Oct 28

HOMEROOM:
Not much happening this week in terms of homework because of ITBS testing on Wednesday and Thursday. Spelling was handed out on Tuesday and will be collected Thursday. We will also have the test Thursday as well.

All money and permission slips were due for the field trip this Friday. I think we are all set for that. Make sure students dress warm, or for the conditions, this Friday.

WRITING:
We only had 2 days of writing this week due to testing and the field trip. We collected the first body paragraph and looked at most of them as a group. This was really the first "major" assignment that was given and assessed. Students got a solid look at what they were doing right, and what they needed to work on.

Oct 22

HOMEROOM:

Spelling was collected and Test #7 was given.

Also, permission slips and money was due for the field trip next Friday as well.

WRITING:
We went over Power 1s and Power 2s and discussed what needs to be included. I assigned their first body paragraph, finalized with new changes and solid transition words, and it's due Monday. Students had 30 minutes to work on this in class.

OCT 21 PERMISSION SLIPS/$ DUE TOMORROW!

Money and permission slips for ice skating and the Imax are due tomorrow (FRIDAY).

Oct 20

HOMEROOM:
Discussed appropriate hallway behavior :) and thought about it more at recess.

WRITING:
Went over last night's assignment and then started on our 'new' first body paragraph from the topic they picked a week ago and inserting appropriate transition words and editing as needed. Students were givn 10 minutes in class to start this.

Oct 19

HOMEROOM:
Assigned week 7 of Spelling which will be due Thursday. Also watched 2 days of CNN Student News.

WRITING:
Edited our paragraphs form the Jumbled paragraph #2. We discussed transition words and each student was given 2 sheets of solid transition words. After, we broke apart a paragraph that did not have any transition words and added appropriate ones depending on their power. This will be done in powerboxes and will be due tomorrow.

The following is the paragraph:
I am for schools having fundraisers. Fundraisers help a school fund activities that they would not normally be able to afford. Our school has 2 fundraisers and they earn over $40,000. Last year we were able to spend some of that money on going to Camp Lutherhaven where we spent 2 days there learning about the wilderness and playing games. I think that fundraisers help kids give back to their school. It takes very little effort to do your part in supporting your school. Last year I raised $800 by myself by calling friends and relatives that all were more than willing to donate. I am definitely for having fundraisers in schools because it allows the students to have programs they normally wouldn’t have as well as the opportunity to give back to the school.

Oct 18

HOMEROOM:
Nothing due today, or tomorrow. Just get in those permission slips for next week's field trip.

WRITING:
Today we did Week 8, Day 1 of DOL.

We also worked on another paragrpah and re-organized it according to Powerwriting. The following 11 sentences ar the ones they used:

Specifically, people take paper, pens, and pencils.

For example, I was absent one day and the day I got back I found a bunch of garbage stored inside my desk…disgusting!

One reason why I am for video cameras in classrooms is that students get into other student’s property.

To describe, people may put trash in your desk so you have to throw it away.

Another reason how people could get into other people’s property is by taking items out of their backpacks.

In fact, my friend had pens stolen from her and they were in the back of her desk!

To emphasize, I was once in science class and this boy took out another student’s cell phone from their backpack.

I told the principal and the culprit ended up getting a principal referral.

The third reason how people can get into other people’s property is by putting their property in your desk.
One results of this happening is that many students are missing supplies.

For instance, people take cell phones from students.

IMAX and Ice Skating Permission Slip

Here is the permission slip in case your child lost theirs. It should print as a jpeg or something. No, I do not have an extras.

Oct 14

HOMEROOM:
Spelling Test

WRITING:
We did day 4 of Week 6 of DOL.

We corrected and went over last night's assignment and discussed powerwriting some more. Assigned today was taking 7 sentence strips, that were out of order, and place them correctly in the powerwriting format...in the boxes. This will be due tomorrow. Students had 30 minutes to accomplish this in class.

Also tomorrow will be a DOL test.

