Post date: Oct 24, 2015 6:0:4 AM
Dear Room 25 Families,
1. The Fall conferences of next week will be a great time for us to strengthen the parent-student-teacher triangle. It is my experience that if the kids can take the lead and choose the agenda items, they have a better conference than if they stay quiet, resigned, or ambiguous/ambivalent. To make the best use of our 25 minutes, please take a look at this list of possible topics to cover. In addition, please browse the student's online work portfolio to which you should have recieved an invitation last week. I'm looking forward to spending time with you all.
2. Science experiments should be done and all of the components should be turned in on Monday. The progress chart that the kids should be updating shows that there is a wide range of completion levels, but I'm hoping that paperwork aside, the kids have gained a good understanding of the basics of experimental design, data collection, and analysis. If nothing else emerges, it is important that they develop a discerining eye for scientific claims and a curiosity about the methods (and fallability) of the scientific process.
3. Science demonstrations are well underway and student presentations will start early this coming week. Each kid browsed a wide variety of possibility, proposed theirs, read and responded to my feedback, chose a date, and should now be collecting materials, practicing their demo, and researching the science involved.
4. I've finally read and scored all of the "My Name" essays that I received and the points for each component are all entered (separately) in PowerSchool. The pieces were all to be completed on different dates during the writing process, so the individual scores are spread out. There should be four entries at five points each (pre-write, organization, peer edits, parent edits) and two entries at 10 points each (mechanics and "effect"). The "effect" is a hard thing to define; a subjective assessment of the power, creativity, voice, complexity, and the "it-factor" quality of the kid's writing. It is in that last area that I'm hoping to get the kids to improve the most this year and to eventually feel passionate and proud about their writing. The writing coaches are doing a hard and important job and I'm expecting the kids that they work with to be more appreciative of what they have to offer and diligent about seeking their suggestions and incorporating them into their writings.
5. The kids have all made progress on their groups' Cal Coast Walkabout tour guide documents. If they learn their topic well and conduct their tours well, they will make our days out on the trail educational, entertaining, and memorable. As far as driver/chaperones go, one parent has offered to be there for Tuesday's adventures, which is great. This means that two more day-only parents are needed for Monday (DCS to HMB) and another for Wednesday pick-up near Sausalito. Could THAT be any of you?
Calendar:
October 26: Banned Books intensive starts
October 26-30: Fall conferences
November 11: Veteran's Day (no school)
November 16 to 18: Cal Coast Walkabout
November 23-27: Thanksgiving Break
December 4 (Friday): Middle School Dance
December 18 (Friday): Early dismissal
December 21 - January 10: Winter Holiday
January 18 (Monday): No School, MLK day
January 26 (Tuesday):8th grade class photo
February 5 (Friday): Semester 1 ends