School started on Monday. The children in our classes have been enthusiastic, happy, and eager to learn. We are still setting up routines and schedules for our fourth and fifth grade classes. We are planning some terrific challenges for everyone this year. Details will be coming soon about all of the exciting things and events we will be doing .

The students have  worked hard the past two weeks on The California Standards Test. They have read passages,  solved and computed problems, and thought scientifically.  I am so proud of how they took their job seriously and tried to do their best. Thank you to the families that sent in treats for the class on the days of testing. It did help to bring smiles to their faces and also gave them additional energy to focus and stay with the tests until completed.

We are continuing to work  the next few weeks on skills that need to be reviewed or mastered for next  year. Then we will be looking forward to enjoying and learning new things during Colonial Days and Gold Rush Days. Parents are still needed and invited to help us for these important grade level events.

Capri’s Open House Night is this Thursday, May 27, from 6-7:00 P.M.

Thank you again for all of your support throughout the year.

I guess I can safely say we have been very busy the past few weeks since the April break.  We have been working hard to review and learn new reading and writing strategies and  skills.  Our research reports are coming together. They are due the week of  May 10-14.  The students have selected a wide variety of topics, so it is interesting and fun to see them learn about their subject, as well as organize their information into a structured format.

We have had some great news:

1) Ethan Boutelle’s essay has been chosen as one of the fifteen fifth grade  winners in  San Diego County for Outdoor Education. This will provide him with a scholarship for sixth grade camp next year.

2) Natalie Stotka’s poster was selected as a second place winner in the San Dieguito Water District’s Fourth Grade Water Awareness Poster Contest.

Ethan and Natalie will be recognized in May for their achievement! I am so proud of them.

Some of our students will be representing Capri on May 13 in the Encinitas District Math 24 Tournament:

4th Grade:  Blaize Jenkins, Natalie Stotka, Rokas Veitas, and Kira Flager and Colleen Coveney

5th Grade: Ethan Boutelle, Elisha Chen, and Jac Ostrie

We will also be sending representatives from third and sixth grade.

Good luck to all!

CST (California Standards Test) will be given in May. See my important dates page on this site for the dates of testing.

Thank you to all of you who donated items, time, or money to our recent  Silent Auction. It was successful due to your effort  and support.

Please enourage your child to keep reading. their last reading book log for the year will cover the last two weeks of April and the month of May. I will collect in the first week of June.

Biztown, Colonial Days, and Gold Rush Days are coming!

Thank you for all of your help, support, and assistance at home.

It is difficult to believe that we are well into the month of March. The second report card of the year  went home last week, and hopefully you all received it.  The students continue to amaze me with their enthusiasm for learning and making progress in our studies. We have also had some extra time for some conferences this week. They were interesting, informative, and in many cases, a celebration of the child’s achievements over the past few months of school. We are beginning research reports, and this weekend I hope to put  some details about it on the book report page of this website. Thank you for all of your continued support.

We have had a terrific time sharing our biography and autobiography reports. The boys and girls did such an amazing job sharing their knowledge in so many different ways. We have learned about everyone from Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Chief Joseph, Bethany Hamilton, to Benjamin Franklin. The students did incredible video presentations on a variety of individuals and groups such as Alfred Hitchcock and the Beatles. We had dioramas, board games, and interesting newpaper and magazine articles. I am having a great time grading and looking over the children’s work. 

We will be having our unit tests this week Wednesday(for the fifth grade) and Thursday ( for the fourth grade) afternoon classes in science, social studies, or health.

Children may bring valentines to exchange with their classmates on Thursday afternoon from 1:30-2:15 if they wish. They received a list of the students in their afternoon class. Since we will be having a four day weekend in honor of Presidents’ Day, please encourage your children to read, do ALEKS, Accelerated Reader, or practice geography skills. Information will be coming home next week about our reserarch reports.

  I am so proud of so many of our talented students this year. Some of our boys and girls participated in the January Variety show, the District Band Performance last week, and did an amazing job at our recent Jog-a-thon! I am excited to report that many of us succeeded in reading the 1,800 pages required to win a Gold Medal reading award.

Enjoy the four day weekend. Have fun!

It is hard to believe how the past few weeks have passed by so quickly.  The students worked very hard during the first two weeks of this month. We also had a great time making gingerbread houses, playing recorders and harmonicas, and enjoying our delightful book commercials.

I hope that you and  your families are enjoying a wonderful holiday season. Thank you so much for all of your thoughtful cards, well wishes, and gifts. I am truly thankful to be a part of Capri and to have the opportunity to work with so many terrific families.

Please encourage your child/children to read over the break. It is a wonderful time to add pages to their Capri Reads lists, December book logs, and improve their vocabulary, comprehension, and thinking skills.  If they have an ALEKS account, using it  will help to keep their mathematics skills fresh over the break.

I hope this note finds you happy and healthy. May the new year be wonderful for us all.

We are back at school and working hard. We will be taking the district’s reading, writing, and math assessments over the next few weeks. The children did a terrific job on their first book reports that were turned in during the month of October. They really were a joy to read.
We are getting ready to begin Book Commercials. These projects are being introduced this week by showing the students samples of the video presentation and copies of the written scripts and summaries done by some of our students from past years. These projects will be due the week of December 7-11. The students will be getting the directions for this project on Friday, November 6. They will be signing up in class during the week of November 9-13.
I will continue to test the fifth grade students every Thursday during the day on the United States and states and capitals. We already have quite a few superstars who have showed mastery of these skills at 80% or higher.
Capri Reads is in full swing. Please encourage your child to read at least 1,800 pages by February 2 to earn a gold medal.

I am sure that everyone is looking forward to the two weeks of off-track time. Whether you are staying home or going to travel to an exciting destination, I hope that you have a wonderful time.

Over this break, please encourage your child/children to read. They need to record their pages on the October Book Log for me and the Capri Reads form for the school reading program/contest. If your child reads at least !,800 pages by early February, then he/she will earn a gold medal. We are trying to achieve that goal as a class.

I will start testing the children on states on the map and states and capitals beginning Thursday, October 15. I will keep testing the fifth graders every Thursday over the next few months until they get 80% or better. Some students are making flashcards and working on sheppardsoftware.com (see my link) to practice.

**If your child received a cursive handwriting book for practice, (my 4th graders and a few fifth graders ) it would be a great idea to keep working in it over the break. The same applies to anyone who was given a Wordly Wise book for voacabulary/spelling .

Thank you to everyone who attended our Parent Teacher conferences last wek. It was terrific to meet all of you and discuss your child’s progress.
Some of the students even came to share their goals at the conference.
We have a few weeks before the October break starts on the 17th.
The August/September book logs will be collected starting Thursday, October 1- Wednesday, October 7. Our first book report will be due on Friday, October 16. We have been working on poetry for weather and Nature’s Fury. We have been tackling grammar standards, such as subjects and predicates, compound sentences, and more.