Week of August 27th Update

Good afternoon parents,

I would like to thank those parents who were able to make it last night to Open House. I know it was overwhelming having all of that information thrown at you, so I am attaching a copy of the PowerPoint that I went (ran) over. If you were unable to make it, I would highly encourage you to look over the PowerPoint so you are aware of what your child will be learning and the expectations for this year.

A few very important notes from yesterday:

• Please ask your child about the 25 book challenge and their progress with this.
• Please talk to your child about talking at appropriate times as Mrs. Philp and I are having a difficult time fitting in our instruction with the talking that is taking place. We only have 2 hours to teach them and it is imperative that they listen and follow directions.
• Please check your child’s agenda daily as we use this as a form of communication to keep parents up to date on their child’s schoolwork. If your child’s agenda is blank, that is a problem because they should have something written down every single day.
• Please sign up for Class Dojo to monitor your child’s behavior in class and check their behavior card as well. If you were not at Open House, this information will be going home in your child’s Thursday folder next week.
• Please help your child be responsible by ensuring they have everything in their backpack and have all supplies ready for school. We are having several issues with students forgetting things at home or saying my favorite line, “My mom didn’t pack that in my backpack”. It is your child’s responsibility to pack their backpack, they just may need some small reminders to check to ensure they have everything they need. 😊
• Your child should be reading for at least 20 minutes each night for a total of 2 hours each week. This should be spread out over at least 3 days. They should be recording the time, title, and page numbers read in their agendas along with a parent signature acknowledging they have completed their reading.

If you have any questions about the PowerPoint, please let me know.

Next week in…

• Reading: We will be discussing how to use context clues to determine the meaning of an unknown word.
• Word Work: The quiz on nouns will be on Thursday. Our vocabulary quiz will be on Friday. Your child should bring home their Word Work journal each day to study for both assessments.
• Writing: We will continue our narrative writing.

A few supplies that are still in need of being donated to the class:

• Board/Card games (new or used, but good condition)
• Candy (peanut free-individually wrapped)
• Colored printer paper
• 60 watt light bulbs

If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know! Have a wonderful, and RELAXING long weekend! Enjoy the start to the college football kickoff!!!! GO DAWGS! 😊

Week of August 20th Update

Good afternoon,

I hope you all have had a wonderful week!

Next week in…

Reading: We will discuss the plot of a story and how this can relate to the plot of our narrative stories.

Writing: We will begin drafting our narrative essays.

Word Work: Students will receive a new list of vocabulary words on Monday. Our grammar focus will be nouns. There will be a nouns assessment on September 5^th.

Reminders:

• Thursday Folders went home today. Apparently, my brain had already hit Friday by yesterday afternoon, so I forgot to send them home! Please sign and return the graded work packet by Tuesday. Some students have corrections that need to be completed from Mrs. Philp. These will be separate from the graded work packet as they need to be returned to Mrs. Philp
• Wednesday is an Early Release Day! Students will be dismissed at 12:30.
• Thursday is Open House! The first session will be from 5:00-5:30, there will be a PTSA meeting from 5:35-5:50, the second session will be from 6:00-6:30. Come to learn more about what your child will be learning in 4^th grade! You will be able to hear from me and Mrs. Philp about both classes!

As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to let me know!

Thank you so much!

A note from our BASE Representative:

Dear Parents,

If your child was enrolled in the BASE Art class on Thursday afternoon, the class did not have enough students enrolled to hold the class.  If your child was enrolled in the Art class and you would like to enroll in a different class, please contact Joelle Hodges at joelle.hodges@gmail.com and she will work with you to get your child registered in a different class.

Thank you!

Your BASE Co-Coordinators,

Joelle Hodges and Allison Carter

Week of August 13th Update

Good afternoon!

We survived another week! I am sure your kids are exhausted by the end of the week. We do certainly cover a lot and they just buckle up and are along for the ride! I appreciate the hard work they are putting in this year!

Reminders:

• The kids will be taking their first vocabulary quiz on Friday, August 24^th. They should be studying each night. I have them write this in their agenda each day as a reminder to study. Their vocabulary words should be glued in their Word Work journal.
• They will also take a quiz on the 4 different types of sentences on Wednesday. We have been talking about these types of sentences all week, and they should also have information glued in their Word Work journal to study this information as well.
• If your child has not brought an old shirt or apron for Art, please have them do so as soon as possible.

Please remind your child to pack all of their supplies they will need each day. I am having several students come to class unprepared saying they left their journals, agendas, or reading books at home. I know it is the beginning of the year and they are still learning to be more independent, but it is very important that they stay organized and are responsible for bringing their supplies to school each day. It would be very helpful if you could ask your child if they have everything they need in their backpack that way they can always be prepared.  I love checklists, so if your child is often forgetful, making a checklist of all the things they need to remember to bring to school each day could be helpful.

If you have any questions, please let me know and I would be more than happy to answer them for you!

Thanks and have a fantastic weekend!

P.S. Mrs. Berry is collecting plastic bottle tops and lids. If you have any at home that you would like to donate, please send them with your child and they can put them in a bin outside the office. 

Week of August 6th Update

Good afternoon parents,

What a wonderful first FULL week of school we had! I am absolutely exhausted, and I’m sure your kiddos are as well. If they aren’t, please bottle up their energy and send it with them to school next week so I can have some! 😊

Reminders:

• Wednesday is picture day! Our picture time is right after our lunchtime and after specials (we, of course, have PE). So just remind your child to take it easy that day so they look nice and pretty/handsome in their pictures. I will do the best I can to “fix them up” for you!
• In reading, we will be discussing other comprehension strategies students can use while they are reading independently. We will also discuss the theme of a book and describing a character in depth using character traits and text evidence.
• In writing, we will begin discussing the RACE strategy. This strategy can be used to answer constructed response questions, which is a major component of the Milestone test that the kids will take at the end of the school year. We want to start practicing for that lovely (cough… dreadful) test now!
• Students will be assigned vocabulary words that they will need to learn over the next 2 weeks. They will be tested on these words on Friday, August 24^th.  Please make sure your child studies each night. These quizzes can be a bit challenging.

Communication folders went home today along with Milestone scores. Please be on the lookout for that in your child’s backpack. The communication folders also have other informational papers. Please go through these forms and return any forms if needed.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me. I have loved getting to know each and every child through talking with them and through your parent homework assignments!

Have a wonderful and relaxing weekend!

Week of August 1st Update

Good afternoon parents,

What a great start to the 2018-2019 school year! I am so excited to be your child’s homeroom teacher and their ELA teacher. I look forward to all of the fun we will have this year.

Next week in…

• Reading: Our focus will be on building reading stamina and selecting appropriate “good-fit” books.
• Writing: We will discuss our routines and procedures for Writing Workshop and discuss how to generate ideas for writing.

Reminders:

• Your parent homework assignment is due on August 10^th. If you have no idea what I’m referring to, please check your child’s green homework folder for a small yellow piece of paper that will explain everything you need to do. They should have also written this down in their agenda. Please check your child’s agenda daily as this will be the most up to date information about what is going on in my class along with Mrs. Philp’s class.
• The student’s job application and two recommendation forms are due on August 7^th.
• Please sign and return all papers no later than Tuesday, August 7^th. I have to get those turned in ASAP!

I am so excited to work with you as we work to improve your child’s reading and writing abilities. If you have any questions regarding math, science, or social studies, please contact Mrs. Philp at Katherine.Philp@cobbk12.org. I would be happy to answer any questions you have regarding reading or writing.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions or concerns.

I hope you have a fantastic weekend!