Great Day Today But...(By Morgan and Haylee)

Hey 5B,

     We had a great day today!! Mrs. Sorenson wanted to have something in this blog talking about some bad choices people have been making with the iPads, computers, etc.  Our fabulous 5B students are starting to follow the advice of their evil twins...  Sending emails, chats, etc. when supposed to be working.  Remember, being on a device at school is a trusted privilege that can be taken away.  We can make better choices, 5B.   

      In writing we got to tattle tale on others writing mistakes.  Tomorrow we will keep working on that, and just write for it.  We had a lot of fun pointing out others' mistakes, but then we realized we had our own to fix.  Aw, rats!

Great job entertaining 1st graders with awesome scripts for inferring!

      You can keep looking for the answer for are Dr. Skyper. We want to know how to stop the annamites, and how they will stop breaking the houses.

For science, you can study for the "QUIZ" that we will have sometime this week. You should study because Officer Sorenson might be on the loose. 

We'll know if you've checked the blog if you grab your egg, pretend to sit on it and keep it warm and wait for Mrs. Sorenson.  If you don't have an egg pretend that you do. (Don't make any sounds until she comes by you.)

       Have a good night and see you in the morning!!

***This part is from Mrs. Sorenson - there will several "fines" and fees to be paid today and even after school for homework that was not done, books, papers and iPads left out.  Let's not turn our amazing 5B class of Angels (ding! Ahhhhh) into anything less than that.  Think....before you Act...Right:)  

Oh... And JUST be prepared for a little something special for our first day of April...OK? :)

Spring.... Has Sprung!!!

Hello, Sun!  We have missed you!  It's been a LONG time since we've hung out and played together!  Please stick around.  We feel down when you're not around.  It's like everything is all gloomy when you are away.  Thank you for coming back to visit us.  We invite you to stay through the week as well.

Your long lost friends,

5B

Ok...Sorry, 5B.. that HAD to be done.  I missed you guys, too, but the sun needed to know this before anything else happened:)  I hope EVERYONE had a chance to enjoy some part of Saturday or Sunday's gorgeous weather!  We had Isaiah's bike out, we weren't wearing coats, we raked up dog poo!  It was a blast!  (Ok, not the dog poo part, but everything else was).  Hopefully, we'll get to see more of this weather this week.  Just keep in mind how muddy, sloppy, and messy the ground is during this time of year.  Think about recess and wet, muddy shoes coming into the classrooms...  Umm...yuck!  And no thank you!

A heads-up for this week..... Remember, that you have a science quiz over the bones of the body this week...Sometime...but I'm not saying when.  It could be on Monday, so hopefully, you've taken some time practice.  Remember, there's the online game to practice!

Also, I talked to Mrs. Kuhn and 1st graders would LOVE to have us perform our sock puppet shows for them on Monday!  So, we'll review/practice a teeny bit and present!  They are super, you guys!  Great job!  Someone mentioned to Tweet out about our puppet shows from last Friday.  I'll wait until you guys present, take some pictures and then share it with the Twitterverse:)  Great idea!  I think it was Morgan's idea!

The last thing I wanted to remind you of is our @5BCadets Twitter account and Dr. Skyper mission.  I told you I'd give you a head start on the next clue/video before Room 11 sees it on Monday.  I'll make this a job on Monday morning during literacy time/jobs to find out the answer to Tweet back to Dr. Skyper and his partner, Jacob.  

Watch Below...  Oh, I'll know you checked the blog if you watch the video as many times as you need to figure out what insect Jacob is talking about. Ask your parents for help, too!  See what they an find!  We can also Tweet it out tomorrow to ask for help.  Maybe one of the science teachers know??

 Search for it and send me a picture through email or print it off at home and bring it with you.  Don't let a little work and effort get in the way of deep thinking that I know 5B can do!  

Have a great Sunday night!  Man, it's AWESOME to have a spring day like today!  It makes me want to sing,

"Everything is Awesome..."

Dr. Skyper... Old Paper... Joints in our Arms!