Oct 13

HOMEROOM:
Spelling will be due tomorrow (26 sentences too), and we will hvae a test.

WRITING:
Did day 3 of week 6 of DOL.

Also, we talked about organization and good/bad organization. Students were assigned a paragrpah that they need to break into powerwriting boxes. The following is the paragraph:

Like any other facility, keeping a school open requires a great deal of money. When a school changes to a year-round schedule, the costs skyrocket. Keeping school open in the middle of summer requires air conditioning, and that adds significantly to the school’s expenses. The usual utility bills grow because of the additional open-school time. Finally, teachers must be paid for all the weeks they are working. With all these factors, the cost of keeping schools open becomes immensely high. For example, a high school in Arizona had a cost increase of $157,000 when they switched to year-round schooling. Some schools may not be able to handle such increases, and other schools that can handle these expenses could be doing better things with the money. Is year round school really where the money should go?

Oct 12

HOMEROOM:
Spelling #6 was assigned. Students need to write 1 sentence for each word that must be 7 words long, the spelling word underlined, and spelled correctly. This will be due on Thursday when we have the test.

WRITING:
Students broke apart their first paragraph and wrote them line by line so we can better understand the purpose of each sentence. This needs to be done for one paragraph and we will continue with this tomorrow. Students had 40 minutes in class to work with this.

Special Event

Sixth Grade Upcoming Field Trip On Friday October 29th

All the sixth grade students will continue a tradition that began three or four years ago. On this day set aside in the other classrooms for Halloween related activities, we venture off to Riverfront Park for the IMAX production entitled "Journey through Amazing Caves." We will then eat lunch after which we will enjoy an afternoon of ice skating.

The agenda:
We leave shortly after arriving at school and will be boarding STA buses reserved just for us. Halloween costumes are not permitted as we there will be no Halloween related activities. We invite you to come along and join us on that day.The cost per child is $11.50, $9 for the IMAX and skating and $2.50for the bus fares ($1.25 there and $1.25 back). Please contact the office if this creates a difficult financial situation for you and provisions can be made to cover this expense. Additional information and a required permission slip will be sent home next week.

Oct. 11

HOMEROOM:
No Homework

WRITING:
DOL week 6, day 1.

Went over the first paragraph of the writing assignment. Did some peer editing. We will continue this tomorrow.

*Those students that are not caught up, are going to struggle with this since we are working from this on a daily basis. Meaning, they miss out on what we do in class because they are working on what was supposed to be done day(s) before.

Oct 7

HOMEROOM:

We took Spelling Test #5 today. We also got caught up on some current events.

WRITING:
We took DOL Test #5 as well as the quiz on Persuasive and Expository writing. On this quiz students were allowed to use their notes...if they had them.

Assigned for Monday was to have 1 paragraph written from their powerwriting boxes. Just one thought, not all four. Today, in class, they had about 10-15 minutes to work on this. They will also have about 10 minutes on Monday as well. But the time on Monday will not be enough to complete the entire assignment.

Oct. 6

Homeroom:
Assigned Spelling #5 which is due tomorrow (Thursday). Students had 10 minutes to work on this in class.

WRITING:
Today, students continued peer editing the examples on the powerwriting format. If your child is behind on this process, each day they are getting further and further behind. Some students have written notes home rearding this.

Tomorrow, in writing, we will have a DOL test and a quiz on Expository and Persuasive writing.

Oct. 3rd

HOMEROOM:
Watched Today's news on CNN

WRITING:
Handed back DOL Tests and started on day 1 of Week 5.

Also assigned powerboxes that will be due tomorrow. Must have 4 points, that include 3 details each, with 2 examples for each detail. It was actually due today, but some of the directions were a little unclear from Friday. They had 25 minutes in class today to work on this.

Oct 1

HOMEROOM:
Watched CNN Student News and discussed some current issues.

WRITING:
Started working on Power 3s (examples) for the group project. 2 personal examples need to be used for each power 2. Three main points need to be completed by Monday. 40 minutes was given in class for this to be done.