(During the year, classroom newsletters, special events and project assignments will be posted here.)
Link to Collins Elementary School: http://www.collinselementary.com/
Dear Parents,
It was wonderful seeing so many parents and students at Open House this year. The schedule was different in past years, having Open House during the school day. How did you feel about that? Personally, I really enjoyed it - lots of energy, and there was still day light by the time we all got home! I’d like to do an informal survey: please email me and let me know if you liked the new Open House hours: right after school, versus evening hours (6-7 PM).
Now on with curriculum notes:
As students are to have roughly 40 minutes of homework a night, homework will consist of reading the current novel / chapter book up to the assigned chapter for that evening. If there is still time left, cozy up with a favorite book. Remember as you read make connections, talk about it, discuss it - how does it make you feel? Does it make you angry, confused, happy, curious? Why?
Notes on choosing a book for silent reading: Just as in school for Reading Zone, you have the right to abandon a book if it isn’t “just right”. Understanding why a book isn’t just right is important - too hard, too easy, boring? Remember your “Some Day” lists from your Reading Zone Journals. Want a challenge? Choose an expository (informational) book on a topic you know nothing about - that should be interesting!
Language Arts: Writing, Reading Comprehension, Spelling, Vocabulary, Grammar, Sentence Structure:
April is Poetry Month - part the the students’ writing activities is their Long Term Never-Ending Poetry Projects. Other writing activities will be tied in with reading comprehension - read below...
We have started a new novel By The Great Horn Spoon!. Students are assigned one to two chapters to read each night, and come prepared to work on short essay comprehension questions and activities the following day.
Student also have their “Gold Rush Mining Techniques Wheel”. Students should be working on memorizing the different techniques. Each memorization is worth five gold nuggets!
Students will not have spelling homework. Rather the “240” packets will be done in class along with the weekly “convention” packets. (Writing conventions are grammar, sentence structure, punctuation and vocabulary.)
Math:
Because STAR testing is right around the corner we’ve gone through the rest of the chapters “zippity quickie” just to be sure at least all standards and topics in the book have been introduced and touched. Once STAR testing begins, we’ll back track and go in depth with each chapter.
In a few weeks students will be assigned a culminating math project that asks students to use a bit of knowledge from each chapter they have studied. They will be making a map of a gold rush town on a coordinate plane, finding areas and perimeters of buildings, volume of water bodies, and making directions to find the lost gold mine by plotting coordinates. It is a totally in class assignment, lots of work, but in the end it’s really fun to let students “play” with each others “Lost Gold Mine Map!”
Science:
Students have begun to dive into the Electricity and Magnetism science kit. We understand why we can have “magnet races”, seen the invisible magnetic lines of force, lit light bulbs, and will soon be experimenting with both light bulbs and batteries in series and parallel. Students will also make an electromagnet with a switch - all by hand!
Social Studies:
We have begun the Gold Rush - I’m sure you’ve heard all about the gold nuggets by now! In June students will be putting on the musical “Gold Dust or Bust”, all about the gold rush. We will have two performances, and of course parents are invited.
Field Trips:
The final trip of the year will be our 4th grade class picnic. Watch for more details in May.
As always, if you have any concerns, comments or questions, please feel free to contact me:
phone: (408) 252-6002 ext. 222 or email bednar_maria@cupertino.k12.ca.us.
