Year's End / New Beginnings

I shared this story last year. It seems to come to mind again now. Remembering my middle son on the first day of summer vacation years ago.

He just finished first grade and the world lay stretched before him. He had his brand new RED gym shoes and the temporary "cornrows" in his hair (remember Allan Iverson) running down the hill towards the neighbor's house on a perfect summer day.

Ten years ago and it is like I am standing there now. The smell of lilacs. The dark green grass. The cloudless, bright blue sky. The brand new red shoes. The blond, goofy looking hair. Blue shirt, red shorts. The group of kids yelling his name and jumping around as he got smaller and smaller in view running down that hill as fast as he possibly could. I really don't think it ever gets better than that. The whole summer was in front of him with endless possibilities, and second grade was a thought too far into the future for him to even try to conceive.

I guess we all remember that feeling. In education, it is important for us to finish the year on a strong note. To make sure that we lay the ground work for continued growth next year - when summer vacation does inevitably come to an end. This summer will be spent working on school improvement and curriculum so that when your child comes back next year, we will be a better and stronger school.

Here is another list of apps I think parents may find useful - top 50 free educational apps: http://www.appstoreapps.com/top-50-free-education-apps/

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More Apps!

I have had several parents ask me about the free apps posted last time. At their request, I will continue to find apps I think kids might have interest in and share them. Perhaps all will be useful to your child, perhaps only one or two. Either way, it is a great educational opportunity for kids.

From ikidapps.com:

Learning from the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch can add a whole new dimension to education. As children become engaged in educational iPhone apps, they will remain interested while expanding their minds. Fortunately, parents don’t have to spend a fortune on pricey iPhone apps to give their children a stimulating educational experience with free apps for kids. In fact, some of the very best educational apps are free!

On this day…
Price: 1.99
Not free, but I thought still worth sharing.

Keep track of fun historical events with this nifty historical reference app. Each day, users can reference a listing of events and famous birthdays that happened on that day in history. You can also view any day of the year’s events by selecting a date from the calendar interface page. This would be a fun way for students to take a peek at famous figures they share a birthday with, or simply recognize the significance of each new day!

Flashcards+
Price: Free
Flaschards+ is completely free and offers users access to an interface with the Quizlet database of pre-made flashcards. If the desired subject isn’t already available in a deck of cards, users can also create their own custom flashcards. The simple interface of Flashcards+ makes it an ideal learning tool for students in first grade, or their freshman year.

Free Spanish Tutor
Price: Free
Students who are working on learning Spanish as a second language in high school, or parents who like to keep their children engaged with bi-lingual learning will get great use out of this Spanish language tutoring app. After looking over information sheets, users can practice the language by taking fill-in-the-blank style quizzes and confirm their pronunciation by listening to recordings of phrases spoken by native Spanish speakers. Hola, amigos!

ABC Phonics Animals Lite
Price: Free
Young learners will find fun ways to help develop their vocabulary and word recognition with ABC Phonics Animals Lite. A series of adorable flash cards display popular sight words for children as a recorded voice reads the pronunciation of the word. Other activities ask children to identify specific letters after they have heard their phonetic sounds, or identify the animal associated with a specific noise. Beware, however, that there is a full version of the app advertised within this free lite version. Watch wandering little hands, or turn off in-app purchases, to avoid accidental purchase.

BrainPop Featured Movie
Price: Free
BrainPop offers a daily educational video via this interactive app. Focusing on a wide array of subjects ranging from history to science and everything in between. After watching the daily educational video feature, users are encouraged to take an interactive quiz to test their understanding of the video. Apps like this are a fantastic way to help children improve their comprehension skills for a wide variety of subjects as they refine the ability to absorb, retain and repeat information.

I hope you find some or all of these helpful.

ISAT and Free Apps

I would like to remind all our third grade families that ISAT state testing will be taking place beginning March 5. The testing window lasts two weeks which also includes time for makeup testing. Students perform best when well rested and after a healthy breakfast. As attendance is also a key to success, it is best not to schedule routine appointments during these days if at all possible. Please encourage your child to do their best and show what they know.

Free Reading Apps:

Over the years, I have had parents ask me about reading strategies to help their students succeed. Obviously, there are many successful steps. Here are a few Apps that allow students to use technology to improve their reading. Each is free and developed in association with the Virginia Department of Education.

Aesop's Quest, based on Aesop's Fables, is a learning game where the student must remember elements of a story to complete a level. At the end of each story segment or level, the student is rewarded with puzzle pieces. After solving the puzzle, the story is complete and the child can continue to the next story.

In Opposite Ocean, Luna and Leo must master the magic of words by correctly identify the antonym that is the opposite of the given keyword. Children earn pearls when they drag the correct bubble word to the enchanted clam.

