Christmas Notes

Before I start my long Christmas notes post, let me say HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I hate to overshadow Turkey Day, but want to get the information out before people go shopping.

This post is also being sent home in paper form too.

Christmas Store

When:  December 8th at 10:00
How Much:  $0.25 or $0.50
What:  Students are able to buy up to two gifts at the store for $0.25 each.  It gives students the opportunity to buy gifts for their parents or guardians on their own.  Volunteers wrap the gifts and prepare them to take home. 

Book or Classroom Donation

When:  December 22nd
How Much:  $5 (at most)
What:  We have decided for our gift exchange this year to donate a book to the library for everyone to read. Inside the book have the students put their name and 2015 as a way to remember who donated the book. The book can certainly be from their library or Goodwill as long as it is in good condition.

Some students asked if they could donate other things for the whole class to use, and I thought that’d be fine too. Some wanted to have an extra kickball, a basketball, or board games for indoor recess. I think all these would be great ways to entertain our class. Again, feel free to use slightly used items.

The idea of any of the gift exchange it to trade things we can enjoy and use yet we don’t need to spend a lot of money on.

Party Committee

When:  December 22nd
Who:  Kaelyn, Bentley, Elyse, Alaina, and Lilliana
What:  These committee members will bring drinks and treats or plan games and activities for our Christmas party.  We won't start planning until December though.

Christmas Concert

When: December 17 at 7:00 (make-up day would be Dec. 22)

Who: Grades 3-6

What: This is just a reminder that the annual Christmas Concert is on Dec. 17 at 7:00. It's always great to see all the kids dressed up. It is also a chance for my students to meet my wife and kids, which they are always excited about.

Movie Matinee

Another note from the Cobb Library.

Where: Cobb Public Library

When: Wednesday, November 25 @ 1:30 - 3:00

Showing: OLD YELLER

Rated: G

* Children 6 and under must be accompanied by an adult.

Books

Iowa-Grant will have another RIF book distribution. Our class will be going on Monday afternoon. This is always an exciting time for students to be able to get free books!

Along with the free books theme, the fifth graders are doing a book collection for children's hospitals. There will be a letter coming home too. If you have any old picture books that you'd like to clean out this would be a worthy cause. Thanks.

Book Talk

This is from the Cobb Library:

With Author Kathy J. Jacobson

When: Thursday, December 3 @ 7:00pm

Where: Cobb Public Library

                                               

Kathy J. Jacobson, who serves as pastor at Peace-Bethlehem Lutheran Parish of Cobb and Edmund and Castle Rock Lutheran Church, rural Fennimore, recently published her inspirational fiction novel,  NOTED!

            NOTED! is the story of Jillian Johnson, a nurse in Wisconsin, who seeks to make a new start in a new place at the beginning of a new year. She takes a “day job” that will help her “save her brain” for her true passion of writing. On her first day on the job, she finds herself unexpectedly confronted with a piece of her past. It will take every ounce of patience, and faith, for Jillian to get through the coming year.

Kathy is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque. She has worked counseling troubled youth, has been an at-home Mom, a church youth worker and Christian education coordinator, worked in campus ministry, and for the last twelve years, has served in rural parish ministry. In addition to her work in the church, she volunteers as a hospice chaplain for Upland Hills Hospice.  She and her husband, Jeff, lived in Platteville for sixteen years before recently moving to Dodgeville. They are parents of three children, all “twenty-something.” Kathy is an avid traveler, having visited forty-nine states and five continents, with most memorable trips to Papua New Guinea, the Holy Land, and Tanzania, East Africa. She enjoys music, theater, reading, biking, walking and hiking, but writing is her passion.

MAP Testing Next Week

The fourth grade will be doing the MAP test next week. This test consists of two portions, language arts and math. Each tests takes around 45-60 minutes and we will be doing one on Monday, Nov. 23 and the other on Tuesday, Nov. 24.

On Monday we will be taking the language arts section in the morning during our language arts time. The test on Tuesday is the math section which we will take during our math time.

Both tests are taken electronically in the computer lab.

Division and Extra Math

Long Division

I am sending home our first homework assignment with long division. We have been working hard on this for a few days, but it's still a difficult for several of them. I only sent home nine questions and gave them about 10 minutes to get started in class. A few got done, but for most of them it was just a head start.

Xtra Math

Congratulations to Jayden B. and Brady for passing the math portion of Xtra Math. This is an online program kids can use to practice their math facts.

Students can also use the website at home (http://www.xtramath.org). The teacher e-mail is mine (avanovermeer@igs.k12.wi.us), their username is their first name and last initial with a space (example: John D.), and they have a four digit number for the password.

Turkey Disguise

Students were sent home with a turkey and note yesterday. They have been asked to disguise the turkey into something else, so it won't get eaten for Thanksgiving. Please use items you have around the house to disguise the turkey. 
Be creative! Have fun! 
Turkeys are due on Tuesday, November 17th as we will begin a writing project with them.

Thank you!

Family Night Out

Thursday, December 3rd

5-7 P.M.

IGEMS Cafetorium

All family members of students from Kindergarten through 4th grade are invited.

A free 5:00 o'clock taco supper, activities, and a play.

A form was sent home about this yesterday. There is a form that needs to be turned in by Nov. 17. If you need another form let me know.

Food Drive

Two 5th grade students are trying to make the world a better place! They are having a mini-food drive and are asking for students to bring in any canned or boxed goods by Friday, November 13th. If you have anything to spare, they will collect on Friday! Thank you! Tis' the season for being thankful and giving. Thank you!

Student Council Notes

If you are coming to conferences on Tuesday here are a few notes from student council. If you already came to conferences, thanks, I enjoyed talking with you. Have a great weekend!

- Babysitting - 

Is in the gym (4PM-7:30PM) for Conferences. Adults should bring their children to the gym & sign them in/out. (we had a lot of students either migrating toward the gym by themselves last night &/or simply wandering the building... some said their parents didn't know where we were...)

- Basket Fundraiser -

We have these as our fundraiser again this year... as always, the proceeds go directly back to IGEMS... & the Student Council Members have a VERY lofty goal for this year!... we are  hoping to raise money to purchase a bottle filling station drinking fountain for IGEMS!

This Week

We have a few things coming up for the remainder of this week and next week. Here they are:

Thursday, Nov. 5

• Parent/Teacher Conferences are from 4:00-7:30.
• The book fair will also be open during Parent/Teacher Conferences.
• The students will have their math test on multiplication too.

Friday, Nov. 6

• We have our second PAWs activity. Students can bring in a stuffed animal for the day. Of course, they had tons of questions about how big it can be. I told them, that they can only bring in one stuffed animal and it needs to fit in their bookbag.

Tuesday, Nov. 10

• Parent/Teacher Conferences are from 4:00-7:30.

Wednesday, Nov. 11

• Veteran's Day Program at 10:15

Report Cards

Student report cards are coming home tonight. You may get yours via e-mail or paper copy. There will be a few other things in the report card or in your students folder if you get an electronic copy.

Here is what should be coming home tonight:

1. The Report Card
2. Explanation of the new report card (It is a 1-4 grading system in the elementary)
3. Parent/Teacher Conference Schedule
4. Book It Coupon (for students who turned in their October Reading Calendar)