1st Full Week!

Dear Families, 

Hello and Happy September!!  

We had a great first full week this week.  As I keep reminding the students, it is so awesome to see how much 4th graders grow over the summer! They start the school year as 5th graders that are applying what they've learned, raising their own standards, and eager to work hard!!  It truly is exciting!!

This week we enjoyed doing the "Week of Inspirational Math" provided by Jo Boaler and the youcubed.com program out of Stanford University.  Each lesson provided a great puzzle/challenge which allowed us to practice/review expectations for our math classroom, review and practice Math Habits of Mind and Interaction, and of course, remind us about the importance of having a Growth Mindset!!  

This was also listed on the goal sheet this week!  Students are to pick just one activity to share with you.  They should ask you questions as they were asked, they hopefully will also ask you to justify your thinking.  They might even be a "skeptic" which we also practiced in our math talks this week!! :)  

Additionally, we continued to talk about the school wide expectations of Be Safe, Be Responsible, and Be Respectful and are practicing Mindfulness daily!!

We're continuing in our Ecology unit by studying Food Chains and Webs, and learning more about similarities in Plant and Animal life cycles.  This week we'll learn more about what a watershed is, the watershed we live in, and how it ties into our Ecology studies!!

Finally, we're trying to post things daily via our Twitter feed, and students will also be posting to See Saw at least once weekly.  Don't forget to check them out ( We only have 6 followers on Twitter I think,,,:().  

Reminders:

• Walking FT Thursday, students should come prepared with boots and a lunch!!
• Band Lessons have started!  Help your child remember their instrument please!!
• Chorus will begin this week for all interested students!
• Open House!  Tuesday, 9/22 8-9 am.
• No School Wednesday 9/23

Hello Families and Happy Back to School!!

It's been so nice to welcome the students back to Endeavor as 5th graders this week!  It's great to see them all again and have time to check in about their summer adventures.  How lucky we are to get to be together for a 2nd year!  We also get to welcome 2 new classmates this year: Lexi and Kat (Kassidy)!!

One of the focuses of the entire school this year is to strengthen our community through a clear set of schoolwide expectations.  The 3 main expectations of SCS are: Be Safe, Be Respectful, and Be Responsible.  These expectations are posted throughout the school and are to be followed in all school related settings.  It's been great to see the entire school work together on these!  We've been taking time to review what this means throughout the various places we visit each school day.  

Additionally, we've been focusing on Mindfulness as a class! This work will nicely tie into our discussions/work with Habits of Mind and Growth Mindset.  We're learning poses and breathing techniques that can help us calm down and focus, and also ones that energize us!  I plan to integrate at least 3-5 mindful minutes into our schedule daily this year.  I hope you hear about this at home, and I am quite confident students will learn from this.  What a great way to help students manage impulsivity, practice self control, be reflective, practice positive self talk, and learn how to persevere through tough moments! 

We've already started our first Science unit which is an Ecology unit focused on our local Watershed.  So far, we're just reflecting on and practicing what we know make good scientific observations and illustrations.  We're taking advantage of the great gardens here at SCS to do this! :)

I'm trying to use technology more frequently this year as a way to keep parents informed of our daily and weekly learning. I got an Ipad for students to use throughout the day to document our lessons, activities, and learning! I hope this means our blog page gets updated more regularly, but I also created a twitter account that I hope to have students post to throughout the day.  You can follow me (us really) at Mrs. Crowther (@crowther_mrs).  I also hope to have students do a weekly reflection on their See Saw account each week.  Stay tuned for more info on these digital tools or just check them out and see how we're doing. :)

Blog page:  http://shelburneendeavor4.blogspot.com/

Twitter Link:  https://twitter.com/crowther_mrs

See Saw:  https://app.seesaw.me/#/class/class.ba8434fd-85da-472f-8389-547a9cbbdb62

And a few final calls for help before I finish...

1.  Please remember to send (or have your child do it) photos with summer highlights to your child's school email account (firstnamelastname@cssu.org).  They'll need them by Monday at the latest. 

2.  If you have any old magazines laying around at home that students could cut out, please send them in on Monday also.  We'll need them for an art project we're doing next week. 

3.  We will also need some mesh fruit bags to make "Leaf Packs" for our ecology unit.  (like the kind a "bag" of oranges comes in - I know Trader Joes sells some produce in them...)  If you have any at home, please collect them and send them in. We'll need them the week after Labor Day. 

4.  We'll need a few chaperones for our October field trips.  We have a walking field trip the week of the 5th that we'll need  2 adults for, and another to Shelburne Farms on the 21st that we will need 4 adults for.  Let me know if you'd like to join us for either of these!

