The Daily Platypus

Don’t Waste Your Cash on School Supplies

admin — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 18:00:06 +0000

Wasn’t it just yesterday we let out for summer vacation? And yet the big box stores are already hocking school supplies. Here are some good deals and some helpful tips to help you save money on this year’s supplies:

Fred Meyer:
* 24 pack Crayola crayons—25 cents
* Protractors, rulers, Pink Pearl-type erasers, cheapo scissors—33 cents
* Avery 6-pack glue sticks—buy one get one free (Avery is one of the better glue-stick brands, and kids go through glue sticks like crazy)

Staples (coupons in 7/25 MMT):
*500-sheet ream of copy paper—1 cent!
*Ticonderoga pencils, 12 pack–$1 (this really is the world’s best pencil, well worth the money)
* TI-30SXIIS calculator–$13.99 (this calculator is required through 8^th grade; buy it once and use it for four years!)

Office Depot:
* 6-pack notebooks (70 pages)—50 cents
* Acrylic rulers—5 cents (make sure it shows inches and centimeters)
* 500 sheet ream HP office paper—95 cents
* Fiskars scissors—$3.00
* Ticonderoga pencils–buy one get one
* Expo dry erase markers–buy one get one

Target:
* TI-30XIIS Calculator–$9.00 (the official D6 calc, and in various colors too!)
* Binder bundle (1.5” binder, dividers, pocket, ruler)–$2.50 (this is all the binder my students need)
* Elmer’s 6-pack glue sticks–$1.00 (Elmer’s is okay, but avoid all generic store brands)

This year we’ve tried hard to minimize the school supply requirements, but know that your child’s school supplies are his tools for success. Going without leads to failure, and going cheap just means you’ll have to replace later. If financial difficulties prevent you from buying supplies, some assistance is available.

No need to buy wet wipes, hand sanitizer, or paper towels—we have plenty stocked up; no need to buy three dozen pencils. Buy just 2 dozen; better yet, if you’re buying Ticonderoga, buy just 1 dozen!

Student binders need not be fancy, just functional. If they come with a pocket, it’s helpful, but if not, add a pocket folder. You also need to buy dividers. Middle school is all about binder management, so binder organization in 5^th grade is a step in that direction.

If you need the official CPE school supply list: click here. If you’d like the Room 15 version identifying all the stuff you don’t need and preferences for the rest, click here.

Already Missing My Kids!

admin — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 02:32:27 +0000

Despite the 4-day school week, the over-emphasis on standardized testing, and the crowded conditions, it has been an absolutely fantastic year in Room 15! Thank you so much for sending me such wonderful kids. I will remember this group as being one of the best classes I’ve ever had. Add to it the pleasure of working with Mrs. Odell (our student-teacher), Tanishia (our HS Spanish intern), and all the other great people at CPE, and I have to concede that I am already missing my classroom.

Congratulations to Presidential Scholars Melissa, Emma, Maddie, Katryna, Leo, Julie, and Bailey. They were selected for their commitment to excellence in the classroom, high test scores, and good attendance, as well as for their behavior and attitude.

Thank you to Kendra, Julie, Alejandra, Natalie, Matt, Melissa, Emma, Aubry, Ryan, and Cindy for your cards and gifts. Your sentiments are most kind. Thank you Cielo for being so gracious.

Finally, I hope everyone had the chance to see CPE’s Year-in-Review and 5th Grade Baby Picture Program. If you’d like to borrow a copy to see it again (or for the first time), e-mail me at mack.lewis@district6.org and we’ll see what we can do.

Have a great summer and stay in touch!

Baby Picture Program

admin — Sun, 30 May 2010 18:00:04 +0000

Family members are invited to attend many of our year-end events including the Year-in-Review and 5th Grade Baby Picture Program at 8:15 a.m. on Wednesday, June 16th. You’ll want to bring some Kleenex. All baby pictures were returned on June 1st.

Here are all the big events for the remainder of the school year:

Tue., June 1, Science Fair Projects due in classroom
Wed., June 2nd, 1 pm, DARE Graduation (Music Room)
Thursday & Friday, June 3 & 4, Science Fair (Gym)
Fri., June 4, DARE Day (Family Fun Center)
Thu., June 10, Lava Beds Expedition–contact us if you’d like to chaperone
Fri., June 11, Classroom Play Performances, Times TBA
Fri., June 11, 5th Grade PTO Party (after school in courtyard)
Tues., June 15, Roller Odyssey trip
Wed., June 16, 5th Grade Baby Picture Program and year-end awards assembly (Gym)
Wed., June 16th, Roadrunner Day (5th grade vs. staff softball game!)
Thu., June 17th, Last Day (Two-hour early release); Next year’s class placements are tentatively scheduled to be posted; Report cards go home.

Math HW for Week of 6/2

admin — Sun, 30 May 2010 17:52:22 +0000

CRITICAL ALERT: It would appear that there are but six class days remaining for our math class, and yet we have only just begun our final unit on long division! It shows the impact the shortened school schedule has had on our kids. It is extremely important parents remember this fact during the summer months and work with their children. No need to worry about complicated material such as algebra and geometry, but do make sure your child has truly memorized the times tables. Also take some time to review and practice long division, multi-column multiplication, and basic fractions. Math students, earn an extra point for your mathketball team by whispering to Mr. Lewis the answer to this math problem: Solve for n. 3/4 plus 2/8 = n. First five students will earn points. Here is the homework for the remainder of the year: Wednesday, June 2; Thursday, June 3 and Tuesday, June 8; Wednesday, June 9 and Friday, June 11.

