Wednesday, December 31, 2014

January 5th-9th Newsletter


Happy New Year and welcome back to school.  I hope that your holidays were fun and enjoyable.  It is good to have you back at school and I am looking forward to finishing off the rest of the school year with you.  We will be pushing a little harder and faster in order to get through the curriculum during the second half of the year.  I hope you are ready to do a lot of new things as we continue on through our 5th grade experience.

Spelling Words

(Spelling words with the prefixes: dis-, pre-, un-)
disappoint, prepaid, unable, disapprove, prerecorded, unbeaten, discover, preset, unhappy, dishonest, preschool, unlimited, disorder, pretest, unsure, preoccupied, undercover, displeasure, distrust, prefer



Alternate List
unable, discover, preset, unhappy, pretest, unsure, disorder, preschool, dishonest, prefer

Challenge Words
unimportant, uninterrupted, unmistakable, unintentional, prefabricate, preposterous, presumptuous

Learning the States
Starting this week we will be studying the geography of the United States in addition to learning about its history.  This week we will be learning about the New England States that includes: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.  The students will be responsible for knowing the location of the state, the capital, and the nickname.  Each Friday we will have a quiz on the states that we are studying that week in addition, we will review the previously learned states. 

Capitals:
Maine- Augusta
New Hampshire- Concord
Vermont- Montpelier
Massachusetts- Boston
Connecticut- Hartford
Rhode Island- Providence

Nicknames:
Maine- “The Pine Tree State”
New Hampshire- “The Granite State”
Vermont- “The Green Mountain State”
Massachusetts- “The Bay State”
Connecticut- “The Constitution State”
Rhode Island- “The Ocean State”

Math Tutoring

Tutoring this week will be on Tuesday at 3:30 and Thursday morning at 8:00 a.m. I am sorry I am unable to meet after school on Thursday because I have a workshop that I need to attend.

Volunteers

 If you are interested in volunteering in our class, please just let me know when you are available and I would be glad to have you help in our class.

Curriculum this week.

Math- Division of decimals.

Language/Writing/Reading-  Writing a creative story.  Utah Writes Project.

Science- Physical and Chemical change.

Social Studies- The American Revolution, New England States Geography

Home Practice of Writing Skills

A great website to utilize at home to improve writing skills is utahcompose.com.
I encourage students to use this site to improve their writing skills.  It is a great tool and gives immediate feedback.  The students know their username and password to access the site at home.  The site includes lessons, videos, and writing opportunities that are immediately scored.    Students are also given the opportunity to revise their writing in order to improve their score on the essays.  As an
incentive I will award 25 extra credit points for every essay that scores 18 or higher.  I ask that you encourage your child to do as much writing as possible.  This is a great tool with a variety of topics to write about for the essays.

Multicultural Night

Multicultural Night will be held on January 29th.  We are looking for people that would like to represent a country.  The night is held in the gym and volunteers set up a booth or table and talk about the traditions and culture of a country.  If you are interested in participating please let the me or the  P.T.A. know.

Contact Information:

Home Phone:  586-3095
School Phone: 686-2840












Monday, December 15, 2014

December 15th-19th Newsletter


Math Tutoring

Tutoring will continue this week at the regularly scheduled times after school. (3:30-4:15, Tuesday and Thursday)

Testing, Testing, Testing

This week we are completing our mid-year testing with the SAGE assessments.  Each test takes approximately an hour and a half in our lab.  So far, we have been working on the writing portion of the test. The kids seem to be doing pretty good considering it is just a few days before the Christmas break.

No Homework Packet this Week

There will not be an assigned homework packet this week due to the testing schedule.  However, there is a reading calendar to be completed for reading every day.  Class assignments not finished in the day becomes homework for that evening and is due the next day.

Christmas “White Elephant Game” pm Friday

On Friday, we will have a small Christmas Party.  We exchange “White Elephant” gifts on that day as part of one of our games.  If possible, I would like your child to bring an anonymously wrapped gift for the game.  The item does not need to be new.  It is intended to be a silly, prank style of gift.  If purchased, I ask that you spend no more than $ 1 for the gift.  I will have a few extra gifts in case your child is unable to bring one.

Volunteers

 If you are interested in volunteering in our class, please just let me know when you are available and I would be glad to have you help in our class.




Curriculum this week.

Math- Division of decimals.

Language/Writing/Reading-  Writing a creative story.  Utah Writes 

Project.

