October 4th Newsletter

It was so much fun to see so many parents at curriculum night! If you were unable to attend, I have plenty of extra handouts. Send me an email and I will be happy to send the handouts home with your child. THANKS go to JoAnn and Emily for their generous snack donations! Also THANKS to Liz Phelps for her help in the classroom with our Rock Stories! On another note, today you should find a homework report attached to this letter. Please review this with your child. Congratulations are in order because we have over half the class earning 90% or better in September! Have a great week!

LIBRARY HELPER FOUND!

A GREAT BIG THANK YOU to Holly Matus for volunteering to help us check out books every Thursday! We are going to have a great library year with Holly’s Help!

PROJECT BLOCK BEGINS!

Project classes started Monday! This rotation we have the following classes:

*Read All About It, school newspaper project with Ms. D.

*Time Travel with Mrs. McLeod & Susan

*Something to Talk About with Mr. Evans

*Woodshed with Mr. Adee

*Writing: October is Expository Writing Month! Today your student will be bringing home details about our first homework research project. This report/creative project will be due Nov. 1, 2011. We also kick off our QR code research in class this week!

*Reading: This week all students are completing the first story in our Treasures Anthology and we will begin three novels integrating the Social Studies topic of Native American Culture with our Literature studies.

*Spelling: Please help your student choose the appropriate spelling list for his/her level. Lists are on the back of this letter. Tests will be given on Wednesday afternoons. Students can practice their words online at http://www.spellingcity.com. Click “Find a List” and search for teacher name “Donna DuBois”.

CONFERENCE TIME IS FAST APPROACHING!

I look forward to conferences every year! The first step is retuning your pink slip. If I don’t have one from your family, a second copy is attached. Please return it as soon as possible! Thanks!!!

Homework Highlights:

All homework is due Tuesday

October 11th, 2011

**All Incomplete Class Work**

***Writing Homework***

Expository Writing Focus ~ Write about an animal you are familiar with. 4^th graders minimum 2 paragraph, 5^th graders minimum 3 paragraphs

***Reading Log***

Read at least 20 minutes 5 nights this week.

***Spelling Test Wed.***

***Choose a Native American Tribe/Nation to Research***

Important Dates:

October 7^th No School

October 14^th No School

November 1 Native Project