Still Having Hearing Problems (by Tami)...

5B,

I think you are doing a good job at the Cadet Pride Points. And Mrs. Sorenson is probably still having hearing problems. I guess it's a good thing Mrs. Sorenson has the hearing problem because we have be AWFUL chatty. Don't forget to bring in items for Rice Krispies if you were assigned to do that.

How about next week, we try a be more quiet and not get Mrs. Sorenson as cranky as we did this week.

Have a great weekend.

Tami

A Bit of a Rollercoaster Today...

5B,
Hopefully you share with your families the amazing life of Nick Vujicic, the man with no limbs. I thought everyone showed a fabulous amount of respect for him and what he must have gone through to be as positive as he is today. I thought your "To Do Lists" seemed quite helpful and was impressed who kept them with them throughout the entire day. I'm curious who is able to keep them for the WHOLE school year! We'll see who has that amount of determination and responsibility! I'd love another monster "In Your Face" challenge for that task!!

Unfortunately, our day wasn't completely up to 5B expectations for Cadet Pride. We definitely had some UPS :) and downs :(. (Like a rollercoaster) I'd love to have even more UPS on Friday to end our week. I'll know you checked the blog if you study this 5B Chant below. Be ready to learn it in the morning. I'd love to video tape it when we have it memorized and FULL of enthusiasm!

5B Chant

(Leader) 5B, 5B, let's tell em', Who are we?
(Leader) Count One
(Boys) Get jiggy with it!
(Leader) Count Two
(Girls) Come on now.
(Leader) Count Three.
(All) Break it down.
(Boys) Respect is how we do it!
(Girls) If we put our minds to it!
(All)
With a little bit of work and
time to be me,
That's what makes us
(SHOUT)
5B!

Sure Missed 5B Last Week.. Still Missing Them....

5B,
The title to this blog is true, however, the past 2 days have proven to be tough for us showing Cadet Pride, as you already know. The great thing is, so many of you came to me and reported what a poor day it was (honesty!). The bad thing is, so many of you came to me and reported what a poor day it was (knowing what you did was wrong).

If you know right from wrong, good from bad, silly from serious, responsible from irresponsible, respectful from disrespectful, caring from uncaring and trustworthy from untrustworthy, why is it we are having so many problems with good choices this week? I wish I knew the answer to this question. It was a disappointing day today, 5B. We knew that yesterday was a bit chatty and out of the ordinary because I hadn't seen you in a full week AND our new friend, Desiree, joined us for her first day of school. So, after we had some reminders, I hoped we would see an improvement in behaviors Wednesday. As you know, um, n0t-so-much.

Here's how to prove you checked the blog: Please gather your Cadet Pride Team together as SOON as you walk in Thursday morning. Your team will be given a paper that looks like the one to the right. Your job will be to make a list of behaviors you are going to help EACH OTHER work on. Of course, I will always help everyone. Let's see if we can get this figured out in the next day or two. I'd love to see 5B again soon. I have so much fun with them. I enjoy watching them learn and share. I think of them as my own "babies" that soon will be moving on, which makes me quite sad. I'd love to spend the last month of school with the 5B I've known throughout the year.

Hope Wednesday Went Well...

Sorry I missed you guys. I was really sick. I don't think I've been this sick in years! I got a lot of rest and plan to see you on Thursday. I still can't hear very well, so you'll have to work with me on that one!

Hopefully you were able to wow me with all your strategies as you recorded them and watched the first part of Wall-E. I'm hoping you would have at least made a few connections to Earth Day and making sure to take care of our planet!


Thursday should go by pretty quickly. We will be having our ice cream scoops from MISIC testing, we'll need to add up our recess minutes for an official total! Remember, we have an 1-hour early out for spring break and no school Friday or Monday. Man, I have barely seen you guys at all! Hopefully, everyone stays well, and we can finish off the school year healthy, strong and the power to learn as much as we can.

