Mr. Mag's Newsletter Friday, December 11 CLASSROOM AUCTION: I would like to hold our next classroom auction on either December 21st or the 22nd. If any of you, however, are planning on traveling during those days, I am willing to move it up to Friday, December 18. Please let me know ASAP if your child will be gone during the final two-day week before the break so I can hold the auction on a day when everybody will be in school. Also, if you are able to donate any inexpensive items for the auction, please send them in anytime. ORCHESTRA HALL FIELD TRIP: We will be going on a field trip to Orchestra Hall on Friday, January 29, to enjoy a concert entitled Sounds of the Cinema. Although this event is admittedly a bit pricey, I feel that the quality of the performance makes it well worth the cost. The deadline to turn in the permission slip and money was today so please send it in as soon as possible. MATH: We took the chapter 5 test yesterday, and the results were excellent. Our class average was 92%. Chapter 6 covers things like stem and leaf plots, sample groups, and basic addition and subtraction of fractions. I am tempted to do some two-a-day math classes next week to finish the chapter before break, but I am not sure yet. If we go in that direction, I promise to modify the test so that you don’t have to spend time studying the day before Christmas break starts. READING COUNTS: Our new Reading Counts goal is for each student to earn 20 points by Wednesday, January 20. Please encourage your child to start early. BATTLE OF THE BOOKS: The big Battle of the Books event is rapidly drawing near. The kids will be given the opportunity to take the qualifying test on January 15 to see if they qualify to take part in the FUN PANEL COMPETITION the following week. If your child is planning on accepting this challenge, encourage him/her to finish as many of the books as possible by the testing day. The list of books can be found on my website along with a FAQs sheet that you might find helpful. Let me know if you have any questions. AMERICAN REVOLUTION REVIEW & TEST: We will be reviewing and testing on the American Revolution next week. We will complete the study guide on Monday. (Your child is welcome to do this ahead of time by using the version I have copied on the back of this newsletter.) On Tuesday and Wednesday we will be doing some review games/activities, and we will be taking the test on Thursday. This is a major test so please check in with your son/daughter to be sure he/she feels prepared. CHECK IT OUT: There is a letter to you (or someone in your family) on my website. I hope you are in a generous mood because the letter will be requesting something from you, and I bet it will be mighty persuasive. Check it out at: http://teacherweb.com/MN/CentennialElementary/Magnuson/index.html QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS: If you ever have any questions or concerns, please e- mail (mmagnuson@isd12.org) or call (792-5374) me anytime. -------------------------------- AMERICAN REVOLUTION STUDY GUIDE 1. What was the 1765 tax on printed paper called? 2. What were the people called that boycotted this act? 3. What was the name of the African-American man killed in the Boston Massacre? 4. The intolerable acts were designed to punish which colony? 5. The First Continental Congress issued a statement to the British government. What did it say? 6. The first shot of the American Revolution was fired at the battle of _______________. 7. Where was the Battle of Bunker Hill fought? 8. What book convinced many Americans that they needed to be free from England? Who wrote it? 9. Who was the main author of the Declaration of Independence? 10. Who was the woman who dressed as a man and joined the Continental Army? 11. Name the person considered the great hero of the American Navy. 12. What foreign country helped the American army, and why was this help important? Name an important fact about each of the people listed below. 13. Ben Franklin 14. Paul Revere 15. Sam Adams 16. Nathan Hale 17. Benedict Arnold 18. George Washington 19. Thomas Jefferson Make a timeline sequencing the following events: Boston Tea Party Committees of Correspondence Stamp Act Boston Massacre First Continental Congress Common Sense Battle of Yorktown France Becomes Ally Valley Forge Declaration of Independence