Thursday, November 15, 2012

5V News

Innovation Day:
We had a successful first Innovation Day!  I'm hoping your child has told you all about it!  Check out Flickr for photos and videos from the day.  We are currently drafting blog posts that will be published Monday or Tuesday and we hope to get several comments!  It was an awesome day and it was amazing to see how engaged and excited the students were about the day and what they were learning.  Thank you for all of your support in helping your child prepare for this day!

Report cards:
First quarter report cards, conference notes and NECAP science results are being sent home today.  Please sign and return the envelope on Monday.

Parent conferences:
It was great to meet with all of you and learn and share more about your child!  As always, please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns at any time.

Photo and work permissions:
Thank you to those of you that have filled out this form.  If you have not filled it out please take a moment to answer three questions here: Photo and work permissions
Thank you!

Upcoming:

  • No school next week on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday- Happy Thanksgiving!  
  • SMS book fair is the week of November 27th and we are looking for parent volunteers!


Thursday, November 8, 2012

5V News

Innovation Day:
Today, students had time to talk with each other and revise their Innovation Day ideas as needed.  We spent some time translating our topics into questions that would require thoughtful research.  We also talked about what the students envisioned for their projects.

So, at this point students should have:
1. chosen a topic
2. a guiding question
3. a plan for their project

Students also began creating a list of materials they would need from home and school. This weekend, students should talk to their families about what materials they have available from home and are welcome to begin bringing in those materials on Tuesday. 

Feel free to email me at any time this weekend with questions.  On Tuesday, we will plan out our individual schedules for the day.  Students are excited to learn and create for a full day!   

Here is a great article on Innovation Day:
Why Every School Needs an Innovation Day

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Innovation Day

On Thursday, November 15th, your child will be participating in something called Innovation Day.  On this day, your child will get to study a topic of their choosing, something they are interested in and/or passionate about; spending the entire day immersed in self-guided learning. 

There will be three basic requirements: 1. Learn something. 2 Create something 3. Present something.

Teachers will facilitate, coach, question and guide students during the day.  

Students will not be graded on their work.  The focus on this day is the learning.  

This morning, we met with Mr. Gagnon's fourth grade class to introduce the project and brainstorm.  Their homework will be to speak with you, add to the list, think, talk to other family members and then narrow down their choices to one or two ideas for the day.  

On Thursday, students will decide on a final topic to study and what to create for a project. (This project has to be related to what they learned about during this day.) They will figure out what resources they will need for their research and will create a plan for the organization of their day. And as a final step they will create a list of needed materials for the project.

Innovation Day was one of the highlights of the school year for last year's 5V. I'm sure it will be the same this year.

More posts on this event will follow. Stay tuned!

Friday, November 2, 2012

5V News

Parent Conferences:
At this point, I have touched base with all families regarding a parent conference time in the next two weeks.  I look forward to meeting with you!

Native American Newscasts:
On Monday we will be filming our Native American newscasts.  Most groups are prepared and ready to film!  Some students still have to bring in props and/ or costumes for Monday morning.  We will still be using the iMovie app on the iPad but this time we will use the movie option instead of the trailer option.  I will send out an email later next week with links to the videos on our YouTube account. 

Have a great weekend!