Twas The Week Before Christmas

I hope that you are enjoy the beautiful snowy week we are having.  Please be sure to remind your child of the importance of their safety while crossing slick roads and sidewalks.  Though it is beautiful this time of year, it is also harder for cars to stop on our icy roads, and we don't want anyone to get hurt.  

Just a head's up about the Christmas concert Thursday at 7:00pm in the Tom Karren Gym.  The grade one's will be performing two versions of Jingle Bells - the Australian version and the Canadian version.  So for costuming we are asking that all of the students in my class come and get dressed in summer gear - shorts, t-shirts, sandals, sunglasses.  Anything that makes them look like they are enjoying the sun on an Australian beach.  We hope to see you there!

Friday will be our class Christmas party, from about 11:45-12:00ish, running till the end of the school day at 1:00pm.

This week in school we are continuing a short unit for physical education that is an introduction to basic gymnastics - the students will be doing a lot of rolling, tumbling and balancing on mats and small beams.  We will finish looking at sorting and classifying 2-D and 3-D shapes in math, and will be working on the short sound of 'o' in language arts.

Spelling words this week are: will, five, what, made, play and candycane.  The try it this week is use Christmas bread or cookie dough to shape your words and bake them.

At this point in the year, you may start to notice more homework coming home with your students.  Please be aware that while I do expect such assignments to be returned to the school, there is no strict timeframe on when they are to be done.  I would rather have students working in 10-15 minute periods over several days rather than a straight hour of additional schoolwork.  I also understand that families have busy lives and schedules.  When work comes home labeled 'please finish', I would just request that it be finished and returned in a timely manner that suits your schedule and your child's best interests.  Sometimes homework may come in order that a student does not fall behind (such as is the case when they have been sick).  Also, I like to send work home on occasion that gives the parent a chance to interact with their child using the same subject matter they are studying at school.  This keeps you more informed on what your child is learning, and gives you a first hand view of their skills and understandings.

There is a new reading program being introduced at the school by the Cheesecake cafe.  Your child will be bringing home a newsletter and cheesecake page that allows them to color in one slice of the dessert for each twenty minutes of reading books that they complete (for a total of 200 minutes).  Please write the name of the books on the slice as you finish them and send them back to school once the whole cheesecake is colored in.  They will then receive a gift certificate for a free kids meal from the Cheesecake Restaurant.  This program is completely optional, and any books count - zippy books, library books, personal home books, etc.

Our busy, buzzy goal this week is to 'bee' good, encouraging the general ability of our students to work at being good, caring individuals.

Take a quick peek back before the end of the week to see some of the special content I will be posting - we've had a lot of exciting activities and experiences this month, and I should have them up on the blog in a day or so.

It's hard to believe, but it is the last week of school before Christmas holidays.  Students finish at 1:00pm on Friday and will not resume until Monday, January 5, 2009.  I hope that you and your families have a safe and enjoyable break, and look forward to seeing you all again in the new year.

Best Wishes!

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas!

The Magrath Elementary Drama Club has the opportunity to perform at the Magrath Community Christmas concert on Thursday, December 4, 2008.  We have been preparing a short skit that follows a snowman theme, and your child is invited to participate.  Grade 4, 5, 6 have been assigned specific roles.  Grades 1, 2, 3 will be singing the song “Once there was a snowman”, and are encouraged to wear as much white as possible (to look like a snowman).  Any student performing that night should be at the LDS Stake center stage by 6:30pm for the event which begins at 7:00pm.  We will be performing second on the program, so the early arrival is important to organize and prepare.  After the students perform, they are welcome to join their families to enjoy the concert, or to leave for other commitments. 

 We have not yet had a chance to do a dress rehearsal on the performance stage, so we are asking all students to meet at the Stake center after school on Thursday, so that we may run through our skit and have one final practice.  Please make every effort to have your child there.  If you have any questions, please contact me at the school.

  We have begun our school Christmas presence project.  Students who bring non-perishable food items to the library will be given small paper Christmas ornaments to decorate and place on the classroom trees attached to each class door.  If we work together, we can help make Christmas a little merrier for every family in our town that needs some holiday cheer this year.

 We have also started a Christmas chain countdown.  Each day is patterned either red or green, and has a good idea for a way to celebrate Christmas or something to do for someone else in the true spirit of Christmas.  The students also completed their own chain, which they can keep at home (some were not quite able to finish, but you are welcome to complete it with them – it is not homework, just a fun Christmas countdown activity).  Each day we cut off one link, with the chain slowly getting shorter until it finishes on Christmas Eve.

            Friday will be our classroom winter party, which is the basis of the new science unit we will be working on until holidays – seasonal changes of winter.  We will be doing several activities related to the storybook The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg, which will include watching the animated movie of the same title.  This movie is rated G, and for more detail on its content, you could visit www.kids-in-mind.com, a website dedicated to giving detailed information about positive and negative content in movies.  If you have any objections to your child watching this movie, or any questions, please contact me by Friday by phone, or email, in person, or send a note in your child’s agenda.  I will happily arrange an alternative activity for any child or parent not comfortable with this activity.

            Besides our new science unit, we will also be switching gears in math, and taking a closer look at shapes that are 2-D and 3-D, their names, and various everyday objects of those shapes.  We will be examining, finding and sorting these spheres, cubes, pyramids, etc.

            In Language arts we will be completing a lot of activities related to Christmas, and in phonics this month we are focusing on the short sounds of vowels.

            Our busy, buzzy goal this week is to ‘bee’ giving.  Part of the magic of Christmas is learning how good it feels not only to receive a gift, but also to give one.  Gifts can be more than material as well.  We are all capable of giving of our time, talents, friendship and respect.  This is lifelong goal we can all strive to be better at.

            Now that winter is setting in, it is very important that students have proper winter gear.  Please be sure that you student comes to school each day with a warm winter coat – even if the weather seems fair.  Gloves and a hat and scarf will also help protect our students from standard winter weather.  Also, we are having an issue with students not bringing proper shoes to school – students should have a pair of inside and outside shoes.  Outside shoes (such as snow boots) are to be left on the boot racks at the front foyer, and inside shoes in cubbies, to prevent mess on the library carpets and in the cubby bins and hallway.  We appreciate your assistance in this matter.

            One last reminder to return the yellow report card envelopes with your signature.  Please keep your child’s report cards, and remember, if you have any questions feel free to contact me.

            Have a great week!