Hello Parents, I hope everyone had a great Easter. I enjoyed my time with my siblings. 

Calendar Dates:

Apr. 24- Field Trip to MO

Apr. 25- Clean Up Day

Apr. 28- I will start FAST Testing

May 2- Spirit Day 

May 8- Glow-A-Thon/ Lap-A-Thon

May 14- Book Reports Due

Clean Up Day- It is scheduled for Friday- 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, please have them pack those in their bags as well. 

Friday's Lunch- It is a cook's choice. They are giving the kids an Uncrustable with some sides. If your child doesn't like peanut butter or PB&J's- I suggest they bring their own lunch.

Reading- We read a realistic fiction story on Wednesday! It is lesson to the main characters on how they can plant food and their crops in a better way to get more of them. This story does help us focus on what we can do to help our Earth,but also our gardens at home!  In grammar we are looking at working with commas and semi-colons. The commas are in items in a series, before a conjunction between 2 independent sentences, and in a sentence with a dependent and independent clause. 

Dollars for Scholars- They started writing their essays! They will continue to work on them on Friday. Three will be chosen to move on to pick a winner from each grade. 

Book Reports- They are working hard on their Google Slide presentations. I am excited to see them on May 14! 

Math- They will start their math test on Friday. I have a feeling that some won't have it finished by the end of the day so it may go into Monday as well. 

FAST Testing- I will start this next week. We test them in reading and in math. 

Glow-A-Thon- This is set for May 8. They will run during their PE time. Remember to wear white or neon colors so we can see you "GLOW" in the dark

Religion- We finally finished the movie. We will get back to work on the book on Friday. The Easter season last for awhile so we are going to work on a chapter focused on that next. 

I hope everyone has a great weekend! My oldest sister, Mary is coming down. We are working on invites for our niece's wedding shower in May! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 Hello Families! I hope your week is going well! This week always seems so busy! I am sending this out early because Thursday is a very busy day for me with the Seder Meal and Cross Walk. 

Calendar Dates:

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

Field Trip-  Next week is our religion field 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. Please email me with your child's pick up plans so I know who to look for after our return! Thanks! 

Spirit Day on Friday! Sweats and/or hat for $1! 

Reading- They will have their posttest in spelling on Friday.  We have been working with regular and irregular verbs this week. Knock/ knocked/ have knocked.  Bring/brought/have brought.  Swim/ swam/ have swum. The verbs have been a little tricky for some and then we have to work on spelling it correctly as well. 

Next week we will start a new story. They will also be working on their Dollars for Scholars essays. 

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, please have them pack those in their bags as well. 

Religion- I show the old movie The Ten Commandments during Holy Week so they can see the correlation between the Seder Meal and the meal the Hebrews had before fleeing Egypt. 

I am also sharing with them the Hallow app. This week- Jeff Cavins and Jonathon Roumie (he plays Jesus on The Chosen) are on a pilgrimage through Jerusalem. They are showing us the places that Jesus walked or was held prisoner. They will show us were he was crucified as well. They are short little videos each day. I told them- this is our chance to see where Jesus was that last week of his life. Many of us probably won't be making a trip to Jerusalem. 

The 5th graders will  help me on Thursday set up the tables for the Seder Meal. It's a lot of work, but they are a great help! 

Math- They are doing their practice test this week.  They will have the test over this chapter on Tuesday. 

No School on Monday! Enjoy your 3 day weekend!!! 

I hope everyone has a great Easter! I plan on going to Waverly to my sister's house. I will see my brother and their families as well! 

God Bless, 

Miss Surma

 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