MLK50

Upcoming Events!

March 28 (Wednesday)

Spring Picture Day!

Progress Reports sent home

March 29 (Thursday)

Parent Coffee - Library - 7:30am

3rd Quarter Awards Assembly - Rose Theatre - 8:15am

March 30 (Friday)

Spring Holiday

No School! 

Kids Kan Food Drive

On Friday, March 23rd, students can bring in canned food items in support of the Mid-South Food Bank. If students bring in two or more cans THIS FRIDAY, they may wear jeans! Please visit the link below for more information. http://www.midsouthfoodbank.org/kids-kan

Happy Spring Break!

Spring MAPS Testing!

Your child will take the final NWEA MAPS Math and Reading assessment of the year this week!! MAPS stands for Measures of Academic Progress. "When taking a MAP® test, the difficulty of each question is based on how well a student answers all the previous questions. As the student answers correctly, questions become more difficult. If the student answers incorrectly, the questions become easier. In an optimal test, a student answers approximately half the items correctly and half incorrectly. The final score is an estimate of the student’s achievement level."  We will take these assessments Wednesday, February 28th, and Thursday, March 1st. We will be in "MAPS Madness" mode all week, and I know the students will be READY for these important assessments! Since the students have already taken MAPS before, they know just what to expect. With a good night's sleep and a healthy breakfast, I know they will rock these tests! 

Scholastic Book Fair!

Remember, our shopping day is Tuesday, February 20th, from 10:40am - 11:50am!

Fractions, Fractions Everywhere!

Classroom Wishlist

We have hit that time of year when the classroom begins to run out of supplies. If you would like to make a donation to our classroom, the following items are greatly needed, and would be greatly appreciated! 

• clorox brand wipes
• sandwich size ziploc bags
• quart size ziploc bags
• gallon size ziploc bags
• Epson 410 black ink cartridges
• Epson 410 color ink cartridges
• post-its (hearts, stars, flowers - any interesting shapes)

Upcoming Events

Wednesday, January 10th  

Progress Reports Sent Home

Thursday, January 11th 

Parent Coffee @ 7:30am and Awards Assembly in the Rose Theatre @ 8am

Monday, January 15th 

Martin Luther King Jr Holiday 

NO SCHOOL

Friday, February 16th 

Teachers' In-service

Students OUT

Monday, February 19th

President's Day Holiday 

NO SCHOOL

Happy New Year!!

Moriah House Holiday Giving Opportunity

Truckin' Tigers Fun Run Update

Parents, 

Thank you again for supporting our school through the Truckin’ Tigers Fun Run!

This weekend we are issuing a special challenge! Your child can earn a bonus prize simply by getting a qualifying pledge this weekend only ($2/lap or the equivalent of a $60 flat donation). Check out funrun.com for details!

The top pledging class from this weekend will also earn an epic dance party with the Boosterthon team!

And if you’re looking for the easiest way to ask for a pledge, just upload a photo of your student to funrun.com to create a personalized Student Star video. This fun, hilarious video starring your child can be shared by email or social media to connect with sponsors and ask for a pledge.

Thank you again for helping our class!

	Katie Hunt
	Program Leader
	katiehunt@boosterthon.com	(708) 805-6685

Truckin' Tigers Fun Run

Our Truckin’ Tigers Fun Run program kicked off today with an exciting Pep Rally, and we are thrilled about this year’s program! We’ve asked the Fun Run experts at Boosterthon to power our Fun Run program (which will last about two weeks), making our fundraising simpler, more profitable, and more fun. Our Fun Run includes EVERY student in a fun, fitness event while helping our school raise much-needed funds. 

This year, our entire school is raising funds for new classroom supplies, technology, and scholarships. Our goal is to raise $15,000, and we need YOUR help!

Here’s how you can support Campus School:

• Register your student on funrun.com using the directions on the pledge crown Once you do, your student will receive a FREE GIFTjust for being registered. Then, use funrun.com to log pledges for your child.
• Reach out to sponsors. Every student’s goal is to connect with 10 sponsors. And with funrun.com’s smart sharing features, reaching out to sponsors is easier than ever. The easiest way to get pledges is to simply click the Facebook share button on your student’s pledge page. Plus, with a few clicks you can create a custom Student Star video to share on social media. You can also use the Easy Emailer to connect with friends and family. As you gather pledges, be sure to record each sponsor’s e-mail address so they have the opportunity to easily pay for your student’s pledge online via credit card.
• Ask your child about the Castle Quest Character Lesson of the day! This year’s character program is Castle Quest, a castle theme all about bravery. On their quest to regain Bravemore Castle, students will learn the “SIX VIRTUES of a TRUE HERO” from a cast of colorful characters. Join along by watching the fun character videos with your child on funrun.com.
• Come to the Fun Run next Wednesday, December 6! All students are included in the Fun Run, regardless of financial participation. Remember, students will be running 30-35 laps, and we would love for you to come out and cheer!

Thank you for supporting our school. We hope to see you next week at the Fun Run!

Sincerely,

Dr. Copeland and Mrs. Coleman 

Happy Thanksgiving!

I want to express how thankful I am each and every day for the opportunity to teach your children - there truly is no greater gift. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

Extra Credit Opportunity!

Space...The Final Frontier!

This week, students will be analyzing plot and theme through the use of the African folktale, Fly Eagle Fly. When reading with your child at home, you can help him or her to identify fundamental story elements such as character, setting, and plot, in order to increase and strengthen comprehension. Simply put, the plot is what happens in a story, or all the events that the author arranges to tell a story. In almost every story, the main character or characters face a conflict, or problem, and try to find a solution, or an answer.

