We have started our first writing piece here in Room 16 and student's parents and families can help. The students are working on Personal Narratives (true stories about themselves) and are in the brainstorming stage. They have come up with lists of moments in their lives that are memorable by thinking of people, places, and objects that are important to them. Ask your child about the moments they have chosen. The best way for you to help them is to talk to them about these moments and memories. You may recall a detail they had forgotten, or you may give them a new perspective. We will continue working on this writing piece for approx. 3 more weeks, so continually talk to your child about what they are writing. Sometimes letting them tell you their story, helps them write more in class. Happy chatting!
Ms. Sapello
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Welcome Back!
I just wanted to take a moment to welcome everyone back for the 2013-2014 school year. I'm definitely looking forward to a wonderful, exciting year. This year I will be sending out updates via text message in addition to this blog. If you would like to receive these updates, please send the following message:
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
We're more than half way done!
We are now into the third marking period here at Mennies and we still have a lot of work ahead of us. Though the work is getting harder I am confident that if students try their best, they can do it!
Here are some upcoming lessons to look forward to:
Reading- We will be continuing in fiction with an author study of Patricia Polacco before moving on to more nonfiction texts.
Writing- We will be showing our opinions related to things we are learning in science and social studies.
Math- We are still working on angles and 2D shapes. After that we will move on to multiplication with 2 and 3 digit numbers.
Science- We will take a look at matter, force, and motion.
Be on the look out for some at-home projects too!
Here are some upcoming lessons to look forward to:
Reading- We will be continuing in fiction with an author study of Patricia Polacco before moving on to more nonfiction texts.
Writing- We will be showing our opinions related to things we are learning in science and social studies.
Math- We are still working on angles and 2D shapes. After that we will move on to multiplication with 2 and 3 digit numbers.
Science- We will take a look at matter, force, and motion.
Be on the look out for some at-home projects too!
Monday, November 12, 2012
Reading Journals
Starting on Tuesday, students will be introduced to new reading response journals. Third grade students should be reading 20-30 minutes every night. Now I want them to keep track of their thoughts and ideas while reading. I will be assigning reading passages in chapter books and students will have guidelines in the front of their RRJ for entries. These entries should give insight into the student's thinking and be written neatly and carefully. This journal will be graded! I genuinely look forward to reading the journals.
Also this week, students will receive a new literature circle book and partner. They will be reading this book for a longer period of time and will need to work with their partner on an in class note style reading log. The students will also meet in groups to discuss what they have been reading and their thoughts they have recorded. This will also count as a grade.
Back to school tomorrow!
Also this week, students will receive a new literature circle book and partner. They will be reading this book for a longer period of time and will need to work with their partner on an in class note style reading log. The students will also meet in groups to discuss what they have been reading and their thoughts they have recorded. This will also count as a grade.
Back to school tomorrow!
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Hurricane Sandy
I hope everyone made out well during Hurricane Sandy. It could have been much worse and I am thankful that it didn't devastate our area like it could have. Hopefully the kids enjoyed their extended weekend and are ready to get back to work. Just as a reminder: This week is supposed to be pretty cold (low 50s all week) please make sure your child is dressed appropriately. Thank you!
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
End of October Update!
It feels like I have not blogged in so long! I will start out with a few general reminders.
*Wednesday Folders- This year the Wednesday folders are part of the homework folder, but they still need to be signed. This is where all graded papers are returned and your signature shows that you have seen the grades as well as all the other informative flyers.
* Please remember to sign agendas every night as this is the main form of communication between school and home.
* Please check agendas for reminders, especially which days we have gym. Students lose credit for not having appropriate shoes and attire.
Since I know many students inform their parents that they do "nothing" in school everyday, I will fill you in:
We have been working on reading nonfiction text and identifying main idea, details, text features, and learning how to ask and answer questions. The students have really been doing a lot of work and it is harder than what they are used. I am confident that as the year goes on they will get better. In the next few days we will be moving on to a new topic in reading: Fables, Folktales, and Myths. I feel this will be interesting to the students and they will hopefully want to read more. I definitely encourage all parents to have their child read every night and talk to them about what they read.
We are also tying in our Writing and Social Studies units. In Social Studies we are reading about communities and their cultures. You may have had your child come home and ask you about a tradition you have in your culture. This is for our essays in writing. Every student is writing an opinion essay about a family tradition. I hope that you can talk to your child about their traditions and what your feelings are or even how they got started.
In Math we have moved on to Unit 2 which is all about adding and subtracting. Please practice basic addition and subtraction facts with your child. They need to know these from emory, not counting on fingers. This can even be done during a car ride- call out the fact and have them answer as quickly as possible. Make it a game!
