Week 23

Good evening! I hope everyone had a great weekend! I look forward to seeing all the amazing book reports this week! :)

Some of us ran in the "Walk in the Wild" 5k at the Phoenix zoo this weekend! (Ms. Reger, Mrs. Mason, myself, Ms. Hofstaedter, and Ms. Smith) It was super early in the morning, but we had fun!

This week 2nd-5th grade has Galileo testing. Our assigned day is Thursday. We will take the Math portion in the morning and the English Language Arts portion in the afternoon. Please pack a hearty lunch, as it will be a taxing day. I will provide snacks. :)

Here's what else we are doing this week:

Literature: We will read chapter 9 of Cricket tomorrow. Tuesday and Wednesday we will discuss and practice vocabulary from chapters 6-9, compare and contrast characters from the book, and discuss what is to come in the next several chapters.

Spalding: There are 30 words this week. We will test as usual on Friday. However, due to Galileo testing, the spelling homework on Thursday (reviewing the words) will be optional. I still recommend practicing them, but if feeling fatigued, it is okay to forego this assignment this week.

Monday: rather, comfort, election, elect, aboard, jail, shed, refuse, district, restrain
Tuesday: royal, objection, object, please, pleasure, measure, treasure, navy
Wednesday: forty, fourteen, fourth, four, population, proper, judge, weather, whether, worth, contain, figure

Writing: narration, copy work, and dictation exercises from Nurse Matilda

Grammar: sentence edit, classification, scramble, and analogy

Math: We are reviewing our multiplication and division facts of 4's and practicing 5's and 10's. We will take our chapter 1 test (4's) on Tuesday and chapter 2 test (5's) on Friday.

History: We will review the Constitution tomorrow with a trivia game and then test on Tuesday! Then we will begin the War of 1812 unit.

Science: In Science, we are discussing the excretory system and creating a model. We will also learn about nutrients.

Idiom: "Two heads are better than one!"

Poem: Practice stanza 5 of Smart by Silverstein. For those who are ready, we will start recitations this week. Everyone else will recite next week!

Regarding our upcoming Great Hearts Day:

Great Hearts Day

Friday, February 11^th is Great Hearts Day! We have reserved this special day to focus on the virtue of friendship and having a heart of service. In the classroom, your children will participate in activities and lessons around these topics, and time will be set aside for making Great Hearts Day cards for classmates. These cards are part of the Great Hearts Day tradition of highlighting classmates’ virtuous qualities and invaluable friendship. Further, hand-making cards at school also alleviates the burden on parents to purchase cards. Parent volunteers with a valid fingerprint clearance card on file are welcome to assist in arranging a short afternoon celebration with snacks and activities. Stand by for more information about the afternoon celebration from our lead classroom parent volunteer, Sandra Cardenas.

Archway Classical Academy does its best to introduce students to an academic culture that leaves popular culture at the door.  The time we have with our students is so valuable, and there are many great ideas, people, music, and art from the ages that we want to introduce them to. Therefore, we will strive to keep the focus of Valentine’s Day on friendship and having a heart of service for others. Students will not be permitted to bring store-bought valentines, candy, or gifts to school on Great Hearts Day. We want students to remember that a good friend is not something one can purchase. We look forward to celebrating this special occasion!  

Have a great week!!