Hello Parents! I hope you are having a great week! It sounds like you enjoyed your 3 day weekend last week from what the kids told me! I was able to get to Waterloo to see my niece at her first homecoming. The school didn't have any formal activities due to Covid, but she and her friends made plans! 

Math- We are working on multiplication still. As I check papers, I can see they all have the process down. The mistakes I see are in the multiplication. I keep reminding them to use their assignment book for help with their basic facts. Some do, many do not. Many are having to go back and correct their work. I also see a few not dropping the 0, but not too many. The final mistake I see is they do all the work, but the last step- the addition. I also think a few might be rushing because math is at the end of the day and they don't want homework.  Next week we will be moving on in the chapter. This chapter is pretty lengthy. I believe there are 12 lessons. 

Reading- This week they read a story about a girl named Elisa. She moved from Puerto Rico to the USA as a child. She struggled with speaking English when she arrived, but she could write it easily. She met a boy name Jose who also came to the USA from Guatemala. He could speak it, but not write it. I shared the story with them about my own dad. He moved to the US in 1945 at the end of WWII. He came from Poland and didn't know any English. He learned from watching TV...mostly soap operas. We talked about how today they offer classes or you can learn online.  In grammar they are learning about the different rules to make a noun plural. Again they created a page of rules in their composition book. They can use this on the test on Friday. 

Religion- We finished our cards for the soldiers. I will get those mailed off. October is the month of the rosary. They will say that in class every day or at least a decade. This is my favorite part. The kids do such a great job of being prayerful. They also have to learn the two prayers- The Apostle's Creed and Hail Holy Queen. I gave them a paper to use to study from. On Friday, I will start quizzing them to see if they know it. Once they pass one prayer, they just need to do the other one. Right now, we won't be doing much with the religion book in their desk. 

Friday, October 2 is homecoming for Creston. There is a 3 hour early out. They won't be served lunch here that day. It is a Spirit Day if they'd like to wear sweats or a hat for $1. They can also wear their Panther gear that day  or black and red to support them.

FAST testing is being done. I have the reading completed now. There is a new math test they will do as well. That is all on their computer. 

I have been chatting with the 5th graders about making good choices because we've been having some issues with following the classroom rules- mostly respecting each other.  There is a definite feeling that if you do something and you get "told on"...it is the fault of the person who told.  Some of them have a hard time accepting their part in what happened. I am really trying to get them to be responsible for their own actions and words and understand that what they do or say can affect others feelings, but also their learning. If I have to spend half of my time on discipline..then they are not getting the opportunity to learn like they should. We have to grow into being 5th graders and with that comes more responsibility. 

 I also want you aware that if the water bottle becomes a toy for them-- I do put it on the counter top. They may still get a drink from it, but it no longer sits on their desk. For some it is a huge distraction and they can't seem to do their work. Each day we start fresh and try again. 

October 7- No Mass that day. Father will be gone. The kids do NOT have to dress up that day. We will plan on saying the rosary that day. 

Dreambox- I learned how to assign lessons. Some of the kids go above and beyond the 7 lessons for the week, which I love. I have others who don't even get 5 done, not because it is hard, but because they don't want to . I see the eye rolls when when I say, "Get on Dreambox". 😀 The other reason I am doing this is to close that gap on standards that should be completed by now. I assigned two lessons and they have a week to do them in. If they aren't done, I reassign them. We have to make some ground here due to Covid.  It was kind of funny. When they went in to do them today, I heard a lot of them say, "Wow, I haven't done this one before!" I think it is a good challenge for them! 

I hope everyone enjoys their weekend! If you're going to homecoming pep rally or game...have a great time! I imagine I will be working this weekend,but I hope to get my fall stuff out at my house! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma