Our day begins with an all-school parade in the gym at 8:15. All parents are welcome to attend this event. Students will then attend class as usual. My class party will begin at 1:30. Room parents for this party are Mrs. Carlson, Mrs. Kallis, Mr. Cowperthwaite, and Mrs. Galyon. Room parents, please come up to my room at 1:00 to help set up. I will take the kids out to recess from around 1-1:30. Parents who are providing treats or goodies, please drop them off downstairs in the morning. Thanks to everyone for the donations and support!

LANGUAGE ARTS: We will only be in Literacy class on Monday and Tuesday of this week. Mrs. Root’s and Ms. Embry’s classes will be at Keystone Wednesday-Friday. Students will be presenting their Tic-Tac-Toe projects on Monday and Tuesday. Students should be well prepared and ready to present their work.

MATH: We will only be in Math class on Monday and Tuesday of this week. Mrs. Root’s and Ms. Embry’s classes will be at Keystone Wednesday-Friday. We will review the statistical terms of mean, median, and mode. Students had some trouble with the homework last week, so it will be important for them to work through the additional problems and make sure they understand the concepts before we move on to new topics. We will also be peer editing the final draft of the children’s books.

THEME: We will continue to learn important facts about the Maya people, including  geography, culture, religion, art, architecture, food, clothing, games, recreation, and language, as well as other topics.  At this time, students...

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Parents, math classes will not meet again until November 10th. As noted on my calendar page, the trimester project is due on Wednesday, November 12th. At this point, the student should be done with the rough draft of their book. It should be edited by at least two, and preferably three peers. It should also have been edited by me at least once during the process. Please spend some time reviewing the rough draft with your student before he/she starts on the final copy. Help with the basics like spelling and punctuation. Each student needs to turn in the rough draft with peer comments along with their final copy. Please do not bind the book. I will have the covers laminated on the 12th, and then we will assemble the books with heavy staples. Students will be reading their math concept books aloud to younger Stargate students later this year. This project is worth a total of 150 points, so it will significantly impact their grade for the trimester.

Parents, we are nearing the end of the first trimester. Our class will not meet again until November 10th, due to the KSS fieldtrips. About 2/3s of the students presented their trimester book project on October 27 and 28. The remainder of the students will present on November 10. Please take a few minutes to review your student's scores on PowerSchool to make sure that all assignments have been turned in for grading. I offered an extra credit assignment this week to help boost scores. FYI, only one student took advantage of this opportunity. We will have one more assignment for this grading period. It will be an in-class assignment November 11 and 12. Thanks for your support!

Not the best picture your student has taken recently? Pictures retakes are available this Friday, October 24th. The original pictures must be returned in good condition to take advantage of this opportunity.

THEME: We will continue to learn important facts about the Maya people, including  geography, culture, religion, art, architecture, food, clothing, games, recreation, and language, as well as other topics. Students will work on their Maya ABC books this week, completing them on Friday. Students will also be introduced to the guidelines for the trimester project. Their first due date is this Thursday. This assignment is to brainstorm a list of at least five potential topics for the project. We will continue to talk about this year’s election during our Wednesday workshop, and write a letter to the President.

Halloween is Coming to Stargate!

Just a warning to all that ghostly ghoulies, Jedi knights, princesses and more will be roaming the halls of Stargate on October 31st. Kindergarten through 6th grade students will be allowed to come to school dressed up in their Halloween costumes while our middle schoolers will be allowed to get into character in the afternoon following lunch. 

 

Remember the following important costume restrictions:

 

No weaponry of any kind, including light sabers and Sherman tanks. Keep bellies and backsides appropriately covered. Masks can only be worn during the parade and class party. Did we mention the parade? Oh yes. We are going to have an elementary Halloween Parade this year and everyone is invited! You will receive more information about the parade time and route in upcoming editions of the Stargate News, and your teachers will be including details in their Monday Folders. We look forward to making October 31st a memorable kick-off...

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Mrs. Westdyke’s Class

LANGUAGE ARTS: This week, we will continue to explore the mystery genre. Students will each receive a mystery novel that they will read with a small group in class in conjunction with this topic. We will have a vocabulary quiz on Friday of this week. Students should continue to read their individual novel selections. Remember that this should be completed by October 20th, leaving students a week to complete their Tic-Tac-Toe projects.

MATH: Our first test is scheduled for this Thursday, October 16th. The test will cover all of the topics we have reviewed in Chapter 1. We will continue to practice with problem solving skills through daily Warm-Up activities. Students will work cooperatively in small groups to solve a puzzle using their collective math skills. Students will have homework a couple of nights this week.  Students will also be working on their trimester project. This is a 12-page children’s book written and illustrated by the student. They have already selected their...

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Please check the Monday folder for the required KSS documents. Each student needs to complete and return the following: KSS permission slip, KSS release, KSS medical form. and $185 payment. Many of these documents are also available for download under the "Documents" tab on the 5/6 home page.

Dear Parents,

We have added an additional field trip to this year's curriculum. This was not covered by the budget request submitted by the 5/6 team last year. Additionally, the cost of district buses has nearly doubled this year, significantly increasing our transportation expense for field trips. To help cover the cost of this additional trip, we are requesting that each student bring in $6. I will cover the rest of the expense from my classroom budget. On November 14th, my class will have a guest speaker from the DMNS who will teach us more about the rainforest and bring in samples for students to experience. In the afternoon, each student will receive and paint a Mayan artifact. I am excited about this individualized learning experience for my class. Please contact me directly if you cannot cover the $6, and we will make other arrangements. Thanks for your support!

Mrs. Westdyke