Testing Week Continues

As long as I live, I will never forget last week. I've christened it: "the week that was". Due to the number of absences, our schedule has changed this week to accommodate the 18 students from the 3rd, 4th and 5th grades who will need make up tests for the ITBS. Hopefully, we will have completed all the make-up tests by tomorrow, at least that's the plan. Our regular schedule will resume on Thursday. Consequently, the Renaissance Faire Social Studies due dates are in need of revision.
This Thursday will be the first Social Studies class in a week and students will receive information on how to take notes on note cards for their research paper. Each student submitted their student interest driven topic sheet to me last Thursday. Information will be going home on Thursday regarding the length (no shorter than 3 pages and no longer than 5). I will accept no smaller than 10 font and no greater than 12 font. Additional specifications regarding format will be addressed in the packet.

In other news, three students made 100 percent on their very difficult spelling tests today. Each received a special treat from Dairy Queen. One received a vanilla milkshake and the other two received an Oreo blizzard. Nearly everyone else in the class missed only one of their challenging spelling words. My hard and fast rule is, "If I can't read it, then it's wrong". It's the incentive program to have their handwriting be legible. My 95% students received a small, delicious treat as well; but not from Dairy Queen. You might be impressed if you knew some of these SAT words that they are learning to use not only by correctly spelling them, but by learning their definitions with the ultimate goal of them using them appropriately in sentences. I am very proud of the class and the hard work they have and continue to put forth.

Today we had the delightful treat of having my friend and author, Ruston Howard, come to the school and teach writing workshops to each class. He has an amazing stage presence and literally had the students eating out of his hands. They learned a lot; but most especially we laughed until our sides hurt. He is an incredibly gifted and talented teacher/author/comedian. I can hardly wait until his novel, Sebastian Reckless and the Forces of Evil makes it to the big screen. I'll keep you posted on all the latest developments.

This Friday is Grandparents/Special Friends Day. It will begin at 1:30 and will end at 3:00. It is also Young Authors' Day. Students are busily putting the final touches on their creations. The school will display their stories, and in my class' case, novellas. The illustrations are amazing, as is the content of their stories. I know all of our special friends will thoroughly enjoy reading them. We are all looking forward to Friday. It will be a wonderful time.

Renaissance Faire...June 5th

Navigators and Explorers parents:

Here is important Social Studies information which I went over with your child last Friday.

Please, mark your calendars for the following dates:

Research Topic is due on Thursday, April 24th

Research Cards Check-up due Thursday, May 1st

Research Cards Check-up due Thursday, May 8th

Rough Draft is due Thursday, May 15th

Final Paper due Thursday, May 22

Project Board due Wednesday, June 4th

Renaissance Faire Thursday, June 5th.

A packet of information will be going home this week in the Thursday packet. Your child will have two copies of it; one to keep at home (in the Thursday packet) and the one to keep in his/her desk at school.

June 5th will be an opportunity to showcase your child's hard work with both the display board and also the research paper. It will be a fun, educational, culminating event.

ITBS TESTING DAY 1

Your child did beautifully on the first day of the ITBS. I appreciate all the parents who made sure that their child got a good night's rest and ate a balanced, nutritious breakfast. A little protein, fruit and complex carbohydrates go a long way to help your child's brain function to the best of its ability.

Due to the all morning testing, we will NOT be having our weekly spelling test tomorrow. Instead we will have it NEXT Tuesday, April 28th. I want to make sure that ALL of my Explorers receive a 100% on it. They will have had 2 whole weeks to practice their spelling words, so I expect great things from them all.

Wordly Wise Lesson #4 is due this Friday. Students have had extra days to work on this both in class and for homework. The due date is THIS Friday, April 25th.

Stay tuned to tomorrow's blog entry where I will post the June 5th Renaissance Faire information regarding your child's research paper and the project board.

ITBS Schedule

What an absolutely phenomenal experience we all had last night at Desserts and Demos. All of the Navigators were there and so were all but 3 of the Explorers. We had chemical experiments which created loud bangs, hands on projects which enabled the students to make nylon and participate in great experiments. Of course, all were excited to see the famous dry ice, magnesium and I believe hydrogen peroxide which created the awesome "Tinkerbell" effect. Unbelievable as it may seem, they even had the periodic table cupcakes along with a guest appearance of Tom Leaher. Thank you to all the parents who drove and stayed with their children during this amazing PLU Chemistry Department's annual Desserts and Demos.