This week we will also celebrate Halloween. I have decided that since we are discussing cultures and traditions, that we will do some activities from the Day of the Dead (Dia de Los Muertos) tradition as well. Look for more information in homework folders about this week's activities. I will post pictures next week!
*Wednesday Folders- This year the Wednesday folders are part of the homework folder, but they still need to be signed. This is where all graded papers are returned and your signature shows that you have seen the grades as well as all the other informative flyers.
* Please remember to sign agendas every night as this is the main form of communication between school and home.
* Please check agendas for reminders, especially which days we have gym. Students lose credit for not having appropriate shoes and attire.
Since I know many students inform their parents that they do "nothing" in school everyday, I will fill you in:
We have been working on reading nonfiction text and identifying main idea, details, text features, and learning how to ask and answer questions. The students have really been doing a lot of work and it is harder than what they are used. I am confident that as the year goes on they will get better. In the next few days we will be moving on to a new topic in reading: Fables, Folktales, and Myths. I feel this will be interesting to the students and they will hopefully want to read more. I definitely encourage all parents to have their child read every night and talk to them about what they read.
We are also tying in our Writing and Social Studies units. In Social Studies we are reading about communities and their cultures. You may have had your child come home and ask you about a tradition you have in your culture. This is for our essays in writing. Every student is writing an opinion essay about a family tradition. I hope that you can talk to your child about their traditions and what your feelings are or even how they got started.
In Math we have moved on to Unit 2 which is all about adding and subtracting. Please practice basic addition and subtraction facts with your child. They need to know these from emory, not counting on fingers. This can even be done during a car ride- call out the fact and have them answer as quickly as possible. Make it a game!
This week we will also celebrate Halloween. I have decided that since we are discussing cultures and traditions, that we will do some activities from the Day of the Dead (Dia de Los Muertos) tradition as well. Look for more information in homework folders about this week's activities. I will post pictures next week!
Monday, September 24, 2012
Writing Journals
Every week the students have been writing two entries in their personal writing journals. This was tough for many of the students in the very beginning since many of them have never written in an "unprompted" journal before. I gave the students some guidelines as to what to write about and how much they must write. Even with this help I still received basic summaries from most students about what they did that evening or in school the day before. I wrote a post-it in every child's journal to give them praise and to suggest what they may include the next time. Still I received very much the same outcome.
I decided that the students needed more than just a few discussions and post-it notes. They needed to see and read what I was looking for, so I shard a few entries from my own personal journal.
The kids were so excited and many of them had their own memories or stories that sparked in their heads. I am happy to say that after this "show-and-tell", I have seen a few bright sparks that show promise. I have asked a few students if I may share their entries with the class (once I have their permission, I will share them on here as well).
Overall, I just wanted to let everyone know how it's going with our personal journals. I would also like to ask parents to encourage their child to take their journal everywhere. You never know when a moment might occur that is worth writing down! Have a great night and keep journaling!
I decided that the students needed more than just a few discussions and post-it notes. They needed to see and read what I was looking for, so I shard a few entries from my own personal journal.
The kids were so excited and many of them had their own memories or stories that sparked in their heads. I am happy to say that after this "show-and-tell", I have seen a few bright sparks that show promise. I have asked a few students if I may share their entries with the class (once I have their permission, I will share them on here as well).
Overall, I just wanted to let everyone know how it's going with our personal journals. I would also like to ask parents to encourage their child to take their journal everywhere. You never know when a moment might occur that is worth writing down! Have a great night and keep journaling!
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Some Helpful Information
First, I would like to thank those parents that attended Back to School Night. I appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedules to learn more about your child's education. Today all other children should have taken home some information that was passed out during BSN. I will attach the information here so that it is easier to read than on the handout. If there are any questions regarding this information please let me know!
Here is what was discussed last evening:
Daily Classroom Schedule
9:05-9:30 ………………………Enter(late bell 9:20), Morning Work
9:30-9:50……………………….Read Aloud
9:50-10:35……………………..Reading Workshop:
(Ind. Reading, Strategy Groups, Conferences, Computers)
10:35-10:50……………………Message Time Plus, Centers
10:55-11:35……………………Specials (See below for rotation)
11:35-12:20……………………Writer’s Workshop:
(Independent Writing, Conferences)
12:20-1:05……………………..Recess/Lunch
1:05-1:20……………………….Word Study
1:20-2:30……………………….Math Workshop
2:30-3:05……………………….Science or Social Studies
3:05-3:30……………………….Health/P.E.
