Reading

• Read for at least 20 minutes everyday. 
• Complete your book club packet pages* or reading response worksheets.
• Use the “Book Club Stems” handout to discuss your reading with a family member.

*For Balto, I Survived, Mountain Dog and Diamond Willow book clubs: Please only read the pages assigned for Weeks 3 and 4. Do not read further ahead! 

Writing

• Log into Google Classroom and complete the bonus writing prompt.
• I've also created a Free Writing assignment in Google Classroom that you can use for your own stories, letters, poems or journal!
• Other ideas for writing practice: How do you handle losing? Describe a time when you lost a board game or sporting event and how you handled it.

Math

• DreamBox or Khan Academy for 20 minutes each day. **Make sure to use this link or code XJDZM8 to join the Plover class on Khan Academy. You can either sign in with your school google account or create your own username and password.
• Work on your math practice pages or play a math game for 10 minutes each day.
• Practice skip counting by 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12

Brain Boost
Make sure to get some physical activity every day!

• GoNoodle
• Brainboost Website
• Play some music and have a dance party in your living room!

Wellness/Self Care

• Take one minute to list things you are grateful for. 
• Choose a quiet time activity to do by yourself for 15 minutes: drawing, building, play dough, sewing, origami, painting
• Do an act of kindness by saying something positive to someone else.

Oregon Trail 
On April 29th, Level 2 students will dress up as their Oregon Trail character and visit the historical AT Smith house for a pioneer field day! This might be a good time to start putting together your outfit! Some easy costume ideas that you may be able to find around your house or borrow: long skirts, button-up shirts, suspenders, aprons, straw hats, and bandanas. Here are some sewing projects you might be able to work on at home with your family:

• Easy dish towel apron
• Vest (from an old t-shirt!)
• Drawstring lunch bag

​

To check out ebooks and audiobooks with your library card: 
Washington County Library Services 
LIBBY app 

More ways to practice math:
Everyday Math Activities 
Games with Playing Cards
Math/Strategy Games 
Math Before Bed

Other online activities:
Art for Kids Hub YouTube Channel
Hour of Code
Mystery Science
Oregon Trail Game
Stop Motion Studio App
Typing.com

You can share other resources in the comments below! 

​Upcoming Events
March 10 Book Orders Due
March 16 Library Visit - Chaperones Needed
March 20 All School Meeting and Spirit Day (Super Hero theme)
March 20 Yearbook Orders Due
March 23-27 Spring Break

Homework Due by Friday, March 13th
1. Read for at least 20 minutes every night.
2. Complete at least 30 minutes of math practice (click here for DreamBox).
3. Complete 20 minutes of typing practice. 
4. Optional: Compete Paragraph of the Week writing assignment. 
Prompt: When pioneer families moved west, they packed only the most important belongings. Imagine your parents just sold your house and bought a covered wagon. You can keep only one book and one toy. Which items will you choose and why?​

Upcoming Out and Abouts
This week, we are going to walk a mile on the B Street Trail to better understand all the walking that  families had to do on the Oregon Trail! Please remind your student to bring a water bottle and a comfortable pair of walking shoes! Next week, students will work on "pioneer chores" in the Backyard Garden, like washing and mending laundry and gathering firewood.

Scholastic Book Clubs
Class Code: L79X9
Order Due Date: TUESDAY 3/10/20 by 9pm
Book orders must be paid for online - I can no longer accept checks or cash.

• Go to scholastic.com/bookclubs
• Enter our one-time Class Activation Code: L79X9
• Shop and submit your child's book order.
• As soon as your order is delivered to our classroom, I will send it home with your child.

Yearbook Orders Due Next Week!
The 2019-20 FGCS Yearbook is available to order online! Click here to purchase a yearbook with credit or debit. If you prefer to pay with cash or check, you may do that in the office using this form, which is also available in the school office.

Volunteer Opportunities
1. Breakfast Donations - Needed 3/20
2. Library Chaperones - Needed 3/16
3. Out & About Chaperones - Check the SignUp page for more details about chaperone opportunities through April!

• March 18 Pioneer Chores at the Backyard Garden
• April 1 Old Train Station Museum 
• April 8 Oregon Historical Society (Portland)
• April 22 Chili Cook-off at UCC
• April 29 Pioneer Day at the AT Smith House 

Link to Fairy Tale Stop Motion Movies
I've created an album on Google Photos with the Plovers' stop motion movies. I hope this will allow you to save and share your student's video! Use the link above to view all the movies, and then you can select "download" (click on the three dots in the upper right corner) for an individual movie. Please let me know if you have any problems and I will do my best to figure out another system for posting and sharing!

