Testing Tips

Our students will be engaged in the ACT Aspire over the next two weeks.  Our testing schedule is as follows:

• Thursday, 4/16 - ACT Aspire Math
• Friday, 4/17 - ACT Aspire Reading
• Monday, 4/20 - ACT Aspire Writing
• Tuesday, 4/21 - ACT Aspire Science (5th grade only)

Below is a list of testing tips we have reviewed with our students.

Thank you for your continued support of Paine Intermediate!

5th Grade - Middle School Transition Lesson

Middle school is just around the corner for our 5th graders!  We know our students are prepared academically for the next level, but we want to make sure they are prepared in every other area of their life as well. This lesson focuses on giving students a chance to express feelings they have about going to middle school, ask questions they have about middle school, identify strategies for being successful in middle school, and determine organizational strategies they can begin implementing NOW so they will be better prepared for middle school

We accomplish these goals in two ways. First, students watched a short video entitled Making the Most of Middle School.  In the video, students hear from high school students who talk to them about the do's and don'ts of middle school. The importance of balancing academics and social activities is addressed as well as the importance of being organized.

Second, students rotated around the room and worked with small groups of students to answer these four questions:

• What are you most excited about?
• What are you nervous or scared about?
• What questions do you have about middle school?
• How can you keep yourself organized in middle school?

 

At the end of the rotation, we discussed some of the things students were nervous or scared about as well as the things they were most excited about. We discussed organizational skills and the students completed an organizational self-assessment to see just how organized they currently are.  At the end of the lesson, students identified one thing they can start doing today to be better prepared for middle school. I challenged the students to really work on their organizational goal for the remainder of the school year so they will be ready for middle school in the fall.

At the end of the lesson, I collected the posters and will type up the students' responses. I will send the student-generated list of questions to the principal at HTMS for her to use as a guide when talking to the students on our middle school field trip on May 5th.

I know most of our students are excited about middle school but some are hesitant about the whole transition. If your student is worried or overly-anxious about going to the middle school, please do not hesitate to contact me. I would love to discuss their concerns and share some strategies with them for dealing with worry and anxiety.

4th Grade Lesson - Careers

What do you want to be when you grow up? This is a question our children have been asked since they were toddlers, but it is time for our students to begin thinking seriously about this question. In just a few short years, our students will have the opportunity to choose classes directly related to their chosen college and career path. We want our students to be ready when that time comes!

The purpose of our 4th grade career lesson is to expose students to a variety of different careers and help students match various careers to their interests and abilities. We achieve these goals in two ways.  First, students complete an interest inventory in which they respond to 42 statements with either "yes" or "no". They tally their yeses in each category of the inventory and then receive a list of jobs that they might be interested in based on their totals in each category. Second, we play a Career Jeopardy game in which students learn about the educational requirements for a variety of jobs and learn more about the types of jobs out there. We are only able to explore a sampling of jobs so we encourage our students to explore further on their own.  We stress the fact that people are often happier with their career choice when they are interested in their job and can do their job well. We want our students to become happy, successful adults!

There are many resources out there to help your children explore careers. Below are just a few I have found that may be of interest to intermediate age students.

• Kids.Gov: A Safe Place to Learn and Play
• Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Kids Work

Ask your child about our lesson and about the career they are thinking of pursuing. Many of our students want to be professional athletes, singers, actors, and actresses. We encourage them to continue pursuing their dreams but to also have another plan just in case those careers don't pan out. It's never too early to prepare for the future!

Love Your Neighbor Food Drive

5th Grade Lesson - Self-Concept

Self-concept is our mental image of ourselves. In order to be a mentally healthy individual, we must have a healthy self-concept. Often people associate self-concept with girls, but it is just as important for boys to have positive thoughts and feelings about themselves.  This lesson focuses on examining our own self-concept and learning ways we can improve our self-esteem.

During this lesson, students used a Likert scale to anonymously respond to statements regarding self-concept using the app Socrative on the iPad.  For each statement below, students were asked to rank their feelings about the question as (A) agree (B) kind of agree (C) kind of disagree (D) disagree.

• If someone doesn’t agree with you, that means he or she doesn’t like you.
• If you don’t do something well, there is not point in doing it at all.
• To be happy, my friends must be happy with me.
• Without friends, I am nobody.
• Being liked is more important than being respected.
• If I get a failing grade, that means I’m a failure.
• If someone gets a better grade than I do, that means he or she is a better person.
• If my friends want me to do something then I should do it if I want them to be my friends.
• People who are good looking are happier than people who aren’t.
• If someone I care about is angry with me, it destroys my day.
• If I do something nice for someone, they will do something nice for me.
• The more popular someone is, the happier he or she is.

After all students in the class responded, we examined the overall responses and students were able to share their viewpoints on each statement. We discussed things we can control versus things we cannot control and how focusing on things we cannot control can damage our self-concept.  We also examined how the media affects the way we feel about ourselves.  We watched a video clip entitled "Dove Evolution" so students could see how Photoshop makes an ordinary person look extraordinary. We discussed the dangers of comparing ourselves to famous singers, actors, actresses, and athletes, because the images we often see of these people are not reality. We ended the lesson by sharing tips for improving self-esteem and having each student write down three things they like about themselves. By focusing on the positives about ourselves and on the things we can control in life, we can have a more positive self-concept and, in turn, achieve greater happiness.

To find our more about developing your child's self-esteem, visit KidsHealth.org.

4th Grade Bullying Unit, Lesson 3

During the month of January, 4th grade classes participated in the final lesson in our bullying unit called "Don't Stand By, Stand Up to a Bully!" This lesson focuses on what to do if you see bullying taking place.  The objectives for this lesson are as follows:

• Review what makes a bully a bully.
• Identify ways you can help stand up to a bully.
• Complete a pretest/posttest on standing up to a bully
• Watch “Don’t Stand By: Stand Up to a Bully” video and discuss
• Complete handout:  “Choose Your Words”  and “Being a Pal”
• Recognize times when friends may be bullies.
• Identify strategies for making new friends.

Through this lesson, students are encouraged not to stand by when another student is being mistreated. They are encouraged to stand up together and "fight back" with appropriate, research-proven strategies that are assertive but not aggressive. In addition, students have a chance to examine their friends in order to determine if they have a friendship that should be discontinued.

When students stand up together and do the right thing, even when no one is looking, they are leaders and can make a difference in the school community.

5th Grade Lesson - Rumor Has It

This lesson entitled Rumor Has It focuses on encouraging our students to stop and T.H.I.N.K...

So many times, students speak without stopping to think about the consequences of their words.  In this lesson, students watched a video entitled "Buzz, Buzz, Buzz, Did You Hear About...?"  The video is comprised of several different segments in which students learn how rumors often start. Students are shown that things are not always how they appear and that they should always have their facts straight before talking about something. We focus on the fact that it's best not to talk about other people...period. The objectives for this lesson are as follows:

• Understand the meaning of rumors and gossip
• Recognize how rumors and gossip start and are spread
• Be aware of the reasons people might spread rumors and gossip
• Understand the dangers of spreading rumors and gossip
• Learn how to defend against rumors and gossip

By the end of the lesson, students have a greater understanding of how rumors start and what to do if they find themselves involved with rumors and gossip.

Students are encouraged to try the strategies above if they are dealing with rumors and gossip. They may also make an appointment with me to discuss other strategies and to get help if this is an issue they are dealing with. We want our students to learn to solve their own problems, but also to be happy each day when they come to school!