Hello Families, I hope everyone is having a great week! I cannot believe next week is Holy Week! The Lenten season has flown by. There is lots of information below. Please read ! 

Calendar Dates:

Apr. 7-11- ISASP Testing

Apr. 17- Seder Meal/Cross Walk

Apr. 18- Good Friday/Spirit Day

Apr. 20- Easter Sunday

Apr. 21- No School/ PD Day

Apr. 24- Field Trip to MO

Apr. 25- Clean Up Day

Seder Meal- Thursday will be our annual Seder Meal for Holy Thursday. The 5th graders get to help me set up the tables for that meal! They are usually a big help to me! This year and moving forward- each child will need to bring their own sack lunch for after the Seder Meal. Milk will be provided. The cooks will not provide a lunch. 

They will need to wear a white shirt that day! They will take the cross picture in the church after the Stations of the Cross are done. Make sure they wear tennis shoes for the walk. 

Book Report- The 5th graders chose their biographies on Monday! They were also given a packet with the details in it. I told them to keep the packet with the book. They are to answer the questions as they read. They will be creating a Google Slide presentation for their report. Most of that will be done at school, but they can always check on it and work on it at home. 

Good Friday- It is also a Spirit Day! The middle school students will be doing a Reader's Theater in the afternoon to commemorate the day. 

Field Trip- In your child's folder is a permission slip for our trip to Missouri with the 6-8th graders. This one is a religion trip. We are taking a charter bus. You are welcome to join us, but you will have to drive yourself there. The kids will need a sack lunch and drink that day. They CANNOT wear shorts. They should wear jeans and a nice shirt. No holes in the jeans. Cargo jeans are fine. If any of the girls want to wear a dress- it has to go to their knees. The sweatshirts will only be worn on the bus if they are chilly. We will not get back in time for the bus or trolley. You will have to come to school to pick your child up. We should be back by 4:15.

Math- On Monday we worked on more division, but this time some of their dividends had 4 digits. Adding one more number to divide into really threw some of them a curve. They thought they were done and then it didn't work when they checked by multiplying. I had to show quite a few kids that they forgot to drop the last number.  

Clean Up Day- It is scheduled for April 25- depending on the weather. Kids who can bring a rake (with their name on it) please do so. If they have work or garden gloves that they can wear to pick up trash, leaves, and branches would also be great! 

Next week will be a busy one with it being Holy Week. I hope everyone has a great weekend! Enjoy the temps! I cleaned out my flowerbed last weekend. 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello All- I hope your week is going well. Last night Mrs. Sickels, Mrs. Ramsey and myself went to Des Moines to hear Father Mike speak. If you ever get the chance- check him out on YouTube. He does masses every Sunday in Duluth. He is the priest on their college campus. He is also on the Hallow app and on Ascension. He is worth a listen to! I've always wanted to be able to listen to him in person. Last night didn't disappoint! 

Calendar Dates:

Apr. 4- Field Trip to Des Moines/ Spirit Day

Apr. 9- 5th grade mass

Apr. 7-11- ISASP Testing

Apr. 17- Seder Meal/Cross Walk

Apr. 18- Good Friday/Spirit Day

Apr. 21- No School/ PD Day

Apr. 24- Field Trip to MO

Reading- I am still getting my sick kids to be caught up with the module test. Those scores should go home next week! I am so happy with the weekly reading test scores! Our next unit has begun, but it will be really broken up with ISASP testing next week. This unit is nonfiction. It will be stories about taking care of the planet. 

Dollars for Scholars- Soon they will be writing their essays for this contest. 

Book Report- I do plan on assigning the final book report next week. This is the biography. This one they will read and take notes on their person as they go. Once your child has picked their person, you will need to help them start thinking of the costume they will wear the day they present. 

Math- We are working our way through division, but I am also working on some fractions with them. They now know how to check their work by multiplying! They don't always like that extra work, but in the long run it helps them and me! 

