited to get them, and I believe he is going to stop in on Monday to say hello to you all.

Commercial Uploaded

2009-05-03T21:35:00.003-05:00

Check it out! Here is our commercial with some fun pictures to look at while you listen. I am sorry for the video-quality--I had to really compress the original video in order for it to fit onto the website. Videos take up quite a bit of space.

A few more things:-)

2009-05-03T18:15:00.003-05:00

Here is the link to all photos from our field trip. I even took a few videos of some of you reading your commercial lines.

Check out our neat Oregon Trail bulletin board.

And here are a few pictures from the Student Showcase last Tuesday.

I'm Back!

2009-05-03T18:03:00.002-05:00

Hello.

I am back. Let me update you on several things:
I got sick with a terrible cold starting Thursday after school. I woke up Friday morning with such a terrible sore throat, that it was impossible for me to talk--it hurt that much! That is why Mrs. Chang was with you...I hope you had a wonderful day with her. I can't wait to hear all about delivering May Baskets. Did you make a thank you card for Tyler and Ben from LOVE 105? This weekend I was still sick--today is pretty much the first day that my voice has any strength. I was up and around, but definitely on vocal rest. Let's hope there is no more laryngitis tomorrow!

I wanted to let you know how much fun I had on our field trip on Thursday. The day was an incredible success. Tyler and Ben both told me how impressed they were with our class, your questions and our school. They said we are all welcome back to the studios anytime. I have several pictures from the day to post. I am going to ask Aaron to help me post the commercial here, so your families can hear it. What was your favorite part of the field trip? Was it seeing the garage, watching DJs doing live shows, meeting people, seeing behind the scenes of a big time radio station, making a commercial for FPA? Leave your responses under the comments section--each person who responds will earn one decision dollar. I might even wear my LOVE 105 shirt tomorrow.

Guess what?? I drove by school today and Mr. Don has our garden all ready for us. The top soil is on, and he even made a wooden frame for us. It looks amazing. Tomorrow afternoon we will be planting and labeling our seeds. Speaking of gardens, I did go to the rain gardens class through the city of Woodbury on Thursday night (yes, I went when I was so sick). We have 500 hundred dollars and a really nice man named Rusty who is at our services to help us design and plant our rain garden. Our goal is to have it completed by Memorial Day.

What did you do this weekend? The weather was gorgeous. I think that Spring is definitely here.
A few reminders--remember to turn in permission slips so that our commercial can be posted on LOVE 105's website. Also remember that theme basket donations (our theme is GO GREEN) are due by May 14th. This Thursday we have the all school assembly and then our all school outside picture. Thursday is a uniform day.

I hope you enjoy some of the pictures from our field trip. I missed you all so much. See you tomorrow. Thank you for being so helpful to Mrs. Chang while I was gone, and for your patience in between my last blog entries. Happy Sunday.

2009-04-29T20:35:00.002-05:00

Are you excited for our field trip tomorrow?? I am. Remember to be at school by 8:45 so we can leave right at 9:00. My radio DJ friend is very excited to have you at the studios. We are so lucky because normally this radio studio does not allow public tours...we are the exception:-)

We had a wonderful discussion today about creation stories. We compared the Greek myth creation story with the creation stories that we are familiar with. It was very interesting to hear everyone's point of view as they looked for similarities and differences between each story. We found central themes in each text--many cultures believe the world was created, then man, then woman. We talked about why ancient cultures living all over the world, far away from each other would develop/believe some of the same ideas. We talked about the spread of ideas and how people can influence each other's thinking. The students also found strong similarities between the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve and the temptation to eat the apple with Pandora and her curiousness that caused her to open her box. This was an incredibly respectful, mature and insightful discussion--we really became more aware of the many ideas and beliefs that are present in our world today. I am so proud of all of my students for their participation in this discussion.

Tonight is no homework Wednesday--please remember to bring in your social studies journals tomorrow so we can share them with each other.

PS. Tell your families about the COLORS OF MY LIFE activity we did today. Try it with them. :-)

2009-04-28T20:35:00.003-05:00

Better updates tomorrow...I am exhausted. :-)

Remember our field trip is Thursday. Reminder notes went home today. Have parents sign in your planners if you are able to ride in the front seat.

Your Oregon Trail journals are due Thursday--pick a Nebraska landmark that we have studied and document your travels up to that point.

Tell your families about our Living Mythology Museum on May 26th. I am so excited about it.

I am so tired.

Oh wait...garden updates--Mr. Don is going to help get our garden covered in 9-12 inches of good top soil. The ground is too rocky for him to use the rototiller. We will be able to plant all seeds by Monday. I am so excited.

The Showcase tonight was amazing. I hope you are all so proud of yourselves. All of you received wonderful comment cards. You can read them tomorrow morning.

Have a great night. Remember to work on your math if you didn't finish today's lesson.

Can you believe tomorrow is Wednesday already and we have 25 days of school left? Where does the time go?

2009-04-27T17:30:00.002-05:00

Happy Monday,

I just got finished hanging up and displaying your landmark research on the Oregon Trail board. It look amazing. I want to save your paragraphs and pictures and put them into a laminated book to keep forever.

If your parents volunteered to drive on our field trip on Thursday, please let them know I will be sending them information/detail tomorrow. My radio DJ friend is really excited to show you all around the studios. He has put together some fun goodie bags for you--I hear free t-shirts for all are involved!!

Remember tomorrow is our Student Showcase from 3-5 p.m. We will get everything set up tomorrow and help some of the younger students in the afternoon. I will bring my camera and post pictures.

Homework tonight: Math, study spelling, states and capitals test retakes on Friday

In my spare time...

2009-04-26T16:46:00.003-05:00

Hello!

I hope you are warm and cozy, enjoying this rainy Sunday. I decided to share something with you. In my spare time I like to notice small parts of the world around me through my camera lens. Here are some of my photos. What do you like to do in your spare time? Post your answers under the comments section:-)

Shining Stars

2009-04-24T19:48:00.003-05:00

As promised from Mrs. Sloot:

http://www.maudhartlovelace.org

Thank you so much for helping your classmates get ready for Tuesday's showcase. An even bigger thank you for being such positive role models and leaders this afternoon during the all-school team building activities. The best thing you did all day was to continue making compliment stars for everyone who didn't get one. All of these things are the reasons I teach. You all made my day today in the biggest way possible.

I am counting my lucky stars for my 15 FPA shining stars.

Have a great weekend. Don't forget that your landmark research is due Monday. Please also remember to bring in your Internet/library information that you found on your Greek deity on Monday.

2009-04-23T20:28:00.002-05:00

Quick update for the night. I just got back from a walk outside--the weather is gorgeous. I am excited that Spring is finally here. A few reminders:

Free Dress Day tomorrow
Picture Day tomorrow (you may bring picture clothes and casual clothes to change into later)
Mix It Up--all school activities 2:30-3:15
Spelling test tomorrow
States and Capitals test tomorrow
Final showcase displays due tomorrow

Lots of stuff to remember! If you haven't turned in permission slips, please remember to do so ASAP!

Have a great night.

I am so proud of your efforts today!

2009-04-22T17:39:00.005-05:00

Today was a great day. This morning, we attended a Character Education/Self Defense program put on by Excel Martial Arts in Woodbury. Our very own Haven J. achieved her red belt from Excel earlier this year and was a participant in the program.

This afternoon, we were out in the "garden" preparing the area for planting. I think we quickly learned how much patience and discipline we need to complete such a large undertaking. We cleared a 10 foot x 6 foot area--we spent an hour and a half getting rid of the sod, and top soil, and trying our best to loosen the bottom layers of soil at a depth of 9 inches. We will definitely be renting a rototiller this weekend to ensure our soil is loosened. Next week we will be getting rid of any large rocks, and will be applying a new top layer of soil, mostly to level out the sloped area before planting our seeds. We will be planting lettuce, carrots, peas, radishes, sunflowers and watermelon to start. A big thank you to everyone who brought gardening tools, and to Sam's grandparents for sharing their gardening expertise with us.

We will decorate the outside of the garden with rocks painted by the entire FPA student community. I am so excited. I know it might not look like we made any progress today, but believe me...WE DID!

