Dear Families,

Hello and Happy Wednesday! Actually, by the time you read this it may be Thursday...

This week is flying by even though we are all seeming to be slightly sleepy from the time change....Some of the things we’re working on this week:

Reading - Students are continuing to work in their reading groups. About half of the groups are finished with their books, and the other half are close to finishing. Last week they received an expectation sheet for what they are to do when they complete their book. For example, all students worked on a story map then they reviewed them together as a group. The story maps will help the children write a summary about their book.

Once the students complete a final summary, they will all be comparing and contrasting their historical fiction book with today. They’ll be comparing things like food, customs, language, transportation, clothing, hobbies, and more!

After they’ve completed a comparison sheet, each group will plan a way to share their book and their new insight into a piece of VT history, with the class. They may work as a group, in partnerships, or independently. Each child will be expected to plan and propose their project before beginning to work on it. The majority of this work will be done in school, but some may need to be done at home, or with the assistance of parents. I’ll keep you posted and keep asking your child about it.

Writing - This week, students wrote about their field trip and have spent some time working on something called “Double Nickel” stories. This exercise was a way for students to practice writing summaries. Students had to plan a way to summarize their reading group book using exactly 55 words. They worked together and used their story maps to help them. This was a fun writing activity but also an artful way for students to practice writing organized and concise summaries. It proved to be very helpful for many students.

Math - I had originally planned to start division this week, but then decided that we needed review in a few areas before moving ahead. So, this week students have been reviewing decimals, metric conversions, analyzing data, and will continue to work on problem solving. I hope to get started with division next week! Get ready - students often experience quite a period of frustration at some point during the division unit. :)

Vermont Studies - We all had a very nice time in Montpelier on Tuesday. Thank you to all of the parents who joined us. The students really enjoyed the statehouse tour. I enjoyed seeing what they learned after they posted it on our class WIKI page! We will start to investigate the materials in the “Schooling in the 1800’s” history kit this week! We might even have to adapt our in-school practices to make it more real! I’m sure you’ll hear about it! :)

Other news:
Reminder that conferences are next week. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday will all be half days. If you forget what time you signed up for, you can check it on the wiki page: http://mrscrowther.pbwiki.com/Conferences . Just call or email if you have questions or concerns. Otherwise, i’ll plan to see you at your scheduled time next week!

Summer Camp registration flier and registration form

Upcoming events:
3/13 and 3/14--"The Wiz" Performance 7:30pm Town Center
3/18--3/20  Half days--Parent-teacher conferences



Keep in touch!
Cara