Costumes

Let's see if I can get this straight. There are some dancers and sleepers and an evil Sith lord. Some more dancers and Lewis and Clark and a scurvy pirate. There an archeologist who's not favous for his archeology. We have a tour guide and famous soccer player and a sailor and Clementine and Margaret and some bald guy with a mop who already lost his earring and bushy eyebrows. And I know I forgot something. Lots of creativity was on display today. (And we even got some work done! How about that?)

Have a great long weekend.

Whoops! Spelling List

If we are having a spelling test, it might be nice to have the spelling words...

Unit 9: cared, dairy, unfair, rarely, stared, dared, glare, airplanes, barely, farewell, software, staircase Extra words: everywhere, carefully, square, therefore Bonus Words: comparison

Printed versions are going in mailboxes as soon as I click "publish post."

All Sorts of News...It's Been a While!

End of the First Quarter - Report Cards
Tomorrow is the end of the first quarter. I'll be calculating grades over the weekend and printing report cards soon after. Report cards will be handed out at parent / teacher conferences on November 10, 11, or 13.

Costume Day and Party
Tomorrow morning at 9:00 we will have our traditional costume parade. So far I know of two literature related costumes, and mine is easy - and I hope recognizable to the kids. Remember our school guidelines. Following the costume parade there will be a party in the room with some snacks and activities. Then we'll do our best to have a "normal" rest of the day.

Thursday and Friday - No School
Teacher and pastors will be attending the Professional Church Workers Conference in Green Bay on Thursday and Friday. Students, enjoy your extra two days off.

Parent / Teacher Conferences
A bright yellow note was sent home last week asking your input on scheduling conferences. First priority is given to families with multiple children and to families with upper graders due to the upper grade conference schedule. However, usually everyone gets the evening and time range they request. Kindly give me a few options. It's hard to fit three people in at 5:30 on Thursday if three people request the same thing. I can fit a 5:00 and 5:20 and 5:40 if given a range of time. Thanks. I look forward to seeing all of you.

C.W.E.S. Field Trip
Coming home today is another packet for the Environmental Station field trip. I won't repeat everything here since it's all in the note.

However, volunteer drivers, if you would like to drive we could still use one driver for the return trip. There were some people who volunteered to drive both ways, but I'd like to give everyone a chance if they wish, and hopefully people won't need to drive both ways. If you'd still like to drive, please let me know tomorrow. Also, if you volunteered to drive both ways and wouldn't mind taking both shifts, please let me know that too. An email about drivers would be fine.

Spelling Schedule
Since this is only a three day week, and next week we'll be in class only two days due to our field trip, we'll treat those five days as one week. So we'll have this week's spelling test next week on Tuesday.

Memory
Memory for the first quarter is done, but the second quarter's memory will come home next week. There will be no memory assignments for next week.

Culvers Night Tonight, 10/27
Just a reminder.

Whoops! Correction!

Coming home in everyone's take home folder tonight is a letter from Melissa Peet, Immanuel's Director of Family Life, concerning an opportunity for Immanuel members entitled "Welcome to God's Word." Due to a communication error (read: "Mr. Wilhorn didn't read his email carefully") I sent home the letter to everyone.

Sorry about that. The email was simply to make me aware of the letter. Instead, I got a bit overeager and printed it, copied it, and sent it home with everyone.

The real letter will come home tomorrow with the correct people.

(I'm sure that if it seems interesting to parents from other congregations, however, you'd be more than welcome to attend!)

Fourth Grade Thursday Updates

Book Order
This was an uninspiring book order - not a ton of great ones, but there are some good ones in there. Here's what I can recommend:

• Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Goofy titles, but a pretty innocent and funny book.
• The 39 Clues - Mystery, collectable game cards, and online additions make this an interesting option. I've read numerous rave reviews, but will be getting my copy in the book order so we'll see...
• The Kid Who Ran for President - We just finished this as a read aloud.
• The Invention of Hugo Cabret - Incredible! There's a waiting line for this one in the room.
• Elijah of Buxton, The Wednesday Wars, and Feathers - All are great award winners, but the reading level could be challenging as well as some subject matter for fourth grade.
• The Sign of the Beaver
• Roald Dahl Set
• Chasing Vermeer and The Calder Game - Books 1 and 3 of a series. Book 2 is not available but is called The Wright 3.
• Meet Kit
• Chronicles of Narnia Pack

Book orders will be due on Tuesday, October 21.