Poster Contest- In their free time, they are creating posters for Northwest Bank's poster contest. 

Field Trip- Just a few reminders: they can wear jeans or shorts tomorrow. If they have a STM shirt or sweatshirt- that would be great, but not required. I told them to be ready to go outside at some point. It might be chilly. The high of the day is supposed to be 50.  They can take electronics for the bus ride. They will stay on the bus. I talked to them about the art museum expectations as well. No touching! No messing around,etc. I don't really have that concern. They will need a sack lunch and drink! We will be back in time for the bus and trolley. 

ISASP- They will have one test each day next week, except for Friday. I always tell them it is important that they get a good night's sleep! If they are breakfast people- eat! It wouldn't hurt to have a water bottle. Water can keep headaches away! They will also need to have a chapter book for after testing. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope you are having a good week! This weather is beautiful! Bring on spring!!! 

Calendar Dates:

Apr. 4- Field Trip to Des Moines/ Spirit Day

Apr. 9- 5th grade mass

Apr. 7-11- ISASP Testing

Apr. 17- Seder Meal/Cross Walk

Apr. 18- Good Friday/Spirit Day

Apr. 21- No School/ PD Day

Reading- We are finishing our Pioneer Sampler story this week. They will test over it this week, and they will take the weekly module test.  On Monday, they will take the Module/Unit test. We will start our next module on Tuesday.  

I am planning on assigning the next book report next week. This is the biography I told you about at conferences. If they can't find a book they like at school, they are welcome to check out the library, a book store, or get one online. Just let me know.  Remember the project will be a Google slides presentation- which they will most likely do at school. If you have a computer at home, they should be able to access it there as well.  That will be a bit down the road. They first need to read the book and take notes. 

Math- They are doing really well dividing two digits into three digits. That will soon bump up to dividing into the thousands. This usually gets a little trickier.  I am also going to teach them to check by multiplying. That way they know if they "did it right". 

Religion- We have been focusing on a chapter dealing with Lent.  As part of their Lenten promises- we  all agreed we would go to the chapel once a week to say the Rosary. We started  that last week. We will go again this week. 

Thank you for the Noisy Change Collection money!  I gave the money to Mark O'Riley on Wednesday evening. We gave him over $600. That should help him purchase some food for the Food Shelf that he runs. He was very appreciative! 

Field Trip- The 5th graders will head to Des Moines next Friday- April 4. We leave around 8:30. We will be back in time for the bus that day. They will need a sack lunch and drink that day. 

Mass- The 5th graders will be in charge of mass on April 9. I will hand out parts next week. Please join us for mass that day if you're available. 

ISASP- The standardized testing will begin on April 7. Next week I will be doing some practice testing with them so they know what to expect that week. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope everyone was able to enjoy their spring break! I know I did. I didn't really do anything, but I got a lot of little chores done at home! I also made time to read some books! The weather was beautiful! 

Calendar Dates:

Mar. 21- Spirit Day

Mar. 24- Reconciliation

Mar. 26- Noisy Change Collection at Mass

Apr. 4- Field Trip to Des Moines

Apr. 9- 5th grade mass

Apr. 7-11- ISASP Testing

Substitute- I will have a sub on Friday afternoon. Mrs. Weight will be here with the kids. I am taking some time to clean and hang out with my siblings. Some are coming to Creston on Friday to celebrate my birthday with me. 

Reading- This week we are reading a story about a pioneer family and about their life. We learned about how they harvested their hay. We looked up pictures of the tools they used online. They also talked about how they watched the weather by watching animals in nature and the moon.  On Wednesday, I showed them a couple of videos. One was a man showing how they thatch a roof...that was something they talked about in the story. The other was a short video giving us a tour of what a cabin in the 1850s would have looked like. We also talked about how life was so different. We talked about our modern conveniences today.

Grammar is covering the different tenses of verbs. We talked about past and present tense on Tuesday. On Wednesday, we worked on future tense verbs. They also had to write them with contractions. 