5B,

Our days just fly by with all of the different activities we are involved in all day long.  You guys do truly ROCK my world.  The chatty bug hits you from time to time, but that moment I give a simple little reminder, you guys are back on track, no questions asked!  Stay Strong!!

I'm running short on time tonight, so I'll make it quick...

Thanks for those who brought their hair dryers for our "aging" paper activity!  Haylee, tell your family we are sorry your dryer went kaput.  The papers turned out fabulously.  The old photos "of you" also looked realistic.  You have to check out Jasmine's, Hailey's and Paetyn's. Those are just ones I happen to see when they were done.  You guys make everything turn out fantastic!

BOOK CLUBS for FRIDAY!  Be ready to chat.  I haven't had a lot of time for reading in school this week, so be sure you can be independent and trustworthy to complete this weekly assignment:)  Fines may have to be enforced if we can't follow the "law of Sorenson"...

Also... we will be sharing our Sock Puppet Shows on Friday.  So, be ready to show you can make an audience be entertained and have to INFER at the same time!  I can't wait for these!  

Oh, and thanks to the 4 students who posted "tweets" for @5BCadets today.  I think those suggestions are great ones to get people interested and helping out our classroom.  I'll tweet them out tonight! Love your enthusiasm!

Hmmm...Blog proof... We need something active... Hmm...Something that pushes your limits.... An idea that shows you have what it takes to be as weird as I am.... Sooo....

I'll know you checked the blog if you come in Friday morning, pretending to be a chicken.  The chicken you are being doesn't make noise but definitely acts/moves like a chicken.  The chicken knows it's getting closer to the Easter holiday, so it looks around for a spot in the classroom for a place to "lay its eggs".  Find that spot, lay your eggs (remember, no sounds, but definite actions), and keep them warm until I stop by with something for you.  SHHHH...don't tell others about it.  I'd like to see what the others' reactions are when they see how much effort you put into blog checking!  Too FUNNY!  

Our First Mission from Dr. Skyper....

Can we beat Room 11 in CT to the Next Step?



Also, what a great day to welcome our former but new again student, Tristen!  Another great day for 5B!

I'll know you checked the blog if you can come up with some suggestions for us to tweet out the answer on Thursday!

Add them to this TodaysMeet Link... Click Here!

A Day to Go Into Our Memory Banks....

Today marked the 100th birthday of our very own, Dr. Norman Borlaug.  I sure hope you had a chance to share with your families the special event we were able to witness through a live webcast.  I also hope that this 5B class of 2021 remembers the amazing impact Iowa has had on the world.  You, too, could be following in Dr. Norman Borlaug's footsteps by changing and helping the world.

I'll keep it that simple tonight.  Sometimes, the most important thing to do in a day....

is to....

I'll know you checked the blog tonight by showing Tristen exactly how well our morning routine can start and being fabulous role models for him for the second we start our day!   

Later is Better Than Not...Right?

Well, students are














from the flu!

The
















are spreading like...

The best way to avoid this current virus is to WASH YOUR HANDS, try not to share utensils or other items, and keep your hands away from your face!  It's just a part of life that people get sick, but if we can avoid it, that's always a bonus!

It's been great having UNinterrupted class the last week and today!  Now, watch we won't have a whole class back together until the flu runs through the entire class!!!  AHHHH!!!

Hopefully, we are passed the winter weather chaos, and we've finished our IA Assessments, so class time really has been used so well!  The 5B students work their little tails off!

We'll talk about the new

bulletin board tomorrow, but to give you a little heads up about it....
I'll know you checked the blog (and put some extra effort into this proof) if you share something about Monday's day of school that shows that 5B (or our 5th grade in Crestwood Elementary from the Howard-Winneshiek School District) is an AWESOME place to learn!

You'll need to do this by posting on TodaysMeet (click on it).  Your challenge is to brag with details about something or some way it's awesome to learn, but you CAN NOT go over the spaces in the one box you post.  It only gives you 140 spaces.  Going over it means you do NOT succeed in this task!  We'll chat about these tomorrow:)

WE love Skully (First Part by Trystin and Connor - Bottom Part by Mrs. Sorenson)

We officially named Skully! 

