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10/8/08 WordMasters information and the first lists of words will be sent home on Friday.
Students need to decide if they want to compete in the Blue division, Gold division, or both.
Decision slips are due back on Monday. The first meet is scheduled for December 5th. See the
WORDMASTERS icon for a copy of the letter going home and the two word lists.
10/7/08 The Presentation Schedule for HATCHET presentations is available under the PROJECTS icon.
9/26/08 Just a reminder that students need to make a decision about which HATCHET project they
plan to do. Slips are due next Friday 10/3. Thanks!
9/22/08 Special Homework Tonight for some students who didn't finish in class. See HOMEWORK icon.
9/18/08 Anyone looking for an opportunity to volunteer? I have three jobs for eager beavers:
1) Laminate and hang class collage projects -- these will be graded and ready to go up by
Wednesday afternoon. 2) I need someone to make 48 flip books by Monday 9/22. EEEK! This involves
cutting construction paper and stapling it -- probably about a 60-90 minute job. 3) I need
someone to drive to LRC and cut out 48 character dolls by Thursday 9/25 -- I will provide the
materials. Once you get there, it should take about 20-30 minutes. If anyone is interested in
any of these jobs, please e-mail me to volunteer. Thanks!
9/16/08 Students were working in teams to research some catastrophic events today in class. I
have given them permission to continue their on-line learning tonight if they choose, and this
can be counted for their 30 minutes of nightly reading. They simply need to list one website
that they visited and summarize what they learned on the reading log.
9/12/08 The vocabulary quizzed looked DRASTICALLY different today! I can tell that the students
studied and were well-prepared. Whatever they did, encourage them to keep it up!!!
Projects are due in one week... --Mrs. Geiger
9/8/09 Information about the first class project went home today. There is a slip for parents to
sign acknowledging receipt of the information. This project will be due on 9/19/08. Please see
the new PROJECT icon on the website for a copy of the information sent home.
9/5/08 NO PANIC REQUIRED!!! Many students did not do very well on the first vocabulary quiz.
They are a little stunned and disappointed, of course. I have told them to let this be a
learning experience. For instance, all SIX students who scored 100% said that they studied the
words for a little while each night. Several of them made flash cards or another type of study
aid. One student keeps the list in her backpack and studies it on the way to and from school
each day. What does NOT work is waiting until the night before the test and cramming. This is a
life lesson that will help them all the way through college!
The other thing we discussed after the test is using the clues in the test and using good test
taking strategies. While several of the words seemed to fit in more than one place, there was
ONE BEST PLACE for each word. For instance, when a project stands out above all the rest, we
wouldn't call the project "precocious," but it would be "outstanding." While "daunting"
and "arduous" are SIMILAR in meaning, they are not exactly the same. The clue was that the
sentence containing "arduous" had "an" right before it, meaning that the next word had to start
with a vowel. The only choices were "angst," "effort," and "arduous". "Arduous" was the only one
that made sense in context. Reading over the entire test and filling in the ones that are
obvious first is a great strategy. Then, there are fewer choices for the difficult ones.
The good news is that I always drop the lowest grade in the VOCABULARY/CLASSWORK category. If a
student did poorly today, it is not the end of the world. Hopefully it will be a learning
experience, and they can do better on the test next Friday. Please let me know if you have
questions.
9/4/08
Tomorrow we will take our first vocabulary test. Students will be given a word bank of the
words. They will use the words to fill in blanks in sentences, using the sentence context to
figure out which word goes in each blank. See the VOCABULARY icon for a list of words. Students
will receive a new list of words tomorrow. These will be tested on 9/12. Remember to continue to
practice ALL lists as any of the words may appear on the cumulative vocabulary exams.
9/2/08
This week we will be doing several pre-assessments. Two of these are of my choosing and two are
required by the District. None of these count toward report card grades, etc. but rather are
baseline data to see where we need to work in preparation for the FCAT in the Spring. While it
may seem like the kids are being tested to death this week, no worries! These are painless
exercises and provide excellent information to guide instruction. Please encourage them to do
their best and not worry. Thanks!
8/29/08
The first list of vocabulary words went home today in a special vocabulary folder that the
students should continue to add to throughout the year. This folder (either red or blue paper
folder) can remain at home. I have added a VOCABULARY icon to the webpage. I will list each
week's words there so that, in the rare event that a list is lost, students can have access to
all the words. Remember, for the cumulative exams, I will be pulling from any/all of the
previous lists. Therefore, students need to practice the current week's words as well as
continue to re-visit old lists. The first cumulative exam will be on 9/23.
Student DO need to record reading on Labor Day.
8/28/08
Special homework assignment due tomorrow. See HOMEWORK icon.
8/26/08
Students have a quiz tomorrow. They need to study their listening guide from the "Are You
Literate?" presentation and return the sheet to class tomorrow.
Some students will be bringing the Parent Information Sheets back home for you to complete the
back side. :) Thanks!
8/23/08
Due to the storm days, we are making some adjustments. Folders will be sent home on Monday, 8/25
so that parents can complete an important information sheet. Folders should be returned the next
day and will be sent home again at the NORMAL time, on Friday. We will hold off on the first
list of vocabulary words until Friday, 8/29. The first vocabulary test will take place on 9/5.
Thanks for your flexibility.
8/19/08
Thanks to everyone for working to get supplies brought in! Tomorrow we will use our composition
books for the first time.
8/18/08
We had a great first day! Ask your child about 212-Degree Effort. We will be organizing binders
in class tomorrow, so students need to make sure they have brought one in by then. Nightly
reading begins TONIGHT!
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