Post date: Sep 12, 2015 10:16:36 PM
Dear Room 25 Families,
The community of our classroom and school as a whole is quite amazing to me. The DCS 10th birthday celebrations, the honoring of Toni Sindelar as a teacher, the parent presentations to the class, our parent meeting Thursday evening, and the many great interactions that I get to have with the kids throughout each day are all tangible, diverse, and powerful examples of the incredible sense of community that benefit me and all of us. I appreciate each day and each relationship very much and am heavily invested in doing my part to make this year an amazing one with you and your kids.
Recap of the Week & Preview of Things to Come:
Science: The kids did a bit of research about a variety of science-related careers, investigated one in particular, and then created an online slide as a summary of their findings. The weekly curiosity slide routine has taken hold and the kids created slide number 3 this week and linked their name on this spreadsheet to their slide set. Next week the kids will start their first independent science experiments, which will involve asking specific investigable questions, learning background information, creating a hypothesis, designing & implementing an experiment, collecting and analyzing data, and communicating their findings.
Social Studies: The current events went well and I was most appreciative to have my old students Stella Ziegler and Elad Michael (via Skype), show pictures and give their impressions from their trip to Israel, Jordan, and the Dead Sea a few weeks ago. In addition, we watched more of Dances With Wolves, discussed Native American peoples, culture, and stereotypes; the kids are writing their reflections there-of before Tuesday.
This week marked the unceremonious beginning of our constitution and government intensive, but only one of our days was really devoted to that topic (learning about John Locke and the ideas that influenced the Founders). We'll get into it full-swing this coming week and I'm really hoping that the kids will engage in deep thinking and meaningful discussions about the introductory topics (meaning/need for government, State/Federal powers, and the Articles of Confederation).
English: The "My Name" essay final products got turned in (along with the edited drafts, outline, and brainstorming sheet) and I'm looking forward to reading them carefully. In addition, each kid's semi-autobiographical photo essay should be done by now but those don't need to be printed or turned in -- we'll read them online. Those two things, along with the "Aspects of Us" questions that each kid answered, will give me some knowledge about your kid as well as an initial impression regarding their writing ability. I'll focus the attention this coming week onto their experiences, thoughts, and feelings about reading in particular through a "Book I've Read" spreadsheet and a "Me As A Reader" essay.
Parent Meeting Follow-Up: I want to thank you for being so patient and participatory during the meeting on Thursday night. I felt as if I rambled and lacked clarity and/or brevity in many parts so here is a summary:
1. The curriculum calendar shows a combination of homeroom-specific topics and six intensives that all 8th graders receive.
2. The Walkabout is a 3-day hiking/exploring trip along the coast from Santa Cruz to Marin Headlands on November 16, 17, and 18. I still need 3 moms and 2 dads to be willing to come on this amazing trip -- email me if that is a possibility.
3. Our parent-teacher-student triangle of communication needs to be strong and flexible, and I'm asking you to do three things: check the daily assignment sheet with your kid each evening, take a look at grades online once per week, and discuss the newsletter items once in a while, if possible.
In that same communication realm, I'm hoping that each of you to to participate in an anonymous text-message distribution list called Remind. If you subscribe (by sending a message that says "@dcsroom25" to 81010) I will be able to text all of you at the same time, and I promise to do so only rarely and in time-sensitive situations where email won't suffice.
So, enjoy the rest of your weekends and please reply, if just to say "got it" :)
Upcoming Events:
September 15 (Teuesday): Fall Portraits
September 17 (Thursday): Middle School Math Back to School Night
September 18 (Friday): Student council forms available (due 9/25)
September 18 (Friday): International Day (4 to 7) & Star Party
September 24 (Thursday): Room 25 to Ropes Course
September 24 (Thursday) Parent 101 at Westgate Church (7 to 9)
September 25 (Friday): Middle School Dance
September 28 (Monday): Selective & Parent Workshifts start
September 30 (Wednesday): Student Council Elections
October 16 (Friday): Teacher Learning Day (no school for kids)
October 17 (Saturday): Fall Festival
October 26-30: Fall conferences
November 11: Veteran's Day (no school)
November 23-27: Thanksgiving Break
December 4 (Friday): Middle School Dance
December 18 (Friday): Early dismissal
December 21 - January 10: Winter Holiday