The Carnival was a huge success!  Thank you to all of the parent volunteers who helped with the event.  You made it a special afternoon for everyone.

Although the end of the school year is approaching, it is still important that we adhere to our regular standards.  I want to ask you to please check your child's agenda on a regular basis, as several students have forgotten to complete homework lately.  For instance, this week your child has spelling, reading, math, and Wordly Wise homework on a nightly basis.

We are in the midst of our last planner of the year, "Art History 101."  Liz Spencer, who is from Young Audiences of Houston, will come each week to teach an art lesson to the students.  Last week we worked on frescos in class.  Our art studies will tie in nicely to what we learned at the Pompeii exhibit. 

Our last reading focus of the year is mythology.  We will primarily study Greek and Roman mythology; however, we'll also look at Nordic tales as well.  If we have any parent experts, we'd love to have your help and ideas. As of today, we've read tales of Perseus, Echo and Narcissus, the gift of Athena, Orpheus and Eurydice, the orginin of the seasons, and Cupid and Psyche.  What fun!

Some of the students have expressed interest in completing independent projects of their own choosing.  While I don't wish to create an increased work demand outside of the classroom, I understand that not all exploration can or will take place within the confines of our classroom.  Please check with your child to see if he/she has signed up to complete an independent study.  Please read below to find out what we're doing in all subject areas...

Spelling - The students are working from Lesson 17 in Wordly Wise for their spelling words.  All three activities are due Friday morning.

Language Arts -  We are working on Lesson 17 in Wordly Wise this week.  The students will be tested over the material on Friday morning.

Math - We have begun looking at more complicated fractions.  Please be sure to remind your child to use his/her student reference book on nightly homework.

Reading -  We are obsessed withThe Lightning Thief as our read-aloud novel!  The students enjoy this modern-day twist on mythology.  For our reading skills we'll work with short myths and comprehension activities.

Science - We are going to begin studying the human body in science lab this week.

Social Studies - We'll move on to the Republic of Texas next week.  We are also going to do some geographic studies of Ancient Greece.

Have a great week!

Sincerely,

Ashley Browning