Congratulations to everyone for doing such a great job running the mile. There were some amazing times--several of us took an entire minute off of our Fall times. I really enjoyed running the mile with each of you today.

Remember to bring back both permission slips for one decision dollar per slip this week.

For more pictures from today, click here.
Homework: Math, practice spelling, states and capitals, showcase displays due Friday

2009-04-21T20:53:00.000-05:00

PS. Please remember that all final showcase displays are due Friday!

Whew!

2009-04-21T20:35:00.003-05:00

Whew! Just got back from a successful trip to Walmart--loaded the trunk full of gardening soil, seeds and shovels. I had so much dirt in my trunk, I needed my husband to come help me drop off the bags at school. It was weird to be on the playground at 8:00 at night. I was covered in dirt after 5 minutes--appropriate clothes tomorrow are ESSENTIAL! We will get dirty:-)

If you have extra gardening shovels (we are in need of large sized shovels) please bring them tomorrow. Any family members and friends are welcome to take part. We need all the man and woman power we can get!

Tomorrow is your mile run in gym. I will bring clothes to run the mile with each of you. I am excited. Headphones and IPODS are fine to bring if you want.

A big thank you to each and every one of my students... I appreciate all of you who keep me on my toes, who like to question, who are honest with me about things that are happening in your lives in and out of school, and who feel comfortable talking about personal concerns in a respectful and mature way. I am so glad that we have created a classroom environment where you feel comfortable expressing your true selves. I truly believe in each of you--you have so many wonderful talents and insights to offer. Our classroom would not be complete without any one of you. Remember that I am always here to listen to you and to be your advocate.

Some of our students have had some preliminary questions/concerns about what we will be discussing in our upcoming unit in Human Growth and Development. As I have told the kids, I will be sending home a detailed letter about the specific topics we will be covering in May. If they have any immediate questions, I told the students to ask a parent at home, and/or to write them down and save them for our future class discussions. Please be assured that no topic will be discussed prior to my letter home, and without school/family consent outside of our unit.

Homework: Math, practice spelling and states/capitals, landmark research due Monday, bring clothes for running and gardening, bring gardening tools if you have them

Pictures Galore!

2009-04-20T17:55:00.004-05:00

Goodness gracious! I have TONS of pictures to share with you. Take a look at the several new albums I posted.

I posted pictures of you designing and creating landscaping plans for the FPA vegetable garden.
I posted pictures of you doing The Cup Game. The very first photo in the album is actually a video of you all! Very impressive.
I posted pictures of Jump Rope for Heart. I was so busy jumping and DDRing with you that I didn't have much time to take lots of pictures--but at least you get the idea of what we were doing.
I posted pictures of you drawing and researching your plants that are native to Minnesota. These are the same plants we will be planting in our rain garden. Did you tell your parents that your plant pictures will be made into seed packets that the Maplewood Nature Center will be passing out to guests? We will see if we can get a hold of your drawings on the seed packets so you can see what they look like. If you are interested, the seed packets will be passed out at the Nature Center on May 1 from 4:30-6:30 p.m.
Finally, I posted pictures of you webbing about Ancient Greece and Rome. Boy, we sure learned some interested facts about the culture!

We are continuing our trek along the Oregon Trail. Today students were each given two landmarks along the trail. They need to write one-two paragraph descriptions about each landmark and include a colored drawing of the location. Please make sure to include location, geographic features (mountains, trees, prairie, river, etc. ), a physical description (use your five senses), and for a challenge--how many miles from Independence, Missouri you are. All research and drawings are due Monday, April 27.

In literacy, we started a unit on Myths, Legends and Folk Tales. We did a webbing exercise using non-fictions books to learn about the ancient Roman and Greecian cultures. We will be learning about the elements of myths, as well as about the gods and goddesses--that's the plan for this week anyway:-)

This week for spelling, students chose 15 states and their capitals to practice. For our states and capitals test on Friday, students will be responsible for spelling those 15 states and capitals correctly!

Remember--Wednesday is our garden planting day. We need gardening tools!!!!!!!!!!!

Homework: Math, soc. studies journal, landmark project due Monday

2009-04-16T20:47:00.003-05:00

Look for on tomorrow's post:

Cool videos of the "Cup Game"
Pictures from our garden landscaping session
Updates on upcoming field trips

Remember for tomorrow:
a healthy snack
tennis shoes and gym clothes
a jump rope (if you have one)
your finished gardening landscape plans (color coded with a key and all measurements)

Be prepared for a fun morning session researching and drawing native plants with the Maplewood Nature Center and an afternoon workout that will make your hearts happy.

Sweet dreams.

2009-04-15T20:33:00.003-05:00

Happy Wednesday. Short post tonight, friends. Wednesday is no homework night--but if you are looking for something to do...practice states and capitals flashcards for your test next Friday, read for 20 minutes, or work on your math.

For Friday: You may bring shorts and a t-shirt to change into for Jump Rope for Heart. Remember to bring a healthy snack to eat that afternoon.

Tell your parents about our field trip to the LOVE 105 studios April 30th. Permission slips and more information to come...

Have a great night

Sun-Day!

2009-04-14T18:29:00.003-05:00

Happy Sun-Day!

We had a great day today. Very busy. We had a great discussion about emotions and what causes us to get emotional at our age. We talked about how we can't control how we feel but we can control how we react to situations. We paired this discussion with a non-fiction article taken from HEALTH magazine about self confidence and esteem. We had a round table discussion about what we can do when we feel like we have low self esteem. Ask your student what they took away from this empowering discussion.

We were granted permission from Ms. Nikki to proceed with our rain gardens. I will be taking a class through the city of Woodbury on April 30 which will "train" me to construct a rain garden. We will be busy researching native plants and doing some landscaping design in the meantime.

I have some wonderful field trips planned for the end of the year. I can't wait to share them with you tomorrow! If you could go anywhere on a field trip, where would you go and why? Post your ideas here and get one decision dollar tomorrow.

Homework: math, Spanish sheet, finish journals if you need to, showcase reflection paragraphs due tomorrow, 4th grade computer group please answer the questions about the confidence article

Making the last 8 weeks count

2009-04-13T20:52:00.002-05:00

Hello all,

Sorry for the later post tonight. I hope you all had an enjoyable Easter weekend. The weather was absolutely gorgeous--perfect for egg hunting, long Sunday walks, and reading a book on the sun porch.

I can't believe all of the things we have to do before the end of the year. During our morning meetings, we will be starting Health. We are using the Great Body Works curriculum and pamphlets. This morning we discussed/reviewed basic first aid including what to do with burns, chemicals in the eye or ingesting poisons. The students were even able to teach me several things. We have lots of great potential babysitters in our room. We will be working on Self Esteem, Drug Awareness, Pathways of the Brain, Emotions, and Personal Hygiene. At the end of May we will be doing a unit on the reproductive system. Before I teach anything I will be sending home detailed letters and will make the curriculum available to any family. Look for a letter in the coming weeks.

Jump Rope for Heart donations were due today. If anyone forgot to bring theirs in, you may still bring it in tomorrow (LAST CHANCE!). Your Jump Rope for Heart posters are up in the gym. They look wonderful--extremely creative. I think the American Heart Association should hire you all to do their advertising.

I will be talking with Ms. Nikki about how we can proceed with our rain garden, as well as starting an organic garden with our terrarium seeds that we can use to provide some of our food for hot lunches. Students--show your parents how to calculate the slope of something--they will be impressed!

Please have all reflection paragraphs finished by Wednesday for the Student Showcase. We will NOT be having any more class time to work on these. All Student Showcase pieces need to be finished by Friday, April 24th. We will have the next two Mondays in class to work on showcase pieces for a total time of 75 in class minutes.

If you did not finish your journal entry for social studies today, please do so.
We will be back to regular math tomorrow--our mini lesson on ratios took a little longer than I thought--but that's okay:-) Some great learning took place.

Have a restful night. See you bright and early tomorrow morning.

