Project Lead the Way

Hello Parents,
Today the students and I have launched our Project Lead the Way Unit on Robotics and Automation. The students have had the opportunity to get familiar with the iPads and VEX kits, which will help them in building a robot that serves a specific function. Project Lead the Way ties directly in with the fifth grade standards on investigation. I am very excited to continue and will post updates on our classroom progress. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.
Sincerely,
Mrs. Alvarado

Field Trip

Hello Parents,

On February 25th, our class is scheduled to go to the Anaheim Ducks First Flight Field Trip, located at the Honda Center in Anaheim. It is an exciting opportunity for the students. A description of this year's theme is found below:

Theme: This year, "Cool Like Ice" will get your students thinking about the very thing that makes the exciting game of hockey possible. It's the ice! Many of us take ice and its “cool” nature for granted when we do everyday activities like drinking a glass of ice water on a hot summer day. But what makes ice cold and slippery to the touch? Or how does water transform into solid ice? These are some of the questions that affect the Anaheim Ducks players and Honda Center ice crew when we consider the most unique playing surface in sports.

This will be a great tie-in with our States of Matter and Water Units that the students will be exploring this year.

We are looking for parent volunteers who would like to participate as both DRIVERS and CHAPERONES. We are not able to charter a bus for this event, so it is with the help of our wonderful parents to make this all possible. The drivers will be asked to come to a brief meeting to fill out all of the necessary paperwork. We are hoping for at least 8 volunteers per class.

If you would like to become a parent volunteer, please let us know no later than next Friday, JANUARY 31st. Thank you for your consideration parents and looking forward to hearing news soon!
Warmest Regards,
Mrs. Alvarado

Minimum Days

Hello Parents,
Just a quick reminder that the next three days (January 22nd-24th) will be minimum days. The students will be released at 12:20pm. Have a wonderful night!

State Reports

Hello Parents,
Happy Tuesday! This year students will be working on a state report project. Last week, the students chose their particular state of focus. They will be doing two parts to the project. The first, is the research portion. To follow, that information will be put into a creative float project. The report and instructions regarding the state floats are attached with this email. The students will get quite a bit of time to complete their projects. Please note that this is a large assignment. My recommendation is that your child completes a little bit at a time, in order to not get overwhelmed when the due date approaches. The actual due date of the project is April, 21, 2014. I will attach the state report documents to the blog under the 'Sci/SS' tab in case you need them. Also, students will be given selected work days to work on their projects in class, but the majority of the assignment will be done at home. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Thank you so much and have a good night!

Research Portion:

1. State Seal

2. Writing Pages

3. Bibliography

Creative Portion:

1. Float

Please note: There will be no formal written paper that needs to be turned in with the assignment (i.e. research report).

Important Announcements

1. Favorite Sock and Shoe Day! 
    Thursday, January 16
    Students can pay $2 to wear their favorite socks and/or shoes. No
           high heels or flip-flops please.

2. School Holiday 
    MONDAY, JANUARY 20th - NO SCHOOL
    Martin Luther King Jr. Day

3. Minimum Days
    Tuesday, January 22nd - Thursday, January 24th 
    Class dismissal time: 12:20pm unless otherwise specified

Recipes

Hello Parents,
As a senior project, one of our very own SRA students is putting together a healthy recipes cookbook. If you would like to submit one of your delicious recipes for the cookbook, please feel free to email it to me! She will really appreciate it. Thank you and have a fantastic weekend.
Warmest Regards,
Mrs. Alvarado

Commitment Forms

Hello Parents,
Today I sent home the 2014-2015 Santa Rosa Academy Commitment forms. The forms are used for student placement for the coming year. Please make sure that your child returns their commitment form no later than January 17, 2013. It will be assumed that students who do not return the form are not returning to SRA next year. Thank you very much parents and have a great rest of the day.

Sincerely,
Mrs. Alvarado

Things ahead...

Hello Parents,
Happy Wednesday! A few items to look out for in the coming weeks:
1. Our fifth grade class will be participating in Project Lead the Way. The students will undergo a fun and exciting robotics unit that will tie in with the fifth grade common core standards.
2. The students will begin their states and capitals memorization. The states and capitals for this month are listed in the "Sci/SS' section. You can find them by scrolling to the bottom of the page. An exact quiz date is not yet set, but will be given shortly. 

Other bits of classroom information:
1. Please make sure that all student agenda books are being signed daily. This helps us ensure that their homework is being looked over, as well as gives a level of responsibility to the students to meet deadlines.
2. All electronic devices, such as tablets and ipods should be left at home. We want to prevent damage to the items or their loss.

Thank you parents and I hope you all have a wonderful rest of the week.

Warmest Regards,
Mrs. Alvarado