Update from Physical Education

Although we were sad to lose Mr. Filon to Avon High School, we are fortunate to have Mr. Tim Feschler join us from RBS as our new full-time Physical Education teacher.  This semester, Mr. Feschler has a student teacher from CCSU, Miss Kawecki.  She has been so impressed with our class that she would like to use our class as a model for some of her observations and assignments.  Here is a message from Miss Kawecki.

Hello!

My name is Lisa Kawecki, known to the students as Miss. K, I am currently a student teacher in Physical Education from Central Connecticut State University. Because your child’s class has shown great behavior and cooperation in the Physical Education classroom, I have chosen them to be a part of my portfolio work. Within my assignment I am asked to video tape a lesson taught to the students, this video footage is solely used as a teaching tool to monitor my interaction with students and the teaching strategies that I apply in the classroom setting. The only viewers of this video would be myself and my university teacher. If there are any concerns regarding your child on this video, please do not hesitate to contact Mr. Moss, and your child will not be shown on the video. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding as I continue to improve my teaching.

Sincerely,

Lisa Kawecki

Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss

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First full week!

Our first full week of school was a lot of fun, and a lot of work.  The kids spent many days working on a collaborative reading comprehension activity relating to our first story: The Gardener.  I divided the students into four groups, and each group worked on a different area of comprehension: timeline, inferences, narrative elements, and character analysis.  They were able to combine their different pieces of work into a single display that tied in with the theme of The Gardner.  I was impressed by how well the kids worked together and how much thought they put into their tasks.  Definitely a growth from third grade thinking!

We’re now in our second set of words for the spelling pre-pre-tests (the test that comes BEFORE the pre-tests).  Once we finish, each student will have a unique list of words that he or she can practice in lieu of weekly spelling words that he or she gets correct during the weekly pre-tests.  (The weekly pre-tests for the typical Gr. 4 spelling words WON’T begin until we have finished the pre-pre-tests.)

We’re wrapping up the first math unit this week. We have spent the last three weeks learning about different areas of geometry, including how to use a straightedge (and why a tape measure makes a bad straightedge, as the photo shows); the differences between lines, line segments, and rays;  the differences between parallel, intersecting, and perpendicular figures; properties of different polgyons; and (most exciting for the kids) how to use compasses to draw circles.  Math test tomorrow!

All students have finished their first draft of their summer item expository writing pieces.  About half of the kids have conferenced with me or with Mrs. Colbert (not the same as Miss Colbert).  The students are typing their final copies in the computer lab.

In case you didn’t hear, allow me to make a modest announcement on behalf of our class…

WE HAD A 100% RETURN RATE

FOR SUMMER READING LOGS!!!

If I could have put that in glowing text with little marquee lights dancing around it, I would have!  We were one of several classes that had each and every student, including those new to Avon, return a reading log!  How impressive!  We started our celebration last week at the spirit day (also Ms. Grainsky’s birthday), and the kids were excited to learn that as the co-winners of the reading rally, they will get to partake in an ice cream party that Mrs. McCabe is throwing!

As a whole class, we read 315 books over the summer.  Before I shared that number with the kids, I had them predict how many books they thought the whole group read over the summer.  We spent a few days working with the data by finding out the mean (average), median (see photo), mode, range, etc.  Next week: Standard deviation and variance! (Just kidding!)  We graphed the data by making a bar graph that is now hanging in the hallway (in case you’re in the building and want to see what the kids put together!)

Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss

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Weather Widget Now Live

Visitors to this site can now check the live weather report from the PGS weather station.  The WeatherBug Web Widget (How’s that for alliteration?) is on the lower portion of the left-hand sidebar.  The continued operation of the PGS weather station is made possible by the generous funding that we have received from the PTO over the years.

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Parent-Teacher Conference Schedule

I am trying something new this year.  I have uploaded a copy of the parent-teacher conference schedule.  If you were unable to attend open house last week, you can look at what free spots are available and choose one that fits your schedule.  (Email me with your picks – first come, first served.  I will do my best to post changes as quickly as possible so that you know what times are still actually available.)  Because the schedule has private information (last names) that I don’t want to share with all the nice, friendly people on the internet, I have password-protected the page.  You all should have received an email from me with the password.  It is the same for all families.

You can access the schedule by choosing Parent Resources (from the left-hand sidebar) and scrolling half-way down the page.

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Parent Resources Now Available

As promised, I have posted a variety of parent resources on a new page that is aptly titled “Parent Resources.”  You can access it from the sidebar on the left side of this page.  There are school-specific resources (lunch menu, calendar, etc.) and academic support resources to help you to better help your child with reading, writing, homework, etc.

My policies are also available from the left sidebar.  The only thing missing is an explanation of how I will be managing spelling words and quizzes this year, but I hope to have that up this week.  (It is unchanged from what I described at open house, but for parents who were with me last year and were unable to attend open house, you will find many changes in my spelling program.)  Stay tuned!