Excellent Engineering

2009-04-09T17:35:00.003-05:00

Who knew we had a bunch of geo-technical engineers in our room. This afternoon we went out and explored the pond area to the east of Footprints Academy. This pond was formed from the drainage and run off water from Footprints. This area is a perfect place for a rain garden. Today the kids went out to find the perfect place for a rain garden. In order to find the perfect place, they had to perform three tests on the area. They had to find the slope of the land and it had to be less than 15%. A slope greater than 15% requires help from the city of Woodbury to help us dig. They had to dig a one foot by one foot by one foot hole and do a soil test--the students picked up a handful of dirt and had to squeeze it into a ball. If the soil stayed in a ball form, the soil is too clay-like and is an indicator of poor water absorbtion and drainage. If the soil was most and not too sandy it was an indicator of a well draining area. The last test the kids performed was a water test. They had to pour 8-12 inches of water in their holes. We let the water sit for 15 minutes and used rulers to measure how much water had been absorbed into the soil. We then multiplied that number by 12 to see how much water would be absorbed in one hour. Anything more than .5 inches/hour indicated great soil. I took several pictures of the kids hard at work. Click here for more pictures. Tomorrow we will be comparing and compiling our data to determine our top preference area for our garden. What a great day!

A quick side note: We returned to our first grade selves this morning. For our morning meeting game we sang the song "Tooty Ta." Ask your student to sing it for you. Click on the link to hear the song. Hopefully you will enjoy these hilarious pictures and video.

Homework: Finish math, spelling test tomorrow, re-write/organize science observations from this afternoon.

Pictures!

2009-04-08T20:08:00.003-05:00

Here are several pictures from today.

You can see Ann's slide show about watersheds and rain gardens, a few of us playing on the swings and a demonstration of what neighborhood pollution does to local wetlands. Would you want to live in Fred's neighborhood? (You may click on each picture for a larger view)

Happy Wednesday!

2009-04-08T19:54:00.002-05:00

Happy Wednesday. I will upload some pictures later from our day today--a few from outside, and a few from our time with Ann from the Maplewood Nature Center. Today we learned about watersheds and rain gardens, and how small things that we do affect the quality of water that runs off into the wetlands. I learned something new today...I never knew that it was okay to wash my car on the grass without hurting it. Did you learn anything new today?

Can you believe we have about 8 weeks left of school? I can't believe how quickly the year has flown by. I am excited to work more on the Oregon Trail. I am hoping to split us into groups again to do some research on a few Oregon Trail landmarks that we can add to our bulletin board. I was reading some of your journal entries today...they are amazing. I will post some examples in the coming days.

What have been some of your favorite things that we have done so far this year? Post your comments in the comments section:-)

Tonight is no homework Wednesday--however, if you are looking for something to do, you can always work ahead in math, practice spelling and read for 20 minutes.

Have a great night. Check back later for pictures!

Quick check in

2009-04-07T21:10:00.002-05:00

Whew! Late night tonight, friends! I just got back from a great Open House. I met many wonderful potential families and students from Saint Andrews. I am tired and headed to bed, but I wanted to make sure I checked in with you tonight. Thank you to those students who volunteered your time tonight at the Open House. We all appreciate that you did so.

I am going to watch the end of the Twins game:-) Baseball is a sure sign of Spring. Remember that your gym posters are due tomorrow. Work on your budget list for the Oregon Trail. We will worry about figuring out how much things weigh tomorrow. Remember to think about what you want to display at the Showcase Extravaganza:-)

Good night:-)

PS

2009-04-06T20:19:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow night from 5:30-7:30 is the FPA open house which will welcome incoming Saint Andrew's families to our school community. I am looking for tour guides and students to answer questions from new families. Any volunteers?

Where has the year gone?

2009-04-06T20:13:00.003-05:00

Where has the year gone? This is the 200th post that I have written to you this year. Thanks for keeping up with this blog. I hope that it has been helpful to you. My goal was to have 4000 hits by the end of the year. I think we will do it!

I had a lot of fun doing Oregon Trail stuff with you. Can you believe that a covered wagon has all of those parts that make it work? Can you see how the invention of the automobile was not far behind? What is another name for the covered or conestoga wagon? Remember that people considered it to be "a boat sailing on the green prairie." One decision dollar for anyone who can tlel me the answer tomorrow. What are you putting on your list of things to take with you on the journey? Post your favorite item in the comments section. I hung up our giant Oregon Trail map that your groups made this afternoon. It looks great. I will post a picture of it tomorrow.

Do you have any thoughts on where we could plant our seeds to make a lasting garden at Footprints? Do you have any suggestions for other seeds we could plant and grow to use in our lunches at school? Laura has been working hard to research native Minnesota plants that would thrive in our rain garden. I am so excited for Wednesday when the people from the nature center come and teach us about rain gardens and watersheds. Do you know what a water shed is? Google it for fun.

Remember your gym posters are due Wednesday. We will do a mini lesson on your spelling words tomorrow. Everyone has 15 words this week. Don't forget to finish writing in your Oregon Trail journals--a minimum of 20 items to bring--5 of them need to be special mementos:-)

Happy Monday!

I need your help!

2009-04-03T13:52:00.001-05:00

Hi Friends,

I hope you are having a wonderful day off. The weather outside is beautiful! I have been busy at school learning lots of different things that I am excited to teach you one day. I have a favor to ask you. My sister is studying to be a teacher. She has been visiting our blog and following what we have been doing at Footprints. She has three questions that she would like to ask each of you. She will be taking your answers and using them to write a paper for her teaching classes. You do not need to include your name when you answer. Post your answers under the comments section. Please remember to label your answers so I know which response belongs to which question.

Here are the questions my sister would like to ask you:

1.) What do you use the blog for?
2.) How often do you use Mrs. E's blog?
3.) Do you like using the blog? Why?

Have a great weekend. Remember that your American Heart Association posters are due to Mrs. Lisa by Wednesday. Please finish your journal entry on why you chose the route you did to move west. You should be writing from your character's point of view--include factors like climate, topography (mountains, rivers, plains, etc.), distance, etc.

A response to your SECRET MESSAGE

2009-04-01T20:57:00.003-05:00

Thank you for being my students. Happy April Fool's Day.
Your emails made me smile.

Love, Mrs. E.

Rain Gardening!

2009-04-01T18:10:00.004-05:00

Happy Spring! April Fools! Goodness sakes--where is the beautiful Spring weather that Minnesota is known for? I am glad to see that the snow has pretty much melted from this morning.

I have some great news to share with families:
On April 8, specialists from the Maplewood Nature Center will be coming to do a three hour intensive course on watersheds and rain gardens. I am so excited for this course because it will help further support our study on plant environments. On May 21, we will be going to the Maplewood Nature Center to help them build a rain garden. In between, we will be doing a study of Minnesota native plants, and rain garden design in the hopes of designing Footprints' OWN rain garden just east of the school near the pond. We will be doing landscape design and scaled map drawings of how we want our garden to look. We would need to collaborate with the city of Woodbury during the "digging and planting" process.

For those of you who are not familiar with rain gardens and their environmental benefits, please explore this link to learn more about them. We will be calculating the cost, how big the garden should be, what kinds of plants we should grow, how much extra soil we need, necessary equipment, etc. I will keep you posted on this exciting science unit.

Tomorrow is our all school assembly at 9:10 a.m. All families are invited to attend. Tomorrow evening from 6:30-8:30 is the Footbridge sponsored Family Game Night. Come enjoy games, popcorn and fun with Footprints families and friends. Please note that on Tuesday, April 7 from 5:30-7:30 all Footprints families are invited to join potential incoming Saint Andrews families for a family dinner and open house event. This evening will be an opportunity for Saint Andrews families to meet us and to have a chance to tour the school and ask current families about FPA life. I would love to have student helpers volunteer to help give tours and welcome the families! Let me know if you are interested.

Homework: Science vocabulary test tomorrow!

Jump Rope For Heart

2009-03-31T18:23:00.002-05:00

These jump ropers were REALLY good. I could hardly keep up with them! Wouldn't it be fun to have a jump rope club at Footprints? I especially like the picture of Mrs. Missy trying double dutch. My favorite part of the assembly was when the girls were on their hands on the ground trying to jump over two ropes! In some of the pictures, the girls were jumping so fast you can barely see the jump ropes. Click on each picture for a better view. I am excited for our Jump Rope for Heart Day on April 17th.