I have it mapped out so that they will take their spelling test next week as well as our weekly test. This is the last story in the module. That means they will be taking a module test too. 

Religion- We are working on a Lent chapter right now. They did take the ACRE test on Tuesday.

Reconciliation is on Monday with Father Patrick and Father John.  The kids made cards for Father's birthday! They gave them to him after mass. He was thrilled!  Some of the kids were excited to hear that Lionel Messi is his favorite soccer player!  

Noisy Change Collection at mass next Wednesday! The money goes to Mark O'Riley and his Food Shelf. 

Math- we started working on division on Monday. We will get back at it on Thursday and Friday.  They did a pretty good job on Monday! 

Field Trip- There is a permission slip in their Take Home Folder for our trip to Des Moines on April 4. Please fill out and return ASAP. Thank you! 

Spirit Day on Friday! They can wear sweats and/or hat for $1!!! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! My sister Mary and I are going to the Book Fest in Des Moines on Saturday. One of our favorite authors - C J Box is going to be there! We are excited to hear him talk about his books! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Hello Families! I hope everyone is having a good week! Thank you for signing up for conferences next week. 

Calendar Dates:

Feb. 28- Last Day for Coin Wars

Feb. 28- Book Reports Due

Mar. 1- STM Gala/Auction

Mar. 5- Ash Wednesday ( Lent Begins)

Mar. 3-6 Parent Teacher Conferences

Mar. 7-16 Spring Break

Mar. 17- St. Patrick's Day/ Classes Resume

Reading- This week our story is really short. It is about the Transcontinental Railroad being built. It really shows how the Chinese people worked extremely hard, but were discriminated against and didn't get any of the recognition. By the end of the construction, there were 12,000 Chinese workers. They showed how they were willing to work in poor conditions and risk their lives to see it built.  My plan is to get this story and work completed before break. They will take the selection quiz over this one, but I don't know if I will have time for the module weekly test. They will have their posttest in spelling next week too. Their list is harder this week. They are working with words that have a VCCCV pattern in them. In grammar they are working with subject and object pronouns. 

Book Reports are due on Friday! They will share that day. I hope to get some checked over the weekend! 

Math- We started our division chapter. On Tuesday, I taught them about estimating with division. They don't just round because there is a good chance they would still end up with a remainder.  They have to find compatible numbers. That way they can use their multiplication table if necessary and mentally divide (or multiply) to find the quotient. It is tricky. 

I will be practicing division with them for a couple of days to remind them how to divide. We will use a single digit divisor. Then I will jump in with dividing by two digits. 

Religion- They shared their saint slides this week. They were good! This was good practice for their last book report project. This week we also read the story called The Woman at the Well. One of my favorites from the Bible. Jesus told her that following him would bring her eternal life. We also talked about how the Jews and Samaritans didn't get along. 

Lent begins next week. The kids will make their Lenten promises on Tuesday. Ash Wednesday mass is on Wednesday. We have an all school mass. Some of your kids have a part. I gave it to them on Monday. You're welcome to join us on Wednesday. 

Thank you to Melodie Winkler for creating the 5th grade quilt for the auction. It turned out so great! I know the kids loved it! Whoever get that at the auction will be wrapped up in lots of LOVE! 

As of Monday, they can wear shorts again. I always tell them that just because they can, doesn't mean they should. They should at least have a sweatshirt for recess. I saw a few kids without on Wednesday and it felt like it was in the 30s. 

Coin Wars ends on Friday! 1st place is a pizza party. 2nd place is a cupcake party. 3rd place is candy. 

Spirit Day on Friday!!! 

I hope everyone has a good weekend! If you're going to the auction, I will see you there!

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Families, Okay, I am over this cold weather and snow! I see 40s in the forecast for next week! I am thinking positive thoughts! I become a great aunt again on Valentine's Day. I have another great niece- Isabella Mae. She is so sweet with lots of hair! I can't wait to meet her in person! 

