Hello Parents, I hope you're having a great week. This is a busy month for sure! 

Calendar Dates:

Dec. 8- Mass/ Noisy Change Collection

Dec. 9- Miss Surma's Surgery 

Dec. 15-22 Holiday Dress Up Days

Dec. 16- Spirit Day

Dec. 21- Bishop at mass

Dec. 22- Christmas Caroling @ 12:30/Sack lunch Day

Dec.23-Jan. 3- Christmas Break

Jan.4 - Classes Resume

Reading- This week they are reading a nonfiction story about King George. He was taxing the colonists with things like a stamp tax and a tea tax, which caused the Boston Tea Party to happen. King George also suffered from an illness that affected him mentally, but back then they didn't know how to diagnose it so they just thought he went mad. He thought he was showing how much he loved them by sending in battalions. Every time the colonists did something he disapproved of he would try some other tactic, but it just made them angrier. In grammar this week they are working on present,past, and future tense verbs. They also had to do some contractions writing with them...that seemed to confuse some of them! They will becoming they'll. I think we get so used to writing it or saying it that when we have to stop and think about it, it throws us off. 

They will test on Friday over the story and spelling words. Next week is the third week in our unit. That means they will have a cold read on their test on Friday. 

Math- They finished up chapter 3 with a test on Monday! The class did really well overall! Our next chapter is more multiplication, but with decimals. While I am gone they will work on this, but there will be a couple of lessons I am letting them use a calculator. It's a great way to see how the decimal moves. They will do some work with decimals and whole numbers. When I return in January, we will really get into multiplying decimals times decimals. 

Religion- This week we worked on our Advent chapter and finishing that up. They will be starting a new chapter next week. The 3-5th graders participated in my receiving the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick today. Father Patrick did this in the chapel with all of us. It was very nice even though I got a little teary-eyed. I was glad they were there with me. 

Adopt-A-Soldier gifts are due by Monday! 

Mass is tomorrow! Dress up! It is a Holy Day of Obligation. Noisy Change Collection at mass on Thursday! 

Mrs. Redd will be here on Friday and all of next week as my sub. Tiffany Ossian and Lisa Sawtelle will be here the final week before Christmas break. 

Any changes to your child's schedule or rides home...please notify the office. Don't email me, I don't know that I will see it in time to let my subs know. 

December 15- Holiday Dress Up Days begin! I sent home the list last week in their folders. 

Thank you for all the well wishes and prayers for my surgery on Friday. That means a lot. I am really going to miss the kids...it is hitting me a little harder these days. I pray that they do well while I am gone with the different subs. I am sure they will be just fine! Two of older sisters will be with me at the hospital and my younger brother is coming later to get me home. 

I hope you enjoy the concert tonight! It sounded great at practice! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving break! Did you get enough to eat?? I was in Waterloo at my brother's house. I got to spend some quality time with my nieces which was great! 

Calendar Dates:

Dec. 2- Spirit Day

Dec. 7- Christmas Concert

Dec. 8- Mass/ Noisy Change Collection

Dec. 9- Miss Surma's Surgery 

Dec. 16- Spirit Day

Dec. 21- Bishop at mass

Dec. 22- Christmas Caroling

Dec.23-Jan. 3- Christmas Break

Substitutes- Okay, they tried to get one person to be my sub for the two weeks I am gone,but that just didn't work out. So from Dec. 9-16 they will have Jennifer Redd. She has subbed here before.Tiffany Ossian will be here from Dec. 19-21. Lisa Sawtelle will be here on the 22nd. Of course, I know this could change. The 5th graders will have to adapt. 

Reading- This week we started my favorite unit! Every story is about someone who had to be involved in the Revolutionary War somehow. This week's story is fiction, but based on some truth. We heard about the adventure for John Adams and his son on their journey to France. John was sent there to see if he could get the French to help us during the war. By this point the war had been happening for 3 years. In grammar they are working with subject and object pronouns-- he,she, it, you, they, them, him, and her. Their spelling this week are words with a  VCCV pattern. That means there will be a vowel, followed by two consonants, and then another vowel. That might help them in practicing for their post test on Friday. 

Math-We are wrapping up our chapter this week. They will be testing early next week. It could be on Monday. Their next chapter will be more multiplication, but with decimals. This makes me happy because I thought it was division and I definitely want to be here for that chapter. 

Religion- We started our Advent chapter! They did a great job at mass today. We had to do some new stuff because Fr.Patrick was gone, but we made it through! The 5th graders also helped me by passing out our new song books to all the different classrooms! They also got their first time being the oldest partner with their Advent Angels! It sounds like their first time went pretty good! They had fun stories to share! 

Spirit Day is on Friday! $1 for sweats! 

No mass next Wednesday! It will be on Thursday because it is a holy day of obligation. 

Next Wednesday, we will be taking the kids to the high school to practice for the concert that night. Look for a permission form in their folder. 

Catholic Daughters Luncheon- The 5th graders always get invited to sing at Holy Spirit for the ladies! This year they are going on the 15th. Mrs. Warner, Mrs. Redd, and Mrs. Simmons will take them there. They will sing and then they get to eat with them! I told the kids they will love the meal because it's a great potluck of yummy food and desserts! I put a permission form in your child's folder for this as well! I'm bummed I will miss out! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I plan on doing lesson plans for when I am gone or at least getting a start on them. 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope you're having a great week!  I posted lots of calendar dates...make sure you mark yours! 

Calendar Dates:

Nov. 18- Spirit Day

Nov.22- Iowa History Fair 2:15 pm

Nov. 23-28 -Thanksgiving Break

Nov. 30- 5th grade mass

Dec. 7- Christmas Concert

Dec. 8- Mass/ Holy Day of Obligation

Dec. 16- Spirit Day

Dec. 21- Bishop at mass

Dec. 22- Christmas Caroling

Dec.23-Jan. 3- Christmas Break

Reading- This week they are reading a nonfiction story called Cougars. It reads more like a science text filled with lots of information! I think we've all learned a lot! Grammar is a little more confusing this week because they are figuring out how to write sentences with quotation marks. The spelling this week has those tricky last two letters- or, ar, and er. This is our last story in this unit. I am going to go ahead and test them next week with a Unit test. I want to keep some kind of schedule going and I don't really want to wait until after our Thanksgiving break.  We will start Unit 3  after break. They are sharing their book reports this week! I have seen some really great projects! 

Religion- We are finishing up our chapter on the Beatitudes. They will test on Friday! That means we can start focusing on Advent next and it's just in time! Advent Angels will start the week we get back from Thanksgiving! I know the kids are excited! 

Math- They are still working on multiplication. On Wednesday we moved into multiplying with zeros in the factors. 

Social Studies- There is a handout/invite in your child's folder for the Iowa History Fair. It is next Tuesday, November 22 at 2:15. You are welcome to come and check out ALL the projects! Grandparents are invited to join you!  Ask the kids some questions! Mrs. Sickels has a schedule of when your children will give their presentation in her classroom. I also put that in your folder. She said the projects are to go home the day of the presentation. Make sure you check it out and make arrangements for getting it home with her. 

