Viewing: Class Updates
October 20, 2010
New Playground is Open! (Happy Playground Day!!!)
I’ve never bothered to hide my excitement when it came to the fundraising, design, and building of our school’s new playground. Even after seeing many versions of the plans, seeing the completed structure is just incredible. As terrific as I thought it looked from the ground, I found it was even better when I first got to try it out with Ms. D-H, Mr. Grgach, and several parents a few weeks ago. But don’t take my word for it – ask your children! They got to try it out today!
At around 1:50, the standard “beep” of the PA system stopped our lesson, and we heard a song playing that (the kids tell me) was “Dynamite”, by Taio Cruz. (They didn’t hesitate to point out how uncool it was that I didn’t know this song. ;-D) This was our cue to join the procession of classes leading outside to the new playground area. After a brief ceremony, several VIPs (parents, administrators, designers, etc.) cut the purple ribbon, and the kids crossed the entry footbridge onto the huge structure. The school-wide photo (taken from the roof) was quick, but getting the kids to line up after was anything but speedy – they were SO excited. Eventually we made it back inside, but not after the kids tried out every piece of the playground that we walked past on our way in. They’ll get a real chance to enjoy the playground tomorrow if recess is held outdoors, or in Friday if it’s raining tomorrow. Parents are welcome to bring their kids to the playground in the afternoons starting now. Please be aware that high heels are not permitted on the pour-in-place rubber surface because they damages (punctures) the material.) Thank you to all the families who donated money to build the new playground and who worked so hard to bring this project to reality!
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
October 20, 2010
Where are the updates?!
I apologize for the lack of updates on our class site in recent days. It’s been particularly busy at PGS over the past few weeks, and I’ve given my focus to class lessons, grading, etc. I’m hoping to catch up soon. Stay tuned for some riveting updates about early assessment data, a neat writing activity, and more. Thank you for your understanding.
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
October 12, 2010
Be a class volunteer!
Would you like to be a volunteer in class? I sent home a flier this afternoon. You can indicate your willingness to to help our class either at school or from home. If your child did not bring it home (at least one student left the flier here on the floor), you can download it here:
Sign up to be a Room 209 volunteer
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
October 12, 2010
Picture Day
Smile! Picture day is scheduled for TOMORROW, October 13th! Please be sure to send in order forms with your son or daughter. If you have already sent it in, I have collected them from kids and will return them to the kids when they go to have their pictures taken.
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
October 8, 2010
Amazing Fall Display
In class today, we briefly talked about an amazing display of huge pumpkins and gourds that I saw in Wethersfield last weekend. I promised the kids that I’d put the information on our class website. The display is at the newly reopened Comstock Ferre plant shop in Old Wethersfield. I called the store today, and they said that it’s not an artistic display per se. Rather, the items are for sale, so the display will constantly change. The woman at the store said that she is constantly replenishing the display with new goods and that it would probably continue to look impressive for another week.
Consider taking a trip this weekend. You can also take a ride into Glastonbury (over the Glastonbury/Rocky Hill ferry, perhaps?!) and grab some apples at Belltown Hill Orchards. Their apple fritters are amazing.
Happy Autumn!
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
September 30, 2010
Conference Schedule Online
The schedule of parent-teacher conferences is available on our class website. Click on “Parent Resources” (on the left-hand sidebar) to access the schedule. For privacy reasons, I have password-protected the page so people outside our class cannot access the page. I will send home a flier with the password so you can access it. (If you lose the paper, you can always email me for the password.) If you still need to schedule a conference time, please use this schedule to see what time slots are still open.
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
September 29, 2010
Prefix and Suffix Homework (September 29, 2010)
Tonight’s homework is an ONLINE homework assignment. To complete it, visit the website, below:
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/trophies/test_tutor/grade4/skill12/gehrig.html
Complete the questions online. If you have a printer, please print out the final page that shows your score. (It has an animated cartoon of a dog with a wagging tail, and a button labeled “Replay” at the bottom.) Write your name on this print out and bring it in. If you don’t have a printer, get a brief note from “Aunt Petunia” telling me that you’ve completed this assignment.
UPDATE: If you are getting a “missing plug-in” error, you probably need the Adobe Shockwave player, downloadable (for free) here.
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
September 29, 2010
How to Raise Boys Who Read
Parents often ask me how they can motivate their kids to read more. In recent years, this seems to have become a bigger issue for parents of boys than parents of girls. My advice has always been simple – let them read what interests them. If that’s Captain Underpants (<shudder>), so be it. It’s still reading. But there’s more to it than that. This outstanding article was recently published in the Wall Street Journal, and it explains what else might play a role. (Parents, before having your sons peek at this article, beware that it lists lots of other titles or book series that seem to make Captain Underpants look downright classy by comparison. Never have I seen the words “butt” and “fart” used so much in a serious article!) Here’s a sample of the article:
Everyone agrees that if boys don’t read well, it’s because they don’t read enough. But why don’t they read? A considerable number of teachers and librarians believe that boys are simply bored by the “stuffy” literature they encounter in school. According to a revealing Associated Press story in July these experts insist that we must “meet them where they are”—that is, pander to boys’ untutored tastes.
For elementary- and middle-school boys, that means “books that exploit [their] love of bodily functions and gross-out humor.” AP reported that one school librarian treats her pupils to “grossology” parties. “Just get ’em reading,” she counsels cheerily. “Worry about what they’re reading later.”
To read the rest of the article, click here.
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
September 28, 2010
A big piece of Pi
For all you math buffs out there: The impressively long value of Pi just got a bit longer, as specified in this Engadget article:
Yahoo! researcher breaks Pi record in finding the two-quadrillionth digit
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss
September 28, 2010
Meet Mrs. Linkovich
We are very fortunate this year to have a full-time paraprofessional working in our classroom. Mrs. Kelly Linkovich has worked at PGS for many years in both the special education resource room and in classrooms. She has a strong background in working with students in small groups or in individual one-on-one settings. This year, Mrs. Linkovich will likely work with all students at varying points throughout the year, usually in small group situations. Mrs. Linkovich enjoys baking, hiking, and traveling with her husband and two daughters (one of whom went to URI, my alma mater). We’re glad to have Mrs. Linkovich in class!
Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss