Spelling Information for Parents

There is a site on the internet called "spellingcity.com" that may be a helpful to the students who finish their homework and need more practice. It looks fun so they may enjoy working on it anyway. Try it out and let me know what you think!

New words came home tonight (30) and so did the contracts and the homework. Everything is due this Wednesday. Check out what your child signed up for this week! Remember...these are the fifth grade "no excuse" words for the first few weeks--those words that are used in all our daily writing so it's important that everyone knows how to spell them correctly. We will hold all accountable for these words in all writing.

Latest and greatest

Our third week is complete and we are in sync with most of our assessments and assignments. Spelling is underway and we all understand how our word work will be done this year. Having choices in your learning is pretty cool, isn't it? How did you do with the contract? Did you earn the grade you signed for or were you trying to get your spelling groove? If you earned the grade you worked for, good for you! If you are planning on working harder this week--good for you! Reminder....spelling is due every Wednesday morning and the tests are every Monday! Keep practicing the "No Excuse" words for fifth graders!

Math assessments are done...yay! Now we can figure out where we all are and get moving on what you each need. This week we will be sending more math homework out so everyone gets the practice they need at the right place.

If we get the ok for our Nature Center walks I am planning to take a trip there ASAP. Keep your fingers crossed that it comes back soon so we can get there and look around the ecosystems we studied last year.

Attention all Super Sleuths--we did a great job last week with "Ford Field"--almost everyone turned it in time! Let's cheer on the rest of the group for this week so that EVERYONE turns it in on Thursday!

Looking forward to another great week with the best fifth graders I know!

Things to Know...

This third week of school will be the beginning of more routines and procedures. Homework will be sent home each evening and Super Sleuth will be due this Thursday--it was put into the book and sent home last Thursday. We will also be working with No Excuse words in our word study program. You will see homework in this area.

During class, we will be working on smoother transitions and keeping our voices at a better learning level. We have done an excellent job as role models in the hallways, at assemblies such as Community Circle, and coming from Encore classes.

Looking forward to a good week with the fifth graders in 104!

Follower Contest

Hello Followers! Now that you have signed up to follow our Camp Cooley blog you may enter our contest! All you have to do is post something on the blog and you are entered in the contest. It's that easy 5th graders! Remember to comment on something that we are doing in class or something that was posted that you have read. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!

And yes, there will be a prize awarded to the winner of the contest!

First Week....

I have to say that this was the BEST first week of school EVER! This class is fabulous--they are motivated, friendly, enthusiastic, and ready to learn. This is good because I have so much to share with them this year! Our classroom looks so cool--we read by the stars and we have our "tent" to meet under for class meeting.

Don't forget that Curriculum Night is Tuesday, September 14th from 7:30-8:15. Please plan on attending so that you can learn how our class runs and what the expectations are for the year. It will be very informative, so be sure to attend!

If you haven't turned in all of your paperwork for both the office and me, please do so as soon as possible so that we have all the information we need in case of an emergency.

Safety Patrol members have been selected as well as Captains. We have 6 excellent students who were elected by their safety peers that will lead us this year. All of the students who have been working this week have done an awesome job helping with arrival and dismissal. Many of the lower elementary teachers have come to me to congratulate and thank us for the superior job they have done. Congratulations to you all for being so responsible in your new positions!

Looking forward to seeing everyone at Curriculum Night to kick-off a great year in Room 104!

First Day!

Our first day in 5th grade was a huge success! We are so lucky to have such energetic learners, enthusiastic thinkers, and motivated students. We got to know one another, went over school and classroom procedures, and we were excellent role models for the younger students in the hallways and during our very first Community Circle for the 2010-2011 school year.

We have over 50 applications for Safety Patrol! I am very pleased that so many of our kids want to help at school and in our community. It makes me proud to be a teacher at Cooley! I am also feeling very privileged to teach in such a wonderful, caring learning community.

There is incredible excitement in our "camp" and we have built our community agreement featuring responsibility, honesty, integrity, and respect for one another. It was enlightening to watch and listen as the base groups came up with these wonderful ideas and thoughts about how we should use self-control and regulate our behavior.

On another good note--we now have a SmartBoard in our room! Can't wait to get it going (the wiring is not quite right yet so we are on pins and needles waiting)so that we can do some awesome new kinds of learning with it!

Watch the blog for more news as it develops in Room 104. Feel free to add a comment!