Awesome October

Halloween

Wow! Our first holiday of the year is already upon us, and the sixth grade teachers could use your help! Below, I have included a list of tasks that could use the support of some parent helpers. Again, if you are interested in one of the specific tasks below, please let me know. 

Our party will run from 2:00-2:50 on Wednesday, October 31. If you are coming to the party, you MUST have a background check on file and check in at the front desk before coming upstairs. 

Halloween Party Tasks 

• Go to Winco to purchase 60 reasonable priced, but decent tasting apples. Also purchase enough small caramels (bulk) and cheesy popcorn (popped and cheap!) for the whole sixth grade student body (about 165 students).

• Arrive before party to cut apples

• Stay through party to pass out food

• Stay after party to help clean up

The students are welcome to wear costumes to school on Halloween, but please remember: no gore, weapons, or masks. We are also asking students to NOT to apply make-up during the school day (this includes using markers to decorate your body!). 

Google Accounts

I was hoping our district would be establishing Google Accounts for our students this fall. Unfortunately, it looks like this may not be the case. In the meantime, I have a project I would like the students to work on, which really works much better if they have a Google account. As a result, I am asking families if they could please create an account in the meantime. I will be sending home a form with your student on how to accomplish this task. If your child already has an account, they can use that. Please watch for this form before the end of the week.

Look at all the fun we have learning with technology! This is the class studying vocabulary with  Quizlet!

Progress Reports and Conference Scheduling

Next Friday, November 2, we have no school. This is to give teachers time to prepare progress reports for fall conferences the following week (November 8-9). The progress report is new to elementary schools, and I am still learning about this process. However, I am looking forward to sharing information about your student's progress at conferences. 

Conference scheduling is also different this year. Rather than sending home a sign-up request, parents will be able to log into Signup.com to schedule a time. I will be sending home more information about this process soon. In addition, watch for information in the school's newsletter. 

Fundraisers!

Thank you to all the families who supported our first round of Scrip fundraising. A special thanks needs to be extended to Anne P. and Mindy H. (parents) for helping make sure our order was picked up and organized. The sixth grade team appreciates you participation! 

Our next round of orders will go out the week of November 5th. I will have order forms available at the OPPO's Thirsty Thursday event and will send home notification next week. I know the OPPO would love to see you there, as well! Their support helps keep our field trip costs down and provides classroom monies for supplies. It is a super fun event; I look forward to seeing you there!

How Has it Already Been More Than a Month?

Busy Sixth Graders

Time is flying by in sixth grade! We have been working hard and have now moved more into the routines of the school year. This includes our weekly writing homework expectations, more science and social studies instruction, and a nearly a full unit from our language arts curriculum. 

Our biggest project of the first quarter, the partner interview, is also well underway. Student pairs have been meeting to interview one another in order to create a narrated slide show about their peer. This week, the students will be finishing up their scripts, and will hopefully begin the technology portion of the project before the week's end. My hope is to be able to have the work completed by fall conferences so families can see what their students produced.

Scrip Sale

This week, we should also be sending home information about our first Scrip sale. Please join sixth grade families in supporting our effort to fund raise for an end-of-the-year celebration trip to Oaks Amusement Park. If you have never purchased Scrip before, it easy! Here's how it works:

1. Choose from a number of gift cards available through the Scrip program. They have a number of local options, including Fred Meyer, Papa Murphy's, and Starbucks.

2. Fill out a Scrip order form. If your student forgot their form, you may use the following link HERE, or pick up a form from the main office.

3. Send your order form, and a check or cash payment back to school with your student by Monday, October 15th. Please make checks payable to Otto Petersen Elementary.

4. Orders will be sent home or ready for pick-up on October 19th.

Halloween is Coming

Halloween is just around the corner. If you are interested in helping out with our team party, please feel free to send me an email. I will also reach out to parents who filled out 'Parties' on the volunteer form. If you have time to run errands, like picking up paper supplies and food items for the party, please also let me know. We will hold a the grade level celebration on Wednesday, October 31st, from 1:55-2:50.

The Business of Being in Ms. Kinsman's Room

We are now well underway and having a great time. Again, I am so impressed with our class. They are working hard and adjusting well to the demands of sixth grade. 

I want to thank those families that made it to Back-to-School Night. Most of my presentation focused on work expectations, grading, and special sixth grade events- namely Outdoor School. I have included a slideshow about grading below. If you have any follow up questions or concerns please let me know. I do not have much information about Outdoor School at this point, other than we will be going sometime in the spring. As we hear more information, we will pass it onto families.

First, please note the link below. After Back-to-School night, families were provided with log on information for Synergy, our grade reporting software. As your students prepare for middle school, I think it is important for students and parents alike to be aware of how to check assignments. If you have problems logging in, please contact the main office, and they will help you out.

Secondly, it is important to understand how to interpret the ParentVue information. The program is not well suited for reporting proficiency grades (i.e. does your student exceed, meet, nearly meet, or does not meet the sixth grade standard). In order to help avoid confusion, I created the following guide. Please use this information when reviewing your student's scores. 

