Mr. Z's Grade 4 Class – Remote Learning Update #13

This will be the last Remote Learning Update for this school year. I have a lot of things to cover, so sorry in advance for the length. Please feel free to contact me during the summer if you have any questions. I do check email regularly.

This is Week #13 of remote learning, our last full week of school. The overview of this week’s new work is in the “Remote Learning Week #13 Parent-Caregiver Guide,” available as a PDF file here. Also, this message and all the previous weekly Remote Learning Parent-Caregiver Guides are always available on my class blog at bssroom302.blogspot.com.  

It has been an emotional week for many as people continue to take to the street to speak out about inequality and show their support for those suffering the pain and anguish of persistent and pervasive injustice. So much work needs to be done, but I am heartened to be at a school like Bridge Street where there is an open commitment to self-reflection, learning and working together to fight racism and bigotry. If you are interested in exploring these issues more at home, here is a list of children’s books that can serve as conversation starters. Also, the online library site Epic has created a special collection of books called “Celebrate Black Culture” that I assigned to your student to make them easier to find.    

Report cards and class placements for next year will be mailed out to your home addresses within a day or so of the last day of school, which is June 15. Per school district direction, the report cards for the final trimester will not have marks in the usual subject fields. Instead, I will write a narrative evaluation about your student in the comments section.

As an aside, the online library site Epic informed me that our class has read 287 books for a total of nearly 90 hours since we activated our account in early April. That’s awesome!  I also want to mention that many students have worked really hard on the Happy Numbers math website and have made great progress through the fractions and decimals work I assigned.

Later in this message, I have a list of the online resources like Happy Numbers and Scholastic News that we have been using during the school closure period, with information about their continued availability during the summer, in the event you are interested in having your student continue to work.

Principal Choquette will be in the building 9 am to 3 pm on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday of this week, and on Monday June 15, the last day of school, in case you need to pick up anything at the building.

NEW THIS WEEK

* Scholastic News: Civil Rights Movement

In this week’s assignment is an article about the election of Steven Reed, the first African American mayor of Montgomery, Alabama, a focal point of the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s. In the close reading questions for the article, I ask the students to think about what the events of the past two weeks might say about the current state of civil rights in the U.S.

* Weekly School Zoom Meeting

We will do our regular weekly class Zoom meeting on Tuesday June 9 at 10:00 am. I will post the new meeting link in our Google Classroom “Specials, Talk with Mr. Z and Other Cool Stuff” where the kids can access it on their own. We will have one more Zoom meeting on the last day of school. Invitation for that meeting will follow later. Here is a copy of the Tuesday June 9 meeting link for your convenience:

* Activities for BSS Sock/Jump Rope

Mrs. Flaherty offers a video on how kids can correctly size the jump ropes we delivered last week plus provides some links to fun jump rope activities. The post is in the “Specials, Talk with Mr. Z and Other Cool Stuff” classroom.

*Extra Writing Prompts – Personal Narrative and Information Writing

If you want your student to practice some different writing styles during the summer, I am posting a reusable assignment that has instructions for writing personal narratives and information texts in the “Reading and Writing – Mr. Z” Google Classroom.

OTHER INFO

* Last Tuesday our music teacher Ms.Michaud joined our class zoom call. It was great fun to have her with us. She reminded us that she has been posting weekly music lessons that are accessible via the school district’s Elementary Remote Learning Resources page.  I’ve shared that district page with you before, but here’s the link again: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11QIJ6IGTZmxOD6XM6sX55UgAYRX3WwqfcEWvRJeNMN4/edit

So students can have a handy link to Ms. Michaud’s site, I have also created a post called “Weekly Music Lessons with Ms. Michaud” in the Google Classroom “Specials, Talk with Mr. Z, and Other Cool Stuff.” 

* Here is information about the continued free availability of the online learning resources and student accounts we have been using during the school closure period.

Available All Summer

Northampton’s Elementary Remote Learning Resources page

Google Classroom (all the rooms we used in 2019/2020 school year)

Mystery Science

Typing Club

Epic

Available Until June 30

Happy Numbers

Available Until July 31

Scholastic News

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. My phone and text number is (413) 342-1490. Email is jzyskowski@northampton-k12.us

Mr. Z's Grade 4 Class – Remote Learning Update #12

It was wonderful to see so many of you last week at the student belonging pickup. I really miss the kids and being with them in class. I will reach out to families who were not able to make it and we will figure out a plan for getting those belongings returned to you.  

