Mrs. Alvarado's Class News

Tuesday, May 6th- End of Year Info.

Dear Parents,

     Wow!  All of a sudden it seems like time is flying by!  I have so much to tell you about the events for the remainder of the year!  I will organize it by weeks and hope I don’t forget something!

This week:

-Mrs. Wilson’s retirement party is Thursday night in the media center from 5:00-6:00.

-Friday is the Volunteer Brunch beginning at 8:30.  If you have volunteered for me or in the building please stop by for a bite to eat.  It is our small way of thanking the parents who help us keep our school running so smoothly!  We couldn’t do it without you!

-Friday is also Career Day.  We have several guest speakers planned.  This day should give the class some ideas about what they might want to be when they grow up!

Next Week:  May 12-16

-Monday the coral reef diorama project for science is due.

-Wednesday we will be having a test over the ecosystem unit in science.  I will send home a study guide before the weekend to help with studying.

-Thursday is our Field Day.  Please have your child wear their class t-shirt, sunscreen, tennis shoes and bring a water bottle.

The last week of school:  May 19-23^rd

We will be having theme days the last week of school.  The schedule of events for this week shows our theme for the day as well as other school events.

Monday, May 21st- Red, White, and Blue Day!  Wear anything red, white, or blue!

Tuesday, May 22nd- Baseball Day!  Wear any uniform.  Bring ball, bat, and gloves so we can have a game!

Writer’s Tea- 10:45-11:15 

Lunch 11:18-11:48 – If any parent is staying for lunch on this day please let me know so I can send a lunch request to the lunchroom.

Wednesday May 23^rd- Banana Day!  Wear yellow!

End of the nine week party!  Donations of candy bars, popcorn, and pop would be greatly appreciated!  Students can bring rated- G movies to vote on to watch.

Thursday, May 24th- Wild, Wild, West Day!  Wear your best cowboy or cowgirl clothes! 

School Store- I would like to have one last school store.  The class has earned a lot of money in their checkbooks.  I’d like for them to enjoy spending it!  I have bought some things for the store but could use some donations if anyone wants to clean out a closet!  You know the saying …one man’s junk is another man’s treasure!  Any donations for the store would be greatly appreciated!

Friday, May 25^th- Beach Day!  Wear shorts and fun beach t-shirts!  No bathing suits. Nothing else as the bus drivers do not want the students to have anything with them on the bus ride home.  No book bags. 

Wow!  It is a lot to remember!  If I have forgotten anything I will send you another note! 

I have really enjoyed the year!  I will miss this sweet class! Mrs.Alvarado

Garage Sale

If you need to schedule a large item pick-up to be donated to the Foundation Garage Sale,

Please call Patti Lavender:  770-552-1162

We are planning to schedule pick-ups for Sunday afternoon, April 27^th, but we may be able to make other arrangements.

Friday, April 18th

Mrs. Alvarado’s Class News

Friday, April 18^th

Dear Parents,

   

     I hope everyone had a restful, safe, and fun Spring Break.  The class seems happy to be back and ready to learn.  Next week we will be starting the CRCT on Wednesday.  The test takes five days to complete.  We will be finished on the following Tuesday.  The students are tested on

Reading

, English/Grammar, Math, Science, and Social Studies.  I feel confident that the class is prepared and will do a great job on the test.  We have been reviewing for a while.  Please make sure your child is here everyday and on time. If they have to be out for a doctor’s appt. please try and schedule it for after lunch. We have to make up any section of the test that is missed and it is done during the day when the class is doing regular class work.  It makes for a lot of make up work for your child.  No fun!  We will be testing first thing in the morning until lunch each day.  I will not be teaching a full schedule on those days. I will continue with Social Studies because that is fun.  The class seems to be enjoying the “Westward Ho” unit and learning about how the pioneers settled the wild, Wild West. I will not be giving homework on those nights either.  I will also not be giving a spelling unit next week.

     What can you do to help your child during the CRCT?   A few things you can do…Make sure they get lots of sleep the night before the test days.  Make sure they have a good breakfast and healthy snack.  Make sure they are here at school early, so they are not rushed in the morning.  Be calm and positive about how great they are going to do.  Encourage them to do their best work on the test.

     I know testing is not fun for the kids but it does provide me with a lot of important information about my teaching and it provides you with a lot of information about your child. 

     Have a great weekend!  Sincerely, Mrs. Alvarado

GME Foundation

Garrison Mill has recently established a Foundation whose purpose is to provide resources above and beyond what the County and the Garrison Mill PTA is able to provide.  Please visit their web page to find out more about who they are, what they do, and help support their first fundraising event.  You can visit them at:  GME Foundation.

