Kiker's Strength-Based Learning Cohort

We are so happy to be back! It's been a busy week, and to give you a glimpse into it, we've gathered a few highlights and pictures for you here. Our intent is to keep entries short and communicate ideas for you and your child to use as a springboard for communication. We may also include an important reminder or two...like: please be sure to send in your child's decorated notebooks with them on Monday (if you haven't already). We'll be diving into them first thing! Our focus in Social/Emotional Learning (SEL) was Mindful Awareness. We touched on active listening skills, reflection, and using our breathing to help us focus or calm down. We established routines and prepared our materials to get organized and ready for our block schedule. It takes a lot to move 5+ times a day! Our unified instruction focused on learning about and building a community. We learned about roles, jobs (complete with an official application), perspective taking, and e...

Who knew the middle of May would be so busy!? We began our week wrapping up and sharing the culminating activities from each of our project groups. We took time to reflect on our own work, and we also had a chance to view and compliment others' hard work. In reading, we are moving through our novels, with hopes of getting to the end before school is over! Third Grade is anxiously watching Peter in Pax, and Fourth is watching WWII unfold through Leon's eyes. Second graders have honed in on fiction response and summarization. All three grade levels have been composing either expository or narratives this week. Third Grade ended the week with our Vocabulary Parade! We selected words and dressed up to share the meaning of the word -- all of Kiker turned out in the hallways to watch! Our annual spring Book Fair was held this week, and we are so grateful to see all our students so excited about buying BOOKS! Thanks so much for the generosity of each on...

This week we have been finishing the last of our end of year assessments. 3rd and 4th took STAAR math and reading on Monday and Tuesday. They have also completed a reading fluency assessment with Mrs. Forrest as well. We are proud of them! We are finishing up our products in project, and will be sharing them with one another next week. It's been great learning so much about our world and how to care for it! In language arts, Second has been working on nonfiction summarization. We are learning to focus on the main idea rather than retell. They are also drafting a narrative for completion next week. Third Grade have completed narratives, and are finalizing an expository draft. Our book, PAX , has us mesmerized. We are following the two characters closely as they help each other. Fourth Grade worked on using a specific literary device in a third person narrative. It's exciting to see them craft using point of view, suspense, slowing time...and they are discovering mor...