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T.I.S. Digital Backpack
October 7, 2019
T.I.S. One School- One Team
The Tolland Intermediate School Staff
Friday, September 27 served as the unveiling of our new T.I.S. “One School One
Team t-shirts.” Staff members were provided with the opportunity to purchase one
of our new t-shirts prior to Friday’s staff unveiling. The t-shirts are meant to allow us
to celebrate our great school community!
TEPTO Ice Cream Social
On Friday, September 27 the T.I.S. cafeteria was full of Birch Grove and T.I.S.
families enjoying delicious ice cream sundaes served up by staff from both schools.
The event proved to be a wonderful community event for our schools. Thank you to
Mrs. Shah and Mrs. Bracken for chairing the event for a third consecutive year.
Thanks to the numerous volunteers who came out to scoop ice cream.
Helping your Child with Reading at Home
https://www.readingrockets.org/blogs/shanahan-literacy/time-tell-
parents-truth-about-helping-their-kids-reading
Below is an excerpt form an article that appeared in an online publication called
Reading Rockets. The portion of the article below provides some guidance on how
you can help your child with their reading at home.
Here are a few examples of how adults can really help:
Listen to your child read daily. Research has shown that, once kids are reading, it is
helpful to read aloud to someone. I encourage parents to use the Pause, Prompt,
Praise (3P) approach for this activity:
Pause: When the child makes a mistake, Pause… give him/her a chance to correct it. Don’t butt in until the child gets to the next punctuation point or
where it is obvious that the error isn’t getting fixed. Prompt: When a child makes a mistake, you can prompt him/her to sound
out the word better (look at that again… sound it out… what if we break the
word there?) or to use the meaning (does that make sense?… what should that say?). If the child doesn’t get the word after one prompt, tell the word
and keep going. Praise: Praise the child for anything he/she does well (you read that great,
you made a mistake but you fixed it, etc.).
Play word games: For example, I spy with my little eye something that begins with
/m/. Recently, while dining with my grandchildren (a prek and a k), I'd say a word,
“Big,” and they would try to change just one sound in the word to make a new word
(dig, or bib, or bag, etc.). Gosh, that was fun.
TIS SPIRIT DAYS
October 31st Decades Day
November 26th Hat Day
December 13th PJ Day
District Wide
December 20th Crazy Sweater Day
January 31st Sports Team Day
March 14th PI Day
April 24th College Spirit Day
May 24th Patriotic Day
June 1st Wacky Tacky Day
Unified Arts Update for September 2019
Art ~ Library ~ Music ~ Physical Education
Ms. Ballard - Art
Attention:Parents
Please, send in a large old t-shirt to be used as your child’s smock. Having a personal smock
will help your child stay healthier as he/she will not need to share with other students. Please,
give your child a gallon size plastic bag to put his/her smock in. Students should store their
smocks in their lockers until we need them. Each week the students will be told if they will
need the smocks for the following week. As students exit the Art room there is a reminder board
that tells them what they have for homework that week. The Art homework board can be
checked at any time.
Grade 3:The third graders will be finishing up their Art To Remember projects by the end of
September. As the third grade students jump into October we will be doing 2D and 3D pumpkin
Sculptures.
Grade 4: The fourth graders will finish up their Art To Remember projects during the first
week of October. Next, the students will start a LINE project. This project is called Hidden
Picture. The students will create a line composition with hidden pictures inside the drawing.
Grade 5: The fifth grader students will be finishing up their Art to Remember projects by the
end of September. Each student has selected a Theme for their composition. During the month
of October the fifth graders will start building marionettes. Marionettes are stringed puppets.
Each student will need a shoebox and two paper towel rolls for this project. Please, send
these items in as soon as possible.
The Marionettes are going to be a long project with many steps. First, construction,
then sewing clothes, painting the body, and finally, stringing the marionette so it can move and
maybe dance a little! Students may work with other students on their marionette project, with a
group theme, or they can select a theme for themselves. This should be fun!
