What's Happening in your Grade in December?

KINDERGARTEN For Social Studies we will be focusing on traditions. Students will share their family traditions with the class. In Math we’ll be studying combinations to 6 using counters to combine sets. (Example-one and three make four). This is not focused on written addition but focused on using manipulatives. This helps the students see in a concrete way to combine sets. We’ll have various Christmas activities. We’ll participate in the Christmas Sing-Along (this is not a parent program, just for students).

Season's Greeting from FIRST GRADE! This month we will be learning about different holiday traditions from around the world. We will sample different foods, play games, learn dances, and gain a better appreciation for other cultures. We will be learning map skills as well. If you have lived in or traveled to another country and would be willing to share your experiences with us, please let your child's teacher know as soon as possible! Thank you for all your help and support this year! We hope each family has a wonderful holiday season!

Seasons Greetings from SECOND GRADE! December brings lots of Christmas learning and fun. The students will be learning about the Christmas traditions of other countries as well as our own traditions. Along with these we will be working with counting money, measuring items, working with time and continuing adding and subtracting with two and three digit numbers without regrouping. We hope you all enjoy your winter break.

THE THIRD GRADE is super excited about the holidays! See you later B Track, and welcome back C-Track. Many of our students are in choir and we are excited to see them perform for the school. Some classes are having holiday parties and spreading good cheer. This month the character trait the school is focusing on is "caring" and this is a great time of year to show others you care with a random act of kindness. Miss Gilan's class is making scarves to donate to the homeless this Christmas before they go off track. There are so many awesome things going on in the 3rd grade, we truly have an amazing group of students.

This month FOURTH GRADERS will be working on multiplication and division (remember to study your math facts at home!), learning about the water cycle, fossils, and soil, and studying trappers and traders. We are also looking forward to some special science presentations by the Utah Museum of Natural History. The Science Fair is coming up in January so those that signed up to participate should be working on projects. Winter is coming so please remember to dress warmly.

FIFTH GRADE is getting ready for the holidays! We are doing some fun art activities that go along with the season. In Science we are repelling and attracting with Magnets. The first ten amendments, also known as, The Bill of Rights, is what we are studying in Social Studies. It’s hard to believe we are almost half way done with the 2010/2011 school year! You know what they say, time flies when you’re having fun! Have a great Winter Break!

SIXTH GRADE Teachers want to thank parents for their support! We have classroom volunteers, room helpers, generous donations, and time spent at home in support of our students. Parent/Teacher Conf. were recently held and we’re thrilled with efforts that are in place to help students succeed. The triangle of Parent/Student/Teacher working together to foster student learning is a must! It is great working with your children. Thanks for all you do!

Box Top Contest Coming in January

Annual Battle of the Box Tops & Labels 2011

Hey, cut that out again! We did outstanding with our Fall Contest ($2384 from Box Tops and 4520 Labels which were doubled by Campbell's this fall for a grand total of 9040 Labels) so keep an eye out for them and keep cutting this winter. Do you think we can beat it? From January 3^rd until February 18^th, we will be having our annual “Boys vs. Girls” school-wide contest. Each teacher will have a collection folder for boys and girls. The winner will have their t-shirt worn by Mrs. Yost for a day:

“We Won! Boys Rule!” or “We Won! Girls Rule!”

Don't forget: The contest begins January 3^rd and ends at the start of school February 18^th. Once teachers return after the winter break they will be given $10 each to spend on something they need for their class. Keep watching as we report what supplies or rewards the teachers purchase for their students. Your children get the reward from all your hard work cutting and collecting Box Tops and Labels!

Thanks for your amazing support! Let the battle begin!