Homework: Oregon Trail map (no more than 15 minutes), practice science vocabulary for Thursday, financial charts due tomorrow

Monday:-)

2009-03-30T20:20:00.002-05:00

Happy Monday. Today was a busy day. I think we were very excited to see how much the plants in our terrariums had sprouted over the weekend. It has been fun to be the gardeners and to decide how to provide the best environment for each plant.

We also jumped into our Oregon Trail unit. Each student created a family who will be traveling along the Oregon Trail. The students must assume the role of a family member who makes important decisions--like what to bring, which route to take, what to leave behind, etc. It was really fun for me to "meet" each family today through the students' first journal entries.

Tomorrow we have an exciting program. Since we had such a successful Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser last year, Footprints won a professional jump roping program. At 11:00 in the gym, we will watch a team of professional jump ropers perform a series of tricks and routines to get us excited for our Jump Rope for Heart Day on April 11. Our goal is to raise $9025.00 as a school--which comes down to approximately $100.00 per student. You may bring in completed orders any time.

Homework: NO SPELLING THIS WEEK, science vocabulary quiz on Thursday, finish math, financial charts due Wednesday

FPA Individual Business Grand Opening!

2009-03-26T16:50:00.004-05:00

WOW! What an amazing day. This is one of those days that really makes me excited to be a teacher. I was so proud of all of you. I hope you are proud of yourselves. You all experienced incredible success. I can't wait to hear your reaction tomorrow. This was a wonderful learning experience for you and for me. Looking back on the process, I know there are some aspects that I will change in the future, and I am sure that if you were to do this again there would be some adjustments that you would make. We will have a long discussion about our businesses tomorrow. Please let me know if you need more time to make your additional products because I certainly don't want to make something that is meant to be fun, stressful for you. I have uploaded all the pictures that I took from this afternoon. See what you think. I must say--your business ideas were so creative. I have heard many compliments from students and teachers about your creativity and professionalism.

Tomorrow we will have time for everyone to shop and view each other's products. Check this out--here is our vocab word of the day in use--We will shop and view each other's products and services in a systematic way so everyone can see and purchase whatever they would like. All services will be offered for our class on Monday.

A big thank you to your families for their support. It was so fun and exciting to see many parents purchasing goods and services this afternoon. I know that your parents really helped guide you through your business adventures.

Homework: Math, spelling definitions due tomorrow, social studies families due tomorrow, be proud of your tremendous successes today!

A couple reminders

2009-03-25T20:35:00.008-05:00

I hope you enjoyed showing and reading your poems to your families tonight.

BIG REMINDER FOR TOMORROW: We are opening our businesses!! Please remember to bring all materials and products that you will need for your store to operate. We will be open from 1:30-3:30.

Check the website for the school store. It will be open tomorrow.

I am going to bed and will be dreaming of sunshine. No more gray winter weather!

Homework: Math, spelling practice, Oregon Trail family creations due Friday in your social studies notebook. Finish science garden designs if you didn't finish today. Remember that spelling words need to be defined and turned in by Friday. I will offer some in class time tomorrow. Do not worry about learning the definitions for a quiz yet--we will have a vocab quiz next week (most likely on Thursday)

More poetry

2009-03-25T10:01:00.003-05:00

The following students wanted to have their poems published on our website. This group of poems focuses on use of similies, metaphors and descriptive imagery.

Green is the color of tiny sprouts poking their heads out of the fresh brown soil
Green is a vine slowly crawling its way up a tree
Green is a lucky four leafed clover hiding in a patch of normal three leafed clovers
Green is an emerald shining bright on a necklace chain

Green smells like leaves in the rain dipping down in the weight of the water
Green tastes like fresh granny smith apples

Green sounds like a toucan cawing in the misty rainforest
Green looks like a fresh blooming hasta plant being nibbled by a bunny
Green feels like courage building up inside of you

Green makes me brave and fearless

Green is life.
--written by Haven

Silver Cloud
Silver is the color of a cloud.
Silver is a nickel on the ground.
Silver is a metal sheet.
Silver is a bulb on a Christmas tree.
Silver smells like fresh rain.
Silver tastes like sugar cookies.
Silver sounds like a train on cold metal.
Silver looks like a glint of metal.
Silver feels like happy sadness.
Silver makes me play in the rain.
Silver is the color of a cloud.
--written by Sam

Gray
Gray is a storm cloud.
Gray is pencil lead.
Gray is a dime.
Gray is my cat Mandy.
Gray smells like mist.
Gray tastes like burning wood.
Gray sounds like rain drops hitting my window.
Gray looks like a cloudy day.
Gray feels like cold metal.
Gray makes me feel cold as an ice cube.
Gray is an elephant stampede.
--written by Cole

Brown is the Color of Dead Grass
Brown is the color of dead grass
Brown is the bottom of your shoe when you step in dog poo.
Brown is a little kid's face after they've played in the mud.
Brown is the leaves on the ground in autumn.
Brown smells like fresh dirt from the bottom of a flower pot.
Brown tastes like chocolate cookies fresh from the oven.
Brown sounds like people climbing on an old tree on a rainy day.
Brown looks like the dock floating by a boat.
Brown feels rocky and hard like rocks in tbe wind.
Brown makes me feel adventurous, like putting on my tennis shoes, going out the door and running in the rain.
Brown is the color of dead grass.
--written by Marselienna

Friendship
Friendship is purple
It tastes like strawberries with sugar shining on top
It sounds like contagious laughter that spreads like butter
It smells like flowers sparkling in the garden
It looks like staying up all night talking at a sleepover
It feels like always having someone on your side.
--written by Mady

Warmth
Warmth is red-yellow
It tastes like hot popcorn freshly made
It sounds like a crackling fire in a fireplace
It smells like bubbling chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven
It looks like a soft couch, a good book and a fuzzy blanket
It makes me feel cozy and safe.
--written by Olivia J.

What is What?
White is the color of clouds
White is the fluffy pillows on the bed
White is the color of walls
White is the clean board ready to get dirty again
White smells like clean sheets
White tastes like icing on a cake
White sounds like snow drifting to the ground
White looks like paper waiting to be drawn on
White feels like a teddy bear
White makes me put on a winter coat
White is the color of clouds.
--written by Alexandra

Lime green is the color of fresh green grass
Lime green is the leaves blowing off tree branches
Lime green is when I feel excited
Lime green is the color of my teddy bear waiting to be hugged
Lime green smells like blooming daisies in the garden
Lime green tastes like sour lemons and limes
Lime green sounds like kids laughing and screaming on a roller coaster ride
Lime green looks like the sun setting on the meadow
Lime green feels like walking on a sandy beach
Lime green makes me eager and enthusiastic
Lime green is the color of fresh green grass.
--written by Rachel

Winter
Winter is white
It tastes like an ice cube in a cold freezer
It sounds like snow falling to the ground
It smells like fresh air right after a rainfall
It looks like a fluffy white cloud floating in the sky
It feels soft and open.
--written by Haley

Simplicity is blue
It tastes like melting chocolate
Sweet and soft
It sounds like wind blowing in the night
Strong but calming
It smells like candles
Tranquil and soothing
It looks like morning dew
Topping the grass
It makes me feel peaceful and whole-hearted.
--written by Carly

Pink is the color of juicy watermelon
Pink is the color of ice cold lemonade on a hot summer day
Pink is the color of my favorite blanket
Pink is the color of a newborn piglet
Pink smells like a flower in the summer
Pink tastes like frosting on a cupcake
Pink sounds like laughter by the pool
Pink looks like cotton candy at the state fair
Pink feels like my favorite pair of flip flops
Pink makes me feel like I'm floating on a cloud
Pink is the color of bubble gum.
--written by Olivia H.

