Welcome back to school in this new year!  I hope everyone had a restful break!

As you all know, I missed the first 2 weeks of December due to my surgery.  The week before Winter Break, the EY team spent some time taking on the role of learner at teacher trainings, and diving into data in order to best meet the needs of all students in the district.  Although these tasks were important, this led to less time with students which is why I’m very much looking forward to the coming weeks.

Soon we will be ready to dive into our new 3rd quarter focus which is science-based.  Currently students are working on finishing their 20-year timeline (current events from our world, nation, and local community will be included for each year), as well as the Battle of The Books reading and activity keynotes.  These will wrap up in the next couple of weeks and will allow us to shift gears into our new science based focus.  Students were happy to learn that the due date for the Battle of the Book projects is February 19th!

During the 3rd Quarter, we will revisit our web-savvy friend Sylvia and her Super Awesome Mini Maker Show episodes.  These will serve as a springboard for our own super awesome science shows that will spotlight an experiment of each student’s choosing.  They will research and decide on an experiment to conduct and present.  We love science…mess and all!    If you’d like to check out Sylvia’s video series, please visit: http://sylviashow.com/episodes

Upcoming events & opportunities to think about:

*The Science Olympiad is fast approaching and will be a great event for those 4th-6th grade students who have a passion for all things science!  This event will take place on Tuesday, January 27th.  Students interested in attending need to submit their plan for their edible vehicle to their classroom teacher by Wednesday, January 14th.  Here is the link to the activity:   https://ey.westside66.org/category/teachers/  We will be looking at effort and creativity to determine attendees.

*The Math Olympiad contests will begin soon.  Students in grades 4, 5 & 6 will have the opportunity to challenge themselves by participating in a math quiz competition.  There will be a total of 5 quizzes that the students can take, followed by an answer session.  It is a great opportunity to learn new math strategies and concepts!

*Check out a new spot on the blog:  Math Minutes!  A great way to tickle your math brain!

Thanks for all of your continued support!  Happy New Year!!