Speaking of spelling, you will find that this week’s spelling list, as it appears on the website, does NOT yet match up with the printed list that your child received.  Please use the PRINTED list for now.  I will update this post when the error is corrected.

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Magic Wings – Great day trip!

Today, while finishing our first story, we enjoyed a vivid illustration of a high rise’s roof filled with colorful flowers.  (The story was about a girl who loves gardening and created a floral masterpiece just to make her uncle smile.)  We thought of our own experiences that this setting reminded us of.  Many students remembered Mark Twain’s elaborate greenhouse that remains flourishing in his house today.  I also remembered another field trip I had gone on a few years ago: a trip to Magic Wings in southern Massachusetts.  What a neat place!  It is a butterfly conservatory, and once I got over the initial (uncomfortable) sensation of having butterflies zooming around my head, I really enjoyed the beautiful foliage and the unique experience.  It isn’t too far away and would be a great day trip on a dull weekend or over a school vacation.  Highly recommended!

http://www.magicwings.com/index.php

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Day 2 News Bullets

• LAST call for any summer reading logs!  I’d love to see 100% participation!  Remember, all it takes is one book to be a participant, and the list can be written on any paper, not just the official log form.
• Students MUST bring in their summer memory item tomorrow (Friday).  We need them for a project that we are beginning tomorrow (Friday).
• Students are asked to bring in magazines or clippings for a personal reflection project next week.  (See flier.)
• Students have been assigned to bring in one (or more) non-perishable item for a class math activity.  The food will be donated to Gifts of Love (which is in dire need of non-perishable items as well as fresh vegetables).
• Parents, please complete and return the Parents as Partners information sheet about your son or daughter, even if you completed one for me last year.
• Parents, please return your child’s early dismissal plan to me, along with the blue emergency medical card.
• If your child walks or bikes home SOMETIMES, please be sure to send in a note on the days that he or she is doing so.  (This is in addition to the school-required release form.)  If he or she is a daily walker or biker, or if he or she follows a weekly schedule (that doesn’t change from week-to-week) for walking or biking, there is no need to send in a daily note.
• I have updated the “Policies” page on this website (see the link on the left sidebar).

I’m sure I’m forgetting something.  I’ll post a follow-up message if there is more!  Otherwise, have a great holiday weekend!

Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss

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Two days down, 178 left to go!

The fraction on this week’s spelling list was SUPPOSED to be “one – one hundred eightieth” to represent the idea that, after day one, we are 1 day though the 180 days of school.  What a daunting fraction, although every year I am amazed by how quickly the days seem to fly by!  Even these two days of school are no exception.

Our first day of school was terrific!  It was so nice to see many of my former students returning to class, and I was excited to meet other students who I’d known from being their science teacher, as well as students who are new to our school.  Starting the new year has been unusual this year, because the 18 students who looped with me from third grade already know many of my policies, expectations, and routines.  But I felt that it was important to review these for the new students, as a review for my “loopers,” and because there have been several changes from last year in how I am managing the classroom.  As I explained to the class, I think it’s great for EVERYONE to have so many loopers in the class.  They know what my standards are and what they can (and more importantly, what they CAN’T) get away with, and the learning curve for starting a new year is a much smaller one.  For the students who are having me as a homeroom teacher for the first time, the loopers serve as a model of how I want things done and how they can achieve success for themselves.  We’ve already moved through the introductory stuff (minutia) faster than I expected, and we’re on to the curriculum and the more enjoyable beginning-of-the-year activities.

Day one began with the bell-ringing ceremony, a tradition at Pine Grove School.  Our new superintendent, Mr. David Erwin, joined us, as did our assistant superintendent, Jody I. Goeler.  Following that ceremony, we met as a grade to review lunch and recess rules.  Then, after we discussed some in-class rules and procedures, the students met our new Physical Education teacher, Mr. Tim Feschler, for their first P.E. class.  Having returned from PE, we sorted through the mountains of supplies that parents generously sent in and finally made it to lunch and recess.  The afternoon seemed to race by, and I found myself racing to get the kids out the door with their planners and their homework in time to catch the busses.  (Having 24 kids miss the bus is not pleasant for anyone.  I saw it happen to a group nearly that big when I was an education student in Rhode Island.)