OK.  That's enough for now!  Don't want to overwhelm you.  I'll be in touch next week, and please don't hesitate to ask questions if you have them.

Thank you for sharing your kids with me!!

Cara :)

Summer letter to families

 

Dear Endeavor Families,

 

      We are excited for the new school year and look forward to learning and growing with you!   This year we have many exciting things planned for the team, including field trips, projects, and activities.  Some of our special studies this year will be World Geography, US History, Space Systems and Ecology.  Here is some other information to help you prepare for the beginning of the school year.

 

Conferences: Conferences will be held in October and March.  As always, we are willing to meet at any time.

Back to School Family Play Date - We would love to get together before the school year begins to say hello and hear about your summer!  Join us at the School Street playground at 3:30 on Thursday, August 20th for snacks and socializing!!

Open House: The 5th grade will be having an Open House in place of a Curriculum Night this year.  We invite you to an Open House on Tuesday, September 22 at 8 am.  Join us to celebrate a great start to 5th grade!

 

Birthdays: We love to celebrate student birthdays, and we invite your child to share stories of his/her life with the class.  Your child may choose to bring in photos, books, or momentos to share with the class, this will be their 15 Minutes of Fame!  We want to celebrate the child and not make the focus on treats so please do not bring cakes, candy, or other sugary sweets.

 

How to reach us:  Feel free to contact us with any questions or comments you have:  vmeyette@cssu.org, 383-1155 or ccrowther@cssu.org 383-1154(w) or 310-1686(c).

 

                   

  See you soon!

-Vasanthi & Cara

IMPORTANT DATES FOR YOUR CALENDAR

-Back to School Family Play Date– Thursday, August 20th 3:30-4:30pm

-  Open House  - Tuesday, September 22nd, 8:00-9:00am

-Shelburne Farms Field Trip – Thursday, October 22nd

Summer Bookclub!!

You’re Invited!!

WHO: all Endeavor students

WHAT:   Endeavor Summer Book Club!!

WHERE: Pierson Library

WHEN: Wednesdays this summer (4:30 p.m).  Tentative dates: 7/8 ,7/29, 8/19

WHY:  to catch up with each other over the summer AND talk about GREAT BOOKS!

The first book we will read is: Capture the Flag - by Kate Messner   

Three kids get caught up in an adventure of historic proportions!

Anna, Jose, and Henry are complete strangers with more in common than they realize. Snowed in together at a chaotic Washington D.C. airport, they encounter a mysterious tattooed man, a flamboyant politician, and a rambunctious poodle named for an ancient king. Even stranger, news stations everywhere have announced that the famous flag that inspired The Star-Spangled Banner has been stolen! Anna, certain that the culprits must be snowed in too, recruits Henry and Jose to help catch the thieves and bring them to justice.

But when accusations start flying, they soon realize there's more than justice at stake. As the snow starts clearing, Anna, Jose, and Henry find themselves in a race against time (and the weather!) to prevent the loss of an American treasure.

Meeting dates will be:7/8 ,7/29, 8/19.  We’ll meet at 4:30 pm and be done by 5:15 - 5:30.  I’ll bring snacks and drinks.

At our meetings we will talk about the book, what we enjoyed, what we wondered.  We’ll also vote on the next book we’ll read!!

Please know, You DO NOT have to be able to be present at each book club in order to join us sometimes.  However, you do have to attempt to read the book. :)  Stay updated on email and through Mrs. Crowther’s Kidblog page: http://kidblog.org/MrsCrowthersClass/

I will email students with reminders before hand.  This will also be your way to RSVP so I know who to expect.  I look forward to it!!

End of Year reflections and summer links!~!

1. All students completed a reflection of the year.  After writing down their thoughts on the learning they did and their responses to 6 reflection questions, they recorded this reflection in an app call See Saw.  They are bringing home a parent invite today.  You'll need to download the app and scan the QR code.  There are also directions on the sheet for doing this on desktops.  Check them out!  Here is another link you can use to request permission:

https://app.seesaw.me/s/058-051-037

2.  The "invite" for the summer "Bookclub" came home today as well.  On it you will find the 3 dates (tentative), times, and the 1st book we will read.  All students are invited and may come to all 3 meetings, or even just 1.  It will be held at the Pierson Library.

3.  Speaking of reading, latest research states that all students have to do to avoid the summer slump is read at least 4 books!!  Here are some resources from the Literacy Center:  SCS Summer Reading Ideas
​

 why read over summer002.pdf

​

4.  Finally, John Madden, our Math Coordinator has provided a list of resources for summer math ideas.   
​

 Summer 2015 Math Ideas

​

Don't worry, I'll be in touch again soon!
:)

Hello Families!