Friday, November 18- Spirit Day! Sweats for $1

5th grade mass on November 30th! Kids are getting their parts this week to practice at home! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope everyone enjoyed that long weekend! It was good to see and chat with all of you at conferences! 

Calendar Dates:

Nov. 11- Veterans Day Program 2pm/ Spirit Day/ Iowa History Project Due

Nov. 23-28 -Thanksgiving Break

Nov. 30- 5th grade mass

Dec. 21- Bishop is at mass

Reading- This week we are reading a historical fiction story called Storm Warriors. The kids thought these men in the photo were soldier, but I explained their job was to save people from shipwrecks...kind of like our Coast Guard now. It is a good story about one boy who believes this is his future, but then when forced to watch it happen...isn't so sure he has the courage to go through it. During a rescue he does show he is braver than he thinks and is capable of helping others! The grammar this week focuses on subordinating conjunctions and complex sentences. Spelling this week was fun for me because it was compound words. Did you realize that light bulb, throughout, and up-to-date are all compound words???

Math- They are multiplying!!!! They actually grabbed on to the standard algorithm really easily!  I reminded them they could do the partial products way if they chose, but they didn't! It was funny, I was helping some 4th graders with their math- they were doing the partial products way and loving it!  We have been focusing on double digits x double digits! We will expand into hundreds and thousands. 

Religion- We are working on the Beatitudes. I am hoping your kids gave you a little coupon booklet this week! That was just one way to live them! We discuss them and come up with ways to live them out, but they will not need to memorize them. 

5th Grade Mass- we have our next mass the Wednesday after Thanksgiving. I will give them their parts before they go on break. 

Iowa History Projects should be brought in on Friday!!! 

Friday at 2:00 is the Veterans Day program. Bring some kleenex!  Some of the songs are tearjerkers! 😢 

Spirit Day- The kids can wear sweats for $1!!! The temperatures will be perfect for sweats, but if they'd like to wear some red, white, and blue for Veterans Day, that would be great too! 

Due to the temp change- make sure they have a coat on Friday! Sweatshirts aren't going to be enough for recess! Thank you!!! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope everyone is having a great week! Next week is going to be CRAZY!!! 

 Calendar Dates:

Oct. 28- Spirit Day

Oct. 31- Halloween/ Halloween Parade at school @2:30

Oct. 31-Nov.3 Parent Teacher Conferences

Nov. 8- Book Report Due

Nov.8- Pizza Party

Nov.11- Iowa History Project Due

Congratulations to the 5th graders! They won the pizza party for the Coin Wars! Our 3rd graders came in 2nd, and our 2nd graders came in 3rd.  The 5th graders will have pizza for lunch on November 8. The really amazing thing is that over $14,000 was raised for the Honor Flights for Union County!!! What a wonderful cause that is!

Last day to wear shorts is October 31st!

October Book It Calendars are due Nov. 1st!!! Please make sure you sign them! 

Reading- This week they are reading a story on the Everglades in Florida. It is a nonfiction story with the purpose of persuading the kids in the story to take care of them. It will be their responsibility as adults. This week is our 3rd story in this unit. That means on the test they will get a cold read and 10 questions to answer. I am going to focus on that part of the test rather than our story. This week in spelling we are working on homophones... ring and wring, lesson and lessen. I did tell them that on Friday for the posttest I will be mixing them up so they won't be in order...that means they need to know the meaning behind each one as well as the spelling. In grammar we are working on conjunctions. They are also finishing typing up their Halloween stories. Next week we will share those aloud! They will be posted for you to read during conferences. 

Next week is a short week for us so I am not going to do another story or spelling. We will be working on other things! 

Book Reports due November 8!!! 

Math- We have just begun our multiplication chapter. I gave them a timed test on Tuesday just to see how well they know their facts. It showed me that many of them have to really learn them better this year! That is something you can work on at home with them. Flashcards are great, but not necessary! Roll a pair of dice or just give them random facts to answer while you're driving to the store! 

Religion- We are just starting to work on the Beatitudes! They don't need to memorize them. We will discuss each one and come up withe examples of how we can live them today. 

Reminder:- No School next Thursday or Friday! 

November 1st is a holy day of obligation- All Saints Day. We will have mass on Tuesday, not Wednesday! They need to dress up on Tuesday! 

Social Studies- Iowa History Project due November 11

Halloween- Kids should bring costumes on Monday! Parade is at 2:30 in the gym. All are welcome! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! Make sure you check your schedule for your conference day and time next week!! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

Dear Parents, I hope everyone is having a good week! 

 Calendar Dates:

Oct. 21- Spirit Day

Oct. 28- Spirit Day

Oct. 31- Halloween/ Halloween Parade at school @2:30

Oct. 31-Nov.3 Parent Teacher Conferences

Nov. 8- Book Report Due

Nov.11- Iowa History Project Due

Math- We will be testing over chapter 2 on Friday! We are going over their practice test on Thursday.  I noticed many didn't want to read their story problems. They just want me to tell them what to do. I warned them that I won't do that on the test. 

Reading- This week we are reading a piece of the story Old Yeller, the classic! I told them this is a book they could read for our next book report, next trimester. This part of the story just shows the main character how the big yeller dog is actually helpful at the farm! He saves his younger brother from a bear! We talk about dialect in this story... they use the word "yeller" instead of yellow.  We also talk a lot about adages and proverbs in this story. These are things we don't normally here anymore.... " A penny saved is a penny earned" is an example. I told them their grandparents or great grandparents might use them. In grammar we are working on direct and indirect objects. We did this mostly together in class. It is a difficult concept, but when we do it together and I can ask them the questions to get them there...they do just fine! 

They are typing up their final drafts of their Halloween stories. They will be due next Friday, October 28. This is something they can do at school. 

Religion- On Thursday I will be testing the rest on their last prayer to know. Hopefully, they will get it! They are also working on showing the mysteries of the Rosary. There will be posters hung up in our hallway to show them! They are doing a great job depicting them. After the mysteries, we will be back in the book starting to work on the Beatitudes. 

Social Studies- They are working on typing up their Iowa history project papers at school. They are getting class time to do this! Their 3D projects will be due Friday, November 11. They are doing these at home. 

Friday is a Spirit Day! They can wear sweats for $1!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hi Parents! This is another short week! I hope you enjoy your long weekend! We have professional development on Friday for our LETRs class. I was able to see my niece's soccer team play on Saturday! They won so that was fun too! Simpson has a beautiful campus, especially in the fall. 

Calendar Dates:

Oct. 14- No School/ PD Day

Oct. 21- Spirit Day

Oct. 28- Spirit Day

Oct. 31- Halloween/ Halloween Parade at school

Oct. 31-Nov.3 Parent Teacher Conferences

Reading- This week they are reading a story called The Quest for the Tree Kangaroo.  This is an informational text so it reads more like their science and social studies book. This is about a group of people in Papua New Guinea who are researching the tree kangaroos. Their goal is find them and put a collar on them so they can track them and learn about them. These animals are very elusive. In grammar this week they are working on identifying verbs in sentences. They will be working on action verbs and helping verbs. They are also working on identifying synonyms and antonyms.

