Room114's Weblog

Words of Wisdom for October 28, 2008

room114 — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 23:05:31 +0000

What are your thoughts regarding these words of wisdom?

“If the world seems cold to you, kindle fires to warm it.” Anonymous

Anxious to hear thoughts from each of you.

Words of Wisdom for October 7, 2008

room114 — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 01:22:30 +0000

Looking forward to your comments about the following words of wisdom:

“Use what talents you possess;the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.”–Henry Van Dyke, American writer and poet

Words of Wisdom for September 19, 2008

room114 — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 22:57:27 +0000

I am so impressed with your comments and views about the last posting. Thanks for sharing your views. I like how some of you could related it to your own personal experiences. Well done. Here is the next:

“No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”

This comes from one of Aesop’s Fables, The Lion and the Mouse.

Words of Wisdom–Week 1

room114 — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 00:25:28 +0000

Hi boys and girls!

Welcome to our room 114 Blog. Each week I will post a saying or phrase to make you think. Feel free to respond on the blog about what the saying means to you, your thoughts, or opinions. Anxious to hear from each of you.

“Competition involves comparing our abilities.

Cooperation involves celebrating our abilities” Anonymous

Week of May 19 – 23

room114 — Thu, 22 May 2008 14:42:49 +0000

OOOOPS–I just realized I did not create an entry for last week!. I was gone on Friday as my son was graduating from medical school and obviously my mind was elsewhere. We are now down to the final countdown. What a busy and exciting week awaits us. Tuesday will be our last switch for math, science, and social studies. There is a science test tomorrow. We had our math test on Monday and you should have seen the results by now. We are ending the year with algebra and the students are doing quite well. They will be bringing home journals that are not completed and I suggest they use the summer to do math boxes to keep their knowledge fresh.
PLEASE SEND A BAG in on Tuesday for your child to bring home desk items, gym shoes, etc. Wednesday we will clean the room and have our all school picnic in the afternoon. Thursday will be the 5th grade breakfast and honor’s assembly. (I suggested they dress like they would for picture day) We also will be having a pizza party for lunch that day (we won it for ordering the most pizza on a dough night for Domino’s).
Tomorrow we are having a “coffee” house with “coffee” to share the marvelous poems that were written. We have some very talented poets.
Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend.
Mrs. E

Week of May 5 – 9

room114 — Fri, 09 May 2008 20:25:56 +0000

Busy, busy, busy. Those three words sum up last week and probably the weeks to come.We completed our Family Life education. I am sure you received some interesting questions and hopefully this lead to a good discussion opportunity for you and your child. We also completed our spring NWEA testing. I have begun to share the results with the students to show them whether or not they made their growth goals for the year.
On Monday, the students will play the first of the Fifth Grade Softball games. This is always such a fun activity which serves to bring the students together one last time before going off to Upton. Another game is scheduled for Wednesday. Let’s hope Mother Nature cooperates. On Friday, May 16, the students will be going to Upton for their shadowing experience. Always an exciting time.
On Tuesday, May 15, at 10:00 am we will be going to the Planetarium at Upton and then upon returning have our last Brown Bag Lunch meeting. We will be discussing the book Kick Off.
Mrs. Flores asked me to remind you to send in pictures of your child by May 21, 2008. She needs wallet size 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 for a special item to be given to your child at the Fifth Grade Breakfast.
Have a great Mother’s Day–may you feel like a queen for the day.
Mrs. E

Week of April 28 – May 2

room114 — Fri, 02 May 2008 12:13:20 +0000

Our field trip to the Ford Museum and the zoo in Grand Rapids was a huge success. A big thanks goes to Mrs. Yack and Mrs. Veldman for accompanying us. You were a huge help! Today we had the Binder Park Zoo come for a program that we shared with our first grade buddies.
We have begun Family Life this week and will finish it up next week. Watch for discussion sheets to come home with your child on the topic.
Don’t forget that the track meet is on MONDAY. We have already passed out EP Clarke t-shirts for each to wear, but they still need to watch the weather and dress appropriately for the track activities.
REMEMBER to send in a wrapped spice for Miss Adams’ shower by Wednesday, May 6. Another note will go home today further explaining this.
What a busy, busy, time of year. When the students ask “How many more days?” I reply, “I don’t know. I just keep coming until they tell me to stop!” And that’s not too far from the truth.
Upcoming dates:
Last Brown Bag meeting—-May 15
Upton shadow visit———-May 16
Have a great weekend.
Mrs. E

