Friday, March 20, 2009

Note about Fieldwork

Dear Parents of our fabulous 4th graders,

Our first fieldwork to the Yamhill Challenge Course went well. I’ll be posting photos on our website soon. Thanks to Sam, Marian, Linda and Becca, for driving and chaperoning. Also, appreciation to Ruth Ellen for being so instrumental in getting things organized for it.

Reminder that when we get back from spring break, on Tuesday, we are going to Vancouver to see the Trading Company, and to go on a hike that simulates an experience that the Corps of Discovery had. Parents that are interested in attending need to give Jenn, the office manager, a copy of their proof of insurance and a current background check ASAP.

Coming up rather quickly also, is our first overnight trip to Fort Clatsop at the beginning of April. I’ll be sending details home after spring break. I just wanted to “put a bug in your ear” that we really need parent involvement and forward thinking about chaperones and the paperwork that needs to be turned in beforehand.

If you’re interested in going on fieldwork this year, stopping in the office and talking to Jenn would be an awesome plan, alleviating the need for extraneous phone calls and scrambling at the last minute.

I look forward to your support. Hope your spring break is restful, fun, and warm!

Love,
Renée

Monday, March 16, 2009

Week of March 16-20

Good morning,

As we enter into the week before spring break, I wanted to ask for your support. Many of you have expressed interest in the fieldwork yet haven't volunteered to chaperone for it. We can't do it without you! :) Our first trip is this Thursday. Please see the office ASAP to ensure that all the appropriate paperwork is filed. Thanks. Permission slips will be given out today and are due by tomorrow.

Mandatory Homework:
  • Reading: Each student should be reading at least 20 minutes a night.
  • Math: Students should be working on their multiplication facts for 1o minutes per night.

Optional Homework:
  • Spelling #24
  • March Math problems
  • Big Word letters e i o o h h n p s s s t t y
(Big Word instructions: Use letter tiles (Scrabble/Upwords/Boggle) or make letter cards with scrap paper cut into squares. Mix the tiles around to find as many words as you can. Organizers are in the classroom).

Happy St. Patty's Day. Be well.

Renee

Monday, March 2, 2009

March 2th- March 6th

Whew! SO glad to have our writing assessments out of the way. Many of you have asked when students will be receiving notification back about them. The tests are in the possession of the Hillsboro School District, at this point. Teachers from around the area will be grading the samples during spring break, using a rubric with the Analytic Traits. (If you have any questions about these, the Six Plus One Writing Traits, please ask your child; If you haven't seen the flyers that have been sent home, chances are they're in your kiddo's backpack!) :) Sometime in April you will be getting their scores. I'll keep you posted.

Speaking of keeping you posted.... re: Fieldwork. As you may have heard on the news tonight, the End of the Trail Oregon Interpretative Center in Oregon City has been shut down. Our class was scheduled for a March 31st trip to the site. Disappointingly enough, I received word about the economic hardship that they were facing on Friday. Our trip was cancelled as their operations have been shut down. They will keep us in the loop about potentially resuming services. For now, however, it's a "no go."

On the calendar, however, I'd like you to keep the following dates open.

*March 7th at 8:00am- There will be a group of people meeting at the school to put our playground together. The funds were released at the last board meeting to make our playground a reality. I'd love to see several 4th grade families (Children are welcome!) supporting these efforts as I know our students will greatly benefit from the equipment.

*March 19th from 7:30am-4:30pm- Our first venture outside the walls of City View together as a crew will be to work together on a Challenge Course at Camp Yamhill. Though many of the kids have attended in years past, this Initiatives Course is exactly what our class needs to help us build a deeper sense of community and get some of our "big energy" out! More details will come in the next week or so: Please consider chaperoning (driving/taking part in the festivities, should you so desire). We expect it to be a wonderful time.

*March 31st- Pending approval, our class will be taking a trip to Fort Vancouver, in WA, to visit the fort, experience life at the Hudson Bay Trading Company, as well as visit the Confluence Project's Vancouver Land Bridge. We will take a hike and will see the Sacajawea statue that overlooks the Columbia River.

*March 30th-April 3rd- Pending approval, we will obtain two traveling trunks from the Oregon Historical Society entitled, "The Oregon Trail" and "Lewis and Clark." These trunks include documents, objects, and artifacts that will help us gain a "hands-on" awareness of the Corps of Discovery's experience. More information to follow.

*April 3rd from 7-9pm- Another gathering at Ms. Renée's house in NE Portland. (You think it's a long drive? Do it twice a day!) ;) Seriously though, with a new crew member (Austin) and his family among us, I thought it be a great opportunity to meet/greet/chill with one another socially. I thought a potluck would be appropriate. Do I have any volunteers to organize who brings what? Let me know. Thanks.

*April 7-8- Pending approval, our class will go to Fort Clatsop for an overnight. More details to follow.

*April 17th- Pending approval, our class will do fieldwork at the Forestry Center and Arboretum. More details to come.

