Hello,
We welcomed the kids back today and we'll jump right back into testing tomorrow. This next one is the MEA science test. It is much shorter and shouldn't take more than two to three hours over the next two days.
I was hoping to start homework clubs back up this week, but unfortunately have meetings Tues, Wed and Thurs. We'll get them going next Tues and Thurs. The guitar club is going to have to decide what form we want to take at this point. We can practice at the beginning of our Tues or Thurs clubs, but I can't add an extra day.
The Civil War reenactment day will be Friday, May 27th. We're still trying to shore up plans for a camp out on the night before. It looks like we will have more classes involved this year, which I am happy about.
I'm going to go home and do my Gettysburg trip research tonight. I didn't get to it over vacation. For those looking ahead, I'm thinking Thursday, June 23rd to Sunday, June 26th. I'll finalize some pricing and plan to have an info sheet out next week. By the way, this trip is not school affiliated.
No homework the next two nights, due to testing. Back to normal by Wednesday.
Have a great night,
Mr. Shea
Monday, April 25, 2016
Thursday, April 14, 2016
April Vacation
Hello,
We've had a whirlwind few days here. I've never taught the events leading up to the American Revolution so quickly, but our Civil War unit is coming and the calendar is flying. The increased testing time, snow days, COGAT, Arts Are Elementary mural painting and five paragraph writing prompt really upset our usual schedule.
With all of that, I was impressed with our class showings at our Colonial Market Day and our Science Night. I supported students on their projects a bit more than usual due to the time crunch, but our kids really rose to the occasion. Our market day will definitely influence future classes, as I heard many students from other classes wonder aloud why they didn't get to do that for their market day.
Science Night was a huge success. A big thank you goes out to Mrs. Palopoli for all of her hard work to put it together. Thanks to the parents that chipped in as well. I was really impressed with the independence that our class was able to exhibit that night. Twenty two students were able to stay after school, put the finishing touches on their projects, set up in the gym, eat, and then perform for a full ninety minutes, all with minimal supervision. It made me very proud. They knew their stuff and it showed.
The plan is to have a Science Awards Banquet in May and tie that in with our Manners Banquet. More details on that to follow.
The tea party speeches yesterday were enthusiastic and loud! It was great to see everyone pull that together so quickly.
I hope everyone has a nice school break. Get outside and play. Read a lot. Write a little too.
Thanks so much for your continued support.
We'll be having a Gettysburg informational night coming up in May. This is a non school sanctioned event. (The trip, not the info night.) Stay tuned.
Mr. Shea
We've had a whirlwind few days here. I've never taught the events leading up to the American Revolution so quickly, but our Civil War unit is coming and the calendar is flying. The increased testing time, snow days, COGAT, Arts Are Elementary mural painting and five paragraph writing prompt really upset our usual schedule.
With all of that, I was impressed with our class showings at our Colonial Market Day and our Science Night. I supported students on their projects a bit more than usual due to the time crunch, but our kids really rose to the occasion. Our market day will definitely influence future classes, as I heard many students from other classes wonder aloud why they didn't get to do that for their market day.
Science Night was a huge success. A big thank you goes out to Mrs. Palopoli for all of her hard work to put it together. Thanks to the parents that chipped in as well. I was really impressed with the independence that our class was able to exhibit that night. Twenty two students were able to stay after school, put the finishing touches on their projects, set up in the gym, eat, and then perform for a full ninety minutes, all with minimal supervision. It made me very proud. They knew their stuff and it showed.
The plan is to have a Science Awards Banquet in May and tie that in with our Manners Banquet. More details on that to follow.
The tea party speeches yesterday were enthusiastic and loud! It was great to see everyone pull that together so quickly.
I hope everyone has a nice school break. Get outside and play. Read a lot. Write a little too.
Thanks so much for your continued support.
We'll be having a Gettysburg informational night coming up in May. This is a non school sanctioned event. (The trip, not the info night.) Stay tuned.
Mr. Shea
Thursday, April 7, 2016
Science Night
Hello,
Science night is tomorrow night, Friday the 8th, at 6:00. I hope you all can make it. Our whole class is invited to stay after school to put the finishing touches on their projects, set up, and practice our presentations. Pizza will be served around 5:15. Fruit and vege platters, fruit juice, and water will also be provided. This should fuel us up for the big night.
Our class has worked hard for this night. I feel like this experience has been just the remedy we needed to get us out of our testing blahs. Come early or come late, but I think you will be impressed with our groups.
We have three students that are finishing up an engineering challenge of making a Ferris wheel out of K'nex that is over six feet tall.
Three other students have made six different bridge models out of marshmallows and toothpicks. Find out which bridge was the strongest.
Visit our Wall of Bubble at our Bubble station. Learns the hows and whys of bubbles. Dip different three dimensional models into our bubble mix and see what happens.
We have four students working on several different erosion models. Dirt and water will be in abundance at this station.
Our Rube Goldberg station will give you a whimsical look at the connection of simple machines.
Lastly, our Egg-cellent Density group will explore the density of eggs, water, salt water, and several other liquids from light to goopy. That is the scientific term for "thick".
Our class only represents six tables out of over sixty. You are sure to find a topic to interest you.
Thanks for all of the support. I'll see you tomorrow!
Mr. Shea
Science night is tomorrow night, Friday the 8th, at 6:00. I hope you all can make it. Our whole class is invited to stay after school to put the finishing touches on their projects, set up, and practice our presentations. Pizza will be served around 5:15. Fruit and vege platters, fruit juice, and water will also be provided. This should fuel us up for the big night.
Our class has worked hard for this night. I feel like this experience has been just the remedy we needed to get us out of our testing blahs. Come early or come late, but I think you will be impressed with our groups.
We have three students that are finishing up an engineering challenge of making a Ferris wheel out of K'nex that is over six feet tall.
Three other students have made six different bridge models out of marshmallows and toothpicks. Find out which bridge was the strongest.
Visit our Wall of Bubble at our Bubble station. Learns the hows and whys of bubbles. Dip different three dimensional models into our bubble mix and see what happens.
We have four students working on several different erosion models. Dirt and water will be in abundance at this station.
Our Rube Goldberg station will give you a whimsical look at the connection of simple machines.
Lastly, our Egg-cellent Density group will explore the density of eggs, water, salt water, and several other liquids from light to goopy. That is the scientific term for "thick".
Our class only represents six tables out of over sixty. You are sure to find a topic to interest you.
Thanks for all of the support. I'll see you tomorrow!
Mr. Shea
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