 

Things to think about...
Report cards go home on Monday
3 Hour Early out Wednesday.
Mrs.Sorenson has a surprise for our puppets this week.
Practice bones for Science.

We will now you checked the blog if you blow a kiss to everyone in the classroom and say hey baby.  And also right on a piece of paper and answer ONE of these....
Would you Rather have a millipede crawl up your nostril and out the other side Or have a baby bat fly into your mouth? 
OR
Would you rather live in a world without tv or texting? punctuation or glass? MTV or McDonalds?

by Trystin and Connor DUN DUN DUN!!!!


Now from Mrs. Sorenson...

It looks like you have all sorts of ways to prove you checked the blog over the weekend.  Bring those papers to either Trystin or Connor on Monday morning, ok?  I'm thinking our greetings to each other will be quite friendly based on what we are supposed to do:)


If you are a math student in MY class, remember you had a bunch of homework this weekend, including some "extra" work to bring in to share with the class... (if your families were ok with it).

I'm just giving you all a heads-up.  We may be adding another student to our class again.  I'm not 100% sure if it's going to happen, but I'm hearing word that one of our 5B classmates who has left us, may be coming back.  Again, I don't know if this is for sure, but I just wanted you to have some knowledge about it in case it does happen this week. Ok?  And no, I'm not sharing which one it is.....yet...  Maybe on Monday I'll share.

Also, the 5th-6th Art Club is meeting tomorrow (Monday, March 24) after school from 3:30 - 4:30 like it did 2 weeks ago.  All are welcomed, even if you didn't go this first time.  However, I'd like to know who plans on attending this because you'll need certain apps on your iPads in order to do the activities. That means I'll need to get them on your iPad either during lunch or recess.

So, if you KNOW you are going to Art Club after school THIS Monday, please have your parents write a note, or your parents can send me an email or give me a call, ok?  I don't plan to put the apps on everyone's iPads since we won't need them for anything else.

I hope everyone had a good weekend.  I'm heading to a movie now!  I've been waiting to see Divergent since I read the book 2 summers ago!  Finally, it's here!!!  Yeah! I love seeing if what I pictured in my mind is the same as the movie producers.

 If I'm really sweet, I'll save you some popcorn...... well... don't hold your breath... I love my popcorn!!

Happy Sunday:)

Tomorrow Will be an Official Full 5-day Week!

Woo-hoo!  We are making it through an entire 5 full days of school without ANY weird weather, crazy schedules, etc. "Everything is Awesome"is definitely a good song choice for how I feel!  Keep thinking of the "awesome" things that you feel about events you could add to our class book.  I added one after school about coming into the classroom after lunch, and I see everyone just working together, singing "Herman the Worm".  I think to myself... "This is AWESOME!"

It was surprising to find out that all but 1 5B student would rather drink straight from a cow's udder than eat a block of 20-year old, moldy cheese!  Bradley made a good point about the connection (gotcha!) between bleu (yes, that word is spelled correctly) cheese salad dressing and moldy cheese:)

Another short one for tonight - We need some brainstorming done to name our skeleton that has joined our class.  I feel like it's a boy, but there's no real proof of that, so we can take boy or girl name ideas.

If you need a reminder of what it looks like (because sometimes a name just "feels right" when you look at the person), here's a quick photo that we took together after school.  We had all sorts of fun!  We talked about him/her joining 5B just in time for the puberty class.  He/she is excited to learn more:)

I'll know you checked the blog if you add your brainstorm for what our skeleton's name should be!  I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with!

Click Here for the TodaysMeet Link

Short and Sweet...

Would you rather??

Write your answer on a piece of paper with your name on it and give it to me in the morning!  I'm curious which would be worse....Ick!!

Still No Blobs Today....Hmm...

SO SORRY!!  For those of you who check this tonight or Wednesday morning, my Internet connection (gotcha) was terrible at home.  At 8:54 p.m., I FINALLY got it back on.  GRRRR...So, below is what I started at 5:30 on Tuesday night.


Well, 5B, I went up to check the office again around 4:30 after school, and this is what I found taped to my mailbox again!

