Oakview South Newsletter

As we start to get into the heart of the school year, I wanted to promote a service that our district offers to families. St. Johns has partnered with parentguidance.com to give additional support to our families. This website offers webinars, newsletters, one-on-one coaching, videos, etc. on ways that families can support their children. As someone that has been a foster parent, I know firsthand how hard it can be to support children at home that are struggling. Personally, I've looked through this website and found some very good resources. It gives support in areas such as anxiety/depression, bullying, grief, technology, and various topics that our children will possibly need support on at some point in their life. It's hard being a parent at times and I love how this resource is available to all of us.

October 31 Halloween Parties

November 1 No School

November 3 Daylight Savings (fall back)

November 21 Early Release @ 12:35

November 22 Early Release @ 12:35

If you get a chance, check out the resources we have for families on our Title page.

If you have any feedback or suggestions for Oakview, click the box below. Thank you!

Third graders have been hard at work this past month! In math, students have been exploring the meaning of multiplication through story problems, games, and activities. A variety of different strategies to solve multiplication may include: drawing a picture, making equal groups with objects, skip counting, making an array, finding a smaller fact to solve larger problems, and using known facts. By the end of the year we would like students to be fluent with multiplication facts up through 10x10. We’ll practice learning the facts through games and using known facts to help solve unfamiliar facts. One way you might help your third grader at home is to practice skip counting. A note will be sent home soon about this.

Third graders have been learning about Michigan in Social Studies! Specifically, students have been learning about Michigan’s government, the reasons we have government, the three branches and what each branch does, and our state constitution.

In whole group reading, we’re enjoying hearing different stories and are using these stories to practice different reading strategies. We’re enjoying a variety of books during independent reading time, too. Teachers have finished 1-1 reading assessments with students so that we can start our small group instruction with reading groups.

We will have a math celebration to showcase our great learning in math so far this year! Mark your calendars for Thursday, October 31 in the afternoon. We will have two different rotations, students will have recess, and then we will have our class Halloween Parties to end the day. Look for a separate note coming soon about the details.

Thank you to our PTO for their time and support of the Redwing Relay. We had the best time at the relay and Mr. Alspaugh (in a unicorn costume) was a fun - and funny - addition to the celebration!

Writing:

Our students have been busy reviewing how to write complete sentences and paragraphs. We have also been working through the writing process by writing a narrative piece of writing.

Reading:

We have been working hard to learn about how the six elements of plot can be used to summarize a story and that changes in characters are directly related to the main events of the story.

Please try to have your student read 100 minutes at home each week. It is also important to have conversations about the books your student is reading. That helps support comprehension.

Math:

We concluded our first unit that was all about factors, multiples, prime and composite numbers. We just started our second unit that is all about data. We will be collecting data, representing data, analyzing our data and writing data statements.

We could use some help from home, please make sure your student is practicing skip counting and multiplication facts. It will make our more difficult multiplication problems later in the year much more manageable.

Social Studies:

We are well into our first unit which is all about Government. We are learning about the three branches of government. and the system of checks and balances. We celebrated Constitution Day.

Science

This unit supports students in developing foundational science ideas about the interactions between Earth’s spheres, the effects that human activities have on these interactions, and the ways that individuals and communities are generating and comparing solutions for reducing negative impacts on the Earth’s spheres. Entering into this unit, students will have some intuitive understanding of the ways that human activities impact Earth’s spheres. Our goal is to expand their understanding to be able to describe the ways that human activities can impact the interactions of the Earth’s spheres and the process communities can use to generate and compare solutions to improve the negative impacts. The puzzling phenomenon that students will make sense of is the addition of dams on the Elwha River in the early 1900’s. Two dams were added to the Elwha River which impacted all of the Earth’s spheres in a variety of ways including: a decrease in the salmon population, alteration of water flow and speed, loss of beaches, and the way of life and livelihood of the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe being disrupted. Individuals and communities worked together to begin the process of removing two dams in 2011. The work of restoring the Elwha River is ongoing.

Lesson 1

We discover that dams were built on the Elwha River in the early 1900s. We wonder how those dams may have impacted the river and the things in and around it. We ask questions that we could investigate to find out more about what the impacts could be.

Lessons 2 and 3

We discover that the Elwha Watershed system is composed of many different components organized in four major groupings. These components interact with one another. We see that the dam blocks water flow. This leads to less sediment moving towards the end of the river because water’s flow (hydrosphere) moves sediment (geosphere). The dam also blocks the flow of salmon (biosphere) upstream.

