Happy Wednesday

HI there-welcome to our mid-week post.
Just a quick reminder that we will be going on our Pep Rally/Homecoming Parade field trip on Friday at 12:45.  If you haven't turned in your permission slip as of yet, please do so or you will not be able to leave the Bitterroot Campus to attend.
Lunchroom Behaviors:  Today the students left the lunch room without cleaning up and properly disposing of their trays.  Mr. English came and talked to the students so let's hope tomorrow and here after they are responsible for this.  If not, I told them we will practice during recess because it would be obvious we need to practice so we learn how to do it.  Please talk with your child about this tonight and if you do, write lunchroom visit in the planner.  Thank you.
As you can see from the pictures, we have begun our science unit on Matter.  Students are looking through "bags of matter" and describing properties of it.  We also "smelled" up the room to demonstrate how paper goes through both physical & chemical changes.  Then we moved into states of matter.  I told them that there is one kind of matter that can be all 3 states of matter.  They are to come to class tomorrow with an idea of what they think it is.  Have a fun discussion about this tonight and decide what it is.  Soon we will be demonstrating some chemical reactions using household items as well as making chemical formulas using clay.
Almost done with heritage in Lead 21.  We have one selection left so please be thinking about what it is that your child is going to share for Heritage Day.  It is looking like sharing day will be the week of October 12th.  I will let you know the exact day soon.  We are going to be fortunate to have foreign exchange students coming to our classroom on Thursday, October 8th to share about their heritage & cultures.  So excited for this!!!!  I will have lots of pictures to share.  I am also trying to get some college students from Rocky Mountain College to come as well.  Will keep you posted.
Today was our session with Mrs. Neese.  Ask your child what her lesson was about and if they can tell  you, write Mrs. Neese in the planner.
Character Counts-our morning meetings are going great and we have now completed the character traits that I had planned to so now these amazing 4th graders are:  Mrs. Hankins's Character Warriors.  We read a book called "Brave Young Knight" and  they are completing their shields.  Ask them about the shields and the book and if they can tell you, write "character warrior" in the planner.
Well that about sums it up for this week.
Have a great rest of the week.

Saturday Live Tomorrow

Yes, tomorrow is Saturday Live at Pioneer Park starting at 10:00.  Go enjoy and have some good old family fun!!!  Please write in the planner if your child went as they will receive free money.  Thank you so much to those of you that donated candy for the Sweet Shack.  So appreciate you.
Today, we held our first Purple Hand Cookie class nominations & vote.  Students nominate classmates that they feel show true character both in & out of the classroom here at school.  We really spent time discussing how those nominated need to go above & beyond just the ordinary daily expectations of being kind & helpful.  I like the kids to take ownership of this as they spend the most time with each other & I don't see or hear everything that goes beyond the classroom walls.  We also talk about how it is NOT a popularity contest!!!!!!   Our first winner is:  Carly Bryant. Congratulations!!!!!
Tristina is our Student of the Week this week.  We enjoyed hearing all about her & seeing the fun things she shared.  Some of her favorites are:  pizza, Harry Potter, Christmas, pink, art, and Montana History.  Her idea of a perfect day is when the sun is shining and here is no rain or snow.

Midterms went home today.  Overall, they were very good and I am so proud of these kiddos.  They continue to amaze me with their willingness to learn and positive behaviors.  Just love them!!!!  Please go over the mid-term reports and when you do, write mid-terms in the planner so I know you saw them.

Happenings for the upcoming week:

In Reading, we will be continuing with our Heritage unit.  We have learned a lot about heritage and how it can be handed down through generations.  Now is the time to start talking amongst your family and decide what your child is going to share with the class that is a part of your family's heritage.  It can be a food, dance, music, games, art, stories, etc.  They also will have to have a written part to go with it explaining what culture it is, where it came from, and how your family celebrates with it.  I have not determined a date yet as to when it is due, but will let you know at least a week ahead of time.  This is going to be our Inquiry Project for this unit.

