Upcoming Events
January 18 All School Meeting and Spirit Day (Bowties and suspenders)
January 21 No School
January 30 Out & About to Top Golf 9am-11am
​Jan 31-Feb 1 No School

Homework Due by Friday, January 18th
1. Read for at least 20 minutes every night.
2. Complete 20 minutes of typing practice. 
3. Complete at least 30 minutes of math practice (click here for DreamBox).
4. Optional - Compete Opinion Paragraph of the Week 
Prompt: Should students be allowed to use calculators in school when doing math? Support your opinion. 

Upcoming Out and Abouts 
This week, we will have a visit from the creators of Twin Pine Country Club - a free neighborhood mini golf course in Portland. Next week, we will have a visit from SCRAP - a creative reuse store in Portland. They will share some ideas for working with recycled materials and lead a craft project to help us get ready for building our mini golf course! On January 30th, we will have our Out & About in the morning to Top Golf in Hillsboro.

Volunteer Opportunities
Out & About Chaperones - Needed 1/30 for Top Golf, and 2/6 and 2/13 for in class mini golf building
Library Chaperones - Sign ups now posted through the end of the year!
Community Breakfast - Fruit and cereal/bagels needed for Friday breakfast in February

Weekly Review
Last week, Level 2 students attended a theatrical presentation by Metro called, “I JUST DON’T BUY THAT!” This show reminded students about how the choices they make when shopping or disposing of unwanted items impacts the environment. The assembly contained three key concepts:

• Natural resources are used to make the things we need or want but are limited.
• There are many things each of us can do to reduce our impact on the earth.
• Advertising and peer pressure affect buying habits.

What can Plovers do at home?
THINK BEFORE YOU BUY! Try to buy only what you need, in a way that will keep your earth footprint small. Next time you go shopping, ask yourself these questions before you buy:

• Do I need it? How often will I use it?
• Is it durable? How long will it last?
• Is there another way to get the same item that will use fewer resources or create less waste?
• Can I borrow it from a friend?

REUSE IT! Using an item over and over helps conserve natural resources and energy. Plus, the item won’t end up in a landfill, where it can’t be used again. Here are a few suggestions for reusing items:

• Organize a swap meet with friends for toys and games.
• Wait to upgrade electronics such as games and phones.
• Pack your lunch in reusable containers.
• Borrow books and DVDs from the library.
• Bring a reusable bottle to school for water.

Communication
Please contact me with any questions or concerns. Parents and students can e-mail me at l.harley@fgcschool.org. You can also leave a voice message on the class phone or set up a time to meet with me before/after school.​

Upcoming Events
January 14 Library Visit
January 18 All School Meeting and Spirit Day
January 21 No School
​Jan 31-Feb 1 No School

Homework Due by Friday, January 11th
1. Read for at least 20 minutes every night.
2. Complete 20 minutes of typing practice. 
3. Complete at least 30 minutes of math practice (click here for DreamBox).
4. Optional - Compete Opinion Paragraph of the Week 
Prompt: What time should children go to bed on school nights? Give 3 reasons to support your opinion.

Upcoming Out and Abouts 
This Tuesday, Levels 2 and 3 will attend a presentation from Metro called I Just Don't Buy That, which challenges students to be thoughtful consumers, resisting the pressure to buy more and more stuff. We will also have an in-class science lab this week about force and motion to help with planning for our mini golf course. Next week, we will have a visit from the creators of Twin Pine Country Club - a free neighborhood mini golf course in Portland.

Classroom Economy Updates
This week, Plovers will make their first rent payment! Students earn up to 10 dino dollars a week for completing their classroom job, which they have held since October. For students who have not earned or saved $50 for their rent payment this week, I will provide extra work that can be completed for bonus pay. One way students can always earn bonus pay is by completing the opinion paragraph of the week that I post in the homework section above.

The classroom economy helps students learn valuable life skills such as organization, the value of saving, and delayed gratification in an authentic way. Rather than being told about the importance of these skills, they actually experience them. They are also given documents to deal with—for example, weekly job reflections and bank slips for deposits and withdrawals—to emphasize the importance of record keeping and attention to detail. Some goals of our classroom economy are for students to:

• Learn the value of earning a paycheck by completing their classroom job responsibilities.
• Demonstrate stewardship and citizenship.
• Learn how to budget their spending, balance a checking account, and make scheduled rent payments.
• Discover the importance of saving money to purchase what they want from the class store.
• Find out that every decision has an opportunity cost.

Tower of Books Check-in
CONGRATULATIONS LILAH AND QUINCY FOR COMPLETING THE TOWER OF BOOKS CHALLENGE!
With the start of a new year, it is a good time for families to check in on the Tower of Books Challenge! Together, figure out how many more books your Plover needs to read to finish their Tower and make a plan for completing that goal by the end of the year. After Winter Break, your student may need support getting back into their homework routine, which should include reading every night. You can help your Plover make a homework calendar and find a quiet place to work. Here are some other homework tips to help create or re-establish a successful routine! 

​Upcoming Events
December 17 Library Visit
December 24-January 4 Winter Break
January 7 School Resumes

Homework Due by Friday, December 21st
1. Read for at least 20 minutes every night.
2. Complete 20 minutes of typing practice. 
3. Complete at least 30 minutes of math practice (click here for DreamBox).
4. Optional - Compete Opinion Paragraph of the Week 
Prompt: Which is better: summer or winter? Support your opinion.

Upcoming Out and Abouts 
This Wednesday, we will have a presentation and activity from Metro about about packaging and ways to decrease waste. After Winter Break, Levels 2 and 3 will attend a different presentation from Metro called I Just Don't Buy That, which challenges students to be thoughtful consumers, resisting the pressure to buy more and more stuff.

Volunteer Opportunities
Library Chaperones - Needed February 4th and 25th
Community Breakfast - Fruit and cereal/bagels needed for Friday breakfast in January and February

Weekly Review
The Plovers had 2 weeks of Take Apart fun during their Out & About times this month! Students are learning about electricity and circuits, and they are also thinking about ways to incorporate light, sound and motion into their mini golf course design. Taking toys apart also helps students be curious about the ways familiar objects work. Plovers were also able to practice using different types of tools and electronic components. Last week, students worked with a partner to reuse pieces from the toys to create something new! For more info about the tinkering projects we've been doing in class (scribble machines, paper circuits, toy take apart) and project ideas that you can try at home, check out the Exploratorium's Tinkering Studio blog!