Professor Garfield Fact or Opinion is part story, part game, and part online safety lesson. When Garfield's friend receives an "F" on his report about goats for using opinions instead of facts, Professor Garfield steps in to explain the differences between a fact and an opinion (particularly with regard to the Internet), how to read with a questioning mind, and how a fact can be verified.

In Same Meaning Magic students help Luna and Leo, young magicians at magic school, toss word stones into the wishing well to earn gold coins and jewels by choosing the best synonym.

Same Sound Spellbound is an adventure designed to help the player understand homophones (words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings, such as "bee" and "be"). Luna and Leo, young magicians at Magic School, must use their spell book to bring animal statues to life. In the game, students must correctly identify the homophone which best completes the puzzle sentence, in a given time.

Writing Season!

While Spring may still be a while coming, Writing season is upon us!

Of course, our students always develop and practice their writing skills. However, this is the time of year when those skills all culminate into complete writing products.

Students first address the question or prompt. They then refer to the text for support. They use high level thinking to form opinions and justify them. They make connections between the text and their personal lives. Finally, they round out their writing with reflective and concluding thoughts.

It is a great time to talk to your student about some of these skills. I think you'll be impressed by their level of understanding.

Welcome Back!

Happy New Year! We hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season.

January brings about an excellent opportunity to assess where each of our students are on their path to learning. We will be conducting MAP testing and receiving results by the end of the month. Each student's individual assessment will specifically target key areas in Reading and Mathematics. This data will be used by teachers to meet the needs of each individual student.

Here is the link to the NWEA (MAP) homepage: http://www.nwea.org/

Look for MAP results to be sent home by the end of the month or early in February.

As always, please contact me with any questions. Thanks

Between Holidays

We wish all our families a happy Thanksgiving.

As students return, the Holiday Season will be in full swing. Christmas plans, hectic schedules, and SNOW!!! At this busy and enjoyable time of the year, I remind parents that learning is still taking place. Reading, Math, Specials, and content area classes move forward over the next few weeks before Winter Break. Please do all you can to have your student continue to attend school regularly. A good breakfast at home, or utilizing our school breakfast program, is an important start for a great day.

Winter coats, hats, gloves, and boots are important to help children stay warm and allow them to participate in recess activities.

We look forward to making the most of the next month to help students excel.

Of Conferences and Thanksgiving...

“Mrs. Lekkas, he is like a diamond in the rough. The potential is there, but it just needs a little polishing.” I remember Mrs. Alm saying that to my mom at Fall conferences in second grade. The leafless tree branches were swinging in the wind on a cloudy, blustery day. I sat there looking out the window, hoping I wouldn’t get into trouble. The whole time wondering if my mom knew what potential meant…

As we turn the calendar to November, we come upon Thanksgiving, my favorite holiday of all. Throughout my life, Thanksgiving has been a time of family. Though immigrants to the US, my parents always prepared a feast and hosted aunts, uncles, and cousins. Sure, there were some Greek recipes each year, but the staple remained turkey with stuffing, my mom’s sweet potatoes, and my aunt’s desserts.

Thanksgiving also holds a special place in my heart because it is the beginning of the holiday season. It is the first event of many more to follow, all enveloped with the “holiday season” feeling of cheer. Christmas decorating begins. The smell of snow is becoming present. The approaching new year and all its possibilities. All those things within arm’s reach as you gather with family around the Thanksgiving table. Thanksgiving is a time of giving thanks and the potential for many great things to come.

The potential Mrs. Alm told my mother about is the same potential for us all to discuss for each of our students at conferences this month. It is vital that we take a look at data from MAP and AIMSWeb, analyze guided reading levels, and review all running records. It is just as important, that while we give thanks for these measured data points, we embrace that this is a time of potential. It is important that students, parents, and the entire school community all work together to help guide our students as they continue their educational path. Kids need to know that on a daily basis, their families and their teachers care about them doing the best they can: that they reach their potential.

I cannot guarantee that my mom could accurately define the word potential for you today. However, she 100% can tell you the story of the conference with Mrs. Alm. She will mime the process of polishing something in her hand while stretching out the words, “just needs a Lllitttllle polishing...”

As that conference ended, I thought Mrs. Alm was doing me a favor by not mentioning that I got caught throwing paper in the cafeteria the day before. Boy was I wrong. She wasn’t doing me a favor. She was purposefully recruiting my mom so that the two of them could conspire to force me to do my best for the next two years I was in her second and third grade looping class. Not a bad strategy, actually.

As we turn to November with conferences and the holiday season, we give thanks for all our great kids here at KES. We welcome parents to our building on conference day and any other day. We look forward to seeing you so that we may work together to problem solve, celebrate, and encourage students in ways that will help them reach their potential.