4th graders will return to in person learning on Monday, October 19th.  School will be in person Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 8:30-3:30 with a staggered arrival and departure to reduce number of students entering and exiting the building at the same time.  Click here for a list of suggested supplies as we return to Bennie.

All Bennie 4th graders will take the NWEA test when we return to face to face learning.  Tests will be on Tuesday, October 20 and Thursday, October 22.  All make up and unfinished tests will be on Friday, October 23.

In order to prepare for our in person learning, I am going to ask students to wear masks for our zooms next week.  We will practice mask procedures and build stamina as we work toward wearing them all day in person.  Should the masks make it too difficult to hear over zoom, I will be asking students to practice wearing their masks for extended periods of time each day.  Minus lunch and recess, we will be wearing masks in school - which equals about 5 hours and 45 minutes each day.  We all need to build our personal comfort with wearing a mask that long!

New student Chromebooks have arrived and will be distributed the week of October 19th.  We are excited about the improvement in our district technology for both in school and at home learning.

As required by the state of Michigan, we will be NWEA MAP testing this month.  Students will be testing between October 5-31, 2020.  Here is a letter from Mrs. Metzer with further details.

In terms of books/supplies your child will need next week, here is a brief schedule:

​This week we will have Social Studies Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  Science will be Tuesday and Thursday.  

Monday and Friday students will need their "We the People" Social Studies books for Daily 5.

Now that the kids have Book Club books, we will start meeting in small groups. Small groups will last about 25 minutes. Here are the times moving forward:

• Monday/Wednesday at 11:00 - Jayden, Tae-shawn, Tiana, Olivia, Paisley
• Monday/Wednesday at 11:30 - Jacob Mizzi, Autumn, Emelia, Shelby, Sophia, Aaliyah
• Tuesday/Thursday at 11:00 - Jacob Allen, Cam, Lucas, Alexis, Elli, Logan
• Tuesday/Thursday at 11:30 - Ella, Elena, Noah, Nick, Hannah, Yuliana
  

Our assignments and activities are designed to be completed in 20-45 minutes.  If your child is completing work in consistently less time than that, do let me know!  We now have a topic in our Google Classroom entitled "I'm finished! Now what?"  Just as in the classroom, some students will finish faster than others based on their mastery of or interest in the concept. They can choose from any of the options if they have extra learning time in the day.  (Also, if your child is taking more than 45 minutes on any one assignment, do let me know!  We may need to adjust their plan)

Each Friday we will have a short "Show What you Know" math quiz.  Please do not help your child with this assignment.  We will use this check in to determine the concepts the students have mastered and those that require more practice.

Specials classes next week (Sept 28-Oct 2) will be live.  Kids should sign in to their Zoom specials class at 10:00.  Our schedule and their Zoom links are the Google Classroom topic "Zoom Links, Specials Classes and How to Videos"

There have been a lot of questions about how to navigate Google Classroom.  I went through this presentation with the kids, but thought it might be helpful for you as well.  It is also posted in thier "How To" topic in Google Classroom.

Thank you for a great week in our virtual Room 107!  I have been so impressed with our class discussions and the efforts your children have been making.  I know it isn't always easy but there is good learning happening.

Being that we are at the end of our second full week of school, I'd like to check in and see how it is going.  Please take a moment to complete this survey.

• Zoom Meetings - We will continue with a morning (8:30am) and afternoon (1:15pm) whole class zoom meetings.  Thank you for helping your child log in!

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• Book Clubs -  We are going to start small group meetings next week.  These groups will meet for a half hour or less and focus on literacy strategies based on your child's reading level.  Look for an email on Monday with details regarding your child's small group time.  Groups will meet on Tuesday and Wednesday this week during the 11-12 "Daily 5" time.

• Assignments - All assignments in Google Classroom will be originally posted as "ungraded".  As in the classroom, some of their activities will be practice and some will be graded.  All assignments will be "returned" either way.  Thank you to the Mizzi family for making me aware of how students are notified of any comments and/or grades through Google Classroom.  On our Monday zoom, I will share with the class how to "View" all their work and more easily access feedback.

• Retakes or Resubmit Assignments -  Whether face to face or virtual, the goal of student activities and assignments is to help students grow as readers, make meaning of the world around them in science and social studies, develop great questions, and problem solve.  Learning is the goal.  Which means your child always has the ability to try something again.  I do not expect the kids to master every concept or complete each assignment perfectly the first time.  I will always encourage them to try again and build on what they have already done!  It's never too late to add or learn more!