3:30-3:40……………………….Prepare for dismissal
Specials Rotation
Day 1- Music Day 4- Spanish
Day 2- Library Day 5- Computers
Day 3- Phys. Ed. (Wear sneakers!) Day 6- Art
Grading:
Students will be graded in all subjects using the district
grading policy (attached in your packet).
Homework:
Monday through Thursday students will have Spelling, Math, and Reading or writing homework. Homework will be checked every day. If it is to be graded, I will let students know ahead of time. I do not give lunch detention for missing homework; it will effect their homework grade and they will have to complete it over the weekend. If students are absent they will have the same number of days to complete missing work. If you know your child will be absent, I can prepare work to do at home.
Behavior:
Students will be expected to follow the Mennies Code of Conduct and school rules as well. I will communicate via agenda primarily, and I like to take care of problems immediately. On Fridays, you will receive a Class Dojo behavior report. This report will show how many points they received during the week for positive behaviors as well as how many points they lost for negative behaviors. This should be signed and returned on Monday.
We will no longer use the Harcourt Anthology to read a story each week. This will be replaced with Reading Workshop which allows students to develop reading skills while working with text at their independent level. Students will have reading and writing conferences, as well as strategy groups. Each week students will read independently, read with a partner, use computer programs, and participate in read-alouds.
Writing will be done in units of study and students will learn a new skill or strategy each day. Rubrics will be used to grade writing. Also students will be writing in personal journals at home. There are now guidelines in the front of every journal as to what is expected. The purpose of these journals is to help develop writing skills as well as allowing students to have a resource for ideas in class.
Spelling is being replaced with Word Study. Students will spend their time looking at spelling patterns within words and learn how and when they are used. Each week they will be given a pretest which will determine if they receive the regular word list or the challenge word list. They will study 10 words for homework. On Friday they will be tested on their 10 words plus 10 words they have not studied which have the same spelling patterns (to show if they mastered the pattern, not just memorized words). They will also study 5 high frequency words that they must use in a sentence on their test.
Students will be doing a lot of projects this year. Some will be in school and some at home. You will not receive many worksheets for grades. I like to use assessments and projects that show student mastery of skills.
Also on the sidebar that says "Helpful Links" I will link to websites that students and parents may use during the school year to assist with homework and other issues.
I hope this is helpful for everyone and that I will see a lot of traffic on our blog! Have a wonderful evening.
Here is what was discussed last evening:
Daily Classroom Schedule
9:05-9:30 ………………………Enter(late bell 9:20), Morning Work
9:30-9:50……………………….Read Aloud
9:50-10:35……………………..Reading Workshop:
(Ind. Reading, Strategy Groups, Conferences, Computers)
10:35-10:50……………………Message Time Plus, Centers
10:55-11:35……………………Specials (See below for rotation)
11:35-12:20……………………Writer’s Workshop:
(Independent Writing, Conferences)
12:20-1:05……………………..Recess/Lunch
1:05-1:20……………………….Word Study
1:20-2:30……………………….Math Workshop
2:30-3:05……………………….Science or Social Studies
3:05-3:30……………………….Health/P.E.
3:30-3:40……………………….Prepare for dismissal
Specials Rotation
Day 1- Music Day 4- Spanish
Day 2- Library Day 5- Computers
Day 3- Phys. Ed. (Wear sneakers!) Day 6- Art
Grading:
Students will be graded in all subjects using the district
grading policy (attached in your packet).
Homework:
Monday through Thursday students will have Spelling, Math, and Reading or writing homework. Homework will be checked every day. If it is to be graded, I will let students know ahead of time. I do not give lunch detention for missing homework; it will effect their homework grade and they will have to complete it over the weekend. If students are absent they will have the same number of days to complete missing work. If you know your child will be absent, I can prepare work to do at home.
Behavior:
Students will be expected to follow the Mennies Code of Conduct and school rules as well. I will communicate via agenda primarily, and I like to take care of problems immediately. On Fridays, you will receive a Class Dojo behavior report. This report will show how many points they received during the week for positive behaviors as well as how many points they lost for negative behaviors. This should be signed and returned on Monday.
We will no longer use the Harcourt Anthology to read a story each week. This will be replaced with Reading Workshop which allows students to develop reading skills while working with text at their independent level. Students will have reading and writing conferences, as well as strategy groups. Each week students will read independently, read with a partner, use computer programs, and participate in read-alouds.
Writing will be done in units of study and students will learn a new skill or strategy each day. Rubrics will be used to grade writing. Also students will be writing in personal journals at home. There are now guidelines in the front of every journal as to what is expected. The purpose of these journals is to help develop writing skills as well as allowing students to have a resource for ideas in class.
