4.28.15 BF Packing List

Bent's Fort Information/Packing List

How to prepare for fieldwork at Bent’s Fort

When: May 1st

Please be at Renaissance at 8:15am. We will meet by the flagpole.
Depart Renaissance: 8:30 am

Return Renaissance: Estimate 7pm

Daypack list for fieldwork:

Hat or Sunglasses

Extra layer like a sweatshirt and jacket for rain

Water bottle (32 oz.)

Sunscreen, Bug spray or lotion

Chapstick

Tissue

A healthy sack lunch and 2 healthy snacks

Book, journal, cards, or car game for bus ride
(no electronics)

Pen or Pencil

Clothes to wear:
-Shorts/Pants
-T-shirt
-Tennis shoes or hiking shoes, something that covers whole foot (Mr. Doug’s rule)
As of today (4/28), the weather for Friday is calling for a high of 81 degrees and partly cloudy. Be prepared for heat!

**Chaperone meeting at 8:00 am. Chaperones, please remember bring a lunch for yourself.

**Arrive at 8:15. We will leave right away at 8:30.

**Pick up from school at 7pm. 



Emails will be sent if there is any change in our arrival time.

4.23.15 Crew News/ Winter Voyage Summary

Winter Voyage: A Great Success! Wow, I am still in awe of what a wonderful voyage we had! There were so many small moments where I saw students reach out to help and/or encourage each other. It is such a highlight for me! I was so impressed and proud of students as they set goals to push themselves out of their comfort zones, work together with teamwork, and reflect on the personal growth that they made. In addition to adventure education, Keystone Science School facilitated engaging and rich learning experiences about the earth science: the three classifications of rocks, minerals, plate tectonics, and the history of our mountain range the Rockies. A huge shout-out to our third grade chaperones: Trang, Jody, Tracy, Sonja, Mike, Jeff, Cristian, and Devin. You were incredible, and I appreciate you so much!!! Each patrol had their own style of teaching and team-building. Here are some highlights from our crew.  Some students got to try out snowshoeing while others took advantage of sledding down this awesome hill.   Geology Kickball! Students had to say the name of the rock and how it was made to stay at each base.  We did a variety of activities to learn about the rock cycle.  Students had to use perseverance on their long challenge hike.  The Three Headed Mountain Bears patrol worked on communication and collaboration skills to complete team-building activities. The emphasis was on having successful communication and feeling pride in working as a group.  The Flaming Wolverines hiked to this beautiful river to learn about rocks. In the foreground you can see where they build different land forms: lake, mountain, basin, canyon, plateau, and valley.  Students got to work as geologists to crack open rocks and identify them. Another highlight was viewing the moon through the Keystone Observatory telescope. **Be sure to ask your child about what they learned about food waste! After every meal, our food waste was weighed. Our meal totals were 3 pounds, 4.5 pounds, 2 pounds, and then drumroll please.... 1.7 OUNCES! This was a very huge victory and new Renaissance record! The Three Headed Mountain Bears The Flaming Wolverines Please ask your child to share his/her field journal with you! Student recorded some of their learning and reflections. For Monday: Please have students bring in their field journal, pen, and plastic bag (we try to reuse these on voyages). Thanks!!! A big thank you to our photographers who helped capture the moment! ***See MORE of the lovely pictures from Trang at  http://1drv.ms/1aW5gxW  Ms. Lauren's Crew Mr. Tyler's Crew Announcements: PARCC Testing Next Week:  Students will begin their final round of PARCC testing next week.  This round is more of a skills based component, and it is titled " End of the Year" test.  This test will be a good indication of skills that students have mastered, and ones that need to be strengthened before fourth grade.   Students will only be testing in the morning of Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday.  The test will start at 9:00am and we will be done by 11:00am. The time spent testing is much less than the first round of PARCC. I have noticed that some students show some of the character qualities that we value at Renaissance when it comes to testing: specifically perseverance.  Yes the tests can be difficult, and that is okay.  The students and I have talked about where their source of pride comes from, and we realized that it comes from tackling items that are difficult; not avoiding them.  We may not always like the item, but hard work and giving your best effort does count. For those who want to view sample test items, follow this link :PARCC sample test items    Calendar Updates: Apr 24: No School; Teacher Comp Day Apr 27, 28, 30: Round 2 of PARCC testing May 1: Fieldwork to Bent's Fort *EXTENDED DAY* Drop off at 8:15am/ pick-up at 7pm May 13: 3rd Grade Portfolio Presentations  Reminder: 3rd Grade Portfolio Showcase on May 13th from 1:30-4 pm Please ensure your child will be available and at our third grade portfolio reviews in the afternoon on Wednesday, May 13th. We will give your specific half hour time slot soon. It is a momentous occasion for students, and they are already very excited about it! Portfolio Panel Sign-ups Third grade is a showcase portfolio year, and we will need panelists! Unfortunately, third grade parents cannot be on the third grade panels. However, you can sign up to be on the sixth grade panels. Please consider signing up! This is an experience that is unique to REMS and is a wonderful growth opportunity for our students. Particularly for sixth graders, as it is their last year at Renaissance, it is a very meaningful ritual. Sign up to be on a 6th grade portfolio panel here.

