The Star August 28, 2015 Map Family Picnic
It was fantastic to see so many of
you at the MAP Family Picnic! I enjoyed
getting to chat with you! Thank you for
coming.
Curriculum Night
Curriculum Night is coming up on
Tuesday, September 8th. Two exact
presentations will be done; the first from
6:30 – 7:00 and the second from 7:00 –
7:30.
Curriculum Night is a time for me
to share our curriculum with you, as well
as many other fun things that we will be
doing this year. I hope to see you there!
Classroom Behavior
In our classroom we use a clip-chart for
behavior monitoring. Each child has a clip
with his or her name on it. Each day they
begin on a green section to show they are
ready to learn. If they are doing an
outstanding job of listening and working,
they may “clip up” to blue or even purple. If
they need a reminder, they may be asked to
“clip down” to yellow. A privilege will be
taken away if they are asked to clip down to
orange and I would call you if anyone needed
to clip down to red. (I’m sure that won’t
happen! J)
The students fill out the color that they are
on at the end of a day on a weekly chart and
that chart will come home at the end of the
week. Charts will start coming home next
week. Please feel free to contact me with
any questions.
Reading
This week we also began to build
our reading stamina by practicing
“Read to Self”. “Read to Self” is
one of the literacy choices each
child will participate in on a
daily basis throughout the year
during Daily 5. We have discussed
how to pick a “good-fit spot” and a
“good-fit book” during “Read to
Self.”
The children are started to build
their stamina and muscle memory
during “Read to Self” this week.
The class is working towards their
reading goal of 20 minutes of
uninterrupted, independent reading.
To help the children remember how
to pick a “good-fit book,” the
class learned a song and dance for
the acronym “I PICK” that is used
when picking a “good-fit book.” As
we continue to practice choosing
“good-fit books,” please encourage
your child to use this strategy at
home to reinforce the concept.
1. I – I choose my books.
2. P – Purpose (Why do I want
to read the book?)
3. I – Interest (I like the
author or topic.)
4. C – Comprehend (I
understand the story.)
5. K – Know (I can read most
of the words on my own.)
(OVER)
The Star August 28, 2015 Upcoming Events
Social Studies
Monday – 9/7 – No School – Labor Day
Weekend
Tuesday 9/8 – Curriculum night
Friday 9/11 – Half Day! The students
DO need a morning snack but they WILL
NOT have lunch at school.
Wednesday 9/16 – Picture Day
Cynthia Rylant Author Study
We have started an author study
of Cynthia Rylant. This week, we read
the books The Relatives Came and When
I Was Young in the Mountains, These
stories have helped us get ideas for our
own summer stories. The story Tulip
Across America gave us a great start of
our social studies unit on communities and
being a good citizen. The book All I See
showed us how important it is to have an
inspirational art teacher like we have with
Mrs. Nolin. We will begin reading some of
Cynthia Rylant’s book series next week!
Writing
The students have written their rough draft
of their summer writing story. I am so proud
of how well they are doing! They have tons to
say and are great at adding extra details.
These stories will be hanging in the hallway
for curriculum night. You won’t want to miss
it!
Our first unit is about being a good
citizen. The students have had many
discussions about how good citizens can
help each other and help the community.
They played a game about being a good
citizen. They were even able to bring the
game home so hopefully they shared it
with you.
Weekly Reflection Sheet
Today each child filled out a reflection
sheet about the week. I am hoping to
continue to do this on Fridays in the
hopes that it will help guide your
conversations at home. This week the
children thought about things we did
and learned in class, ways they showed
PAWS-itive behavior, and set a personal
goal for next week.
Art/Fire Safety
In art on Friday each child started
creating his/her own fire safety poster. If
your child would like to participate in
this poster contest, more information
and details are available using the link
below.
http://www.countrysidefire.com/2015smoke-signals-fire-safety-burnprevention-poster-contest/
Have a great weekend!!!
Mrs. Star