Ji Su, Volume 3: September 2, 2014

 What a Great Week!

First, thank you to all the families that came to Open House this past Wednesday. It was great to see new and old faces. This past week, we have really learned a lot- see all the exciting pictures below. During this coming four-day week, we will continue our learning with our first field trip to the Supermarket. This continues our study of how food is complex and presents challenges with hands on experience. Have a great week!

It was Ms. Sevara's birthday this week and we sang in our best opera voices for her!

Above: Students exploring books about food, including topics on farming, transportation, health, and more.

Above: "Two on a Crayon" Activity that helps develop our cooperation and sharing skills - particularly through positive body language! Ask about it. Our pictures came out amazing.

Above: Playing 101-200 Bingo. Mental math, followed by a calculator check. Fun!

Above: Pointing out an "arguing" thinking stem, "Can you explain that another way?" Go, Na Yeon!

Above: "Arguing" Mathematically over groups of equations.

Owl of the Week:

Hi! I am Ji Su Park. I live in Uzbekistan with my family and we have been here for 11 years. What excites me about school this year is all the new books in class and in the library. All the UOI units and all the field trips, too. Outside of school, I like to read, swim, and go to rhythmic gymnastics. Two people I admire in my life are my mom and brother because they always help me and cheer me up. If I could change anything about the world it would be nothing because everything is so great! My favorite dinner is everything my mom cooks, so I don't have anything that I don't really like.

Here is me on the Magnit field trip! So much fun!

*Homework:

Monday: No School- Uzbekistan Independence Day
Tuesday: Drops in the Bucket; make sure field trip forms are in please
Wednesday: Complete sentence practice
Thursday: Typing Ace. No games! Home row practice. Please show your parents your level of skill!

*It is expected that every child read 20 minutes nightly to improve their fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and overall reading skills. Plus, reading is fun!

*Please note: Everyday a Take-Home folder must go to and from school.

Up-coming Events:

Monday, 9/1 No School Independence day

Friday, 9/5 Elementary School Camp out (Mr. Mike will be there to enjoy the stars! You should, too!)

Monday, 9/8 After-School Activities (ASA) begin
9/20 20th Anniversary of TIS Celebration
9/24 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day
10/1 No School- Teacher's Day
10/6-1/13 No School- Fall break
10/23 Elementary Math Night
10/15 UN Day
10/29 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day

Ways to Contact Me/School:
E-mail: michaelr@tashschool.org
By appointment
Open-Door Policy (Thanks for signing in with the guards and main office before joining our community!)
Facebook
Flickr

Adli, Volume 2: September 25, 2014

What a fabulous first week!

It has been a pleasure getting to know everyone. Each student brings something unique that makes them "perfect!" I say this because our first read aloud is "How to be Perfect in just 3 Days". Hilariously, the main character Milo transforms from a person who always "tries to be perfect" to just being who himself - perfect the way he is. Great insights from our community have already been shared about being who are you, having empathy for others, and always keeping an open mind. 

Getting ready for the day

On Safari

Mystery items! 

Mingling with Ms. Tina's community

In math we have started to dig into place value and will continue our investigation with the game Close to 100 and others this week. We will focus on how to "argue" mathematically with each other, using vocabulary, listening to others thinking, and justifying our answers with multiple solutions.

In writers, we began our sourcebook and reviewed the beginning of the writing process. We will continue this and complete the writing process with our first piece of the school year inspired by the prompt: What was the greatest thing you did this summer?

Most excitingly, we begin our first Unit of Inquiry on Sharing the Planet: Food. Our central idea is providing food is complex and presents challenges. This week we had a taste of it during our traditional Uzbek tea party. We learned to never throw bread away, as it is sacred to Uzbek people. Also, to always pour just a little tea in each person's cup to ensure they will want to stay for more! Over raisins, nan (traditional Uzbek bread), and tea we also practiced some common Uzbek greetings. Students practiced bowing and saying "Assalomu Aleykum" which translates to "I wish you a good day."

Uzbek tea anyone...?

Our inquiry continues this week as we dive into books, images via our mini-ipads, and other websites. Be sure to check out our wonder wall and more during this Wednesday's Open House!

