End of the Year

It is hard to believe the year is drawing to a close. The last few weeks of school are always so busy that it is hard to find a moment to look back on the year. I am officially finishing my 16th year of teaching. While each year is different, and each class is different, I'm always amazed and grateful as the year draws to a close. This year is no different.

This year I am amazed at the growth of the children in this class! They came in eager to learn and worked hard each day. They made the leap from primary to intermediate students in a blink! They work well independently and as a group. This group is characterized by curiosity and creativity.

I am grateful for their smiles and hugs. I am grateful for your trust and support. We've had great volunteers and tons of support from home. Homework was turned in on time, papers were returned, and we always had great participation at school wide events. The dedication to our class and Irving was evident. Your support of education will benefit your child for a lifetime!

I am looking forward to seeing everyone around over the summer and can't wait to have third grade visitors next year. As always, please consider me an advocate for your child. If you ever have a question, would like some advice, or just want to celebrate an accomplishment, don't hesitate to get in contact with me.

Have a wonderful summer. Thank you all for a wonderful school year!

Mrs. Parkinson

Finally! Spring!

Reading: We read a story about the creation of the Statue of Liberty this week. We learned about the friendship between France and the United States.
Math: We finished up our unit on measurement. Ask your child about the "measure man" we made on Tuesday to help us remember units of capacity.
Writing: We worked on expository paragraphs this week about a frog's life cycle. Students needed to support each detail.
Science: The big excitement of the week was watching the caterpillars turn into chrysalises. They quickly emerged as gorgeous painted lady butterflies. Fortunately we got to release them into gorgeous weather.

Our field trip was a blast and we are so grateful for the many chaperones who joined us on this trip. I've linked pictures. There are also some pictures from our trip to release the butterflies.

Upcoming Dates:
May 23: All Library books are due
May 24: Tribute to Excellence 8:30 am
May 27: Olympic Day and Final spelling test
May 30: No school
May 31: Math Facts tests (This will be repeated every day this week for students who do not pass the first time.)
June 1: Board Game Day-students can bring in a board game from home to practice our Room 204 Promise. We will play from 1:00-2:00
June 2nd: 2nd grade Picnic at Barrie Park-We will walk to Barrie Park to have a picnic lunch and play. Students can bring balls, hula hoops, etc. We would love lots of parents to join us!
June 3: Cleaning Day: Please send in an extra bag for extra supplies, books, art projects, etc.
June 6: Reading Celebration Day-students can bring pillows, stuffed animals and favorite books to read with friends.
June 7: Shortened schedule, last day of school!

May 9-13

Reading: Students continue to read either George Washington or Molly's Pilgrim. We are practicing the reading strategy of drawing conclusions as we read these great stories.

Math: We are practicing measuring and looking at longer distances. Next week we will learn about capacity, volume and area.

Science: We carefully observed our Painted Lady caterpillars this week. We learned that these caterpillars spin silk like a spider. We also learned that a caterpillar has 6 true legs and 12 prolegs. Ask your child about these features.

Students took the final MAP test this week in the computer lab. Results will go home in the last report card.

Ask your child about

• the fire safety house
• math center measuring
• cursive practice

Upcoming Dates:

2010-11 Irving Yearbooks
The 2010-11 Irving yearbooks will be for sale after school Wednesday and Thursday, May 18 and 19, outside the school office. Cost is $15 per book (cash or check to the Irving PTO). Yearbooks also will be available for sale in the school office Thursday and after. Don’t miss this chance to capture your child’s school memories! This year’s book features a color-it-yourself cover (chosen by the fifth-graders) that students can personalize with markers.

May 14-Irving Yard Sale
May 16th Public Library Presentation
May 19th-Field Trip to Peggy Notebaert Museum and Lincoln Park Zoo, Poetry Slam 7:00pm
May 23rd-Library Books due
May 24th-Tribute to Excellence awards 8:30
June 1rst-Tea for Volunteers (Invitations will go out soon)
June 2nd- Second Grade Picnic (11:00-1:00 at Barrie Park) and PBIS celebration 1:30
June 3rd Full day of School (Make up Day)
June 6th Full day of School (Make up Day)
June 7th Last day of school-shortened schedule

We Have a Lot Going On!!!

Reading: We continue to read stories about America and It's People. Students are working on comprehension packets for a book about George Washington or book about a girl who immigrated from Russia, called Molly's Pilgrim.
Math: We are measuring with standard units such as inches, centimeters, yards and meters.
Social Studies: You may have seen the banks that came home last Friday after a cool presentation on economics and being money wise. We will continue to work on these concepts for the remainder of the year.
Science: Our painted lady caterpillars have arrived and we will be observing them until we are able to release the butterflies later this spring.
PBIS celebration: The class has earned their second PBIS celebration. They voted to have another movie... (I tried to steer them in a different direction, but they really wanted the movie...) I will make the movie selection this weekend and let you know when that is happening. This will not be a pajama day.
Dates:
May 10-Fire Safety House Presentation
May 14-Irving Yard Sale
May 16th Public Library Presentation
May 19th-Field Trip to Peggy Notebaert Museum and Lincoln Park Zoo, Poetry Slam 7:00pm
May 23rd-Library Books due
May 24th-Tribute to Excellence awards 8:30
June 1rst-Tea for Volunteers (Invitations will go out soon)
June 2nd- Second Grade Picnic (11:00-1:00 at Barrie Park) and PBIS celebration 1:30
June 3rd Full day of School (Make up Day)
June 6th Full day of School (Make up Day)
June 7th Last day of school-shortened schedule

Almost May-Hard to Believe!