Review with your child that a character is anyone in a story. The main characters are the most important characters in the story. The setting is the time and place of a story. Settings can change throughout a story. All the events that happen in a story make up the plot. Choose a book or story together, and identify the characters and setting. Then discuss what happens in the plot.

A conflict is the overarching problem the characters face in a story. In some stories, characters struggle against nature. For example, in one story, a protagonist might try to climb the highest mountain or cross the hottest desert. Characters can also struggle against machines. For example, they might battle a malfunctioning computer or try to fix a car. Some characters struggle against other characters, as in classic comic books where heroes and anti-heroes battle. Other conflicts might arise between a character and society, such as when a character battles poverty or racism. Some conflicts, however, are fought within the characters on an emotional level. Internal conflicts can include a character who tries to overcome a fear or cope with a loss of a pet or family member. Conflicts can involve emotions, loyalties, desires, or the conscience. Encourage your child to think about stories, characters, and the conflicts they encounter. You may also want to discuss conflicts your child has struggled with, or overcome in his or her own life.

The solution is an answer to a problem or how the conflict is solved. Throughout a story, characters might find different solutions to a problem, successfully or unsuccessfully. Suspense happens when the reader is not sure what will happen next. It is important for your child to understand that stories may not end happily, and that not all problems can be solved. Sometimes at the conclusion of stories, new problems arise. You may wish to identify stories and books that end this way as well. A book in a series such as Harry Potter, for instance, might end with a problem that will then lead into the next book.

Stories and plot lines may differ, but the classic parts of a story include the introduction, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. The introduction presents the characters and the setting, and the rising action brings in the conflict, which then escalates into the climax, or the point in the story where the conflict appears to be at the highest point. The falling action involves the characters getting closer to solving the conflict and managing the effects from the climax, and the resolution is when the conflict is solved. While students are not responsible for knowing all of these story elements in the 3rd grade, they should understand that throughout a story, characters can struggle with conflicts, and as a result, grow and change or stay the same. Often, characters learn something new about themselves, or about others.

Stories can sometimes be confusing, especially when there are many characters, plot lines, and conflicts. Remember, good readers think, take notes, and ask questions while they read. Every child can find his or her own way of reading and understanding, so encourage your child to find his or her own strategies of analyzing story elements when reading.

What Is Inquiry??

As a teacher, I strongly believe that a quality education should offer children rich experiences that will influence and affect them for the rest of their lives. It is my view that educators should be facilitators of learning, rather than “teachers” in the traditional sense of the word. This view has been greatly influenced by two constructivist educational models, Reggio Emilia and Montessori. Inquiry is also a methodology in which learners actively construct their own knowledge, and therefore, by definition, the inquiry-based learning philosophy is a constructivist philosophy (Ronis, 2008). 

Children are natural problem solvers, who actually construct their own knowledge all day long. In order for students to fulfill this role in the classroom, they must be encouraged to discover things for themselves, and practice skills in concrete ways. The constructivist method of developing a curriculum around the students’ interests, inspires a true passion for learning. When a curriculum is meaningful, and relevant to children’s experiences, it cannot help but to engage them. Therefore, the teacher should not dominate the classroom, but rather, find the balance between direction, guidance, and responsiveness. It is this balance that will allow each individual child to flourish. By providing students access to hands-on activities, and allowing them to use materials on their own, educators can create the opportunity for individual discovery, and ownership of knowledge. Ronis (2008) states, "Inquiry learning and problem-based learning are both terms used to describe this type of learning, and in fact they mean the same thing"(p. 8).

In order for an inquiry-based classroom to be effective, one must understand the importance of a prepared environment. Once the “stage is set,” so to speak, learning can happen naturally, as an interactive process. Lev Vygotsky believed that through interaction with others, children can learn to problem solve, as well as stretch to a higher level of learning (Morrison, 2009). Indeed, children learn best through their interactions with the environment, with materials, with their peers, and with adults. By providing an appropriate child-centered environment, educators invite children to engage, explore, explain, elaborate, and evaluate. As per Ansberry and Morgan (2010), these are the five critical elements of inquiry that make up the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study's 5E Model. It is this model that, "provides a planned sequence of instruction that places students at the center of their learning experiences, encouraging them to explore, construct their own understanding of scientific concepts, and relate those understandings to other concepts (Ansberry & Morgan, 2010, p. 27).

Above all else, educators must have high expectations for children. So how do these great expectations become a reality? I believe that they become a reality by promoting self-determination in young children. In simple terms, children should be given a chance to take responsibility for their own learning, beginning at an early age. Perhaps the best way to go about supporting children in the process of self-determination is through inquiry, or problem-based learning. According to Ansberry and Morgan (2010), "Inquiry learning not only contributes to better understanding of scientific concepts and skills but...also contributes to children's social and intellectual development" (p. 19).

Finally, I view inquiry-based learning as a process – not a product. In order to help children obtain the skills and behaviors that are required to be successful now, in the school environment, as well as in the future, I maintain that educators must set the foundations for children to “learn how to learn.”  This means addressing the needs of the whole child, or a holistic educational approach. By promoting the development of critical thinking skills and creative problem solving, teachers can give children the tools they need to become life-long learners. In the words of Madeline Nash (2001), “Rich experiences, in other words, really do produce rich brains” (p. 3). 

Ansberry, K., & Morgan, E. (2010). Picture-perfect science lessons: Using children’s books 
       to guide inquiry, 3-6 (2nd ed.). Arlington, Virginia: NSTA Press
Montessori, M. (1964). The Montessori method. New York, NY: Shocken Books.
Morrison G.S. (2009). Early childhood education today (11th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New
       Jersey: Pearson
Nash, M. J. (2001). Fertile minds. Time. Retrieved from
       http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1101970203-137214,00.html
Ronis, D. (2008). Problem-based learning for math & science: Integrating inquiry and the
       internet (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin Press