Reflections Awards of Excellence Announced

We had so many amazing entries for the Reflections Art Contest this year! Foothills has such talented students! Thank you to all that entered, and the parents and teachers who encouraged them. Five entries have been chosen in each category to move on to the Council level of the competition. The following students have been chosen to continue on in the competition:

Literature:
Kennady C
Courtney D
Mikaela J
Katelyn M
Alyson W

Music:
Katelyn M
Ellie P
Brynne R
Gideon R
Mason S

Photography:
Heather D
Kathryn H
Race M
Elsie S
Morghan W

Theater:
Ruth B
Blake P
Reina P
Garrett P

Film:
Ruth B
Alex B
Kennady C
Garrett P
Sarah S

Dance:
Brianna D
Blake P
Reina P
Garrett P
Madison R

3D Art:
Alex B
Girbaud F
Easton M
Phoebe S
Caprice W

Visual Arts:
Allie C
Joshua G
Katelyn M
Makayla S
Blake W

We especially want to thank the businesses that so generously donated prizes for Reflections! Holdman Studios and the Art Institute at Thanksgiving Point donated 5 gift cards for the winners of the 3D art category to make a blown-glass flower in their studio. What an exciting way for them to learn something new and keep being creative! Arctic Circle donated coupons for free ice cream cones to every student who entered. That's a lot of smiles to share! The Herriman Walgreens donated a wonderful prize for the class that turned in the most entries. Every student in that class will receive their own single-use camera, a treat, and a coupon for developing their next masterpiece. And the winning class is (drum roll please) Mrs. Ford's 6th grade! Thanks for entering, all of you! We hope you all continue to be creative and have fun with the arts.

Notes from a Librarian: Historical Fiction

(Webmasters Note: Although it is not July, many of our older grades are busy studying Utah and American history, so I thought this article would be appropriate.)

Historical Fiction

July is a month when we remember the past and is the perfect time to pick up a historical novel. Fortunately there are some great historical novels for children. Even kids that usually only like to read fantasy may find they really enjoy these books because they have fully developed characters and well crafted plots in addition to well researched historical settings.

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson (2000)
This book is about a girl in Philadelphia during one of our country’s worst epidemics, the yellow fever epidemic of 1793. In three months the fever killed about 10% of the population of the city. The sickness not only brought death, but also food shortages because the farmers are afraid to enter the city. The book is carefully researched and explores all the ramifications of that kind of situation. The author tells a good story with interesting and believable characters. For ages 10 +.

Charlotte’s Rose by A.E. Cannon (2002)
You may already know that Anne Cannon is LaVell Edward’s sister. She has written a number of books for young adults, but never really wanted to write a “Mormon” book. Her editor encouraged her and so she wrote Charlotte’s Rose. It is a story of a girl and her father who are converts and are crossing the plains to Zion. Along the way Charlotte agrees to take care of an infant whose mother has died and whose father is too grief stricken to care for the child. I like this pioneer story because it is not overly sweet, idealized or preachy. The book was written for the national market, but it portrays Mormons as real people instead of either religious fanatics or spiritual superheroes. Ages 10 +

Lord of the Nutcracker Men by Iain Lawrence (2001)
At the beginning of the book, Johnny is living in London with his family at the start of WWI. Like so many children from that time period, he is sent into the country so that he will be away from the fighting. Johnny’s father is a toy maker who enlists and is sent to the trenches in France. He spends the long hours of waiting carving little statues of the men he sees around him and sends them with his letters to his son. The boy sets up the little men and has them act out the different battles of the war. As Johnny plays with the little men, he begins to believe he can influence the real events going on in the battlefield. This book is populated with wonderful characters that are fully developed, and change and grow during the course of the book. One of the great moments of the book is when the father describes the miraculous Christmas Truce of 1914 and Johnny plays out the truce with the little men. Ages 10+

Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt (2007)
It is strange to think of a book about the 1960’s as a historical fiction but this fun and entertaining story actually deals with some of the major issues of that time period. The main character, Holling, is stuck alone in a class room with Mrs. Baker every Wednesday afternoon. At first he thinks that Mrs. Baker hates him, but during the year they find out a lot about each other through studying Shakespeare together. As a result they are able to support each other when Mr. Baker goes MIA in Vietnam and Holling’s sister gets caught up in the hippy movement. Many of my fellow librarians thought this one should have won the Newbery last year. Ages 8+


Donna Cardon is a children's librarian at Provo City Library and a well known children's book critic. We'd like to thank her for allowing us to republish her articles for our readers.