4.16.15 Crew News

Announcements:

VOYAGE NEXT WEEK: 

-Our voyage is April 20-22. Drop off students at regular time on Monday morning. Pick up students on Wednesday at 4:00 by the Early Childhood Parking Lot. If we arrive early, the office will send an email out. 

-Day of rest is April 23th. (And there is no school on Friday! What a lucky week!)

-Keystone Gear List is here.

-STUDENTS PACK THEIR GEAR and YOU double check! (This really helps them know what they have, where it is, and learn the preparation skills for later).

-Pocket warmers are optional, but highly recommended for each day. 

-Pack 1 LUNCH and 1 SNACK for the first day. Pack it in their reusable lunch bag, so that we don't have to use paper sacks when we pack our lunches for the following days.

-HYDRATE early- encourage drinking lots of water over the weekend.
As of today (Thursday), the weather is calling for snow for the weekend and possible rain early next week. Make sure students are prepared for all kinds weather. :)
  

Portfolio Information

Hello Families,

I realize that I have not fully explained this whole “portfolio presentation.” :)

At Renaissance, students have digital or binder-style portfolios to store artifacts, final products of expeditions, and reflections of their learning throughout the grades. At third grade and sixth grade, students present their portfolios to share their learning and reflect on their growth as learners.

After we get back from voyage we will begin the preparation process. Students will choose what they want to share and have multiple opportunities to practice.

On the day of the presentation, please have students arrive on-time and “dressed for success.” We will tell them to treat this like an interview, where you dress up in more formal clothes for the occasion.

Students share for 20 minutes to a panel of community members. The panel usually consists of a REMS teacher, a parent from the school, and sometimes we have other guests from the community such as school board members. UNFORTUNATELY, parents do not get to sit in on the presentation. Since we recently had student-led conferences, you have already had the opportunity to hear a more informal version of this learning. Parents and siblings are asked to wait in the hallway during the presentation.

Following the presentation, all third graders and families are invited to celebrate in the cafeteria with cake. Students are tremendously proud of this feeling of accomplishment and it truly is a Renaissance ‘rite of passage.’

Please let me know if there is anything else you would like to know. I highly recommend you sitting in on the 6th grade portfolio panels, so that you can experience this unique and powerful event.

Thanks,

~Lauren

Portfolio Panel Sign-ups

Third grade is a showcase portfolio year, and we will need panelists! Unfortunately, third grade parents cannot be on the third grade panels. However, you can sign up to be on the sixth grade panels. Please consider signing up! This is an experience that is unique to REMS and is a wonderful growth opportunity for our students. Particularly for sixth graders, as it is their last year at Renaissance, it is a very meaningful ritual. Sign up to be on a 6th grade portfolio panel here.