Unit test scores are in their take home folders. As I expected, scores weren't the best. I know a few of them were having a hard time staying focused during the test. It is given over the whole week and it's not timed. They have time to go back and look up answers in the story. I don't think many of them did that based on the scores. I reminded them that a normal story we read 3 times in class and discuss. They could at least read the story 2 times before answering questions on the unit test. I am not sure many did that either. 

Math- We are finishing up our chapter on adding and subtracting decimals. This one was a lot shorter than chapter one!  They will have a test next week. 

Religion- This week they are out of the book! We are working on 2 of the benchmarks for 5th grade religion. They will be memorizing two prayers. They need to be able to say them to me. They will keep trying until they pass! I gave them a lavender paper with the prayers on them they can take home and say them to you for practice! They need to know the Apostles' Creed and Hail Holy Queen. Their first try is going to happen tomorrow (Thursday). 

No School on Friday!!! Enjoy your three day weekend! 

Below is the Conference Link. You need to look at your calendar and schedule a day and time. I have a few days set up so there should be plenty to choose from! 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0544A5AA23A2FF2-5thgrade1

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, Happy Wednesday! I hope your week is going well. I loved seeing my niece last weekend get ready for homecoming. I also got to spend the day watching her and her  volleyball team play in a tournament! 

Calendar Dates:

Oct. 7- Spirit Day

Oct. 14- No School/ PD Day

Oct. 21- Spirit Day

Oct. 28- Spirit Day

Oct. 31- Halloween

Nov.3 Parent Teacher Conferences

Reading- This week they are taking their unit 1 tests. I will send scores home next week once the tests are done. I also gave them their first book report project. They have an orange packet with their project choices. They are to choose only one. I told them the sooner they have their book read , the sooner they can get their project done because it is due shortly before the Iowa History project. Next week we will start unit 2. There will be a spelling test next week. 

Math- We started chapter 2 this week. They are working on adding and subtracting mentally . They are also estimating decimals to find the sums and differences. Rounding numbers is still difficult for some of the kids. I noticed mentally adding and subtracting is too. You can always work on that at home with the basic facts. Some of them still don't know things like 10+5= 15 without counting it in their head or using their fingers. They really need to know those basic facts in all areas. It saves so much time when they are doing their problems. 

Religion- We took a break to practice for the Rosary today. We will get back into this chapter and finish it. After that I take a break from the book. They  will be doing a lot of work based on the Rosary. Two of those things will be prayers they need to know. I will let you know when we are at that point. They did a GREAT job with the Rosary today! You can catch it online if you missed it! 

Spirit Day- This Friday is Spirit Day! Sweats for $1! The weather looks to be a perfect day for sweat pants! 

Coin Wars starts next week. The high school is raising money for the Veteran's Honor Flights. Students can start bringing in their spare change next week!  1st place class gets a pizza party, 2nd place gets a cookie or cupcake party, and 3rd place gets suckers!  This is a great cause! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I plan on going to my niece's soccer game! Loras vs Simpson! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

Hello Parents, 

I hope you had a great weekend! I got my 2nd Covid booster and my flu shot on Friday! Fun fun!   I do love the cooler temps! 

Calendar Dates:

Oct. 7- Spirit Day

Oct. 14- No School/ PD Day

Oct. 21- Spirit Day

Oct. 28- Spirit Day

Reading- This week they are reading the story called Elisa's Diary. It is about a girl who moved from Puerto Rico to America. She is struggling with learning the English language when it comes to speaking, but she does a great job of writing it. She met a boy in her class who moved there from Guatemala. He is the opposite of her. He can speak English but struggles with writing it. They join forces to help each other out. By the end of the story she shows us that she became a teacher and helps other kids who struggle similarly. Our grammar this week is on plural nouns.  On Tuesday we filled out a "rule sheet" with examples of words and how we have to write them to make them plural. I told them that if I were them I would use that sheet on Friday when we take the test. Their grammar scores have been falling and I think it is because they are rushing. They also struggle with identifying nouns in a sentence.  

This is our last story in this unit. Next week they will NOT have a spelling test. They will have a unit test. I break it up over the 5 days. They need to remember to read these stories a couple of times. Typically this first test doesn't score the best for the kids. I will also be assigning the first book report project next week. They will get a packet with their choices of projects to do. They will choose one. They will need to okay their book choice with me also. All of that is written in the packet. 

Math- They have a math test over chapter one on Thursday. There isn't much for studying unless you want to give them decimals to find out which is greater and which one is smaller. They could also practice writing them in written form or expanded form. 

Religion- I had to pause the book because we are getting ready for the Rosary next Wednesday at mass. Some of the 5th graders have a part. I have emailed you about that. They will be leading the Rosary next week in the gym. You are welcome to join us. It will be at our normal mass time...9:15am. Father Patrick will be gone so there won't be mass that day. 

Substitute- I have a doctor's appointment the morning of October 4. There will be a sub in the morning that day. I will be back by lunch time. 

Please make sure that if you are notifying me about your child needing to leave early, come late, a change in the pick up plan or if they are sick that you also notify Mrs. Sanchez in the office. They need to hear the reason your child is leaving or is gone from you, not me. That way they can appropriately mark it in JMC, plus it gives Mrs. Sanchez the chance to get to know all the families. Thanks so much! Her email is ksanchez@crestonstmalachy.org.

Art- Next week the kids will need a paint shirt for art class! Nick Allen is bringing in pumpkins that the kids will paint for Hy-Vee! They will also receive a pumpkin to take home and paint or carve there. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I will be heading to Waterloo. It is my niece Olivia's homecoming. 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

Hello Parents! I hope everyone had a good weekend. I know that rain put a damper on Balloon Days activities! My soccer game in the rain was not as fun either!  

 Calendar Dates:

Sept. 23- 3 Hour Early Out/ homecoming/Spirit Day

Oct. 1- Spirit Day

Oct. 14- No School/ PD Day

Oct. 21- Spirit Day

Oct. 28- Spirit Day

Reading- This week they are reading their first nonfiction story. It is called Double Dutch. It is about a group of girls that were on a Double Dutch jump rope team. I showed the kids a video on Monday of some students at the championships of this. We were all impressed with their speed of jumping and twirling the rope. Some of the kids decided they were going to try at recess on Tuesday. I was told it didn't go well! LOL   In grammar we are working on identifying nouns in a sentence. I showed them the Schoolhouse Rock video on nouns...did I just age myself?? I hope some of you watched that! We also area discussing common and proper nouns. That seems to be harder! I thought it would be easier! Proper nouns have capital letters! They will have a spelling test on Friday as well a test over the story. We will get that done before the early out. 

You will see last week's scores in their folders. Last week had a cold read. That means they had to read a story by themselves and answer 10 questions about it. I stress that they should read it more than once because normally they read our story 3 times before they test over it. I am not sure how many did that. 

Math- This week we are rounding decimals! The skill of rounding is probably something they've been doing since 2nd grade. Some of the kids are still struggling with this concept.  I think next week we will be working on reviewing and testing over this chapter. 

Religion- They took their first test on Tuesday. They are also making cards for Fr. Patrick. Next week after mass we are presenting him with them for Priesthood Day! 

Friday, Sept. 23 is a 3 hour early out. No lunch will be served!It is also a Spirit Day! They might want to wear sweats on Friday with the temperature drop! They can also wear their black and red if they want to support the Panthers. The parade starts at 1:30.

Book It- This will start October 1st. I will give your kids their calendar to keep track of their minutes. If they meet the goal each month, they will receive their coupon for Pizza Ranch. I also give awards at the end to the kids who participate all 6 months. I'm thinking I will keep track of my minutes this year too! I'm in a book club so this gives me the extra push to read, not that I need one. 

I hope everyone enjoys the early out on Friday. Hopefully the rain won't delay the parade or cancel it! Happy Homecoming!

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Dear Parents, I hope everyone had a great weekend! I know many of you were rained on on Saturday during your football games! I went to Des Moines on Sunday to watch my niece play in her soccer game. The weather was just perfect for that one! 

 Calendar Dates:

Sept. 15- PTO Meeting

Sept. 16-17- Balloon Days Weekend

Sept. 21- 5th Grade Mass

Sept. 23- 3 Hour Early Out/ homecoming

Reading- This week they are reading a story called Off and Running. This is about a couple of 5th graders who are running for office in their class. Miata gives a formal speech and offers to do things that will clean up the school grounds. Rudy is very informal. He offers to get them more recess time and ice cream every day at lunch! Sadly, the story leaves us hanging and we never find out who wins. In grammar they are looking at the parts of a sentence as well as verbs that fit with the subjects. They will have a spelling test on Friday as well as a test over the story. 

Math- We are breaking down the place value of decimals from tenths to thousandths. They are learning how to read them to me and write them. They are also learning to write them as fractions. For example: 0.765 would be said as seven hundred sixty-five thousandths. As a fraction it would be 765/1000.  I keep telling them to think of money as they look at the value. Tenths are our dimes and hundredths are our pennies. 

Religion- We learned this week about Saint Damien of Molokai. He worked as a missionary in Hawaii taking care of the people who had been sent there to live and die from leprosy. He worked for a long time before getting leprosy himself. I showed them a quick video on his life there. We are nearing the end of the chapter, so there will be a test soon. 

Homecoming- Next Friday we have a 3 hour early out because of homecoming and the parade. No lunch that day. They can wear their Panther gear if they have any to support the Panthers! 

Mass- It is our mass on Sept. 21. I have given each child a part. I will send home their reading parts. Please practice with them over the weekend! Father has really done some changes to our servers. The kids having been soaking it up! They look really professional! 

I hope you have a great weekend! Enjoy Balloon Days. I am heading to Waterloo to watch my great niece Gracie play soccer and go to her sister's 2nd birthday party! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

Hello Parents, I hope you all enjoyed your long weekend! I spent a day in Des Moines with Mrs. Levine. We had a nice little shopping day! I didn't get to my flowerbed, but I did get a lot done...so that felt good! 

 Calendar Dates:

Sept. 15- PTO Meeting

Sept. 21- 5th Grade Mass

Sept. 23- 3 Hour Early Out/ homecoming

Reading- This week was a little shorter so I make some changes on how we cover the material. This week we read a play called The Royal Mystery, They did a great job of taking on the characters even though most of them were girls! It is about Rena and Althea. They go spend their summer at a camp. Althea is all about winning the competition at the end of the summer and figuring out the mystery behind her roommate Rena. This is Rena's first time at camp. Ask your kids about how she talks and behaves! Althea believes Rena is royalty because of Rena's behaviors plus she read a fairy tale book. The mystery was solved by the end! Ask your kids to reveal that to you. In grammar we are focusing on the 4 kinds of sentences. There is lots of sentence writing happening! They will take their post test on Friday and the test over the story. You will find last week's scores in their folders on Thursday. They did really well! I also had them do it by themselves because I want to see what they can do without me reading it to them. 

Math- We are stepping into the world of place value and decimals! This part usually throws them for a loop. They "think" they know decimals, but now they need to know the different names and their values. We also practice how to read decimals correctly.  We make small steps here at first to get everyone on board! 

Religion- This week we started our chapter on God's creation. We usually start with all the things that God has provided us with and that we can be thankful for in our lives. We do give him the credit for giving us the brains for all the things that people have invented over the years! If you haven't been able to join us for a school mass, I hope you can sometime this year! We are really enjoying Father Patrick's sermons. He is also making some changes for the servers so I keep telling the kids to watch and learn! He held a practice this week and will again next Wednesday. 

Cy-Hawk Game- In honor of the "big game" this weekend...if your kids are fans, they can dress up in their gear! I will be in my UNI colors! I tell the kids every year I am allergic to the others!🤣🤣  IT is also a Spirit Day! They can wear sweats and/or a hat if they want to pay $1. 

I will be planning our mass next week. I will send home parts towards the end of the week. I don't know if I will have a job for everyone so I may divide the class into two. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents! I hope your week is going well. I think the biggest adjustment for the 5th graders is that they have to write in cursive! I am sure some of you are listening to all their woes at home. Believe me they say the same in class. I use this instead of a handwriting book. It is forcing them to write slower. It is making them take their time instead of racing! It is also a great fine motor skill! Believe me, they will get used to it!

Calendar Dates:

Sept. 1- Picture Day

Sept. 2- 3 hour early out

Sept. 5- No School/ Labor Day

Sept. 21- 5th Grade Mass

Sept. 23- 3 Hour Early Out/ homecoming

Reading- This week we read an excerpt from The Wayside School is Falling Down. I love this story! It is funny and teaches them a little bit about irony! Ask them about the teacher's spelling bee and how she taught "gravity" to her class! I think we all got a good giggle from it. They are doing the vocabulary packet like they did last year in Mrs. Sickels' room, but I have them do all 10 words. They will only do this one time every unit. I do other things with vocabulary. In grammar they are working on subjects and predicates and then deciding whether a sentence is complete or a fragment. It really is review, but every year it is like starting over. They have a hard time remembering what part of speech is found in each one...nouns and verbs. They will take a spelling test and test over the story on Friday. I gave each kid a spelling list to study from. Some have only 10 words based on their pretest. I give a list each week unless they ace the pretest. Don't let them tell you any different! 😉 

Math- Our book starts off with learning about exponents! They were amazed on Tuesday at how easy it was! They deal with mostly with 10s. Thursday and Friday we are going to focus on the three different ways to write a number out- number name or word form, expanded form, and standard form. This too should really be review. I think the hardest one is the expanded form. 

Religion- We start our year looking up Bible verses. They have to find the title of the verses...such as The Baptism of Jesus. They are also looking verses to find a missing word, so it is more like fill in the blank. I'm glad we do that since Father Patrick talked about Bibles today at mass and Bible "quotations"/ verses. He had us repeating one from the first reading today! 

Don't forget, Friday is an early out! 3 hours!!!! The kids will not get lunch here. You will need to do that! Please let the school know if pick-up will change due to that early out. You can call Mrs. Sanchez in the office or email me. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! Enjoy the extra time!!! I don't really have any big plans except weeding in my flowerbed and doing homework for my LETRS class that many of us are taking right now. I told the kids we have a quiz every week and they are not easy!  '''

I would say we've had a great couple of weeks of school! I am enjoying your kids! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents! I hope you're adjusting to school being back in session. My alarm going off is still a struggle! I think we are having a great week so far, even though its only been two days!  I think you're kids are figuring out how Miss Surma works! 😉

Calendar Dates:

August 31- Mass

Sept. 1- Picture Day

Sept. 2- 3 hour early out

Sept. 5- No School/ Labor Day

Sept. 21- 5th Grade Mass

Sept. 23- 3 Hour Early Out/ homecoming

Picture Day will be next week on September 1st. Return any orders as soon as you can! That is a PE day so if girls are wearing sandals, make sure to pack some shoes for PE. 

DEAR Time- I told the 5th graders that on Wednesdays after library time we are going to have DEAR time. Drop Everything And Read. They will need a chapter book for this! I am going to read too! This time will count towards their Book It Calendars once we start that in October. This will be 15 minutes of reading silently for all of us.  This is good training for middle school! 

Reading- Next week we will start with a story and spelling. Their pretest will be on Monday and the posttest on Friday. This week I gave them a spelling inventory test just to see where they land. I will give bonus word eventually to some but I base that off of their pretest scores. I told them that if they ace the pretest then they won't have to take the posttest. 

Math- This week they will take a readiness test. It just shows me what they can and can't do in math. Next week we will start in chapter one! 

Technology Policy- In your child's Take Home Folder is a Technology Policy. Please read through it and sign it. Please go over the rules with your child as well. They need to sign it too. Return to me as soon as possible! 

Spirit Day- Our first one is this Friday, the 26th! The kids in our wing can wear sweats and/or a hat for $1. I know the temps won't really feel like sweats weather! 

Mass- If the kids didn't tell you about mass, make sure to ask! Father Patrick taught us a song about building our community! It was so fun and wonderful to see everyone participating with the singing and the actions! We are blessed to have him here! 

Sept. 2 is a 3 hour early out! We have PD that afternoon. Enjoy the longer weekend! 

Another item in your folder is a paper titled "Our 9". The 5th graders each month will pick a person they know living or dead, or maybe a Coach, their team, etc. No pets. That person will be who they pray for along with anyone (pets)  or anything else happening in their life for that month. Their hard work is dedicated towards that person! 

I don't have much to tell you this week. Hopefully your kids are adjusting to being back in school. I am trying not to hit them too hard with "school" yet. That will start on Monday for me! Have a great weekend! I am going to a wedding on Saturday afternoon and then the dinner honoring Mrs. Simmons in Indianola that night! 

God Bless, Miss Surma

 

Dear Parents, I hope everyone had a great weekend! I can't believe we are at the end of our year together! Time has just flown by so quickly! I will miss these kids next year that is for sure!  I hope everyone has a wonderful summer!

May 20- 8th grade graduation/ Spirit Day

May 25- Spring Concert 6 pm

May 26- Last Day of School/ Early Out/ No lunch

Spirit Day this Friday! Kids can wear sweats/hat for $1!!

May 25- We are going to have the kids clean out their desks and lockers on Wednesday. They need to make sure they have an empty bag or bags to take their stuff home. The only thing they will need on Thursday is a water bottle and tennis shoes! 

May 25 Mass- Everyone can wear their favorite "Kick off to Summer shirt" and they can wear shorts and capris if they would like to! We are going to give our awards after mass. Following that will be the "Spray Mr. McCabe festivities"! 

Concert at the high school gym at 6 pm! Students should follow dress code and wear mass day attire. Please fill out the permission slip that is in your child's folder this week and return ASAP. 

May 26- This is a 3 hour early out! There won't be lunch served that day. Field Day starts at 9:45 if you want to come and watch! 

Social Studies - Make sure your child returns the extra book we gave them to take home before the end of the year! Thank you! 

Book Reports- They did a great job on Wednesday. I will get the grading done over the weekend! They will bring their posters and papers home next week when I am done. I hope you saw their pictures on Facebook. 

Father Patrick stopped in to meet the 5th graders on Wednesday afternoon. He was super nice! We are excited for next year with him. 

I hope you have a great weekend! I won't be writing a blog next week. If there is anything I need to let you know, I will send out an email. Again, it has been a wonderful year with your kids!!! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

Hello Parents, I hope everyone had a great weekend and all the moms loved their gifts! We are winding down! It is amazing how quickly this year went by! 

May 18- Book Report Due

May 20- 8th grade graduation

May 25- Spring Concert

May 26- Last Day of School/ Early Out/ No lunch

Book Reports- They are due next WEDNESDAY!!! They should come to school that day with their project and their costumes. Please make sure they practice at home--maybe in front of you so they know how to pronounce their names and any other "hard" word. I also want them to practice so they aren't strictly reading off their boards or paper- they should look up at their audience once in awhile! I don't know that we will get through all of them on Wednesday,but we shall try! 

Reading- We are in our final story for the unit. Lewis and Clark is the story. It is the true story of their expedition that took them 2 years! Their spelling list this week is the suffix -ion. They are given their base word- elect and then election. In grammar they are working on contractions- this should be review. The spelling in their contractions might be the hardest! Next week will be a unit test week! No spelling next week! 

Substitute- I will be gone on Friday. There will be a substitute that day. IF anything comes up- please notify the office. 

Spring Concert- May 25 at 6pm in the Creston High School Gym (new location)

Congratulations 5th graders on winning the Dilly Bar Party for the most laps with the Lap-A-Thon! 

Mass- May 25th- This will be our final mass. We will do awards after mass for the middle school kids and then Mr. McCabe will get his Silly String Spray!

I hope everyone has a great weekend! My sister Penny is coming down and we are going to see Steve Martin and Martin Short at the Civic Center! I can't wait!

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, 

I hope you are having a good week! The weather this week is depressing, but I see 70s in the forecast for next week! 

May 8- Mother's Day

May 9- Lap-A-Thon

May 18- Book Report Due

May 20- 8th grade graduation

May 25- Spring Concert

May 26- Last Day of School/ Early Out/ No lunch

Reading-This week they are reading a story called Rachel's Journal. It is about a young girl who is traveling with her family in a wagon train on the Oregon Trail. She details some of her adventures in her journal. They meet a Native American who is very kind. They get lost when she and her friends walk away from the train. Their family also has to ford the river in their wagon after a lot of rain which also happens during a thunderstorm. Their spelling this week deals with prefixes. In grammar we are working on adjectives in the comparative (-er or more) and superlative (-est or most) forms. Spelling is counting on their assignments because sometimes they have to drop a -y or add a double consonant. 

Book Report Projects Due May 18

Math- On Tuesday, they had to estimate sums and differences. I went away from the book. They were using a number line. I ended up drawing pictures on the board for them to visualize it easier! That worked! This week they are also learning how to take an improper fraction and turn it into a mixed number and vice versa. This is a little bit a of challenge. They are also going to start adding mixed numbers with unlike denominators. They are going to be pros at renaming fractions! 