Owl of the Week: 

Hi! My name is Adli Nashashibi. I live in Uzbekistan with my mom, dad, sister, Tweet, and Butter. What excites me most about school is after-school activities. My favorite thing to do outside of school is to play on my computer. If I could change anything about the world, it would be to change war- Bows and arrows only. A person I admire is Noor because she is my sister. She is loyal. My favorite dinner is rice with meat and yogurt and my least favorite dinner is rice with meat and tomatoes.

*Homework:
Monday: Drops in the Bucket math worksheet; sign up for After-School Activities
Tuesday: Choose a piece of food from your kitchen. In your Unit of Inquiry (UOI) notebook, use that piece of food for a "See, Think, Wonder" activity of your own. See if you can come up with 3 sentences for each category! NOTE: Please bring back your UOI notebook Wednesday!
Wednesday: Close to 100 math activity; Open House 3:45 p.m.-5:00 p.m. (Presentation in Mr. Mike's room 203 with Ms. Tina- It'll be a Whoot!)
Thursday: Choose a character from your personal reading. Write about something that the character does that shows his personality. Write about whether you would like to be friends with this person or not, and why.

*It is expected that every child read 20 minutes nightly to improve their fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and overall reading skills. Plus, reading is fun!

*Please note: Everyday a Take-Home folder must go to and from school.

Up-coming Events:

Wednesday, 8/27 Open House 3:30 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

Monday, 9/1 No School Independence day

Friday, 9/5 Elementary School Camp out (Mr. Mike will be there to enjoy the stars! You should, too!)

Monday, 9/8 After-School Activities (ASA) begin
9/20 20th Anniversary of TIS Celebration
9/24 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day
10/1 No School- Teacher's Day
10/6-1/13 No School- Fall break
10/23 Elementary Math Night
10/15 UN Day
10/29 Teacher Professional Development - 1/2 Day

Ways to Contact Me/School:
E-mail: michaelr@tashschool.org
By appointment
Open-Door Policy (Thanks for signing in with the guards and main office before joining our community!)
Facebook
Flickr

4R Volume 1: August 19, 2014

Welcome & Weekly Overview
Welcome to the 4R blog, where you can keep up with all the learning and fun we are having. Be sure to check this daily/weekly for homework, what we are learning, and pictures from the week. Agendas will not be given, so homework is posted on this blog.

This week we will be rolling out our rituals and routines, going on "Safari" to learn more about the school, establishing community expectations and rules, and mingling with 4P (Ms. Tina) to build a strong grade 4 community.

In Readers, we have chosen books based on the 5 finger strategy. Ask your child about it and use it at home! Books borrowed from the library can go home and are due usually the following week. Books borrowed from our classroom library are signed out and are returned when completed. They can go home, and must return daily for our daily reading time.

In Math, we begin our Mathematical Thinking in Grade 4 book in Investigations. We will explore the base ten number system with more depth than prior years. We also took a Math Quiz to see what we remember from last year.

In Writers, we will examine the writing process and begin drafting our first piece about "The Best Thing I've Done this Summer". Students are excited to get writing! So far, I am super impressed with all their creative ideas. We also played some games with Ms. Tina's class, while we reviewed what is a complete sentence.

Our first Unit of Inquiry (UOI) is revolves around the central idea of food: How it travels from ground to plate and more. As such, we have a traditional Uzbek Tea Party this Friday morning to experience some Uzbek culture and build our community.

Owl of the Week:
There will be an Owl of the Week, or student of the week. Eventually, they will add their work and write about our learning and fun in school.

*Homework:
Monday: No School
Tuesday: Hopes and Dreams Worksheet (WS), Welcome letter, Weekly Schedule
Wednesday: My Special Thing Mystery (WS)
Thursday: Information About Me (WS) Please do only that one side:)
Friday: Come to the PTO Family Picnic
*It is expected that every child read 20 minutes nightly to improve their fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and overall reading skills. Plus, reading is fun!*Please note: Everyday a Take-Home folder must go to and from school.

Up-Coming Events:

Friday, August 22 PTO Family Picnic

Wednesday, August 27 Open House

Monday, September 1 No School Independence Day

Friday, September 5 ES Camp Out

Ways to Contact Me: 
E-mail: michaelr@tashschool.org
By appointment
Open-Door Policy (Thanks for signing in with the guards and main office before joining our community!)