Calendar Dates:

Feb. 21- End of Trimester 2

Feb. 28- Book Reports Due

Mar. 1- STM Gala/Auction

Mar. 5- Ash Wednesday ( Lent Begins)

Mar. 3-6 Parent Teacher Conferences

Mar. 7-14 Spring Break

Reading- They will have their post test in spelling on Thursday. They will also have their selection quiz over the story that day. On Friday they will take their weekly test. That means next week we will start a new story and have a spelling pretest! 

Book Reports- The projects are due on Friday, February 28! I am planning on having them share them that day as well. 

Religion- They have been busy working on their saint projects. They had to choose a saint and do research on their life and take notes on that. Now they are creating a Google Slides presentation on them. They are having fun with that one! 

Math- I am working with kids now on correcting their tests. Once all have been corrected, I will send them home for you to see. The weather days have slowed me down on this one! Our next chapter is division! I may have to do some work on reminding them how to divide first. This chapter is all about dividing by 2-digit numbers. 

Conferences- Don't forget to schedule your conference time with me! 

Substitute- I will be gone on Thursday afternoon so there will be a sub here. I believe it is Mrs. Weight! I am going to move reading to the afternoon that day so I can take care of math. 

Clorox Wipes- We could use some more! Thank you to those who gave them to me as a Christmas present! They are much appreciated! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I plan on working on report cards, but maybe go to a movie too! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Families! I hope everyone enjoyed the snow day as much as they could! I realize some of you still had to go to work.  I got some stuff done at home and some shoveling. I am good with the snow. It can be done now. 😁

Calendar Dates:

Feb. 14- Spirit Day and Valentine's Day

Feb. 17- No School/PD Day

Feb.19- Kindergarten Mass with help from 5th grade

Feb. 19- Field Trip to Carlos Acutis Veneration

Feb. 21- End of Trimester 2

Feb. 28- Book Reports Due

Mar. 1- STM Gala/ Auction

Field Trip- I have enough drivers now! Thank you! I am still missing some permission slips. Please return by Monday.  

Reading- This week's story is kind of lengthy, but also allows for great discussion. It is an informational story about the expansion west in the United States, but the way it is written is more like a cartoon/realistic fiction. We talked about the reasons why people moved west in the 1800s- free land and the gold rush being a couple of them. I showed them pictures of Independence Rock. This was a place people stopped and etched their name and the date of being there. We looked at photos online of the ruts that were in the ground due to the wagons and muddy trails. We focused on some of the hardships they faced on the trail...like diseases, bad weather, running out of food and/ or water. I do wish they had talked to them about the clothing they had to wear back then. Many of them traveled over 50o miles and walking beside the wagon was a big part of that. 

Grammar- We are working on quotation marks and the appropriate ways to punctuate direct quotes or phrases. 

Book Reports- Projects due on February 28! 

Religion- Our chapter focuses on joining the Catholic church  when you are older vs when you are a baby. It's great that I have Mary and Silas to ask questions to since they have joined in the past couple of years. On Tuesday, they each picked a saint to do some research on. They are taking notes on that saint's life. After that they are going to create some Google Slides on that person to share with the class. Picking a saint is part of the confirmation process. It gives them a specific saint to be their patron saint to pray to when they need help or guidance. 

Next Wednesday we will travel to St. Pius to see the first class relic of Blessed Carlos. He will be named a saint later this year in April. We will leave here at 10:45. They will need to pack a sack lunch and drink. We will eat up there before we return.  This day is offered to the Catholic schools to visit, but I believe it will be open to the public that weekend, if you're interested. 

Math- We are still finishing up the test with a few kids. This test is longer than the last ones have been. I did spend my snow day correcting those that finished already. We will begin division next week. This is usually a harder chapter with high frustration. I will do my best to lower or eliminate that frustration as best I can. 

Valentines- have your child bring their Valentines to school on Friday. We will celebrate it in the afternoon. 