Religion- We are ending our chapter on the Spiritual Works of Mercy. This week they learned about Saint Maria Goretti who was 11 years old when a neighbor boy/man stabbed her 14 times. She died the following day. She forgave him for his act and hoped she would see him in heaven one day. He had a dream of her while in prison and she handed him 14 flowers. He saw that as a sign of forgiveness and after that he changed his ways. They will have a religion test next week. 

Lap-A-Thon- It is now moved to Monday!  Kids can run in shorts or sweats! They can have devices if they want to listen to music. I might suggest packing another pair of shoes and socks for the afterwards. IF they do run, I imagine their shoes and socks are going to be muddy. They can have clean ones for the rest of the day. 

NEW STUDENT!!!! Please welcome Amelia Kendrick! We are so excited she is joining our small group! She is the daughter of Justin Kendrick and Sarah Fry (our PK para)! She is fitting right in!!! I just need to remember the number 7 now when making copies! 

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! To all the moms- Happy Mother's Day! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope everyone had a great weekend, minus the wind of course! I was in a wind warning back home on Saturday. I saw and drove through a few dust storms. I counted 4 overturned semis and 1 camper on its top driving back on Sunday on I-80! Scary!!!

May 4- 4th grade mass

May 5-Lap-A-Thon

May 8- Mother's Day

May 18- Book Report Due

May 20- 8th grade graduation

May 25- Spring Concert

May 26- Last Day of School

Elk's Track Meet- In your child's folder last week was a form for you to fill out for the Elk's Track meet. This is voluntary, not required. It has been a long time since we have participated in it! I am glad to see it back! If your child wants to participate, just fill out the form and have them fill it out and return it to Mr. McCabe. I hope some of them participate! It gives them just a little taste of being out for track! 

Lap-A-Thon- Don't forget to get your donations filled out for the lap-a-thon! The kids will run during their PE time on Thursday, May 5. Spraying Mr. McCabe with Silly String sounds fun too! 

Reading- This week they are reading a nonfiction piece called Vaqueros. It is the history of cowboys in America and Mexico. We read that it was illegal for the Natives to ride horses back then, but then some were taught how because they were needed on the cattle drives. The grammar this week is about easily confused verbs...words like can/may, rise/raise, teach/learn, sit/set and lie/lay. I think when we went over lie/lay- many of them had this awakening and realized they have been saying it wrong for so long! I will lay these books on the desk. I am going to go lie on my bed. (That is the correct form!)  I gave them a couple of lists they can use on their assignments and on their Friday test.

Book Report Projects will be due three weeks from Wednesday, April 27. 

Flowers- I don't know if you read Jennifer's blog the last couple of weeks, but in her post about clean up day, she asked every child to donate $1 for the flowers the school would plant outside for the summer. I had 2 kids donate last week. 

Religion- We are done with our Easter chapter. We are now working on the Spiritual Works of Mercy. Next week, we will start working in our Guidance books during religion class. We won't do it every day. It goes along with our religion program,but it's more about our relationships with our parents, siblings, friends, etc. 

Math- This week they learned to find the common denominator for fractions. The next step was then adding fractions with unlike denominators. That threw some of them off! On Wednesday, we started subtracting fractions with unlike denominators. Right now I am letting them keep their answers as improper fractions in simplified form. Baby steps. Next week I am going to teach them how to change that improper fraction into a mixed number and vice versa. That step takes some practice.

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I am heading to Waterloo again. My niece Olivia is in her high school's musical Grease! That will be fun to watch! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents! I hope everyone had a great Easter! That snow could have stayed away! It certainly made for  an interesting drive back from Waterloo! 

 Important Dates:

Apr. 22- Clean Up Day/bring rakes and gloves/Spirit Day

May 4- 4th grade mass

May 8- Mother's Day

May 18- Book Report Due

May 20- 8th grade graduation

Elk's Track Meet- In your child's folder is a form for you to fill out for the Elk's Track meet. This is voluntary, not required. It has been a long time since we have participated in it! I am glad to see it back! If your child wants to participate, just fill out the form and have them fill it out and return it to Mr. McCabe. I hope some of them participate! It gives them just a little taste of being out for track! 

Clean up Day- They need to bring rakes and gloves on Friday! Make sure your rake has your name on it! Have your child drop the rake off outside the office when they arrive at school. Now, all of this will depend on the weather! 

Spirit Day on Friday- they can wear sweats and/or a hat!

NEEDED: Wipes for the classroom!

Reading- This week they are reading a story called The Birchbark House. It is about a Native American girl who tries to befriend a couple of bear cubs until the momma bear returns to find them! In grammar they are working on Present, Past, and Future Perfect tense verbs. They are having to use has, have, had, and will in front of their verbs. 

This week I started playing Wordle with them in the mornings when we have time. We have only done it a couple of times, but they seemed to really enjoy it! 

Math- On Wednesday, we started working with fractions. Most of them have been doing some fraction work already on Successmaker. On Wednesday, they are figuring out what benchmark fraction is close to the fraction they are working with. They have to focus on 0, 1/2 and 1. We will also be working on finding common denominators this week. 

Religion- We are working on the Easter chapter for now. When we are done we will work on the Spiritual Works of Mercy. We left off in a chapter that we need to get back to. 

I hope everyone has a good weekend! I am heading home to Doon. Some of my siblings and I are getting together for dinner on Saturday at the local steakhouse. It is the 6th anniversary of my mom's passing...we just thought it would be nice to get together. There is also a craft show-- so I will probably do some shopping too! 😉

Do you know we only have 5 Mondays left???? This year has flown by! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

Dear Parents, 

I hope everyone had a great weekend! I really enjoyed seeing my friend get married- the weather was perfect on Saturday! My daffodils have started to bloom as well!

 Important Dates:

Apr 14-Seder Meal/Cross Walk

Apr. 15- School Closed/ Good Friday

Apr. 17- Easter

Apr. 22- Clean Up Day/bring rakes and gloves

Cross Walk- We are going on our Cross Walk on Thursday after the Seder Meal. Parents are welcome to join us for the walk! I would say meet us in the courtyard by 12:30. The kids need to wear a white shirt that day so Mrs. Simmons can take the group picture in the church! If they don't have a white shirt, they can wear a white t-shirt and then flip it inside out for the picture. 

Make sure your child is dressed appropriately on Thursday! I think the temps and wind are going to make it a cold walk! 

Reading- They are reading the story called Tucket's Travels by Gary Paulsen. Tucket  and two other kids are on the run from the Comancheros. Their parents have died and they are on their own. They also don't have any food or water. Tucket has to lead them to a grove of trees for shelter from a storm with the hope of finding water and hiding out. Their grammar this week is really a review of the forms of be and have. They are making sure the verb they choose can be used with the nouns or subject of the sentence. They will test on Thursday on their spelling words and over the story. 

