April 19th- May 6th: Oregon State Testing for Level 2 Students
State (SBAC) Testing
Level 2 students will begin state testing on Tuesday, April 19th. Testing is administered in the computer lab in short sessions, and spread out over 3 weeks. Students have the opportunity to work on the same test over multiple sessions so they can work at their own pace.
Please help support your Puffin:
- Encourage them to do their best
- Help them get plenty of sleep and eat a good breakfast
- Check out the practice test site below
After following the link: sign in as a guest, select your grade and test (Math or ELA).
As a reminder, parents have the right under state law to opt their students out of state testing. Click here if you would like to exclude your students from state testing. Students who do not participate in testing engage in reading or other learning activities while their classes are testing.
Please contact Karen Torry at [email protected] with any questions about parent opt-out rights. Please contact your students' teachers with any questions about the schedule for state testing in their classes.
Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) State Testing
Friday, May 20th: NO SCHOOL for students
Teacher grading day
Monday, May 30th: NO SCHOOL Memorial Day
2021-22 School Year Calendar
A message from Art Teacher Stephanie:
Yearbook is on sale now for $20.
To purchase a yearbook please go to www.treering.com/validate and enter the number 1016052158063632. Students are now creating the cover of the yearbook. A yearbook is a great way to remember their time this year. If you have any questions please email Stephanie at [email protected]. Thanks for all your support!
What’s happening in the Puffin Nest?
The Oregon Trail: Our Unit Overview
Using a strategy called Storypath, our students will form family groups and join a wagon train, which will help them build an understanding of the journey across the U.S. in the 1840s. Students will learn why emigrants formed wagon trains and moved west. They will confront difficulties such as illness, food shortages, and broken wagons. Encounters with Native Americans will set the scene for examining the views of the period as well as the ethical issues surrounding westward expansion. The culminating activities will involve a celebration and presenting plans for their new life in Oregon.
In class, we continue our Storypath journey!
Episode 9: Celebrating the Journey’s End
After a long and arduous journey, our pioneer families have arrived at their destination!
- We continued to discuss how cultural differences, emigrants perspectives, and western expansion impacted the lives of Native Americans.
- Next, families imagined setting up their homestead, as well as creating a new business and way of life. Students created a sign, and tokens to represent their business.
On Wednesday, students arrived at our “one-room schoolhouse” in character and in costume.
Our day began with lessons (geography, arithmetic, cursive, spelling, reading/recitation) in our pioneer school house. Next, as the wagon train families settled into their long-awaited destinations, the students set up their "businesses" to trade with other families. For our O&A, we played a few fun frontier games like jacks and marbles.
Read Aloud
Next week, our storytelling adventure continues with a new read-aloud:
The Wanderer by Sharon Creech
The Wanderer combines storytelling, adventure, family relationships, and compelling characterization to tell a tale of a difficult journey to another land and to a sense of self-awareness.
A Reminder about Level 2 Homework:
In Level 2, our homework is on the honor system. We ask families to develop and sustain this important practice at home in a way that works best for you. Having a regular routine (time/place/materials) will ensure that your child will be prepared to tackle their required homework in Level 3 more easily.
Math: at least 30 minutes (or more) of math practice each week.
Practicing multiplication math facts at home is a GREAT way to support your kiddo!
- 3rd graders should work on: 2's, 3's, 4's, 5's and 6's
- 4th graders should work on all multiplication facts for 2-12's.
We also recommend that students engage in 10-15 minutes of a math activity (math website or game) and then complete one page in their math workbook at least 2 days per week.
All level 2 kiddos brought home a math workbook (or packet) for homework practice in November. Let us know if they are ready for a new book!
For computer practice, take a moment to set up a free account for your child:
- Khan Academy: instructional videos and problem solving practice
- Prodigy: answer math questions, complete quests, earn rewards
- SumDog: solve math problems while playing video games
- Math Game Time: no account set-up required, select grade level & play!
- The public library is a great resource. Make sure your kiddo has access to lots of “good fit” books that they are excited to read. Check out our Level 2 Book Recommendations HERE.
- Read-alouds and audio books work too! Also, listen to your child read out loud, and ask them questions about their reading & thinking.