Post date: Sep 25, 2010 6:43:31 AM
Dear Parents and Students,
Our daily and weekly class schedules have steadied into solid routines and the kids are doing great work in science. During most class periods there are a variety of activities occurring simultaneously as well as in sequence. This week in English the students did peer editing on each others Reader Profile essay and began working on the writing assignment for Bridge to Terabithia chapter 7 as well as completed an online grammar activity and played a vocabulary game (Fictionary). In science we finished up our work with metric measurement, did an Attribute Activity that strengthened students observation skills, and worked on writing the procedures for their individual experiments.
With each activity the students progress at different rates and with varying levels of intensity, but my priority is to keep each engaged, productive, and challenged. Some students get right to work and are fairly independent and others take a bit more time and prodding to get onto the tasks at hand -- which is usually fine. One concern that I have, though, is that with this diversified schedule and flexible progression comes a need for a high level of follow-through on the students' part. For any assignment there will be a reasonable amount of class time dedicated to that assignment, but at some point introduce the class on to the next endeavor, and after a while, those who haven't finished the previous one will have to finish it up on their own (either at home or during other class time). The "Dat-to-Day" grid on the back wall (as well as my verbal and posted reminders) should keep the students aware of and accountable for all assignments, but I'm getting concerned that some are slipping.
The fact that the grades feature on PowerSchool is now up and running will help you and I and the students to keep close tabs on their progress and areas for possible improvement. Today letters to you with user names and passwords were given to the students at the beginning of the day. As of tonight I've posted about 8 assignments in science but none in English. Over the weekend I'll be scoring the comp books that were turned in today as well as many of their reader profiles on their websites. The volume of assignments in English is lower than in science, so the importance of each is comparatively higher. I'll try to establish and maintain a quick turnover rate regarding grading assignments and posting scores because any assignment does have a limited "shelf life" and since the curriculum is progressive, it is to a student's advantage to stay current and self-accountable. Parent assistance, if possible, is often helpful. Please spend about 10 minutes twice a week viewing the daily schedule and grading pages of my website with your student as well as taking a look at their scores posted on PowerSchool.
I'm hoping that next week will be another solid and fun week of engagement and productivity. The next science unit will begin (Forces and Motion), and we'll be finishing up our current book and getting ready to read The Hunger Games together and to begin small group parent-run literature discussion groups.
I'm looking forward to seeing many of you at Parent 102 night Wednesday. Until then, please write me a note to let me know how things are going for your student and/or you regarding science and/or English. I appreciate the dialog -- the parent-student-teacher connection is certainly a crucial nutrient in life blood of DCS!
Sincerely,
Chris Heumann
PS. Another tech-tool has been set up in our room. On Thursday afternoon I finally set up and wired in my interactive whiteboard, and have begun to investigate its potential with the students. Although we are still at the initial exploration stage, I'm eager to utilize its vast educational capabilities.