Language-we are going to be working on Nouns-singular -plural & possessives
Math-Go Math takes us into addition & subtraction.  WE are now ready & set up to do some of the online pieces that go with it.
Spelling-Unit 5 words on Homonyms
Science-Matter & Energy unit-fun experiments & exploration coming this week.  I am sure you will hear all about it. :)
Social Studies-finishing up map skills and working on some flag activities as we tied that into our Character trait of Citizenship.  Speaking of flag, ask your child what a nickname for the flag is and what the 3 colors represent.  If they can tell you, write flag in the planner for free money.  They were amazed  to see & hear about how our flag has changed throughout the years as we kept adding states to the union.
Read-A-Loud-we will continue to read Naya Nuki and all her adventures.  The big question now is:  "will she escape"?   If she does, when & how?????  Ask your child about this book daily as it is a fabulous survival adventure story.
Permission slips will be coming home on Monday for a little outing that Grades 4-6 will be taking on Friday, October 2nd.  We will be going to Castle Rock to watch the Skyview Homecoming Parade and to cheer on & support our High School.
PTA t-shirts & sweatshirts went home today if your child ordered one.
Thank you to those of you that signed up for Remind.com  It is so fast & easy isn't it!!!!!!
Have a great weekend, enjoy the nice weather,  and have fun at Saturday Live
Best of luck to all the students playing sports this weekend and of course GO CATS!!!!!!!!!

EARLY OUT TOMORROW!!!!!

Happy Wednesday and yes, it is an early out day tomorrow.  12:00 Dismissal!!!!
We have started a  new Read -A-Loud book.  It is called Naya Nuki. It ties in great with Montana History and Indian culture.  It is full of adventure & survival of an 11 yr. old girl.   Ask your child a little bit about it and if they can tell you, write Naya Nuki in the planner.
We just finished our first section of Montana History on the regions of Montana.  Ask your child what region Billings is in and if they can tell you, write Billings in the planner.
Now we will be able to spend more time on Science & Social Studies.  I can't do all 3 subjects so they will be on a rotational basis.
Go Math-we just completed our Rounding Numbers section and I think the kids have a great handle on the concept.  Ask them about our fun rounding song!!!!!!!
Speaking of Math- we will be starting our on-line practice program next week and it is called WOWZERS!!!!  It sounds like it is really going to be good as it is aligned with Common Core and it will put the kids on their own, individual learning path so what a great way to help differentiate. When we are up and running, I will let you know.
Remind.com--Those of you that were at Open House heard about this tool that I am using to communicate with each of you on a quick simple as needed basis.  I sent home the directions for signing up if I don't have you on my Remind page as of yet.  It is so quick, simple, and easy and I encourage you to do this.
Saturday Live is on Saturday, September 26th.  We are in need of more candy so if you haven't helped out yet and wish to do so please do by tomorrow.  Thank you.
Have a great night.

Past & Upcoming Happenings for Team Hankins

As you can see from the photos, we had a little fun discussing and learning about Heritage in Lead 21 yesterday.  Students learned about dances from India, Greece, and America.  Here you can see them doing the Bhangra & Square Dancing.  Have a visit this weekend about your heritage.  Eventually students will have to share when we have our Heritage Day. More on that to come.
Exciting news this week:  We have finished the book titled "Journey of Fallen Rock".  Have your child tell you who won and what the other brother is going to do and the exciting news they found out about the book.  If they can tell you, write Fallen Rock in the planner.
Today was Morgan's day to shine.  Many of her favorites are:  pizza, soccer, drawing, pink, and Christmas.  She wants to learn about MT History this year and her idea of a perfect day is playing with friends.

Upcoming Happenings for the Week:
Spelling-Unit 4 words
Language-Combining sentences with compound subjects & predicates as well as Run-on sentences
Reading-Continuing with Lead 21 & Heritage
Writing-writing a personal narrative
Math-Rounding Numbers-also this week will be the mid-chapter review so let's hope we have all remembered & maintained the skills for the first 4 lessons!!!!
Science-Matter & Energy
MT History-3 regions of MT
Social Studies-latitude & longitude.

