WEEK OF MARCH 2

PARCC Testing Tips
As I mentioned in last week's blog, students will begin taking the new PARCC assessments on Monday, March 2. If you haven't done so already, you may want to look at the practice tests which can be accessed through the District 66 website, under the "Students" tab. Two other resources that would be helpful to your child are the following video links:
PARCC Math Video
PARCC ELA Video
Students may encounter difficult questions, and I encourage them to persevere. My expectation is that they finish each test being able to say, "I gave my best effort!"

Too Good For Drugs
During our 9th session of T.G.F.D., Deputy Seward talked about the dangers of inhalants. Students received a fact sheet about inhalants that should be shared and discussed with a parent.


Subject Update:

ELA (English/Language Arts)

• Spelling - The Lesson 26 pretest will be given on Monday. The students will be assigned homework during the week to practice their words, and a final test will be given Friday. *Students may only print 10 words "just in case" their cursive still needs work. Keep practicing correct letter formation at home!
• English - Students will work on writing, incorporating a balance of nouns and pronouns.
• Reading -We will continue to read various non-fiction texts to help us answer our three essential questions: What are forces of nature? How does a force of nature that is far away affect me? How can a force of nature be both destructive and constructive at the same time?

Science - Students will continue to track the local weather to better understand the many factors of weather and how weather changes over time. They will also learn more about air masses and fronts as we finish up the chapter. The Chapter 11 Test is scheduled for Friday, March 6!

Social Studies - We will begin Chapter 8 which will take us on "The Road to War." We will learn how tensions between the British government and the colonists, started by the Proclamation of 1763, continued to grow.

Mrs. Strong's Math Class - We will continue working on number theory and fractions. Students will take a "homework review" on Thursday covering equivalent fractions, GCF, simplest form, mixed numbers and improper fractions, and comparing fractions to 0, 1/2, and 1. Please note that we will not have Math on PARCC testing days.

Mark Your Calendar:

March 2 - PARCC Testing (Math Unit 1)

March 4 - Too Good For Drugs (Session 10)

March 4 - PARCC Testing (Math Unit 2)

March 6 - Paul Revere Program

March 6 - End of 2nd Trimester

March 6 - Panther-Palooza

March 9 - PARCC Testing (ELA Unit 1)

March 11 - PARCC Testing (ELA Unit 2)

March 13 - PARCC Testing (ELA Unit 3)

WEEK OF FEBRUARY 23

Too Good For Drugs
During our 8th session of T.G.F.D., Deputy Seward shared a power point presentation about marijuana. Students learned some of the myths people believe about this substance, and then learned the actual facts about it. Students received a myth/fact sheet that should be discussed with a parent.

PARCC Testing
On March 2, students will begin taking the new PARCC assessments. These are computer-based tests, and we have done some activities at school to familiarize the students with the tools and format of them. I encourage you to have your students practice this at home as well. Practice tests can be accessed through the District 66 website, under the "Students" tab.


Subject Update:

ELA (English/Language Arts)

• Spelling - The Lesson 25 pretest will be given on Monday (skipping Lesson 24). The students will be assigned homework during the week to practice their words, and a final test will be given Friday. *Students may only print 10 words "just in case" their cursive still needs work. Keep practicing correct letter formation at home!
• English - Students will review all about pronouns to prepare for the Unit 6 Pronouns Test on Wednesday, February 25. Then we will work on writing, incorporating a balance of nouns and pronouns.
• Reading -We will continue to read various non-fiction texts to help us answer our three essential questions: What are forces of nature? How does a force of nature that is far away affect me? How can a force of nature be both destructive and constructive at the same time?

Science - The students have learned that water condenses to form clouds as part of the water cycle. We will take a closer look at the types of clouds, where they form, and the kind of weather associated with each type. Then we will look at tools used to measure weather.

Social Studies - Our discussion of the French and Indian War brought us to the end of the chapter. Students will take the Chapter 7 Test on Tuesday, February 24. Study Tip: students should know the important people, the group or country they represent, and what they did. For example, Robert LaSalle was a French explorer who traveled to the mouth of the Mississippi River and claimed the Mississippi River valley for France.