Science- Physical and Chemical change.

Social Studies- The American Revolution

Home Practice of Writing Skills

A great website to utilize at home to improve writing skills is utahcompose.com.  I encourage students to use this site to improve their writing skills.  It is a great tool and gives immediate feedback.  The students know their username and password to access the site at home.  The site includes lessons, videos, and writing opportunities that are immediately scored.    Students are also given the opportunity to revise their writing in order to improve their score on the essays.  As an
incentive, I will award 25 extra credit points for every essay that scores 18 or higher.  I ask that you encourage your child to do as much writing as possible.  This is a great tool to use and has a variety of topics to write about for the essays.

Grade Printouts

I will be sending home grade printouts home on Thursday  so you can keep up to date with your child’s progress.

Multicultural Night

Multicultural Night will be held on January 29th.  We are looking for people that would like to represent a country.  The night is held in the gym and volunteers set up a booth or table and talk about the traditions and culture of a country.  If you are interested in participating please let the  P.T.A. know.  They have forms available.

I hope that all of you have a very Merry Christmas and a safe holiday season.

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

December 8th-12th Newsletter


Math Tutoring

I am unable to tutor this week after school.  I am sorry, but I have other teaching obligations.  If your child needs some extra help, I would be happy to help them before school.  Please have your child set up a time with me if there are concepts that they are struggling with at this time.  Tutoring will continue next week at the regularly scheduled times after school.

Spelling Lists for the Week

Spelling List

Possessives
bicyclist’s, bicyclists’, child’s, children’s, grandfather’s , grandfathers’, grandmother’s , grandmothers’, principal’s, principals’, sister’s, sisters’, uncle’s, uncles’, today’s

Alternate List

Same list as above.

Challenge List

multiplied, zeros, equation, create, comprehend, wreckage, senior, vaccination, repetition, preference




Volunteers

If you are interested in volunteering in our class, please just let me know when you are available and I would be glad to have you help in our class.

Curriculum this week.

Math- Multiplication of decimals with zeros in the product, story problems, chapter test, division of decimals.

Language/Writing/Reading-  Writing an argumentative essay.  Utah Writes Project.

Science- Physical and Chemical change.

Social Studies- Establishment of the 13 Colonies, The French and 
Indian War

Family Movie Night

On Friday night the P.T.A. will sponsor a Family Movie Night at 6:30 in the gym.  The movie and popcorn will be free.  Everyone is invited.

Multicultural Night

Multicultural Night will be held on January 29th.  We are looking for people that would like to represent a country.  The night is held in the gym and volunteers set up a booth or table and talk about the traditions and culture of a country.  If you are interested in participating please let the  P.T.A. know.  They have forms available.

Homework Essay

In our homework this week, the major focus will be on writing an argumentative essay on children and cell phones.  The students are required to fill out the organizers, do a first draft and have it checked by an adult, and write a final draft in their best penmanship.  The essay will be turned in on Friday and we will type it in the computer lab on the Utahcompose.com website.  (The emphasis will be on supporting their
opinions with facts and reasoning.)

Contact Information:
Home Phone:  586-3095
School Phone: 686-2840












Monday, December 1, 2014

December 1st- 5th Newsletter


Welcome Back

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving Break.  I sure appreciate the pictures that were sent to me of your kids reading to their turkeys or hams.  I had a good laugh.  I hope you understand that some of these unconventional methods are just crazy ways of trying to get kids to read more when they are at home.  I appreciate your support and all that you are doing to make this a great year for kids and myself.  For your information, there are two reading calendars, one for the PTA that is handed in at the end of the month, and a weekly one for our class.  The monthly calendar is used to tabulate the total minutes read by our students and families.  We are shooting for a goal of 3 million minutes.

Math Tutoring

If your child is having problems with Math, I will be tutoring students on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school from 3:30-4:15.  This week we will be focusing on the multiplication, addition, and place value of decimals. The tutoring is designed for those students that need extra help in those areas.  Please remember that permission and transportation are required since it is after school.

Spelling Lists for the Week
Spelling List

Irregular Plural Words
children, feet, men, oxen, traffic, halves, phenomena, deer, geese, mice, sheep, wheat, loaves, quizzes, dozen, media, moose, teeth, women, nuclei, wolves

Alternate List

children, feet, men, traffic, deer, geese, mice, sheep, dozen, teeth, women, wheat, quizzes, moose, oxen

Challenge List
minister, disagreement, Connecticut, responsibility, government, cooperation, proprietors, rebellion, voyage, immigrants


Volunteers

If you are interested in volunteering in our class, please just let me know when you are available and I would be glad to have you help in our class.