I'll know you checked the blog if you write this poem for me..
S is for ...
P is for...
R is for...
I is for...
N is for....
G is for...

Loved the Post-It Notes!

for a great Monday, 5B. It was so super to hear such great things about you guys. I know you are wonderful students and can shine like crazy with Cadet Pride! Way to go! It was fun to read all the post-it notes on the white board. Thanks for checking the blog. You'll have a little something waiting for you on your desk in the morning for those of you who checked the blog on Sunday.

It was nice to visit other classrooms and literacy activities today, but, boy, did I miss you guys!!?

I'm guessing you have figured out the news I have for you by now! I'll share her name, when she's joining us, and an activity I'd like to have done for her before she arrives!

Thanks again for such an excellent report. I'll know you checked the blog if you take a guess at her name. Write it down on the white board when you come in Tuesday morning. We'll chat all about it after attendance and pledge!

Missing You on Monday :(

Hey, my little 5B Babycakes!
I just wanted to wish you a good start to the week. I don't like missing days with you, but it's important for our school to see what literacy looks like in other schools in case we might be missing some good ideas! I'll be back right as you guys are being dismissed, so I won't get to see you, but I will check the front whiteboard for big orange post-it notes from you. I'll know you checked the blog if you leave me a post-it on the whiteboard with a note about how the day was. Make sure to sign your name to it, too, so I know who to thank on Tuesday morning! You can take one right away in the morning or wait until planner time, but don't fill it out until the end of the day. OK? I'll check them when I get back into the classroom after school Monday.

We have a short, busy week ahead of us. We will get to have our ice cream celebration and more newspaper rolling on Thursday afternoon, so start saving room! Some of you will have ice cream coming out of your ears with 5 scoops!! Whoa Baby!

Also, I have some exciting news for us! I won't tell you exactly but check out the Wordle I made that will give you clues to the news I'll share on Tuesday when I see you again! You'll have to click on the Wordle to read the smaller printed words. I'm guessing you'll be able to guess the surprise I have to share with you!

Have a fantastic Monday. Make us all proud to be a part of 5B. I would love to hear something from your substitute about LOVING being with 5B! Let's see if you can take on the challenge! I'll even take another "in your face" comment if it happens!

See you soon! Don't Hide Your Cadet Pride!

It's Been a Great MISIC Week...but VERY CHATTY....

Hey, 5B Babycakes...
I feel like I haven't had a blog for a bit, so I thought I'd touch base with you. During our in-service this afternoon, the 5th grade teachers were looking at the MISIC scores from Math, Reading and Language so far. We all felt like the word, WOW, was the best one to use for what we saw for your spring scores. We are all so proud of each and every one of you, even if you didn't show tons of growth in each area, we KNOW you've learned quite a lot this year. You should be very proud of yourselves as well. I'm excited to see when our testing is all done how much ICE CREAM I'll be having to scoop up for my 5B "Piggies" (oink, oink - hey, that's a new one!!!)

Now, in another area of classroom topics..... Hmmm... Anyone have an idea of what I'm going to bring up?? I'll keep it simple..
*You know what Cadet Pride looks like and sounds like.
*You have made promises with our 5B RESPECT Pledge.
*You always have a choice in your actions.
*You have my support and help with you at all times to make good choices.

I absolutely adore spending time with you, 5B. I wish I could keep you all day long instead of send you off in the morning most days. I just enjoy you MORE when you show me your "respectful" sides. Ya know what I mean?

I'll know you checked the blog if you try out my new Stumble Upon activity (called Be An Artist Like Jackson Pollock) and let me know what you think of it! You'll have to play around a bit with it to figure out how it works. If for some reason it is blocked, just let me know, and I'll show the whole class in the morning:)

81 Degrees on Sunday!!!

Wow.. it is TOO TOO TOO nice to be indoors on a computer right now! Just a few heads up about the week, and then I'm outta here to enjoy some fun in the sun!

