December 14-18, 2009

Merry Christmas!

As we approach Christmas, the Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus, I wish you each peace and joy.  I hope you will enjoy the Christmas break and start school in January feeling refreshed and renewed.  Blessings!  ~ Miss Hatcher


This week, all classes will have a small Christmas party on Thursday, with the exception of Kindergarten who will have their party on Friday.  Feel free to send a small snack for your child to share on the party day.  This week's activities and lessons will include... 

Kindergarten:  We will continue our study of correct word order and punctuation in questions.  We will also read a story to hone our reading comprehension and prediction skills.  We will finish out the week by writing a "Merry Christmas" acrostic poem.

Grade 1:  We will finish typing and illustrating our Question Poems from last week.  We will also read a Christmas story called Wombat Divine and answer questions focusing on our use of present tense verbs.  Finally, we will write Christmas poems using adverbs like "usually," "never," "sometimes," or "always."

Grade 2:  We will finish typing, editing, and illustrating our "My Fable" stories.  Then we will read and present our stories to the class.  We will finish the week with Merry Christmas, Amelia Bedelia and discuss the multiple meanings of certain words in English.

Grade 4:  Our focus this week is using descriptive writing in our language.  We will play several class games (online) that focus on descriptive writing, and we will practice writing our own descriptive paragraphs.

Grade 8/9:  We will continue to work on our speeches by finishing our research, writing an outline, and writing (or beginning to write) a first draft.

Assignments for Grade 4 and Grade 8/9 Classes

Grade 4:  Open the linked document and follow the instructions.

Grade 8/9:  Open the linked document and follow the instructions.

December 7-11, 2009

Thanks to the parents/guardians who have already responded to my email about pandemic preparedness.  If you have not done so already, please respond by the end of this week.  

In all of the classes this week, we will be spending some time on the computers using this class website to prepare the students for the possibility of a pandemic situation.  Here are the additional topics of study for the ELL classes this week:

Kindergarten:  We will be learning more about "asking sentences" (questions) and will be paying particular attention to the correct word order in questions.  For example, we should say "May we play a game?" instead of "We may play a game?"

Grade 1:  Since we have been learning about and practicing the correct word order in "asking sentences" (questions), this week we are putting our knowledge to use.  We will be writing "Question Poems" as a class and individually.

Grade 2:  We have been writing fables (stories with a moral or lesson).  We will continue work on these stories by doing peer and personal revising and editing and by typing the final copies of our stories.

Grade 4:  We have been writing personal narrative stories with a focus on using vivid and descriptive language.  We will continue the process of writing, revising, and typing this week.

Grade 8/9:  Last week we began doing research on a "hot topic" for our persuasive speeches.  We have been paying careful attention to evaluating our sources for accuracy and credibility.  We will continue this research and begin the writing process this week.

Pandemic Preparation Test Assignment

Dear Parents,

If you are reading this post, I hope that you have also received an email from me about pandemic preparation.  If you did not receive an email, it is possible that I have an incorrect email address for you.  Please email me at hatcherc@mca.org.tw to provide a correct address. 

In the event of class or school closure due to pandemic conditions, I will use email and  this website to communicate lessons and assignments to you and your students.  In order to ensure that everyone is able to access this website and is able to view the documents I post to it, please do the following:  click on this link.  You will see a question in the document.  Send your answer to the question in an email to hatcherc@mca.org.tw.

Thanks so much for your cooperation to help ensure that we have open lines of communication in case of a pandemic situation.  Please feel free to email me if you have any questions or comments.

Sincerely, Christel Hatcher

November 30-December 4, 2009

Kindergarten:  This week we will be introducing clothing vocabulary--words like "shirt," "shorts," and "swimsuit."  We will also learn about the correct word order in asking sentences (questions). 

Grade 1:  This week we will focus on the correct word order in written and spoken asking sentences (questions).  We will play some games and even write poems to emphasize this grammar point.

Grade 2:  This week the students will study fables (animal stories with a moral), and they will write their own fable.  We will focus on including all parts of a good story (beginning, climax, end), and we will work on peer revision.

Grade 4:  This week the students will write their own personal narrative (a story that happened in their own lives).  We will focus on the writing and grammar needs of each student as we revise together.

Grade 8-9:  In this class we are writing persuasive speeches.  We will begin the week by learning about what makes a good research source and what makes a good speech.  Then the students will work on their own research and writing.

November 23-27, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving!

Kindergarten:  During Monday's class we will have a class party to celebrate consistently good classroom behavior.  Way to go, kindergartners!  This week we will also make a book all about being thankful, and we will be reminded that the Bible tells us to be thankful for things that we want, we need, we like, and even things that we don't like.  We will talk about the meanings of these words as we make our Thankfulness Books.

Grade 1:  We will have only two days of Grade 1 class this week.  We will write a letter to God saying "thank you" for all the things He has given us and done for us.  We will work on writing quality letters in English.

Grade 2:  We will have only two days of Grade 2 class this week.  We will write a letter to God saying "thank you" for all the things He has given us and done for us.  We will work on writing quality letters in English.

Grade 4:  We will have only two days of Grade 4 class this week.  Since we were not quite ready for our vocabulary quiz (Lesson 5) last Friday, we will be having it today.  On Tuesday we will write a letter of thankfulness to God.

Grade 8-9:  We will have only two days of Grade 8-9 class this week.  On Monday and Tuesday we will begin choosing topics and researching for a new persuasive essay we will be writing.

Welcome!

Dear Parents and Students,

I hope that you will find this newsletter useful as you look for ways to practice English at home. Every week I will post some information about what we will be learning in each of my ELL classes. You can also find links to lots of interesting and helpful websites on this page. Some of these sites are ones that we will also use during class time, but some are brand new to the students. If you are looking for interesting ways to reinforce what the students are learning in class, check out the website links that are provided.

The first website I would like to introduce to you is called Spelling City. Whenever the students have a new list of vocabulary words in class, they can practice the spelling and use of the words on this site. Click on the link on this page or go to www.spellingcity.com. Then click on "Find a List." Next type "Christel Hatcher" in the box. Click on my name, and then find the correct spelling list for the class the student is in. Practice by playing one of ten different games or taking quizzes over the words.

Enjoy!

Faithfully,
Ms. Christel Hatcher

Class Topics for November 16-20, 2009

Kindergarten: We are reviewing prepositions of place (on, at, in, behind, under, on top of, below, above, beside, between, etc.). We are also learning vocabulary related to time: calendar, day, week, month, year, yesterday, today, tomorrow, night, names of days, names months, names of seasons.

Grade 1: We are finishing our unit on transportation vocabulary. The students will be sharing their own original adventures with the class. We are also working on two new grammar points this week: 1) correct word order for questions, and 2) proper use of the present tense in speaking and writing.

Grade 2: We are reviewing subject-verb agreement. We are focusing on writing stories that have a clear beginning, middle, and end. We are also working on guessing the meanings of new words when reading by looking at context.

Grade 4: We are continuing to learn the words from Wordly Wise Lesson 5. We will practice writing with these words and work on editing the students' weak areas of writing. There will be a quiz on these words on Friday, November 20.

Grades 8-9: We are writing the final copy of a persuasive essay pertaining to the story, "Flowers for Algernon." We will begin reading the short story, "The Bet," by Anton Chekhov this week.