March....In Like a Lion??

    Well, I sure hope today's snow counts as March coming "In Like a Lion"  I know I am ready for it to go "Out like a Lamb!"  What a winter!  Spring can't come soon enough.  We are so glad that the weather cooperated enough for us to walk to PHS on Wednesday.  We had a great time and the kids learned a lot.  The PHS students had a good time as well.  Our kids got to learn some acting skills and writing tips as well.  We hope that the PHS students inspired them to make this play the best it can be.  There are a bunch of photos attached today from our trip to PHS.
    This week we will be having our first round of the ISTEP.  Please encourage your student to do their best and to not stress about this test.  We just want them to do what they are capable of doing.  There will be questions that they may not know and it is ok.  We have tried to let them know this but any encouragement at home is appreciated.  Encourage them to get good sleep and to eat a good breakfast this week as well.  As stated in a previous email, there will be NO CELL PHONES allowed in the testing rooms.  We will be collecting these each morning before we begin testing.  So, if your child does not "need" the cell phone for the days of testing (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) have them leave them at home to help with the craziness of collecting and labeling them each morning.  We appreciate the help.
    February Reading calendars are due by this Friday!      Have a great week....Spring is almost here!

Another Winter Week in the Books

    Well, I guess I jinxed us last week saying that we had a full week of school!  So, a day off and a delay last week and I just got the call for tomorrow's delay.  Oh Indiana Winter we are so done with you!  We are hoping that Tuesday will be warm enough for us to walk to PHS and work with the advanced acting class.  This is such a great thing and works best if we go there.  So, unless we are under a winter weather advisory/watch or warning make sure your kids dress warmly on Tuesday.
    Our American Revolution project is moving quickly.  The groups timelines are looking good.  After we get back from PHS we will be putting the groups together and begin writing our scripts for our play!  This is a lot of fun and we are excited to see what this group comes up with.
    We wanted to mention a few issues we have become aware of lately.  The first one is that some of the students have figured out how to "edit" their grades.  They are not really changing the grade book but the make it look like they have different grades and then they just close their computers and when they get home they open them up and show parents.  Make sure if you are having your child show you their grades that you have them log into Echo at home.  Another issue is colored contacts.  We have had some students wearing colored contacts (which is fine) but they have been taking them out of their eyes and "sharing" them with friends.  This is a health concern.  We have spoken to the classes about each of these issues but we wanted to make parents aware as well.
    Just a reminder that Achieve 3000 two articles and two thought questions are due each week.  Also, don't forget reading calendars.
     Stay warm and we will all hopefully thaw out soon.