Thunder-Senses
Thunderstorms are pitch black
They taste like un-sweetened chocolate
They sounds like a pounding drum
That is in rhythm with my heart
They smell like alertness
They look like a whirlwind of clouds and light
They make me feel small and powerless.
--written by Natalya

2009-03-24T20:31:00.003-05:00

Can I just tell you something? You guys worked so hard today! WOW! I was so impressed with your effort in math, and the determination that went into creating beautiful comparison poems. I can hardly wait to post them here. The same goes with science--your observations and questions about your terrariums were so high level. Tomorrow, we will finish designing your gardens and share your results.

Student Council sent me a reminder to tell you all to bring your item for the Craft Fair if you are participating in it. Items are due tomorrow. The service committee will be meeting this Friday at 1:30.

Friday is also a busy day...it is Free Dress Day and we have Mix It Up. We will be eating in our classroom on Friday because we will have music at 12:45. Won't it be exciting to have Mrs. Herzberg back?

Have a great night!

Homework tonight: Read for 20, finish math, choose one poem that we worked on today and spend 10-15 minutes editing it for imagery and structure, Spanish sheet, practice spelling

Update

2009-03-24T09:32:00.000-05:00

A few new poems have been added to the poetry post from Sunday. Check them out!

Back to It

2009-03-23T17:38:00.005-05:00

Welcome back from Spring Break! I was so happy to see everyone at school today and to hear about everyone's adventures.

Here are a couple reminders. Any Craft Fair items are due Wednesday. Our businesses will only be open Thursday afternoon from 1:30-3:30. Our Tuesday business day is CANCELED because all classes signed up to buy from us Thursday. All ala carte items cost $.50 instead of $.25. Business plans were handed back today. Students should share them with families and return them to school ASAP so they can go into their portfolios. We will have a spelling test on science words this Friday. We will be working on defining our words together in class.

We had so much fun planting our terrariums today in science. We will be learning about different environments and the many factors each environment provides to specific organisms. Here are a few pictures of our planting. A few were too blurry and dark, so if you don't see yourself in a photo, remind me to take one of you tomorrow with your terrarium.

Here is the direct link to the album

We will be observing our plants as they grow--barley, corn, peas, radishes, and clover. Each group used 1.5 liters of planting soil and 5 of each seed. It was up to the groups how they wanted to plant their seeds and how many mL of water they wanted to use.

Homework: Finish math, practice spelling, read for 20

Businesses Opening this week!

2009-03-22T16:58:00.003-05:00

A few reminders:

Tuesday and Thursday are our selling days. We will be open on Tuesday from 10:30-12:30 and on Thursday from 1:30-3:30. Don't forget to bring any material that you need from home to run your business. I know that many of you worked on your products over the break. I will remind you again tomorrow! I am very excited to see your businesses finally open. I also graded everyone's business plans. You will get them first thing tomorrow morning. Enjoy the last few hours of your break.

San Diego

2009-03-22T16:54:00.004-05:00

Here are a few pictures of some fun things I saw and did over my vacation. I can't wait to see you all tomorrow.

Your Poems

2009-03-22T16:31:00.005-05:00

Hello everyone. I have lots of information for you. I hope you had wonderful Spring Breaks. In a future post, I will show you some pictures from my trip to San Diego. As promised, I have typed up one poem from everyone in our class (those of you who gave me your notebooks) for you to share with your families. They are wonderful. If you don't see your poem here, give me your notebook tomorrow and I will add it here:-)

My Job is Never Done

The sun goes down.
I come up.
Is everyone asleep?
I can't wait until
I can talk with the stars.
I walk slowly around the earth.
I'm so tired.
I go down.
The sun comes up.
Here we go again.
I wish I could stop.
But no

I'm the moon.
--written by Alexandra

Raindrop
trickling from the sky
dancing in the wind
playing with his friends
jumping on the sidewalk
bouncing up and down
the sun has arrived
time to go back up
--written by Rachel

Cactus
Standing in the desert
While thistle is stinging me
I wish I could move
The only one around here
Swaying around.
--written by Sam

Night
I watch them when they go to bed.
I watch the midnight parties.
I party with them.
Thunder!
Lightning!
Nobody likes me when I party.
Little kids are afraid
Some people are afraid of me
afraid
Of the dark.
--written by Marselienna

Telephone
Waiting for someone to call,
I sit in my place.
I feel lonely when I am not in use.
When someone is done
I hope I am set back nicely.
--written by Olivia J.

Newspaper
A feeling of freedom but not
I want to choose my own destiny
but the wind does it instead
Dancing in the breeze
I tickle the lamp post
As I say hello to the people who pass
The wind stops
I land
Just sitting there so lonely
The wind starts again
People just watch me drift away
As if I am invisible
One piece of me drifting in the wind
I just want to know
Does anyone want to read me?
--written by Haley

Book
I sweep your mind,
I make you feel
Like you're there with me.
My pages
Turn tickled pink when you touch them.
Can't you smell
My binding
The smooth cover that makes me important?
--written by Laura

My Home
resting while waiting for the sun to come up.
i stay as still as can be
moving every once in awhile
wanting to be back in my tree
my home.
--written by Emma

Dry Erase Marker
I want to write and draw across the board
I can run and have total freedom
I can write curvy letters
I will draw and color
The kids will learn from me
If only the teacher will pick me up.
--written by Mady

Snowflake
I fall from heaven,
A crowd around me.
I may look free,
But I'm not.
I twirl on the waves of wind
The waves crash,
And I get covered in white foam.
--written by Natalya

Ground
Always being stepped on
Holding everything up
Hoping I won't break
Watch out!
I might
Shake!
--written by Cole

I am running,
with a friend
flying,
through the air
jumping softly
off the bed
to the floor.
I am dancing
with a friend
spinning
until we drop,
dizzily on the ground
laughing and giggling.
I am sitting at a friend's tea party
in an elegant dress
sipping invisible tea
from a china cup.
I am laying
on the summer grass
cloud watching
star gazing
marveling.
I am chasing butterflies
fur whipping
in the crisp air.
I am reading
with a friend
snuggling
next to tiny legs
yawning.
I am sleeping
in wide arms
dreaming
waiting
until she wakes up.
--written by Haven

Stargirl
today my friend dances
in the rain
whisper magic love
drank sweet teardrop
dream funny sounds.
--written by Carly

Late!

2009-03-11T20:44:00.002-05:00

AHHHH: Busy night tonight!!!! Just came from Mrs. LaRoue's baby shower. I will post more tomorrow morning from school. Just so you all know...you all are some of the best poets I have EVER met! I brought home notebooks and have been reading your poems to my family ALL night. I am definitely going to post them with your permission. I can't WAIT to see final copies.

Remember to finish math, Spanish HW is due tomorrow, all advertising is due so we can hang signs tomorrow.

Words

2009-03-10T17:35:00.004-05:00

Today I was so excited to see our best writing come together to make a really thoughtful poem. The figurative language and imagery were outstanding. I can't wait to read your final bio poems. I thought today was really fun when we took the words from Shel Silverstein's poem, "One Inch Tall" and scrambled them up like Magnetic Poetry to create our own poems. Poetry is just magic! Just wait until we read Shel Silverstein's actual poem tomorrow:-)

Some of you mentioned that you have Magnetic Poetry--if you would like to bring it in to share, please DO. If you have poetry books to share with us, bring those in also.

It looks like you all have a great start on your goods/services production for your businesses. I can't wait to see your finished products and services. Those of you who are offering classes, make sure that you have an outline or plan for what you are going to do.

I have some very exciting news. We raised enough money from the book fair for each teacher to pick out new books for our classroom. Thank you to each family for helping to support our school. I had fun picking out LOTS of new chapter books this afternoon. They are underneath the white board--you are welcome to borrow them to read! Don't you just love opening a brand new book for the first time?

Remember that your Spanish flags are due Thursday, not TOMORROW. If you need to finish math, don't forget to finish your lesson. If you didn't finish your poetry scramble, take NO MORE THAN 10 minutes to finish. Remember...poems can be about anything and have any length. Sometimes two or three great lines makes a fantastic poem! Be creative:-)

Have a great night.

A few things..

