Wow! Where did that week go? It seems as if I was just on the same couch in my living room blogging last Saturday! The time is already flying. Each year I teach, it seems to go faster and faster. Ever feel that way when you look at your 4th grader? I know my Emma is still toddling around the house learning to walk in my eyes, and all of a sudden I blink and she is in the grade I am teaching! Yikes!!! Kids grow up so fast anymore. I wish there was a way to just stop, rewind, and give them giant hugs!!!!
Before I get into this week's academic areas, I would like to seek some feedback on a topic that may seem outrageous at first, but hopefully after a brief (ya right...Ms. Erickson be brief) explanation I can get some honest feedback from all of you. Red Ribbon week is quickly approaching us. This is one of my favorite weeks to be a teacher!! All week long, our morning character circle meetings revolve around this topic. I bring in guest speakers daily that show the effects from all different angles of just saying NO to illegal drugs. We will start the week off with my good friend that is an undercover DEA agent. His job consists of the exact reason that we even have this week in school. It all started with a different DEA Agent named Enrique "Kiki" Camarena. He died, from torture and gun wounds, keeping kids like his own safe from a world of illegal drugs. His wife and children started this campaign years ago to honor their husband/dad and it has been strong ever since. So, I bring in a DEA Agent that shares the story with the kids. Of course he keeps it 4th grade appropriate. More than that though, I bring him in to talk about his job and what kind of character he has to have in order to do it. He talks a lot about how his choices as a child formed him into the adult he is today. He talks about that phrase that you and I say daily to our kids...what you do today will effect your future. And that is the tone I set with every guest speaker. I make sure that not only are they powerful in content, appropriate for this age level, and high interest, but also that each one share how their lives connect with character and how no one is a bad person, but instead has just made some poor choices. We also watch a wonderful episode of Little House on the Prairie (with your permission of course) that shows how the character Albert goes through peer pressure and a road of poor choices. The discussion that comes from this stems onto an amazing discussion of how when kids go down this path, it doesn't just effect them. It effects so many others: family members, friends, teachers, communities and the list goes on. Powerful! So, here is the part that I need your feedback on. At Bitterroot, I always ended Red Ribbon Week with a field trip to the Yellowstone Detention Center. The group of officers that do this tour are absolutely the best. They have a wonderful way of scaling it down to be appropriate, meaningful, and NOT scary. Now, drugs and the life that goes with it is scary, but that is not the intention of this field trip. It is not to scare them so badly that they never do drugs...though that is what our own parents told us they would do if we ever went down this path now isn't it. (At least mine did). My purpose of this trip is different. I believe that knowledge is power. Allowing kids to see the end result of poor choices allows them to see the big picture. There are no questions of what life will be like when these choices are made. Every single time I have done this trip, which is 6 now, the officers share that 99% of the inmates in their facility are there for choices they made while under the influence of a substance. They express that many of them would never had done what they did when sober. They also share that 99% of the people that are in their facility have created habits to lead them to this point starting at age 9, 10 or 11. How old is your child? How old is mine? Yikes! We have to do something NOW to prevent this from our children's future. Each year, I invite every parent to meet us there and go along on the tour (and it is a full tour. We see inmates, cells, booking areas, and more for both the men and the women inmates). Parents come out of there amazed at what just happened. They share that they were skeptical at first, but felt that after a week of study and preparation done in the classroom that it is not only one of the most powerful experiences they have ever had with their child but that it was extremely well done and appropriate. I can promise you that your child is absolutely safe and never without the proper people around to keep them that way. Again, these are not bad people they are just people that make poor choices. There have been inmates that try to comment to kids through the glass windows we view from, but they are dealt with promptly. I am not going to lie to you to try to convince you to trust me. I want you to know all the facts before offering feedback. In all 6 years I have done this, I have only ever had one parent check no on the permission form. The reason behind it was that three days before the slip came home, the student's parent made a poor choice and ended up in jail themselves. Now, saying all of this, I know that you may be saying, "Are you kidding me lady?" There is NO way I am allowing my child to visit a jail. I respect that. I am new here and I don't know you and you don't know me very well. So, I am asking a lot for you to trust me with your most precious gift on a sensitive subject. That is what I want to know from you. Is this something you would want your child to experience here at Arrowhead? Arrowhead is not Bitterroot, and Bitterroot is not Arrowhead. So, I only know that all I can do is ask. I will need to book the trip soon and parents will have to pay for the bus to get there (Probably 3-5 dollars each is my guess). I know that there has been a lot of paying in lately. So, I want that also put out there up front. I have not funds to pay for a bus at this point. Later, I can fundraise for these type of things, but there hasn't been enough time yet. So, could you please do me a favor and take the weekend to ponder this topic. Then, could you either write me a short note and send it in or email me your thoughts by Monday after school. My email is ericksont@billingsschools.org. If most of you want this, then I will get it going. I would absolutely have an alternate plan for those that do not want their child to go, no questions asked. If most of you don't want to do this, then I will not proceed with it. It is completely up to you. The classroom teachings and the guest speakers will happen either way. They are powerful and they are just too important to dismiss. I will end this topic by saying this. If this trip does happen, my own Emma will be taken out of school this day and join our class on this field trip. It is scary to think that my little girl is old enough to experience this and live in a world that has a need for her to see it, BUT it is even more scary to me to think that someone will peer pressure her in just a few more fast years and she will have to see it in a whole other way. I want her to see it with me and in a way that gives her the knowledge of the consequences if on that peer pressure day she decides to say yes instead of JUST SAYING NO!
At Open House, we will talk about so many things. One of the exciting areas that I am wanting to share with you is "Who the heck is this Rusty guy" that talks via internet with your kiddo each morning. Rusty is the owner of the show scooltoolstv.org. He comes on the big screen daily to talk to kids about social skill and character issues they have at this age. He talks about motivation, identifying feelings, dealing with feelings, friends, parents, teachers, bullies and so much more. He does this in ONE minute a day. I then take that lesson, and create half hour lesson to drive it home. I use youtubes, movie clips, picture books, my own life experiences, debates, and other ways to do this. I have to admit that this is my favorite part of the day. This is where I get to just build a relationship with your child. This is where I get to see into their world through their eyes. I get to hear about their football games, dance recitals, concerts, fears, birthdays, deaths, and anything else that they are going through. It is a way I get to check in with them in a human to human connection. I don't have to be the "teacher", but get to be the person that truly takes an interest and builds trust with them. When co-authoring my book with Rusty, we read endless research and case studies on this topic. If I take the time to build an honest relationship with your child, their academics will go up. It is proven with data, and it is backed with evidence that can't be ignored. So, I have invited Rusty to join you during Open House as well. He will skype in from CA and share with you what he does, and how it benefits your child. It will be brief, but you will get to meet the man behind the screen in person and see just how he is helping me to make a difference in your child's life. Open House is THIS Thursday from 6-7. There will be two sessions for 30 minutes each. This time is for parents only. I can't wait to see all of you!
Weekly reports came home on Friday. I didn't grade the spelling tests yet, so those will come home Monday. I added two lines for you to comment to me if need be. I love to hear all of your thoughts. Please feel free to share anything that will help me help your child to be successful in school.
Some of you have asked about getting online to see your child's grades. We will talk about that at open house and passwords will be given out. That way you can always see my gradebook and how your child is doing in school. I update it daily.
This week in school we will be learning...
Math-how to order large numbers from least to greatest by looking at place values, discover how to determine how many 10s, 100s, and 1,000s are in a large number like 230,000 by looking at patterns found in these types of numbers, and how to count large amounts of money and make change. I have some volunteers from Mission Ridge starting this week during our math time. They are retired math teachers, so they are going to really be an asset to the classroom when working on kids that need that extra boost or help.
Lead 21-about how heritage can be found in art, generational stories, food, and recreation. IVF summary writing will be a main focus this week. We will start small groups this week as well. Skills will be driven home hard in these groups. Practice sheets will help us see skills in action. I will also be modeling my expectations for upcoming Inquiry research projects next week. Don't you worry...I will also share them with you!! :0)
Spelling-how to spell words with a long and short i vowel sound. Students will also classify them into groups by their sounds. Practice activities will be done throughout the week to help see patterns of these specific words.
Language-about subjects and predicates. Students will need to master this skill by dividing a given sentence into these two parts along with locate the simple subject and predicate.
Writing-paragraph writing with topic sentence, details, and evidence to back the details.
Regional SS-map skills. Students will need to be able to identify the cardinal directions, latitude and longitude of a location, and how to use a key to read a map. We will continue our journey of Fallen Rock and Running Water through the United States as well.
MT History-Ecological regions found in MT. Students will divide MT in regions and discover what type of plants, animals, weather, landscapes, and so on are found in each region. This will require a lot of oral listening and note taking. Wow! High level skills for a 4th grader!
Science-types of scientists. Mrs. Auch had the kids draw what came to mind when they thought of the word scientists. It was interesting to see all the different visuals that come to mind. We had mad scientists, females, males, lab coats, beakers, and out in nature scenes to name a few. They are up for display in our hallway for you to check out when you come to open house on Thursday. Ask your child what you will find in their picture. If they can tell you, write the word SCIENTIST in the planner for $10 on Monday. Fun!
Computer-Keyboarding skills and basic math facts. I programmed the math site for multiplication, but after this weeks quizzes that had addition problems on them, I am going to go back in and start with adding and subtracting. Kids will have to put in the answer within 3 seconds in order to mark it off as mastered. Once they master addition, it will move them to subtraction, then multiplication, and finally division. Flash cards are the only way to go here folks. They just have to be memorized, and kids have to know them like they know their own name.
Testing-We have one test left to take, and that is the math test. I will have data to share at open house for all of you. This test is taken again throughout the year, and all students are expected to grow in points. This is a starting point to track them with and to help us make sure that we address problem areas for each child on an individual level. I use this data in many ways.
Well, that about sums up our upcoming week. I hope that you have a wonderful weekend. Hopefully you were able to go out to your child's favorite restaurant this weekend and have a wonderful meal. AND....while you were there, pick up a gift card for our Saturday Live basket. Thank you for ALL that you do, and trust me I know that is A LOT!!! I appreciate you for the parent that you are, exactly as you are! Each and every kid in here is so lucky to have so many people love them. :0)
Peace Out!
Ms. Erickson
