Announcements WEEK OF DECEMBER 7, 2009 Dear Students and Parents, We had an awesome experience at Field Day and we want to thank all our parent volunteers who came out to support us. Go Pirates! We are continuing to be very proud of our fine behavior in the cafeteria. We’ve earned our first certificate, which is hanging proudly in our window. We’re working diligently on staying engaged in our tasks in becoming self-directed learners and preparing for the 21st century. Responsibility, respect, and collaboration are vital for success. This week we will read SAVING THE SAND DUNES in our Treasures curriculum and focus on the comprehension skill of CAUSE/EFFECT. Our strategy is analyzing text structure and the grammar skill is past tense verbs. In Math we’re learning about visual and number patterns, making and finding patterns, and finding a rule. Please note there will be a math test on chapter 23 on Friday and our students can do a practice test to prepare on p. 483. Now’s a great time to continue practicing with times tables. In Language Arts we're continuing our writing, editing, and revising and using a graphic organizer to plan our expository pieces. We’ve been working diligently to improve our plan with a focus statement, main idea sentence and anecdote (story using dialogue and clear word choice). In Science we’re learning about terrariums. Our next book report project is the fiction genre and involves a Book in a Bag. This project is due on Jan. 8th. Many students took out books from the media center. Please look for the information in their take-home folder. Please continue to check and sign your child's planner daily. This is very important for consistent communication between our students, you, and me. You can contact me by e-mail anytime at www.shirley.moskowitz@browardschools.com. I make it a point to check it at least 3 times a day and get back to you in a timely manner. Please ensure optimal learning by having our students get a good night's sleep and having time in the morning for a healthy and energizing breakfast. Thank you. Truly yours, Mrs. Moskowitz “Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire” – William Butler Yeats