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May is Wrapping Up
Hello,
Just a quick note here. Reminder that our field trip is next Friday ( I can’t believe it is here already) and we are wanting to leave school by 8:30am. Please bring a lunch in a disposable bag so that we do not have to be responsible for it after lunch. Also kids can bring their backpacks but they should be totally empty, save for the things they need like water bottle and lunch. It is a long day and it is hard for them to pack around their stuff. If you have one of those drawstring backpacks (like those free ones that PGE gives away at booths in pioneer square) at your house that is a great option because they are lighter and if they get left on the tram you will not feel bad not tracking it down later.
Our last day of standardized testing is the 18th at 1:25. If there are a couple of people available that day that would be great.
Our Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast is scheduled on June 2nd at 8:30 in the morning. This is just the preview to the invitation so you can save the day.
Have a lovely weekend,
Allison
P.S. Montavillage is this Sunday. I will be in the dunk tank from 2:40 to 3:00. The kids have requested I wear a “poofy” dress and so I went and found a formal dress to be dunked in:)
THANK YOU!!!
Thank you so much for all the teacher appreciation stuff last week. I felt really loved and appreciated. You guys are the best.
Speaking of being the best, that you so much for coming in to volunteer on such short notice. I know that not everyone has the luxury of classroom helpers with proper notice, let alone the short notice I gave you. I am very lucky to have a group that is so willing to help. Thanks so much.
More good news! I have an artist. I have been on the hunt for an artist to spend my money on since October. I have had 5 ideas and they had all fallen through. But finally I have nailed one down. She is a local artist that does mostly jewelry but she will be doing Portland Plates with us. They will be made of clay and they will commemorate their favorite places and things in Portland. I am very excited.
Culmination
There are so many dates at the end of the year that I Matt and I decided to combine some dates to try and make things more simple. On Wednesday, June 10th we will be taking our walking field trip up to Mt. Tabor. We thought what better place to have our newspaper debut than on the top of Mt. Tabor (Or at the picnic tables under the shelter if need be). If you would be willing to drive up the papers and the refreshments let me know. We have not set a time for this event, please give me some feedback about what time works best for you guys. Is 12 the best so you can do it on your lunch break? Is 1:45 best because by the time it is over you can go back to school and do pick up? Let me know so I can set a time.
Have a lovely week,
Allison
Volunteers
Hey guys just a quick note this week.
Field Trips
I have one volunteer for each of the trips. So if you are willing to go please let me know ASAP. None of the trips require drivers.
The first trip is on Friday May 22nd. It’s an all day trip, we want to leave at 8:30 and we will get back at 3:30, it is the tour of Portland. It is a lot of walking. We can take as many people as want to go.
The second trip is on Tuesday, June 9th. It is a science trip to the farm. We need adults to go with small groups and help engage students. Each group will have it’s own teacher.
The third trip is on Wednesday, June 10th. It’s a hike up to Mt Tabor. We will walk up to Mt. Tabor, have lunch, play on the playgrounds and celebrate Portland. If you are not into hiking you are welcome to drive up and meet us.
I know I am really fortunate to have so many parents willing to help us out. You guys are the best!
Speaking of fabulous parent volunteers the 1st grade team was wondering if anyone would be available on June 3rd at 1:00 to help out at the garden culmination. It’s hard for 1st grade parents to enjoy the culmination and volunteer at it. So if you are available to show up for pick up a couple of hours early they would love the help. Contact Joanna (Marti’s Mom) joannagoebel@yahoo.com
Field Trip Time
Hey guys,
It is field trip time. We will be taking 3 field trips and the end of May and the beginning of June. The first one is scheduled for May 22nd. It’s a Friday and it is an all day trip. If it is ok with everyone I would like to leave the school at 8:30 and then come back to school at 3:30. It is an amazing trip and all are welcome to come. But full disclosure, it is ALOT of walking. We also take the Max, Street car and Tram. We are taking photos for our newspaper (more on that below) and we try and hustle to as many places as possible. It is a tough trip but in this teachers humble opinion it is the best field trip around.
The second trip will be June 9th. It is a science field trip to Sauvie Island Farm. We will be taking a school bus and we need grown ups to go on the trip to help out in groups. PSU students run 4 different groups about seeds, nutrition, animals and pollination. They just need some assistance wrangling everyone, passing out supplies and encouraging participation. We leave school at 8:45 and then we will return around 2:00 so pretty much full day. This trip cannot accommodate younger siblings.
The third trip is a hike to the top of Mt. Tabor. It is a celebration of our Portland Storyline and we hike up there, have a picnic and hopefully have a great view of the city. It is the 2nd to last day of school and we just spend the day playing and enjoying our city. Matt’s class will be coming with us. We do need some parents for the hike but also last year we had parents volunteer to drive up and bring lunches and balls and water bottles and that seemed to work out really well. Also some parents just joined us for lunch up there and then went back to work. So this is a trip with a lot of flexibility. All are welcome.
