Hi Parents,
I hope you are doing well. We are in the month of October now and the kids are so excited! I hope you have a wonderful weekend. – Ms. Semandiris
5th/6th Grade – Parent Communication
Our goal for 5th and 6th graders is to help them become independent learners. This also relates to organizational skills and keeping track of all their assignments which includes study time for tests. We understand that parents want to help in this area so we have some systems in place to help you.
What is the Boomerang Newsletter?
Each Friday we will send you an individual email and post the Boomerang letter to our classroom webpage on the Holy Rosary Website. The boomerang will contain general reminders, and a brief curriculum overview for the upcoming week. No daily homework is posted on this Boomerang Newsletter.
What is the Matrix? Where do we find it? What is on it?
The “MATRIX” is an organizational tool. It is a Google doc that has information per week in real time. It also has all past weeks archived so if you missed school, you can go back and see the assignments, homework and tests that you missed. This format also allows the teachers to see an overview of workload so we can monitor the amount of work we are giving. Students can find the Matrix on Google Classroom. This is where you look to find nightly homework. The MATRIX is posted on every Google Classroom. This is the HUB for all important information listed in a concise manner on one document.
The MATRIX lists: Content, Assignments/Homework – (Homework is posted by the end of each day), Assessments, Zoom and Google Classroom links, Boomerang Newsletter Link.
NOTE: We will not be posting the MATRIX on the Holy Rosary Homeroom web pages because we have zoom links on it.
This does not take the place of students writing their homework in their planner. We will be working on teaching students to record their homework in their planners daily. This is an important skill to have. We list the homework to help parents as well as students who are home sick to know the homework/assignments.
Classroom Webpages on Holy Rosary website:
Please be advised that the Homeroom web pages will only have the weekly Boomerang letter posted. We would like you to look at the MATRIX for daily homework assignments.
Band Students
Students who are in band may miss classwork that is not categorized as homework. Band students are responsible for checking in with the teacher of the class they missed to see what information they missed because of their absence for band.
A message from our school counselor:
Holy Rosary Families, I hope the school year is going well for you! My name is Lauren Samson, I’m the new school counselor at Holy Rosary. I will be helping the students during classroom counseling lessons, group work, and one-on-one meetings. I know COVID has been extremely stressful and has created anxiety for many students. My goal as the school counselor is to help all students develop coping strategies and tools to deal with life challenges. As I continue to work with all students at Holy Rosary my aim is to help them with developing life-long problem-solving skills that allow them to become more responsible, kind, assertive, and respectful individuals. I’m available to do check-ins with students that need social-emotional support or are struggling. I’m at Holy Rosary Monday- Thursday. I’m going into classrooms on a regular basis to teach Second Step, Kelso’s choices, and helping students with bullying and problem-solving. Please Feel Free to reach out to me at lsamson@holyrosaryws.org. Below is an overview of what we will begin covering this first trimester of the school year.
3rd -5th grade
Kelso’s Choice Curriculum: K.C.’s wheel is a simplified version of Kelso’s choices that is aimed at helping preteens with problems that they are facing. Minor problems cause minor feelings of annoyance, embarrassment, boredom, etc. There are also “serious problems” that need to be taken to an adult because they are dangerous and could involve someone’s safety. There are verbal choices and non-verbal choices.
Second Step Curriculum: Students will begin understanding that the brain can grow and change. Students will learn that they can improve their skills with practice, effort, help from others, and by trying a new way. Students eventually will develop the skill of making an effective plan for how to get better at a skill. Students will begin learning about goal setting and how to monitor and modify progress in reaching their goals.
- October 15th – Teacher In-Service (no school)
- October 18th – Picture Retakes
The following is a curriculum update for the week of October 4 – 8:
Religion
We will be continuing to work on Chapter 2, Made to Be with God. This week students will be learning about the Bible story of the Samaritan Woman at the Well. We will learn how God satisfies our longing we have in life. Students will be completing a study guide as well in class this week.
Math – Ms. Semandiris
10/4 – Check My Progress Review p. 111
10/5 – Check My Progress Lessons 1-4 Quiz
10/6 – Ch. 2 L. 7 The Distributive Property
10/7 – Ch. 2 L. 8 Estimate Products
10/8 – ALEKS Day
Math – Mr. Schreck
Chapter 2: Multiply Whole Numbers
Monday: Lesson 9, Multiply by One-Digit Numbers,
Tuesday: Lesson 10, Multiply by Two-Digit Numbers
Wednesday: Review Lesson 10
Thursday: Review Chapter 2
Friday: Test Chapter 2/ALEKS
Math – Ms. Heuer
Monday: *2.7 Divide Decimals by Whole #s
Tuesday: *2.8 Divide Decimals by Decimals
Wednesday: *2.9 Divide Decimals by Powers of 10
Thursday: *Review (Day 1)
Friday: *Review (Day 2). Test is likely going to be on Monday.
Science
Students will complete posters that diagram the body’s immune system. They will use these posters and notes they have taken in their 5-subject notebooks to prepare for a quiz on the body’s immune system next Friday (10/8).
Social Studies
Next week we will be continuing in Chapter 2 Native Americans and Their Land. Students will be completing the “Reading Notes” in class. They will be working with a partner to read each section of Ch. 2 and then write summaries for each section using key vocabulary from the book.
E.L.A.
Hello HRS parents! As we approach the weekend, I’m very proud of the work your children are doing. Spelling test grades have skyrocketed, and student engagement during class has been outstanding. We are studying story elements, so next week we will begin with plot. I’d like to show clips from Lion King on Monday and Tuesday to demonstrate plot and conflict. Following this, we will read the short story “All Summer in a Day.” We will use this story to look at exposition and setting. Students will begin to draft an opening to their own short stories. We will finish the week with the story “Double Dutch” to examine the sequence of events. Finally, students will read “Elisa’s Diary” and will practice writing dialogue. Thanks, and have a great weekend.