Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

5/22/09

 

Dear Parents,

        This week we have continued learning about ponds and streams.  We did an experiment this week that focused on how nutrients and pollutants enter the water.  The students learned that nutrients enter the water from the soil and decaying plants.  These nutrients provide food for the plants that live in the ponds, lakes, and rivers.  We used powdered paint to represent pollutants and they saw how pollutants can be washed into the water after it rains or the snow melts.  We talked about how these pollutants are harmful to the plants and wildlife that live in and around the water. 

        The students are continuing to work on their Native American reports.  We have been learning about how important the buffalo were to the Plains Indians.  We also learned a couple of new Plains Indian games that we were able to play outside.

        Today the students wrote a persuasive essay about why they should not have any more homework this school year.  Due to their writing efforts and their persuasive arguments, I will not be assigning any homework for the remainder of the school year.

 

Dates to remember:

5/26/09 – Four Winds

5/27/09 – 2:15 pm – Band and Chorus Assembly

5/28/09 – Field trip to Mill River Lumber Yard – I still need permission slips from a few students.

 

Have a great long weekend!

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

5/8/09

Dear Parents,

            This week we have continued our study of Native Americans.  We have begun learning about the Plains tribes.  We have read about the responsibilities of men, women, and children within the tribe and have compared those responsibilities to those in the Woodland tribes.  We have found that in the Plains tribes more responsibilities were share by men and women.  Women even occasionally became warriors.  The students also learned about the significance of a warrior’s shield.  The warriors in a Plains tribe felt that the magic that went into the design on the shield protected them more than the shield itself.  Each student designed their own shield and we have them hanging on our classroom.

            I have also introduced the students to their next writing topic.  Each student will be writing a report on a Native American tribe.  I have gone over what information needs to be included in the report and will give the students class time to research and write.  Each student also needs to create a poster to accompany the report.  I will give class time for this also, but students may need some time at home to complete the assignment. 

            We will be going on a field trip to Mill River Lumber on Thursday, May 28.  We will have a tour of the business and then we will stay and eat our lunches there if the weather cooperates.  I will send home permission slips next week.  We really need to stress the importance of safety and good listening skills during this field trip.  Let me know on the permission slip if you would like to chaperone.  The tour will begin at 10:00 and will last for about an hour or so. 

Dates to Remember:

5/20 & 5/21: Science NECAP testing for 4^th graders

5/26: Four Winds

5/28: Field Trip to Mill River Lumber

Have a great weekend!  Happy Mother’s Day!

 

 

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

4/24/09

 

Dear Parents,

        This week the students have been preparing to take the science NECAP test.  This is a test that will be given in May to students in fourth grade around the state.  Although it is only the fourth graders that will take the test this year, the third graders also took the practice test to see what they will be doing next year.  I am pleased to say that the students did very well on the practice test.  I think it will help their confidence when it is time for the actual test.  We have not chosen a date for the test, but as soon as we do I will let you know.

        We also celebrated Earth Day in the classroom.  The students read about Earth Day and created a bulletin board with their ideas on what they could each do to help our environment.  We were also able to plant flower seeds on Earth Day thanks to a donation by Vicki Bushee. 

        In writing this week the students worked on adding details to their writing.  We did an activity that had them use their five senses to brainstorm a list of adjectives about an object.  They had to write a topic sentence, three sentences with details, and a concluding sentence.  They did a fantastic job.  Even other teachers that heard their work were impressed. 

        On a different note, it has been reported that gum has been found stuck to objects in the school.  As a result we have lost the privilege of chewing gum in the classroom.

 

Dates to Remember:

4/28: Four Winds and students will be dismissed at noon.

4/29: School will begin at 10:15

5/5: Mrs. Maxham will be at a grade level meeting

 

Have a nice weekend!

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

4/10/09

 

Dear Parents,

        We have had a very busy week this week.  On Tuesday we had Four Winds.  Our focus was the water cycle.  The students were able to do some fun experiments to explore the properties of water and learn about evaporation, condensation, and precipitation.   We were able to see one experiment called the volcano.  This experiment illustrated the idea that the warmer the water the quicker the water molecules are moving.  The quicker the water molecules are moving the more space is created for other things like food coloring.  Ask your child what happened to the cold blue water that was put into the jar of warm water during this experiment.

