Happy Friday,

From Elysha...
It is definitely getting close to the end of the year. Summer is in the air and the learners already have "summer fever" much like the "gold fever" the miners had when coming to California in 1849. We learned on the field trip that "gold fever" was an illness that they couldn't control, so maybe the learners could argue the same.
The field trip yesterday was fantastic! The learners knew so much. Many of the docents complimented our class and were quite impressed with their knowledge base. I felt proud seeing how much they knew. We also had the opportunity to pan for gold. Unfortunately no one struck it rich, but we did learn that the miners worked hard to earn what they found only to be outsmarted by the merchants who practiced price gouging on a daily basis.
I wanted to add how proud I was of the learners MARS scores this year. If you don't remember the MARS test is a district math assessment that is closely aligned with how we teach math in the classroom. Over 90% of our learners scored at or above fourth grade standards for math. I was so thrilled with how great they did! You will be getting copies of their scores soon.

From Lale...
I must have passed the learners on my way to school yesterday. They were surprised to see me working in the classroom when they came back from their field trip. I was on campus Thursday to have a conversation with Cheryl Wozniak, a teacher liaison with the Bay Area Writer's Project, a non profit run in conjunction with UC Berkeley and the National Writing Project. I have attended some of her district training sessions and have incorporated some of her lessons. She is truly inspiring. She helped confirm that I covered valuable things in fourth grade in writing, and gave me suggestions for improvements for next year. Karrie Amsler, next years 5/6 Language Arts educator, sat in on the meeting. She and I have been having many conversations about the learners and their growth as writers this year and how to expand their writing repertoire next year. I am grateful that I'll be able to to do more professional cross-grade level professional discussion. (Karrie and I have the added benefit of being carpool buddies who share commute time.)
Learners will be on the lookout next week for current events about California. They can look at newspapers, magazines, and on the web for information. If you had any sections of the paper or magazines that are headed to the recycling bin, you may want to set them aside. More details will come home on Monday.


Have a terrific weekend!
Best,
Elysha and Lale