Spelling is being replaced with Word Study. Students will spend their time looking at spelling patterns within words and learn how and when they are used. Each week they will be given a pretest which will determine if they receive the regular word list or the challenge word list. They will study 10 words for homework. On Friday they will be tested on their 10 words plus 10 words they have not studied which have the same spelling patterns (to show if they mastered the pattern, not just memorized words). They will also study 5 high frequency words that they must use in a sentence on their test.
Students will be doing a lot of projects this year. Some will be in school and some at home. You will not receive many worksheets for grades. I like to use assessments and projects that show student mastery of skills.
Also on the sidebar that says "Helpful Links" I will link to websites that students and parents may use during the school year to assist with homework and other issues.
I hope this is helpful for everyone and that I will see a lot of traffic on our blog! Have a wonderful evening.
Thursday, September 6, 2012
And They're Off!!
The school year has begun and we are already working towards making it "A Record Breaking Year". Now that our Room 16 families will be joining this blog, I wanted to extend another welcome! Throughout the year you can check in as I will post homework, projects, pictures of events, helpful items, and class news. I encourage our families to leave comments if you have anything to add or questions about a post. Please keep all comments positive and related to the post topic.
There are many curriculum changes this year, and we have a lot of hard work ahead of us. My hope is that every student's learning does not stop at the classroom door, but continues on at home. Feel free to send me an email or write in your child's agenda if you have any concerns or questions. I hope to see everyone at Back to School night on Monday Sept. 10th (6:45-8:00). Until then...
There are many curriculum changes this year, and we have a lot of hard work ahead of us. My hope is that every student's learning does not stop at the classroom door, but continues on at home. Feel free to send me an email or write in your child's agenda if you have any concerns or questions. I hope to see everyone at Back to School night on Monday Sept. 10th (6:45-8:00). Until then...
Monday, August 6, 2012
So Many Successes, But Still So Far To Go!
I know I haven't been blogging lately, but I have been so busy (in my classroom and out). I have been working on the new Language Arts curriculum for the district to align with the Common Core Standards, and let me tell you- it was crazy! There are a million changes that our district had to make and it is a lot more rigorous than our former curiculum. Anywho, that took up a lot of my time. I was still able to manage some time in the classroom and have gotten a great deal of my de-cluttering finished. Woo hoo!
I was very excited to get to my blog today (I'm actually sitting in my classroom) because I have finished some bigger projects that I wanted to share. First, I cleaned out ALL of my classroom closets and rearranged different areas of my class. Trust me, this was no simple task! Some things have been in them since my third grade teacher worked here (BTW I teach in the very classroom that I sat in for third grade). I even moved my word wall so that students have better access to the words.
Then, I covered all of my bulletin boards with fabric. I picked up some 200 thread count, twin size sheets from Walmart for $5 each. One sheet covers just about 8 feet (or in my case, 2 bulletin boards).
My writing area is still not complete. The boards are done, but I am waiting for some of my orders to come in before I can finish the setup for the students supply area. You can see that some of the supplies are ready to go!
My next project is my favorite! I made an awning for my CAFE board. I used striped fabric (which happens to match my BB colors) and some pvc pipe. I used flag holder brackets to attach the pvc to the wall. This is by far the coolest area of my room now.
Finally, my last project was making a hanging file that I saw on Pinterest. It was really easy to make- just some file folders and duct tape!
Now I just have to finish cleaning up the random stuff that was in my cabinets and other boxes. Then its on to the task of preparing for the start of the school year and incoming students! I hope everyone else's summer is going well! Until next time...
I was very excited to get to my blog today (I'm actually sitting in my classroom) because I have finished some bigger projects that I wanted to share. First, I cleaned out ALL of my classroom closets and rearranged different areas of my class. Trust me, this was no simple task! Some things have been in them since my third grade teacher worked here (BTW I teach in the very classroom that I sat in for third grade). I even moved my word wall so that students have better access to the words.
Then, I covered all of my bulletin boards with fabric. I picked up some 200 thread count, twin size sheets from Walmart for $5 each. One sheet covers just about 8 feet (or in my case, 2 bulletin boards).
* It drives me crazy that the doors on this BB are misaligned!!
My next project is my favorite! I made an awning for my CAFE board. I used striped fabric (which happens to match my BB colors) and some pvc pipe. I used flag holder brackets to attach the pvc to the wall. This is by far the coolest area of my room now. 
Finally, my last project was making a hanging file that I saw on Pinterest. It was really easy to make- just some file folders and duct tape!Now I just have to finish cleaning up the random stuff that was in my cabinets and other boxes. Then its on to the task of preparing for the start of the school year and incoming students! I hope everyone else's summer is going well! Until next time...
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