Donations Needed- Anti-Bacterial Wipes

If any of you have extra anti-bacterial wipes (I know Costco has them as well as Bi-Mart and some other local stores), we are in need of more. We go through them quite a bit to try and keep away the germs. If you find you have extra or can donate that would be wonderful! Thanks!

No School Tomorrow!

Just a reminder, tomorrow is a teacher work day... No School for Students! I look forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday!

Happy Spring Break Everyone!!!

Have a safe and relaxing Spring Break! I will see students on Tuesday, March 31st.

A special Thanks!

Today your students will likely be bringing home a black USB bracelet. Bryce in our class and his mom were able to get a bunch of USB bracelets donated. PBS' kids website http://pbskids.org/go/ has more information (and games). We will explore our new USB Bracelets this afternoon so kids should get a better idea how to use them. Here are the directions for using the USB drive (these will also be sent home).

"1. Insert the USB drive into your computer's USB port (Mac or PC)

2. A window will pop up with 2 folders labeled "mac" and "pc"- double click on the folder that corresponds with your computer type.

3. Double click on the Adoble Flash Player icon titled "click me"

4. A window will pop up prompting you to first "get password" and then "go to the secret vault".

5. Have fun exploring all the fantastic PBS kids Go! creative assets, including computer wallpapers, ringtones, podcasts and videos featuring our most popular Go! Characters!

Top 5 Things to do:

1. Watch what you want, when you want.
2. Check out the amazing Huggy Dance game!
3.Play Arthur's video detective game to see how much you can remember!
4. Watcg clips and music videos with the Electric Company.
5. Vote on your favorite clips and games.

Questions: 856-346-3456
pbskidsgo@buzzmg.com"

Have fun exploring and thanks again to Bryce and his mom! =)

Update

Make sure to turn in swimming permission forms as soon as possible. Also, book orders are due on Friday!!!

Swimming Permission Slips

I sent home swimming permission slips a few weeks ago. If you have not yet turned in the permission slip and/or the 8$ please do so as soon as possible. Swimming is part of our PE program, and is a great opportunity for our class. If you are unable to pay the fee please let me know either via email or phone. There are scholarships available.

Also, if students cannot participate for some reason then they must be picked up by a family member and then returned to school. We don't have supervision for students who do not participate. We encourage all students to participate... They do a great job in making sure to place students appropriately by swimming level in a fun and safe way.

Ms. R's Reading Group Spelling

For the week of 3/16

quiet
quite
angel
angle
already
all ready
desert
dessert
weather
whether
pitcher
picture
loose
lose
aisle
isle
dairy
diary

Thank YOU!

There was 100% turn-out for our Spring conferences!!! Thank you for coming.... It was great to meet with you and discuss the growth that has taken place over the past two trimesters. =)

Conference Schedule

Here is a copy of my conference schedule for the next couple of days. Please take a moment to double check the schedule. I try to keep conferences to about 15 minutes to allow for travel time for families with other MES siblings. If I see our conference is going over I may ask to make an appointment to discuss any lingering issues. Thanks.

*Click on the date of your assigned conference to get a clearer view of times... =)

What We've Been Up To!

Here is a quick by-subject update to what we have been doing in class. I am sure we will discuss some of this a bit at conferences but wanted to keep you all up to date!

Math- Everyday we work on Math in Minutes... It's each students' warm up... It covers a variety of areas in math, from reading graphs to fractions. We correct it together and students SHOULD BE =) taking home their corrected versions. It continues to get more difficult and we are just about to switch to the next highest level. Way to go class! In Math Trailblazers we are currently working on order of operations... (Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction or how I recall from school "Please excuse my dear Aunt Sally" (to remember the order :)) We are zooming along!

Reading Group- My reading group and I are continuing to read Charlie and the Chocolate factory. We are really focusing on the vocabulary (its pretty difficult) and understanding the text (comprehension). Each week students get spelling words to take home and study as well as a class packet to work on that is due each Friday. Each reading group does something differently at MES. Be sure to ask your 4th grader what they are currently reading/working on in their groups!

Writing- We just survived the State writing test. Boy, our class sure worked hard! Students have been excited to take edited pieces of writing and are in the timely process of word processing their works. We luckily have an additional classroom computer so two students can type at once! How exciting!

Science- In Science,we just finished up our unit on Life Science. Students did a fantastic job and learned a lot. We completed a KWL chart (we talked about what we know, want to know and then finally learned about Life Science). Our chart ended up to be completely full with great things students learned. Once we return from break students will rotate to other 4th grade classrooms to learn about Earth Science (with Mr. Bledsoe) and then Electricity and Magnets (with Ms. A). Here is a picture of a bulletin board we made for science....


Social Studies- In Social Studies we are starting a unit on The Northeast. We previewed the unit finding interesting facts. Did you know that in Hershey, Pennsylvania that all the street lamps are shaped like Hershey kisses???? =) We will continue working and learning about the Northeast. We finished up a unit a month or so ago and we talked about all the cultures that have made contributions to America... Students worked very hard on their contribution posters! See below...


Lion's Quest/Health- We have been discussing positive choices... As students grow older they are having to make more and more difficult decisions. We have just started our unit and will have some tools to help us problem solve various situations.

We have been busy to say the least! I continue to enjoy spending time with your children. The year is just flying by! Anyway, I look forward to seeing you all at conferences. Have a great week!

Valentines Day Party Pictures

Since this whole blog thing has been a fairly new endeavor... Here are some pictures taken from our Valentine's Day Party on February 13th! Enjoy!

Conferences This Week!

I think I have mostly every family confirmed for conference time. Please make sure and call or email me if there are any changes or last minute cancellations. Conferences (especially Wednesday) are jam-packed so its very hard to reschedule but I will do the best I can.

During spring conferences we will discuss goals, testing, students work on their multiplication facts, behavior and a few other things. If you have any questions feel free to ask me! Students are well on their way to 5th grade and I am happy to help as best I can! I look forward to meeting with you on Wednesday and Thursday. Remember, no school on Friday! :)

Read- In Tomorrow!

I know its late notice but I sent slips home today about a Read-In tomorrow. Students may bring books, blankets, pillows and take time to read with friends. All of their stuff must fit in a small bag or backpack! It should be a great day! If you have any questions please email me!!!

Conference Slips

Please return the yellow conference slips as soon as possible. I have received a handful of them but would like to confirm you got the slip regarding your conference time. If it doesn't work, I have a few options to change but would like to do so as soon as possible. Thanks.

*P.S. Your child will receive a jolly rancher upon return of their conference slip! :)

Swimming Lessons

Today students will be taking home a swimming lesson permission slip. We will be heading to the Molalla Aquatic Center in May, more details to come... Please make sure to sign the slip and return it with the 8$ student fee, as soon as possible.

Also, we are taking donations for students who cannot afford the student fee (if you can). If your family is in need and cannot pay the fee please let Ms. R or the office know.

BTW- Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss... Today is Read Across America Day.. We will have our good citizens assembly and then students will go all over MES to hear guest teachers read. Should be a great day! Happy Monday!