Happy Halloween!

Dear Parents,

This is one of our most exciting times of the year for the students: HALLOWEEN! The teachers have been working very hard to turn the school into a haunted tree house. Halloween was one of my favorite times as a kid so I hope our Aliens enjoy it too.

We welcomed Estella into our class this week and are happy to have her with us!

The Aliens reviewed vocabulary and took a test on all the vocabulary words they've had so far this year. There were 100 words on the test and many did a good job considering! I gave them back their reading tests and reviewed the questions that were missed. I like to take the time to do that so they understand why they missed the questions and how to take the test better next time. This test is very difficult for any student to get 100 because the tests come from an American textbook and not easy for 2nd language students.

Some of the classes did a Halloween crossword puzzle, a true-false Halloween quiz, made Trick-or-Treat bags, carved pumpkins into Jack-O-Lanterns, read the words and watched the music video of Michael Jackson's spooky song called "Thriller".

All the Tree House students went to neighborhood shops and went Trick-or Treating. It was nice to see the students dressed up and having fun.

The students do not have vocabulary or student journals this weekend but next week Halloween will be behind us and we can get back to reading more stories. Have a spooky and safe weekend!

All the best,

Teacher Andy

INDIVIDUAL COMMENTS:

Benson: Really improved from last week on his vocabulary scored very high on his big test! Keep it up and please make tine to study with Eliza so you can help each other.

Eason: Scored 97 on his reading test! Very impressive for this grade level. Does really well with vocabulary too.

Fisher: Did well on her tests and seems to really enjoy the Halloween activities.

Frank: Got a little scared when we watched "Astro Boy" last week, but he sat with me for the rest of the movie. Hope he enjoys Halloween!

Jerry: Did a really great job on his reading test!

Justin: Glad to see him back at school and feeling much better after the last week! Scored 100 on his vocabulary test. Needs to make up his reading test on Monday.

Phil: Scored a 100 on his vocabulary mid-term! Fantastic job!

Serena: Scored 98 on her vocabulary mid-term! Really getting better at studying, keep it up!

Stephanie: Likes to participate in class, did well on her vocabulary test.

Albert: Scored 93 on his reading test, which is a impressive score for his age! Keep up the good work!

Andrew: Had lots of smiles in class this week reviewing and doing Halloween activities!

Carson: Really gets excited about Halloween and had a great time this week!

Eliza: Try studying vocabulary with Benson, test was not as good as some of the other times.

Estella: Glad to have her join our grade 2 class! Seems very attentive in class.

Henry: Is having a difficult time learning the new vocabulary words. He really enjoyed the Halloween activities.

Irene: Very attentive in class, scored a 93 on her reading test. Fantastic job!

Tricia: Nice to see her back in class, really enjoyed Halloween. Scored 93 on her reading test! Great work and keep it up!

BBQ and Cowboys

Dear Parents,

This week the Alien class read a story called 'Roundup At Rio Ranch' about a boy named Jose who is going on his first cattle roundup with his father, grandfather, and brother. He is very excited to do this because he has heard so many stories from his grandfather about cowboys doing these roundups. At first Jose is not very good at using his lariat to catch cows, but he keeps practicing and is able to do it. I told the students how important it is to keep practicing, even when things seem very difficult at first and I shared with them how I have to keep practicing my trombone if I want to get better. This story continued the theme of traditions, like from our last story, 'Luka's Quilt'. The first class got to make a lariat and

This week we reviewed and tested on the plants chapter in science. The students also took a vocabulary test on the Week 6 words after lots of review activities. I gave them a new vocabulary word list to write in their books for homework this weekend.

For the take-home readers we read a story called 'The Bear Man' about a family of Indians that help a bear cub in the woods. They are to read the story to their parents, answer the questions in complete sentences, draw a picture about the story, and bring them back to class on Monday.

Today for Fun Day we will have a BBQ! Yummy!

Have a great weekend!

All the best,

Teacher Andy

Tighten Up!

Dear Parents,

This week the Alien class continued to learn about plants and how people use plants for so many things. From plants we get paper and wood products, medicine, clothes, lots of food and, most importantly, oxygen. I also stressed to them how they can make the world they live in cleaner and better if they use less products like to-go cups and food containers. I feel it is important for people to learn these values early so they can begin to practice them and show others how they can make a difference.

We did a song this week called "Do the Tighten Up". There are not many words to this song because it is mostly an instrumental, but it is good to let students hear and be able to identify different musical instruments and their sounds. "Tighten up" means a band should play together in-time to sound good.

The students were given a new vocabulary list to write in their vocabulary book and bring back on Monday. We will have a test at the end of next week so please help your child study and be prepared.

Instead of doing the take-home readers and student journals we read the famous children's story 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf'. Many students know this story but Tree House wants them to know about INTEGRITY, or doing the right thing and not telling lies. There are a few new words in the story that they might not know, but we read and discussed the story in class. They are to read this story to their parents' for homework and talk about integrity. Please sign your name on the paper after they have read it to you and have them bring it back to class on Monday.

For Fun Day we will go back to the sports center to do archery and table tennis. The kids really enjoyed this last week and it gives them a chance to learn new activities that they may be interested in.

Happy National Day weekend!

All the best,

Teacher Andy



INDIVIDUAL COMMENTS:

Benson: Bright student who works very hard in class! Great job!

Eason: Sometimes talks when it is another student's turn. Please be more considerate of others. Great job on vocabulary test!

Fisher: Very respectful student, needs to speak louder in class. She read a story on Wednesday to the kindergarten class, thank you!

Frank: Needs to work more diligently in class so that he can complete the assignments on time.

Jerry: Really likes to participate in class and ask questions.

Justin: Doing very well with vocabulary and has improved his class performance. Great job!

Phil: Always works very diligently and learns new material very well. Keep it up!

Serena: Seems to be more comfortable in class and loves to participate.

Stephanie: Understands new material well and works hard during classtime. Thanks so much for the moon cake last week, yummy!

Albert: Very enthusiastic in class and loves to participate. Please be considerate of others when it is their turn to speak.

Andrew: Really enjoys asking questions and contributing to class discussions.

Carson: Did poorly on his last vocabulary test. Please study the week 4 and 5 words and try to improve on your vocabulary test on Monday.

Eliza: Feels very comfortable now in class but sometimes shy about answering questions.

Irene: Works super hard in class and always finishes her work in a timely manner. Excellent job!

Henry: Did poorly on his last vocabulary test. Please study the week 4 and 5 words and try to improve on your vocabulary test on Monday.

Tricia: Wonderful and thoughtful student that enjoys participating in class. Keep it up!

Marble and a Trombone

Dear Parents,

This week I had a few surprises for the Aliens! The early class got to go to a nearby park to read this week's story, which was "Luka's Quilt". This was a great story that taught the students about respecting their parents, grandparents and traditions.

I brought my trombone to school a few times recently. I played Happy Birthday for Jerry and some other famous songs. The late class got to try to make sounds on the trombone and some got some strong notes to come out.

I also let the children meet my new dog from the animal shelter named MARBLE! I taught the kids to be very careful when they see a new dog and to approach it carefully. They got to feed him treats and pet him.

I enjoyed meeting so many of you at the Open House last Friday! Thanks to all that came out.

The students will have a vocabulary test on the week 4 and 5 words on Tuesday or Wednesday next week. Please start studying this weekend.

Have a safe and Happy Moon Festival weekend!

All the best,

Teacher Andy