Thought I would catch you up as we get ready to head into April break.  First of all, THANK YOU again!!  Thank you to everyone who attended the Poetry Slam that Kate planned and especially for contributing to her gift!  She was clearly overwhelmed with gratitude, and I hope you saw how much she appreciates your children. Thank you. Also, THANK YOU for any contribution you offer to Cheryl Thomas and her family in this very difficult time.  Cheryl has been missed and we are all wishing her the best!

Students have completed all but one session of the SBAC testing.  We plan to complete it on Wednesday 4/29!  The following week, (5/4-5/8) students will take the Science NECAP test Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdaymornings. 

Students have been studying Geometry in Bridges Unit 5 and exploring benchmark angles using pattern blocks, learning about circles and circle vocabulary, and using protractors.  After break we will focus on perimeter, area, symmetry, and of course, more mathematical vocabulary. 

This week we started focusing our reading work so that it combines with US Geography!  All students are using Ipads to read E-Books called Truflix.  We started with a book about US landforms, then broke into groups each focusing on a different region.  Students are meeting with me in a "book club" format to discuss their reading and learning and all groups are expected to become experts on their region so that they can teach the rest of the class what they learned.  We're focusing on: physical features/waterways, people/culture, industry and natural resources of each region. Students can access these books through the library website at home if you want to find out more!! 

State map quizzes continue through May!  Students are moving at their own pace through a set of 3 quizzes: States (by region), physical features, then states and capitals.  Students can have up to 4 chances to pass each quiz.  They've had some time to practice in class, but won't always be guaranteed this time.  I hope you're seeing their map packets at home! 

After break, we'll continue to study US geography, but will also start a Matter Unit!!  

Other news/upcoming events:

 - 4th graders will be attending a Civil War reenactment as another opportunity to connect with Vermont History! It's right here in Shelburne on Friday May 8.  More info to follow after break. 

 - Students will not have HW over break but should be reading.  In order to help encourage this, we are sending home a "reading challenge".  This is optional, and as I said, just a way to encourage students to do LOTS of reading over the break. 

 - I am going to pilot an incentive program through the end of the year.  It will be modeled after a game (Mario Brothers :)), and for it I will need lots of pennies, ball jars with lids, and penny wraps.  If you have any of this stuff lying around at home that you are willing to send in, i'd appreciate it.  

 - May 1-9 PTO Days - Order cheescake through Good Comida to support the PTO!!

Here is a link to the latest PTO news

Here are some links to fun science activity ideas for break:

http://www.sciencebuddies.org/blog/2014/03/fun-science-at-home-give-spring-break-a-science-boost.php?from=Newsletter

Ok, that's enough for now.  Thanks as always for your continued support! 

Cara :)

Hi all!
With conferences and SBAC testing approaching, we thought we'd send out a list of dates for you to note.  Both conferences and SBAC testing start next week.  SBAC will continue through all of April, but of course, won't occur every day :)  Let me know if you have any questions. 

Cara

Conference Schedule

TIME	Tuesday, 3/24	Thursday 3/26	Friday 3/27	Tuesday 3/31
3:05	Luke	Sam Williams	Riley	Anders
3:30	Hassan Dahir	Colin H	Carly	Jen M
4:00		Sasha Miller	Miranda O.	Betsy
4:30	Madeleine C	Lily Smith	Servis	Jake
5:00	Talulla A	Logan P.	Gove	McClellan/Brumstead

Trip to Vermont State House and

Vermont History Museum

March 18th, 8:15-2:30pm

PLEASE pack a bag lunch!

NO School

March 23rd

SBAC TESTING
March 24, 25 and 26
10AM-12PM
Pack a healthy Snack and get enough sleep!

Parent/Student/Teacher Conferences

March 24, 26, & 27 3-530PM

March 31  3-530PM
SBAC TESTING
April 1, 2, and 3
10AM-12PM
Pack a healthy snack and get enough sleep!

SBAC TESTING
April 7, 8, 9, 10
10AM-12PM
Pack a healthy snack and get enough sleep!

NO School
April 20-25
Happy Spring!

SBAC TESTING
April 28 and 29
10AM-12PM
Pack a healthy Snack and get enough sleep!

Science NECAP TESTING
May 5-7
Pack a healthy snack and get enough sleep!

No School
Monday, May 25th
Memorial Day

Jog-A-Thon
Tuesday, May 26th
Bring your sneakers and a waterbottle!