New Job: Blog on Hold

I have a new position at Syracuse Elementary!  I am the new Instructional Coach for the school and will hold this position for the next two years.  So, for those of you who have been wondering where Miss C is, I am still at the school.  I love teaching and am excited to be in classrooms, working with teachers, sharing the passion that I have for this profession.  Thanks for checking in on me!!!

Newsletter: May 28

We are winding down. There are 5 more days of school! I wanted to fill you in on end-of-year things that are happening in our room and school. 

 Field Day 

Was a HUGE success! Special thanks to our volunteers who helped it run smoothly. The kids did excellent! We will have our awards next week. Students who placed in the top 3 of their event will receive ribbons. 

Spring Cleaning 

Next Monday, June 2, we will be cleaning! We will clean out desks and lockers. Please make sure your student brings an extra bag (or two) to haul things home. We will have a few things left to send home on the last day, but the majority will be taken care of on Monday.

 Books and T-shirts 

Vineyard Community Church is collecting children’s books and gently used child-size t-shirts (adult smalls as well) for summer community outreach projects. If you have things you would like to donate you can send it to school with your student or drop it off at Vineyard (located next to WMS).

Newsletter: May 16

We have 13 days of school left! I cannot believe how time has flown by. The kids are doing great as we finish up some things. We are currently working on projects for the Solar System or Human Body in Science, making demonstration videos for positive behavior in our school, and practicing our states, capitals, and abbreviations for Social Studies! 

RELAY FOR LIFE! 

We had a GREAT walk-a-thon today! I am proud of the kids and their efforts to help fight cancer! Last I heard we were close to raising $10,000 as a school!!!! FANTASTIC!!! 

Some highlights for our class: 

Noelle, Hannah, Miss C logged 2 miles each 

Niles ran 7.2 miles 

Lilly walked 1 mile backward 

Everyone was moving the whole time! 

Field Day 

Due to the threat of rain, we have postponed Field Day. We will let you know on Monday the rescheduled date! (Most likely May 27 from 8-12). 

 If you would like to help, let me know!

Newsletter: April 25

27 days to go! That seems like a whole lot and not very much time all at once. We have been busy...prepping for Middle School, working on projects, preparing for ISTEP+, enjoying our time together. There is a lot that happens at the end of the school year. Please keep up with your student’s agenda and papers that come home. 

 ISTEP+ testing 

Our test days are April 29, May 1, and May 2 in the mornings. Please do your best to make sure your student is here those days. Good rest and a healthy breakfast can make a world of difference. 

 Lock Down Drill 

Yesterday, we had a Lock Down drill (practice) at school. We were presented with a scenario and then discussed what we as a class would do to ensure our safety. The kids had great questions and discussion. I assured them that, in the event of a real lock down, I would do everything I could to keep them safe. This may be something you want to follow up with at home. 

Accelerated Reader 

We are in the last 6 weeks! Keep reading! 

 STATE FAIR 

We will showcase student work on May 1 at 1:30pm. There will be an invitation for you to come a see what your student has been working on. You can also check out the rest of the 5th graders' work. 

 Field Trips 

Dates are listed. Permission slips will come home next week. All slips and money must be turned in by May 8. If you would like to chaperon, please let me know. We also need volunteers to help with Field Day from 8:30-12:00 on May 16! Let me know if you are interested!

We made a music video!

We have been working with our Warrior Buddies to make a music video.  To view it, click on the link: 

Why Does the Sun Shine?

Newsletter: March 28

These full weeks of school have been wonderful! We are getting lots of work done and enjoying NORMAL again! We have started our State Projects...read more below. 

School Carnival!!! 

Thanks to all who volunteered, donated, and attended the carnival. It was a HUGE success and lots of fun was had by all. 

State Projects 

We are working on our HUGE state projects. Each student has been assigned one of the 50 states. They will be working on several different research projects: capital city, travel brochures, important people, and state reports. All of the work will be on display at our 5th Grade State Fair on April 24th. More information will come regarding times. All work will get done at school as long as students utilize their time well. 

BeAcH DaY! 

Friday, April 4, is Beach Day at school. This is our way to celebrate and kick off Spring Break. Students can dress for the summer weather (that we will hopefully have someday)! Beach towels, sunglasses, flip flops...Let’s celebrate! We will have the school-wide Beach Party and Limbo contest at 2pm in the gym.

Newsletter: February 28

We have reached the end of the second trimester. Report cards will be sent home on Friday, March 7. Along with report cards, you will receive your student’s AR Report for the trimester and a ClassDojo behavior report. If you have any questions about grades, AR, or behavior, I would be happy to meet with you! 

School Carnival 

The annual School Carnival will be held March 21 at Syracuse Elementary. 

5-7pm Dolphin Diner open 

5-7pm Raffle and Silent Auction 

5:15-7:30pm Games 

Room parents will contact volunteers. 

Silent Auction Basket 

Our class will be partnering with Mr. Stewart’s class to put together a basket for the silent auction. Our theme is Wawasee/Sports. We are asking for donations of sports equipment, Wawasee wear, and athletic bags. If you would like to donate, please send things with your student by March 14! 

ISTEP+ Testing 

We will be taking the Applied Skills portion of the ISTEP+ test March 10-14. Testing will take place each morning. If your son or daughter needs to have any appointments, please try to avoid these mornings. This prevents them from having to take any make-up tests and miss class time. Also remember to make sure your student gets a good night of sleep and eats a healthy breakfast! 

Trimester 3 

We are entering the final trimester of the year! These next 12 weeks will fly by! Let’s finish out the school year strong: making goals, working hard, and prepping for Middle School!

