Re. This Week's Buzz....

Dear Parents,

We are well underway already!  We've been busy creating  and sharing "Summer Sandwiches", writing Bio Poems, learning and demonstrating the Lifelong Life Skills and Lifelong Guidelines in our daily Town Hall Meetings, using base ten blocks to represent and count numbers up through 10,000, playiing Spelling Bingo, creating a personalized "Marble Journal" for writing,  and much more.  I feel great about the "community" building that we've been doing each day.  Students are working in groups, collaborating and it's so interesting to see because they feel so successful when they are able to accomplish a task together! 

I wanted to say a GRAND "THANK YOU" to all of you for your donations to our class!  It's a big help, and so appreciated.  A special "thank you" to Ms. Tribble for creating and donating place value game boards for our math game!  Mrs. Knowlton donated a large, lush plant as well!  It makes us feel so much closer to nature!  Anyone have any birds?!  (Just kidding!) 

A few important reminders:  Our class is split for Specials.  I provided an August calendar for each student, but will require that they each keep up with their own rotation.  This is something that they can do.  If there are any problems, please just let me know and we can get them back on track with that.

I cannot stress enough the importance of your going over daily homework with your child.  We are finishing up Chapter 1 in Math and the graded packet will come home for them to study for next Tuesday's test.  Some assignments were more difficult, as grades will indicate.  Remember, these in-class assignments coincide with the homework in that Reteach Workbook they bring home every night.  This is where you can help them nightly.  Just make sure that they understand how to do the problems in the workbook.  It's what we did in class that day, and this will reinforce my lesson.  Thanks for that!

Please send in an old sock for your child to use right away.  This is for our class Math slates.  This is in keeping with the "going green" theme.  That way we won't have to use paper. 

Don't forget to send that Green Behavior Sheet back each Monday signed!  This is how you can support my efforts in teaching appropriate behavior and responsibility.  Students who do not come back with this signed will need to go to study hall instead of recess until it's returned.  Please do not take responsibility for their forgetting it.  It puts me in an awkward position in trying to be fair to everyone.  Thanks!

All summer reading projects are due now.  This is for those couple of students who are telling me that they're almost finished and that they are planning to still turn one in.  I need to email PTA with the final list by the 25th.  Please send in before then if you are planning to do so.

From PTA:  The Community Outreach School Supply Drive is the week of August 25-29.  Students please bring in backpacks, 3 ring binders, calculators, subject dividers, and notebook paper.  Basic toiletry items such as shampoo, toothpaste, and soap are needed.  You can drop off donations in the bins near the cafeteria.  This collection drive will benefit the Center for Children and Young Adults which is located here in Cobb County www.umbrellaweb.org.  This drive is sponsored by PTA Community Outreach.  For more info.  and list of items needed please go to the PTA blog at http://sopecreeklibrary.typepad.com/pta/information.

Sorry so long!!  Have a wonderful weekend.  Attached is the newsletter for the week of Aug. 25-29. Download august25newsletter.doc