That's great news, but it definitely does not help us solve the mystery of WHO took them.  Another thing that seems confusing is that the writing on this blue note is in cursive!  Somebody has gone to a lot of work to trick us, wow!  They weren't there still when I left at 5:00, so someone will be getting up pretty early to sneak in our room before I get there at 7:30???

Some AWESOME news to share is that 5B is 

COMPLETELY DONE  with IA Assessments!  Yeehaw, Baby!!

Ok.. It's WAY late...So I'm signing off and hoping people don't stay up too late to read this:)

Oh, I'll know you checked the blog if.... you look at the picture below and tell me what you remember this event from today:)

A Little Leprechaun Got the Best of 5B Today!!!!

Ok... When I mentioned to watch out for strange happenings on the blog last night, I guess I was just saying that in "legend" of leprechauns.  5B is trying to figure out who is "playing leprechaun" in our classroom today.  Our green blobs have gone missing....like all day??!!!  We are thinking some 4th grade teachers and maybe even the other 5th grade teachers may be in on this prank!??  There's even some clues that Morgan (our very own classmate!!!) may be in on this.  So, we will see if the blobs show back up on Tuesday.  Let's hope our tricksters are feeling nice and want to return our belongings!!  I guess we'll wait and see!  Grr.. I LOVE to play tricks....not BE the one tricked.....



On a more positive and exciting topic, 5B (well, most of them) are DONE WITH IA ASSESSMENTS!!!  The students really have been working seriously to complete each test with effort and super test taking (safety) tips!  However, the REAL time to celebrate will be when we get our results back and see if we met our personal goals!   That will be an awesome day!


My final topic for tonight is our new unit we'll be moving into for science:  The Human Body!  You know you ALL have the assignment to know that song I gave you "Name Those Bones".  It is on the blog, you've heard it and now it's practice time!  No labeling on that worksheet - that's just so you can see it and get some preview of our plans for Wednesday!





If you want to give yourself an assignment (or really just a game to play), click on the link below to practice!
 Click Here to Play a Game!

I'll know you checked the blog if you ask me, "What's different about P.E. today, Mrs. Sorenson?"  (Be sure to ask me privately...I'll whisper the answer to you!)

Do You Know What Monday, March 17th is?

If you are someone who likes to celebrate the Irish holiday of St. Patrick's Day, PLEASE SHOW your spirit by wearing GREEN, as much as you like, want, can stand!!  I heard there was a crazy leprechaun on the loose in the area, so you should be on the lookout for strange things.  The folktales and legends about leprechauns state that leprechauns are busy shoe makers, LOVE to get into mischief (make messes), and hide their gold from the shoe business at the end of a rainbow.  So, beware of any of those little hints you may overlook if you are too busy!

I'll know you checked the blog if RIGHT when you come in, you grab your iPad, find a picture of something related to St. Patrick's Day (it must be appropriate for school), take a screenshot of it, and somehow add your face or picture to that St. Patrick's Day picture using Doodle Buddy or Pic Collage.  Here's one I did of Isaiah:)  We'll share them right after we do attendance and pledge!

I'm sure you'll be MUCH more creative!  I used Pic Collage.  

We only have ONE IA ASSESSMENT left!  Woo-Hoo, Baby!  It is the Science one.  It will be at the end of the day on Monday.  After this, we will begin our next science unit..... the HUMAN BODY! And then guess what comes along with that???  PUBERTY!  YEP!  Can't wait, can ya'?  

I hope everyone had a great weekend.  Friday's STEAM Day went SO WELL!  

To the STEAM teachers:

Jasmine

Carter

Amelia

DJ

Kierstyn

Clay

Another Short One...But VERY HELPFUL....

Ok... The blog will be short again, but this is for ONLY those who take the time and effort to actually check the blog BEFORE coming in the room.  I have a hint about where the safety tip #6 is hidden.  BUT you have to keep it COMPLETELY to yourself...not even talk to other people who have checked the blog, ok?  I'm really hoping I can depend on some trustworthy 5B students.

So...