Curriculum this week.

Math- 12 Times tables, Multiplication of Decimals, Multiplying using expanded form, Multiplying money, Mid-chapter checkpoint.

Language/Writing/Reading- Author’s point of view, language mechanics, bold and highlighted text, vocabulary, Informational text. Utah Writes Project.

Science- Physical and Chemical change.

Social Studies- Establishment of the 13 Colonies, The French and Indian War

Contact Information:
Home Phone:  586-3095
School Phone: 686-2840












Monday, November 17, 2014

November 17th-21st Newsletter


Grade Printout
I will be sending home a grade print out today in the homework packet so that you can review how your child is doing so far this quarter.  Please take time to review it and let me know if you have any questions.  There is a paper for you to sign so that I know that you had a chance to see the printout.

Math Tutoring

If your child is having problems with Math, I will be tutoring students on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning this week. The tutoring sessions are voluntary.  The only requirements that I have are that students notify me by Tuesday that they have your permission to attend.  This week’s tutorial sessions will be on Tuesday from 3:30 to 4:15 pm and Thursday from 8:00-8:45 am.  I had to move Thursday’s session to the morning because I have teacher training from 4-6 this week on Thursday.  In the future, both tutoring sessions will be after school unless I notify you.

Spelling Lists for the Week
Spelling List

Plural Words

friends, taxes, benches, donkeys, patios, pictures, centuries, tomatoes, locations, tragedies, passes, buzzes, bushes, batteries, echoes, valleys, radios, potatoes, headquarters, suggestions

Alternate List

friends, taxes, benches, pictures, valleys, radios, suggestions, bushes, buzzes, potatoes

Challenge List
solemnities, palominos, lieutenants, sergeants,  precautions


November Events
26th- 28th- Thanksgiving Break (No School)


Volunteers
If you are interested in volunteering in our class, please just let me know when you are available and I would be glad to have you help in our class.





Thanksgiving Holiday Reminder:
Next week we will only have school on Monday and Tuesday because of the Thanksgiving Holiday.  There will be no homework packets or spelling list for those two days.


Contact Information:
Home Phone:  586-3095
School Phone: 686-2840



Monday, November 10, 2014

Newsletter November 10th-14th


Veterans’ Day Memorial Program

We will be singing the closing song at the Veterans’ Day Memorial Program at the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial on Tuesday, November 11th at 10:00 a.m.  The Vietnam Memorial is located by the Little League Ballparks if you would like to join us. Please make sure that you sign the permission slip in the homework folder and have it returned by tomorrow.  This will be the last permission slip that we have to send home.  In the future we will notify you of all field trips and if you object to your child attending I request that you send a note, call, or email me so that I am aware.  Thank you for supporting us on these field trips. 

S.A.G.E. Testing Results

I hope that you all had a chance to review your child’s testing results that were in last week’s homework folder.  If you have any questions, please contact me and I would be glad to meet with you.

Grade Printout Next Week

I will be sending home a grade print out next week in the homework packet so that you can review how your child is doing so far this quarter.

Math Tutoring

If your child is having problems with Math, I will be tutoring students from 3:30-4:15 on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning next week. November 18th and 20th.  The tutoring is voluntary.  The only requirements that I have are that students notify me by Tuesday that they have your permission to stay after and that you can provide them transportation home on those two days.




Spelling Lists for the Week

Spelling List
Compound Words

applesauce, bookshelf, drawbridge, horseback, sunset, foreground, seahorse, baseball, cupcake, grandparents, housework, textbook, fatherland, overstuffed, blueprint, daylight, haircut, mailbox, volleyball, eventide

Alternate List
bookshelf, horseback, sunset, baseball, cupcake, grandparents, textbook, daylight, haircut, mailbox

Challenge List

oversimplify, parkway, pushover, rowboat, roundtrip, icebreaker, doodlebug, cornstarch, anywhere, aircraft

November Events

November
11th- Veterans’ Program at  the Memorials 10:00 a.m.
14th- Reflections ‘ Awards Assembly 2:50 p.m.
26th- 28th- Thanksgiving Break (No School)

Volunteers

If you are interested in volunteering in our class, please just let me know when you are available and I would be glad to have you help in our class.

Steve Greenhalgh Contact Information steve.greenhalgh@ironmail.org
Home Phone- 586-3095 
School Phone- 586-2840



Fridays are School Spirit Day
Veterans’ Day Memorial Program
We will be singing the closing song at the Veterans’ Day Memorial Program at the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial on Tuesday, November 11th at 10:00 a.m.   The Vietnam Memorial is located by the Little League Ballparks if you would like to join us. Please make sure that you sign the permission slip in the homework folder and have it returned by tomorrow.  This will be the last permission slip that we have to send home.  In the future we will notify you of all field trips and if you object to your child attending I request that you send a note, call, or email me so that I am aware.  Thank you for supporting us on these field trips. 

S.A.G.E. Testing Results
I hope that you all had a chance to review your child’s testing results that were in last week’s homework folder.  If you have any questions, please contact me and I would be glad to meet with you.

Grade Printout Next Week
I will be sending home a grade print out next week in the homework packet so that you can review how your child is doing so far this quarter.

Math Tutoring
If your child is having problems with Math, I will be tutoring students from 3:30-4:15 on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning next week. November 18th and 20th.  The tutoring is voluntary.  The only requirements that I have are that students notify me by Tuesday that they have your permission to stay after and that you can provide them transportation home on those two days.




Spelling Lists for the Week
Spelling List
Compound Words
applesauce, bookshelf, drawbridge, horseback, sunset, foreground, seahorse, baseball, cupcake, grandparents, housework, textbook, fatherland, overstuffed, blueprint, daylight, haircut, mailbox, volleyball, eventide

Alternate List
bookshelf, horseback, sunset, baseball, cupcake, grandparents, textbook, daylight, haircut, mailbox

Challenge List
oversimplify, parkway, pushover, rowboat, roundtrip, icebreaker, doodlebug, cornstarch, anywhere, aircraft

November Events
November
11th- Veterans’ Program at  the Memorials 10:00 a.m.
14th- Reflections ‘ Awards Assembly 2:50 p.m.
26th- 28th- Thanksgiving Break (No School)

Volunteers
If you are interested in volunteering in our class, please just let me know when you are available and I would be glad to have you help in our class.

Steve Greenhalgh Contact Information steve.greenhalgh@ironmail.org
Home Phone- 586-3095 
School Phone- 586-2840



Fridays are School Spirit Day
This is just a reminder to wear your school t-shirt that the PTA gave you to promote Eagle Pride.  Also, we are striving to read 3,000,000 minutes this year so don’t forget to bring your reading calendars on Fridays.

Have a Great Week!


Thank you to all of our parents, grandparents, friends, and family that have served in the Armed Services.  We appreciate the sacrifices that you have made to help make our country such a great place to live and for the freedoms that we enjoy. 






This is just a reminder to wear your school t-shirt that the PTA gave you to promote Eagle Pride.  Also, we are striving to read 3,000,000 minutes this year so don’t forget to bring your reading calendars on Fridays.

Have a Great Week!


Thank you to all of our parents, grandparents, friends, and family that have served in the Armed Services.  We appreciate the sacrifices that you have made to help make our country such a great place to live and for the freedoms that we enjoy. 





Tuesday, November 4, 2014

November 3-7th Newsletter


Dear Parents,

Today your child should have brought home the SAGE Testing Results from their 4th Grade year.  These results were just released to us and we are now distributing them to students and their parents.  The SAGE testing Program is a different program than has been used in the past to measure learning at the end of the year.  The Scoring rubric is new.  If you have any questions about the testing, please notify me and I will explain to you the results, what they mean, or how it compares to the past End of Level Tests.  The SAGE Tests are one evaluative tool of many that we use to determine growth and understanding of the school curriculum. 

Veteran’s Day

On Veterans’ Day we will be singing the closing song at the Memorials.  The program is set to begin at 11:00.  Everyone is invited to attend.

Spelling Lists for the Week

Spelling List

aught, brought, distraught, ought, taught, bought, daughter, fought, naught, thought, caught, cough, fraught, sought, trough

Alternate List

aught, daughter, ought, fought, caught, cough, sought, taught, thought, brought

Challenge List

wealthiest, Roanoke, Chesapeake, dangerous, mosquitoes, adventures, tobacco, indentured, servants, community


Steve Greenhalgh Contact Information steve.greenhalgh@ironmail.org
Home Phone- 586-3095 
School Phone- 586-2840