Being Granted the Golden Flashlight

Look at what we earned! Today Room 109 earned the Secret Teacher Award. The secret teacher award is given by the teacher that comes around to each room to see which classes are being the best they can be. We think this is the hardest award to win because you never know when the Secret Teacher is watching. We had to be good all the time. The Secret Teacher was... Mrs. Nowak! We were awarded this for great hallway behavior. This was our first golden award!

Reading Calendars are Due

It's hard to believe it that Monday is already October 1st. Where did September go?

On Monday, students need to return their September reading calendar. Please remind your child to add up the total minutes read this month and have you sign it. If your child met the goal, challenge them to increase their minutes read next month. If they fell short of the monthly goal, take the opportunity to remind them of the importance of nightly reading practice. Review their current reading habits and look for times when reading is more convenient. Perhaps splitting the time reading would work better -15 minutes after school and 15 minutes before bed for example. Establishing and maintaining a solid reading routine will go a long way in helping your child grow as a reader. Thanks for your support!

Parent/Teacher Conferences

First quarter conferences are soon approaching. In order to accommodate all of our 4th and 5th grade families, conferences will be divided into two dates. The first date is October 11th and the second date is January 15th. Parent/Teacher conference letters will be coming home Friday, September 28th. The letter will indicate which date your conference will be held. If you have a conference scheduled for January 15th, a reminder note with your specific time will be sent home closer to the date. If you have a January conference but have some immediate concerns, please contact me and an earlier conference will be scheduled.

The letter asked you to select your top three choices for time slots. I ask that after selecting your top three, please indicate any other times that would work out for you. I am inviting 16 families for 16 slots. Creating a schedule can be a challenge, so if you have more flexibility than 3 slots please indicate it on the form. Thank you so much for your support!

Mitchell in Motion!

Join us tomorrow on our Posterous page to see the events of Mitchell in motion. There is a link on the blog in the upper right hand corner. I will post pictures of the events as they happen. Our class will be participating from 10:00 - 11:00. Happy viewing!

Box Top Reminder and Coupons

Click Here for $1 off coupons from Box Tops for Education

Word Work Homework

Dear Parents,

Next week, your child will be bringing home a collection of spelling words that have been introduced in class. Each night of the week your child is expected to do a different activity to ensure that they practice these words and the spelling principles. These activities will be modeled and practiced in school, so your child can teach you how to do them. Students will have a copy of these daily activities taped in their word work notebook.

Word Work Nightly Homework

Monday - Initial Sort

1. Cut out the words and key word categories printed on colored paper. These words stay at home for their nightly homework.
2. Ask your child to sort the words into categories as they did during their group time.
3. Ask “Why did you sort them the way you did?”
4. Have your child read the words aloud.
5. Have your child record the sort in their word work notebook.
6. Sign your child’s sort.

Tuesday - Blind Sort

1. Parents: Lay down a header word from each category and then read the rest of the words aloud.
2. Your child must indicate where the word goes without seeing it.
3. Lay the word down where your child indicated and let your child move it if he or she is incorrect.
4. Repeat the sort if your child makes more than one error.
5. Have your child read the words aloud.
6. Have your child record the sort in their word work notebook.
7. Sign your child’s sort.

Wednesday - Speed Sort

1. Have your child sort their words as quickly as possible - time them.
2. When finished, have your child check their sort for accuracy.
3. If correct, have your child record the sort in their word work notebook along with the time it took to sort the words.
4. If incorrect, have your child start the sort over.
5. Sign your child’s sort.

Thursday - Writing Sort

1. Have your child write the column headers for their sort in their word work notebook.
2. Parents: Read the words in a random order.
3. Without looking at the word, your child should write them under the appropriate column headers.
4. Call out any words your child misspells a second or even third time.
5. Sign your child’s sort.

Friday - Test day

• No word work homework!

Good Bye to Weekly Reports

You may have noticed that students have been writing their conduct card color in their notebook each day. This is due to a change in how we report conduct card colors. The orange weekly reports are no longer being used. There are two reasons for the change:

1. Weekly reports did not always make it home and back.
2. Daily reporting can help you have timely conversations about choices being made at school.

At the end of each day, if a student is on green they will write green in their notebook themselves. Students that are on a color other than green meet with me to discuss whether they can turn a card back or not. I will write the card color if your child is on any color other than green. As always, please contact me if you have any questions or concerns about this change.

Check Us Out on Posterous!

There is a new addition to the blog. At the top of the column on the right you'll see a link to Team Imagineering's Posterous Page. Throughout the week, I will take photos of the great things happening in our classroom. They will be posted to Posterous for you to view from work, home, or on the go. Enjoy!

Mitchell in Motion Update

The PTA fundraiser, "Mitchell in Motion", is wrapping up. Students that have not yet returned their permission slips/envelope should do so as soon as possible. It is important to note that only students that have returned the signed permission slip/envelope will be able to participate in the "Mitchell in Motion" activities next Friday. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I will post more information about the actual even next week.