Safety Tip #6 is hidden UNDER a spot that you can sit.  I won't give details whether it is a

chair or couch or bean bag or etc., but you will definitely know where to start your sniffing:)  Also, 

if you want to REALLY keep the secret, don't be too obvious by going STRAIGHT for those

spots...just be natural...cool...calm...  

GOT IT?!! Good luck!  And let's see if being responsible and checking the blog will pay off for you!

Oh, and here is one sad comment to share... Officer Sorenson was doing her rounds and found an iPad left out.  She also saw that an iPad that was supposed to go home to finish work....did not...  Fines will be paid on Friday:(  

Welcome to the real world, baby, right?!

One Last Thing..

IA Tests Tomorrow:

Written Expression in the morning!

Math Computation after recess:)

STEAM Day ALSO!!

Short and Sweet Can't Be Beat...

This is the blog...

Thanks for checking...

I'll know you checked it if you email me how many "targets" you successfully did something caring for over the past 2 weeks!  I believe the goal was 1 for every day (14)... Let's see how much time you put into caring for someone else:)  Don't worry, I won't share it with anyone else.  That's your business to keep secret, right?!

Nighty, Night!

Tomorrow:
IA Assessments:
Reading Part 2 (am)
Math Part 2 (pm)
Guidance - have secret agent files with you

Can bring your own simple snack for watching the rest of iMovies for American Revolution:)

Oh..and watch out... There's a change going to happen with the Momma Purse and Cadet Dollars coming tomorrow......Ohhh, what could it be???

Bringing in the Bucks Today!!

5B did an AMAZING JOB today bringing in the














for the super effort on their

No, this is not a picture from our classroom!
It won't help you on your assessments tomorrow:)

The goals you made for yourselves are realistic and show that you are WANTING to show how much  you've learned over a year (from 4th to 5th grade).  Explain to your families what the GE (Grade Equivalent) means and tell them your past score and your goal for this year!

I know today was a lot of testing, so it's important to get rested up and then pumped BACK UP to take on another day of it.  Tomorrow is a half-day, but you still have 2 tests:  Reading Comprehension (VERY IMPORTANT) and Vocabulary (can't read without knowing words, huh?).  Building your test taking stamina is like building your Read to Self stamina... You get better, the more you PRACTICE:)

Good luck to the band kiddos!  I'm sorry I'll miss the concert.  I'm heading to Decorah tonight and won't be back until late:(  But I do have a surprise for tomorrow, right away @ 8:30!  

Hmm... But the question remains... with who??

Go to this TodaysMeet link to prove you checked the blog and share your guess.  

IDK, I don't know, Don't Know, etc.. (anything like this) won't count.  So get

your thinking caps on and make a realistic prediction (think ahead - beat you) who we'll be 

inviting into our classroom!

Make-a-Dent Monday!

We did it!  We made it through a full day, after daylight savings change, with a math and social studies test, and we are still alive!! Yeh!!  Great effort again today, 5B!   The little extra bit of fresh air between math and social studies was fabulous!  What an amazing day!

Be sure to share with your parents that you turned into an animal today looking for Safety Tips #1 and #2!  Your "sniffers" had to really work to find those papers!  Owwwww!!!!!!  I'm a hound dog!

I've already hidden the new ones for Tuesday...so keep an eye and a nose out as you come in the morning!

I got through most of you to help you set a goal for yourself for the IA Assessments in the areas of reading and math, but if I didn't, I'll work with you tomorrow, ok?  No worries!


Remember... get a good night's rest and be sure to have some breakfast  (as you always should) .  It's tough to think on a hungry stomach:(

Hi, I'm your stomach.  Please don't
forget about me.

I'll keep it shorter tonight.  Here's how I'll know you checked the blog....
1) Draw 2 STARS on pieces of paper (big enough to write in them).
2)  Write BOTH Safety Tips from Monday in them... How well were you paying attention?  Do you remember them?  That's the REAL challenge.  You'll have to show me the 2 STARS in the hallway BEFORE coming into the classroom:)

Have a great night!  Be sure you are finishing any math journal pages if you need to or working on the iMovie for the American Revolution!

IA Assessments for Tuesday:
Morning:  Spelling, Capitalization, Punctuation
Afternoon:  Math - Part 1

Lack of Blogging Last Week..Sorry!