        In social studies this week we learned about the Cherokee syllabary created by Sequoyah.  Sequoyah created the syllabary for the Cherokee because he hoped that reading and writing would help the Cherokee develop a stronger government and gain more respect.  The reason why it is called a syllabary instead of an alphabet is it is made up of 85 symbols and each symbol stands for one syllable.  Not all English letters or sounds translate directly into Cherokee.  We had fun using the syllabary to try to figure out what our English names would be in Cherokee.    

 

Dates to remember:

4/13-4/17 – No School

4/28 -  School will be dismissed at 12:00

4/29 – School will begin at 10:15

 

Have a great April vacation!

 

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

3/6/09

 

Dear Parents,

       On Thursday of this week the students learned about the characteristics of air during our Four Winds presentation.  The students participated in experiments called Pop the Top, Air Pocket, and Scrambled Eggs.  In these experiments they learned that air under pressure pushes outward with great force, air takes up space, and air pressure inside a bottle decreases as the air cools.  It was a lot of fun.  The students also got to make their own mini parachutes which demonstrated how air trapped in a parachute slows the speed of a falling object.  They were very creative with their parachute designs.

       We have continued reading Cave of Falling Water.  This week we have begun reading about Mattie.  She is a girl that lives during colonial times.  She and her family have just moved to the New Hamphire grants (Vermont) and are busy planting crops and getting their home in order.  While out for a walk, she discovers a cave with pictures and a jar of maize.  As we continue to read, we will find out if Mattie will add something of her own to the cave.  

 

Dates to remember:

3/19/09: Parent / Teacher Conferences

3/20/09: No School – Teacher Inservice

 

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

2/27/09

 

 

Dear Parents,

          I would like to thank Jeff Fleming for talking to our class about electricity.  The students had many questions about his work as an electrician and his experiences with electricity.  He also brought in a special treat for them.  Cupcakes were frosted and arranged to look like a light bulb.  The students enjoyed asking questions and seeing some of the tools that he uses with his work.  The cupcakes were delicious too!

          This week both classes have begun reading Cave of Falling Water by Janice Ovecka.  Janice Ovecka is a Vermont author and you may remember her as the author of The Captive of Pittsford Ridge which we read last year.  Cave of Falling Water is a book that is set in  Vermont during three different time periods.  During each time period we will learn about a different culture through the eyes of a young girl.  Throughout the book there is one place that the girls can go to escape their troubles, the Cave of Falling Water.   This week we have read about Woni, an Abenaki, whose tribe is dealing with disease, death, and the threat of losing its way of life due to the influence of the white man.  She and her friend, Hawk, have just discovered the cave and have decided to name it Cave of Falling Water after their friend who died.  This book will take us about three weeks to complete.  During that time, the students will not have spelling homework or tests.  They may have reading assignments to complete or other language arts homework. 

          The reading genre for next month will be non-fiction.  This will be the last month that students can earn a Pizza Hut certificate for a free personal pan pizza. 

 

Have a good weekend!

 

 

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

1/30/09

 

Dear Parents,

            This week we have continued learning about the Woodland Indians.  We talked about what their clothing must have been like in order to live in the Northeast.  Next week we will learn about how Native Americans used symbols to write things down instead of words.  The students will look at some Native American symbols, create their own symbols, and then write about a day in the life of a Woodland Indian using only symbols.  This should be a fun activity.

            We are continuing to build up to writing narratives.  This week the students learned about action chains.  An action chain is a series of three closely related, sequential events written in one sentence.  For example, we took the sentence: I fell down the stairs, and rewrote it as an action chain: I caught my toe on the rug, pitched forward, and tumbled down the stairs.  We talked about how the action chain made the writing more interesting because the reader could have a clearer picture of the action in his/her mind.  You can practice creating action chains at home.  Along with writing a narrative next month, each student is expected to write a response to literature on a fictional book.  This assignment is a homework assignment and is due on February 24.  Each student has the format for writing a response to literature in his/her writing notebook.  I will post a copy of the format on the class website as well.  We have gone over the format for character analysis, but your child is welcome to try writing about the author’s craft instead if he/she prefers.    

