Friday, March 1st All School Meeting and Spirit Day (Pajamas)
Monday, March 11th Puffins to Forest Grove Public Library 2pm-3pm
Students should bring their library books to return, library card and a tote bag.
Chaperones Needed!
Wednesday, March 13th O&A to Portland Zoo
Departing FGCS at 9am- returning 2:15pm
We are all set for parent chaperones- thank you!
Community School Calendar 2018-2019
Forest Grove Public Library November Calendar of Events
A little note about comfort: Winter is here! Please make sure that your kiddo is properly outfitted with warm (waterproof) layers and appropriate footwear on Monday and Wednesdays when they will be outside for at least part of their day.
A note from Vanessa Gray:
FGCS parents are invited to participate in a 4-part educational workshop for parents of children experiencing anxiety. The group will meet 5-6:30 p.m. on four Thursdays: March 7, April 4, May 9 and June 6 at FGCS. The workshop is offered free of charge.
Led by two Pacific University graduate psychology students, the workshop is for parents of children who struggle with fears, nervousness, and worries. Come learn about anxiety, ways to manage child anxiety, and ways to respond to your child’s anxious behaviors. The workshop is intended to create a comfortable space for parents to learn more about challenges their children may be experiencing and learn new ways to parent your anxious child with compassion.
Questions? Please contact principal Vanessa Gray at [email protected] or 503-359-4600.
What's Happening in the Puffin Nest...
This week, level 2 students worked diligently to prepare their mini-golf business for the grand-opening!
They were delighted to present their repurposed course to customers at our Celebrations of Learning event on Thursday evening.
Wow! What a success! Thanks SO much to all of our FGCS families who waited patiently in line to play mini-golf at the “Puffin-Plover Putt-Putt” class business.
Next week students will calculate their revenue and take steps for using the profits to reduce waste on our Out & Abouts.
After the kiddos valiantly put their classroom back in order, we celebrated their business success and hard work during our goods/services- waste/recycling- energy/natural resources units with a fun movie that celebrates being an advocate for positive change & protecting natural resources: The Lorax!
Reading Workshop: Literature Circles
These small group "Book Clubs" engage students in rich conversations about shared readings. Students can express their opinions, predictions, and questions about a text in a productive, structured way. Students take on specific group roles which are designed to develop reading, speaking, and thinking abilities. Ask your kiddo to tell you about the book they are reading!
Our Book Club Books:
- Flora & Ulysses
- No Talking
- Shiloh
- Because of Winn Dixie
- Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator
- Sideways Stories from Wayside School
- Charlie Bumper vs the Teacher of the Year
- Sasquatch Escape
- Clementine
- How to Train Your Dragon
- One and Only Ivan
- Time Cat
- The People of Sparks
How's your homework routine going?
Suggested Weekly Homework:
Reading Homework
Spend at least 20 minutes reading (outside of school) every day.
Reading is on the "honor system" and we ask that you help your kiddo to develop a daily reading routine with good-fit books and a well-lit, comfy reading spot away from distractions. At fall conferences, your kiddo brought home the Tower of Books wall poster, which is a fun (and optional) reading genre challenge.
Typing Homework
Level 2 students have typing homework to develop and support important keyboarding skills. Please practice at least 20 minutes per week on: Typing.com
Passwords were sent home at family visits. Please email Ginny if you need help getting into your child's account.
Math homework
It is strongly recommended that your student practice math skills at least 30 minutes (or more) per week.
Our Dreambox math program for homework has started. Passwords and account information were sent home with your kiddo this week.
If you are interested in exploring other ways to practice math at home, take a look at these ideas:
Ideas for math practice:
- 4th graders can get valuable math practice with Khan Academy. Current 4th grade math topics are listed below.
- Online Math Game Sites: ZapZap Math or Prodigy- create your own account!
- Multiplication Facts Practice with a simple dice game. How to Play: Each player takes turns rolling 3 dice. First to break 200 (or 500, etc.) wins. On your turn, you get to choose two dice to add together, then you multiply the sum by the final die. That’s your score for that turn.
- Facts Practice with Free Math Apps: Sushi Monster & Math Hero
- Facts Practice with Purchased Math Apps: Operation Math & Math Vs. Zombies
- Place Value and Rounding
- Multi-digit Adding and Subtracting
- Factors & Multiples
- Prime and Composite Numbers
- Multi-digit Multiplication
- Division with Remainder
- Fractions
Prefer a worksheet for math homework? You can download here, or your student can pick up a paper copy in class.
Here are the practice pages for the previous weeks:
- Homework #1: Introduction to Fractions
- Homework #2: Unit Fractions/ Finding Fractions on a Number line
- Homework #3: Comparing Fractions
- Homework #4: Adding & Subtracting Fractions
- Homework #5: Adding & Subtract Fractions with UNLIKE denominators AND Multiplying a Fraction by a Whole Number
- Homework #6: Proper and Improper fractions, Conversions between improperfractions and mixed numbers, addition of mixed numbers
All 4th grade math students should be practicing their multiples DAILY.
4th graders have set goals and made plans for daily practice and have identified the numbers they needs to work on (ie. 6’s, 7’s, 8’s, etc.). Check in with your kiddo about this!