ART ROOM: The art room could use some newspaper and any other clean recyclables you
can send in! Please, send any amount of recyclables you can! See the list below…
Paper towel rolls Toilet paper rolls Water bottles and
lids Soda bottles and cans (any size) Egg
cartons Styrofoam Meat trays Small
lightweight boxes (like cereal boxes or facial tissue boxes) Large
Brown Paper bags
Newspaper
Mrs. Hill - Library
Third grade students have begun checking out books! Please help them find a safe spot to keep
their library book at home! In the month of September, third grade will be learning HAWK
library expectations, how to find books using our online catalog Destiny and then where to find
the books in their new library. The guidelines for the voluntary Library Book Challenges will be
introduced. The current list of Nutmeg Book Award nominees will be shared and discussed.
Fourth grade and Fifth grade: in the month of September students will review HAWK library
expectations, our online catalog Destiny, the Dewey Decimal System and book genres. The
guidelines for the voluntary Library Book Challenges will be introduced. The current list of
Nutmeg Book Award nominees will be shared and discussed.
If you would like more information about the Nutmeg Books, please visit their
website at: http://www.nutmegaward.org/
Mrs. Baker - Music/Chorus
Grade 3 general music: Third graders will be singing folk songs, playing musical instruments,
reading folktales, and learning number counting of quarter note and eighth note rhythms to start
our school year. They will play games and do movement activities which teach our musical
concepts. I’m looking forward to getting to know all your children this year.
Grade 4 general music: The fourth grade music curriculum teaches music through traveling
around the world. Students will learn music from North America, South America, Europe, Asia,
and Africa. The students will be playing music on their recorders and many multicultural
instruments. So please bring those recorders to school for the next music class.
Grade 5 general music: In fifth grade the focus is on using the musical concepts they have been
learning in the primary grades to create, perform, and compose music. The students will work on
mastering the names of the notes on the treble staff and learn number counting. Fifth grade music
will be a fun filled academic year.
Grade 5 Chorus: Sign up notices have been sent home for all students who would like to join
the fifth grade chorus. The chorus will have concerts November 20 and Thursday, April 30.
Chorus meets on Wednesday mornings at 8:00 am and during DAY 4 recess in room 136.
Chorus will begin Wednesday, September 13. I’m looking forward to working with your
children this year.
Mrs. Marchesani - Band/Chorus
Grade 4 Chorus: All fourth graders are welcome to join Chorus! 4th Grade Chorus meets on
Wednesday mornings from 8:00 to 8:45 a.m. and a second section is held on Wednesday during
the 4th grade recess time. Both Chorus groups will meet in Mrs. Marchesani’s room, #226. Band
students can also join Chorus! We will present our first concert combined with the 5th grade
Chorus on Wednesday, November 20th at 7:00 p.m. in the TIS gym. Our Spring concert is
scheduled for May 19, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. in the TMS auditorium. Chorus began on Wednesday,
September 18th but it’s not too late to join! We are going to have a fun musical year!
Grade 4 Band: 4th grade Band has 91 members!!! 4th Grade small lesson group classes begin the
week of September 23rd. Full Band will start on Thursday October 24th and meets from 8:00 to
8:45 a.m. in room 136. There is a Recess section of Full Band for those students who cannot be
dropped off before school. All rental instruments and supplies have been sent home with their
new owners. Our Winter Concert will be held jointly with the 5th grade Band on January 28,
2020, at 7:00 p.m. in the Tolland Middle School Auditorium. Our Spring Concert is
scheduled for Tuesday May 19. 2020 at 7:00 p.m. in the TMS auditorium. In addition, the 4th
Grade Band performs at two all school assemblies during the school day. I am really looking
forward to starting your children on their amazing journey of learning how to play an instrument
solo, in small groups and in a large ensemble!
Grade 5 Band: 5th Grade Full Band rehearsals began on Tuesday, September 10th. Morning
Band meets from 8:00 to 8:45 a.m. in room 136. There is a Recess section of Full Band for those
students who cannot be dropped off before school. Full Band is essential for all band members
to play in a large ensemble with a variety of other instruments, boosts musicianship skills and
provides a weekly “concert readiness” experience. Small group lesson classes began during the
week of September 23rd. Please save the following Concert dates: Winter (January 28, 2020,
7:00 p.m. TMS Auditorium and Spring (May 12, 2019, 7:00 p.m. TMS Auditorium) The 5th
Grade Band Step-Up Concert with the 6th and 7th Grade TMS Bands is scheduled for
Wednesday April 1, 2020, 7:00 p.m./call time 6:30 p.m. at TMS. In addition, the 5th grade
Band performs in at least two all school assemblies and helps with 3rd grade instrument demos
in the Spring. I look forward to the opportunity to help each Band student experience growth in
their musicianship and leadership skills this year!
