We need your old toys for Sterling science!

Hello Families,
Pascale (Ms. G) is wrapping up her sustainability unit with students by the end of this week. I am hoping to do a fun engineering project with students the week before a holiday break. What a great way to get rid of old toys! (Make room for the new;) This is your chance to donate that really loud toy that has always driven you crazy!

We will be taking apart toys with any sort of electronics, gears, winding mechanisms, magnetics, etc.
Students will have to dismantle a toy and figure out how it works. They will then have to explain how the toy works to others.

We will need about 48 toys all together. Also, if you have any of those tiny screw drivers, that would also be helpful. I would love to have the items by the end of the week to get organized.

Thank you for your support,
Amy

Sterling Store Now Open

Just in time for the holidays!

The Sterling Store is open. The 2017 Sterling Store can be found below. All orders must be received on or before Thursday, December 14th in order to be in before the holiday break.

Sterling Store

The order form is located near the top followed by prices and previews. If you'd like to order anything as a surprise, simply just email Cindy Brady and let her know. All checks should be made payable to "WSD".

Report Cards and Portfolios coming home tomorrow- It's NOT Spam

Hello Sterling Families,
Electronic report cards will be pushed out tomorrow morning we understand. These reports will come directly from Jumprope (the gradebook). So the email you receive will be from either Bonnie Birdsall (bbirdsall@cvsdvt.org) or from an email address from Jumprope (for ex- reports@jumpro.pe).
As always with the Jumprope report card, more detailed information about the results can be found on the parent portal. The report card is merely a snapshot.

Also, we are having students send home their e-portfolio that they've been curating all semester on Protean. This report will come from an "@protean.me" email account.

Please be sure to check your spam folder by the end of the school day if you have not received 2 emails containing end of trimester reports.

Jared

Scholastic Book Fair for Sterling Students

Hi Families,
Mrs. Conry's core and Ms. Peterson's core will have a chance to visit the book fair tomorrow. Mr. Bailey's core and Mrs. Durant's core is planning to go on Friday. If you would like your child to purchase a book, please send along money; usually less than $20 is plenty.
Thank you!

ELA Update

We have just wrapped up our unit on Digital Citizenship.  Whew!  Kids did a great job, creating a Google Slides poster with the rule or guideline that they felt was most important for students on Sterling to follow regarding technology use.  Look for the posters hanging on the bulletin boards in our hallway.  In addition, students wrote a 5 Paragraph Essay, using the evidence that they collected from their surveys and the work that they did on Digital Compass. Click here for a link to the Learning Targets and checklist for this unit of study. 

This week we started our Narrative Writing Unit.  We have focused on the elements of story using a Plot Diagram: Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution using children's literature as mentor texts.  Students are really enjoyed using the Plot Diagram to map out the story organization in children's books.When we return from vacation we will continue our work on Narrative Writing with a focus on dialogue. 

Science Update

In science students are beginning to study climate change. They will focus on their carbon food print, causes of climate change, and renewable energy. Students will be able to design their own town with parameters to create the town with the least impact on earth.

My intern, Pascale Grossnickle, is beginning her solo teaching this week. She will continue with this unit into December. Pascale has been amazing with the students this fall. She works hard to create relationships and is very prepared to go into this solo experience. I have been working closely with Pascale to develop her lessons and skills and feel very confident your students are in good hands! As always, feel free to contact me if you have questions.
Amy

Math Wish List

6th graders are designing their dream room. With a budget of $25,000 students are designing or redesigning. We'd love for a general contractor and/or interior designer to come talk to us about the process. Please email me, jbailey@cvsdvt.org if you are able to help!

Social Studies Update

n Social Studies, we started our Geography Unit. Students have been identifying elements of maps and globes. They have been exploring the difference between relative and absolute location and labeling geographic features on maps and a diagram. They have defined geographic terms and will apply them to the geography of the United States using Google My Maps.

Math Update

The math update can be found in my personal blog this week:

http://mrbaileyvt.blogspot.com/2017/11/wrapping-up-1st-project-starting-next.html

Science Update

Hello Families,
In science classes students have been studying the interactions of the geosphere (Earth), the atmosphere (sky), hydrosphere (water), and the biosphere (life). Most recently we have focused on Earth's different climate zones and the reasons why climate is different all around Earth. Students are working with partners to create a presentation to argue why their chosen destination should be visited over February break.

