I hope your child came home and told you about the great work they did at the restoration field trip on Tuesday. They worked so hard! It was a beautiful day (and this rain will help our newly planted trees!) It was a wonderful, high energy, collaborative effort, and I am very proud of them. And the parents, wow! Thanks for getting us there and back (and tolerating the dirty clothes on the way home), but also for the wonderful enthusiasm and effort you put into the project as well. This field trip cannot happen without parents, and I thank you for making this experience possible for our class. I expect that everyone who participated slept well Tuesday night! I will work with S.T.R.A.W. to schedule a visit to the ranch near the end of the year to see the short-term results. Many pictures were taken during the day, and I hope to have some up in the classroom very soon.

Students went to an assembly on Wed., as part of Red Ribbon Week, that spoke to the problem of bullying. They were given information about types of bullying (physical, social, and verbal), as well as specific strategies to deal with bullying. Although bullying is not a big problem at Rancho, it does occur. It would be wonderful if every family could have a discussion (now, and periodically as the year progresses) specifically about respectful behavior and how to deal with any problems their child encounters at school. Please know that they can always come to me or any other adult at school to report problems or get help with situations that make them uncomfortable. Our goal at Rancho is not just to teach academics, but to prepare the whole child for their next steps.

Reminder: the 50 states test is coming up--November 13. Students who have to make up state region tests will do so by Friday, Nov. 7. Our last regional test, West-Part 2, will be on election day,Tues., 11/4. Once that is done, students will pick/be assigned (they make a list and I try to give them their 1st or as close to their 1st choice as possible) the state they will report on. We'll be doing a modified State Fair in December (it will be a busy month!). More details soon.

If you have not yet confirmed your parent-teacher (-student) conference time (a new notice is in today's Friday folder for those families from whom I still need to hear), please do so by Friday, Nov. 7. If the time assigned to you does not work, please let me know and we'll find an alternate time.

And one last reminder, students are asked not to bring candy to school for lunches or snacks (although we'll have treats at today's Halloween party!). Have a great weekend!