Mass- next Wednesday the 5th graders will help the kindergarten class with mass. Please join us if you are able! 

Auction- I got the basket done for the auction- well almost. I will post a picture on my Facebook page when it is complete! Thank you for helping out! I am calling it A Cozy Night In Basket. It would great for any family to purchase! 

No School on Monday, Feb. 17. It is a professional development day! Enjoy the long weekend! 

Melodie Winkler got me our auction item. I will work on it next week with the kids. Thank you, Melodie! 

Ben Tracy- I hope you were able to listen to him on Wednesday night on the webinar! He was GREAT! It was extremely eye-opening on what social media is doing with kids and to kids.  They will be able to see him on Friday when he talks to them at school. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I am hoping to be able to go to the funeral of my sister-in-law's dad in Humboldt, but the weather doesn't look like it will let me. Maybe things will change! 🙏🙏

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Hello Families! I hope you're having a good week! I sure enjoyed the 50s while we had them! 

Calendar Dates:

Feb. 12- Ben Tracy 6pm Southern Prairie Arts Center

Feb. 14- Spirit Day and Valentine's Day

Feb. 17- No School/PD Day

Feb.19- Kindergarten Mass with help from 5th grade

Feb. 19- Field Trip to Carlos Acutis Veneration

Feb. 21- End of Trimester 2

Feb. 28- Book Reports Due

Mar. 1- STM Gala/ Auction

Reading- They took their module test on Monday. These stories weren't the easiest. I am pleasantly surprised to say that scores were better than I expected based on the difficulty of the stories! Go 5th graders!!! This doesn't mean to say that we don't have room for improvement. 

They also took their weekly test last Friday. Those scores will be in their Take Home Folders.   

Our next unit is based on history and the expansion of the United States and the railroad. I really like this unit. I learned a lot last year! I hope the kids like it too!  They took a spelling pretest on Tuesday! I had 6 perfect scores! That was a first for me! They won't have to take the posttest when we get to that.  Grammar will be focusing on quotation marks and interjections. We spent some time on Wednesday going over homographs- words that are spelled the same, but have different meanings (may also be pronounced differently)-like wound and wound.  We also talked about homophones- words that sound the same, but spelled differently- like my favorites- their, they're, and there. Your kids created quite a list! 

Book Reports are due at the end of the month. I am reminding them daily they need to keep reading their books in any free time. The 28th will be here before we know it. 

Book It- I told the kids this month is shorter and I increased their minutes on the calendar. This means they need to read near 30 minutes a day to make the 800 minutes. I also had to explain to them that Pizza Ranch is no longer doing the certificates. They will honor the ones I have given so far, but next month I won't be handing any more out. I am out of them. So I will reward them with a Ring Pop sucker. Mrs. Stoner got me boxes of them while shopping at Costco!  I did see that Pizza Ranch still offers a free meal for your child , but only on Tuesday nights and I believe an adult has to pay for a meal as well.  I know as time moves on things change, but I still want to promote reading! 

Permission Slip- In your child's folder is the permission slip to go to St. Pius on the 19th. Please sign and return as soon as possible.  I have 3 drivers so far for that day. I could use 1-2 more depending on car size. They will need to pack a sack lunch that day. 

Math- This week we are working on the practice test. I was hoping to give the real test on Friday, but our early out on Wednesday messed up those plans. So I am hoping that they can take the test on Monday. 

Religion- We finished up our chapter . It focused on the Baptism of Jesus as well what that sacrament does for us. We also talked about how the people are the Body of Christ here on earth. Our job is to do the work that he started here. They had to come up with things they could do to help out at home, at school, and at church. 

Mass- The 5th graders will be helping the kindergartners at their mass on February 19. You're welcome to join us! Not all the 5th graders have a job. 

Auction- Thank you for donating to the school's auction basket! I am ready to go shopping! 

Melodie Winkler is helping me with our silent auction item this year. The kids will be helping her create a tie blanket. There is more to it than that, but once we get it going- I will post pictures on my Facebook page. 

