Dear Parents, I hope you have been having a great week! Only a couple more days before break!
Reading- They will take a test on Thursday over their story. This week they read a story about James Forten. He was a free African American during the Revolutionary War. He worked on ships until he joined the military for the American side. His job was to bring up the gun powder that was stored below deck on the ship. It was used in the cannons. It was a dangerous job. When their ship surrendered, he was taken prisoner aboard the Jersey. Luckily for him, he was not sent back to the West Indies and sold back into slavery. In his later life he bought the sail making business his dad had worked for and became quite successful. He also worked as an abolitionist and fought for the rights for women to get the right to vote.We discussed how he isn't considered a hero because he didn't do any one thing that stood out, but all the things combined still make him someone who is heroic.
We have one more story to read in this unit. I am going to wait to do that until our first full week back from Christmas break. When they return for those 3 days we will do some other things.
Math- This week was about estimating by rounding and using benchmark numbers. They learned to round to the nearest 0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 1. When we get back we will begin adding and subtracting decimals.
Food Pantry- On Monday the 4th and 5th graders walked to the Food Pantry to deliver our school's donations. Each student had at least one bag,but some had more to carry. I would say the families of STM did very well with their donations! I know Mark and Mary really appreciate it! Thank you so much for helping them out!
They need a sack lunch on Thursday. Milk will be provided. They can also wear their favorite Christmas shirt, sweater, etc. They can wear pajamas as long as they deal with Christmas. If they have necklaces, antlers, etc... wear those tomorrow! I can't wait to see how they look! We will be singing after we eat. You are welcome to join us for the caroling in the gym. It will be from 12:30-1:00.
I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas with your families. This is the first time I won't be in Doon for the holiday. That seems very weird. I am flying to my sister Eva's in Butler, PA on Saturday. It's an hour from Pittsburgh. I will be there for the week with her and her kids! I am excited to see them! I know they have snow already. Safe travels to everyone! I will see you in the new year! Merry Christmas!
God Bless,
Miss Surma
Wednesday, December 20, 2017
Monday, December 18, 2017
Parents, Just a reminder that your child will need a sack lunch on Thursday. Drinks will be provided.
We are also telling the kids to dress to show their Christmas spirit on that day! Maybe they have one of those ugly Christmas sweaters or just a t-shirt! Maybe they can dress in Christmas colors! It is optional!
Have a great week! 4 days! Hold on tight!
Miss Surma
We are also telling the kids to dress to show their Christmas spirit on that day! Maybe they have one of those ugly Christmas sweaters or just a t-shirt! Maybe they can dress in Christmas colors! It is optional!
Have a great week! 4 days! Hold on tight!
Miss Surma
Wednesday, December 13, 2017
Dear Parents, I hope you are having a great week! Well, my desk was covered in packages of cough drops last week and it looks as though they shared it with me! So thankful! :)
Geography Bee- If you'd like to join us for the 2nd round, it will be after mass next week on Dec. 20.
Friday is Spirit Day! Wear sweats for $1!
Reading- This week they are reading a story about Molly Pitcher! Her real name is Mary Hays. She was on the battlefields during the Revolutionary War. She brought pitchers of water to the soldiers during the battle due to the extreme heat! She also took over firing a cannon once her husband had been injured! She was a true hero on those grounds. In grammar we are focusing on regular and irregular verbs. This is based on what happens when you change a verb from present tense to past tense. Simply adding -ed would be a regular verb. If the spelling changes for example from teach to taught-- that is an irregular verb.
Math- We are working on our decimals! So they are working on writing them in standard, expanded, and written form. They also are learning to compare decimals and then write them from least to greatest or greatest to least. We will be working on rounding them too. They will most likely have to round them to a certain place value position. We have talked about how you refer to them in tenth, hundredths, and thousandths. The decimal is referred to as point or the word and. It depends how we are working with them. I am also making them say the numbers in word form to me instead of just saying one point two five (1.25), they have to say one and twenty-five hundredths.
Religion- They are finishing up their chapter on Advent. They went to reconciliation on Tuesday. When we are in the chapel waiting, they are supposed to be spending their time in prayer. Many of them I found have a hard time sitting quietly and still. I decided they know how to pray the rosary, so that is what we did! If they had to leave for their confession, they did that and rejoined the rosary after their penance was said. It was really cool because we didn't have any of our papers or our rosaries, but they knew exactly what to say and where! It also quieted them down for some time spent with God. It was just a simple, but very cool moment for me as a teacher!
Pen Pal- We finally received a letter from our pen pal Mason. If you remember, Mason is a little like Auggie in our Wonder book. The kids are going to be writing him a letter or Christmas card before we leave for break! It was nice to hear from him. His mom had also written that he had recently gone through jaw surgery so that was why it took so long. We will keep him in our prayers and hope his recovery goes well!
December 21- Remember they will need a sack lunch! Milk will be provided.
Lunch this Friday-- The main dish this Friday is hamburger gravy over biscuits, but the alternate is a sack lunch that you would need to provide. Please talk to your children! Milk is provided so no drink is necessary.
I hope you have a great weekend!
God Bless,
Miss Surma
Geography Bee- If you'd like to join us for the 2nd round, it will be after mass next week on Dec. 20.
Friday is Spirit Day! Wear sweats for $1!
Reading- This week they are reading a story about Molly Pitcher! Her real name is Mary Hays. She was on the battlefields during the Revolutionary War. She brought pitchers of water to the soldiers during the battle due to the extreme heat! She also took over firing a cannon once her husband had been injured! She was a true hero on those grounds. In grammar we are focusing on regular and irregular verbs. This is based on what happens when you change a verb from present tense to past tense. Simply adding -ed would be a regular verb. If the spelling changes for example from teach to taught-- that is an irregular verb.
