4th Grade Bibliotherapy Book Club

You may remember a post from last October showing Aiden reading an excerpt from our beloved Ghetto Cowboy by G. Neri.  He was part of a special book club of focused and engaged young men that met with Mrs. Peyton and myself.  We had so much fun working with this great group of boys and they did a great job staying on top of reading and having insightful conversations about growing up, what it means to be a man and to belong in a group. We also made some new friendships!

Our cowboys, after decorating their saddle bags.

Mrs. P eyton and our readers (and one mom who came to celebrate with us!) decorating their saddle bags.

At the end of each session, this student's sister came in with her class to checkout as a group, and the love they showed each other would always make my day!  What a great example of sibling love!

Ukulele Club

Hey, third fourth and fifth graders! Ready for something amazing and new in your life?  So are we!  You should apply today for the UKULELE CLUB!  You know, like adorable little Hawaiian guitars?  Yeah, ukuleles!  In a club!  Ms. Billitteri & Mrs. Fournier started playing a few months ago and we want to make a group at Forest North.  We’ll be meeting on Tuesdays, starting 2/23 and going through May! Apply today!  Fifteen people will be accepted and they will get a free ukulele to use during our meetings and to take home for practice.  We’ll even perform at the talent show in May! So be sure to get an application below, or just pick one up from Ms. Billitteri or Mrs. Fournier.  Applications are due 2/17, so get it in as soon as possible, and we’ll see you in UKULELE CLUB!

Combining Sentences in 4th Grade

4th grade is doing a special lesson today on combining sentences.  How can you take two different thoughts and most effectively put them into one larger sentence?  Good readers like varied sentence lengths in their texts, and good writers know how to revise multiple similar thoughts into one sentence.

First, we'll generate nouns and verbs to make our own sentences about ourselves, and make some sentences about us.  We'll practice by combining them.

Then, we'll hop on to this quiz page and try combining these sentences!

5th Grade Declares Independence!

5th grade declared their independence from something in their life this week in the library. We reviewed the purpose and context of the Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson and signed by the Continental Congress.  Then we read what the Declaration of Independence says in modern English.  Then we wrote our own declarations! Students liberated themselves with lots of good reasons on why they should not have to babysit younger siblings, limit their video game time, move to another school, or eat foods they don't like.  One student even wrote her declaration from her dog's perspective!

Staff Book Club Announces February Title

The Forest North staff (and former staff!) met last week to discuss "Elizabeth is Missing" by Emma Healey.  We had a great discussion about aging, the elderly, family dynamics and dementia.

We also announced our February title, which will be "Luckiest Girl Alive" by Jessica Knoll.  We're meeting at the end of the month to discuss that book!

"Luckiest Girl Alive" is the 29th selection of the Forest North staff book club.  We've been meeting since 2011, and were founded by counselor Jill Peyton and myself.  We'll see you at the end of the month!

Texas Bluebonnet Award Voting Party 2016

Huge kudos to FNE students and teachers for our achievements with the 2015-2016 Texas Bluebonnet Award program! Check out these numbers, and think about the dedication & skill-building they represent. Think about the teamwork with so many staff & volunteers that made it happen! Thanks for helping our kids read in new genres, get exposed to awesome works of high-quality contemporary literature, and most importantly, feel like successful readers!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ 

1,732 books read (That's 10 quizzes per 3rd-5th FNE student. This number is HUGE compared to other schools around RRISD and the state, even though we're small and Title I!) 

157 students voting for their favorite book at the party last Friday (& taking home a new book to keep, trying the chocolate fountain, getting a manicure, playing video games, and watching the drone - video below!)

45 students qualifying for the VIP Breakfast (that's 10+ books for 3rd, 15+ books for 4th & 5th) - this is a HUGE increase above any other year.

13 students qualifying for the Forest North Battle of the Bluebonnets (reading all 20) - also a new all-time high! 

8 teachers who supported 15+ kids as they qualified to vote, who get a free lunch on me! 

1 grade level who had 100% participation- a new record, even with new students coming in the days leading up to the party. Way to go, 4th grade! 

 Super special thanks to teachers, paraprofessionals, former students, former staff & parent volunteers who were on hand during the party - 157 kids had a blast and they loved spending time with you! Thanks for keeping them safe while they had fun- I literally couldn't do it without you! 

 We'll find out the state winner soon, but here were our top books! 36 votes - Misadventures of Salem Hyde 26 votes - Skyjumpers 17 votes - Mountain Dog 

Check out this drone video Mr. Fournier took during the party:

Kindergarten Can't Wait to Share Library Books

We got this awesome email from Mrs. Albin, one of our Kindergarten teachers today:

"When we came back in the room after specials this afternoon, we usually do a dance song before the dismissal bell rings, but today they all sat down and pulled out their library books.  They were all busy looking and sharing them with one another.  It was an impromptu and student-led buddy read!"