Religion- I usually spend Holy Week showing them The Ten Commandments! I surprised some of them by telling them that the man playing Moses is also Doc in Field of Dreams and Bacca, the man Moses kills, is Vincent Price who talks in Michael Jackson's "Thriller" song. 🤣They will help me on Thursday set up the tables for our Seder Meal. 

Math- We are still working on division of decimals. On Wednesday they are going to start learning how to divide decimals by decimals instead of whole numbers!  We will start our fraction work sometime next week, although many of them are already getting a taste of it on Successmaker, which might make my job easier! 

I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter! I am heading to Waterloo to spend it with my sister and brother and their families! We are even doing an adult egg hunt so that should be fun! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Dear Parents, I hope everyone is having a great week! 

Important Dates:

Apr. 8- Spirit Day

Apr. 10- Palm Sunday

Apr 14-Seder Meal/Cross Walk

Apr. 15- School Closed/ Good Friday

Apr. 17- Easter

Apr. 22- Clean Up Day/bring rakes and gloves

Cross Walk- We are going on our Cross Walk next Thursday after the Seder Meal. Parents are welcome to join us for the walk! I would say meet us in the courtyard by 12:30. The kids need to wear a white shirt that day so Mrs. Simmons can take the group picture in the church! If they don't have a white shirt, they can wear a white t-shirt and then flip it inside out for the picture. Please fill out the permission slip going home in their folder on Thursday and return ASAP. Thanks! 

Seder Meal- The 5th graders will help me set up the gym next Thursday for the Seder Meal. It's become a 5th grade tradition! Mrs. Clark and Mr. Anderson will have a lot of it ready for us. The kids will basically set the tables! I will post pictures when we are done on Facebook.

Reminder there is no school on Good Friday! The teachers will be doing a service project that day. We are going to be cleaning the church before the Easter services! 

Thank you to the PTO for providing our snacks this week during testing! The kids and teachers enjoyed the treats! 

This week we took some time when not testing to work on the Dollars for Scholars essays. Each grade will have a winner. They get a $50 check to use for their education. The essays are due next week Thursday. Parents typically get notified in the mail if their child wins. 

Food Shelf- This is the last week we are accepting donations for the Food Shelf. Miss Steinkamp and I are going to deliver the donations next Monday after school. 

Reading- Their unit test scores are going home on Thursday in their folders. Next week they will be back to reading a story and having a spelling test. It will be on Thursday because we don't have school on Friday. 

I hope you have a great weekend! A friend of mine is getting married on Saturday and I will be helping her get things lined up for that. Palm Sunday is this Sunday! The beginning of Holy Week!

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope you had a great weekend! It was nice to get home and spend time with my sister and her husband. 

Important Dates:

Apr. 1- Field Trip to DM

Apr. 4-8- Iowa Assessment Week 

Apr. 8- Spirit Day

Apr. 10- Palm Sunday

Apr 14-Seder Meal/Cross Walk

Apr. 15- School Closed/ Good Friday

Apr. 17- Easter

ISASP Testing- On Monday we will begin testing. The 5th graders have 4 tests total to take. They will do one a day. 5th and 8th are both tested in science whereas the other grades are not. I will try to test in the mornings when they are most awake! They will still get their specials. The tests are timed, but we are given suggestions on about how long they should take. The PTO will provide snacks for a test break. What can you do?? Make sure they get plenty of sleep the night before, eat a good breakfast each morning (if they are breakfast eaters), and let them know that they should do their best and not blow this test off. We do use this information to make other decisions. 

Due to the testing, their schedule/routine will be off next week.

Math- I have been using some of our normal math time to work on our practice tests this week so we aren't covering much for material. I will get back into it later this week and next week. 

Reading- This week is their unit 4 test. They won't have any spelling or vocabulary to do. At this time, I don't think I will be doing a story next week with the ISASP tests. That means no spelling test next week either! 

Field Trip- The kids will need to wear jeans and a nice shirt on Friday, no shorts.They should also wear comfortable walking shoes. Our morning will be outside when we get there. The kids will need a sack lunch with drink. Remember it is a Friday during Lent.  They also need to pack a mask for the Civic Center just in case it is needed. They may have electronics for the ride up and back. 

Please help donate to the Food Shelf. A flyer went home last week with items you can purchase to donate! Mrs Sickels and I help on Monday nights pack food bags for kids to get for their weekends. We usually pack over 150 bags. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope everyone had a great spring break! I headed to Waverly and visited my sister and brother! My sister and I also drove to Galena, Illinois for a couple of days! It was GREAT!  The weather was perfect until that snow!

Important Dates:

Mar. 24- PTO Meeting

Mar. 25- Spirit Day $1 for hats or sweats

Mar. 30- 5th grade mass

Apr. 1- Field Trip to DM

Apr. 4-8- Iowa Assessment Week 

Spirit Day- Friday, March 25- Due to temps they can wear sweats or a hat for $1

Religion- We are in our Lent chapter right now. Our first story was of Jesus being tempted in the desert by the devil. We talked about the correlation of the 40 days he spent there and the 40 days of Lent. We also talked about what we gave up for Lent being our "temptations" like he faced with the devil. On Wednesday, the 5th graders took the ACRE test. It is a standardized religion test given to 5th and 8th graders. I think the 8th graders already took it. Mrs. Simmons comes in to help us get it going because it is online!

Field Trip- There is a form in your child's folder on Thursday for our field trip next Friday to the Des Moines Civic Center. Please fill out and return as soon as possible. There is also a $5 fee for each child to help pay for the gas and buses. They will need a sack lunch and drink that day! 

Reading- This week they are reading the story The Black Stallion. It's not the entire story of course, just a portion. Alec is stranded on this island with Black. They have to create a friendship to help each other survive! Our grammar focuses on the rules of writing titles of books, newspapers, songs, TV shows, articles, etc. I gave them a cheat sheet again that I will let them use on the test. The spelling list was fun! Words from other languages threw them off! Ask them what dungarees are or what is a siesta??🤣🤣

Mass- We have mass next week! I will give them their parts on Friday!

Friday- This Friday is the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord for the church. Father Adam said that you can eat meat on Friday and have whatever is you gave up! So... that means they can eat ice cream, play that video game, drink a juice box, but just for Friday!! 😊😊

ISASP Testing is the week of April 4. These are the Iowa Assessments. They will take some practice tests next week. In 5th grade they are tested in reading, language/writing, math and science. 

April 1st Fish Fry- Knights are looking for people to donate cookies! 

Thank you again for the birthday gifts! That means a lot! I think they liked their "treats" from me! I hope you have a great weekend! I am heading to Sioux Falls to see my sister. We are going to visit our mom's best friend on Saturday. She is like our 2nd mom and has been dealing with cancer. 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Dear Parents, I am so happy the temps this week are getting us closer to spring, but I did tell your kids they need to watch... temps can change quickly! They might not want to wear shorts in the 40s! 