This is Week #12 of remote learning. The overview of this week’s new work is in the “Remote Learning Week #12 Parent-Caregiver Guide,” available as a PDF file here. Also, this message and all the previous weekly Remote Learning Parent-Caregiver Guides are always available on my class blog at bssroom302.blogspot.com.  

NEW THIS WEEK

* New Social Studies Assignment

In addition to our regular assignment of reading a book about the West region, there is an additional assignment on the development of the Transcontinental Railroad and the role of Chinese immigrant labor. There are a couple of short videos to watch and an article to read, then some questions to answer.  

* Class Zoom Meeting

We will do another Zoom meeting this week on Tuesday June 2 at 10:00 am. I will post the new meeting link in our Google Classroom “Specials, Talk with Mr. Z and Other Cool Stuff” where the kids can access it on their own. 

Mr. Z's Grade 4 Class – Remote Learning Update #11

I hope this Memorial Day weekend finds you and your loved ones healthy and safe.

Student belongings will be available for you to pick up at the school this Wednesday May 27 from 12:30 pm to 3:00 pm. All of your child’s belongings and work folders, along with a cover letter from me explaining what’s in there, will be bundled up in a clear plastic bag. I will be there to say “hello” that day, but we will have to maintain social distance. If you can’t make it at that time, I will follow up with you and we can figure out another way to deliver the bag to you. If your student has a school Chromebook, you can hang on to it through the summer and return it at the start of next school year. I attached the district’s Belongings Cleanup & Chromebook Drop Off Plan to this message, in case you want more details about the process.    

This is Week #11 of remote learning. The overview of this week’s new work is in the “Remote Learning Week #11 Parent-Caregiver Guide,” available as a PDF file here. Also, this message and all the previous weekly Remote Learning Parent-Caregiver Guides are always available on my class blog at bssroom302.blogspot.com.  

NEW THIS WEEK

* Poetry Writing

Students can try their hands at writing tanka poems, a form of poetry from Japan, similar to haiku. The lesson, in our Google Classroom presented as a video, was created by Jackson Street School teacher Kathie Bredin.  

* Class Zoom Meeting

We will do another Zoom meeting this week on Tuesday May 26 at 10:00 am. I will post the new meeting link in our Google Classroom “Specials, Talk with Mr. Z and Other Cool Stuff” where the kids can access it on their own. 

OTHER NOTES

* I will be working and available tomorrow May 25 in case you need to get in touch with me. I will be unavailable this Thursday May 28.

Mr. Z's Grade 4 Class – Remote Learning Update #10

Principal Choquette is preparing a schedule with a day for each grade level’s families to pick up student work and belongings at the school. The fourth grade slot is tentatively scheduled for the last week of May. I will let you know the date and time once it is confirmed.     

Looking ahead to next school year, I don’t have any news or special insight to share regarding plans for re-opening the school in September. I can say that planning for a re-opening is a huge undertaking, far more complex than simply issuing a blanket “open the schools” edict. So much will need to change. The district has created eight policy teams to research and plan exactly what needs to happen for schools to open and operate safely. I am awed at the professionalism, thoroughness and care going into the planning. Part of what makes the task so complex is the wide range of issues for the various age groups of students. High schoolers’ learning needs and routines are obviously vastly different than those of elementary students. Yet even within the elementary grades, there are big differences between how kindergartners and fifth graders, for example, interact with materials, peers and teachers in the classroom. There are a lot of issues to address, but I am heartened by the great leadership we have in the school district and the city.         

For now, before we get ahead of ourselves though, we still have this year, and this is Week #10 of remote learning. The overview of this week’s new work is in the “Remote Learning Week #10 Parent-Caregiver Guide,” available as a PDF file here. Also, this message and all the previous weekly Remote Learning Parent-Caregiver Guides are always available on my class blog at bssroom302.blogspot.com.  

NEW THIS WEEK

* Scholastic Book Order

I’d like to offer families one more opportunity to order books from Scholastic before the school year ends. Any books ordered would be shipped to me, then I could drop them off at your house if that’s okay with you (I don’t think the books will be delivered to me in time to coincide with our student work pick-up day). If you are interested in buying books, you can browse the offerings on clubs.scholastic.com. Our class code is NL2FT. You must use that code to have the books delivered to me. Finally, you will need to pay directly on the site using a credit card.   

* Class Zoom Meeting

We had a lot of fun on our class Zoom meeting last week. Teachers Mrs. Black and Ms. Foley joined us, as did school adjustment counselor Laurie Sperry. I scheduled another call for us this week, Tuesday May 19 at 10:00 am. I will post the new meeting link in our Google Classroom “Specials, Talk with Mr. Z and Other Cool Stuff” where the kids can access it on their own. 