So… That does mean that we have back to back trips that week. Not ideal but our farm trip scheduling kind of got messed up and this day was the only one left. It may not be ideal for parent volunteers, I am sorry about that, but it will be great for us because we will have wrapped up most of our stuff by the time that we go. Also on the plus side No drivers needed!
Our New Storyline
We have started our new Storyline the Newspaper. It is a great one that Matt and I have been doing for four years now. Students have created their journalist characters and they have begun thinking about what could be reported on in Portland. They got a video message from their editor, Murphy Brown, and he gave them some homework this week. He let them off the hook for their journals this week and they only need to complete the sheet by Wednesday. It is an interview so that they can glean some information from you guys. We only have about 6 weeks to get it to the printer so we will be working so hard. Stay tuned for the culmination date.
I will be sending home their Arrival books this week. I haven’t had a chance to grade them yet. I will get on that and send them home ASAP.
Thank you
Thank you so much to the volunteers we had in the classroom last week. It made our testing experience so much more smooth. I really appreciate the help.
Allison
Culmination
Hello All,
I hope you are having a great spring break! Mine has been wonderful so far. I have mostly been cleaning my house. I have recently picked up the book The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Organization. She assures me that even if I am “Lazy and Slobby” her method will work. Perfect!
On Tuesday the 31st we will be having our Culmination. At 1:30 we will all meet in the Cafeteria and share all of our cool foods and drinks. Then we will split up to play some games, hopefully the weather cooperates.
Many of you have volunteered to help on that day and we will definitely be calling on you to help. Help in setting up the food, cleaning up the Cafeteria so that Campfire can come in and then help supervising different games. I don’t have a real schedule for it exactly as this is the first time we have done this but I was thinking I would just grab people as we needed them. I think it will work out.
I gave your student a page for homework over spring break (don’t panic if you haven’t seen it yet) It is just one page explaining the culmination and having them think about what they want to share. I have attached it to this page in case it has been lost, or they were absent on the day it was handed out. I know that we have a very diverse third grade group and I am excited to see what they all decide to share. The most important thing to remember is there is no pressure. If you are super busy this week, feel free to bring something store bought or a game that you already have at your house. Soccer seemed to be a popular option, so if you have a ball that would be great.
Also our field trip that was cancelled is now up an running at Mercy Corps. Meredith (Oliver’s mom) sent this link to me today. If your family is interested you can check it out. Mercy Corps Exhibit
Have a great rest of your spring break. See you on Monday!
Allison
I tried linking that homework in a way that I never have before. Let me know if it isn’t working and I will just copy and Paste it into the post.
Happy spring!
Hello Everyone,
This winter is disappearing right before my eyes. I am a warm weather person so it is not hurting my feelings one bit. But the scary part is we need to finish up our storyline, like immediately. We have planned our culmination for the 31st of March at 1:30pm. This is the first time we have done this storyline so this is what we were thinking for the ending. In the end of our story, The Arrival, our characters have been in their new countries, gotten a job, made new friends, learned their way around. Then their families will join them. That would be of course you guys. I think it would be really cool if you guys could bring in foods from your family’s backgrounds. I know our class has a wide variety of families from different backgrounds. I think this would be a cool place for our characters lives and our lives to blend. If you are thinking eh I don’t know what we would bring. If you are a family who brings tortilla chips and salsa to a bbq you should feel free to do that. Or if you grandma made these really good cookies and now you make them with your kids awesome too. I know we have parents from different countries and, of course if it fits into your schedule, we would love some new foods that not all of us have tried before. No pressure at all. We are also thinking of playing some lawn games like bocce, the big chess set, pick up soccer etc. We just want to share and afternoon with people we love being around.
Of course their are hurdles, like the pps policy about store bought food only. I have asked for permission to get around this rule. We will see and I will keep you posted. But regardless it will be an amazing afternoon of fun times.
Not as fun news
We have had some lice back in our class. Please be vigilant and we will double check that those coats are being put in the backpacks.
February News
Hey guys,
Love Fest
Love Fest was great. It was nice to see some of you out and about. You guys are the reason we get to offer such a robust curriculum. Thank you so much for what you do.
CSS Basketball
I got to go see the Black boys team play basketball this weekend. It was sooooo awesome. I will definitely be looking to see the Red boys team and the girls team in the next couple of weeks.
Valentines Day
We were thinking we could do valentines this Friday. They were interested in Valentines and maybe some arts and crafts. I am open to whatever you guys send. The only thing I ask is that if you send valentines you do so for the entire class. There are 27 members of our class this year. Rumor has it, we might get a new student. This is not an announcement that we have a new student. But I am worried he will come this week and then have no valentines. So if you could stick in an extra just in case that would be great. I will put a list of names at the bottom of this post if you would like to put names on them.
Math
This month we are focusing on multi-digit addition and subtraction, money including making change and volume measurement. I am hoping they will go with you to the store and hear people actually counting back change. I know not everyone does that these days, but if you catch someone doing it, stop them and make sure your kid is watching them do it. I have told them to be on the look out.