Hey, 5B,
Hopefully, this week will be "normal"in the blogging routine.  Last week just kind of fell a part with all of the goofy events, days off, basketball, and Pentatonix concert:) (woo-hoo!)!  So, I will get my act together and do what I can for you this week!  Back on track, Sista'!

Here are a few pics of the events that took over our world last week!

Monday - STEM Day at Keystone in Elkader!

Tuesday - First round of basketball at state in Des Moines!

Wednesday (SNOW DAY), So Thursday - Perform for our 1st grade
buddies. They perform for us.  Then some snuggle and reading
time for partners!

Thursday - Sawyer shares with us his dentist experience!  

Always finding a way to bring real life into the classroom!
This might have been TOO much real life...ICK!  But
totally cool to see!

Thursday - Mrs. Sorenson makes it to Pentatonix concert at Luther!

Friday- 5B vs 6th grade class on Book-Off!  These are
the winning books from the challenge!
If you haven't read one of them, it would be a great list
to start from !  

Friday - Hunter (our 5B rep) beat out Taylor (6th grader)
with his details and persuasive discussion about
The Maze Runner

So..That was LAST WEEK!  What's in store for this week?  Well, the kids know that the IA Assessments (formerly called ITBS) are coming this week.  It's the one-time during the year, that we need to show our progress as readers and learners to the state.  The way students perform on the IA Assessments is how the school gets it's report card.  So, the best effort we all put into it, the better for everyone:  Students, Parents, Teachers, Associates, Principals, Superintendents, etc.  We will start by setting goals for ourselves on Monday and making a plan to reward ourselves WHEN we make the goals!  

Tuesday's Tests:

Spelling, Capitalization, Punctuation, Math (Part 1)

Wednesday's Tests: (3 hour early out)

Reading (Part 1), Vocabulary

Thursday's Tests:

Reading (Part 2), Math (Part 2)

Friday's Tests:  

Written Language, Math Computation

THEN, a SUPER, FUN-FILLED day is planned on this Friday, March 14 as a mini-STEM day taught by our very own 5th GRADERS!  The students that went on the STEM Day trip last week learned a lot about different apps, websites and robotics.  They are excited to teach you and give you the same experience they had!  Isn't that awesome!?  We'll also have people from Keystone helping us out as well!  This will be a great way to end a hard-working week!

Ok.. I'll know you checked the blog if.... you watch this amazing video and tell me what you think of it!  Tell me in the morning as you come in!  

CLICK HERE for AMAZING VIDEO

Long Time, No See or Blog, huh??

Well,
Here I thought, once we made it to March, we'd be smooth sailing and back into routines that do NOT get interrupted by weather!!  Ahhhhh!!!  Don't you just want to scream??  It feels good to let it out!?  AHHHHHHH!!  Yep.. That one was louder.  It definitely felt good.

Well, the STEM day went WONDERFUL on Monday for the 6 students that went along.  They explored many new apps and objects.  We will be putting an iMovie together for the whole 5th grade of the day we spent there.  Then...  here's the even MORE exciting news... Jasmine, Carter (in place of Taylor), Clay, Kierstyn, Amelia and DJ will be TEACHING all of the 5th graders in small groups about what they learned.  I'm so excited!  In fact, I just got done emailing Kathy Hay (from Keystone in Elkader) about this, and she's ready to come WITH all of her supplies (fun, fun stuff for STEM) for NEXT Friday already!  Woo-hoo!

I heard Monday was an teeny, tiny, itty, bitty class!  My goodness...only 13 of you there?!  By your emails, it sounds like you had a good day, but you spent A LOT of time on the "Mithing Tooth" readers' theater??  Sorry if it got old...but we still have plans to share it with the 1st graders on Thursday!  So, we'll have to give those people who were gone on Monday a quick run-through of it, and buzz on down to 1st grade to perform!  Also, if you have books at home you'd rather read with the 1st graders than the ones I brought in, please bring them for Thursday.  World Read Aloud Day is actually TODAY, but we'll celebrate it tomorrow as best we can!