We have been very busy in room 204 this week.
Reading: We are working on a new unit in Open Court about Our Country and It's People. In addition to the stories we are reading in our anthologies, students are reading a novel or a biography. Ask your child about which book they are reading during centers. For the next two weeks our reading assessments will be on these books instead of our typical Open Court tests.
Science: We learned about erosion and weathering. We will be taking a careful look at different types of soil and an earthworm before wrapping up our unit on Rocks, Minerals and Soil.
Social Studies: If your child has already passed the 50 states test two times s/he received a map of the continents and oceans to study this week. Once she has passed this test two times we will work on the Great Lakes and major rivers.
Math: We finished our unit on fractions and will start a unit on measurement next. Keep practicing those basic facts. All students need to be able to answer 100 addition facts and 100 subtraction facts in 5 minutes by June!
Ask your child about:

• making a sand pile erode
• the academic fair and egg drop
• reporting as a table about different American Indian groups from different regions of America

Fitness Week
Monday: Ball and Rope Day-kids can bring their favorite ball or jump rope
Tuesday: Healthy Heart Day-wear red and bring a healthy snack to lunch
Wednesday: ACES-10:35-10:50 All Children Exercising Simultaneously
Thursday: Sports Hat Day-wear your favorite sports hat
Friday: School Spirit Day-wear Irving school clothing or anything with red/white
Saturday: Districts Annual Fun Run 8:00 at Lindburg Park
DATES
April 28th -Math Night
April 29th-Irving Sleepover
May 2-6 Fitness Week: See above
May 3-6-Book Fair
May 4th and 11th MAP testing
May 16th Public Library Presentation
May 19th-Field Trip to Peggy Notebaert Museum and Lincoln Park Zoo, Poetry Slam 7:00pm
May 23rd-Library Books due
June 1rst-Tea for Volunteers (Invitations will go out soon)
June 2nd- Second Grade Picnic (11:00-1:00 at Barrie Park) and PBIS celebration 1:30
June 3rd Full day of School (Make up Day)
June 6th Full day of School (Make up Day)
June 7th Last day of school-shortened schedule

Centennial Celebration!

Centennial Celebration
I hope all of you will come to Irving Friday night for Irving's big centennial celebration. Many parents and teachers have worked hard to make this a great birthday party for the school we all love. The artwork that is on display is amazing and I'm sure you will enjoy the opportunity to see the whole school.
Marc Brown
We were all a little star struck here on Wednesday with the visit from famous author and illustrator Marc Brown. It was exciting to meet a man who is so accomplished and yet so modest. He connected with the students instantly. It was awesome to see the students have true respect for someone who creates books!

Spelling Bee Champs!
Congratulations to Bodie Kahlow and Robin Manansala for placing First and Third in the K, 1, 2 spelling bee respectively. Way to go!

Earth Day Persuasive Writing
When you come to school on Friday be sure to notice the great persuasive writing about going green. Students wrote two paragraphs for this persuasive assignment.

Other News

• Reading: We are coming to an end of our unit on Courage. There will be a lot of assessments next week.
• Math: We continue to work on Fractions
• Homework next week will be "green" if at all possible. Your child will be responsible for emailing me a few assignments and using the blog. If you have any concerns about this let me know and I will compile a packet.
• The Academic Fair and Egg Drop will be on April 27 instead of April 20th.
  

April 4-8

Reading: This week we've been working on strategies for learning new vocabulary words. The story we read is about a little boy in China who had the courage to tell the truth. There were many rich vocabulary words in the story. We also practiced sequencing and monitoring while we read.
Writing: We started a new writing project about Earth Day. The children will be writing two paragraphs about Earth Day. Look for these next Friday at Irving's Centennial Celebration!
Math: We finished up our unit on measuring, complements of 10 and number grids. We are starting a unit on fractions and multiplication and division number stories.
Science: We started a cool unit on Rocks and Minerals. Children learned that all rocks are made up of one or more mineral. We also did a mineral scavenger hunt in the computer lab. Take a look at the link to the left to see how minerals are used throughout our houses!

Dates:

• A gentleman from the Historical Society is coming to Irving to do a presentation on our Centennial Celebration on April 11th.
  

• Marc Brown, author of the Arthur books is coming on April 13th! This is quite an honor! Yay to Ms. Noonan for arranging this celebrity author visit!

• Please plan on attending the Irving Centennial and Taste of Irving next Friday, April 15th.
• Don't forget Thursday, April 21st is Institute Day (no school) and there is no school on Friday, April 22nd.

Ask your child about

• sorting rocks
• their Earth Day story
• how close we are to our button celebration!