Welcome Back!! Spring break has come and gone and we are into the third (and final) term of the year! We have lots to look forward to this term. We were pleasantly surprised, when we all came into the classroom on Monday, that our seed potatoes that we planted just before spring break, have sprouted and grown quite substantially! Yesterday we measured them and documented some observations we had. We will continue to do so until they are ready to harvest (and eat!). We finished measuring and observing our daffodils before spring break - and it's probably a good thing we did, since most were picked or broke off over the break! As many of you may have heard, we lost all our alevin right before spring break, so sadly we won't be able to see them turn into fry (this would have begun happening very shortly). But, I think it was still a good learning experience and we will still be dissecting a salmon in the near future! Stay tuned for that!
Today we talked about 3 important goals that our class is going to have for the final term. Our first goal is "Getting homework done on time". This has been a constant struggle for some students and it can be difficult when a student gets behind in homework and needs to get caught up. To inspire them to work towards this goal, I am starting a new homework reward program. I will track who hands in assignments on time. Once 10 assignments have gone by, whoever handed in all 10 will get a prize. The second round will be a little different, as I will be looking to reward not only those who get 10 out or 10, but also those who IMPROVE on the next round.
Our second goal is "Completing work to the best of our ability". I have noticed that some students have not been taking their time on assignments and completing work that is messy and sometimes unlegible. If I cannot read or understand what has been written, it will sometimes needs to be redone. I am hoping students will do their best and apply themselves. Finally, our last goal is "Raising a quiet hand to speak". This is just a reminder for an expectation that was set at the beginning of the year. A few have forgotten and sometimes call out answers or forget to raise their hand respectfully. I'm sure we'll all be working hard towards these goals this term!