 Important Dates:

Mar. 4- Spirit Day

Mar. 5- Auction and Dinner

Mar. 8- Honor Choir in Underwood

Mar. 10- Conferences/ No School

Mar. 11-18 Spring Break

Mar. 21- Classes Resume

Reading- This week we are doing our story in 4 days due to our short week last week. They will have a post test on Friday in spelling. This week our story is Darrell Rock Reporting. It is about a young boy who writes an article for the local newspaper to persuade the town to take an empty lot and create a town garden that will help the homeless people there. He has to take his argument to the town council to get voted on. Another student wants to turn it into a parking lot for the teachers. Who wins???? In grammar we are working on different kinds of pronouns. 

Math- I was hoping we'd be done with this chapter before break, but I am not quite sure that is going to happen. The four day week has messed with my plans a bit! 

Religion- They have been learning about the sacraments of healing- penance and reconciliation and anointing of the sick. The plan is to test over this before we leave for spring break. When we get back from break, we will focus on Lent. 

Spirit Day on Friday!

Shorts- I told the kids that I know they can now wear shorts again, but I also stressed to use good judgment.  As of right now, next Monday is back in the 30s. That could be a very cold recess and we won't keep them inside because they wore shorts. 

Honor Choir is next Tuesday! I am going to put another copy of the letter Mrs. Stoner sent you with all the details just as a reminder in your child's take home folder this week. I will be going with them that day since all of them are participating! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope everyone enjoyed their extra long weekend! We will celebrate 2-22-22 on Thursday! The kids can wear their ties, tutus, and tie-dye on that day! 

 Important Dates:

Feb. 25- Spirit Day

Mar. 2- Ash Wednesday/ Lent begins

Mar. 4- Spirit Day

Mar. 5- Auction and Dinner

Mar. 11-18 Spring Break

Mar. 21- Classes Resume

Conferences- Please check out the link and make sure you have signed up for a conference time!  I sent the link to you in an email and on my classroom Facebook page. 

Reading- This week they are reading a story called The Dog Newspaper. This is a true story by the author Peg Kehret. She has written some great books for kids that I read a long time ago! This is her story about how she got into writing. EJ was the dog her uncle returned to the states with after WWII. Her first story was writing about EJ! In grammar this week they are moving on to prepositions and prepositional phrases. I give them a little chart with quite a few of the most common prepositions. They will also be allowed to use it on the test. 

Due to our "snow day', I am changing the plans so that we cover this story in 4 days instead of 3. That means I will give them their post test on Monday, Feb. 28,  in spelling as well the test over this story. Then next week I will do that story in 4 days as well. That works out better because the next week will be conference week and they are going to be at honor choir all day on Tuesday. 

Math- We are still going at it with division! Slow and steady! I am going to try and be done with this chapter before we leave for spring break! That is my goal. We will see how it goes! 

Lent- Has your child made any decision on what they are doing for Lent this year? They will need to know by next Tuesday. We will fill out our promises in religion class.

We will also celebrate Fat Tuesday on Tuesday! The 4th graders will be making donuts. 

Spirit Day is Friday! Sweats for $1

The auction is March 5!!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I sure would like those temps we had last weekend!

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

Dear Parents,

I hope everyone is having a good week! It was nice to kick off the week with Valentine's Day! Thank you for all the donations for our LIVE auction item! There was enough money to get the 3D printer and filament. 

 Important Dates:

Feb. 21- No School/ PD Day

Feb. 25- Spirit Day

Mar. 2- Ash Wednesday/ Lent begins

Mar. 4- Spirit Day

Mar. 5- Auction and Dinner

Mar. 11-18 Spring Break

Mar. 21- Classes Resume

Math- this week I taught them the standard algorithm of division. Once they have it down, I will let them choose which method they like better to divide. Either way is correct! I also taught them how to check their division by multiplying. I told them this was a great way for them to KNOW they got the right answer and it also means less chance of correcting! 

Reading- This week we read a science fiction story called LAFFF. It is about a boy who makes a time machine that can only go to the future for a short time. His next door neighbor decides to use the time machine to go forward to figure out what essay won a writing contest at her school. She wants to write the winning essay to impress her parents. There is a slight twist at the end of the story...ask your kids to explain it! In grammar we are working on identifying adverbs which describe verbs and adjectives. 

No School on Monday, Feb. 21. It is a professional development day for us! Enjoy your long weekend! 😁

Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022 Ties, Tutus and Tie-Dye! The kids can dress up for this fun day- 2/22/22!! This is not a requirement! 

Religion- We started a new chapter this week!  We are focusing on the sacraments of anointing of the sick and penance and reconciliation. This will be good.  They will go to confession at some point during Lent. We will most likely move into Lent after this chapter. They need to decide what they are doing for this Lenten season. They will fill out their promises on March 1. Lent will begin on March 2. 

3rd Trimester will begin on Tuesday! The late slip records will be wiped clean. Do you realize that means we only have 12 more weeks of school???  This year is flying by us! 😢

Wipes- We could use some more in the room if you can donate any!!! Thank you! 

Look on my Facebook page for pictures of their painted coasters! They did a great job! 

Just a reminder- students may not bring in fast food for their sack lunches.

I  hope everyone has a great weekend! Enjoy the extra day off on Monday!!

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Dear Parents, Well, CSW is over and we are back to normal!! I love CSW, but having a routine is nice too! 

Important Dates:

Feb. 11-  Spirit Day

Feb. 14- Valentine's Day celebration

Feb, 16- 4th grade mass

Feb. 21- No School/ PD Day

Feb. 25- Spirit Day

Mar. 2- Ash Wednesday/ Lent begins

Mar. 4- Spirit Day

Mar. 5- Auction and Dinner

Valentines- The kids may bring in their Valentines on Monday. We will celebrate then! 

Math- This week I am teaching them to use compatible numbers when estimating with division. It is easier than just rounding because this way there won't be a remainder for sure.  They do have to pick compatible numbers though so that it works evenly. They really just need to know their basic facts to figure it out. I let them use their multiplication table when needed. Don't worry, they won't be bringing this home to you! We do this in my room so you don't have to stress. I told them I never learned this when I was in school, but it is so much easier than rounding when dividing. 

Reading- This week we are reading the story Lunch Money.  This is about a boy who makes his own comic book. He sells them at school for 25 cents. We are only reading a small portion of the book so they would need to read the book to find out how well he does in selling them. He does every part of creating these. They are the size of a credit card. In grammar this week we are working on adjectives- words that describe nouns.  On Tuesday, they had to find the noun and then find the adjective or adjectives that described that noun. Once those were located, they had to tell me if they adjective answered- how many? what kind? or origin? The origin were pretty easy to identify because they were capitalized- Asian, American, Japanese,etc. On Wednesday,they had to find the linking verb first and then locate the adjective that followed it. 

FAST Scores- Sorry, I kept forgetting to send home their FAST reading scores! They are in their folders! They did GREAT!!!! 

Religion- We are finishing up our chapter on baptism and confirmation. They will have a test on Monday.  Lent will be starting at the beginning of March. It might be a good idea to start talking to your kids about what they are planning on doing for Lent this year. 

Spirit Day on Friday! Wear sweats for $1!

Any auction donations??? Send them in! Get your tickets for the dinner or put your order for the food if you are watching from home! 

Next week in art we will work on our silent auction item of coasters. 

I hope you have a great weekend! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma