Mitchell School Board Presentation

On Monday, October 22nd General Mitchell School was the school highlighted at the School Board Meeting. Mr. Hill presented many of the different initiatives currently underway at Mitchell. As part of the presentation, Emma, one of our very own Imagineers, presented how students in Room 109 are using the iPads. She did a fantastic job of highlighting the awesome work being done by each student in our class. Her presentation focused on student use of iPads to read at instructional levels using KidBiz 3000, research using Moodle, and write to the class blog. Her presentation concluded with a 1 minute video created with iMovie. The school board was very impressed with her presentation! We are all very proud of her and want to thank her for highlighting the great work of all the students in Room 109. Thanks, Emma!

Reminder to Band Students

Band rehearsal is Tuesday at 8:00 AM. Students need to arrive 5-10 min. before that so they are on stage, unpacked, in their seats, and ready to play by 8:00. Please plan ahead!

WKCE Reminder

Just a reminder that WKCE testing begins this Tuesday for both 4th and 5th graders. Please refer to the previous blog post for the complete testing schedule. Remind your child of the importance of this test. To help them along, let them know it's important to get a good night's sleep and eat a healthy breakfast.

If you have any questions regarding WKCE testing, please contact me. Thank you for your support in preparing your child for this important test!

Tales Of a Fourth Grade Nothing By: Judy Blume

Emma and Malina enjoyed reading Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing

We decided to write a book on the world famous fourth grade nothing and his brother, Fudge. Peter is quiet, serious, and definitely a leader. His brother,Fudge, is the exact opposite. Fudge is wild, mischievous, and fearless. In this book opposites do not attract. Peter Hatcher (A.K.A. fourth grade nothing) is your average nine year old boy. His one problem...his brother Fudge.

In the first chapter Peter goes to a birthday party bringing back a turtle named Dribble. Chapter two is about how people from Peter's dad's work come and stay with the Hatchers. Peter thinks they are a pain. Chapter three focuses on how Fudge refuses to eat and he acts like a dog. His new favorite saying becomes "eat it or wear it". Big thanks to his dad for getting him started. In chapter four Jimmy Fargo , one of Peter's friends, Peter, and Fudge go to the park and meet Sheila (Peter's arch-nemesis). She wants to baby sit Fudge and he decides he wants to fly. He jumps and looses his two front teeth. In chapter five Fudge turns three. He holds a birthday party. Thanks to his love of birds and wanting to fly Peter's new name for Fudge is Fang. During chapter 6 Fudge goes to the dentist and Peter has to explain how to open his mouth wide for the dentist. In chapter 7 Sheila Tubman, Jimmy (A.K.A. Peter's bff), and Peter start their transportation project. Fudge being Fudge, destroyed their poster, and they have to start over. Fudge wants to become a barber and cuts his own hair. Chapter eight, Peter's mom leaves to visit her sister in Boston and Peter and Fudge have to go to work with their dad. While they are there they notice a toddle-bike commercial audition is going on and Fudge gets the job. Peter in green with envy! In the second to last chapter it's a rainy day and Fudge and Peter's dad takes them to a bear movie. Fudge strikes again. Wanting to touch the bears Fudge crawls down to the screen. Nobody knows where he is but he gets lost then found. In the last chapter, Fudge eats Peter's pet Dribble and has to go to the hospital. When he comes home he gets lots and lots of presents. Then finally Peter gets a present and inside there is a ... Dog!! Peter names him Turtle, to remind him of Dribble. I hope our post encourages you read Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing. Thanks for reading!!

 Blog post written by: Emma and Malina

Mile Run

On Tuesday, October 16, 2012 these Mitchell student ran the 4th and 5th grade mile run. For the boys Brennan got 9th place, Calvin got 18th place, and Nicky got 56th place. Jon participated in the fun run. As for the girls Emma got 52nd place, Erica got 60th place, and Abby got 63rd place. Those were the participants for the mile run from Mr. Krupar's class.

Written by Erica Turk and Calvin Metz

Fall Celebration

Next Wednesday students at General Mitchell will be able to wear their Halloween costumes to school. We ask that students follow a few guidelines.