Be on the lookout for my parent communication on Digital Backpack, on my Teacher Page and
notices sent home.
Please contact me anytime with questions or concerns! [email protected]
Mr. Downing – Physical Education
All grades are being introduced or reintroduced to the procedures and expectations in the PE
environment.
Third grade: The first unit stresses listening and following directions through the use of various
movement activities and games.
Fourth grade: Fourth grade is preparing for the Connecticut Physical Fitness Assessment.
Testing will begin in October.
Fifth grade: Fifth grade will be working on the various sport skills and teamwork while
participating in a variety of games.
GRADE LEVEL UPDATES:
Grade 3
Third graders have done a wonderful job transitioning to T.I.S. over the last month. They are using their knowledge of the rules and routines on the HAWK matrix in all areas of the school. Our school focused on Respect over the last month. Students were given tips on the morning announcements as to how they can show respect in all areas of the school environment.
Classrooms are making excellent progress in all areas of the curriculum. In Fundations, many teachers are working in Unit One. It is wonderful to see that the students are already well versed in the routines of this program from previous grades. Third graders are extremely excited to start the cursive portion of this program. We are using the Journeys reading series. We have worked on sentence structure, types of sentences, antonyms, common and proper nouns, and many other grammar skills. Students are using the main story to learn comprehension skills and then working in small reading groups to reinforce these skills.
In Writer’s Workshop, students are working on personal narratives. We are focusing on crafting true stories. These stories are about real events, not a whole vacation or day, but rather a favorite moment about something. We have focused on important people, places, and events in their lives. Students are concentrating on elaboration with specific details to create an image in the reader’s mind. In the weeks to come students will take a small moment story from their Writer’s Notebooks through the writing process to create a final “published piece”.
In Math In Focus many classrooms reviewed place value, have moved onto addition with regrouping and our next chapter is subtraction with regrouping. We have started using Reflex Math in the classrooms to work on basic math facts. Using this program at home can help third graders become more fluent with basic addition and subtraction facts. Letters went home with Reflex login information for this program. Many classes also have used IXL in classrooms for more reinforcement of skills. This program can also be used at home for math practice. We encourage students to practice math facts each night, as this will help in their everyday math.
Science has been very exciting in our classrooms over the last month. We received caterpillars and watched them munch on the milkweed from one of our T.I.S. gardens. Third graders were so excited to see them grow from tiny wiggly wormlike caterpillars to big and fat monarch butterfly caterpillars. Most classrooms were able to see the next phase of these caterpillars transform into chrysalises. We are excited to watch them transform into monarch butterflies that will begin a migration to Mexico for the winter months. We have been studying the lifecycle of monarchs and learning about their declining population over many years. Students are learning about the biomes on earth and factors that have changed these biomes. Our goal is for students to understand how climate change and human factors have contributed to the dramatic change in the monarch butterfly population.
We will begin our next Social Studies unit in the next few weeks. Third grade focuses on Tolland in the 1700s. We will be learning about why settlers moved from the three river towns to Tolland and what life was like when there were only self-sufficient farms in our area. A visit to the Benton Homestead really makes this come to life for third graders. We will be visiting the Connecticut Historical Society and seeing a program entitled “Two Cultures in Early
Connecticut”. This program will compare and contrast indigenous people in early Connecticut with English colonists
So much is happening at T.I.S. with third graders. They are working so hard and taking everything in with enthusiasm and excitement. We appreciate all of the support that we are getting from staff here at T.I.S., parents, the Tolland PTO, and members of our community in making this a great year so far.
Grade 4
Almost one month into school and everybody seems to be adjusting great! We are especially enjoying the beautiful new carpets purchased for each classroom by the
PTO. We are very grateful.