Newsletter: February 21

This may go down as the craziest winter of all time! I apologize for not keeping up on newsletters better. Despite all of the crazy schedules and happenings in our room, the kids have been AMAZING!!! Our trimester ends Friday, February 28. All work must be turned in on that date to receive credit. 

We have a new student! 

Brian Kurdimanov has recently moved here from Cheboksary, Russia! He has been in the US for a little over 2 weeks. We are SUPER lucky to have him in our class. Language has presented a bit of a barrier, but we are all adjusting to the use of google translate and other means of communication. I am sure you have heard much about him! It has been a great first 3 days for all of us. The class has welcomed him and not let language be a problem. 

Visitor 

We had a guest student yesterday, Hayden Anderson. He is a homeschool student who took a field trip to our class yesterday. The purpose was for him to get perspective on what public school is like. Again, the class welcomed him with open arms. 

 Both of these experiences have been AWESOME! We are blessed to have had the opportunities! 

Fighting Sickness 

I know that sickness is moving through the school in full force. Good sleep, plenty of water, and nutritious meals are the best ways to combat! If your student is out sick, please help him/her to get work made up in a timely manner. I always send make-up work home in an orange folder. 

Science Fair 

The Science Fair will be on Feb. 26. Science Central will be here from 5:30-6:30 in the gym for some family fun activities! Come and see what’s happening!

Newletter: January 31

Winter is definitely making its mark this year. The kids have done a FABULOUS job of “going with the flow” as we have navigated many delays and closings. They have all been reminded to be sure to have an AR book with them at all times...many will benefit from reading on those days that school is delayed or closed. Hang in there...warmer weather will be here eventually :) 

Valentine’s Day Party 
We will have our class Valentine’s Day party on February 14. Students ARE NOT required to bring in valentines. However, if they bring them, they bring them for the entire class. If you would like to send in a treat that day, just sent it with your student! Your student has a class list and names of specials teachers. We have 23 students in our class. 

Help a teacher out... 
Needless to say, the weather is crazy this winter...I LOVE IT! It does make for crazy days at school. You can help by making sure that students are getting work done (lots of late work recently), reading for AR on delay/cancellation days, and keeping track of school stuff. 

Snow Make-Up Days 
Due to the unusually hard winter and school closings, Wawasee Schools will be in session on the following dates: 

 February 3rd for the September 30th closing 

 February 24th for the January 8th closing 

 March 24th for the January 23rd closing

 May 30th for the January 28th closing 

Monday, February 24th was originally scheduled as a Teacher Work Day. The Teacher Work Day is now cancelled and classes will be in session. The last day of the second trimester will be February 28. The first day of the third trimester will be March 3rd.

Newsletter: January 17

Our first full week was a SUCCESS! We hit the road running Monday. We are in the second half of the school year: expectations are higher, pace is a bit faster, and work load has increased a bit. The kids did really well! We have many new things happening in 5th grade for the second half of the school year. Read on to find out what’s going on! 

Success Time 

This is new to 5th grade. We have had an allotted Tier 2 intervention time all year. However it has recently been restructured and now called Success Time. During this 30 minute time period, the 5th grade is working on Language Arts skills. Each student takes a pre-test and is then placed according to their results. Check with you student to see what they are doing during this time. Many of them go to Mr. Brady or Mr. Stewart for Success Time. Groups will be flexible, changing every 2 weeks (approximately). 

NWEA Testing 

We will finish testing next week. Our final test is scheduled for January 21. We will be testing in the morning. Please do your best to make sure your student is here! 

Conferences 

If you were unable to make it to conferences last night, your student will be doing their conference with you over the weekend! 

Snow Make-Up days! 

We will have school on January 27 and February 3 to make up for missed days (days missed were September fog day and January 8). The IDOE has granted a waiver for January 6 and 7, so we do not have to make those up. 

Preparation for Middle School 

It is the time of year when we make a shift in our classroom. Prep for middle school becomes a focus. Expectations are higher, work gets a little harder, and consequences are handed out quicker. I really begin to push the students to be more self-accountable for work, grades, and goals. Any help from home is GREATLY appreciated. This will help make a smooth transition for next school year!

Newletter: January 10

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! This week was a nice, easy start back after a wonderful Christmas Break and the Blizzard of 2014! I hope you all had a wonderful, extended time together. We are jumping in full-swing on Monday. We have gone over rules and procedures and enjoyed catching up with one another this week. I sure did miss these kids!!! 

Student Led Conferences 

January 16, 4:00-7:00 The 4th and 5th grades will be doing student-led conferences again. If you are not seeing the "regular" conference sheet come home, that is why. A note came home with your student TODAY! I hope to see you all there! If you know that you will want to meet one-on-one with me, we can schedule a time when you come in. 

NWEA Testing 

We will begin testing next week. Our testing dates are: January 15, 17, and 21. We will be testing in the mornings one those dates. Please do your best to make sure your student is here! 

MIDTERMS 

Midterm grades will be available at your student's conference. Remember, this is just the half-way point of the trimester. 

Snow Make-Up days! 

We will have school on January 27 and February 3 to make up for missed days (days missed were September fog day and January 8). The IDOE has granted a waiver for January 6 and 7, so we do not have to make those up. 

Preparation for Middle School 

It is the time of year when we make a shift in our classroom. Prep for middle school becomes a focus. Expectations are higher, work gets a little harder, and consequences are handed out quicker. I really begin to push the students to be more self-accountable for work, grades, and goals. Any help from home is GREATLY appreciated. This will help make a smooth transition for next school year!