Math

Students completed their beginning of the year i-Ready diagnostic, and we are finishing up unit 1 which is about multiplication and division. In this unit, students have been learning strategies to multiply and divide multi-digit numbers. They have also learned how to use the order of operations to solve equations. We will be starting unit 2 soon where students will be learning how to find the volume of rectangular prisms.

ELA

We’ve had a great start in ELA! We’ve officially launched our Reader’s Workshop, where students are diving into independent reading and building their stamina. We’re also working on establishing key routines and procedures to help students become confident, self-directed readers. All beginning-of-the-year reading assessments have been completed, providing valuable insights to guide our instruction moving forward. Exciting reading adventures await!

Social Studies

To start the year off in social studies we take a deep dive into what it means to be a historian. Students discover that being a historian is much like being a detective. Historians gather clues/evidence to tell stories from the past. As historians, we will study the past by using primary and secondary sources, timelines, cause/effect and multiple historical perspectives. This year we will use the 4 questions historians ask (What happened? Who was involved? When did it happen? How and why did it happen?) to study North America, West Africa, and Europe prior to 1500 and then what occurred when they converged in the late 1400s using the process of historical inquiry.

Fifth graders have been working on self-portraits and illustrated autobiography poems, incorporating surrealism, symbolism, and proportion. They are also starting their Harvest Still LIfe with value, emphasis, and observation skills.

Fourth grade artists are wrapping up a lesson on color theory and weaving on their handmade loom while starting their introduction to color value and contrast in their own chalk pastel Harvest Still Life drawing.

Third grade champions are utilizing their new vocabulary and knowledge of landscapes and map making to connect to social studies and Michigan history and symbolism.

Our year in PE has started off with cooperative games, emotional regulation, teamwork, and catching and throwing skills. We want to encourage the kids to always put their best foot forward and demonstrate good sportsmanship. Their favorite game this month was the hula hut throw down.

Read, Write, ROAR! is an English Language Arts program for kindergarten through 3rd Grade learners. The Michigan Learning Channel partnered with MAISA and real Michigan teachers to create educational video lessons and corresponding activity sheets that align to Michigan teaching standards and the Literacy Essentials. Each lesson has a list of standards included as an easy reference for educators and homeschoolers. Families can use these resources to build on what students are covering in school, as extra practice on key topics, and as fun activities to break up the day.

Read, Write, ROAR! Upper Elementary offers engaging videos and activities designed for 4th and 5th graders to enhance their reading and writing skills. Hosted by experienced teachers and educators from across the state, these videos encourage deep thinking about literacy. Students will explore metacognition, decoding strategies, genre identification, figurative language, and media literacy all while about Michigan’s unique history, science, and culture.

Here is a link to our monthly newsletter from Capturing Kids' Hearts.

You may not realize this, but Oakview gets federal funds for being a Title 1 building. This allows us to have extra adults in the building to help service and support more students. For example, last year we created a teacher interventionist position to help give extra support to struggling students. To remain a Title 1 building, we need your help. We know that lunch is free this year, but our Title status is dependent on everyone filling out an Education Benefits Form. If you haven't already, please fill out this form.

As the temperatures start to drop, please remember to have your child(ren) wear appropriate clothing. We do require our students to wear a coat if the temperature is below 50 for recess. Our playground is out in the middle of a very open area, so the wind can make it feel much colder than the actual temperature. If in doubt, pack a coat!

At Oakview, we have multiple places where students are dropped off or picked up. We have preschool families meeting their teachers at the front doors. We have bus riders getting on their busses in the front of the school. Finally, we have pick up/drop off students going through the drive that wraps around to the back of our school. Families have done a wonderful job sticking to the correct areas for drop off/pick up and it's made for a smooth transition.

Here are a few reminders:

• Students should not be dropped off before 7:55 am and walkers should not arrive before that time. We do not have supervision until 7:55 and it is unsafe for them to be unattended.
• Please continue to stick to the designated areas for drop off and pick up.
• Communication in change of plans to the office is vital. Please make sure to do so in a timely manner so the office can communicate with all the parties involved.
• If you decide to park to pick up/drop off your child, make sure to walk with them across the parking lot. We want everyone to remain safe during this busy and chaotic time.
• Please do not pass other cars in the pick up line and be respectful of everyone picking up. The first car may pull up to spot 1 in the pickup line.