*April 27th- I'd like for our class to do a Service Project this day, to be determined. (Any/all ideas for this will be considered... Let me know!)


Ruth Ellen will be contacting you about the details about chaperoning for our Fieldwork. Thanks for considering giving in this way to our crew. We appreciate you!!

Warmly,
Renée

Sunday, February 8, 2009

February 9-13

Dear Families of City View 4th graders,

It's been awhile since I've written. Boy, how I try! :) Here are some things going on in our class:

This week we're finishing up our American Revolution study in Expedition. Final projects are due on Friday, with students sharing their "findings" with the class that day. I'm curious to see what has "struck their fancy," and how they intend to demonstrate their learning with us.

We're working diligently on our writing this month. This Friday all "The Person I'd Like You to Meet" essays are due. Some of you might be seeing these come home this week as a couple of students have a different understanding than I about what a "final" or "published" draft looks like. I'll be certain to send a rubric along, delineating my expectations, and would appreciate any and all support that you can give to get these completed.

We welcomed a new student, Austin, to our crew last Tuesday. I'm in the process of organizing another "Family Social" so that we are better able to connect with one another as well as to welcome he and his family into our "fold." Be on the look-out for details on this.

Many of you have expressed interest in our class participating in Field-work this spring. I, too, am eager to make that a reality. If anyone has time to spare to help bring that to fruition, please let me know. I work diligently and find that time hasn't been "on my side" as much as I would like this year! (i.e. I'm overwhelmed and could use some help).

With Valentine's Day being on Saturday, and students considering purchasing or making notes or cards for one another, I'd like to request that they be all-inclusive. I will see to it that a class list comes your way and hope that you're able to make decisions as a family that will allow all children in the class to feel special and celebrated.

Big thanks and appreciation to Kristi, Tina, Becca, Donna, and Marian for their classroom support. I am so grateful for your presence. As many of you know, with 16 boys in the class, the energy can be pretty "big." These women have devoted so much time in helping to foster a peaceful learning community. If any other moms or dads wish to help support our crew in that way, (or others!) let me know.



Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Check in for January 12-16

Happy New Year everyone!

I wanted to write to keep you abreast about what's going on in the fabulous fourth graders' classroom.

We've been focusing on double digit multiplication recently in Math. I'm noticing that several of the students really struggle with mastering basic facts. Could you be sure to practice 10 minutes a night with them? In addition to reading for 20 minutes, I think daily fact practice would really be of benefit. Students received an article today entitled, "Math Tricks to Learn the Facts." Check it out.

In Literacy Workshop we've worked hard (some would say, "tediously") with our writing. Creating "juicy" ways to describe things as well as being alert to imagery has been of importance. We finished up our Holiday Personal Narratives and will be creating another piece entitled, "The Person I'd Like You to Meet." As part of the learning experience they'll be analyzing my 4th grade essay introducing my foster father. I look forward to it.

Expedition has been pretty fast paced as of late. We're soon to reach the Westward Expansion for all you Lewis and Clark lovers. At this point we're delving into Colonial American life and the American Revolution. I'll be sending home January's home project by the end of the week. Be on the lookout for that. Hopefully you've enjoyed the pottery and cornbread that we made as a class. i'm greatly anticipating our fieldwork outside of City View and will share more details on that soon as well.

A few reminders for our class are as follows: Lumberjax game forms are due no later than THIS FRIDAY! Spelling #15 homework and test are also scheduled for Friday.

Thanks for your patience and support.

Warmly,
Renee

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Project for the whole class- Due Friday, December 19th

Independent Research Paper:

Learn more about a person who was important during the colonial period of American history. Select one of the people listed below for a two to four page report. Use the Internet and other reference sources. Add illustrations.
  • Abigail Adams
  • Ann Austin
  • John Billington
  • William Bradford
  • Anne Bradstreet
  • Margaret Brent
  • George Calvert
  • Rev. John Elliot
  • Mary Fisher
  • Benjamin Franklin
  • Patrick Henry
  • Thomas Hooker
  • John Hull
  • Anne Hutchinson
  • Margaret Jones
  • Captain William Kidd
  • Cotton Mather
  • Increase Mather
  • Peter Minuit
  • James Ogelthorpe
  • William Penn
  • Pocahontas
  • Chief Powhatan
  • Sir Walter Raleigh
  • Paul Revere
  • John Rolfe
  • Betsy Ross
  • Captain John Smith
  • Squanto
  • Myles Standish
  • Peter Stuyvesant
  • Roger Williams
  • Samuel Winslow
  • John Winthrop

Weekly homework for 12/8-12/12

Optional homework:

1. BIG WORD letters: a e o o u b c f l m n r t
2. Spelling #13
3. Daily Language Practice #13

Homework will be sent home on Monday to be returned no later than Friday the 12th.

Mandatory homework:

1. 20 minutes of reading each night
2. 10 minutes of multiplication fact practice each night