Thanks to everyone helping with our Coastal Cleanup effort today. As we learn about the environment in our science unit, it helps to have those hands-on experiences in the real world to make the learning meaningful.

Reminder: Picture Day is Tuesday, Sept. 22. If you plan to buy pictures, please send the selection/payment envelope to school on Tuesday.

Second reminder: Wednesday, Sept. 23 is a minimum day. Dismissal is at 12:30 P.M. This is a special staff development day for teachers (looking at the new math adoption).

Classroom help needed: thanks to Carson's dad (who graciously agreed to cut the wood for us), students will be making their California maps in class on Thursday, Sept. 24, right after lunch (1:05-2:30). I would love to have 3-4 parents come help. Students will be gluing different kinds/colors of beans onto their maps to illustrate the 4 different regions of California. They will also label the major rivers, mountains, and cities. No geography expertise is needed, just the willingness to help keep things flowing. Please let me know if you can help.
*Anyone willing to help paint the 28 pieces of wood blue, before Thursday, please let me know.

Now that students have taken the AR leveling test, we have talked some in class about my expectations for them with regard to taking AR quizzes. Each student must take at least one AR quiz in September (most students have already taken several), just so they understand the process. Starting in October, the goal for each student is to earn 10 AR points each month. (They cannot earn 100 points in October and be finished with AR quizzes for the year.) This is possible for all students if they are doing all the reading outside of class that they are required to do (at least 120 minutes per week) and if they are making good use of silent reading time in the classroom. Student performance with AR quizzes is part of their reading comprehension grade. I will post their weekly point totals (by their District student number, so unless they share their that number with others, their point total will be for their information only), and send home a report after the end of each month.

In addition, it is my expectation that in order to have passed an AR quiz, they must score 80% or higher. Any points earned and awarded by AR (which awards a portion of the total possible points for some scores lower than 80%) will be honored. If you have any questions, please contact me. Although the school library is not yet open (We hope it will be soon though!), I have an extensive classroom library. In addition, the Novato Public Library is a great place to visit on a regular basis! If you aren't sure whether a book your child wants to read has an AR quiz or not, simply check at AR Book Finder. If you google it, it will pop up or, go to http://www.arbookfind.com.

Have a great weekend!