During the month of February, the kindergarteners will be doing an author study on Jan Brett.  We will read many of the wonderful books that Jan Brett has written and illustrated.  We will discuss how she uses her illustrations to help us predict what will happen next. 

  Students will compare The Gingerbread Baby to other gingerbread stories.  The kindergarteners will also retell various Jan Brett stories using the words beginning, middle, and end.

  The kindergarteners will also be discussing Community Helpers in February.  We will take a look at many occupations that are important to our communities.  Some of the jobs we will study are: cooks/chefs, fire fighters, police officers, dentists, soldiers, and mail carriers.  We are excited to learn about each of these jobs.  If you are an expert in any of these areas and are willing to share your job with us, please contact Mrs. LaRoue.

  The First Graders were so excited to be the presenters of the All School Assembly.  The students each had a part in making the assembly a success. I am so proud of all the first graders.  WAY TO GO!!
  During the month of February the students will be taking a closer look at the human body.  They will be learning about the different systems in the body and how they work.  Each child will create a 'flat self' and add body parts as we learn about them.
  Here are some other activities that they will be covering in class.
Math:  graphing, tallies, place value, addition/subtraction, and skip counting
Language Arts:  nouns, verbs, adding details, and naming the writing process steps
Social Studies: reading and creating maps, states, continents, and oceans
Art:  Georgia O'Keefe

  Wow! It is February already! We have been so busy in second grade and we aren’t stopping! We are beginning a study of the mystery genre. This includes analyzing the elements of a mystery and filling out a case report of our mystery read aloud. Then they will begin writing their mysteries.

  In math, we are finishing up multiplication and division. They will be moving on to finding missing addends and then data analysis.

  We started a new author study this month. The second graders are looking at Eric Carle’s books and finding his fingerprints in his stories and working with reading strategies on his books.

  Our science unit will take us out of this world! We will begin a study of the Solar System! This will include an overview of the planets and finding their place in space, looking at different constellations, and discovering what else lies in space…

  This month in third grade we are enjoying learning about famous African Americans in honor of African American History Month.  Students will be creating projects of their choice in regards to a famous African American  they have an interest in learning about or learning more about.  From skits to paintings, we are excited to display are hard work.  We are also looking forward to our field trip mid-month to see the production of "Harriet Tubman".  It is always great to see what we are learning in class brought to life on stage.

  The challenge is on and we are ready for it..... Math Fact Families!  Over the past months we have been working diligently on our multiplication and division facts.  Now we are working at mastering those facts, and how will we do it?........ ICE CREAM!  Students will monitor their mastery of their fact families with adding scoops of ice cream, cherries, and sprinkles to their ice cream bowl.  Once we have our ice cream dishes completed, we will celebrate!  We have also been busy working with geometry and creating bar, picto, and line graphs.  Students conducted surveys and collected data on their own and within the school to display the information in various graphs.  It was interesting to see the number of points the Timberwolves scored each game in a week and the weekly temperatures in Woodbury.  Great job!

  We are enjoying our "new" weekly "Quick Labs".  Every Wednesday we are participating in various science experiments.  These quick labs help us review past science topics and look at the scientific method.In addition to our "quick labs" we have begun our study of the solar system.  We had fun investigating telescopes and look forward to month of answering questions like, why do we have day and night? Why does he moon looks different on certain nights?  How did  the constellations get their names?

  To the Indies we go!  Or at least that's where the early North American explorers thought they were heading.  We have indeed begun to look at the explorers of our continent.  We have had some great class simulations to create a sense of how it was for explorers at that time, along with some great debates on crediting these explorers with "discovering" the land.  Along with these simulations and debates comes great projects we are working on as well.  Creating water color shoals, making compasses, filling treasure chests, and a whole lot more.

  As you can see we are learning a great deal, and having a wonderful time doing so.  We look forward to preparing for the March School Assembly, continuing running the school store, science fair, our African American presentations, and so much more!

  Fourth grade students are very excited to present their projects at the FPA Science Fair this month. In class we have reviewed the scientific method, tracked progress of each project and have been talking about how to present scientific findings. Our next science unit will include learning more about Earth and how it changes over time.   To go along with looking at the timeline of Earth, students will work on a timeline and autobiography of their own life.

  Students are wrapping up a unit on Shakespeare after reading his poetry and plays. We will also have our last poetry reading this month. I have been so impressed with the poetry that has been shared so far and anticipate a wonderful last sharing time.

  In social studies, we continue to study the colonization of America. Students are able to explain why different groups came to America, the challenges they faced when they arrived and set up their colonies and what daily life was like in America.

  Students have been asked to select two theme books to read at home during the month of February (into the beginning of March). All of the book choices represent our learning theme, "One World, Many Stories". After students finish reading the books, we will be using them as references as we learn the many stories of our country's history. Students will be participating in an cross curricular study of WWI, the Great Depression, WWII, Segregation and the Civil Rights Movement . . . right up to present day by the end of the year. I will be integrating reading, writing, social studies, geography, math, science, art, and technology throughout the unit of study.