Again, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about your child's performance. I want to ensure they all have a successful year!

Geography Links

Geographic Terms Slide Show

The True Size Of...

Oxfam Globe Unwrapped

PlaceSpotting

Back in Action

Whew! What an awesome first week we had! I am so impressed with all of your children and cannot say enough good things about our class. The kids were studious, enthusiastic, and dedicated all week. I hope they were able to get some rest this weekend. I know I was exhausted.

This week, we will be starting a more normal routine. We will start our regular language arts instruction, possibly start groups for math, and will continue with our first science and social studies units. I also will pass out our first writing homework for the year on Friday. I will make sure expectations for the homework are clear, but know that I will be going over this routine at our Back-to-School Night.

I also wanted to explain our specials schedule. Your student may have explained we are now following an ABC routine. Today is a B-Day, meaning we have library. Tomorrow we have P.E. I will be helping the students record the days in their planners each afternoon.

A-Day = Music
B-Day = Library
C-Day = P.E.

Thank you for returning all the forms for the beginning of the year. I am finding your notes, and the students reflections, to be very helpful. I am still familiarizing myself with each of your kiddo's needs, but if you have any concerns that have not yet been addressed, please let me know. 

Have a great week!
Ms. Kinsman

It's That Time Again

It is my favorite time of year: Back to School! Welcome to the sixth grade and to my class blog. I am so exited to have your student in my room this year and cannot wait to see their eager/excited/terrified/dread-filled/exhausted faces come Tuesday morning. I hope your students remember our fly-up day meeting from June and are excited and ready for sixth grade. I know I am!

Supplies

A couple of quick notes as we get prepared for the first week of school. We will not be holding a Meet the Teacher Night or a supply drop off. As a result, your students will need to haul all their supplies to the classroom on Tuesday morning. I'll have areas for supplies labeled and ready to go. Here's how I separate the supplies...

In Your Desk or Cubby (labeled with student’s name)	Storage (Items are for specific uses. Students will have access as needed)
Folders, Binder, Notebook Some Paper (about half a small pack) 10 Pencils Calculator Pencil Pouch/Box Colored Pencils Markers Scissors Highlighters Watercolors Glue	Dry Erase Marker Sharpies Extra Paper Extra Pencils White Paper Facial Tissue Hand Sanitizer Sanitizing Wipes Ziplock Bags Emergency Food/Water
Special Instructions	Special Items for Ms. Kinsman’s Class
Please put your headphones in a ziplock bag, and label it clearly with your name in Sharpie. I’ll store these in a special basket.	One spiral notebook One composition book

First Day of School

Drop off and pick up times have remained the same this year. Students enter the classroom at 8:15 am and are released at 3:00 pm. Please also make sure your student knows how they will be getting home on the first day of school. Here's a helpful link to the bus routes. Parent drop-off and pick-up is in front of the gym. Walkers will exit through the front doors.

On Tuesday afternoon, I will be sending home all types of information with your students. Just in case it doesn't make it home, I have included some of the documents below. It would be great to have this information returned by Friday morning, as it helps me to get to know your students and set them up for success. 

Class Notes

Whoooo is Your Child?

Whoooo Can Volunteer?

Welcome Back Scavenger Hunt

Back-to-School Night

For all other information about our day-to-day classroom procedures, please join us on Wednesday, September 19, from 6-7:30. I will provide a short, yet informative, presentation on myself and our classroom. It should answer questions about homework, grading, and fun events unique to the sixth grade. I will also be available to answer questions. 

If you have any concerns between now and back-to-school night, please do not hesitate to email or call. There is a 'contact me' link on the right side of the page, or you can call the school at 971-200-8003, ext. 3204. I always try to call or email back before the day is over.

We will see you soon!

-Ms. Kinsman

It's the End of the Year as We Know It

We are in the final weeks of school, and we are absolutely rocking it! Believe it or not, the students have been incredibly studious this last week, and we are already off to a great start this morning. We were luck to have a fun art literacy lesson on Friday and have many fun events coming up next week!

The Serious Stuff

A number of important assignments will be wrapped up over the next few days. This include a persuasive writing piece, the Newbery Book Reports, a persuasive writing assessment, and the final chapters of A Wrinkle in Time. In addition, we'll be finishing our nutrition unit and personal finance simulation. Be sure to be asking your students about how they did managing their checking and savings accounts!

The Fun Stuff

Here is a list of fun events the students have in the coming two weeks. If you would like to volunteer to chaperone the field trip, please let me know. I can bring five parent helpers this year, and I only have one spot reserved. 

Wednesday, June 6: 4th Grade Play and Final Spirit Assembly

Friday, June 8: Last Day of Math Groups

Monday, June 11: Kick-ball game (with professional kick-ball pitcher!)

Tuesday, June 12: Fly-Up Day (morning)

Wednesday, June 13: Field Day & Staff vs. Student Volleyball Game

Thursday, June 14: All day field trip to Oaks Park

Friday, June 15: Last Day of School; Dismissal at 12:45