Kiker's Strength-Based Learning Cohort

We have really enjoyed with meeting with all of our family units this past week! 45 meetings is a lot, and it does take time, but we truly value both teachers getting that time to sit down with each of you. Thanks too, for your work last weekend going through the notebooks! Know that your child can bring them home to review with you anytime -- just make sure they return them the very next day. We work with the notebooks every day. Thursday night, your child brought home a permission slip to join NASA's Name the Rover Contest. We are endeavoring to write our first polished expository piece through this opportunity. If you don't give permission, no problem -- they will write the same piece, I just won't enter them in the contest. It's a perfect way to show them in an authentic, motivational way how to write to a prompt, choose a central idea, and explain with examples (in 150 words or less -- they'll have to be precise!). In reading, we are researching through n...

We have spent this week taking time to look back at all the learning, process, and growing we have done. The kids have looked through all of their notebooks and reviewed work products, work habits, and rubrics. Reading, writing, math, and word work notebooks all came home today. We talked to students about their responsibility in this. They need to set up or ask you for a specific time that works for you to review their work. Sit side by side and go through each notebook. They will be able to talk you through each activity and what it means. There is a reflection sheet -- one for math and one for ELA -- for you to fill out and return. As you go through, remember the questions/approach we talked about at Back to School Night. In addition, keep in mind that the kids definitely have a growth mindset and are already setting goals in areas they know are wanting to get better at. In reading, we definitely have a solid theory of Red's struggle. Now we are using each piece to make sens...