http://www.hplibrary.org/node/18728
May the force be with you!
-Mrs. Petlak
The week of December 14-18 will be Star Wars spirit week at Indian Trail and all other elementary schools in District 112. To support the fun and literary spirit of the movie, books will be available for checkout and StarWars activities will be promoted during library time for all students this week. To continue with the fun beyond the school day, the Highland Park Public Library will be hosting a Star Wars mini con December 19 and 20.
http://www.hplibrary.org/node/18728 May the force be with you! -Mrs. Petlak
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Hello Route #125 Parents!
First, THANK YOU to everyone for your patience and support while I was out of the classroom last week due to an upper respiratory infection combined with tracheitis. I'm finally starting to feel back to normal and appreciate your understanding. I know things are never optimal when the teacher is out of the classroom, but I received RAVE reviews about our students while I was gone, and we're getting back into the swing of things!! Since I've been out of commission for a while, I thought I'd write with a few updates and reminders: 1) Tomorrow is our field trip to the high school for the annual Halloween Concert!! 1) If you have not yet returned the permission slip, please send it in tomorrow OR email me permission for your child to attend. 2) PLEASE send coats, gloves, hats, etc, in case it is cold on our walk to the high school! 2) We are in DESPERATE NEED of ANTIBACTERIAL WIPES. If you have any at home to send, we'd be greatly appreciative!!!! 3) If you signed up to donate goodies for our Halloween Mad Science SPOOK-tacular (our party that is science learning in disguise--MWAHAHAHA--evil laugh), please send those items inTOMORROW (THURS) if at all possible. This allows me to take inventory and pick up any last minute items tomorrow night, if needed. 4) Be sure to check out our Class Dojo CLASS WALL! I post photos with quick captions about daily curricular happenings here instead of long blog posts, which I know most parents don't have time to read and digest. You'll get nice snapshots of what's going on in our room! 5) Similarly, please check out our Cruisin' Through Class page: You can see some AWESOME Halloween-themed learning that is fun, festive, and....RIGOROUS. Just ask your kiddos--We did a fairly simple close reading activity today, that stretched student learning! It may look simple...but it's not. #slowdownwhenreading #makeinferences #providetextevidence THANK YOU! Lindsey Petlak Class Dojo isn't just for behavior reports! I'm able to message parents individually or in groups...and NOW.....we have our very own Dojo Class Story wall! Think of this like a private, 100% safe, social media stream (think: Facebook)...but totally secluded and protected from the outside world.
Writing extensive blog posts with tons of photos of our daily happenings take a LONG time to write and post...and are delayed when they finally go live. With our Class Story wall, I can send you snapshots and notes about happenings every day, throughout the day, INSTANTLY! I've posted several today already! You get a notification that something new is on our Dojo Story wall, and then you can click on the "STORY" button at the bottom of your Class Dojo screen, and voila! You have instant, constant access to what we're doing throughout each day (...and proof that we do more than just recess, lunch...or nothing, as your kiddos might report ;-). I'll still be posting curricular updates, special events, and parental information here on our blog, but I plan to channel our day-to-day happenings on our Dojo Story wall. Check daily, and.....ENJOY! **Click image below to access our Class Dojo Story wall! We {LOVE} Geoff Rodkey!Geoff Rodkey is best known as the screenwriter of the hit films Daddy Day Care, RV, and the Disney Channel'sGood Luck Charlie, It's Christmas. The author of the acclaimed middle grade adventure-comedy trilogy The Chronicles of Egg, he's also written for the educational video game Where In the World Is Carmen Sandiego?, the non-educational MTV seriesBeavis and Butt-head, Comedy Central's Politically Incorrect, and at least two magazines that no longer exist. Geoff currently lives in New York City with his wife and three sons, none of whom bear any resemblance whatsoever to the characters in The Tapper Twins books. Visit him online at GeoffRodkey.com Meet & Explore with the Tapper Twins!Click on the image below to explore the interactive Tapper Twins site. ENJOY!
Ever wonder what we do all day? When you ask your child about his/her day, does he/she claim "nothing" or say something like "lunch, recess, gym?" Guess what? Now you can follow along with our in-class travels! Our Cruisin' Through Class blog page is a daily coursework "road map" of the bulk of our lessons. These may be applied to whole group, small group, or independent lessons & activities. Your child is gaining independence and maximizing use of our tech tools through our Cruisin' Through Class blog page. I am able to link documents, external websites, videos, songs, forms, polls, and much, much more to each lesson or series of activity instructions that I post. YOU can follow along to see a glimpse of what we are learning each day/week! Students are able to work at their own pace using this travel guide. They may watch and re-watch instructional videos, if they need to, or may progress quickly through the activities listed if appropriate, allowing me to confer with students in small groups or 1:1 to effectively differentiate my instruction and their learning experience on a deeper level. Another great aspect of the Cruisin' Through Class blog page is that if your child is ABSENT or needs a quick reference for homework, this resources is live 24/7. Wonder what your child is missing while absent? Check out the in-class blog! Does your student need to re-visit a lesson from today or earlier this week to complete homeowork? No problem! ....just look back at the in-class blog! I hope you'll enjoy following our in-class road map by following our Cruisin' Through Class blog page! Feel free to email me with any questions! Thanks for your partnership, Lindsey Petlak Dear Parents, I have the incredible honor and privilege to be a Scholastic Top Teaching national blogger. From educators across the country, only a few educators spanning Kg. through middle school are selected to be a part of their Top Teaching blogger panel. Last year was my first year as a Scholastic blogger, and it was a wonderful experience for both myself and my students. I have been asked to blog for Scholastic again this year, and cannot wait to share our classroom adventures with other teachers to connect with and inspire them. If you wish to see examples of previous blog posts, please check out my Scholastic Top Teaching blogger page (Click HERE). Recently one of my articles was also published in Scholastic Instructor magazine. Another was recognized by SmartBrief Education as the August 2015 post of the month for outstanding content. As part of that recognition, next Wednesday, 9/23/15, I will be interviewed on Education Talk Radio. All students photographed in the blog entries at the above link signed specific release forms in order to appear on the Scholastic blog. While I typically try NOT to photograph faces, occasionally I may. These release forms are very similar to what you sign during registration for our district, but Scholastic uses their own for legal purposes and consistency in the release forms. If you are willing to let your child be photographed for Scholastic blog posts, please print and sign the attached media release form. I will also send home paper copies as back-ups or in case you are unable to print. Thank you for your support, as your children help be examples for and inspiration to teachers and classrooms across the nation. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me! Best regards, Lindsey Petlak Please sign and return ASAP. Downloadable file can be found below. PLEASE NOTE: Student names, nor any other identifying personal information will ever be featured in the posts.
we hope to see you at Open House!
See the information and schedule below. Please complete the RSVP below(or click here)
to let me know who will be attending, and during which session(s). I can't wait to see all of you on Thursday! Thanks!! I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know each and every one of your children over this first month of school! To help further that connection and my insight into your child and your thoughts, preferences, etc. for this year, please complete the online survey below PRIOR to Open House on Thursday.
Just click on the image below. Thanks! Mrs. Petlak ROUTE #125 SPECIALS SCHEDULE
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AuthorI am a theme-weaving, bargain-hunting, creative public educator who teaches a fabulous group of 4th graders at Indian Trail Elementary School in Highland Park, Illinois. Follow our TravelsDonate TO OUR ROAD TRIP!Teacher FavoritesArchives
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