I have had a request from one parent to know each day of next week's content for the ITBS test.


Here is the ITBS schedule:

Testing is from 8:30-11:30 Mon-Fri.

Monday: Vocabulary , Reading Comprehension Part 1, and Spelling

Tuesday: Reading Comprehension Part 2, Capitalization, Punctuation, Usage and Expression

Wednesday: Math Concepts and Estimation, Math
Problem Solving and Data Interpretation, and Science

Thursday: Math Computation, Social St., Maps, Reference

Friday: Word Analysis and Listening skills

Desserts and Demos

Greetings,

I'm hearing very cool things about what the PLU Chemistry Department is planning for tomorrow night! They all sound delicious.

I just wanted to clarify a couple items about Desserts and Demos. It is because this is not an official field trip (not during school hours, no permission slips), that I'll need parents to arrange with each other how the students will be getting home. Mr. G. and I will NOT be returning to Seabury after Desserts and Demos and therefore we can't wait with students to be picked up. I have heard from a few of you regarding who will be able to attend. If your child needs a ride for tomorrow evening, please let me know and I'll try and give you a contact or two.

One other item: the official hours of Desserts and Demos are 7 - 8:30pm. However, last year it went a little later than 8:30; and knowing what I know about chemists, it will probably take a little longer than they say it will again this year. I might plan on 9pm. :-)

Dessert and Demos

The PLU Chemistry Department students and faculty are hosting hands-on chemistry activities and chemical demonstrations on the evening of Wednesday April 16th from 7:00-8:30 p.m. in Rieke Science Center. The event will begin with desserts, including liquid nitrogen ice cream made on the spot, then progress to our Open Laboratory where students will have the opportunity to do several hands-on chemistry activities with faculty and students. This year our Chem Club will also debut some hydrogen and solar energy demonstrations (using model cars, etc.) purchased through a grant from the Puget Sound Section of the ACS. To bring the evening to a close, the faculty have chosen to do several favorite chemical demonstrations. If some of your students (accompanied by you or a parent or guardian) are able to come, I would appreciate a reply with an approximate count of attendees. We are inviting students from just a few local schools, and attendance is limited due to the hands-on activities. Directions to Rieke Science Center can be found at: http://www.chem.plu.edu/directions.html It would be great if you and some of your students could join us. Best wishes, Craig Fryhle Dean of Chemistry

Wonderful news! Both the Navigators and Explorers have been invited to attend the Desserts and Demos again this year. For those of you who attended last year, you know what a blast (figuratively not literally) it was! If you and your Explorer are interested in attending then please let Mr. G. or me know. I want to make certain that parents are aware that this is NOT a field trip and that PARENTS are in charge of getting their child to and from the event. I look forward to seeing you then.

On the classroom front, we have had an exciting time completing our studies of the Middle Ages and on beginning the Renaissance.

As you are no doubt aware, the Renaissance spans a 300 year period from the 1300's to the 1600's. During this time there was the "rebirth" of culture and scientific learning that changed the face of Europe. At the center of the Renaissance was Florence, Italy.

On Friday, the Explorers were treated to my slide show completing our studies of the Middle Ages and we launched into an in-depth coverage of the political structure of the Italian city states of Florence, Rome and Genoa. Students also got to use a bar of soap, Irish Spring so the room smelled minty green, and they started to "carve" a statue from their "marble" slab. The results were quite interesting. Nothing like first hand art appreciation!

In an effort to make learning come alive, today I showed the Explorers a CD entitled, "Leonardo, the Inventor, Take a Look into the Greatest Mind the World has ever Known". Feel free to check it out from your local library. In addition to fascinating interactive information on Leonardo da Vinci, students were also able to "see" some of his inventions in a 3 d display. Also, the CD had an interactive game of answering questions in a Treasure Hunt which proved quite challenging. So when your child tells you this evening that Mrs. Gellert played video games all day in class, trust me when I say I did show them some cool educational interactive ones with very challenging questions.