Valentines- We will celebrate on the 14th! The kids may bring in Valentines for the class,but it isn't required. ❤🍬🧸

I hope everyone has a great weekend! Stay safe if we get the weather I am hearing predicted for our area. 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

Hello Families,

 What a difference a week makes! I had my windows open on Wednesday! I know we need the rain or snow, but I loved being able to do that! 

Calendar Dates:

Feb. 5 CYC Presentation after mass

Feb. 12- Ben Tracy 6pm Southern Prairie Arts Center

Feb. 14- Spirit Day and Valentine's Day

Feb. 17- No School/PD Day

Feb. 21- End of Trimester 2

Feb. 28- Book Reports Due

Reading- We finished up our story on Hurricanes this week. They will have their weekly test on Friday. They will also have their spelling test then too. We will do that in the morning. Next Monday will be their Module Test/ Unit test. We will start a new unit on Tuesday. The next one is more historical nonfiction. I enjoy the next unit. It is more about the US in the past and traveling across the country to the west. 

FYI- the book I am reading aloud is the 2nd book in the series. This one is called Mr. Terupt Falls Again.  I prepared them before I started reading it that the kids in the book were now in 6th grade. I also told them that one of the girls was going to get her period in the book so to be ready for that part. Your kids took that like champs. On Tuesday, we reached that part of the story. It doesn't go into any great detail and I don't fully explain it to them either. I just want them to be ready and know what I'm talking about. So...if anyone comes home with questions about periods- that is probably what it is stemming from. 

Math- We spent Monday and Tuesday learning the formulas for area and perimeter. The math test is coming up. They throw in problems dealing with area and perimeter, but it really isn't in the chapter. I taught them the correct way to write the formulas and then solve them. I let them use calculators to do the work. Their chapter test will be next week most likely. We will do a practice test first. 

Religion- Our chapter focuses on the Sacrament of Baptism, but also how we are the Body of Christ. We are meant to be part of his life and do for others as Jesus did. We talked about how his baptism was meant to save us. We also talked about how he taught the Pharisee Nicodemus about the importance of being baptized. Nicodemus wanted to follow Jesus, but was too scared to leave what he knew. He comes later in the Bible after Jesus died. He helps prepare his body for burial. On Wednesday, we read about Saint Maximilian Kolbe.  I showed them a short video on his life as well. He grew up in Poland and was sent to Auschwitz during WWII. He took the place of a man who had a family and was sent to a chamber to starve to death along with 9 other men. He is a martyr. We talked quite a bit about him and that time period. I shared with them about my dad being born and raised in Poland during that time as well. I told them about his escape from his village and his journey to get to America.

Creston Middle School Dance on Friday, January 31, 2025. $5 entrance fee. The 5th graders dance is from 5-6:15 pm.  I did tell your kids. Some were excited. Some said, "What's that?" 😃

Ben Tracy has been rescheduled for February 12 at 6 pm at Southern Prairie. Please come and listen if you can! 

Grandparent/Special Guest Mass-The grandparent/special guest will pick them up from school at 1:00 and take them to church. Mass will be at 1:30 at Holy Spirit Church.  If your child doesn't have a grandparent or special guest, please let me know. They can sit with me or maybe a friend. If they don't have someone coming, I will also need to make arrangements for them to get to church. After mass concludes, they are free to go home with their grandparents or guests. If they still need to take the bus or trolley home- that will be available, but please let me know.  I told the 5th graders that if they have a part in the mass- they should sit up front. We will have pews reserved for them, their siblings, and guests.  

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Brrrrr--- I am ready for spring! Who's with me??  My cousin in Mississippi got 6 inches of snow on Tuesday. She said they were shut down pretty much. I told her my students would be so jealous of her snow. Sadly, her only shovel is meant for gardening. 

