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Cold Weather Reminder:
Please change your child’s extra clothes box from summer clothes to warm fall/winter clothes.  Remember to put socks, pants and warm clothes in their box.  We go outside EVERY day so please be sure your child is dressed appropriately for recess – coat, hat, mittens, etc

Click here for the October 2009 school calendar.

News from the 5-6 Class

What a pleasure it is to work with this amazing group of children! The students’ unique personalities and talents make this 5/6 class a true delight to teach.

During the first month of school the 5/6 class has been busy learning new routines and curriculum.  They have engaged in many exciting word skill activities, launched their writer’s notebooks, started a genre study on realistic fiction, and began a comprehensive unit on the novel, The Great Gilly Hopkins, by Katherine Paterson.  The students have been working very diligently, and have shown tremendous enthusiasm and effort in all areas of literacy.  I am very pleased with their dedication to learning.

In September, we also began our first science theme unit on pollution and the changing climate.  The 5/6 students explored the problem of overflowing landfills.  After learning that over one-third of all the trash produced in this country consists of paper, the students began tracking their daily volume of paper trash to see how long it would take to fill their entire classroom.  The students created paper recycling bins for the school.  They educated the school community on what products can be recycled and why recycling is so important.  They made paper-mache bowls out of recycled newspaper, and brainstormed ideas for recycling other used-paper products.  Finally, after learning about how humans can harm the environment by littering, the 5/6 students collected litter in and around the school grounds.

In October, the 5/6 class will be engaged in many hands-on learning experiences, as they continue with their theme unit on pollution and the changing climate.  They will learn about how human and natural activities can cause land, air and water pollution.  They will observe particulate matter in the air, create a filtration system to examine water pollutants, try to clean up an oil spill, test the hardness, alkalinity and acidity of water samples, and observe the effects of acid rain on plants.  The students will learn what can be done to reduce pollution and conserve natural resources.  They will learn the difference between renewable and nonrenewable resources, and gain an understanding for why it is important to develop alternative energy sources.

The next month of school is going to be filled with exciting new things! I look forward to another great month.

Lianne