February 3rd ~ 7th

Our snow accumulation continues to climb, as does my desire for spring! I must admit that the snow this weekend was beautiful.

Looking ahead . . . Thursday the 13th is an early-out day and there is no school on Friday the 14th or Monday the 17th.

6th Grade Parents ~ Don't forget to gather those yearbook pics and either send them back in the envelopes provided, or email digitally. Due date for photos is February 13th.

The kids will be taking a qualifier test on Monday for our school Spelling Bee. Teachers will meet Monday after school to determine the students who qualified for the Spelling Bee on Tuesday February 11th at 9:00 a.m. The winner from Poly Drive will represent our school at the county bee.

This year, Poly Drive has been chosen to pilot our Common Core assessment tools through Smarter Balanced. These assessments will take the place of the MontCAS tests given each spring that determine Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) status each year. The tests through Smarter Balanced are more rigorous and require the students to utilize information from several sources before responding. Our class will take a couple of practice exams on Monday and Wednesday so we are familiar with the format and online tools within the exams.

On Monday, the 6th graders will attend a "Talent Search" presentation that encourages the kids to think about what comes after high school. The presenters will discuss college, trade schools, and jobs right after high school. Information will come home on Monday that provides details about the organization and how they can assist with post-graduate decisions. Middle school is not too early to begin thinking about the options.

Ryan Matzinger, an acclaimed saxophonist, will perform at our school on Tuesday. We are very fortunate to have him visit Poly Drive and the kids will really enjoy his music and presentation.

Mrs. Tatum, our school counselor, will teach another lesson in our room on Wednesday afternoon.

The 5th grade science fair will take place on Friday afternoon from 12:45 - 3:00.

Valentine's Day ~ We will celebrate with a classroom party from 11-12 on Thursday the 13th. If your child would like to bring Valentines, please make sure that one is provided for each student. The kids will plan the party and sign up for decorations, treats, games, etc.

Spelling ~ We will take a pretest of the Unit 20 words on Monday, work with our words and vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th: words with -ed and -ing endings
6th: suffixes -able/-ible, -ate
Language ~ The kids will have written assignments on Tuesday and Wednesday.
5th: Declarative sentences
6th: Subordinating conjunctions
Reading ~ We will practice assessments online. We will do a close reading of an article on Thursday.
Math ~
5th: The kids will work with converting fractions to decimals & adding and subtractions fractions with like and unlike denominators.
6th: We are transitioning from ratios and rates, to solving proportions and cross multiplication.
6th Grade Social Studies ~ We will continue learning about the Hebrews and Judaism by completing a classroom activity together on Thursday.
5th Grade Science ~ The kids will prepare for the science fair on Friday.
6th Grade Science ~ We are learning about the earth's layers and magnetic field. We will take a short quiz on Friday.
Buddies ~ Tuesday is the 100th day of school and we will make a snack mix with our buddies that will consist of 100 items per person.

Have a fantastic week!!