Friday, March 28th

Mrs.Alvarado’s Class News

Friday, March 28^th

Dear Parents,

       We have had a great learning week!  We have been reviewing for the CRCT.  We have also started some end of the year assessments.  Next week I will be giving timed tests for end of the year data.  Please review division this weekend if your child needs more practice.  I really want everyone to pass this final test.

      Take a look at what we are learning!

Reading-

  We are reading the book “Encyclopedia Brown”.  Each chapter is a mystery.  The class has had fun trying to figure out the mystery before reading the answer in the back of the book.  We will finish this book up next week!

Grammar-  We have started a unit on adjectives.  I am also reviewing other parts of speech for the CRCT coming up in April.  We have also been working on proofreading our own work in order to catch mistakes.

Math-  We started Chapter 20 this week.  We have been working multiplication problems with decimals in them this week.  The math part has been easy.  The only tricky part is where to put the decimals.

Social Studies-  We have all survived the Revolutionary War and we now have a new , very small, nation. We have started the “Westward Ho!” unit.  We are learning about how our nation grows larger.  The class has been studying about the men that helped us explore our own country and settle more land for us.  This week we talked about Daniel Boone and the

Kentucky

Territory

.  We talked about George Rogers Clark and the states in the

Northwest Territory

.  We learned about Lewis and Clark exploring along the

Mississippi River

.  We learned about John Colter running into the geysers of

Yellowstone

National Park

.  We move even further west next week!

     A big Thank You to Denise Green and Shelley Moreau for coming in to cover the class while I attended the Teacher’s Appreciation lunch.  It was very relaxing!

     Only one more week until spring break.  I hope everyone has a safe, fun and restful break!                                                                     Mrs.Alvarado

Friday, Feb.29th

Mrs.Alvarado’s Class News

Friday, Feb. 29^th

Leap Day

Dear Parents,

     We have had a great week!  Don’t forget about the Talent Show tonight from 6:30-8:00 in the cafeteria. 

     A few reminders for next week….. Tuesday is an early release day.  The students will be dismissed two hours earlier.  Next Thursday is curriculum night.  We will be playing math games in the room after the PTA meeting which starts at 6:30.  Hope to see you all there!

Take a look at what we are doing!

Reading- We finished up “The Chocolate Touch” this week.  Everyone did a great job on the final test. The next book we are going to read is called “Wishes, Kisses, and Pigs” by Betsy Hearne.  This is one of my favorite books and I am excited to share it with the class.

Math-  We finished up with chapter 14 today with a test.  We will be starting  15 Chapter 15 next week.  Chapter 15 is another chapter on fractions.  We will be leaning how to add and subtract fractions and whole numbers.  We will practice putting answers in simplest terms and working on problem solving.

Grammar/Spelling-  In grammar we are learning about action and linking verbs.  Next week we will be looking at the verb tenses of present, past and future.  In spelling we will focus on spelling patterns for “k” , silent letters in words, and proofreading for mistakes.

Writer’s Workshop-  We continue to work on conventions as a review for the CRCT.  This week we worked on apostrophes, commas, and proofreading for spelling errors.  Next week we will work on writing complete sentences, picking out parts of speech, and proofreading for spelling.

Science-  We started a unit on the solar system this week.  I gave out a solar system project sheet today.  The solar system projects are for a test grade.  The projects are due on March 14^th.  The project sheets have all of the details for the project as well as the grading rubric I will use to grade the projects.  Please let me know if you have any questions about the project!

Have a great weekend!   Mrs.Alvarado

Monday, February 11th

Mrs.Alvarado’s Class News

Monday, Feb. 11^th

Week 21

Dear Parents,

       Just a few reminders for the week…...  We are going on the

Youth

Museum

field trip on Thursday.  We will also be having a Valentine exchange so have students bring in a decorated box or bag to receive their cards. 

      If you have a girl please remember to send back your Human Growth and Development permission slip.  I need the permission slip back even if you do not want your child to participate.  I will be sitting in on this program with the girls.

     We are all reading a mystery for the month of February.  Independent Reading Responses are due on Friday, Feb. 29^th.

Take a look at what we are doing:

Reading- We are reading “The Chocolate Touch” by Patrick Catling.  It is a story that teaches us to be careful of what we wish for. 

Social Studies- We have finished learning about the Revolutionary War.  We ended last week with the Treaty of Paris.  This week we are learning about the government our founding fathers put into place!  We will learn about the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the three branches of government.

Science- We are taking a little more time to finish up the light unit.  We will have a quiz on Friday over the Light unit.

Writing- The fourth grade has been asked to participate in a writing contest called “Honoring Our Heroes”.  I will be sending home an outline tonight for homework to help your child get started.  They should just answer the questions by interviewing the “Hero” in their life.  Bring that back to school on Wednesday and we will write the essay in class.

Math- We will be finishing up Chapter 13 this week with a quiz.  Chapter 14 covers fractions.

Grammar/Spelling- The class has copied the spelling words for Unit 21 in their planners.  The skill this week will be adding suffix endings to words when there is a spelling change.  We will practice this skill all week.  In grammar we are staring a unit on Verbs.

Have a great week!   Mrs.Alvarado

January, 11th

Mrs.Alvarado’s Class News

Friday, January 11

Dear Parents,

     We are off to a great new year. Just a reminder… We have conferences in January this year.  I sent home a conference time with everyone on Thursday.  Please send those back as soon as possible so I can firm up my schedule. If you can’t make the time and day I have suggested let me know what would be good for you.  I will try to accommodate everyone’s schedule changes.

Take a look at what we are working on:

Reading- We began an author study on Jan Brett.  Many of her books have a winter theme. We have read several books written by her this week. We have been comparing and contrasting her books.  The class has been making some great observations about her style of illustrations as well!

Grammar/Spelling- We are working on a pronoun unit in grammar.  In spelling, I made the mistake of giving the class the same spelling list that they had before the break.  Sorry!  (I guess I am still on winter break!)  So we are scratching spelling this week!  We will not have a spelling test.  We will start out fresh next week!

Math- We ended the week with a quiz over Chapter 11.  Next week we will start a geometry unit.  We will pre-test and will be forming new groups.

Writer’s Workshop- One of our school wide goals for this year is to improve “conventions” in writing so we have begun a unit on conventions.  This will include spelling, grammar skills, capitalization, using quotation marks correctly, commas and more. This is also an area that is tested on the CRCT so it is a great time to begin reviewing.

Science- We began a unit on Sound this week.  We have been investigating how sounds are made, how loudness and pitch can change, and what allows us to hear. We will continue this unit next week.  I will send home a study guide toward the end of the unit to help the class prepare for the test.

Have a great winter weekend!  Mrs.Alvarado

Wed. December, 12th

Mrs. Alvarado’s Class News

Wednesday, Dec.12^th

Dear Parents,

    We have been working hard but the class seems ready for the winter break.  The class has started sharing their projects for their December reading response.  The projects have been great.  The kids read well, asked great questions, and have been very creative with their souvenirs. 

    We have a lot of fun things going on next week. Take a look:

Monday- normal or as normal as we get a week before Christmas!

Tuesday- Fourth and Fifth grade Spelling Bee.  Congrats to Matthew our class winner and Caroline our alternate.

Wednesday- Holiday Party  8:00-9:00 a.m.  Breakfast

Holiday

Party!  Yummy!

Thursday-  Polar Day.  Wear your P.J.’s .  Bring a book to read.  We will be doing Polar Express activities with our reading buddies in Mrs.Dion’s class.

Friday- Movie and popcorn party for the end of the nine weeks.  Celebrate!

     The room moms will be calling to ask for donations for the holiday party. Denise Green and Shelly Moreau are my room moms if you would like to talk with them about the party.

     I could use some donations for some fun activities:

-popcorn

-pop  ( I’m from

Ohio

, we say pop!)

- full sized candy bars

-peppermints

-packages of gum

- starburst

- rolls of lifesavers

- miniature peanut butter cups

- Hershey kisses

Thank you for supporting me this year!  It has been a pleasure working with you all.  I hope everyone has a relaxing, safe, and fun winter break!   Mrs. Alvarado

Friday,November 30th

Mrs.Alvarado’s Class News                        

Friday, Nov. 30^th

Dear Parents,

     I hope everyone had a fun and restful Thanksgiving break.  We are back and the class seems rested and eager to learn!  Just a reminder, 500 pages need to be read for the nine weeks. Some of the reading logs look like they need some more books recorded.  The due date for the pages is December 21^st.  Take a look at what we are doing this week!

Reading- We are still reading the book “Mrs.Frisby and The Rats of Nihm”. 

Spelling- This week we will concentrate on soft-syllable endings like “le”, “al” and “el”.  We will also review homophones.

Grammar- We will begin a unit on pronouns next week.  The class did a great job on the “Sentence Types” test given this week.

Math- We continue working on long division in Math.  This is a very difficult concept because of the many steps involved.  The class has been working really hard to master this concept. 

Social Studies- This week we will be learning about colonization. We will also be looking at life for the early settlers.

Computer Lab- This week we worked on CRCT preparation.  We will be practicing from time to time for the CRCT so that students feel comfortable when we have the real test.

I hope you have a wonderful week!    Mrs.Alvarado