Hi All,
I hope you enjoyed the rainy weekend; I know I did! Fortunately, we followed up with a beautiful day here at school.
This week the kids are taking the MAP test. They are not thrilled to be doing another assessment, but are being good sports! When we aren't testing --which is actually most of the time-- the kids are continuing with their California reports, reading in their book club books, doing a hyperdoc about California's "Path to Statehood", learning about rocks, and refining their standard measurement knowledge and application skills. We are also enjoying Esperanza Rising as our final Read Aloud.
Today (Monday) kids brought home permission slips for the End-of-the-year Party. Please send in permission slips and money this week. We are also looking for volunteer driver/chaperons, and would love to hear from you if you are able to this. Just send me an email!
Finally, the district is doing a tech survey. I have attached the link below. I will be doing it with the kids in class this week, but they'd also like to hear from parents how you think we are doing with tech. This needs to be done this week.
https://questionnaire.bbyt.es/campaigns/55b05474bee927544dd73fb0
I enjoyed seeing so many of you last week at Open House. It's amazing how quickly the year goes by!
Have a great week,
Carroll Mayer
Monday, May 20, 2019
Tuesday, May 14, 2019
Hi All,
Thank you, thank you, for all the wonderful treats in honor of Teacher Appreciation and my birthday! It's been such a celebratory week, and I feel very grateful to be a part of a community that is able to support teachers so thoroughly. 💗
This week, we are returning to a "regular" schedule. The kids are reading historical fiction books as part of self-selected book clubs. The book clubs have set up weekly schedules, and your child is responsible for keeping up with the assignments so that he/she can participate thoughtfully in the Friday meetings. They also came up with various ways to respond to the literature (jots, question, character webs, etc.) We are also reading a lot of non-fiction history as kids work to research their final writing topics. They are all working on various subjects in California history-- from Native Americans to the Donner Party to the Golden Gate Bridge. Once again, their topics are self-selected.
In math, we are shifting to a measurement unit, and will also be reviewing a few of the geometry concepts addressed before state testing began. Kids will take one more short geometry quiz. In science we are having a lot of fun on a Mystery Science unit entitled "The Birth of Rocks" and began with learning about the "Ring of Fire" and 2 types of volcanoes.
This Thursday is Open House from 6-7. Please come any time within that window to check out the classroom and your child's work. On Friday, we are "Jogging for the Arts". Information and the sponsor form went home on Monday.
Next week, we have one more round of testing ( MAP) which is mandated by the district and gives more real time data than the state testing that is not reported until late summer. The MAP will not be nearly as time consuming as the CAASP, but still puts the kids on Chromebooks for a couple of hours at a time. Thanks for your support with all of this data collection! In that vein, there is also a survey posted on the school Homepage, and there is a parent version in which you can share your views. The kids will be taking the student version here at school, and I have already completed my teacher form.
I will also be sending home permission slips for our End-of-the-Year party next Monday. All of 4th Grade will be going to Green Valley Cinema to watch a movie! Each year, the entire 4th Grade class votes on a video (that we bring from our collection) to screen at the theater. Kids also enjoy popcorn and a drink. The theater charges us $7 per kid and $3 per adult chaperon, so we will be asking for contributions to the cost as well as drivers to ferry the kids to the theater. This all happens on the last Wednesday of the school year, from approximately 9:30-12:30. Save the date!
Have a great week,
Carroll Mayer
Thank you, thank you, for all the wonderful treats in honor of Teacher Appreciation and my birthday! It's been such a celebratory week, and I feel very grateful to be a part of a community that is able to support teachers so thoroughly. 💗
This week, we are returning to a "regular" schedule. The kids are reading historical fiction books as part of self-selected book clubs. The book clubs have set up weekly schedules, and your child is responsible for keeping up with the assignments so that he/she can participate thoughtfully in the Friday meetings. They also came up with various ways to respond to the literature (jots, question, character webs, etc.) We are also reading a lot of non-fiction history as kids work to research their final writing topics. They are all working on various subjects in California history-- from Native Americans to the Donner Party to the Golden Gate Bridge. Once again, their topics are self-selected.
In math, we are shifting to a measurement unit, and will also be reviewing a few of the geometry concepts addressed before state testing began. Kids will take one more short geometry quiz. In science we are having a lot of fun on a Mystery Science unit entitled "The Birth of Rocks" and began with learning about the "Ring of Fire" and 2 types of volcanoes.
This Thursday is Open House from 6-7. Please come any time within that window to check out the classroom and your child's work. On Friday, we are "Jogging for the Arts". Information and the sponsor form went home on Monday.
Next week, we have one more round of testing ( MAP) which is mandated by the district and gives more real time data than the state testing that is not reported until late summer. The MAP will not be nearly as time consuming as the CAASP, but still puts the kids on Chromebooks for a couple of hours at a time. Thanks for your support with all of this data collection! In that vein, there is also a survey posted on the school Homepage, and there is a parent version in which you can share your views. The kids will be taking the student version here at school, and I have already completed my teacher form.
I will also be sending home permission slips for our End-of-the-Year party next Monday. All of 4th Grade will be going to Green Valley Cinema to watch a movie! Each year, the entire 4th Grade class votes on a video (that we bring from our collection) to screen at the theater. Kids also enjoy popcorn and a drink. The theater charges us $7 per kid and $3 per adult chaperon, so we will be asking for contributions to the cost as well as drivers to ferry the kids to the theater. This all happens on the last Wednesday of the school year, from approximately 9:30-12:30. Save the date!
Have a great week,
Carroll Mayer
Tuesday, May 7, 2019
Dear Parents and Kids,
Thank you so much for all the flowers today! It was fun to see them come in, and combine them to make a beautiful arrangement! It’s the perfect metaphor for our classes each year, and our goal of nurturing each of the individuals, as well as the entire community, and forming a harmonious and complimentary whole.
Last week, our focus was on state testing, and most kids were able to complete the ELA portion of the assessment working approximately 2 hours a day. This week we will be working on math testing, and then there will be a period of “finishing up” for those kids that need a bit more time on one portion or another. When there are only a few kids with testing to complete, they will shift to another work space, under Mrs. Davis or Reading Specialist supervision, and the rest of the class will return to our regular work full time.
During non-testing portions of the day, we have been concluding our reading about various sustainable forms of energy (nuclear, solar, geothermal, wind, hydropower), and will wrap up with a Grand Conversation about these fossil fuel alternatives. Kids have begun research projects on various topics in CA. history, and are also working on a hyperdoc about California between the mission period and the Gold Rush. Finally, kids formed book clubs this week and have reading assignments based on their book. I am encouraging kids to bring their book club book to and from school, as there may not be a lot of in class reading time —especially this week. Most have about 30-40 pages to read by Friday, when their clubs meet again.
May is a busy month, so pace yourself and have a great week!
Carroll Mayer
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