KidBiz 3000 Update!

Wow! It has been a little over a week and students are already using KidBiz 3000 at home. As of last night (9/19), students already logged an impressive 13 hours and 24 minutes on KidBiz 3000 outside of school hours. Using KidBiz to read at home helps in many ways. It ensures that students are reading engaging, non-fiction text that is at their level. Keep it up, students!

Band and Orchestra Lessons

Band lessons will be held on Tuesdays this year. The first lessons for band were held this Tuesday. Orchestra lessons will begin next Monday, September 24th and continue each Monday throughout the school year.

Please remind your student to bring their instrument and music to school on lesson days.

Upcoming Absence?

If you know that your child will be absent prior to the day of the absence, you are asked to inform the office ahead of time with a note or phone call. The best form of communication would be a call to the attendance line. Calling the attendance line ensures that your message will be heard the day of the call. Please avoid sending an email because if the person you sent it to is out for the day your message will not be read in a timely manner.

Attendance Line - (414) 604-4500 Press 1

KidBiz 3000

This year we are excited to have an online subscription to KidBiz 3000. It is an online service that provides students with access to hundreds of non-fiction news articles that are delivered to them at their own reading level. Last week, students took the "Level Set" test to help KidBiz establish a starting point for their reading level. As students read on a daily basis and complete the activities that accompany the articles, KidBiz will monitor their progress and adjust their level accordingly.

We are in the early stages of learning how to navigate through the site and respond to the questions that accompany the articles. There are many exciting elements to this site. Here are a few...

• Leveled text - Students reading at their level ensures that they are reading "good-fit" articles which will improve fluency and comprehension.
• Response activities - These activities are not simply multiple choice. They require students to think about the article at a higher level and respond in written form. This will take practice, but as students begin to use KidBiz with fidelity, we will see them grow as readers.
• Interactivity - Students receive scores for their work. In addition, they can earn badges and be recognized as a high scorer for the day. Everything they do can and will be monitored by me, which adds an additional level of accountability.
• Anytime, Anywhere - Students can access KidBiz anywhere there is Internet connection.

Using KidBiz is in addition to all of the other reading instruction that has always taken place at General Mitchell. Students asked if they could use KidBiz to count as part of their nightly reading goal. I would be happy for them to read KidBiz at home, and yes, it can count toward their nightly reading minutes. Monitor your child early on to see that they are reading the whole time. Online reading is a new concept for some and may take some practice.

There is a link to KidBiz 3000 on this site. Your child's user name and password was written on the first page of their assignment notebook.

If you have any questions or comments about KidBiz 3000, please feel free to contact me.

A Reminder for Visitors

I wanted to pass along this reminder from our office staff.

It is school policy that all parents should sign in and receive a badge before entering the building or coming onto our playground during school hours. Please enter through the main entrance and visit the office. It is a quick and easy process that is for the safety of everyone at General Mitchell. We thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

App List

Students with iPads and iPods at home have been asking to add apps we use in school. Here is a list of the apps currently loaded on our iPads at school. While we haven't used them all, they will be used in the near future. Best of all, they are all free!

• Science 360
• Educreations
• Khan Academy
• iTunes U
• Dragon Dictation
• Voice Thread
• Animoto
• Pic Collage
• Photocard
• Evernote
• Google Earth
• Merriam-Webster Dictionary
• SparkleFish
• FlashToPass Free

I will post a new list as more apps are added.

Dismissal Procedures

In an effort to keep kids from hanging out or playing unsupervised on the playground, we are asking students that walk home to walk straight home. If students are picked up by a parent, they need to go to their parent's car instead of hanging out on the playground. Students are welcome to stay and play if they are being supervised by a parent that is on the playground. Thank you for your help!

Specialist Schedule

Monday: 10:45 Art

Tuesday: 10:45 Phy. Ed. & 11:15 Music

Wednesday: 10:45 Music & 11:15 SEL (Guidance)

Thursday: 10:45 Phy. Ed. & 11:15 SEL (Guidance)

Friday: 11:15 Library

Team Imagineering

The grade level teams at General Mitchell have all come up with a team name that embodies who they are. The 4/5 team is now known as "Team Imagineering".

Imagineering: the implementing of creative ideas into practical form.

A Reimagining of the Newsletter

Starting this week, I will use the classroom blog to post the happenings of our classroom. This will mark the transition from a traditional paper newsletter to a more dynamic way of communicating with families. Instead of waiting until the end of the week to drop classroom news at once, I will post to the blog as news happens. As we continue to unlock the potential of the iPads, I hope to find new and creative ways to deliver the work and ideas of your children.

To help with this transition, I will send a weekly reminder email with a link to the blog.

Week 1 Newsletter

Week 1 Newsletter