OTHER NOTES

* Vote for a New School Logo

Earlier this year the kids brainstormed ideas about Bridge Street School’s core values. The ideas were used to inspire concepts for a new BSS logo. Families can view and then vote to choose their favorite of three ideas by visiting this Google form: https://forms.gle/KmzsLPj6VZ1RVEsx9 The deadline to vote is Friday May 22.

* Grow Food Northampton Offers More At-Home Activities for Kids

Our awesome Grow Food Northampton program has introduced some new Web-based activities and learning opportunities for students at home. These can be found at: https://www.growfoodnorthampton.com/grow-food-kids-at-home-vol-3/

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. I am available every week day between 8:30 am and 4:00 pm. I do have some weekly staff meetings, so it might take me a few minutes to reply. We can also schedule a time to talk if that works best for you.  My phone and text number is (413) 342-1490. Email is jzyskowski@northampton-k12.us

Mr. Z's Grade 4 Class – Remote Learning Update #9

Long-winded teacher alert! There is a lot to cover in this week’s update, so grab a seat, make a cup of tea and settle in for a spell. Sorry! I think it’s a lot of good stuff you should know about, so hopefully it won’t be so bad.

First, as always, so we are all properly oriented, this is Week #9 of remote learning. The overview of this week’s new work is in the “Remote Learning Week #9 Parent-Caregiver Guide,” available as a PDF file here. Also, this message and all the previous weekly Remote Learning Parent-Caregiver Guides are always available on my class blog at bssroom302.blogspot.com.  

NEW THIS WEEK

* New Creative Writing Group Offered

Carrie Foley, our fourth grade special education teacher, will offer a new, weekly creative writing group open to all Bridge street fourth graders. This optional group will meet for 30 minutes on Fridays via Zoom or Google Meet videoconference. The writer’s group is based on a method called The Friday Notebook Project, and aims to help students begin to see themselves as writers. 

* Class Zoom Meeting – Special Theme and General Approach Explained

We will have another Zoom meeting for the kids this week. We will have a theme for this week’s meeting: wear a silly hat, or make your hair look silly. The call will take place Tuesday May 12 at 10:00 am. Like our first meeting, the agenda will be to say hello, do a quick share (always optional for a child), and play some sort of a Zoom-friendly game. Generally speaking, I would like to reserve our class-wide Zoom meetings for a more social-emotional well-being focus. I hope that keeping the meetings lighter, with lower stakes and hopefully more fun, will encourage all students to participate. I think the meetings can provide students with a valuable, positive connection to school. I will post the new meeting link in our Google Classroom “Specials, Talk with Mr. Z and Other Cool Stuff” where the kids can access it on their own. 

* New Math Focus – Renewed Emphasis on Happy Numbers

The most important takeaway from last week’s update to the state and district remote learning plan (Phase III, for those keeping score at home) is that teachers now are to present previously uncovered grade-level content, a change from the previous phases’ focus on review and practice. In particular, we are to focus on those not-yet taught skills and concepts that are most critical for student success in the next grade. For our class, this mainly means deepening and extending the work on fractions and decimals that we started just before the school closed on March 13.

I spent a few days exploring various options for covering this new material remotely, and am convinced that the Happy Numbers website, while by no means perfect, is the best choice under the circumstances for continuing this learning. It presents fractions concepts in a well-designed sequence that is consistent with our school-based curriculum, while providing an effective visual representations of the concepts.

I have adjusted the Happy Numbers accounts for all students so that the site delivers a customized learning path for our specific goals related to fractions and decimals, and for students’ learning needs individually. I encourage you to have your student continue working with the site regularly, or if you have been using other math resources instead, to give Happy Numbers another try. Now, when your student logs in to Happy Numbers, the first lesson(s) they will encounter will provide practice with the multiplication facts he or she specifically left off on at school, generally the 6s, 7s, 8s and/or 9s. This multiplication fact work should take at most about one to three hours. This work is critical for 5^th grade success. Once the multiplication fact work is complete, I have configured Happy Numbers to then deliver the fractions and then later decimals lessons.

One last point about this new plan: it is okay to choose other resources for learning fractions and decimals at home if they work better for your child. My recommendation of Happy Numbers is not required nor will your child be penalized in any way for not using it.       