Two Permissions Slips - Field Trips
Students received a permission slip today for our trip to the cranberry marsh next week on Tuesday. Students will need to pack a cold lunch for the day. We will leave at 9:30 (after chapel, which is on Tuesday next week). My best guess as to when we will return is around 1:30.

Drivers are needed. If you can drive, please indicate so on the permission slip and I will send a note out confirming who is and is not driving. All parents are welcome to join us even if you aren't driving students, and as long as we have room.

Yesterday students received a packet for our trip to the Central Wisconsin Environmental Station in three weeks.

Memory
We have the rest of this week, next week, and a short week after that before the end of the first quarter. The remaining At School memory is the second, third, fourth, and fifth commandment and meanings. Consider them all assigned. Students may say them as they are ready, sometime before the end of the quarter.

Friday and Weekend Updates

Monday and Tuesday
I will be gone on Monday and Tuesday in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Mrs. Weiss will be our substitute. Mr. Betts and I thought she'd be a great sub - she knows the kids, the school, the families, and the Lord. She and I have met twice leading up to this discussing how things roll in fourth grade. (AND she's already finished Frindle.)

(Just in case you'd like to see what I'll be doing, click here to see information about the conference.)


Special Program Next Friday, October 17
Everyone is cordially invited (sounds impressive!) to attend a presentation at school next Friday at 2:30 in Kuechle Hall. All students in grades K-4 will share a short presentation or demonstration on the value of fluency in reading. There will be reader's theater and books read aloud and all variety of impressive stuff done by the children. (Don't expect each child to get 10 minutes of spotlight, however.) Fourth grade parents attending will be ... uh, I mean ... could be asked to participate in our demonstration. (Don't worry, nothing painful. And don't forget, I'm one of you.)

Afterward there will be time for socializing with other families from the school. It should be a fun time. Feel free to stick around until the end of the day and your and your child can leave together.

If you have any questions, let me know. Thanks!


Spelling and Memory
Spelling lists and Q1W7 memory slips are in students' mailboxes. Sorry I didn't have them yesterday.


FIELD TRIPS COMING!!! FIELD TRIPS COMING!!!
We have two field trips coming soon! The first will be our trip to the cranberry marsh on Tuesday, October 21. We will be visiting B & R Cranberries in Nekoosa to see how harvest is done. (This is still in the planning stages...but it looks like a go.) We will need 3-4 drivers for that morning and possibly the afternoon. There should be no charge for this trip.

The second field trip coming is our trip to the Central Wisconsin Environmental Station. This trip is Wednesday and Thursday, November 5-6. Less than four weeks! We will need drivers to get us there on Wednesday morning and to pick us up on Thursday afternoon. The cost of this trip is around $45. Tons of information will be coming home next week. If you have questions, wait until that information comes home. Then if you still have questions, let me know. :-)

Hand Bell Choir

Mr. Altis asked me to pass on a message. Any fourth grade students interested playing in the school hand bell choir is welcome. Practices are at 8:00 on Tuesday mornings. The choir plays for chapel as much as they can.

The only out of school committment would be the Immanuel Christmas Concert on Sunday, December 14th at 4:00 p.m. There is a rehearsal on Saturday, December 13th from 9:00-9:45 a.m.

If you have any additional questions you may contact him or let me know and I'll pass your message on to him. Thanks.

Beginning of the Week News - 10/6

A Few Short Items:

• Tomorrow is picture day. If you haven't sent in your orders and still wish to do so, please have them here tomorrow.
• Wednesday is "Walk to School Day" throughout Wisconsin Rapids. Consider walking to school if you live close by, or parking the car and walking the rest of the way. This is just one little thing schools do in Wisconsin Rapids to remind families the importance of leading active lives. Even the little things help.
• Domino's night is Wednesday and Thursday. A percentage of all proceeds from Immanuel purchases is donated back to school.
• No school on Friday - teacher inservice day.

Friday 10/3 Newsletter Updates

Okay, For Real This Time!
Next week is a four day week. There is no school for students on Friday. It is an inservice day for teachers. Memory slips will be due on Thursday. There is no spelling test (see below).

The Upcoming Week

Memory - At Home: Q1W6 slips At School: Books of the New Testament and the First Commandment and its Meaning.

Religion - Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah

Reading - Begin a novel as a class.

English - Take home test on Theme 1 Monday. Revise and write final copies of our personal narratives.

Math - Time from a clock, rounding numbers, units of length, perimeter.

Science - Electricity.

Social Studies - Natural resources of the United States. Finding important information in nonfiction writing.

Spelling - No list. Review lesson.