If you find your family members are bored and in need of something to do, show them our blogs.  I added a new feature (the revolving globe to the right) that shows your location on the map as well as visitors from around the world.

For those who follow our blog outside the United States, or for all of you who would like a refresher course, visit this excellent History.com post about the history of Thanksgiving. You might find yourself learning some new facts to share around the Thanksgiving table later this week.  For those who think they know everything, test your turkey knowledge with this quiz.

You can call me the “Happy Hiker!”  I am Mrs. Boersma and I love to hike.  This past summer my husband and I went to Mt. Rainier in the state of Washington.  We took a five mile hike up and around  this mountain (not to the top!!). It actually felt good to hike through the snow as it was at least 80 degrees outside.  The wildflowers were everywhere and very beautiful. We also spend a lot of time walking the streets of Holland, and the forests and beaches of the area.  I love to hike because it is great exercise and I love to be outside observing nature.  This photo is part of the October Blog Scavenger Hunt.

Important Dates:

March 10-Trip to Lansing
March 13-Reading Counts party
March 16-Book Fair
April 3-Spring Break begins

Conferences

Thank you parents for your great support. We achieved 100% attendance meaning every student had at least one parent come to conferences. I always look forward to meeting with each one of you. Together we are a team working to serve your child. I appreciate your insights, suggestions, and hearing your concerns. I always enjoy conferences because it gives me a chance to tell you what wonderful things your child is doing. I appreciate your kind words and willingness to help. Your children want to do well because they know that you expect it of them, and that you care so deeply about their education. It means a lot to me to have a part in this special task.

Social Studies

We are looking forward to our trip to Lansing to visit the capitol and the historical museum. We have been studying the three branches of government (executive, judicial, and legislative) and the levels of government (national, state, and local). This study should make our visit more meaningful as we see where the governing process takes place in our capitol. We have focused on the core democratic values of representative government, check and balances, and popular sovereignty.

Please check the recent posts on the left side of the blog if you need to review important information about our field trip.

Math

My group will be finishing up fractions this week. We will be practicing multiplying a fraction by a whole number for a quiz on Thursday. If that goes well, we will then spend a few days reviewing estimating numbers to the nearest 10 and 100.

Mrs. Jurewicz’ group is continuing their work on fractions.

Mrs. Bouwens’ group is studying methods of multiplying multi digit whole numbers.

Just Write!

We have been working on our fictional stories and they are almost completed! Thank you to the moms who have offered to help type them. I am going to have students begin to type this Thursday, but I know some students with longer stories will need some help.

During the week of May 4, we will celebrate the writing work we have done all year long. This celebration will include tours, skits, podcasts, publications, a famous author visit (Shirley Neitzel), and post stories. Students will be encouraged to wear their Just Write T Shirt on their tour date and throughout the week. If you would like to order one, please turn in your money and the completed form by March 30, 2009. justwritetshirts09

Reading

We have been working on strategies to help us better comprehend what we read. Inferring is a crucial skill readers use in order to make meaning of the text they’re reading. We’re practicing inferring in both fiction and nonfiction material, from articles about the Titanic to Time For Kids to Patricia Polacco books. Inferring takes place when readers use their background knowledge (schema) along with text clues in order to grasp what an author may be telling us without spelling it right out.

Reading Counts Party

All of the students have earned the privilege of going to the Reading Counts “Outer Space” party on Friday, March 13. Congratulations! Our class will go from 1:35 to 2:00 p.m. These students will enjoy a special “outer space” presentation by the Grand Rapids Public Museum literacy program called, Read and Connect.Sally Ride. Students will even be able to touch a piece of the thermal panel from an actual space shuttle, a tektite and a meteorite. Plus, they will be able to see some personal items of our local astronaut hero, Roger B. Chaffee. Lastly, students will be able to sample food that the astronauts would have when they are in outer space! A special thank you to the GR Public Museum for providing this program to schools like ours!

This special presentation will include having the museum’s historical interpreter dressed in full costume as astronaut,

Spring is Coming!

(scavenger hunt clip art=pink tulips)