* Social Studies – Regions of the United States

Our learning about regions of the U.S. was another fourth grade learning standard that got interrupted by the school closure. To resume moving forward in this area, I assigned in Epic! a non-fiction book about the Midwest region of the U.S. I am tying in this non-fiction reading to our Bud, Not Buddy historic fiction unit we started two weeks ago. Bud, Not Buddy is set in the Midwest. 

OTHER IMPORTANT NOTES

* I have been chatting regularly via phone, text message and email with many parents and students. Often times our conversations revolve around specific school work or how I can better support an individual student or family. Sometimes the kids and I just have some fun and silly banter, like discussing genius typing cats, other cute pets, or a love of crusty bread. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me with questions or just to check in. I am available every week day between 8:30 am and 4:00 pm. I do have some weekly staff meetings, so it might take me a few minutes to reply. We can also schedule a time to talk if that works best for you.  My phone and text number is (413) 342-1490. Email is jzyskowski@northampton-k12.us

x

Mr. Z's Grade 4 Class – Remote Learning Update #8

What a weekend of beautiful weather. We really earned it! On Tuesday this week I meet with our Northampton grade level team to learn how the district wants us to proceed with remote learning for the rest of this school year. Next week’s work offered will reflect any changes as required under the new guidance.

This is Week #8 of remote learning. The overview of this week’s new work is in the “Remote Learning Week #8 Parent-Caregiver Guide,” available as a PDF file here. Also, this message and all the previous weekly Remote Learning Parent-Caregiver Guides are always available on my class blog at bssroom302.blogspot.com.  

NEW THIS WEEK

* It’s about time we give this Zoom thing a little whirl with the class. I set up an inaugural  Zoom meeting for the kids for Monday  May 4 at 11 am. Our agenda for this meeting will be to say hello, do a quick share, and try to familiarize the kids with a couple of basic features in the Zoom platform. I emailed all families a meeting invite with the Zoom web link this past Friday. I will also post the meeting link in our Google Classroom “Specials, Talk with Mr. Z and Other Cool Stuff” where the kids can access it on their own.  

* In this week’s Scholastic News issue I have an activity for students to write an opinion essay based on one of the articles. What’s new is that I created a graphic organizer students can work in that uses identical language as we used back at school in January. I hope this will better support the kids as they engage in this important type of writing. The opinion essay structure is a great foundation for all forms of higher grade and college academic writing (really just all sorts of communication). If they can emerge from this school closure period as better opinion essay writers, that will be a win in my book.

OTHER IMPORTANT NOTES

* Phys Ed teacher Kathy Flaherty has teamed up with other NPS educators to create a district Physical Education website. The web address is:

https://sites.google.com/northampton-k12.us/elementary-pe/home?authuser=0

The site has new activities updated weekly. Some of the links on the site can be a little tricky. Sometimes you have to hover your cursor or pointer on just the right part of an image, often the top right-hand corner, to access the link to the resource.   

* As I put more digital resources in the Google Classrooms each week, I am working with a growing number of electronic files, drafting oodles of written instructions, insuring proper website settings are made, creating three different versions of assignments for different groups of students, etc, etc. Be warned, I may make a mistake, and some file I told your student to open or some Website I said to go visit, may not be there. Or it won’t work the way I said it was supposed to work.  In fact, I can guarantee I will make mistakes, despite my best effort. As your student works with these materials, please let me know if something is missing or isn’t working correctly. I’ll send out the Class 302 Repair Crew asap!

* Now that we have been adding many posts in the various Google Classrooms, the default view you get, called “Stream,” when you open a Classroom, is getting very cluttered. I wanted to tell you about a little trick you can do in Classroom to make it easier to see what work is in there. Across the center top of every Google Classroom are the words:  Stream   Classwork  People   Grades.   Google Classroom always gives you the "Stream" view first. Instead, if you click on the word "Classwork," it shows you all the work I have put in since we left school, but it organizes it into different weeks and topics. I think it's a lot easier to see what's there compared with the "Stream" view of this work, which is just one big unorganized list.

As always, feel free to call or text me at my new phone line (413) 342-1490. You can also email me at jzyskowski@northampton-k12.us

Mr. Z's Grade 4 Class – Remote Learning Update #7

**WARNING** This post is very long! My apologies in advance. My goal of sending you only one update each week is bumping into the reality of how much information there is to communicate. Please look especially at the OTHER IMPORTANT NOTES section below for a discussion of the District’s official remote learning policy, and how it relates to what I have been sending you with my weekly emails. I received some questions about these issues this week. If you have questions or concerns, feel free to contact me directly.

I was very sad to hear the news that we won’t return to Room 302 this year. An elementary class community is something that improves with age for the school year it exists. Familiarity and trust grow month by month, leading to more productive learning and stronger bonds. We put in a lot of work in the fall developing routines and structure so that we can really hum along in late winter and spring. Plus, the end of the year is a lot of fun! I am upset that we won’t have this special time of the year to spend together, but I agree it is important that we stay put for the health and safety of our community. The learning will go on, but it will just look a little different!

This is Week #7 of remote learning. The overview of this week’s new work is in the “Remote Learning Week #7 Parent-Caregiver Guide,” available as a PDF file here. Also, this message and all the previous weekly Remote Learning Parent-Caregiver Guides are always available on my class blog at bssroom302.blogspot.com.  

I want to offer your student three new work options this week, in addition to the work previously provided. But first, I want to remind everyone that this work is not required, will not need to be turned in to me, and will not affect your child’s report card. These activities are suggestions to keep your child’s skills sharp and the learning going during this school closure period. Do what’s right for you and your family.

NEW THIS WEEK

#1 Word Work

In school we used the Words Their Way literacy program to learn vocabulary and spelling. This week we can resume this instruction from home. You can find directions and all the necessary materials in our Reading and Writing Google Classroom.

**Learning new routines for working with these materials, even when we have used with them before, could be frustrating for the kids. Also, students are often working independently at home, so aren’t always as diligent about tasks as we might like. It would be great if you can familiarize yourself with the directions for these activities in the Google Classroom post. There are a LOT of directions, so please help your child get started with a routine that works for you at home if you choose to do this work.

#2 Mystery Science

Our main in-school science resource is the Mystery Science program, which you can access from home. Due to school closures, the program’s publisher created a collection of dozens of its most popular kindergarten through grade 5 science lessons. Some lessons are all online, which is great, and others require various materials for hands-on experimentation. I would focus first on the 4^th grade lessons, but also feel free to explore lessons at other grade levels.

#3 Historic Fiction Read Aloud and Study Group

Our spring reading unit was supposed to have been historic fiction. The other Bridge Street 4^th grade teacher Ms. Liz and I are teaming up to offer a modified online version of this unit that starts this week.

OTHER IMPORTANT NOTES

* What Is The District’s Official Remote Learning Policy?

I have realized that not everyone is aware of Northampton School District’s Elementary Remote Learning Plan, which Principal Choquette shared with a special email update to families on April 7. Besides being the current district official policy regarding remote teaching and learning expectations during this school closure period, perhaps more importantly from families’ perspective, it includes links to a long list of online resources and ideas for real-world activities families can use to engage students at home.

The district Elementary Remote Learning Plan Principal Choquette shared is here: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/11QIJ6IGTZmxOD6XM6sX55UgAYRX3WwqfcEWvRJeNMN4/

She also shared this letter from the district principals explaining the plan: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1N1K4ghiiQ9DXRjls5sPaWNjaRHohcdHW/edit

The work suggestions I send to you weekly are much more targeted than what you will find in the district’s Elementary Remote Learning Plan. My suggestions are meant to complement this very broad offering from the district. The district recommends three hours of learning time per school day, which it says can be achieved through educator-directed and student self-directed learning, and includes art, music and physical fitness activities.

The bottom line is this approach places a big responsibility on adult family members to make sure students are engaged with these various resources, whether they do so as a result of my specific suggestions or the adults in the family identify resources on their own to work on. It is a LOT to ask of families, and the reality is that even under the best circumstances, getting kids motivated to engage in these tasks with best effort can be extremely challenging. Just do your best.    

* Tips for Finding Online Educational Resources

If you want to explore and use resources in the district’s Elementary Remote Learning Plan, let me offer a few suggestions about what to look for in this document/web page.

++ A good starting point is the link accessed by clicking the words “4^th Grade Choice Board.” It provides home study and activity ideas for reading, writing, math, science, social studies and other extras.

++ Links to activity ideas for art, music and phys ed are listed if you scroll down on the Elementary Remote Learning Plan main page.

++ An excellent overview of educational websites organized by subject is accessible through the link “4^th Grade Resources All Subjects.”  This link is also on the Elementary Remote Learning Plan main page in the 4^th grade column.

  

++ A list of super fun websites kids can explore is accessible through the link “Virtual Field Trips.” This link is also on the Elementary Remote Learning Plan main page in the 4^th grade column.

Whew! That’s a LOT. I have really been trying to not overwhelm you.

As always, feel free to call or text me at my new phone line (413) 342-1490. You can also email me at jzyskowski@northampton-k12.us