Country Report Update

This week, the students have been hard at work on their country reports. We have been using computer lab time for research, language arts time to revisit skills like writing introductions, and social studies time to review the different economic systems. In other words, we've been busy. 

Unfortunately, we are not quite as on schedule as I had hoped to be. As a result, I have asked the students to finish writing their country report introduction this evening for homework. The thesis statements were completed in class. A hook and connecting, or bridge sentence, is all they need to add. This will help ensure we stay on track next week. We have also had less time to complete research; this means the research portion of the project is a more ongoing process than I anticipated. Please do not worry if your student has not completed his or her research; this will be finished in class. 

Otherwise, please encourage your student to keep working toward having their extension project ready for Monday, December 11th. I have six volunteers who have offered to present on that Monday. I will send out a list of dates for presentation tomorrow afternoon.

Thank you for your support!
Ms. Kinsman

The Blog Post I've Attempted to Finish for Four Days Straight

And here I am, still not finished at 4:44 on Thursday afternoon!

Conferences

How are we already to conferences and Thanksgiving? This year is absolutely flying by, and I know it is because we are having such a great year! Thank you to families that have returned conference schedule materials. I have everyone scheduled, but I am still waiting for a few confirmations. I will be sending emails out this evening to ensure we are ready for next week. If you have any last minute changes, please feel free to call the office at any time. They have access to my schedule and will make the necessary changes. I am also available to complete conferences over the phone. 

I would like your student to attend conferences! I find the students do well when they can hear and discuss their successes and areas needing improvement in person. On the other hand, I also understand when delicate topics are best handled by the adults. Either way, I look forward to meeting with you next week. 

Scrip Sales

Another HUGE thank you to your support of our sixth grade fundraiser. We had over $2,000 of Scrip orders this week. That is wonderful! We will be promoting another sale during conferences. If you are available to help sell Scrip on the Monday or Tuesday evening of conferences, from 5:00-8:00 pm, please let me know. We would like to have a table at the bottom of the stairs, where parents can stop and make a quick Scrip order. You will need to be able to collect checks or cash, ensure order forms are filled out correctly, and answer questions about the program. Please let me know if you are available to help, and I'll sign you up!

We will also be doing Scrip gift card sales at this year's Santa's Workshop. We will be selling $5 Starbucks, Cold Stone, and Burger King cards. Again, we need parent support to help manage those sales. If you available to "man" a Scrip table during the day, from December 11-15, please let me know and I'll add you to our volunteer list.

Homework and the Holidays

This week, I introduced our country report. Students have been assigned a country from the Americas to research, write a report, and complete an extension activity. This evening, your student should be showing you the extension report options and come back tomorrow morning with a decision on which project they will complete. The assignment sheet also includes the important due dates. Please note that research does NOT need to be completed by tomorrow. I will give some additional time after Thanksgiving to finish this portion of the project. 

In the coming weeks, I will not be assigning additional writing homework, as I would like the extension project completed at home. The formal writing piece will be completed in class. The students will need to be ready to present their projects the week of December 11-15. Each extension project is a little different, so I do not have a set of standard expectations for the presentation. However, the students should come with a completed project, which they can discuss with the class, on December 11. Presentations should be fewer than five minutes in length. 

Have a wonderful weekend! See you soon,
Ms. Kinsman