Math- We are working on our decimals! So they are working on writing them in standard, expanded, and written form. They also are learning to compare decimals and then write them from least to greatest or greatest to least. We will be working on rounding them too. They will most likely have to round them to a certain place value position. We have talked about how you refer to them in tenth, hundredths, and thousandths. The decimal is referred to as point or the word and. It depends how we are working with them. I am also making them say the numbers in word form to me instead of just saying one point two five (1.25), they have to say one and twenty-five hundredths.
Religion- They are finishing up their chapter on Advent. They went to reconciliation on Tuesday. When we are in the chapel waiting, they are supposed to be spending their time in prayer. Many of them I found have a hard time sitting quietly and still. I decided they know how to pray the rosary, so that is what we did! If they had to leave for their confession, they did that and rejoined the rosary after their penance was said. It was really cool because we didn't have any of our papers or our rosaries, but they knew exactly what to say and where! It also quieted them down for some time spent with God. It was just a simple, but very cool moment for me as a teacher!
Pen Pal- We finally received a letter from our pen pal Mason. If you remember, Mason is a little like Auggie in our Wonder book. The kids are going to be writing him a letter or Christmas card before we leave for break! It was nice to hear from him. His mom had also written that he had recently gone through jaw surgery so that was why it took so long. We will keep him in our prayers and hope his recovery goes well!
December 21- Remember they will need a sack lunch! Milk will be provided.
Lunch this Friday-- The main dish this Friday is hamburger gravy over biscuits, but the alternate is a sack lunch that you would need to provide. Please talk to your children! Milk is provided so no drink is necessary.
I hope you have a great weekend!
God Bless,
Miss Surma
Thursday, December 7, 2017
Dear Parents, Happy Thursday! I hope you are having a great week! Well, our temps certainly match the month we are in right now. I did really like those 50s though.
Reading- This week we read a story called Can't You Make Them Behave, King George? It is a nonfiction piece about the Revolutionary War,but also about King George the third. He really thought he was doing right by the Americans and didn't understand why they wanted their independence. After the Boston Tea Party happened, he decided they were being rebellious children and he needed to show them he was a strict father. He closed the port into Massachusetts. This only made the Americans stand firmer on their ground. It backfired for him. I talked to the kids about the musical Hamilton, which is about Alexander Hamilton, but people like George Washington and John Adams are in it. Last week we read about Adams. I introduced them to some of the music from the musical with the focus being on King George's songs. He had an illness back then, but no one realized it. They had thought he'd gone mad. His decisions and comments were a little crazy. His songs are like that. He sings sweetly about how killing your friends and family is a sign of how much he loves you. I loved the expressions on your kids' faces when they heard those lines. WHAT???? So they are listening more to the music from the musical. We are also working on figurative language. We are focusing mostly on similes and idioms. On Wednesday, they had to draw an idiom out from a stack and then draw a picture to match it. Those will be posted in the hallway. If you're in the school, you can stop by and see them.
Math- We are starting a chapter on decimals. First, we will focus on understanding the value of each number. Then we will work on adding and subtracting them.
Religion- We are focusing on an Advent chapter right now. We have mass on Friday. We will be praying the rosary as a school beforehand if you'd like to join us. I believe that will start at 8:50.
Singing- Next Monday, Dec. 11, the 5th graders will be going to the church to sing for the CCW. They will also have lunch there. They are in for a treat! Those ladies provide a very yummy buffet! They do not need to dress up for this. We will be back for classes by 1:15.
Geography Bee- The 2nd round will be after mass on Dec. 20. You are invited to come and watch if you'd like! It will be in the gym.
I hope everyone enjoyed the concert on Wednesday night! I thought the kids did a great job! Thank you, Mrs. Stoner!
Have a great weekend!
God Bless,
Miss Surma
Reading- This week we read a story called Can't You Make Them Behave, King George? It is a nonfiction piece about the Revolutionary War,but also about King George the third. He really thought he was doing right by the Americans and didn't understand why they wanted their independence. After the Boston Tea Party happened, he decided they were being rebellious children and he needed to show them he was a strict father. He closed the port into Massachusetts. This only made the Americans stand firmer on their ground. It backfired for him. I talked to the kids about the musical Hamilton, which is about Alexander Hamilton, but people like George Washington and John Adams are in it. Last week we read about Adams. I introduced them to some of the music from the musical with the focus being on King George's songs. He had an illness back then, but no one realized it. They had thought he'd gone mad. His decisions and comments were a little crazy. His songs are like that. He sings sweetly about how killing your friends and family is a sign of how much he loves you. I loved the expressions on your kids' faces when they heard those lines. WHAT???? So they are listening more to the music from the musical. We are also working on figurative language. We are focusing mostly on similes and idioms. On Wednesday, they had to draw an idiom out from a stack and then draw a picture to match it. Those will be posted in the hallway. If you're in the school, you can stop by and see them.
Math- We are starting a chapter on decimals. First, we will focus on understanding the value of each number. Then we will work on adding and subtracting them.
Religion- We are focusing on an Advent chapter right now. We have mass on Friday. We will be praying the rosary as a school beforehand if you'd like to join us. I believe that will start at 8:50.
Singing- Next Monday, Dec. 11, the 5th graders will be going to the church to sing for the CCW. They will also have lunch there. They are in for a treat! Those ladies provide a very yummy buffet! They do not need to dress up for this. We will be back for classes by 1:15.
Geography Bee- The 2nd round will be after mass on Dec. 20. You are invited to come and watch if you'd like! It will be in the gym.
I hope everyone enjoyed the concert on Wednesday night! I thought the kids did a great job! Thank you, Mrs. Stoner!
Have a great weekend!
God Bless,
Miss Surma
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