This week is packed with all kinds of events and learning which I
hope should be fun as well. There will be no spelling test this week but we
will have a reading test on Tuesday, a math test on Wednesday, and a science
test on Thursday. The students have also been informed about a rocket ship,
rocket racer and egg drop contest which will be held on Thursday afternoon.
If any parent would like to help with the contest I would appreciate the
extra hands. The contest will take place at 1:15 to 2:15 if you would like
to attend.
The Christmas Program will also take place on Thursday evening at 7 PM.
Students whould be in the classroom no later than 6:45 PM dressed in their
best Christmas clothing. The program usually lasts about 1 1/2 hours. The
program will take place in the church and parents can pick up their children
from their classrooms after the program.
There will be no homework that night, however, any late or missing work
will be due by Friday otherwise it will be entered as a zero in the
gradebook. Any corrected homework or tests (redos)must be turned in by that
Friday before Christmas vacation.
Friday is a half day and students may wear free dressy dress. It will be
a busy day because we will be going to Mass first thing, going Christmas
caroling to the California Rehab Hospital and then have our own Christmas
party with Secret Santas. I will need drivers once again for the Christmas
caroling so if you can drive please contact Julie Koehnen and let her know.
The students wanted to do Secret Santas this year so we agreed upon the
following rules for the game: On Monday, students will write a clue to their
Secret Santa about who they are. On Tuesday, students will give a drawing or
a Christmas card to their Secret Santa. On Wednesday, students will give a
pencil with the name of their Secret Santa on it. On Thursday, students will
give some kind of Christmas candy to their Secret Santa and on Friday they
will give a gift that costs no more than $5. We will exchange the gifts at
the Christmas party and reveal who we are to our Secret Santas.
I'm also asking the students to bring a baby picture for a game that we
play at our party. They are to bring the photo in an envelope so that nobody
else can see it. At the party on Friday, the students will try to guess
which baby is which student in our class. Photos should be of babies from 1-
3 years old - no infant photos please! All photos will be returned after the
party on Friday.
Once again I just have to thank all the families who participated in the
Adopt-a-Family Christmas Project this year. It was a tremendous success and
I especially want to thank Patty Bonacorsi for helping me coordinate it. The
following items were purchased for our family: a woman's watch, a radio, a
DVD player, a backpack, 2 men's bicycles, an Ipod, a television set, school
supplies, various clothing items, shoes, a food basket, and gift cards as
well. You have shown that there really is a Santa Claus!
The book report for this quarter is a biography. Students will create a
newspaper about the person they have read about as well as a doll. I will
give all the directions for the book report once the students have chosen a
person to read about. Book reports will be due after Christmas vacation
during that first week of January.
Students who do poorly on any test, except spelling, may make
corrections and turn them back in for 1/2 credit for each problem that they
correct. It must be turned by the end of the week, though, in order to get
credit for it. Map tests must be retaken for a better score within a week.
I would encourage you to check the gradebook weekly to see the progress
being made and to see if there are any missing assignments. Remember if
there are any low scores on homework, students can correct their mistakes
for a better grade. Tests can be corrected as well but only for 1/2 credit
for each correction. To check grades, go to mygradebook.com and use nds5th
as the login. The students know their own passwords. Some of them are the
same as last year but most have chosen new ones. Once again - please check
the grades weekly.
Last but not least, don't forget to check the homework link if you have
any questions. It's all there. If you have any questions you would like to
ask me you can email me from this website (look for the mailbox at the top
right corner of this home page) or you can call me at 891-1615.
This is one of the best ways to keep in touch with what is happening in
our class this year. I update this page and the homework page every weekend
to keep you informed of our events. Thank you for using it and keep in
touch!