Mrs. Taylor's Blog

Dear Parents:

Indian Trail’s Field Day is Wednesday, June 8^th.  We are excited to announce that the format of this year’s Field Day will look the same as last year. It will be one big  all-afternoon, all-grade-level, all-teachers event!

You may be wondering what your child’s afternoon will look like for Field Day. There will be 20 color-coded teams. Each team will visit 10 different stations, where they will “face-off” against another team. These are going to be mixed-age groups, composed of 1^st-4^th grade students. The 5^th graders will be leading the teams (with a teacher) and the stations.

REMINDERS: Please make sure your child is dressed to PLAY! This means gym shoes, cool clothes that can get dirty and possibly wet, and will allow them to run around. Please make sure to apply sunscreen on your child that morning (or send it with them if they are able to apply it themselves).   If your child has any outdoor allergies, please let Nurse Sarah know in advance.  Please send a water bottle with your child to school! Lunch and popsicles will also be provided for all students.  Lunch will be pizza and will be served during regular lunch times in the lunchroom.  (Please be advised that each student will receive only one piece of pizza.) There will also be break stations where students can refill their water bottles and have a bathroom break.

The most important reminder is that students show excellent sportsmanship during Field Day. With students of all ages playing against/with each other, it is important that older students set a great example for the younger kids. There will be no “overall winner” of field day, so it should be fun, friendly competition

If you have any questions, contact Coach Funke or Ms. Henkel

Sincerely,

The Field Day Committee

Can you believe the year is almost over?  To celebrate, Mrs. Taylor’s class will have a party on Tuesday, June 7th.  The Connor Family has graciously offered to host the party at their home!  We’ll be walking over around 10:30am and getting back around 1:30pm.  Today a permission slip was sent home for the celebration.  Please make sure to return it by Monday, June 6th.  Happy Friday!

FunFest has been rescheduled for Wednesday June 1st due to weather concerns.

Due to weather concerns, we our rescheduling our planting field trip to the Highland Park High School that was originally scheduled for Wednesday, May 25th.

THE NEW DATE IS WEDNESDAY JUNE 1ST FROM 9:30 – 11:30.

We are hoping for better, less wet, weather.  Thank you for your understanding.

Today, permission slips went home for two upcoming field trips:  Planting at Highland Park High School (5/25) and our Buddy Picnic at Central Park (5/26).  Both trips are walking trips and occur next week.  Please complete, sign and return the slips as soon as possible so your child can participate.

Today a Reading Response Poster went home with each student along with a brief letter stating a final due date of Friday June 3rd.    The poster is kind of like the “All About Me” poster but this time it is all about a great book that he or she read this year and would like to recommend to the other students for summer reading.

Each child conferenced with me and selected a book that they have already read (during fourth grade) to “review” on the poster.  During the last week of school, the students will have the opportunity to view the completed posters and make a list of their top book choices.  I can’t think of a better way to start the summer!

Mrs. Chase

Today I sent home a packet from the nurse which includes a both a health inventory and an emergency contact sheet. Both need to be completed and sent back to our school nurse by June 1, 2011. Please look for this packet in your child’s folder and do your best to complete the information and return the forms to our school nurse promptly.

THANKS! 

State Project

Due:  Monday May 23

Objective:  Students will use a variety of research tools to find and record facts and information about a state in the USA.  This information will be incorporated in a visual product that will be presented to the class.

Criteria for the Research Portion of the project:

1. Students have been provided with a “First Draft” template of the minimum research requirements.  Resources should include books and online resources.  A majority of the research will be done at home.
2. Mrs. Chase must approve the completed first draft before the student may move on to the “Final Draft”.

Criteria for the Final Draft and Presentation Portion of the project:

1. Using the first draft as a guide, students will create a visual presentation of the information.  Examples include posters, presentation boards, or PowerPoint presentations.  Students may also choose to use a “clean” copy of the original template (Mrs. Chase will provide this) and create a neat and orderly final report.
2. The information on the original template must be included in the final report.  However, students are not limited to this information.  The inclusion of current events, weather happenings, oddities and other fun facts are encouraged.

Grading:  Student will be graded on a 1-5 scale in the general areas of accuracy, neatness, effort, creativity and presentation.

Please contact me with any additional questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Chase

schase@nssd112.org

A few have already come up:

Can I print pictures off the web?  Answer:  Yes.  You may print, color copy or draw any pictures included in your report.

Can I bring a food that is popular in my state as part of my presentation?  Answer: Yes. Make sure it is in small individual portions (enough for 25).

Today our amazing Mad Science representative, Rachel, visited our classroom and presented an interactive lesson on volcanoes, rocks and minerals.

Last week we had an amazing experience at Heller Nature Center learning about trees, plants, invasive species, and more.

Next Tuesday, May 10 (Reading) and the following Tuesday, May 17 (Math) the students will take their final MAP tests for this year, from 9:50-10:50 each day. I hope they have been working at home on the web sites we shared at our Spring Conference to help themselves improve in their goal areas.

Good luck to all on reaching their target goals for 4th grade!