Happy Monday!

Good morning!

Today is report card day for the first grading period.  Look for a very bright green report card to come home today.  Please celebrate your child's successes and look carefully at the areas that may need improvement.  Please return the lower right hand portion of the report card as quickly as possible.  We sent home several letters last Friday requesting conferences.  If you request a conference as a result of the report card, please indicate the best day of the week for you to attend a morning conference and we will do our best to accommodate  your needs.

Please be aware that the marks in the planner (my initial and a 1,2,3, symbolizing the rule broken) are now deductions of 10 points each from the weekly conduct grade.  This should not make it more difficult to make an "A" but should make it even more important to follow the classroom expectations (rules).  Please check the planner daily to avoid "surprises."  Mrs. Hopkins is now using a "pin system" which will be noted in the planner also and can be explained to you by your child.  Mrs. Hopkins' grade for conduct will be incorporated into my weekly grades for conduct.

I am sending home  a release form today.  We have been taking pictures along the way of events, field trips and our work displayed in the hallway.  I would love to post some of these to the blog.  I need your permission to do that.  No personal information about your child - not even first name or last name will be posted with the pictures.  Please sign and indicate your choice as to the inclusion of your child in pictures on this blog.

We have a Science Test tomorrow 11/6/12 and a Vocabulary Test for the reading selection "La Bamba" on 11/9/2012.  A Topic 6 test in Math will also be given on 11/9/12.

We are finishing our election unit writing assignment "If I Were President..." tomorrow and awaiting the completion of our electoral map after the voting occurs on Tuesday.   The students will bring their Election 2012 foldable home on Friday.  Students  did a great job,  and the foldables created a very patriotic decor for our hallway.  The writing assignments will be displayed for a couple of weeks and then I will send those home as well.  You might want to save this assignment and give it to your child when he/she reaches voting age or presidential eligibility age-- it is sure to bring a smile to your child as an adult.

Homework for Math is selected E skills on adding and subtracting decimals.  If your child has not mastered the K skills they should also work toward mastery of those this week as a grade will be assigned for the K skills on Friday 11/9 depending on the number of skills mastered.

Again, look for that report card today 11/5 and celebrate the success and plan for improvement where needed.  Thank you in advance for the support you provide your child at home.  It truly is a partnership between us all that will guarantee success.