Mrs. Strong's Math Class - We will continue Unit 5, working with equivalent fractions, GCF and LCM, simplest form (a.k.a. lowest terms), and comparing fractions.

Mark Your Calendar:

Feb. 25 - Too Good For Drugs (Session 9)

March 2 - 13 - PARCC Testing

March 4 - Too Good For Drugs (Session 10)

WEEK OF FEBRUARY 16

Thank You to Valentine Volunteers
A special thanks to Mrs. Bastuga, Mrs. Hewawissa, Mrs. O'Leary, and Mrs. Steffgen for planning and running a great party. Also, thank you to Mrs. Hegarty, Mrs. Spicuzza, and Mrs. Kerrigan, for providing paper goods, treats, and drinks for us to enjoy. Finally, thanks to Mrs. Kerrigan for contacting and organizing the volunteers for me. Our hearts were all a-flutter from all the fun!

Too Good For Drugs
We did not have T.G.F.D. this week due to Early Dismissal and no school on Friday. Our next session is scheduled on February 18, when Deputy Seward will be sharing a presentation about marijuana and its harmful effects.


Subject Update:

ELA (English/Language Arts)

• Spelling - The Lesson 23 pretest will be given on Tuesday. The students will be assigned homework during the week to practice their words, and a final test will be given Friday. *Students may only print 10 words "just in case" their cursive still needs work. Keep practicing correct letter formation at home!
• English - Students will distinguish between the use of the possessive pronoun its and the contraction it's. Then we will learn to avoid the use of double subjects, and understand the correct way to use we and us with nouns.
• Reading -We will continue to read various non-fiction texts to help us answer our three essential questions: What are forces of nature? How does a force of nature that is far away affect me? How can a force of nature be both destructive and constructive at the same time?

Science - The students will identify the parts of the water cycle, and understand how this cycle relates to weather.

Social Studies - With the French, British, and Native Americans all wanting to control large parts of North America, small battles start a long war between them. Lesson 3 will help us understand the conflicts, as well as the major outcomes of the French and Indian War.

Mrs. Strong's Math Class - As we continue Unit 5 about number theory and fractions, students will learn about greatest common factors and least common multiple. I will introduce several ways to identify the GCF and LCM of a set of numbers, and we will apply these concepts to some real world problem solving.

Mark Your Calendar:

Feb. 16 - No School (President's Day)

Feb. 18 - Too Good For Drugs (Session 8)

Feb. 20 - Spring Pictures

WEEK OF FEBRUARY 9

Too Good For Drugs
During our 7th session of T.G.F.D., Deputy Seward shared a power point presentation about alcohol. Students learned some of the myths people believe about this substance, and then learned the actual facts about it. Students received a sheet with myths and facts about alcohol that should be shared and discussed with a parent.


Subject Update:

ELA (English/Language Arts)

• Spelling - The Lesson 22 pretest will be given on Monday. The students will be assigned homework during the week to practice their words, and a final test will be given Friday. *Students may only print 10 words "just in case" their cursive still needs work. Keep practicing correct letter formation at home!
• English - Students will learn how to use possessive pronouns in place of possessive nouns. We will also learn how to correctly spell contractions when combining pronouns and verbs.
• Reading -We will continue to read various non-fiction texts to help us answer our three essential questions: What are forces of nature? How does a force of nature that is far away affect me? How can a force of nature be both destructive and constructive at the same time?

Science - The students have learned that weather is caused by the uneven heating of the Earth. Next, we will learn about the parts of the water cycle and how this cycle relates to weather.

Social Studies - While the Spanish were expanding into New Mexico and Florida, what were the French up to? We will learn how exploration of the Mississippi River led to new French colonies in North America.

Mrs. Strong's Math Class - We will begin Unit 5 about number theory and fractions. Students will begin by working with divisibility rules, prime and composite numbers, and prime factorization.  

Mark Your Calendar:

Feb. 9 - District Spelling Bee

Feb. 9 - 12 - Conferences

Feb. 11 - Early Dismissal (11:00 a.m.)

Feb. 12 - Valentine Party

Feb. 13 - No School

Feb. 16 - No School (President's Day)

Feb. 18 - Too Good For Drugs (Session 8)