On another note, our classrooms are all moving tomorrow. It has been a bit chaotic at school with purging and packing as we have been preparing for this move. Many of your children have been super helpful with this work. The teachers had a sneak peek at the new classrooms in the Kaleidoscope wing today at lunch. The students will be able to move their cubby contents to the new classrooms mid-day tomorrow and take a peek. Starting on Monday, the Sterling wing will be blocked off and students will head to the new classrooms instead. We hope to start right into classes first thing on Monday.

Email us with any questions,
Amy Durant

Craft Fair Volunteers Needed

Save the Date 

The FAP Craft Show takes place on Saturday, November 4th

, from 9:30 am – 4:00 pm at Williston Central School. 

There are over 100 crafters, artists and specialty food vendors participating.  You'll find lots of amazing handicrafts, toys, artwork, jewelry, decorative items and yummy foods all made by talented crafters and artists.  Whether you want to shop or not, we need YOU!  This is one of the biggest Families as Partners fundraisers, and the proceeds from the show help fund events, activities and grants that benefit all students in the Williston schools.  Please share some of your time and volunteer for a shift to set up (Friday afternoon, Nov 3) or during the show on Saturday. 

The sign-up link is here: http://signup.com/go/tEwkhqs (You will need to enter your email address to sign up for a shift but will not need to set up an account with Sign-up.com).

Thank you!

Karen Olson & Paula LeBlanc

wsdcraftshow@cvsdvt.org

Yearbooks are now on Sale

Here is the link

http://www.jostens.com/apps/store/productBrowse/1120347/Williston-Central-School/2018-Yearbook/2017060804510845085/CATALOG_SHOP/

This Week in ELA

This week in ELA, students have worked on completing their Digital Citizenship survey with their table group.  Students are sending the survey out to adults and peers in order to gather data about Digital Citizenship and technology use.  If you receive an e-mail from your student please take a minute to answer the questions.  Next steps will include using the Digital Compass program on Common Sense Media to explore different scenarios around technology use in middle school.  (See the link in "Family Corner" for lots of great information about appropriate movies, books, video games and more for middle schoolers).  In addition, this week students worked on Young Writer's Project (YWP) and wrote in their Reader's Notebook.  Please have your student show you their work on YWP!  peterson17.ywpvt.org

Math Classroom Updates

For all things related to math this week and every week, please click over to Mr. Bailey's blog (feel free to subscribe too). The following links are ways to get there:

http://mrbaileyvt.blogspot.com/

https://sites.google.com/cvsdvt.org/mrbailey/home

 But why read what I think is going on in class- go straight to the source. All Bailey mathematicians are blogging this year. We're using kidblog. Take a look at what is being posted and leave some positive comments. The blog is for both 5th and 6th grade. If you'd like to sort by grade, once you get to kid blog, click "show filters" and select the box next to category. Select the grade and you'll see the posts. You can also search by user in the search box (first name only!) The link to the class kidblog site is:

https://kidblog.org/class/mr-baileys-math/posts

Enjoy!

Dance this Friday for grades 6, 7, and 8

There are 6 student dances this year. 

Students in grade 5 may attend dances beginning in January. 

 Refreshments will be available in the dining area for an additional fee.  

The admission is $6 per student.  $1 of each admission will be donated by the school to Hurricane Relief Organizations.  

Permission slips will go home with 6th graders on Thursday.  They should bring it to the dance with them on Friday night  

Social Studies Update Week of 9/25

This week in Social Studies, students worked on  the learning target, Use of Evidence. Students read informational text about Rosa Parks and were asked to prove the following claim;  Rosa Parks had a positive impact on society. Students worked together to sort evidence found in the text, deciding if it only related to the claim or actually proved the claim. This activity was a practice exercise for students. Next, they will individually find evidence on a peacemaker using the same claim.

Curriculum Night Follow Up

Hello families,
For those of you that could make it we want to say thank you! It's always nice to put faces of families with your children. Thank you all for braving the heat to come learn more about Sterling. For those of you that could not attend, we're including the information provided last night electronically down below. Be on the look out in the next couple of weeks for parent conference sign ups.

Here is a link to the slideshow we shared: 2017 Curriculum Night

And here is a document that details all the ways we communicate with families: Sterling Communication Tools

Social Studies Intern

Hi everyone!