Be reminders for tomorrow...
1) Time for Kids Booklets!
2) Book-it from February if you forgot to bring it in
3) Will be FINISHING UP American Revolution movie trailers...work time right away..  (Oh, and sorry, Hailey, I didn't remember that your work was on Emmalie's iPad.  I wouldn't have taken it if I had remembered:(
4) Secret Agent Caring Acts - be sure you are thinking about your targets to do an extra something special for...We haven't had much school, so hopefully your caring acts have been at home!

And even though I have not been in school this whole week, I can't seem to get away from my 5B Family!!  I saw many of you at the boys' basketball game in Decorah on Monday night!  (Sad ending to the game) Then I saw several of you in Des Moines for the girls' first game at the state tournament!  Even when we don't have school, we still see each other!

I'll know you checked the blog, if you can figure out who these 2 5B classmates are that were at the game on Tuesday in Des Moines!  I used cartoonize.net to try and trick you!  Tell me as you come in on Thursday morning!

Farewell Friday... A Sad Day in 5B...

Yes, I know it was a tough day for all of us. Having 5B family members move away is not easy to deal with.  You can tell we really are a family by how much we care and miss each other.  Here are a few photos of Friday's farewell....

I'm not sure why the video doesn't have volume, but it was when we were all singing Brave with Taylor.  We'll have to sing Happy Birthday to Taylor on March 12:)  

Other sad news that happened in my family this weekend...  Our dog, Ebony, passed away.  It is a terrible feeling to lose a family member, and we all know how pets can definitely feel like part of a family.  Ebony would have been 14 years old at the end of March.  I'm pretty emotional about it, as you probably know and remember from when I talked about Lincoln earlier this year.  I just wanted to tell you on the blog, so I don't have to talk about it as a class, ok?  It's just to sad too talk about.  Thanks for the respect and caring you always give everyone when they need their space.  Such a wonderful 5B family.

TOTAL CHANGE OF SUBJECT...

Remember when I told you we had to change our classroom so only 20% of the room had stuff on the walls?  Well, I had to do some changes over the weekend.  Also, we couldn't have things too close to the ceiling, so I decided to rearrange a little.  Below are pictures of what the major changes are.  All of your homes are still the same - nothing changed with that.  Notice the artwork I taped to the bottom window outside our door... Look familiar?  

No more bench allowed outside,
but there is still a working area. 

Desk is gone, but I moved the big round, black chair
inside it and had to lower the circus tent. 

iPad station is a bit bigger, and I have room for the 2 laptops.
Notice they are PLUGGED IN and CHARGED!  Please keep
them that way:)

Biggest Change!!  This is RIGHT when you walk in.  So,
when we line up to leave the classroom, you'll have to
make a diagonal line by the guided reading table.

Not too different - but no, Sawyer, this is not your desk:)

Opened up space by putting the spinning book
shelf in the corner and moved the bean bags. 

This space by my desk wasn't really being used much, so
we have a place to put more of our literacy jobs or activities.

Ok.. last part of the blog for today...  The weather looks kinda cold and windy for tomorrow, so I don't know what's going to happen with the STEM field trip.  I'll call the kids who this will affect, but if we don't end up going, 5B will be stuck with me for the day instead of Mrs. O!  Sorry...

Also, with the sad ending to Friday, we didn't remind people about these topics:

1)  Book-It for February - please bring in:)

2)  Time for Kids Booklets - 7 completed = the prizes!  If 12 of you meet that goal, we get the teacher prize book for 1 item. If all 18 of you meet the goal, we get 2 items!  Up to you:)

3)  March Menus are in your mailboxes from last Friday

4) Bring in any picture books or favorite books you've loved to read for reading class to CELEBRATE Dr. Seuss's birthday, Read Across America Week and World Read Aloud Day (Wed.).  

WOW!!  Long blog, eh?!  Yep... that's my evil twin's fault (Kelena - remember, she talks too much!)

I'll know you checked the blog if you CLICK HERE for a TodaysMeet on how you like the changes in the room.  Like what ones do you like the best or not like so much.  Remember, I HAD to make changes and will probably have to do more, but this is a start!