Happy Friday!

Tonight we will be experiencing a confluence of three celestial events in the same night: a penumbral lunar eclipse, a snow moon and a comet. As the moon rises on Friday, it will pass through the outer edge of the Earth’s shadow, called the penumbra.  During this type of eclipse, you will see a darkening of the moon from the bottom edge moving towards the top as the night progresses, but not a total lunar blackout. The eclipse will begin around 4:45 PM—shortly before moonrise—and end around 8:50 PM.  The best viewing time will be around 6:45 PM. Be sure to check it out with your kiddos! We have been learning so much about stars and the solar system in science! This is a great connection for the kids to make with their learning! 

Literacy* We just finished reading Jess and Layla’s Astronomical Adventure.  The students really enjoyed this text. Be sure to have them summarize the book for you. Our next book that we will be reading as a class is Our Mysterious Universe.   We will be focusing on how visual elements in a text help us to understand how elements in a text relate to each other.  We are also going to learn how readers can understand relationships and interactions between elements in a text.

Reading Logs   As you know, the format for reading log responses is a bit different. Each Friday I will be posting a series of questions that the students will respond to via a schoology discussion board. Students are also required to respond to the submissions of classmates. Last week we had a great string of responses! I believe that the kids are also getting great book suggestions from each other! In junior high students are expected to be well-versed in utilizing schoology so I am trying to give them more opportunities to become comfortable with its format. Reading response submissions are due each morning before school and reading log minute sheets are due on Mondays as usual. 

Writing* Students have been wrapping up their historical journal entries. Each student chose a historical space discovery to research and write a journal article. Be sure to ask your student about the subject of his/her journal article! We have topics on everything from black holes to constellations!  Next week we will be working on writing summaries, including at least two main ideas and supporting details.

Math* We are wrapping up multiplying fractions, mixed numbers, and whole numbers.  Now we are heading into dividing fractions!  We are still working on solving real world word problems and determining what operation(s) we need to use to solve word problems. You can expect a few CFA’s to come home next Friday!

Social Studies* We are continuing to discuss our freedoms compared to other countries and cultures.

Science* Today we started a multi-day, high-interest STEM (science-technology-engineering-mathematics) activity that involves WATER-BOTTLE FLIPPING! Today we conducted our preliminary data collection by recording the heights, volumes, and shapes of four different types of water bottles. Next week we will also be examining the role that gravity plays in the process! We will also predict how much water yields the best “flipping” results! The most highly anticipated aspect, of course, is the point in the experiment when the kids will be doing the flipping! As you can imagine, the kids are very excited about this!

Next week in science we will also design and build telescopes to practice the engineering design process. We read about several different types of telescopes this week.

Friendly Reminders and Upcoming Events
** Valentine's Day Parties - From Mrs. Gluck's Newsletter:

If you choose to include an item with your child's Valentines, please note that only non-food items are permissible.  Candy, snacks, or any sort of food item will be sent back home with your child on Valentine's day if sent to school.  Non-food items are permitted, and there are many pre-packaged Valentines that can be purchased that include a trinket (i.e., pencil, erasers, book mark, etc.). Card and party stores are a great place to look for these types of items.  Here are some ideas of non-food items if you choose to include something:  pencils, erasers, stickers, plastic or rubber figurines, mini deck of cards, spinning top, or crazy straws to name a few.

Many of our students have medically based dietary restrictions and this does not include students on specific diets of family choice such as vegetarian, low cal/sugar, religious, and so on.  Monitoring the individual needs and requests is not feasible, thus not safe. In addition, it is frequently reported that several children eat Valentine's treats on the bus, as evidenced by an abundance of wrappers found.  This poses a choking risk, as well as exposure for students with specific health restrictions. Thank you for your assistance in helping us maintain the health, safety, and personal family preferences of our students.

** Please remember to send your child with a healthy snack.  Candy as a snack is not permitted. Nothing feeds the brain like a healthy snack!  

Friendly Reminders and Upcoming Events

**Tuesday, Feb., 14—Valentine’s Day parties @ 2:00 (Make sure to bring your Valentines that day!)

**Thurs., Feb., 16—5th Grade Music Program @ 6:30 pm

**Fri., Feb., 17—3rd-5th Movie Night @ 6:00

**Mon., Feb.20—No School Presidents Day  

**Fri., Feb. 24—End of Trimester 2

**Tues., Feb. 28—Early Release and Band Concert at Twin Groves

**Wednesday, March 1—Ivy Hall Celebrates @7:00 pm

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.  

Thank you and have a fabulous weekend!

Julie Holzhauer