With Spring Break Just Around the Corner...

We have a number of activities planned before Spring Break. Given our busy schedule, we will only be assigning math homework each night. That means no spelling lists or Writing Sparks for the week. The kids do, however, have a reading log that we expect back on Thursday morning. 

Tuesday

We have a special guest speaker joining us on Tuesday to discuss nutrition with our students. Our school received a grant that includes locally grown fresh produce in our cafeteria along with this presentation. We are excited to share this opportunity with our students. We have noticed many of them bringing large bags of chips for lunch and snacking on candy throughout the day, despite our "healthy snacks only" policy. We hope the information will encourage our students to have a healthier approach to their diets.

Wednesday

On Wednesday, we will be heading to Hagg Lake to release the baby trout, or fry, we have been "growing" in our hallway. We spent a couple of weeks learning about the life cycle the trout during ELD and are excited to see the little guys enter their new habitat. If you would like to volunteer for this trip, we will be leaving after lunch (11:10) on Wednesday and will return to the school in time for early dismissal (1:50).

Thursday

 

Finally, on Thursday, we have a full day (8:30-2:00) field trip planned for the Tillamook Forestry Center. This year the students will be participating in a new interpretive program that we are excited to see. This continues to be one of my favorite trips of the year, even after five years of visits! Parents are still needed for this trip. If you would like to chaperon, we recommend that you and your student drive your own vehicle. Our bus will be crowded (three to a seat!) and the trip is twisty. Please send an email to Ms. Kinsman if you are interested in helping out (kinsmanl@hsd.k12.or.us).

Thank you so much for keeping up with our classroom happenings. We will be posting some more information about our new Kindles later in the week. We need some pictures to show off our new technology!

The Kindles Have Arrived!:)

Wednesday I came into the classroom and a big box was on the back counter. Everyone was telling me that the Kindles had arrived but I didn't believe them because they had been saying that for months. So I asked the teacher if it was true. She said yes. I was so excited!

There are two types of kindles. The original and the Kindle Paperwhite. The Kindle Paperwhite is a touch screen with audible capabilities. They also store the words you do not know. The more advanced readers will most likely get the original Kindle because they do not need these extra helpful capabilities.

Now begins the process of inputting the Kindles into Wispercast, the online management system the teachers will be using, and assigning the devices to the students.

Wednesday the teacher will have us finally get reading on the Kindles. Mrs. Kinsman has gotten some free classics for us to try out the Kindles and learn how they operate. Soon students will get to pick out books. We will get a book, read it, then pick a new one. The good thing is that if one student gets a book and finishes it, it will forever be in the class library and other students will be able to read it with out more money spent getting it on their Kindle. We have a large fund set aside specially for books. Our classroom library will no doubt be excellent.

By Oliver

 

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