Dates of Importance

admin — Sun, 23 May 2010 17:41:09 +0000

We’re heading in to the final weeks of school, but there is still much left to do. We’re starting new play groups this week, all based on classic short stories (The Nose, The Open Window, and Rikki Tikki Tavi). Whether or not we’re able to perform them will depend on student commitment. Speaking of classics, be sure to check out the Kafkaesque paragraphs the students recently posted on their individual web pages. The four-day school week has left us hopelessly behind in our survey of history. With just 15 school days remaining, we still have an entire century to cover! We’re also trying to work in some hands-on science during these last few weeks. In fact, the Science Fair is among our list of important dates:

Fri., May 28, Science Fair Projects due in classroom
Wed., June 2nd, 1 pm, DARE Graduation (Music Room)
Thursday & Friday, June 3 & 4, Science Fair (Gym)
Fri., June 4, DARE Day (Family Fun Center)
Thu., June 10, Lava Beds Expedition
Fri., June 11, Classroom Play Performances
Fri., June 11, 5th Grade PTO Party
Tues., June 15, Roller Odyssey trip (tentative)
Wed., June 16, 5th Grade Baby Picture Program (Gym)
Wed., June 16th, Roadrunner Day
Thu., June 17th, Last Day

Math HW for Week of May 25

admin — Sun, 23 May 2010 17:20:00 +0000

Students completed their unit on multi-digit multiplication with a chapter test last week. Check back in a few days to find out the class average. We went into the test knowing that many of the students still do not have mastery, and after much analysis and discussion, we believe we know why. First of all, even at this late date in the year, many of our students still do not know their times tables. Students should exit third grade with the tables committed to memory. Students who don’t know them should be spending time at home practicing on their own. Secondly, we’ve had a rash of students of late who are not completing their homework. The homework is designed to provide practice for the skills taught each day in class. Students who do not complete it are not getting sufficient practice. If your child did poorly on the chapter test, look first to these two areas in order to guide your student toward future success, It’s no surprise that the students who did well on the test know their multiplication facts and routinely complete their homework. This week, students are moving on to long division, where memorization of the math facts and homework practice are even more essential. Here’s the homework for this week: Wednesday, May 26; Thursday May 27; Friday, May 28. By completing their homework, students earn points for their mathketball team . . . and here’s an added bonus. The first five students to quietly approach Mr. Lewis and whisper the answer to 6 x 7 will earn an extra two points for their team.

State Testing Trauma

admin — Tue, 18 May 2010 03:40:01 +0000

After what seems like months upon months of State testing, we have finally finished all these blasted exams. I’m sure the students are just as sick of them as the rest of us. Frankly, parents should be sick of them too. While standardized testing has its purpose, the present day over-emphasis detracts from time spent actually teaching and learning. Though catering to the results goes against my philosophy, I’m sharing the following results to acknowledge the hard work of CPE’s teachers, support staff, and administration, as well as the super effort of my fabulous Room 15 kids. In Grade 5 Reading, 81% of the class met or exceeded the State exam. Evan and JC tied for the top score. In Math, 91% met or exceeded with Emma topping the list. In Science, a subject we have little time to teach (due largely to the emphasis on State tests in Reading and Math), 75% of the class met or exceeded, with Katryna leading all students. Two-thirds of the class met or exceeded on all three exams, and JC exceeded on all three. Room 15 kids exceeded state averages on all the tests, proving once again that this is a super class. Thanks for all your hard work at home!

There are just 19 school days left, yet we have a ton of tasks yet to do. Here are a few of immediate importance: Kids should be working on their Science Fair projects, which are due June 3rd. DARE Graduation is coming soon. We’ll confirm the date ASAP. Students have also taken home permission slips for our year-end trip to the Lava Beds on June 10th.

Math HW for Week of May 18

admin — Tue, 18 May 2010 03:19:17 +0000

Our math students wrap up their unit on multi-column multiplication with a chapter exam on Thursday of this week, followed by a session of error analysis on Friday. In the meantime, here is their homework for the week: Tuesday, May 18; Wednesday, May 19; Thursday, May 20; Friday, May 21st.

Room 15 Update

admin — Tue, 11 May 2010 02:05:04 +0000

Our student-teacher, Mrs. Odell, is presently doing the bulk of the teaching in Room 15. This week students will be continuing their nutrition study, learning about a handful of important and not-so-important inventions from the late 1800s, working on homographs within their Super Sentence practice, practicing their new plays (The Lightning Thief, Babe, and Nars), and creating a movie poster depicting the independent Book Club they were to have completed by Tuesday the 11th. Students can earn an extra $100 for their classroom checkbook by doing a calorie count for a family meal sometime this week. All they have to do is write down what they ate and how many calories each food item contained. It needs to be from an at-home meal with at least three food items representing at least three food groups. Finally, students are to be working on their Science Fair proposals, which are due prior to Memorial Day.

Math HW for Week of 5/11

admin — Tue, 11 May 2010 01:57:19 +0000

We had a breakthrough last Thursday and Friday. After much practice, the bulk of the class is finally “getting” multi-column multiplication. Hooray! But practice makes perfect, so this week we’ll be continuing our efforts toward mastery. Here’s the homework for this week: Tuesday, May 11; Wednesday, May 12; Thursday, May 13; Friday, May 14.