Early Out:  Thursday, September 24th is an Early Out day (12:00 dismissal) so plan accordingly.
Remember PE shoes on Monday

Congratulations to the students who made the first Honor Choir tryouts.  I know Mrs. McKinnsey said it was so hard to decide.  Now they are on to the 2nd tryouts next week.  Great job to all who tried out and if you didn't make it that is OK.  The fact that you took a risk and tried out is the most important.  Don't give up on yourself and Keep Believing!!!!  You are all AWESOME!!!
Have a great weekend.

Thank you-Thank you

First of all, I would like to thank you for coming to the Open House last night if you were able to make it.  It is so good to see you take an interest in your child's education and to see & hear about the classroom happenings of where they spend a good portion of their day.  Let me know one highlight of the evening by writing it in the planner for free money.
Just a few notes for the rest of the week:  If you sold coupon books and didn't get them last night, your child should have brought them home tonight for you to deliver.  Thank you to all of you for helping & for our wonderful PTA for all their work in this endeavor.
First round of Honor Choir tryouts are complete and your child will be notified on Friday as to whether they made it into the 2nd round.
Lead 21 small readers-we started these today with some good group reading & discussions.
Mrs. Neese started her classroom sessions today.  Ask your child about the funny video they watched & if they can tell you about it, write president in the planner for money.
In Montana History this week, we learned about the Continental Divide in which it runs through MT.  Ask your child what is significant about the rivers on the east & west side of it and if they can tell you where the rivers drain into, write Continental Divide in the planner.
Remember Library books & PE shoes for Friday.
Celebration Time-They have earned their first 25 compliment points so we will have a class celebration on Friday.  Whoot-whoot!!!!!  Fun thing about most of these compliments is that they came from other adults in the building that these kiddos come in contact with.  Proud teacher here!!!!
Have a great night.

Hankins's Happenings for Next Week!!!

First of all, I have to apologize for not blogging on Wednesday.  We had a staff meeting and then I got busy unpacking & hooking up the 30 new Chrome Books that we have for the 4th graders!!!! Exciting!!!  Thank you once again for voting for the Tech Levy to make this happen. :)
This has been another GREAT week in our classroom.  These students are so very fun to be with on a daily basis.  They are kind, caring, well mannered, and willing to learn.  They have been earning lots of compliment points from other teachers and personal in the building.  We are almost ready for our first class CELEBRATION!!   I love it!!!  So thank you for all you do.
We started our Fall MAP testing and have completed the Reading & Language portions.  We will do the Math on Tuesday of next week.
This past week we finished our Montana Symbols & most of our map skills.  Ask your child to tell you one of MT's nicknames and also to tell you the 4 hemispheres of the world.  If they can, write the nickname and the word hemisphere for free money.
Also, in math we have been working on place value, the different forms of numbers, and how each place is 10x greater than the place before it.  I think we have it down.  Have them write the expanded & word form of 321,987.
Upcoming happenings for the week:

Reading-We will be starting Lead 21 now that we have 3 data points to decide which groups students will be placed in.  You will be notified if your child will be receiving an intervention such as System 44 or Read 180 for reading, language, and spelling.
Spelling-we will do Unit 3 even though we didn't test on Unit 2 due to the MAP testing.
Language-we will be working on parts of speech as well as subjects & predicates.
Math-comparing & ordering numbers.
Science-yes we will finally start our unit on Matter.
Social Studies-Latitude & Longitude.
Montana History-the rivers & mountains of MT.
Lots of fun learning coming- :)

Coupon books are due on Monday, September 14th.  Return envelope with any sales you made as well as the book you received if you are not purchasing it.
Saturday Live candy-please keep it coming in.  $50/bag of free money
First auditions for Honor Choir will be this week.
Congratulations to Ella, our student of the week.  Some of her favorites are: Math, chicken pot pie, the show "Chopped", and Easter.  She feels she is unique and wants to get better at Division.  Her idea of a perfect day is a nice, sunny, blue day where she can sit and see shapes in the sky.
Happy Birthday this week to Tira & Cooper.  Thank you for the yummy treats!!!
REMINDER:   OPEN HOUSE IS ON TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15 AT 5:30-6:30.  SEE YOU THEN!!!!!
Have a great weekend and as always any questions, please ask.

