September 17 Library Visit - Chaperones needed (see below for sign up)
September 25 Scholastic Book Orders Due
September 28 All School Meeting and Spirit Day (Animal theme)
October 3 All day Out & About to Portland - Chaperones needed
October 5 No School
Homework Due by Friday, September 14th
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.
3. Complete 20 minutes of typing practice. Create your own username and password for Typing.com by going to our class page.
Homework Expectations
- All Level 2 students will have weekly homework, which is due every Friday.
- 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.
- Finally, Plovers should complete at least 20 minutes of typing practice. Create your own username and password for Typing.com by going to our class page.
Upcoming Out and Abouts
This Wednesday, we will visit the Backyard Garden and begin our study of natural resources. Students should dress appropriately for the weather and bring a water bottle. Next Wednesday, we will visit the police station to support our investigation of community resources and to learn about the skills different workers need for their jobs.
Guest Speakers Needed
For part of our project work this semester, students will be creating imaginary businesses and then they will become the workers in our business community. To help students understand the types of jobs in our community, we are bringing in experts (you!) who can briefly describe their work and answer questions about their jobs. We expect these classroom visits to take about 10-15 minutes and address the following questions:
- What specific job do you do in your business?
- What kind of education and experience do you need to work in your job?
- What skills do you need to do your job?
- What skills do you need to work with others?
- Who do you depend on in your job? Who depends on you?
Volunteer Opportunities
Under Forest Grove School District policy, criminal background checks are required for all volunteers. This includes, but is not limited to, Out & About chaperones and classroom volunteers. Please visit the Volunteer page for more information.
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 four 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 tour of the police station on September 19th or a service project at Rogers Park on September 26th!
3. Library Chaperones - The Plovers will visit the Forest Grove Public Library every 3 weeks on Monday afternoons and our first trip is next week. 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.
4. Laundry Duty - Finally, I am looking for volunteers to wash our laundry (small dish towels and occasionally table cloths) every week.
Family Visits
If you were unable to attend Family Visits, 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
Scholastic Book Clubs
Class Code: L79X9
Order Due Date: 9/25/18
I will send home the first Scholastic Book Club flyers on Monday! You can also view this month's selections and submit your order online at https://orders.scholastic.com/L79X9. When you place your order online, you'll help earn FREE books for our class!
First Time Ordering Online?
- 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.
Weekly Review
The Plovers have been learning the routines of our classroom and getting to know their new classmates. We are reading a mystery book called Regarding the Fountain by Kate Klise, and students have been choosing their own independent reading books from the classroom library. Last week, we focused on building community and teamwork skills through an engineering challenge! Plovers worked with a partner to design and build a thinking cap. We also had an Out & About to the backyard garden and learned about ways to show stewardship, scholarship and citizenship during Out & Abouts this year!
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.