Construct and Deconstruct:

I'm looking for old items that can be donated to the class for a construct and deconstruct center. I'd like to have different items that can be taken apart and put back together (for this reason, don't plan on getting these items back). The idea is that kids can unscrew, pry, and investigate how things work. I'd love to have anything around the size of a toaster or smaller. Email me about larger items. :) Thanks in advance for sending in any old items. Also if you have any tools that you would like to donate, that would be great! 

Calendar Updates:

Apr 20-22 NEW Voyage Date

Apr 23: Day of Rest- No School for 3rd Grade

Apr 24: No School; Teacher Comp Day
Apr 27, 28, 30: Round 2 of PARCC testing

May 1: Fieldwork to Bent's Fort *EXTENDED DAY* Drop off at 8:15am/ pick-up at 7pm
May 13: 3rd Grade Portfolio Presentations 

Reminder: 3rd Grade Portfolio Showcase on May 13th from 1:30-4 pm

Please ensure your child will be available and at our third grade portfolio reviews in the afternoon on Wednesday, May 13th. We will give your specific half hour time slot soon. It is a momentous occasion for students, and they are already very excited about it!

Learning about Viewpoints This week, our crew learned about multiple perspectives. They were given the following picture and tried to figure out what thoughts and questions people in the picture might have.  Then we took some time to become experts and learn about some of the people who were at Bent's Fort, such as the Mountain Men, Traders, Native Americans, and Craftsman.  This gave students some important background knowledge to inform their thoughts of what people in the picture might be thinking or wondering. We did the viewpoints protocol again, and this time, students had some insightful ideas that helped our crew understand multiple perspectives.  Sharing thoughts and ideas from someone in the picture. Zoom in so you can take a look at this great thinking! Music with Ms. Chelsea Be sure to ask your child about what is going on in music this week!  Community Art At The Beat, the ambassadors wanted to have our school do a community art project. They asked each crew to decorate a square in front of the school with chalk. The theme was "hand turkeys in spring." What a blast!

4.9.15 Crew News

Calendar Updates:

Apr 20-22 NEW Voyage Date

Apr 23: Day of Rest- No School for 3rd Grade

Apr 24: No School; Teacher Comp Day
Apr 27, 28, 30: Round 2 of PARCC testing

May 1: Fieldwork to Bent's Fort *EXTENDED DAY* Drop off at 8:15am/ pick-up at 7pm
May 13: 3rd Grade Portfolio Presentations

Announcements:

Mark Your Calendars for Expedition Fieldwork to Bent's Fort: Our fieldwork will take place Friday, May 1st. Since it is a bit of a drive, students will need to be dropped off at 8:15am and picked up at 7pm. Please mark your calendars to make arrangements now. Look for a permission slip in this week’s Thursday Folders.

***My apologies for not giving more advanced notice for this trip and the extended day times. Tyler and I ran into some trouble with scheduling and finding a bus. We were hoping to have these dates to you before Spring Break, which unfortunately did not happen. Again, my apologies, as I know this impacts your schedules and Friday night plans.

Welcome back! It has been so delightful to hear about everyone's adventures and stories from Spring Break. We have spent this week getting started with literature discussion groups, real event writing (also known as personal narrative), and double digit multiplication. In Expedition, we did looked at a variety of "Mystery Pieces," which include pictures, a variety of items, and a video . Students analyzed, made observations, and asked "thick questions" all related to our topic: Bent's Fort.  Today students discovered that we will be learning about multiple perspectives and cause & effect through this study. Here are some pictures showing the fun we had with the inquiry process. Be sure to ask your child about their observations and questions. Analyzing and making observations. Ha! I just HAD to model all of the mystery piece items. ;)  Brainstorming questions Our class "boxing protocol" with notes of observations. Sorting "thick" and "thin" questions to guide our study Drumroll please! Here is the title and guiding questions of this expedition.