Students enjoyed the Halloween party--a big "Thank you!" to room parents Lorena Garbarino and Marianne Hill, as well as all the other parent helpers. I love it when Halloween is on a Friday! It was a great way to end the week.

Parent-teacher conferences begin on Monday, Nov. 17. If you need a reminder about our agreed upon time and date, please email me (sspry@nusd.org), call, or send in a note, and I'll provide the information. Please remember that your child is invited to join us for the conference (or we could have one with your child and one with just parents--let me know), so even if you did not check the box to confirm that your child will be attending, please feel free to bring him or her. Contact me if you have any questions.

The 50 states test has been taken, and work on the State Fair projects has begun. Our class's State Fair date is Thursday, Dec. 18. Students are collecting information about their individual states, completing a note-taking guide, and will then work with their partner to create a presentation, including a presentation board, as the experts on that particular state. They have received the specific requirements for the project. We also spent some time talking about the day of the State Fair. Students are encouraged to dress in a way that somehow connects to their state. For instance, a student working on California might choose to come dressed as John Muir, a Gold Rush miner, Gov. Schwartzenegger, a farmer, a surfer, or some other character associated with the state. Students are also encouraged to bring appropriate artifacts that represent important products, inventions, activities, industries, or historical events for their state. Again, if the student's state is California, they might bring in an example of an important agricultural product (cotton, garlic, etc.); a backpack, snowboard, or replica of the Golden Gate Bridge to represent the importance of tourism in the state; a book by John Steinbeck to represent literary contributions from Californians; and so on. While students are working with a partner on their particular state, they will have individual responsibilities, and their grade will reflect their own effort (including the ability to work collaboratively) and the product they create (in other words, partners may not receive the same grade). Judging by their enthusiasm so far, I know they'll do a great job.

If you are able to help out on our 2 December field trips, Mon. Dec. 8 to decorate and ride the Larkspur Ferry and Friday, Dec. 12 to Chabot Space and Science Center, please contact Marianne Hill (marianne@nhainc.net). As I mentioned in a previous blog, Mrs. Dees and I would love to have a potluck back at school after the trip on the ferry (Dec. 8). I know there has been a fair amount of interest from the parents in Mrs. Dees' class, but so far I haven't heard anything from our class. I understand if it seems to be too much. Please contact me or one of our room parents (Lorena Garbarino, at lorenagsellshomes@yahoo.com or MarianneHill, at marianne@nhainc.net) if you are interested in helping.

Reminder: student dismissal is at 12:30 every day next week, Nov. 17-21. Thanksgiving break is Nov. 24-28.

Have a great weekend.