Week of April 21 – 25

room114 — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:11:42 +0000

Our field trip to Natural Resource Days was a perfect way to commemorate Earth Day. A big thanks to Mrs. Stants and Mrs. Burrell for chaperoning and modeling in the Earh Day Fashion Show. They looked marvelous.
As a staff we look forward to thanking all of you parent volunteers for all you do to make our school run so smoothly at the Volunteer Luncheon on April 29 . You should have received an invitation via your child. Please return it so we know how many to expect.
Next Wednesday, April 30, we head to Grand Rapids. We are allowing students to bring MP3 players, I-pods, a book, hand held video games, pencil and paper to keep them occupied on the bus trip. However, be aware if they choose to bring such items, we are not responsible if they are lost or stolen. Also be aware the buses cannot be locked and the students will not be allowed to bring these items into the museum or the zoo. So if your child decides to bring one of the items mentioned they assume the risk of possibly losing it. We leave at 8:45. They need a disposable lunch with a drink and a non messy snack that could be eaten on the bus before our arrival. We will return at 3:30 p.m.
In science they are studying fossils, in social studies they are looking at the steps that lead to the Revolutionary War, and in math they will begin studying coordinates and area. Busy days!
Monday is our Invention Convention. Students will be sharing the inventions they created to eliminate their pet peeves. Final drafts of their stories will be due then as well.
Our buddy class’s teacher Miss Adams will become Mrs. Cook this June when she gets married. I have had her students send in a favorite recipe which I compiled into a recipe book for her. I purchased an apron that is embroidered to say “You may kiss (the) Mrs. Cook”. Now I am asking if each of the 5th graders could send in a small jar of a cooking spice or seasoning to help stock her spice rack in her new kitchen. Please wrap it up, and we will present them to her at a little shower on May 8 highlighted with popsicles! We will tell her that love is the spice of life! Please send them in no later than May 6. Thanks so much.

Have a great weekend. I will be attending my daughter’s graduation from graduate school–she will have a MA in education and hopes to soon be gainfully employed as an English teacher. No more tuition payments for me Life is good.
Mrs. E

Week of April 14 – 18

room114 — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 20:30:19 +0000

As the end of the year approaches, the weeks seem to get shorter and busier! Next week on Wednesday is our field trip to Natural Resource Days. Dress for the weather. We will be outside and inside pole barn structures. Eat a hearty breakfast as lunch is not until we return at 1 pm and every student needs to bring a lunch to eat in the room when we return since the kitchen at school will be closed. Then on Thursday, I will be having inservice and students will have the day off. It is also “Take Your Child to Work Day”. To top it off we also have an assembly on Monday and Friday as well.
This week we have started a fun writing project that involves creating inventions to eliminate our pet peeves. We also have begun a new novel study on the book, Bridge to Terabithia. In math we are finishing up chapter 8 and will have a test covering that information on Monday. On Tuesday there will be a DOG quiz in social studies. In science the students are really “rock”ing and are very excited about studying the rock cycle.
Rest up over the weekend–lots of energy needed for the weeks and learning still ahead.
Mrs. E

Week of April 7 – 11

room114 — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 01:29:05 +0000

Well spring break is now a distant memory. The students each created a post card telling about what they did over break. Sounds like a lot of fun was had by all!

This week the students were introduced to the band and orchestra program at Upton.The high school students came to perform for them. It was an exciting concert. On April 15 they will have an opportunity here at school to try out some of the instruments to see what might interest them. Please see last week’s blog entry about the parent meeting at Upton if you are interested.

In science they are studying sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. There will be a social studies test next Thursday. In math we are using all our math skills as we mulitply mixed numbers. Lots of steps–need to know basic facts for success. Hopefully we will be able to finish this chapter by end of next week. Monday is Brown Bag Book Club and we will be discussing Three Good Deeds.

Your child brought home another permission slip today along with $2.00 attached to it. Please sign and return the field trip slip for Natural Resource Days as soon as possible. The money is because we overcharged for the zoo trip.

Thanks to all the families of room 114 who ordered pizza on dough night. Our class had the most orders so we have won a pizza party for school. Date to be chosen soon–hopefully when weather turns nicer and we could do it picnic style.

Have a great weekend–though it may not feel very spring-like. Mrs. E.