September 16 Lunch Orders Due
September 18 Picture Day
September 23 Library Visit - Chaperones needed (see below for sign up)
Homework Due by Friday, September 13th
1. Bring in a framed family photo to display in the classroom, unless I still have your family photo from last year. I have extra frames!
2. Read for at least 20 minutes every night.
Homework Expectations
- All Level 2 students have weekly homework.
- The most important homework is for students to read as much as they can! I hope students will spend at least 20 minutes reading or listening to reading every day.
- Beginning later in September, the math homework will be to complete at least 30 minutes of math practice every week. We will be using DreamBox this year for online math practice. More info coming soon!
- If your family would prefer to practice math skills in a different way (practice books, worksheets, flash cards, math games or other online resources), please send in your student's work OR send me an email before Friday morning letting me know how they completed their 30 minutes of weekly math practice.
Class email list
Every Monday evening, I will send out an email with a link to this newsletter. This is also the class email list I will use for other announcements and class communication. Please let me know if you did not receive a "Plover Updates" email from me ([email protected]) so I can update my email list.
Upcoming Out and Abouts
This Wednesday, we will visit the Backyard Garden and focus on team building. Students should dress appropriately for the weather and bring a water bottle. Next Wednesday, we will visit the garden again to begin work on our science notebooks and Native Americans unit.
Volunteer Opportunities
All volunteers at FGCS must complete a criminal background check form every year. Click here to access the online form to provide your information. Be sure to choose FGCS as the school where you want to volunteer so your name will be added to our volunteer data base. Note that this is an annual requirement, so you must complete the form for the 2019-20 school year even if you have completed it in previous years.
Each week in the newsletter, I will mention upcoming opportunities for volunteers. I use a website called SignUp to manage volunteer scheduling and donations. You do not need to create an account to use the website, but it will ask for your email to send reminders or provide updates (like if an event is canceled). There are currently three ongoing Plover projects that you can sign up for:
1. Breakfast Donations - The Plovers will enjoy a breakfast together every Friday morning. You can sign up now to help provide snacks. There are 2 spots available each week, so one family can donate cereal (or bagels, muffins, granola bars, etc) and another family can supply fresh fruit. We would like to avoid sugary treats and candy.
2. Out & About Chaperones - Sign up to join the Plovers on an Out & About! On our SignUp page, you'll be able to find out more about each Out & About, including locations and times. You can sign up now to join us for a science journal activity at the Backyard Garden on September 18th!
3. Library Chaperones - The Plovers will visit the Forest Grove Public Library every 3 weeks on Monday afternoons. The library requires classes to have additional adult supervision. Chaperones will walk with the class from FGCS to the library, help students locate and check out books using the self scanner, and accompany pairs of students to the restrooms and water fountain.
Family Visits
It was great to see so many people at family visits! If you were unable to attend, I've provided the handout and parent survey below. Please let me know if you have any additional questions!
Things to Know to be a Successful Plover
Plover Family Survey
Weekly Review
Last week was a short week, but we filled it with fun projects and games. One of our themes this year is storytelling and the Plovers jumped right in by creating skits about school rules and classroom expectations. The students also started learning the routines of our classroom and getting to know their new classmates. We read Hello, My Name Is Octicorn by Kevin Diller and started The Magical Ms. Plum by Bonny Becker. For project work, students worked in partners to save Fred the worm by designing and building a parachute. We will complete more "Save Fred" engineering challenges this week! We also had our first All School Meeting and recess at Central School.
Communication
Please contact me with any questions or concerns. Parents and students can e-mail me at [email protected]. You can also leave a voice message on the class phone or set up a time to meet with me before/after school.