Mr. Caffrey Arrives From NASA

Mr. Caffrey shows us a hose used on a space shuttle. do you know why it is white?

Kiera will make an adorable astronaut!

         
              THANK YOU MR. CAFFREY!!!

Spirit Week

 

 

 

 

SPIRIT WEEK IN 7A

 

January 10, 2012

 Dear Parents, 

Happy New Year to you all! 

We are ready for a fresh start after the winter break! The girls and I are happy to be back in school and having fun.

The spelling words this week are:

When, them, tell, get, men, let, getting, leg presents, unless, wet, dress 

Our composition is title “Me” the girls have a homework sheet to complete to help write the composition. Feel free to help them with the homework and please don’t use abbreviations.

 Please join the Calvert community on Monday, January 20^th, from 9:00-12:00 as we help others through various projects and service related experiences on our annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. This year we are lucky to have storyteller Ssuuna as our guest.  In this interactive program, Ssuuna opens a window to African culture through dance, music, and storytelling. Click here to register.

Don’t forget club sign ups.  Star Spellers Club is a great opportunity for the girls to practice their spelling.

Thank you and have a good weekend!

Patty Pontier

Holiday Cheer

  Happy Holidays

Dear Parents,

Well we made it!! The holidays are here and we are all so excited.  We have enjoyed hot chocolate with our 10-A buddies while reading the Polar Express, we created hot chocolate subtraction mugs in math and we learned the characters, plot, and setting of The Snow Angel. We wrote a composition about Christmas and had a wonderful party.  Thank you to all the elves that assisted. I hope you enjoy the winter break and have lots of family time.  I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a happy holiday.

Love,

Patty Pontier

 

Holiday Math 2013

Calvert News

  

Time is flying and we are almost to winter break!

Next week we will be writing a composition titled Christmas and the girls have a homework paper to help them with the writing.

Our spelling words are that, have,sat,of,job,rock,bad,van,sad,spot,clock,doll.

Our folder papers went home today. I hope you enjoy seeing all of your daughters’ hard work.

The girls will be enjoying a fun activity on Monday with our 10-A reading buddies so be sure to ask them all about it.

Our class holiday party will be on Thursday at 2:15. Carter Sieck is in charge!! Friday is a half day.

Don’t forget to continue to check the blog for some exciting things!!!

Next week, on their library day, students are permitted to bring in a Snuggie or small blanket for a special DEAR time read along.  This is a special treat the for the students prior to leaving for Winter Break.  Please no stuffed animals or pillows….We will snuggle up with our read-along book…..NOT fall asleep!!  Looking forward to a fun and relaxing class!!  Thank you for helping your student to remember their blanket.

Have a great weekend and stay warm.

Patty Pontier

Calvert School

Reading Over the Holidays

Dear Parents
    I came across this great article about reading over the holidays and wanted to  share it with you.  I will do #9 and 10 and you can do the rest!!
Have fun reading!!!!





Top Ten Ways to Encourage Children to Read Over Winter Break

 

10. Set expectations. I expect my students to continue to read daily over break. I expect the same of my own children at home. I tell them up front that I will be checking in after break and want to know what they read. As a parent, I ask my boys what they are reading each day and talk to them about the book when they’re done. There is not a question of if they will read on a given day, but when and how much.

 

9. Make plans. As my friend Donalyn Miller says, readers make plans. In my classroom we will plan out what we think we will read before we leave for break. In my home we will plan out the best time for us to read, daily. My students know I plan to read a book a day over break. I need to plan ahead so that I have enough reading material to make it over the long break. I ask them to think about the books they are reading – do they need to take more home? My own children ensure they have reading material to read each day. If they don’t, we jump down to number 8. (Or, we jump to number 8 if it is Saturday, rainy, or we’re just in the mood.)

 

8. Visit a library or a bookstore. Just going to either one of these places is great – you are immediately surrounded by a community of readers! Both of my boys have library cards and a trip to the library is guaranteed during winter break. I immediately head to the new picture books and plop on the floor and read as many as possible. They usually head to the non-fiction books and look for something new on their current obsession. The bookstore is just as wonderful and we could all spend hours there.

 

7. Connect them to an author. I’ve seen it in my classroom and I’ve seen it at home – when children connect to the authors of the books they are reading, magic happens. Luckily, in this era, this is easier than ever. Kids can tweet out their love of their books to the author who wrote them. Many authors will tweet back. At home and at school we also check out the author’s website. Sometimes you can email them, but even more than that the resources are often incredible. Watch book trailers; find out the story of why they wrote the book, and more.

 

6. Talk. In my classroom I make time to sit down with each child over the course of two weeks and talk about what they’re reading. This is just as important at home, if not more so. I want to know what my boys are reading and what they are connecting to. I want to be there when they read the sad/hard/scary/funny part and get to discuss the reaction they had. I want to discuss why they feel this is the best series of all time and debate it. We connect through books and the discussion around them strengthens that bond.

 

5. Make it fun. We hold read-a-thons in my giant bed on a regular basis on the weekends. It’s a great feeling to look up from my cozy spot and see both of my boys curled up near me reading their books. If it is cold outside, we hold our read-a-thons downstairs by the fire with hot chocolate. There are challenges to see who can read the most, book talks to try and convince family members to read the book next, and more.

 

4. Make it important. When we value something, we devote time to it. By doing so, we show its importance. That’s why when I heard this idea from author Linda Urban; I knew I was going to steal it. In Linda’s family they bring their books to the dinner table on Tuesday nights. Whatever you’re currently reading is welcome. Finger food is on the table for dinner and for the entire meal everyone reads. Let me say that again, everyone reads. Think of the message that sends children!

 

3. Give books. We give books to everyone on our list. I include my boys on the title discussions for each recipient so they can see the thought that goes into matching the perfect title with the recipient. We talk about how wonderful the gift of a book is because it gives the person we’re giving it to an experience. (For more on giving books, and Chronicle’s #givebooks campaign, check out this link: http://www.chroniclebooks.com/landing-pages/givebooks/)

 

2. Get books. Books are part of the gift of Christmas in our home. I can think of no better way to send the message that I want you to be a reader than to give books. My boys can tell me titles that they are looking forward to reading and I will purchase them, but I also buy some because I think they will be a good stretch. I also give them gift cards so they can go to the bookstore and pick out their own books. If you are looking for great titles this year, look no further than the Nerdy Book Club nominees for 2013: http://nerdybookclub.wordpress.com/2013/12/01/our-2nd-nerdversary-and-the-2013-nerdy-award-finalists/

 

1. Be a role model. In the classroom I share my reading life with my students. Returning from Thanksgiving break I will tell them what I read over break and share titles. I want them to know I am a reader. I do the same with my children at home. If I don’t model it, they won’t do it. Be a reader. Magazines, novels, comics, newspapers, etc. – let them see you read. Let them see you react to books. Inspire.

Katherine Sokolowski has taught for fifteen years and currently teaches fifth grade in Monticello, Illinois. She is passionate about reading both in her classroom and also with her two sons. You can find her online at http://readwriteandreflect.blogspot.com/ and on Twitter as @katsok.