I hope you had an opportunity to visit the State Fair on Wednesday. Students did a wonderful job of sharing information about their states, and visiting teachers have reported back that their students came away with interesting facts and questions. I was impressed by the knowledge shared and the energy and enthusiasm displayed throughout the morning. I know students are anxious to find out their grade, but it will take me a significant amount of time to carefully go through all the boards. Students will receive their State Fair grade when they return from the December break. Partners have been asked to decide among themselves who will get to keep the board, although I am available to help with the decision process (a picture of the board is a nice way to "keep" the board).

I appreciate all the help from Kristin Mercurio (working hard at the food table) and other parents who helped with the State Fair. Rancho parents are wonderfully supportive and helpful.

A final note on the State Fair: Jessie's dad, Dan Edblom, made a wonderful 3-4 minute slide show of the State Fair (accompanied by the wonderful song, "This Land Is Your Land"). The students saw it yesterday and really enjoyed seeing themselves and their friends. Thank you Dan!

The language test scheduled for this past Tuesday never happened, and has been rescheduled for Thursday, Jan. 8. We will also get back to weekly spelling assignments, daily math and the Friday quiz, and geography packets when we return in January.

For parents curious about GATE and GATE testing, be sure to attend NUSD's Jan. 15 GATE Information Night. The meeting will take place at the district offices, from 7-8:00 P.M. And if you still have questions about Walker Creek, plan to attend Walker Creek's January Open House on Jan. 21, from 11:15-12:15 (with an optional hike from 10-11). RSVP at 415.491.6602, by Monday, Jan. 19. For more information, go to www.walkercreekranch.org.

In anticipation of another wonderful effort by parents, thanks for creating a great end of the year (2008)/winter solstice/holiday party for the students of Room 14.

It's hard to believe that 2008 is coming to an end. I hope everyone has the December break they want--relaxing, exciting, quiet, fun-filled or a combination of all of these things! I look forward to students coming back energized and ready to get back to work. Have a wonderful 2 weeks, and I'll see students back on Jan. 5.

The class had a wonderful time on Monday's field trip. Their decorations looked great, they enjoyed sharing the experience with Mrs. Dees' class, and they were well-fed at the lunch. A huge "Thank you!" to everyone who made the day possible--the Thomson family for initiating the field trip, our drivers (Mrs. Gutierrez, who got a rental car because her own car wasn't working properly; Mrs. Garbarino, who volunteered to drive at the last minute to make sure all the students in Mrs. Dees' class would have a ride; Mrs. Stevenson, Mrs. Leonard, Mr. McKay, Mrs. Mercurio, Mrs. Hamilton-Tsao, and Mrs. Thomson), and the other parent chaperons (Mrs. Kwong, Mrs. Ding, Mrs. Wedrychowski, Mrs. Clark, and Mrs. Thomas) who helped out on the ferry and with the luncheon. Thanks as well to everyone who sent in food to the potluck. Rancho parents are fabulous! We could not have gone without parent support. I hope you'll have a chance to ride the Larkspur Ferry sometime during the holidays to enjoy the decorations.

A huge "Thank you!" to all the parents driving and chaperoning our Chabot field trip today as well (Mrs. LoVetri, Mrs. Stevenson, Mrs. Garbarino, Mrs. Gutierrez, Mrs. Clary, Mrs. Buckley, and Mrs. Mercurio). I know there will be other parents coming along to help with the day, and I thank all of you as well. This has always been a very fun and educational field trip, and I expect it will be again today.

Reminders about the State Fair:

• the date is Wednesday, Dec. 17; it will begin at 8:45 A.M. and end at noon.
• Students are strongly urged to dress in some way that is representative of their state (farmer, businessperson, historical figure, fictional figure, state animal, an athlete on one of the state's college teams or professional teams, etc.). Please do not go out and buy a costume; just use what you can find or borrow.
• Students should bring in 2 or more artifacts that are representative of their state (a Frisbee, if the Frisbee was invented in their state, a golf club if there is a well-known golf course where professional golf tournaments take place, 1 or 2 apples if the state is known for producing apples, etc.) Again, no one needs to go out and buy things; use what you have on hand or can borrow.
• Students MAY bring food to share. IT IS ABSOLUTELY NOT REQUIRED, and will not impact their grade. Each year several students bring in small samples to share (bite-sized!). For example, if your state is a major wheat-producing state, a student might bring in a loaf of bread, cut each slice into multiple cubes, and then let State Fair visitors have a cube to taste. If you have ANY questions at all, please contact me.

Just to reiterate: the State Fair shouldn't cost any family any money at all--we even provide the boards! Have your child use his/her imagination to come up with a "costume" for the day, and look around the house for simple things (artifacts) to represent significant activities or events associated with their state. Most of us love food, so students are allowed to bring food, but they are most definitely not required to do so. FYI: All food that has been brought in to share will be on one long table (with a card identifying the state and the food) that State Fair visitors will go to just before leaving the multi-use room. The State Fair will be great.

Our class will have a party on Friday, Dec. 19, from 1:30 until the end of school. Everyone is welcome to come and help out. Mrs. Hill and Mrs. Garbarino are organizing the afternoon, so please contact them if you have questions or would like to help.

Have a great weekend.

Important announcements first:
1) We have enough drivers for our field trip to decorate the ferry--thank you parents!

2) The date of our State Fair has changed to Wed., Dec. 17. Please mark your calendar accordingly (our original date was Dec. 18). The State Fair will take place all morning, beginning about 8:45am and ending about noon. Parents (and any other interested folks) are encouraged to visit. Please contact me if you have any questions.

Lots going on as we make the most of the few weeks before the December break. Students will be working with their kindergarten partners today, making decorations for Monday's field trip. The class has been working on multiplying decimal numbers, and will take that chapter test on Tuesday, Dec. 9. The next geography test is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 11. We will have a language test the following Tuesday, Dec. 16. We are continuing to read The Sign of the Beaver and discuss both the story and the wonderful use of language. We will also begin practicing narrative writing. We have begun working on the next science unit, Living Systems.

Our initial focus in science is on cells. Although a typical "ideal" cell contains other organelles, we'll concentrate on the following, in order to understand cellular respiration and photosynthesis: both plant and animal cells have a cell membrane, cytoplasm, a nucleus with a nucleolus where the chromosomes and DNA are located, multiple mitochondria, and vacuoles, but only plant cells contain chloroplasts and have cell walls. We spent time yesterday on an investigation of diffusion and osmosis (diffusion across a living cell membrane). We'll move on to body systems and plants.

Just to keep parents informed...the state note-taking guide must be completed no later than Wed., Dec. 10. As soon as students complete their state note-taking guide (and some are finished or nearly finished now), they can begin working with their partner on creating their State Fair board. The assignment sheet students were given lays out the requirements, and I'll be working with each group to help them decide which partner is responsible for which parts of the board presentation.

Again, many thanks to those parents making our field trips next week possible. The students are also looking forward to the potluck lunch on Monday, when we get back from the ferry. Just to remind everyone: on Monday, Dec. 8, we'll leave Rancho by 8:45am. Students need to dress warmly and in layers. We'll be back by about noon. On Friday, Dec. 12, we'll be gone all day. We'll leave Rancho as soon as possible (8:30am) so students must arrive at school on time! We'll be back by the end of the school day (2:50pm). Each person going to Chabot must bring a bag lunch and drink.

Have a wonderful weekend!