I’m Mr. McElroy and I’ll be student teaching this year in Mrs. Conry's Social Studies classes. I’m looking forward to working with everyone to make this a great year! I grew up in Marblehead, MA and completed a BA in History at the University of Vermont. Since that time, I’ve worked as a National Historic Site Interpreter, a Middle School Para-Educator, and an English Language teacher overseas. In my free time I enjoy playing guitar, snowboarding and hiking. I’m looking forward to sharing these interests as well as my love of Social Studies with our 5^th and 6^th grade students!

Mr. McElroy

YWP FAQs

Click below to access a link to FAQs for YWP:

Young Writers Project Frequently Asked Questions 2017/2018

ELA Update

Hello Families!

In English Languages Arts we have started out with a unit on Digital Citizenship.  This work is crucial as we start the year with the technology tools that are a part of our daily world, both in and outside of school.  Students have been working in table groups to create a Google Form survey, which they will be sending out to families and peers to collect data.  Questions will seek to gather information about technology usage, etiquette, concerns, questions, and ideas for guidelines for digital citizenship.  From the data collected, students will work to create our Sterling Guidelines for Digital Citizenship.

Students started Young Writers Project (YWP) last week.  YWP is a platform for students to write creatively on a weekly basis.  Students should show you their YWP site--they need to go to peterson17.ywpvt.org and then log into their account.

Sterling to Flynn Theater

On Monday, October 9th all Sterling students will attend a performance of Compagnie Herve Koubi at the Flynn Theater.  Buses will depart WCS at 9AM and will return by 11:45.  Permission slips will go home next week.    

Science Intern

Hello 5-6^th Grade students and families!

My name is Ms. G., and I will be student teaching in Mrs. Durant’s classroom this year. I look forward to working with you throughout the year!

I grew up in Burlington, Vermont, and graduated from Burlington High School. I attended Hobart and William Smith Colleges in a small town called Geneva, New York. I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Geoscience, and a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies. I have worked as a Camp Director, Ski School Supervisor, Summer School Teacher, and an Environmental Educator.

This fall, I will also be helping coach the Williston Central Field Hockey team! I love being active and outdoors as much as possible, and I cannot wait to bring my environmental and outdoor education background into our classroom!

Ms. G.

Continental Math

From the desk of Julie Rogers:

Continental Math sign ups are open! Sterling has always been well represented when it comes to Continental Math so we're looking again to have students sign up to participate. Continental Math is a great way to challenge yourself and grow as a mathematician by doing a variety of math problems. Practice in small groups and compete monthly with other schools. See Mr. Bailey or Ms. Rogers with questions.

Here's a link to the sign up sheet: Sign Up

Social Studies Update 9/15/17

We are off to a great start in Social Studies. Our first unit of the year is Peace One Day. To start out, students watched a documentary film directed and produced by Jeremy Gilley. The film describes Jeremy’s journey to establish an annual global ceasefire and non-violence day on September 21st. Students discussed the film and vocabulary in small groups. Using the theme of non-violence,  students created skits to raise awareness of bullying and how it can be reduced. They also read a Scholastic News article titled, A New Kind of Bullying, to tie the learning altogether. Next week, students will be creating peace poems and making peace pinwheels which will be displayed in front of the school on September 21st.

Science Class Update 9/15

In science class we have been busy growing bacteria by making yogurt. Prior to making the yogurt, we learned all about bacteria (good and bad), viruses, and germs in general. This is a great time of year to talk about keeping each other healthy by washing hands a lot and the correct way to cough or sneeze to prevent viruses from spreading. Next week we will begin our study of Earth's systems (atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere.)

A message from the School Counselors

WCS School Counseling Classes 2017/2018

Dear Parents and Guardians,

We hope you and your family had a restful and fun summer. As part of our on-going prevention
efforts, school counselors facilitate classes to all students during the essential arts rotation
throughout the school year. Each student will participate in a total of 6 classes according to the
following schedule:
5th/6th grade: During their Design and Technology rotation - 1x/week for 6 weeks
7th/8th grade: During their Music rotation - 1x/week for 6 weeks

This year, our classes will focus on the following topics:
5th/6th grade:
● Preventing bullying. Students will learn and develop skills to recognize, respond
to, and stay safe from bullying.
7th/8th grade:
● Preventing cyberbullying, harassment, hazing, and sexting. Students will learn
and develop skills to recognize, respond to, and stay safe from these harmful
behaviors.
● Preventing suicide. Students will learn and develop skills to recognize and
respond to risk factors and warning signs of suicide, while learning about
protective factors that help support resiliency and healthy development in teens.

