First in Math

Our class is team of the week this week in our school's program called First in Math. Our has has won team of the week several times this year because of the students commitment to using this program at home. I am very proud of our students who use this program. It helps them to excel in math because of the extra practice it provides. Encourage your child to keep working on this program at home. Here is a picture of us with the trophy! Way to go!

Boosterthon Fun Run!

We got pledges, ran our laps, and had a blast! Now it's time to get the money from those pledges collected. Let's try to get 100% collected from our class. Our class got $21.30 per lap in pledges for a total of $690.50! That's great! I'm so proud of everyone's hard work. The pledges are due this Friday, November 1, 2013. Our class voted to have a PJ/Hat day if we collect 100% of our pledges. I have posted some pictures below from Friday's fun run.

Reading With Your Child At Home

I am very excited about our new reading program that we have this year at Fork Shoals. It is going to allow us to better meet the needs of all of our students. It will guide them to be better readers, writers and thinkers. I am looking forward to conferencing with you more about your child's reading this month. Here are some frequently asked questions and answers that may help you at home.

• How can I help my child become a better reader?
  Continue to read with your child every day and expose him or her to the language of books. Have him or her read to you and you can read to them, too. (They still love being read to even at this age! They love for me to read to them in class.) If your child makes a mistake while reading, simply tell your child the correct word and let him or her move on. This increases enjoyment and fluency. To increase comprehension, talk about the story while you are reading. I have included some question stems in a link below  that you can ask to your child while reading. These question stems go with almost every book you read. Here is the link to those question stems.

           Question Stems to use while reading with your Child

• What level should my child be reading at in fifth grade?
  There is a range of levels within fifth grade. I will  address your child's current level and the goals your child is working on with you are your fall conference this month.

• How can I find the “just right” books for my child?
  After I share with you what level your child is at, I can provide a list of appropriate books.

If you or your child read this post and it was helpful for you, have your child whisper the word "hamburger" to me and they will receive a star card and a homeword pass.

Concentration Versus Dilution

We did an experiment in class and the students loved it because it involved drinking Kool aid! We changed the amount of solute (powder) and the solvent ( water) to learn about the difference between concentrated and diluted. So, ask your child to explain the difference and share what they learned.

Science lab

Our class created mixtures and solutions this week in science class. We learned what separation techniques worked to separate different mixtures and solutions. It is evident that we have many scientists in our class. They loved this hands on experiment! Their excitement for learning and experimenting makes me look forward to all that we have in store for this year. I can already
tell its going to be a great year ahead.

Happy Summer!

I hope everyone has a wonderful summer! I will be taking a trip to Maine to visit my husband's family. I will also be taking a trip to Jacksonville, Florida to visit some friends. I am looking forward to time to relax and be with friends and family. Hope you will enjoy this time, too.

Please email me and let me know how your summer is going.  Also, email me when you get to sixth grade and let me know how you are doing. I would love to hear from you!

aholloway@greenville.k12.sc.us

Boosterthon Fun Run!

            The Boosterthon was a great experience. Our class collected $1429.00 in pledges! That is awesome! I was super proud of them! I am also so thankful for all of their hard work to make this fund-raiser a success! Here is a picture of our class after the fun run. They learned about making good choices, had fun, and raised money for our school all at the same time!