2009-03-09T18:13:00.003-05:00

Hello. Welcome back after a long weekend! It was so good to meet with each of your families and share the many wonderful things that you are doing at school with them. This is only a quick post tonight because I am off to Stamp Club, but I wanted to remind you of a few things:

Bring all materials to work on your products. We will have 40 minutes of class time tomorrow. This will be our last in class day to work. We will have had a total of 160 minutes of in class work time.

We will be opening our stores for business on March 24 from 10:30--12:30 and March 26 from 1:30-3:30. Parents and families are more than welcome to come and purchase our goods and services.

All advertising needs to be finished by Thursday. You are more than welcome to come before school or stay after to finish so you don't have to take home the tag board. Signs can go up as soon as they are finished. Remember if you are making more signs than you wrote about in your business plan, keep track of those changes. You will need to make a final chart of all costs after you run your business.

I had fun writing poetry with you today. Write in your notebook for NO MORE THAN 10-15 minutes on your poem about you. All poem drafts need to be at school tomorrow:-)

Remind your families that we adjusted the reading time from 210 minutes a week to
20 minutes x 5 nights a week (starting today). Don't forget to fill out your reading calendars each night.

Have a great night.

Homework: finish math, reading, poetry write (10-15min)

Tomorrow is the big day...

2009-03-04T18:18:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow is the big day for the assembly. I know it seemed rushed this afternoon, but it will be just fine. Thank you for your patience and help. Your scripts were great! I know the audience will love your creativity. Remember to invite friends and family to come watch you!

Report cards come home tomorrow! You will get them at the end of the day.

Friday is PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCE DAY. It is up to you and your family whether or not you attend conferences--either way is fine with me. I can't wait to share the great things I have to say about all of you with your families. I am so proud of all the hard work you have been doing this year. You are a great group of kids.

Don't forget to bring your costumes for the assembly tomorrow if you are dressing up! See you bright and early tomorrow morning. Have a great night.

Happy Square Root Day!

2009-03-03T17:57:00.003-06:00

Happy Square Root Day!
3-3-09
Get it?? 3x3=9
**3 Decision Dollars for anyone who can tell me when the next square root day is.**

Check this out!
Math Fans Celebrate Square Root Day

Blueprints and Marshmallow Towers

2009-03-03T17:44:00.005-06:00

We are busy, busy, BUSY!

First and foremost--CONGRATS on finishing your business plans. I can't WAIT to look at them all in detail. I am so proud of you for all of your work. They have exceeded my expectations and look SO professional.

We are busy preparing for the all-school assembly. We will be doing a few run throughs tomorrow. We will be leading the entire assembly which should last from 9:10-9:35 on Thursday morning! Families are welcome to attend.

Today I gave the kids a task. They had to work in teams of two using a bag of marshmallows and 250 toothpicks to create a free standing structure with the largest volume. It was fun to see all of the different rectangular arrangements. Plus, it was fun to munch on a few marshmallows as we went along. The largest volume we had was 48 cubic units--way to go Haven and Olivia H.!

We also started turning blueprints into models today. The kids did a fabulous job creating their dream houses. Since we are just getting our feet wet with this whole architecture thing, the kids are working in groups to create smaller models from actual house blueprints that we found on the Internet.

I posted photos from our blueprint time, and building marshmallow models. You can see them here.

Remember that conferences are on Friday. NO SCHOOL for students. I set up a bunch of student work in the hallway. As you pick up your student during the week, and while you are waiting for conferences, I hope you enjoy spending time viewing the work that we are so proud of.

If you didn't bring materials to work on putting together your business product, bring them tomorrow! We will be working on them again. We are aiming to open our businesses the week after Spring Break.

Have a great night!!

Homework: math, 30 minutes of reading

2009-03-02T20:58:00.000-06:00

BUSINESS PLANS DUE TOMORROW!! I can't wait to see your hard work.

Pass the word!!

2009-03-01T14:38:00.003-06:00

Spread the word....

March 2 (tomorrow) is Read Across America Day!
Bring pillows, blankets, a favorite stuffed animal, a healthy snack and a pile of books to spend the afternoon reading.

We will also spend time with K-1 reading books to them:-)

Tell your friends in our room!!!

Parachute

2009-02-28T10:19:00.001-06:00

We love to parachute. When the weather gets too cold to work on our world record ice hole, we turn into the world's best parachuters. We love to play "Lifeguard," (one shark underneath the parachute pulls on everyone else's legs--if they go under before the lifeguard can pull them out, they become a new shark), "Fruit Roll Up" (twirl one person at a time in the parachute--how they do not get dizzy is beyond me), and "Popcorn" (see how high and how long we can throw and keep foam balls inside the parachute). Notice how at the end, we had to deal with some major static cling in our hair:-) It's all part of the fun:-)

Spring Snow

2009-02-26T17:44:00.003-06:00

Happy Birthday Haley!

WOW--just when we thought that spring was on the way, the snow sneaked up on us. As I am typing this, the snow is still falling, but not as much as it was earlier today. I hope everyone made it home safely--I know it was rough getting in and out of the Footprints lot with all the snow drifts. It took four teachers to help me get my car out!

All science fair boards can go home. I did grade them all today. Students should get science fair grades by Monday. All boards that are not gone by tomorrow after school will be tossed over the weekend.

We worked hard the past couple of days to prepare for the all school assembly on Thursday. Look for unique ideas, twists and spins on the traditional elements of the program...the 4th-6th graders are so creative!

We had a great discussion about the economic situation of the country. We also read an article about the Great Depression. Four Minnesotans who lived through the Great Depression retold several touching memories about how to survive rough times. Remember--you have homework to do with this article: a basic summary of each person's story (so I can check for comprehension and understanding), a text to self, or text to text connection or reaction for each story, and an ""I wonder question, an "I didn't understand" question, or a question would like to ask each person about their experiences. This is due tomorrow (in your reading response journals).

Don't forget that business plans parts 7-8 are due tomorrow. Your blueprints (dimensions, windows, doors, stairs, appliances and furniture all drawn in) are due MONDAY.

We will have a spelling test tomorrow. Be on the look out for a math quiz on abbreviations (today's power up) early next week.

TOMORROW IS FREE DRESS DAY!

Homework: Read for 30, spelling, math, business plan, art blueprints
Looking ahead: February reading calendars are due Monday.

A World Record in Our Own Backyard

2009-02-25T21:06:00.003-06:00

Check out our world record ice hole diggers. A sure sign that spring is on the way!

Science Fair Pictures

2009-02-25T21:03:00.001-06:00

Science Fair pictures posted!

Inside Jokes

2009-02-25T20:52:00.002-06:00

Busy night tonight. As I am writing this, I am uploading pictures from the science fair onto the website. I will also post pictures of you guys digging the world record hole!

And by the way---how many decimeters are in a meter? How many centimeters are in one decimeter? How many millimeters are in one centimeter? (Hint: Think of my meter stick drawing--the one that you said looked like a furry stick. Think of my magnifying glass zeroed in on one centimeter (no...not my caramel apple lollipop). FYI--Parents--you will have to ask your kids about this inside joke. It is the result of a pretty funny math mini lesson.

What did you think of the Blueberries art show today? Mrs. Wilkie told me how excited the three year olds were to have you visit and care so much about their art. Should we invite them into our room sometime?

Homework: Read for 30, spelling, math ( I think most everyone finished today's lesson already!!), 7-8 due Friday, art due date changed to MONDAY

Book Trailer Link Posted!

2009-02-23T18:06:00.001-06:00

View our fantasy book trailers here! Remember to turn up the sound on your computer when you watch them:-)

Last February Monday!

2009-02-23T17:57:00.003-06:00

Tomorrow is the big Science Fair day. I know you have all worked extremely hard and put your best effort into your work like you always do. I can't wait to see all of your projects and different ideas. Remember to check in at the table in the main lobby before taking your science fair project upstairs. Our area is in the hallway across from our lockers, on the bridge. There are name tags on your table. I am so proud of all your hard word--way to go, Scientists!

You will be happy to know that I got a new camera this weekend. I am excited to try it out and take pictures of you with your projects. We will also spend time as a class walking around and viewing all of the other projects.

