STAR Testing Begins May 2

Spring Break was a welcome respite for everyone. I hope you all had a relaxing week off and enjoyed time as a family. We have been back a week now and with STAR testing just around the corner, we have had to get right back to work. As you may have heard, Mrs. Lescroart had an unfortunate accident and broke her foot. She is wearing a brace and will be on crutches for the next several weeks. The kids have shown true compassion and have stepped up to help her in any way that they can. Their team spirit is truly appreciated.

With the third quarter complete, we will have our Quarter 3 Otter Awards Assembly sometime in early May. I will send home a notice and post the date on the blog as soon as Mrs. Lescroart and I can confirm a date.

STAR testing begins next Monday, May 2. At Dartmouth, the entire school will be on a modified block schedule for two weeks. Every morning your child will go to his/her homeroom and will begin the day with testing. For sixth graders, the first two days will be language arts and the next two days will be math. Seventh and eighth graders will have additional testing days, but we will be finished on Thursday of the first week. After testing, the kids will be on a block schedule, which means that on Monday, they will go to testing, then break, 1st period, then lunch, 2nd period, then another short break, and finally 3rd period. On Tuesday, they will begin the day with testing and then go to 4th, 5th and 6th periods. We will be on the modified schedule for a week and a half. We will continue to alternate periods 1,2,3 one day and 4,5,6 the next. Studies show that kids who are well rested and well fed are more successful. Please make sure that your child gets plenty of sleep and eats a good breakfast every morning. We will supply light snacks for all students. Please send a water bottle with your child each day, preferably a reusable one (they are more environmentally sound, go green!). I will award Otter Bucks to any student who remembers to bring in a water bottle.

Our sixth grade spring social will be held on Friday, May 6. We will need many volunteers to make this event happen. Your child will bring home a flyer this week. Please sign up on our wikispace (should be online sometime this week) if you can help. Thank you in advance for your support.

In math, we are now studying area, perimeter, and circumference. Next week we will begin volume of three dimensional prisms and cylinders. In social studies we are studying Ancient Greece. This unit is an exciting one, which reads like a great adventure story. I think the kids are really enjoying it. Later on, in language arts we will connect our study of Greece and Rome with a unit on mythology.

This quarter, I started a cooking class during the elective period. My undergraduate background is in home economics so teaching this class is a treat for me. As the kids know, I love everything about food and I am happy to share that joy with my students. They are a wonderful group and I am enjoying this class immensely.

With allergy season now in full swing, we are running through our kleenex supply like there is no tomorrow. If you would like to make a donation to our classroom, kleenex tissues would be tops on our list.

Thank you for supporting your child and our class.

Mrs. Shimamoto

Fourth Quarter Begins

Hello Otter Families,

Last week was an exciting one for the Otters. We went on a fantastic field trip on Tuesday and had a chance to hear the Symphony Silicon Valley and explore at the Tech Museum. Thanks to those of you who volunteered to chaperone and share the day with us. We couldn't have done it without you. The kids were impressively well behaved and they said that they had a really good time. I hope all of the adults did too. Thanks again!

Tomorrow is the first day of the fourth quarter of school. A few students from each Otter group will be switched to the other group starting tomorrow. We do this every quarter for a variety of reasons; it helps us to keep our groups balanced and gives students an opportunity to meet a larger group of their peers. Grades for the quarter will be turned in on Tuesday and report cards should be mailed home by the end of the week. Congratulations to the many students who have worked hard all quarter.

Open House will be held on Wednesday evening from 6:30-7:45 p.m. Classrooms will be open for you to see examples of what your child has been doing. It is a great time to touch base with us, but in this short time period, we will not be able to hold individual conferences. If you have any issues or concerns that you would like to discuss with us, please schedule an appointment. We would be happy to meet with you. Open House is also an opportunity to meet some of your child's peers and their families. The Union School District is interested in your input regarding your child's experience at Dartmouth. Please let us know what you think by participating in the online parent survey. You can also complete the survey in the computer lab at the Open House. We look forward to seeing you Wednesday evening.

In Social Studies, we are now working on a timeline project. The first part of the project is a personal timeline based on each student's own history. I have set aside time in class for the kids to work on their projects. The personal timeline will be due on Tuesday. Part two is a comparative timeline based on two civilizations of the student's choosing. The purpose of the project is to increase student awareness of the simultaneous existence of various civilizations. Part two will be not be due until students return from the Spring Break. The due date will be Tuesday, April 19, but I will give extra credit if the project is turned in by Friday, April 8.

In Math, we took the third quarter district-wide benchmark exam last Wednesday. We have since resumed our study of geometric concepts. We should finish Chapter 9 and end the week with a chapter test on Friday. Our next unit will continue with geometry, focusing on area and volume.

Next week is our week-long Spring Break. I hope you have a wonderful and relaxing week off.

I am looking forward to seeing you at Open House on Wednesday evening.

Mrs. Shimamoto