Calendar Dates:

Jan. 24- Spirit Day

Jan. 26-31- Catholic Schools Week

Feb. 14- Spirit Day and Valentine's Day

Feb. 28- Book Reports Due

Sunday, Jan. 26- Kickoff to CSW with mass at Holy Spirit at 9 am. Look in your child's folder for their part if you signed them up. 

Monday, Jan. 27- STM Spirit Day, Students will need a sack lunch. Milk is provided. 

Tuesday, Jan. 28- Dress Up- Polar Paradise ( snow, snowman)

Wednesday, Jan, 29- Dress Up- Disney Day

Thursday- Jan. 30- Dress Up- Pick a Decade- 50s, 60s, 70s, etc. Going bowling in the afternoon with 4-8 grades. Need sticky socks. 

Friday, Jan. 31- Dress Up for Mass. Grandparent/ Special Guest Mass at Holy Spirit. Pick up kids at 1:00. Mass starts at 1:30. 

If your child doesn't want to participate in 

Reading- This week we are reading a story about hurricanes. They learned about what causes and creates them, how they get their names, and the different categories. It is hard for us to imagine a 20ft wall of water coming at you! We also talked about some of the worst ones in recent history. Sadly, we agreed we would stick with tornadoes.  I did show them some videos of what it looks like when a hurricane hits. We watched a short video on Hurricane Michael. 

Spelling-  their list this week has words with a VCCV pattern in them. They had to break the words up to find that on one of their assignments. 

Grammar- We are going to be doing more work with conjunctions. 

Math- We have been doing our FAST math tests this week. They also did a worksheet where they were purchasing school supplies. They had to find the total cost of those items. That required them to do some multiplication and addition. 

Bowling- I am still missing some permission slips for the field trip. Don't forget to include the $6. The forms went home last week in your child's folder. If you lost it, let me know, I can get you another one. 

Mass- In your child's folder are their parts for either the Sunday mass or the Grandparent/Special Guest mass. Not everyone has a part. If they have a reading part- please make sure they practice it at home with you. 

Grandparent Mass- Please make sure you let me know who is coming to pick up your child for the mass. Pick up on Friday starts at 1:00. Mass will begin at 1:30. After mass, your child is free to go. 

Remember Friday will be a BAND and PE Day. Music is on Thursday this week. 

Religion- They worked in groups doing some research on different saints. They presented their posters on Monday. I learned some new things and some new saints! Our chapter is focusing on the Sacrament of Baptism. We will be reading how John baptized Jesus. They are also going to be doing some Bible searches to find more stories about baptism in the New Testament. 

Auction Basket- I am still taking the $1.00 donations for the auction basket until January 31st.  Please send it with your child if you'd like to help out! Thanks! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

Hello Parents, 

Are you staying warm? We've had 3 indoor recesses so far this week. Just Dance has been a hit in our room. Sometimes they even sing while dancing! I'm not going to lie...I'm ready for spring, but I also know we need the moisture. 

Calendar Dates:

Jan. 12- FAST Reading begins

Jan, 19- FAST Math begins

Jan. 22- Ben Tracy speaking about Social Media

Jan. 24- Spirit Day

Jan. 26-31- Catholic Schools Week

Schedule Change- PE and Music are switching a couple of dates around. Thursday, Jan. 23 will be a music day. No Band

Friday, Jan. 24 will be PE day. Band and Lessons will happen on this date.

Monday, Feb. 3 will be a Music Day/ No Band.

Tuesday, Feb. 4 will be PE Day. Band and Lessons will happen on this date. 

Reading- They took their tests this week over the story and the one on the Chrome. I will grades to you next week. This is a harder unit with the nonfiction stories again. I am also doing their FAST Reading tests this week. 

Book Report- I assigned the next book report. They were to pick a Newbery Honor or Newbery winner book. I showed them quite a few from my classroom library. Most of them have their choice. I told them they had a week to decide if they wanted to keep it or change it. They also have a list of project ideas. They cannot do the same one they did the first time. These reports will be due on February 28. That gives them about 6 weeks. 