Take note: Science Fair celebration dinner is tomorrow in the cafeteria from 5:30-7:30 p.m. You may take your science projects home at anytime between Tuesday night and Friday afternoon. Hope to see you all there.

Did you know that Mrs. Sloot posted our book trailers onto the website? The link is on the main page under Current Happenings. I will also post a link to the book trailers on our website. They take a few minutes to download, so be patient when you go to open them.

Take note that the final due date for our business plans is March 3. That way you will have time to make changes to parts 7 and 8 after I look at them. Don't walk out of the room on Friday without me giving you the special paper to print your report on--otherwise, it won't be able to go into the special binding books. On Tuesday, bring in your final product. I would like to have them on display for parent/teacher conferences.

Homework: Read for 30, finish math (I think almost everyone finished their lesson today! Way to go!), finish science fair final touches, practice spelling

Thrilling Thursday

2009-02-19T20:30:00.002-06:00

What did you think of our book trailer viewing party today? It was so much fun to finally see your finished products. Mrs. Sloot and I are going to be doing some tag-teaming with grading--you will get a grade for technology and also for literacy.

I am excited for our pizza party tomorrow. Thank you to those families who donated money for pizza. Mrs. Missy said her class is SO excited. They will come eat and play games with us after media.

Are you ready for Mix It Up? That reminds me...I need to research some information for yoga class tomorrow. For the last Mix It Up sessions, what do you hope is offered? If you have any fun suggestions for classes, post them here.

I know you are working hard on your science fair projects. They are due Tuesday morning, but if you want to bring them in earlier you may.

Parts 4 and 6 of your business plans are due Monday, as is your Dream House sloppy copy. We will have time in class tomorrow to work on both.

Keep up with your 30 minutes of reading, and your math contracts. Many of you have already finished them for the week...way to go. You have earned computer time tomorrow:-)

Have a great night. Thank you for being so wonderful.

New time, new place!

2009-02-18T20:46:00.003-06:00

Parent Reminder:

The March PTA meeting will be Monday 3/9 at 6:30 p.m. The meeting will be held at Dunn Bros. on the corner of Woodbury and Commerce Drive. We hope to see you there.

2009-02-18T20:45:00.002-06:00

Post your ideas for the all school assembly in the comments section. I need your expertise and creative ideas.

Book Trailers, Role Models and Surprises

2009-02-18T20:38:00.003-06:00

Hello, hello.

Today was an extremely productive day. Thank you for one of the best math sessions of the entire year! Your work, effort and productivity absolutely knocked my socks off. I am so proud of you.

Today we also worked through a challenging short story--I thought we had a very grown up discussion about childhood and the important things we remember about it. You are all very wise young adults.

Tomorrow we are going to be watching our book trailers in the library. We will cozy up around the Smart Board with some popcorn and see the results of our hard work. I bet some of you will be producers and editors one day. Remember to invite family members. We will start at 2:30 sharp.

Are you excited about our surprise pizza party with Mrs. Missy's class on Friday? She was excited to hear about our idea. We were thinking that we could all hang out for awhile after we eat lunch...you can play some games with the little ones and read to them. What do you think?
I think that you are wonderful role models for our school--so many of the younger students look up to you and idolize you:-)

Homework tonight: Read for 30, business plan parts 4 and 6 due on Monday (we will have some work time tomorrow in class), math contracts, pizza money if you can ASAP:-)

It's Tuesday??

2009-02-17T18:08:00.002-06:00

Hello,

Did you notice I posted a new picture of our classroom at the top of our web page? Do you remember what spirit day the picture was from? I am home for a bit...in between a staff meeting and a Footbridge meeting, so I wanted to make sure I had time to post something.

I can't wait to hear your Famous Pairs tomorrow--that game was fun. I am sorry that we didn't have time to share them today, but we will tomorrow so don't worry:-)

I thought that art was really fun--I am really excited to see you design your dream houses and bring them to life. Thank you so much to Mark Sloot for coming in and teaching us about Architecture 101:-)

The cards you made for the children at Saint Jude's were breathtaking. Looking at the powerful words that you wrote to children who are sick gave me goosebumps. I will post some pictures of the cards you made and all of you hard at work later tonight. I left my camera at school (as usual:-))--good thing I have to go back anyway.

This week we will have a week off of spelling. Since we didn't get to it today and we have a shortened week, it is not fair to have you learn your words in three days. Enjoy your break!

Homework: Read for 30, find a map of your South American country (include the capital and surrounding countries), finish your dream house brainstorm, work on your math.

Any suggestions for new brain boosters? Post them here.

Last but not least--thank you for always telling me when you are frustrated or upset with things at school. I hope you know how much I care about and love all of you. Remember I told you that we are like family, and I am so happy to know we have an environment where we can feel comfortable sharing things with each other. Have a great night!!!

Love, Mrs. E.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T09:19:00.002-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day to all my FPA Valentines:-)

2009-02-11T20:49:00.001-06:00

Short post for the night. Are you excited for our Valentine's Day party tomorrow?
Don't forget your Valentines. Book Trailers are due tomorrow. So are parts 2 and 5 of your business plans. Practice your spelling one more time. We will do a short review before our test tomorrow. If your fantasy books are at home, bring them to school to turn in. We will be starting a new genre soon.

2009-02-10T17:37:00.003-06:00

Hello all--

Enjoy your week without math homework:-) You have worked hard and deserve a break. However, if you have not finished your contract from last week, you need to have it in by Thursday or else it is a zero. You had the weekend plus four extra days for free:-)

I also wanted to compliment you on a really productive math review on fractions today. You were hard working, great participants and respectful of each other's different learning rates. I will take what you wrote to me in your exit slips and use that information to place you in groups for tomorrow's lessons--that way, your needs will be better met.

I hope that your book trailers are practically finished. Remember they are due on Thursday. Don't worry if you can't get your movie saved in the Book Trailer folder. Some of us were having problems saving it to the server this afternoon. I will do some research and update you tomorrow. I am here tomorrow before and after school for last minute help.

I hope your business plans are going well. Remember to turn in parts 2 and 5 on Thursday. Let me know what questions you have. We won't be working on them in class anymore this week.

Homework: Read for 30, Spanish DEPORTE due tomorrow, spelling chart due tomorrow, book trailers due Thursday, business plan part 2 and 5 due Thursday

Millions of Crayola Parachutes

2009-02-09T18:59:00.002-06:00

This made me stop and think. I wanted to share it with you.

"Maybe we should develop a Crayola bomb as our next secret weapon. A happiness weapon. A beauty bomb. And every time a crisis developed, we would launch one. It would explode high in the air - explode softly - and send thousands, millions, of little parachutes into the air. Floating down to earth - boxes of Crayolas. And we wouldn't go cheap, either - not little boxes of eight. Boxes of sixty-four, with the sharpener built right in. With silver and gold and copper, magenta and peach and lime, amber and umber and all the rest. And people would smile and get a little funny look on their faces and cover the world with their imagination." --Robert Fulghum

Magnificent Monday

2009-02-09T18:50:00.002-06:00

Today was a busy day! Thank you so much to Mr. Sanislo for coming to visit us today. The presentation that you gave us was so informative. I know that we enjoyed hearing about how you started up your business, and asking you questions about being self employed. Thank you for the folders and business cards.

Thank you to the Von Eschen family for coming in on Friday to speak about Fetcher's. We really enjoyed hearing about the software that you use to keep your business running. We also enjoyed looking through the business plan that you brought in for us.

We are so lucky to have such wonderful families who are willing to come in and share advice and wisdom with us.

Spelling lists should have come home with your student today. We will have a regular spelling test on Thursday since we don't have school on Friday. Spelling words in the nouns and adjectives chart are due on Wednesday--neatly written:-)

Parts 2 and 5 of your business plans are due on Thursday. We worked on them today and will spend an aditional 35-40 minutes on them tomorrow. I will look over your executive summaries tonight and provide some feedback.

Thank you to everyone for your super star behavior and participation today. You worked so hard all day, especially during math, social studies and listening to our guest speaker. I am so proud of you, and appreciate your hard work and positive attitudes more than you know.

If you want to decorate a shoebox instead of a bag for Valentine's Day, bring in your boxes tomorrow! We will be decorating everything tomorrow afternoon.

Have a great night.

Homework: No math tonight unless you didn't finish contracts from last week. Spelling charts due Wednesday, Parts 2 and 5 of your business plans due on Thursday, read for 30 minutes.

Happy Weekend!

2009-02-08T16:59:00.004-06:00

Hi Friends:

Remember that your executive summary for your business plan is due tomorrow. They must be typed. Also, if you want to have a Valentine's box instead of a bag, please bring in a shoe box by Tuesday so you have something to decorate. Otherwise, I will provide large brown shopping bags. You can bring in your Valentine's any day this week. Make sure you bring one for everyone. Our Valentine's party will be on Thursday from 2-3:30. We are so lucky to have such wonderful parents who are willing to plan our parties for us.

I hope you all had a great weekend and were able to enjoy the warm weather. I had a lot of fun spending the weekend at my husband's family cabin this weekend.

Ice skating on Friday was so much fun. The weather was perfect. I really enjoyed watching you all skate. I was so impressed with how well everyone skated...especially those of you who had never skated before. I hope we can plan another fun outdoor field trip in the near future.

Remember that your book trailers are due on Thursday--please put them in the "Book Trailer" folder under my name in the FPA Kids Work area.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend. See you tomorrow. Craig's dad is going to be giving us a presentation on his business!!!

Don't forget!

2009-02-05T20:32:00.004-06:00

Don't forget your ice skates and winter clothes tomorrow!!!!! We will have a blast. The weather is supposed to be beautiful. Enjoy your Thursday night.

Homework: Executive summary due Monday, survey graphs due tomorrow, practice spelling, read for 30 minutes, finish math.

Happy Wednesday!

2009-02-04T17:33:00.004-06:00

Happy Wednesday. Guess what? I hear warmer weather is on the way...just in time for ice skating on Friday. Remember to turn in your permission slips tomorrow morning so I have time to figure out how many additional skates I need to track down:-)

Also--Laura and Jo, tomorrow is your turn to work at the school store. Can you remember to be at school by 8:30 so you have time to put your things away and get the store set up?

REMINDER: Tomorrow we have the all school assembly right away at 9:10. Families are welcome to join us.

Thanks to everyone for making a conscious effort to remember to do your classroom job each day. When we all work together to get things done, it makes a big difference. Thank you for helping each other remember to do your jobs nicely when someone forgets.

Did you notice in the newsletter that Ms. Nikki wrote about coming to our room and talking to us about how she started Peace of Mind? How exciting for your learning to be recognized.

I hope you will all come to the dance on Friday night. It will be a lot of fun--I STILL REALLY want to get a video demonstration together of the Electric Slide. The decorations you made today look really nice. They are being laminated. On Friday, we can figure out how we want to display them.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes, finish math if you need to, practice spelling and basic math facts, survey charts/graphs due Friday

Happy Tuesday

2009-02-03T08:35:00.000-06:00

Good morning.

I am posting this from school. Last night the teachers had a first aid training class that ended at 9:00. As you can imagine, I was pretty tired when I went home. That's why I didn't post anything last night.

The last few days at school have been extremely busy. We have had so much going on. I know that the kids have been really excited about working on their book trailers. They are looking so cool. Mrs. Sloot and I are working on posting them on the FPA website for everyone to see.

This week new spelling words came home with your student. This week we are focusing on spelling words with double consonants in them, and how we know that stop+ing= stopping. Please remember to practice spelling words each night.

This week we will also be having a couple of guest speakers. As you know we are in the midst of our unit on economics. Ms. Nikki will be coming in today to talk about how to write a business proposal. I am sure she will also be giving us some advice on how to create and operate a successful business. On Friday, Marselienna's family will be coming in to talk with us. Marselienna's family owns and operates Fetcher's in Woodbury.

The big homework assignment for this week is for the students to compile the data from their market surveys into charts and graphs. One graph/chart is due today, and the rest are due on Friday. These charts will be included in their final business proposals.

Final book trailers are due on Thursday, February 12!
Reminder: We have an all school assembly on Thursday at 9:10.

I will send permission slips home in Wednesday folders for ice skating on Friday afternoon.

Happy Tuesday!

Schedules

2009-01-29T20:37:00.002-06:00

Here you go:

Flag Raising Schedule

School Store Schedule

Wonderful Wednesday

2009-01-28T20:14:00.003-06:00

Hi Friends,

I have received almost everyone's spelling homework via email. Don't forget to send it to me if you haven't already. Your book trailers are looking wonderful. Wasn't it fun to explore and play around with Movie Maker? I can't wait to have a huge sharing day where we can see everyone's.

Going up on the staff, how do I get from F to A to C to D? Steps, skips or both?

Homework tonight: Read for 30, work on math, Spelling Email assignment due tomorrow, TV Commercial log due Friday ( I can't wait to see what kinds of ads you noticed)

Plan out your week!

2009-01-27T20:28:00.003-06:00

Hi Everyone!

I hope you like our new room arrangement. It's good to change things up a little bit. We will be switching table partners soon. Remind me to have you make new name tags tomorrow. You can decorate them how you like.

As promised, here are the three links to the book trailers that Mrs. Sloot passed on to me. Remember that your storyboards for your book trailers are due tomorrow. We will spend a good deal of tomorrow afternoon working and exploring Movie Maker (the program that we will use to make our book projects). Please tell your parents, that this will be a project that will be completed at school.

Shift

Dragon Wishes

Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains

Plan out your week of homework accordingly--it's a short, but busy week.

Spanish packet due tomorrow
Advertising Symbols sheet due tomorrow (you may ask family members, or consult the Internet if you get stuck)
Storyboard due tomorrow
Television Advertising sheet due Friday
Email spelling assignment due Thursday

Read for 30 min
Work on math contract

I am here for help if you need it--before and after school!

Short and Sweet

2009-01-22T19:44:00.002-06:00

It is a busy night for me, so tonight's post will be short and sweet. I hope you had a fun time with Mrs. Chang this afternoon while I was at the dentist. Good news...no cavities!

Homework tonight:

Practice spelling words for your test tomorrow
Complete "Audience" sheet in the editorial packet--due tomorrow
Work on math contract
Finish "Possessions" sheet from social studies--due tomorrow (this was the sheet we were working on right before I needed to leave for the dentist)

Remember that African Pattern art projects are due Tuesday morning.

Tomorrow is Mix It Up-Session 2. We also have the Hamline Theater Group coming to do a special performance for us in the cafeteria from 10:00-11:00.

We will have a busy and exciting day.
See if your families know what makes money MONEY? :-)

Have a great night. See you bright and early tomorrow morning.

2009-01-21T19:49:00.001-06:00

School store is open tomorrow! 8:45-9:00 a.m. in the main lobby. If you still need a locker shelf, they are available for purchase ($7.00).

A productive day

2009-01-21T19:31:00.002-06:00

We had an extremely productive day today. Our biggest, most challenging task was analyzing an editorial from yesterday's STAR TRIBUNE called "On the Waves of a Poem." The editorial was written by a local writer who discussed the poem that was read at Barack Obama's Inauguration. We had a great conversation about the author's intended audience and purpose and whether or not we agreed with the author.

The students also worked in teams to story map their fantasy book. They needed to use specific evidence from the book along with their creative artistic skills to draw and label the main characters and setting.

Remember that Friday will be a busy day---from 10:00-11:00 we will be watching a presentation by the Hamline Theater Group, and then we will have Mix It Up in the afternoon. Class lists will be released tomorrow. I am excited for the new session to begin.

Homework tonight: Read for 30 minutes, spelling definitions due tomorrow, finish math, pattern Africa art due Tuesday, mark specific passages in your book club book to use for story mapping tomorrow

Inauguration Day 2009!

2009-01-20T20:48:00.002-06:00

Today was a day to remember. And we experienced it together.

Homework:

Read for 30 minutes

Spelling homework due Thursday: define the base word and then define the base word plus the prefix. For example: for the word dissimilar-- define the base word (similar) and define the base word plus prefix (dissimilar). For words 16-20 please define the word as is.

Find out if you have access to Power point at home