Happy Friday

Proud teacher here-we had a GREAT whole week of school.  We are settling into the routine and working hard.  Now this upcoming week will have all subjects into place.  Here are the happenings next week:
In Go Math-we will continue with place value & number sense.  This consists of the value of numbers, comparing numbers, rounding numbers, etc.  We will be doing lots of white board practice as well as games to practice these skills.
Lead 21-we will begin our 1st Unit which is on Heritage.  This is a fun unit and it gets families talking about their own heritage & culture.  We have a fun sharing day at the conclusion of the unit.  More on that at a much later date.  Students who will qualify for System 44 or Read 180 will be bringing a slip home next week and they will be in the Learning Center for Reading, Language, & Spelling.
Spelling-Unit 2 words
Language-sentences & sentence structure as well as Parts of Speech.
Science -we will be starting a unit on Matter & Energy
Social Studies-Latitude/Longitude and the 4 hemispheres
MT History-The rivers & mountains of Montana.

Today students had a chance to spend some of their fake $ on a treat or 2.  It was up to them.  Our next opportunity to spend some of their money will be to have lunch with Mrs. Hankins. :)

Remember coupon book sales go until September 14th.
Honor Choir purple slips are due on Friday, September 11th
Saturday Live is on Saturday, September 26th.  Bitterroot School is once again sponsoring the Candy Shack.  Please if you can help out by bringing a bag, or 2, or 3, etc. of NON-CHOCOLATE candy.  I will give free $ for each bag donated.  Thank you in advance.
Thank you to Nolan for sharing his student of the week items.  We learned that some of his favorites are bacon, Math, video games, blue, and Christmas.  Nolan describes himself as a very caring person and we would agree and he looks forward to learning a lot about MT History this year.  He hopes to get better at spelling and his idea of a perfect day is jumping on the trampoline.  Ask your child about 2 things he shared in the student of the week tub and if they can tell you, write Nolan for free money.
Have a great weekend.

Happy Hump Day!!!

Wowzers!!  The days are flying by.  Just a quick little update on a couple of things.  First of all, these kids are amazing and really working hard and doing their best.  I look forward to seeing all of you at the Open House on September 15th.  I will explain our classroom routines & happenings at that time.
Thank you to all of you for returning all the information packets in a timely manner.  This really helps out Christy in the office.
We have been working hard in our new math series called "Go Math".  It is making us think during the application part and also we are doing more writing in math to explain our thinking/strategies.  This is a stretch for all, but it is going to be a great thing.
Montana History is one of the favorite things I think right now in the classroom.  The kids are learning a lot of basic, but new things about our state.  Ask them to tell you 3 of the state symbols as well as MT's birthday, the year we became a state, and the # of state we are in the union.  If they can tell you the answers to all these write "Montana" in the planner.
Read Aloud-we started the book called "Journey of Fallen Rock".  Ask your child to tell you about it and what the 2 boys in the story have to do and why they are going to do it.  Also, discuss with them which challenge they think will be the most difficult.
We just finished taking our SRI Reading test on computers today and our Beginning of the year placement for Lead 21 so we will be ready to start on Tuesday.
Remember to be studying spelling words for Unit 1 as the test is on Friday.  Remember they are listed here on the side of the blog as well.
Honor Choir sheets-if your child wants to try out for Honor Choir they need to fill out the PURPLE forms and return them to school by Friday, September 11th.
PTA News:  Coupon Books Fundraiser-the deadline for taking orders is September 14th. Remember you will either have to return or purchase the book you received.
Thank you and if any questions, please email me.
Have a great night.