Today, day two was closer to a routine day.  We began with an activity where students reflected on and shared their learning style.  We discussed the theory of Multiple Intelligences (in which I am a big believer) and that there is no such thing as “intelligent” or “unintelligent,” but rather, we all have strengths and weaknesses in a variety of intelligences (language, math, movement, art, music, interpersonal, etc.)  Next, we had a brief morning meeting and discussed the week’s (intentionally) challenging spelling words, as well as my new approach to spelling which is intended to challenge all students on a level appropriate to their own needs.  (More on this in a subsequent post.)  Next, we squeezed in a brief fire drill drill (a class drill to practice for a school-wide fire drill).  Then, as a means of discussing the do’s and don’t’s (How do you write “Don’t’s” in a grammatically-appropriate way, anyway?) of lining up and walking in the hallway, we watched a CBS news report about how fourth graders walk in the hall.  (Actually, this was footage I filmed of our class walking though the halls yesterday, sandwiched between two “Breaking News!” video clips with Russ Mitchell.  The kids didn’t realize that my camera was on, so they were very surprised – and amused – so see themselves on the big screen today!)  It helped us to make a great list of what good hallway behavior looks and sounds like, and what poor hallway behavior looks and sounds like.

After the kids went to and came from library, we finished some miscellaneous tasks and went to lunch and recess.  In the afternoon, we dove into our math series, and the kids were introduced to the Student Reference Books.  (There are new versions for fourth grade.  I imagine that the school will be selling them as they did last year, but I haven’t heard yet.)  Finally, we wrapped up the day with a discussion about our Room 209 C.A.R.E.S. Campaign (see link at the top of the left-hand sidebar) and our association with Gifts of Love.

Phew!  What a tiring two days!

Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss

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Welcome to Fourth Grade!

Hello! Welcome to the online home of PGS Room 209. During the school year, I will update this web site regularly with information about activities happening in Room 209, bulletins and news items, current events related to what we’re studying in social studies, online assignments, and much more.

This will be my sixth year teaching at Pine Grove School. I graduated from the University of Rhode Island summa cum laude in 2004 and have a degree in Elementary Education and Psychology. While at URI, I taught grades 3, 4, and 5. I have also taught kindergarten, first, and second grade summer school, and I have interned with an elementary school principal in East Hartford. I have a background in experimental research in the field of social psychology, so you’ll probably see my interest in research and statistics come through this year during math lessons!  I’m currently finishing classes for my Masters Degree in Educational Technology at Central Connecticut State University‘s Center for Innovation in Teaching and Technology.  I’ll be done in the spring (hopefully!) and am developing two programs for my final projects.  One is a program that’s designed to teach different strategies to help kids perform well on the Connecticut Mastery Tests, and the other is an interactive storybook that will help kids learn how to create short answer responses (SAR) to open-ended reading comprehension questions.  The Room 209 fourth graders will get to try out both programs this year.

In my spare time, I like to travel to Rhode Island, Boston, or New York City.  I also enjoy making movies on my Mac, working on home improvement projects (which took up most of my time this summer), or just relaxing by cooking, listening to old time radio shows from the 1940s and 50s, reading comic books, or watching the news. I collect old reel to-reel tapes of music, antique or unusual telephones, and all things related to Star Trek.  My wife and I have a wonderful dog named Rimley.  Rimley is about two-and-a-half years old, and he is a cockapoo (cocker spaniel and poodle mix).  I’m sure you’ll hear all about him during the year!  I enjoy tinkering with my computer and coming up with interesting ways in which I can use technology in the classroom. (You can definitely expect to use computers a lot in Room 209! I am the school’s lead technology teacher, and I enjoy using computers, our class’ SMART Board, and other technologies while teaching.) Of course, I also love watching my favorite sports team, the Boston Red Sox! (Don’t worry Yankees fans, I promise not to be mean!)

This summer has been an usually busy one.  Besides spending time moving classrooms and learning all about the great things that we’re going to do in fourth grade, I also spent a lot of time on projects around the house.  My wife and I have a baby due in December, so we’re having a lot of fun getting ready for him/her.  (We aren’t finding out whether it’s a boy or a girl; we want to be surprised!)  I also spent a lot of the summer working on our new class website, which you’re looking at right now.  Look at one of the following posts for information about why I made a new website and what some of the new features are.

It’s going to be a great year in fourth grade.  There are so many new things to learn, and there are some really interesting activities coming up!  I can’t wait for the new year to begin!

For more information about our class, click “Read the rest of the entry”.

(more…)

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It all starts with one book!

I challenge each and every student in our class to participate in the 2009 Governor’s Summer Reading Challenge.  Does that list seem a bit overwhelming?  It all starts with one book.  …or one magazine.  …or maybe an article.  All it takes is one piece of reading.  Once you have read just one title, you’re a participant!  Once you’ve read one book, it’s easy to make that TWO books.  Then it can become THREE.  Before you know it, you’ll have several titles on your list.

But remember, it all starts with one book.

If everyone in Room 209 participates in the Governor’s Summer Reading Challenge, I have a very special reward up my sleeve waiting for you.  Are you curious what it is?  You’ll find out on the first day of school!

If you need another copy of the reading log, you can print it out by clicking here.  But any paper will work!

Remember, it all starts with one book.  If you haven’t started yet, now is a perfect time!

Posted in Class Updates|By Jon Moss

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