Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Welcome to the 2017-2018 School Year!

Hello and welcome to Miss Amanda's blog! 

I usually use this forum to post pictures and information about our amazing field trips and fun activities we do in class (such a cooking, special guests, etc.)! 

On the right side of your screen you'll see some links to important pages! 

The Upper SRC Wishlist 

When you click this link you will find some items the Upper SRC is in desperate need of! We can always use snacks, baby wipes, and anything else you are willing to donate! 

Syllabus 

Miss Ashlee (the teacher of the Primary SRC) and I get together every summer and create an awesome SRC syllabus! Here you will see the month, the thematic unit (all named after TV shows or movies this year! We're soooo creative ;), the topics of study, the special activity for the month, and the parental responsibility. This way there will be no surprises when field trip permission slips come home! 

Homework Policy

Click here for more information regarding the homework policy. Homework is not mandatory, but if you want some for you child, don't hesitate to ask!

Remind 

Remind is this awesome app that allows the teacher to send messages to families! I usually send out Reminds to remind parents about upcoming field trips, snow days, and anything else exciting! I try not to send them out too early! It's hard to remember not everyone gets up at 5am! :) 

Too Sick For School?

Here is a nice visual of the Beaverton School District's sick policy. Since some of our students have difficulty managing themselves and their symptoms (wiping nose, covering coughs and sneezes, etc.) at school, this policy is especially important! Please make sure your child is fever free, vomit free, and diarrhea free for at least 24 hours (without the aid of medication) before sending them back to school! 

2017-2018 SRC Syllabus

Sexton Mountain Elementary
Structured Routine Center
Miss Amanda and Mrs. Ashlee’s classes
2017-2018 Syllabus

September
Thematic Unit: All About Me
Topics of Study: During the first month of school we will practice recalling mastered personal information, describing self by using attributes (i.e. hair color, eye color, weight, height), indicating preferences and interests.
Special activity: Presentation about self to peers in both classes
Parental Responsibility: Send school supplies from supply list

October
Thematic Unit: Gardening
Topics of Study: We will learn about various local fall varieties of vegetables, plant flowers and veggies in the SRC garden, and learn how to care of plants as they grow.
Special activity: Planting flowers, veggies, and taking care of the SRC garden.
Parental Responsibility: Admission for pumpkin patch, permission slip, disposable sack lunch

November
Thematic Unit: Healthy Eating
Topics of Study: We will talk about the processes of preparing and cooking food, measurement and temperature, basic nutrition, and using MyPlate to make healthy food choices.
Special activity: Grocery shopping field trip for Thanksgiving lunch ingredients. Thanksgiving lunch prepared by students for one another.
Parental Responsibility: $3 or $4 for student to use at Wal-Mart, permission slip

December
Thematic Unit: Sharing and Caring
Topics of Study: We will learn about different holidays, cultures, and the art of giving to others.
Special activities: Shopping Field Trip to the Dollar Tree for gifts for a special someone.
Parental Responsibility: Payment for tri-met bus ticket, and $1 or $2 for student to use at the Dollar Tree, permission slip




January
Thematic Unit: SRC Olympics
Topics of Study: In preparation for the Winter Olympics in February, we will learn about the Olympics, different types of sports, and good sportsmanship.
Special activity: SRC Olympics in the gym
Parental Responsibility: None

February
Thematic Unit: Dr. Seuss
Topics of Study: We will read collections of Dr. Seuss stories and talk about elements of a story such as characters, setting and plot.
Special activity: Act out our favorite Dr. Seuss book and cook green eggs and ham on February 28th.
Parental Responsibility: Help create a costume for your student’s Dr. Seuss debut!

March
Thematic Unit: Solar System
Topics of Study: We will study the sun, moon, planets, stars, and space travel.
Special activity: We will travel to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) for a presentation in the planetarium about space!
Parental Responsibility: Payment for tri-met bus ticket, payment for admission into the exhibit, permission slip, disposable cold lunch

April
Thematic Unit: Bugs in the Garden
Topics of Study: We will learn about various local spring varieties of vegetables, plant flowers and veggies in the SRC garden, and learn how to care for plants as they grow. We will watch caterpillars turn into butterflies and release them into our garden. We will also celebrate Autism Awareness month with a trip to Spectra Gymnastics.
Special Activity: Gymnastics field trip at Spectra Gymnastics and butterfly release in the garden
Parental Responsibility: Payment for tri-met bus ticket and Spectra admission, permission slip, disposable cold lunch

May
Thematic Unit: School Spirit
Topics of Study: At the track meet every year there is a school spirit celebration. We don’t know the theme yet, but in the spring we will start preparing for our exciting trip!
Special activity: Beaverton School District Track and Field Invitational
Parental Responsibility: school spirit apparel item, permission slip, disposable cold lunch

June
Thematic Unit: Camp-Learned-a-Lot
Topics of Study: We will participate in a camp themed review of the year with Camp-Learned-a-Lot with the rest of the students at Sexton Mountain.
Special activity: “Hiking” through the THPRD parks within 1 mile of Sexton Mountain Elementary
Parental Responsibility: permission slip


Year long food tolerance program: Those of you that were with us last year may remember that our kids worked hard all year to increase their tolerance to new and healthy foods. We were able to supply a “challenge food” each week for our kids to study and try to eat thanks to a generous grant from the Beaverton Education Foundation. We are thrilled to announce that due to a generous donation from the Teamster Horsemen Motorcycle Club, arranged by the Vanderzanden family, we will be able to continue this wonderful program! A big thank you to parents who support this effort at home as well!

Thursday, November 3, 2016

Harvest Party

The last hour of our day was filled with spooky tricks and treats! 

We dressed up in costumes, watched a spooky (but not too scary) movie, and made dirt cups! 















Friday, October 28, 2016

Trumpet Time in Music!

Mrs Galante, our amazing music teacher, felt that we were ready to learn how to play the trumpet. First we practiced making the sound with our lips, then we practiced with the mouthpiece. Next, it was time for the trumpet! We each put our own mouthpiece into the trumpet and.... we made music! It was so cool! 
























Thursday, October 27, 2016

Spooky Thursday!

We are eagerly anticipating our Harvest Party on Monday! 

Mummy Dogs

Today we made Mummy Dogs with Miss Cheryl and Miss Kammi. All the students participated in making our special Thursday treat and most of them ate our snack as well (well, at least tasted)! We are working on tolerating new and different food and textures! We did such a great job! 








 Kidz Bop Songs: Monster Mash and Thriller 

We have been dancing machines! Our current favorites are the kid friendly versions of songs! Watch us bust a move!








Inside a House That is Haunted: Miss Jessi version 

One of our favorite autumn activities is listening to Miss Jessi's version of Inside a House That is Haunted. Our favorite part is the surprise.... BOO!!





Wednesday, October 26, 2016

We are publishing a book!

Hi Parents,

This year we have teamed up with Student Treasures to publish a book! You may have seen an order form come home regarding this. It is the first year we are attempting this, but we are expecting a great product! Fingers cross we will be able to get our books by the holiday season.

The theme of our book will be a take on the story Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?

Only our story will be about what Miss Amanda sees in the classroom! It will be written and illustrated by all of the students in Miss Amanda's class!

We are so looking forward to the brainstorming, writing process, multiple drafts, and final product!

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Pumpkin Patch 2016

We had such an extraordinary time at 

Plumper Pumpkin Patch!






I can not thank our parent volunteers enough! We were able to participate in all of the activities thanks to all of your support! 
















We had so much fun eating cold lunch, talking to the farmer, petting animals, riding on a tractor, watching a pig race, playing on the special playground, and picking pumpkins!