  In Art Mrs. Lisa has just completed a four week study of Surrealism (seeing something ordinary in an extraordinary way). During her four weeks, students learned about Dali and his form of art. Each student created a collage out of magazine pictures and is now working on an original painted masterpiece. We hope to complete these paintings by next week. I plan to display them on our classroom window.

  For Health students are learning about nutrition and the benefits of eating healthy. We have looked at food labels, studied the food pyramid, and even created healthy menus specific to dietary needs/requirements. We are learning a lot!

Things have been moving along well in Spanish!  We are keeping very busy.  All classes will continue to review and refine all the things we have learned thus far.  In addition, all classes will be talking about how la Navidad is celebrated in certain Latin American countries and will be learning some holiday songs.  Each class will also be introduced to new units, which are as follows:

Kindergarten & 1st Grade:  Classroom

2nd grade & 3rd grade:  Family

4th grade:  Family and possessive adjectives

5th/6th grade:  Verbs: present tense conjugations and talking about likes and dislikes.     

     During the month of January the younger students focused on teamwork and cooperation.  They learned various new tag games that included these skills.  This month they will participate in games and activities that include manipulative skills as well as locomotor movements.

     The third and fourth grade students spent the month of January focused on Pirate Ball, basketball, teamwork, and cooperation vs. competitive games.  During the month of February they will learn the basics of pickelball and tennis.

     The fifth and sixth grade boys and girls began January with a unit on bowling that ended with a trip to the bowling alley.  They also revisited the game of basketball, and spent the end of the month learning the game of Badminton.  During February they will participate in a pickelball tournament and learn the basics of tennis.  We have also planned a trip to the neighborhood ice rink.

Music

 Music Notes from Mrs. Salter

January will be a fun month for music classes!  All of the grades will be exploring new concepts in class.

Kindergarten:  Students will continue to listen for steady beat, long and short sounds, and matching pitches.  We will work on creating many different movements to perform on the steady beat of a variety of songs.

1^st Grade:   The first graders are learning about lullabies and what qualities exist in most lullabies.  They came up with some very descriptive words to describe the lullaby “Lady, Lady” and are working on singing with a soft voice.

2^nd Grade:  The second graders have been talking about the musical term “timbre”.  The way an instrument is made gives it a special sound, or timbre.  We’ve been talking about how a tambourine has a variety of timbres because you can tap and shake it. 

3^rd Grade:  It’s recorder time!  I always look forward to teaching this fun unit to the 3^rd graders.  We will work on reading notated music and playing this awesome instrument in class.  I will send a note to all 3^rd grade families including details about recorder expectations in school and at home.

4^th Grade:  The fourth graders are learning about syncopation.  A syncopated rhythm is when the accent falls on the off beat.  We are working on looking at basic rhythms, adding ties, and creating our new syncopated rhythms. 

5^th and 6^th Grade:  The 5^th and 6^th graders have been learning about how dynamics make music interesting.  They are starting a group project in which they will add dynamics to poetry and perform it in front of their class.  I’m looking forward to hear what they come up with!

Hello everyone, I hope all of you survived the snowfall.  Just remember, Spring Break is right around the corner, so we can keep our hopes up for nicer weather soon.  We need to start getting ready for the Twins season which will hopefully help us forget the heartache over the Vikings loss.  But Trailblazers is still going strong and looking for an exciting rest of the year.

  Trailblazer’s had great time with School Release days in January.  We had a blast snow tubing at Afton Alps and were glad to see so many of you there.  We have one school release day this month which is on Monday, February 15, we will be having popcorn and movie day with Valentines treats.  Sign ups are on the gym doors.

  Cooking Club started this week on Tuesdays and Thursdays and will run through 2/25.  Our next club will be the Construction Zone, where we will put our hands to the test to build cool objects. 

  I will be getting the Spring Break Sign up out soon, so we can start staffing properly for it.  Trailblazers will be open over Spring Break this year the week of March 29-April 2.  Please sign up on the gym doors to reserve your spot. 

Monday 3/29 – Card Tournament

Tuesday 3/30 – Field Trip to Bielenberg Sports Complex (1:00pm-3:00pm)

Wednesday 3/31 – Relay Races

Thursday 4/1 – Bowling at PINZ in Oakdale (1:00pm-2:00pm)

Friday 4/2 – All Programs Closed

  Summer Camp Packets will be out this month so be sure to reserve your spot early.  We have many cool adventures, themed weeks, and daily activities.  Remember, our camps are for kids entering grades 1-2, 3-8, and also our JCC Program.  Our JCC Program is for kids entering grades 6-8.  Here they will learn responsibilities and work to build their futures.  They will be touring colleges, prepping for ACT/SAT, learning how to apply for a job, resume building, and so much more. 

  Early registration for Trailblazers next year will start this month.  Please pick up a packet or see me with any questions you have about Trailblazers or transportation to other schools. 

  Please checkout our blog where you will find pictures of Afton Alps and other activities we have done.  Contact me with any questions you may have.  Look for summer packets and early Trailblazers registration packets for 2010-2011 soon. 

Thanks!
Corey Strinmoen  — Trailblazers Coordinator