Mark Your Calendars !

Here's what's happening this month:


On Thursday, April 10th, acclaimed children's author, Brenda Z. Guiberson, will be our "Artist in Residence". She will be presenting an interactive slide show and then will teach an intensive Writer's Workshop for the Navigators and Explorers. Parents are invited to attend if they wish.


Here's a bit of a bio on Ms. Guiberson from her website: http://www.brendazguiberson.com


"Brenda has been writing and illustrating children's books for over 15 years. Though she did not imagine becoming an author as a child, she did relish the idea of studying animals and exploring remote jungles.
Her fascination with science as a student now shines through as young readers explore everything from chattering rainforests to the inside of a cactus to the solitude of a lighthouse. Brenda's books combine the beauty of language and art with valuable lessons important to our connection not only with each other but the world around us."

Scholastic Book Fair: This Thursday-Saturday will be our annual Spring Scholastic Book Fair. If you so desire, you may have your Explorer bring money into school to purchase his/her wish list items. The book fair will be open after school on both Thursday and Friday and then during the day on Saturday.

From April 21-25, Explorers will be taking their standardized ITBS tests. Testing will begin promptly at 8:30 and will end around 11:00 each day. Please make sure that your child has a good night's sleep and has a great, nutritious breakfast each morning. Many thanks in advance.

In the afternoon of April 23rd, we are so pleased to announce that we will be having a Lewis and Clark Living History persona, Garry Bush, who will be presenting his first person program as Toussaint Charbonneau, Sacagawea's husband, from the Lewis and Clark expedition. Mr. Bush, in 2004, completed the National Park Service’s Camp of Instruction at Fort Clatsop and is certified as a First-Person Living History Presenter.

Mr. Bush has presented Toussaint Charbonneau and Jean Baptiste “Pomp” Charbonneau along the Missouri River from Fort Mandan to the Rocky Mtns., across the Lolo Trail, down the Snake and Columbia Rivers to Fort Clatsop. From large theaters and the National Park Service’s Tent of Many Voices, to “one on one” presentations in front of all age groups, the "Charbonneau family” has been well represented along the Lewis & Clark Trail. Acclaimed as one of the best “first person interpreters” in the nation, Garry brings history alive for his audiences.

The Explorers will be attending his presentation from 12:30 until 1:30. Parents and grandparents are encouraged to attend if they so choose.Here's a bit of a preview:

Garry has said the following: "I will be bringing over 40 animal furs / 15 of which L&C were the first to document -all to be touched by the kids * -replicas of the trade goods associated with the 1800-1830's (to be handled) * -Soiux buffalo spirit skull 1806 / Full buffalo robe * -Huge 2 yr old grizzly (just the fur) / wolf skin * -The kids will be speaking Plains Indian Sign language by the time they leave. I promise you the kids will be talking about Charbonneau for days after he has left."

It should be a memorable presentation.

Just a quick note that on May 2nd we will have our annual Grandparents Day which this year will also be our Young Authors' Day presentation. There will be more on this later.

I hope this helps you to be able to mark the above dates on your calendar. As I hear about more, I will let you know.








HOMEWORK UPDATE:

Wordly Wise is due this Friday. Students received over an hour of instruction on the Wordly Wise yesterday with individualized instruction on the answers in each section. Additional class time will be allocated on Wednesday and Thursday for the class to complete it. There should not be any need for any last minute jitters to complete this packet on time.
Spelling words were handed out today. The Spelling test will be on Tuesday of next week.

It's All Happening At The ZOO

Tomorrow we will be going to the Woodland Park Zoo for an all school fieldtrip. We will depart Seabury no later than 8:30 and we will return to Seabury around 2:30. Please make sure your Explorer is dressed appropriately for rain (OPI clothing, perhaps?). Your child is to come to school tomorrow with a sack lunch, a disposable drink and a snack. Your Explorer is growing! It will be a fun filled educational day where we will have numerous workshops in the zoo's educational center. I know your child will have much to tell you about the symbiotic connection between animals and their environment, most especially man's impact on it.