Math- This week they are multiplying decimals times decimals. They remember how to multiply just fine. The trick is remembering to move the decimal. 

Religion- We are starting a new chapter. I broke them up into groups right now. They have been researching saints. Their group agreed to one saint. They are making posters now to share what they have learned about their person. They chose a couple that I don't know anything about so I am excited to hear about them too!  The 5th graders have really been doing a great job of praying for California this week. So much devastation. So sad. 

CSW Sunday kickoff mass. Mrs. Sickels and I will be getting together next week to plan the parts for those that have signed up. Please check your child's folder next week, especially if they have a reading part to practice. 

Auction- I am sending the reminder home again asking for a donation of $1.oo for the school's auction basket. 

Permission Slip- There is a permission form in your child's folder for our field trip to go bowling during CSW. Please make sure to pay the $6 as well when you return the form. Thank you! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! Enjoy the warmth while you can before the next cold blast arrives! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma

 Hello Parents, I hope everyone had a great Christmas! I hope the illnesses now stay away! I had a nice time at my sister's house. We were able to get together at my brother's one night, but then the flu hit there too. I spent a lot of time reading books over break! It was wonderful! 

Calendar Dates: 

Jan. 9- Spirit Day

Jan. 12- FAST Reading begins

Jan, 19- FAST Math begins

Jan. 22- Ben Tracy speaking about Social Media

Jan. 24- Spirit Day

Jan. 26-31- Catholic Schools Week

Catholic Schools Week Mass at Holy Spirit Church - Mrs. Simmons sent a link on Monday to sign up for helping at our kickoff mass on Sunday, January 26. Please check your schedule to see if your child can help us out! 

Book Report- Next week I will be assigning the next book report. 

Reading- They had their spelling pretest on Monday. This is always a fun one for me! It is compound words, BUT some of the words have a space between them and some have hyphens!  Their spelling posttest will be on Tuesday. 

 This week we are reading a nonfiction story about a tsunami.  You might remember it. It hit Indonesia on December 26, 2004. This story talks about a scientist who tried to warn them earlier that year that a powerful earthquake would be hitting some time. He couldn't exactly say when, but he was right. It hit 6 months later. We are using a lot of science vocabulary in this story. 

In Grammar we are working with conjunctions and subordinating conjunctions to create a complex sentence. I explained to them on Wednesday when it is appropriate to use the word "because" at the beginning of a sentence.

Because he had a doctor appointment. - not a complete sentence

Because he had a doctor appointment, he was late getting to work. ( Now we have our complex sentence with a subordinating conjunction. 

FAST Testing- I will start this on Monday. We will start with the reading tests. Math will come later. This week they have been doing a 1-minute read with a partner. This is just good practice for next week. 

Math- Now that I have everyone back, we worked on estimating decimals and then multiplying them. I let them use a calculator too. On Tuesday, they worked on multiplying decimals times a whole number. 0.42 x 4.  I tried to keep it in the context of going to  the store and buying something that cost 42 cents and you are buying 4 of them. We did talk a little about sales tax as well. We will work on that more on Thursday. 

Friday is a Spirit Day! Sweats for $1

Shoes- I know the new UGGs clogs are out and that some of your girls may have gotten them for Christmas, but we have a policy in our wing that they cannot wear shoes with out a back on them. Those clogs just don't have enough of one to really count or help out. Some of them slip off so easily. So I have been talking to the girls individually to tell them they can't wear them  to school They can next year in 6th grade. Our kids still enjoy playing at recess. Those shoes come off too quickly and then we have kids getting hurt. The girls have been really good at understanding, but I thought I better make it clear to all. 

Religion- - we are finishing up our Christmas chapter and then moving on! 

Auction- The auction is coming in March! There is a letter to families in the folders. We are not doing classroom or wing baskets this year. We are making one basket from the school. Please make sure you read the letter. Thank you! 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I hope the weather is a little warmer! 

God Bless,

Miss Surma