Congrats to the Respectful Predators on their 2nd win! Remember, your team chooses the line order this week, so have your ideas ready for me right away each morning!

Monday
Can bring a healthy snack!
Reading MISIC!!
Show learning and get a scoop of ice cream!

Tuesday
Can bring a healthy snack!
Language MISIC!
Show learning and get a scoop of ice cream!

Wednesday
3 Hour Early Out
Make up MISIC tests - anyone who has missed one so far should plan on this being a day to get it caught up

Thursday
Can bring a healthy snack!
Science MISIC!
Show learning and get a scoop of ice cream!

Also, I just wanted to remind 5B students to talk to their parents about our big field trip in May. We are looking for 3 parent volunteers who would be willing to go with us. We'd love for a few parents to help us enjoy a fun-filled day of learning and keep track of our little learners!! Give Mrs. Sorenson a note, email or call if your parent is interested. (Thursday, May 19 to St. Paul)

Ok.. enjoy the weather. I'll know you checked the blog if you write down what you did to enjoy this awesome weather. Hand in to me, right away in the morning!

C u 2moro!
Peace Out!

What do YOU want to be when you grow up?

Hey, there my little munchkins! From our discussions after the Career Fair, it sounds like everyone had a super time. Hearing you guys talk about it so much let's me know that it is definitely something we should keep up for future 5th graders. Also, I was at a meeting after school today, where Mrs. Sovereign, our principal said that she met with many of the presenters after the Career Fair, and they all raved about the 5th graders. Presenters felt that 5th graders were, by far, the best listeners, serious and seemed truly interested in what was being shared. Mrs. Sovereign even used the phrase, "Our 5th graders were certainly stars today!" Wow!!! What a compliment. Think about what I was saying this morning over our doughnuts. You guys have shown an amazing amount of growth in ALL areas: listening, attention, academics, caring, etc. You show what Cadet Pride is all about. With that in mind, think about how easy it is to get off task like we did today with our chatting. Be aware every day that it is always your choice to show Cadet Pride or not. I love the "showing it" side of you the best! Thanks again. Know that I am proud of each and every one of you! I'll know you checked the blog if you simply say, "You're Welcome, Mrs. Sorenson." Then I'll know you got my "thank you" message. See you for a normal day tomorrow!!

Now THIS is what I Call Spring Weather!!

Wow, 5B,
I hope you enjoyed the outdoors as much as I did this weekend. I am ready for more and more of this kind of weather! Unfortunately, I don't think I'm going to get my wish. I heard that snow is in the forecast for this week! Grrrrr... Don't get too excited. There won't be enough to cancel school, but it will be frustrating to have such chilly weather after the beautiful, warm days we've had lately. Did you know that last year at this time, we had already had an 80 degree day???? Crazy, isn't it??

Well, there is more exciting news that the weather over the weekend. If you were watching the Eagle's webcam, you know that the eggs hatched!! It looks like there are two, but a third one was possible. Yeah for the eagle family!

Congrats to The Huskies last week for their Cadet Pride Team win! It's pretty awesome that all 4 groups have had a win! Can't wait to see who gets a 2nd time win! The Huskies get to fill their tummies a few minutes earlier than the rest of us folks this week thanks to their hard work, teamwork and responsibility.

Reminder: Please thank your families for all of the juice and drinks they have supplied for our coffee talks. It is much appreciated. Also, please remind your families about the big field trip in May to the Science Museum and Underwater Adventures at the Mall of America. We're looking for parent chaperones. We can take 2 -3 parents. We'll draw from a hat if we have several volunteers! Thanks for helping out!

Heads Up...
All Week - Coffee Talks
Wednesday - Career Fair Day
Friday - 1st MISIC test - Math - can bring a small snack each day

Have a great rest of your weekend. I'll know you checked the blog this weekend if you go straight to the Smartboard to see where your NEW SPOT is for seating Monday morning! Begin moving as soon as you get in here!