            The genre for next month’s reading is folktale.  A folktale is a story, legend, or tall tale that was handed down by word of mouth.  I will have some folktales available in class.  I also found a website that has folktales available on it to print.  The address is:   http://www.americanfolklore.net/  .

            Lastly, our class will have a Valentine’s Day party on Friday, February 13.  On the back of this newsletter you will find a class list.  I only ask that if your child decides to bring in Valentines then he or she brings them in for the whole class.  If you would like to bring in a snack for the party then that would be appreciated.  Healthy snacks like pretzels, popcorn, crackers, or fruits and veggies would be best.  Please let me know if you are thinking of sending something in.  

 

Dates to remember:

2/6: Mrs. Maxham is at a conference

2/13: No skiing – blacked out day – Valentine’s Day party

2/16 – 2/20: Winter Recess

 

 

Have a nice weekend!

 

 

 

 

Tess

Nick B.

Sandra

Zach

Ben

John

Nick W.

 

Ella

Dillan

Calli

Kierstin

Thaddeus

Melissa

Sarah

Wyatt

Seamus

Kassidy

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

1/23/08

 

Dear Parents,

       This week the students had the opportunity to learn about sound during 4 Winds.  They learned that sound is a vibration that our ears hear and then the information is sent to our brains through the auditory nerve.  Our brains interpret the sound and let us know what we are listening to.  This all happens so quickly that we don’t even realize all of the steps that are involved.  Ask your child if he/she remembers how fast sound travels (1,100 feet per second).  We were also able to do some fun experiments and go outside to listen for the sounds around us.  We learned about the decibel scale and talked about how we shouldn’t turn the volume all the way up on things like Ipods or MP3 players because the sound could actually damage our ability to hear.  The students had a great time with this lesson and learned a lot too.

       We have also begun our next science unit, electricity and magnetism.  The students had a chance to experiment with a battery, a light bulb, and a wire.  Their task was to create a closed circuit so that the light bulb would light up.  They did a great job with this and found that there was more than one way to complete this task. 

 

Dates to remember:

1/26 – Mrs. Maxham is out at a grade level meeting

2/13 – No skiing – blacked out date

2/16 – 2/20 – Winter Recess

 

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

1/16/09

Dear Parents,

            This week we finished our Solar System unit.  The students presented their planet brochures, finished their packets, and took the test.  It was a busy week.  The next science unit will be electricity and magnetism which we will begin next week.  The students are also learning about the Woodland Indians.  They used natural landmarks and an atlas to map the Woodland Indian territory and they learned about how responsibilities were divided within the tribe. The majority of the class felt that dividing responsibilities helped foster cooperation within the tribe.   

            In writing, the students are learning about writing a narrative.  A narrative is a story which is written in first person, has a problem, and a resolution to the problem.  We read The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash and talked about the different elements of a narrative.  We will continue to do mini lessons on the parts of a narrative which will eventually lead to the students writing narratives of their own. 

 

Dates to Remember:

1/19: No School

1/23: Skiing at Okemo begins – weather permitting

1/26: Mrs. Maxham is at a grade level meeting

             

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Maxham’s Newsletter

12/5/08

 

Dear Parents,

        This week we have continued our study of the Solar System.  Each student has chosen a planet and, with a partner, he or she will create a travel brochure for that planet.  The students need to mention interesting facts about their planet, the size and temperature of their planet, and add illustrations.  In addition, we will be performing a little play about the Solar System.  We are hoping to perform in front of the whole school.  I will let you know when we will be doing the performance in the next newsletter.  Your child should have brought home his or her part for the play this week so that he or she can have it memorized for the performance. 

        This month’s genre for reading is poetry.  Each student is required to read at least ten poems.  We have many poetry books in the classroom and the students seem to be enjoying them.

        We are planning on having our class holiday party on the morning of December 19.  The students won’t be exchanging gifts with each other, but can bring in a treat for the class to share.  If you are planning on bringing in a snack that day, please let me know so that I can pick up anything additional that we may need.  Also, I request that students do not bring in any individual gifts for me.  If you would like to do something, you can get a gift for the classroom, such as a book or a game.  In this way, your child, the class, and the school will benefit. 

 

Dates to Remember:

        12/9: Winter Concert

        12/18: PTO White Elephant Sale

        12/19: Class Holiday Party

 

Have a great weekend!