We hope that you are able to talk with your children about these classes and how to stay safe in
their relationships and their daily lives. Please let us know if you have any questions or need
resources to help at home.
Best wishes,

Chris Ford & Danielle Morin
WCS School Counselors
Chris: cford@cvsdvt.org or 871-6176
Danielle: dmorin@cvsdvt.org or 871-6178

Math update & online learning expectations

What a great and busy week we've had in math. Students wrapped up the "Week of Inspirational Math" course designed by Jo Boaler at Stanford University. I blogged on my personal blog about that. Today we kicked off some project based learning basics. Students were placed in "design teams" (groups of 3 or 4) and were tasked with creating a team name for them to use. Teams will be creating websites and a blog to update their tasks and projects and those will be updated as often as possible.

All students this week are required to do what we call "online learning". We use a program called MobyMax which assesses needs and gaps and develops individual curriculum to help address that. Students that use MobyMax regularly have been show to make over 2 years growth within 1 school year. I really think it's a great tool.

All Sterling mathematicians are required to do 1 hour of Mobymax math lessons per week. The week begins on Monday and ends on Sunday night. All 5th Grade students are coming home tonight with the welcome letter from Mobymax which contains all the info they need to log in. Please put it somewhere safe and easily accessible (fridge, study desk, magnet board, etc). Here are a few photos of students working with their new design teams today in math:

School Pictures

• School pictures will be taken on Tuesday, September 20th.  Envelopes will come home next week

Spelling Team Tryouts This Week

Spelling Team Qualifying Test

5th/6th Wednesday, September 6th @ 12:35

7th/8th Friday, September 8th @ 12:35

Eat lunch in the Enrichment room day of test

It's time for those super spellers to begin working on the list of 500 words from the Vermont Principals' Association! Lists are in a bin outside the Enrichment room door and labeled 5th/6th or 7th/8th. PLEASE encourage anyone interested or who you believe would benefit from this opportunity to stop by, pick up a list of words, and show up for the qualifying test time. If you have a student who is unsure please have them stop by and speak with Mrs. Rogers.

We try to make it super fun, with an emphasis on team bonding while we learn a bit about spelling rules, tips, and tricks! Teams practice 2 times weekly with Mrs. Rogers during lunch/recess, 5th/6th on Monday & Wednesday and 7th/8th on Tuesday & Friday. We will participate in the district spelling bee in October and if we win we'll move on to regionals.

We're hoping that any students that participated last year will do so again this year. Any questions, please contact Julie Rogers at jrogers@cvsdvt.org.

Update for tomorrow, early year wishlist

Hello Families,
We had a great first day. Everyone brought great energy to the classrooms and hallways and it was so nice to see the smiles on the first day of school. First impressions left us feeling well setup to have a great school year.

We spoke with students yesterday about our hike. The hike, tomorrow (Friday), is in the hills of Smuggler's Notch. The weather looks fine in terms of us seeing rain, however, we will see late fall/early winter like temps! As the first group hits the trail at around 9am the temperature is predicted to be 42 degrees with a "feels like" of 36!!! Please make sure your student has layers of clothing. We would recommend a sweatshirt and long sleeves that can be easily added to their base layer. It will only get colder as we head up, and we eventually eat lunch at the top of the Smuggler's Notch lift where it can be really windy. Other simple things we've asked students to keep in mind: no glass containers, pack in/pack out materials, and good footwear.

Speaking of items we all need- all classrooms can always use good tissues (like the ones with lotion in them), as well as anti-bacterial wipes. Both are things we can never have too much of, so if you ever want to bring some in or send some in with your child, don't hesitate.

Sterling Pond Hike Rescheduled

Hello Families,
Due to the weather forecast on Thursday, Sterling is changing our hike to Friday, September 1st. We will still leave promptly at 8:30 and be back on time for regular dismissal. If you have signed up to chaperone, please contact Cindy Brady (clbrady@cvsdvt.org) and let her know if you are still able to. Thank you for your flexibility!

Sterling Team