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Dear Parents and Guardians,
The sun is finally escaping from the clouds. It is hard to believe how much rain has
fallen this month. This weekend should
be perfect to spending time with the family enjoying the fall weather.
To keep you in the loop, last evening after dismissal we
smelled an electrical odor in the communications room. There was no smoke or fire in that area. We contacted Safety and Security and they
suggested we get a consultation visit from the Fire Department where they come
out and check the area for potential issues.
Somehow, the communication was muddled, and they came to the school with
their sirens blaring. They checked the
area and suggested that the HVAC heat might have been activated and sent out an
odor from dust in the system. They
checked the roof and the surrounding areas and found no need for concern. All is good😊
The students are doing great and are highly engaged in the
classroom lessons and activities. The
teachers continue to spend a great deal of time in planning and implementing
their programs. I am so impressed with
their efforts and professionalism.
The article this week focuses on creating fluent readers in
second grade.
“Getting
Second Graders Reading More Fluently”
In this
article in The Reading Teacher, Eun
Hye Son and Maggie Chase (Boise State University) report on an idea they
implemented with a second-grade teacher: improving fluency by having pairs of
students read carefully chosen books to each other and then assessing how they
did. The books were chosen with these criteria in mind:
- The plot
is driven by two characters who talk to each other throughout the story.
- The book
is funny and the characters are likable.
- The
speaking roles between the two characters are fairly balanced.
- It’s
clear which character is talking based on graphic features or font color.
- The
readability is appropriate for beginning readers, with ample use of sight
words.
- There
are abundant text features to support reading prosody.
-
Fonts
are used to indicate tone (e.g., a bold font when a character is yelling).The
teacher and researchers introduced the paired reading process by reading one of
the chosen books (Peep and Egg: I’m Not
Hatching) to the class, having students discuss and retell the story
(beginning, middle, and end), modeling how two readers would read the book
aloud to each other (the adults made intentional mistakes), then modeling how
they would assess each other, using a three-point scale (Just right, I still need some work, I’m not there yet) on these
aspects of fluency:
- I’m not
too fast and not too slow. (Pacing)
- My voice
goes up and down to show feeling. (Expression)
- I obey
the punctuation marks. (Observing punctuation)
- I read
all the words correctly. (Accuracy)
-
I
understand the story. (Comprehension)Note
that reading speed is not assessed. The authors believe a common misconception
is to conflate speed and fluency. They steer clear of timing readers’ speed and
don’t push students to read faster. “Instead,” say Son and Chase, “we set out
to purposely focus on reading for enjoyment, but with an emphasis on
comprehension, which would lead to prosody.” Next, students were paired up (by
reading levels, languages spoken, personality, motivation, or randomly) and the
teacher set up the paired reading activity as one of several stations through
which students would rotate during the literacy block. The instructions for
that station were:
- Decide
who will read each character.
- Select
the appropriate character stick (to point to the line being read).
- Begin
reading, helping each other as you go.
- When
done, use the self-assessment rubric to evaluate the reading.
- Reread
the book, practicing to improve prosody.
-
Switch
roles and read again.When
all students had rotated through the paired reading station, the class
debriefed how it went and in subsequent days, the teacher introduced different
books. Son and Chase report that students loved the paired reading, sometimes
rereading a book as many as 15 times.Over time, students might be ready to do Readers’ Theatre performances
of books for their classmates, the principal, other classes, or parents. Here are books the authors recommend for paired reading stations in
primary-grade classrooms:
-
There’s a Giraffe in My Soup by Ross Burach
-
You Are Not a Cat! by Sharon Flake
-
Peep and Egg: I’m Not Hatching by Laura Gehl
-
Peep and Egg: I’m Not Trick-or-Treating by Laura Gehl
-
You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You: Very Short
Fairy Tales to Read Together
by Mary Ann Hoberman
-
Tiger and Badger by Emily Jenkins
-
Snail and Worm: Three Stories About Two Friends by Tina Kugler
-
Mom, There’s a Bear at the Door by Sabine Lipan
-
This Is My Book! by Mark Pet
-
I Don’t Want to Be a Frog by Dev Petty
-
I Don’t Want to Be Big by Dev Petty
-
There Is a Bird on Your Head! by Mo Willems
-
Elephants Cannot Dance! by Mo Willems
-
Waiting Is Not Easy! by Mo Willems
-
I Will Take a Nap! by Mo Willems
-
The Thank You Book by Mo Willems
“Books for Two Voices: Fluency Practice with
Beginning Readers” by Eun Hye Son and Maggie Chase in The Reading Teacher, September/October 2018 (Vol. 72, #2, p.