​Weekly Review
Last week, we considered the question, “How can you protect a house from blowing away in a windstorm?” Plovers learned about different types of natural hazards such as hurricanes, dust storms, and tornadoes! Strong winds can cause a lot of problems--they blow down all kinds of things! Engineers design solutions for the damage strong winds can cause. They identify problems and brainstorm a lot of different ideas until they find a solution. The students tried to invent creative ways to protect their own paper houses from the wind! 

Most Book Clubs also had their first meeting last week! Each group is diving into historical fiction or adventure novels to connect to our upcoming spring units: Oregon Trail, Earthquakes and Wilderness Survival! The books that the students picked are: Balto and the Great Race, I Survived the Eruption of Mount St Helens, Mountain Dog, Pax and Diamond Willow. Students will have time in class to read and write about their book, but some students may choose to read at home and complete their book club assignment as extra homework. I do not want this to be a burden for families, so if your Plover seems worried about completing their assigned reading or writing, please let me know so I can help their book club figure out a more reasonable pace.

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
March 2 Read Across America Day
March 16 Library Visit - Chaperones Needed
March 20 All School Meeting and Spirit Day (Super Hero theme)
March 23-27 Spring Break

Homework Due by Friday, March 6th
1. Read for at least 20 minutes every night.
2. Complete at least 30 minutes of math practice (click here for DreamBox).
3. Complete 20 minutes of typing practice. 
4. Optional: Compete Paragraph of the Week writing assignment. 
Prompt: And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street is a Dr. Seuss book about a boy who hugely exaggerates what he sees to make his story more interesting. Write an exaggerated story about something you saw on the way to school (it does not have to rhyme).

Upcoming Out and Abouts
This week, we will have our third visit from a Pacific University doctoral student, Claire, who is teaching short lessons about academic and social skills. Claire will come in for the next several Wednesdays to lead activities about managing emotions, friendship, organization and staying focused. We will also go to the Backyard Garden this week!

Scholastic Book Clubs
Class Code: L79X9
Order Due Date: TUESDAY 3/10/20
Book orders must be paid for online - I can no longer accept checks or cash.

• Go to scholastic.com/bookclubs
• Enter our one-time Class Activation Code: L79X9
• Shop and submit your child's book order.
• As soon as your order is delivered to our classroom, I will send it home with your child.

Volunteer Opportunities
1. Breakfast Donations - Needed every Friday for March! 
2. Library Chaperones - Needed 3/16
3. Out & About Chaperones - Needed for Backyard Garden 3/4, 3/11 and 3/18

Link to Fairy Tale Stop Motion Movies
I've created an album on Google Photos with the Plovers' stop motion movies. I hope this will allow you to save and share your student's video! Use the link above to view all the movies, and then you can select "download" (click on the three dots in the upper right corner) for an individual movie. Please let me know if you have any problems and I will do my best to figure out another system for posting and sharing!

​Weekly Review
Last week, the Plovers completed a reflection activity about their stop motion project and we got back into our regular routine! For our Out & About, students visited a “Book Tasting” restaurant at the UCC and everyone had an opportunity to explore and sample new books. Then, Plovers met with their new book club and selected their first book. Each group will be diving into historical fiction or adventure novels to connect to our upcoming spring units: Oregon Trail, Earthquakes and Wilderness Survival! The books that the students picked are: Balto and the Great Race, I Survived the Eruption of Mount St Helens, Mountain Dog, Pax and Diamond Willow. Students will have time in class to read and write about their book, but some students may choose to read at home and complete their book club assignment as extra homework. I do not want this to be a burden for families, so if your Plover seems worried about completing their assigned reading or writing, please let me know so I can help their book club figure out a more reasonable pace.

We also returned to our science journals and thinking about weather with the question, “Why are some places always hot?” We learned about the idea of climate - that in every place on earth, the weather tends to act a certain way over the year. Plovers learned how there are five basic climate zones: polar, temperate, mild, desert, and tropical. Each climate occurs in a specific part of the world, depending on how much sunlight and rain it gets throughout the year. You can continue to support your child’s curiosity by talking about a friend or family member who lives in a different climate, and discussing how that climate affects their life. 

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.​