Also with volume measurement (cups, tablespoons, gallons, liters etc.) we are going to do some “cooking”. I was actually thinking a no bake situation. I want to make some peanut butter balls. Let me know if our kid has any food issues with the following:
Peanut Butter
Oats
Honey
Coconut Oil
Flax Meal
Chia Seeds
Mini Chocolate Chips
Cinnamon
Salt
I know we have a chocolate allergy so I will talk to that family to find the right substitute.
Have a great week!
Allison
Class list
Ada
Adam
Aviv
Brady
Caroline
Clara
Dagan
Estella
Ferguson
Gracie
Henry
Kaya
Lachlan
Landon
Layla
Maddox
Maddy
Marti
Matthias
Oliver
Otis
Rhys
Rowan
Sean
Sharon
Stella
Valeen
If you are interested in the opt out movement. Please visit Oregon Save our schools If you are concerned about this you should talk to me in person. I can only talk about it at school if you ask. Please ask. You are the one who gets to make choices for your child.
Kind of a big one today but super important!
Walking Field Trip on Tuesday
Matt is going to take the kids to the overpass to the Max station on Tuesday. They are going to take data by counting cars. If a few people could come a little early for pick up and go with them that would be great. They are going to go at 1:20 and they will be back by 2:30. I’m sorry this is so short notice but Matt let me know he needed people. It’s only about a 1/4 mile from school so it’s not a long haul.
The other field trip
A while back I told you about a field trip we were going to take in February to Mercy Corps. We are still going to take it but they have bumped our trip back to March. The date is still TBD because they have not set up the thing we are going to see.
Standardized Testing
If you are interested in the opt out movement. Please visit Oregon Save our Schools If you are concerned about this you should talk to me in person. I can only talk about it at school if you ask. Please ask. You are the one who gets to make choices for your child.
Book Groups
I only have two people who want to be a part of book groups so far. I am going to be putting them together next week in the hopes of starting in February. If you want to take a novel group please let me know ASAP, so I can get you on the list.
Report Cards
I have just finished report cards, right before I wrote this. The specialist will get a chance to put in their grades and then they will get printed and put in backpacks the week of the 9th. I was a little limited on space for comments this year so if you have any questions please let me know.
Last thing I swear
I have changed the way that I send out the link to this posting. I used to do it via my iPad but now I am using the iPad in class for some spelling activities. I wiped the iPad and with it went all of the emails before I even thought of that possibility. So please talk about this posting, especially the SBAC part, so if people are not getting it they can know it and then let me know.
Allison
Thank You!
Oh guys, I wrote a thank you note for my lovely Holiday gift and then I forgot to post it. I found it in my drafts folder today.
So here I go again. Better late than never (right?)
The gift you guys gave me was amazing. It was packed in this beautiful little vintage suit case and it was so beautiful. It was so thoughtful and I love all the little things inside. It made me feel so loved and appreciated.
Thank you so much.
Allison
Welcome Back! Very important request from Matt inside
Hello All,
I hope your break was restful and fun. I had a super break. For the first time in years I didn’t have to travel anywhere. I had 16 days of uninterrupted glory!
Request for Science
Next Tuesday our class will go to Matt’s class for science. He wrote me this email today and hopes that you guys can help him out with their project.
Third-graders will be constructing their own plankton on Tuesday, 1/13. We need “stuff,” like corks, film canisters, feathers, and other things that float, sink or swim. If you would like to contribute anything to this plankton lab, please send it into either Allison’s room or Matt’s room
Thanks, Matt
So hopefully we can collect some cool stuff so they have a variety to choose from.
Reading Groups
It is that time of year! I need some volunteers to head up literature circles. It will work something like an adult book group. Each week you will meet and agree to read to a certain part of the book. Each member of the group will have a small job to do in order to move and focus the conversation. It is really fun. Reading the book along with them is great but it is not required. They also like it when you do one of the jobs, but again not required. You can come by any day of the week, in the afternoon. They will be in half hour blocks and I am being a little vague because I am hoping to move my daily 5 to the very end of the day, but there are other scheduling considerations so I can’t tell you exactly just yet. If you would be willing to do 2 groups and take up both 1/2 slots please let me know.
Students who passed the end of the year bench mark will be a part of these groups. Unless you tell me otherwise, I will assume you want to be with your kid. No judgement if you don’t. Some parents and kids don’t work that great together and that is ok. But there are also a couple of other factors that go into grouping. It is possible that your kiddo is participating in a group with me. Their group will already have a leader and so they cannot have another one. Also if I only get volunteers from one level/interest group, some of them will have to be together and they only need one grown up. I have always found a way to accommodate everyone since I have taught 3rd grade so I’m sure we can work it out this time. So let me know ASAP if you can volunteer and give some extra attention to those students who are doing great in school and deserve to have an adult pay close attention to them in a small group.
Have a great weekend,
Allison
CSS 3rd Grade 