233-240),
https://ila.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/trtr.1700; the authors can be reached at eunhyeson@boisestate.edu and maggiechase@boisestate.edu.
Have a great weekend!
Augie, Heather, Scott
During Kiss and Ride
During our morning and afternoon Kiss and Ride, do not turn
around in the lane, pull into parking spaces to turn around, or park and cross
the flow of Kiss and Ride to retrieve children. This causes further
delays in the line and diverts staff’s attention away from maintaining student
safety. Thank you for following the Kiss and Ride procedures and ensuring
safety for all students.
CogAt Testing
The CogAt testing window is October 2-12. All second graders and some 3rd-6th
graders will be taking the Cogat abilities assessment on October 2, 3, and 4. Notification
letters were sent home on Tuesday, September 25 to students who
will be taking this assessment. If you requested for your student to take
this test and did not get a notification letter on Tuesday, please contact
Scott Reeder, Assistant Principal, to confirm.
Haycock Elementary school to celebrate
National Walk to School Day on Thursday, October 4th,
2018
Haycock Elementary School
will join schools from around the country to celebrate National Walk to School
Day on Thursday October 4th, 2018.
Many students will be
riding or walking to school on THURSDAY along with parents, teachers and
community leaders.
Bicyclists and walkers will
arrive at the school between 9-9:15. Bikes can be locked in the two bike
racks near the front of the school or the bike racks near the back black
top. Students will receive a star stamp on their hand to show they rode a
bike or walked to school that day.
Walk to School Day encourages
a nationwide walk and bike-focused celebration for students in the month of
October and builds on the popularity and success of Bike to School Day, which
is celebrated across the country – and the world – each May.
Walk to School Day events
raise awareness of the need to create safer routes for bicycling and walking
and emphasize the importance of issues such as increasing physical activity
among children, pedestrian safety, reducing traffic congestion and concern for
the environment. The events build connections between families, schools and the
broader community.
The event is being organized
by the Haycock Physical Education Teachers with the help of parents.
Please contact Deborah Callsen and Nisha Hecht at
703-531-4019 if you have any questions or concerns.
For additional
information, please visit these websites:
Walk and Bike to School
Day
www.walkbiketoschool.org
National Center for Safe
Routes to School
www.saferoutesinfo.org
AAP Information
Fall Level IV Screening
The deadline for Fall Level IV Referrals (for ANY student
NEW to FCPS as of January 1, 2018 in 3rd-8th grades) is October 11, 2018.
Please contact Mrs. Brower (lsbrower@fcps.edu)
or Mrs. Trumbull (astrumbull@fcps.edu)
with any questions.
AAP Levels of Service
Please go to our Haycock Webpage to view a PowerPoint reviewing the Advanced Academics
Program’s Levels of Service that was presented at the AAP Parent Information Night.
An AAP Fall Newsletter is also attached.
CogAT Testing
The CogAT testing window is October 1-12, 2018.
MONSTER
MASH DASH
5K and 1
Mile Fun Run
Register Today!
Join us for our 5th
Annual Monster Mash Dash 5k and 1-Mile Fun Run! There
will be awards for the best costume, so come decked out in your
Halloween finest! Enjoy a
flat, fast loop course through charming downtown McLean.
Sunday,
October 28th, 8:00 am
Franklin
Sherman Elementary School
6633
Brawner St, McLean VA 22101
To register and for more information, check out the
website below.
$30 early bird registration ends Friday, October 5th
www.fsespta.org/mash-dash
Advertise
Help us spread the word!
The Monster Mash Dash is open to the public! Tell
your friends, post on social media, and advertise on your neighborhood
listserve! The more participants the better. Here's the
link:
www.fsespta.org/mash-dash
Sponsorship
ALL of the sponsorship dollars raised stay with Franklin
Sherman! Check out the sponsorship opportunities at the FSES
PTA website by clicking HERE
THANK
YOU to our newest sponsors!
Silver Level
www.brusharborhomes.com
Bronze Level
www.fuchsdermatology.com
www.clarendonanimalcare.com
Prize Donors
www.mossbuildinganddesign.com
www.skenrichment.com
THANK
YOU to our Wonderful Sponsors
Silver Level
www.cypressfit.com
www.surroundslandscaping.com
Bronze Level
www.listranismclean.com
www.chantillyacademy.com
Hope to see you there!
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