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The Shakespearean Sonnet

March 9, 2009

Hello all!  Hopefully you had a great weekend with your little one.  Just five more days of CMT testing, so please continue to be sure that your child eats a good breakfast and gets to school on time.  I know with the time shift that it won’t be as easy getting some of them out of bed in the morning, so good luck!

A couple new things are going on the classroom that I thought I should tell you about:

If you haven’t heard, the kids and I began using a website called GoodReads.com that allows kids to record the books they read, recommend and review books for one another, and contact authors who also use the site.  My publicist had me join the site as a means of promoting my book, but I soon discovered how useful this could be for students as well. 

As with all sites on the web, we have talked a great deal about the safe use of the Internet and particular for websites like GoodReads, which allows the kids to chat and befriend one another.  In school, I limit the children to a private group area that I have set up for the class, where no one can enter without my permission.  I also do not allow the kids to use last names or identify themselves in any way and I do not allow them to post a photo of themselves.  If you want to allow the kids to set this up at home, you can, but I have left that up to your discretion.  Baby photos sometimes make a great way for kids (and adults) to include a photo of themselves without risking their anonymity. 

But the benefits of the site have been tremendous.  Some of our students spent the weekend on the site, chatting and reviewing books they are reading, and a few parents joined the site as well.  If you have the time or inclination, I encourage you to do so as well and join our discussions, tell us what you are reading, and participate in the fun.  Emma and Meghan sent message to some of their favorite authors and received responses the same day, and since the site verifies the identity of authors, you can trust the author page that the kids have been using.  I can’t tell you how exciting it was for the girls to hear back from these people just hours after sending their message. 

The use of the site also prompted a long and fruitful discussion on Internet safety, and I was impressed with the level of sophistication that they already have.  We discussed concepts such as identity theft and IP tracking in addition to the usual dangers associated with the Web, and it’s a discussion you may want to have with your child at home as well.

Goodreads requires the use of an email address to sign up, so if your child does not have an address, he or she cannot sign up.  If you would like, you can establish an online email address for your child at sites like Google and Yahoo and just for the purpose of signing up for GoodReads, and you could maintain complete control of the email address if you would prefer. 

If you have any questions at all, please let me know. 

We have also begun a math fact challenge in the classroom, thanks to a program and game designed by Kim Damokosh.  Kim developed a game that she uses with her children to help in learning math facts, and it is fun, engaging, and most important, effective.  Using a small rubber ball, the kids pair off into teams and bounce the ball back and forth, questioning one another about a specific times table as they do so.  The goal is for the student must answer the question from their partner (What’s 4 times 9?) before catching the ball.  To add to the prestige and excitement of the game, Kim purchased numbered balls so that if the team is learning their six times table, they are bouncing a ball with the number six on it.  Participating students took a pledge last week to memorize their multiplication table by June 1, and if they do so and pass the test that will be given, they will receive a fantastic prize. 

This is an optional program, so be sure to ask your child if he or she is participating, and if you can, encourage your child to practice at home too.  If your child is alone, he or she could bounce the ball off a wall and practice in much the same way.

Many thanks to Kim for developing this innovative way of memorizing math facts and taking the time to put this program together.  For those of you who attended my middle school preparation class, you’ll remember how important it is that your child has those fact memorized before leaving Wolcott.  If they are not memorized, your child will almost assuredly struggle with middle school math until he or she has done so.  I cannot recommend this memorization enough!

Lastly, you will find an article attached to this newsletter that I thought you might find helpful.  As a teacher, I know how difficult it can be to impose rules and consequences on kids knowing how much they might suffer and how much I care about them.  No one wants to make a kid sad or strip them of an opportunity, even if their behavior warrants this action.  Yes, even for mean Mr. Dicks, it is not easy.  And I know that it is doubly difficult for parents to “be mean” to their kids when behaviors do not meet expectations.  If you find yourself feeling this way from time to time, wanting to forgive a consequence or pardon your child from a punishment that you threatened to impose, this article might make you feel a little better about setting high standards and being tough on your kids. 

Student of the Month

Congratulations to March’s Student of the Month, Meghan!  Meghan is one of those students who takes advantage of every educational opportunity presented to her, whether it is a volunteer activity at school, a chance to have an essay reviewed before passing it in, or making the time to ask questions about things that she does not understand.  In short, she is the consummate independent learner, taking full responsibility for her education at all times.  It’s always such a pleasure to work with someone who takes their learning so seriously and understands the importance of doing her best, and for this reason, she has been chosen as the Student of the Month for March.  Congratulations Megan on a job well done. 

Charlie Award Winners

Congratulations to Meghan and Kiera, who were both chosen as our last two Charlie Award winners.  I judged the effort put forth in the most recent month-long essay, and Meghan and Kiera, with their willingness to write, revise, conference, revise, conference again, and so on put them over the top.  They took their writing very seriously, sought out the opinions and suggestions of others, and followed up on those suggestions with further revisions, much the same way that a professional writer might.  For this dedication, they make excellent Charlie Award winners!     

Science Fair Results!

For those unable to attend, congratulations to our Science Fair winners from last week:

Third place:  Jessica

Second place:  Lauren

First place:  A tie between Colton and Emma

I wanted to thank all of you for supporting your children in this endeavor.  The projects exceeded my expectations and exceeded the expectations of all of the judges as well.  They were so impressed by the kids’ ability to speak about variables, sample size, outliers, and limitations to their results.  One of the judges told me that he often worries about the state of American science in the future, but that if more ten year olds were as capable of understanding the scientific method like our students were, the future of American science will be just fine.  The experiments that the kids set up were creative, well planned, and simply terrific and their projects were impressive.  Best of all, the experience that the kids received in presenting their projects to judges will go a long way in preparing them for opportunities like this in the future.  Almost all the kids reported being nervous at the start of their presentation but happy that they did it once it was complete. 

So congratulations to all the kids on a job very, very well done. 

Homework

Like last week, I will be assigning homework each night in preparation for the next day’s CMT.  Next week we will return to a weekly process. 

However, auditioning pieces were given to the kids early last week and auditions for the play begin (and hopefully end) on Monday.  The kids should be working on memorizing the assigned part, whether or not they want a large or small part.

The kids should also continue working on their bridges at home, too.  Several students have found books and websites that are helping them with their understanding of bridge building, so if your child hasn’t done any research, you may want to encourage this. 

Otherwise, there is no homework for tonight.  As a result of outstanding work and behavior last week, the kids earned a Homework Free night.  Assignments will resume tomorrow. 

Thanks all!

Warmly,