• Costumes must be appropriate for a school setting.
• No masks.
• Nothing on the costume should deter from the work that needs to be done at school (i.e. items that attach to hands or otherwise would get in the way of the student and / or their classmates.

In addition, our class will have a small celebration at the end of the day. At Open House, I had parents volunteer to send items to school for the celebration. If you signed up, I will have a note stapled to your child's assignment notebook page. I ask that only parents that volunteered send a treat. Otherwise, our room will be flooded with more treats than a student could possibly enjoy. 

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.

WKCE Schedule

Tuesday, October 30th:                     

Reading Part 1

9:00 4th Grade

1:00 5th Grade

Wednesday, October 31st:              

Reading Part 2

9:00 4th Grade

1:00 5th Grade

Thursday, November 1st 

Reading Part 3

9:00 4th Grade

1:00 5th Grade

Friday, November 2nd 

Math Part 1

9:30 4th Grade

10:30 5th Grade

Monday, November 5th 

Math Part 2

9:00 4th Grade

1:00 5th Grade

Tuesday, November 6th 

Math Part 3

9:00 4th Grade

1:00 5th Grade

Wednesday, November 7th 

Science

9:30 4th Grade

Thursday, November 8th 

Language and Writing

9:00 4th Grade

Friday, Nov. 9th 

Social Studies

9:30 4th Grade

WKCE Testing

WKCE testing is rapidly approaching. As we near the testing period, it is important to get students prepared for the test. We will be working with students to prep for the test and get them into a serious test taking frame of mind. At the same time, we do not want to make students overly nervous about the test. What is important is that they take the test seriously and do their best.

Here are some ways you can support this process at home:

· Express a positive attitude toward the test.

· Put the emphasis on effort as well as achievement.

· Ensure a good night's rest.

· Provide a nutritious breakfast and a healthy snack.

· Ensure attendance on all test dates.

We will allow students to chew gum during the tests. Some studies indicate that chewing gum increases blood flow to brain cells. That can lead to better concentration.  We have tried it in the past and it was well received by students. They liked the novelty of it, and I think it took the edge off of test periods. Students can bring gum to school with the understanding that it will be chewed during test periods only. Mints can replace gum if students can’t chew gum.

The Golden Paintbrush!

Class with golden paint brush award.

Hey! Guess who got the golden paint brush award this week? Mr. Krupar's class was awarded the golden paint brush for art. How did we get it you ask? Well in art class Mrs.  Landowski awarded it to us because we were listening, following instructions, we were not that loud, she did not have to raise her voice, and we were being respectful, responsible, and safe. That day we got two pieces of paint. Iif we get 10 pieces of paint we get an art party! We have three so far!
We really tried hard to get this award, and we got it. Yahoo!!!!!

Written by Grace Alessi and Abby Landowski.


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Inquiry Unit: Animals

Students have been working hard the past three weeks exploring the topic of animals. We have read about animal adaptations, habitats, and biodiversity. The next two weeks students will work in inquiry groups to research areas of interest and begin the process of "Going Public" with their findings. Ask your child about the process and their work. Stay tuned for an update and the final products!

Word Work Week 2

I want to thank you for you help with word work last week. With the new routine there were a few bumps in the road, but I am certain that we will get them ironed out. Here are a few quick tips for you:

• There is a nightly homework guide taped inside the word work notebook. It gives step by step directions for homework Monday - Thursday. If that is missing or the notebook is left at school, please refer to an earlier blog post for directions.
• If a student forgets their notebook at school, they should still complete the task at home on a separate sheet of paper. 
• Words that go home on Monday stay home all week. Students have a separate set for school work.
• All nightly word work needs to be signed by a parent. It is the student's responsibility to remember the signature, not the parent's.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me. Thanks!

No SPARC on Thursday

Parents with students attending SPARC classes need to plan ahead. After school SPARC classes have been cancelled for Thursday, October 11th. Parent - Teacher Conferences are scheduled to begin at 4:00 on that day.