Fourth grade is on a roll in so many different subject areas starting with math! We have completed Chapter 1 in Place Value, and are now working on Chapter 2, Estimation and Number Theory. Since we are finding factors and greatest common
factors, it is essential for students to know their math facts. As we always say, “Practice makes perfect!”, so keep up the great work practicing those multiplication
facts. In science, we have been working hard on Unit 1, which focuses on weathering and
erosion. The students are learning how to be expert trail masters by trying to slow down the effects of erosion and weathering. In the next couple of weeks, the
children will be walking a trail at Crandall Park to look for signs of erosion and learn more about the methods used to prevent it.
We have been busy working with our new reading unit, Journeys. In a few days we will start Spellography, our new spelling program. Check in next month for an
update. Classes continue to work on their first narrative pieces of fourth grade, and are turning into excellent budding writers.
Parent-teacher conference time is approaching, and we all look forward to seeing you. Have a fantastic fall and enjoy the beautiful weather!
Grade 5
We continue to reinforce HAWK behaviors in fifth grade. Students are encouraged to display these behaviors throughout the school. Fifth grade students have been working hard on place value in math. They have been writing decimals in different forms, comparing decimals, and also rounding them. We will soon be moving on to multiplying and dividing whole numbers.
In science we are continuing to research topics on space. Students are exploring the solar system and learning about shooting stars. Students are reading nonfiction texts on westward expansion and Native Americans. They are learning how to find the main idea and key details in informational text. They will use these skills to write a summary on what they read. In social studies students have studied map skills. They used the skills and vocabulary they learned to create their own continent. Be on the lookout for Candyland, Patriots Paradise and Unicorn Island. We will soon integrate what we read in language arts about Native American cultures and lifestyles in our next social studies unit. It was nice to see so many of you at curriculum night. We look forward to meeting with you during conferences next month.
Most Fridays the students on the Biddle/Murphy/Jensen team have "flashlight Friday." This is a
fun twist on silent reading and gets kids excited to get lost in a good book.
Tolland Emergency Management Announces New C.E.R.T.
Training Schedule
You are invited to join your friends and neighbors as they participate in Community Emergency
Response Team (C.E.R.T.) training classes. Tolland Emergency Management is pleased to
announce the newest C.E.R.T. class training schedule:
5* Thursday Classes: 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm
Oct. 17th, Oct. 24th, Nov. 7th, Nov. 14th, Nov. 21st
and
3* Saturday Classes: 8:00 am to 12:00 pm
Oct. 26th, Nov. 2nd, Nov. 9th
*Please note participants must attend all classes
By participating in C.E.R.T. you will learn valuable skills such as: How to recognize hazards that
are most likely to affect your home, workplace, and neighborhood, steps you can take to prepare
for a disaster, identifying and reducing potential fire hazards in your home and what to do when
disaster strikes.
You will also learn how to: Assist Emergency Management and First Responders in meeting the
needs of the community during disasters and learn to be part of an important team serving the
community.
If you are interested in this exciting opportunity please email [email protected] with your
name, address and telephone number to reserve your seat. Class size is limited, be sure to reserve
your seat by Oct 11th.
All classes will be held at the Tolland Fire Department Training Center located at 191 Merrow
Road, Tolland, Connecticut.
For Additional information visit: www.ready.gov/community-emergency-response-team
PJ Day-December 13, 2019
Tolland Public Schools
Click below to donate or bring $1.00 to school on December 13 to wear your
pajamas to school!
http://give.connecticutchildrens.org/site/TR/CommunityEvent/General?team_id=
2591&pg=team&fr_id=1250
T.I.S. 3rd-5th grade VISION AND HEARING SCREENINGS WILL BEGIN
BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER Please make sure your child is
wearing their glasses for the exam and contact the Nurse Lorin or
Nurse Sue with any questions or concerns. 860-870-6891
extension 2
Grade 5
Recess Chorus
Meets Day 4
And Grade 5 Chorus also meets every
Wednesday Morning at 8:00 am
9/20 9/27 10/3 10/9 10/15 10/21 11/1 11/7 11/13 11/19
Friday Friday Thursday Wednesday Tuesday Monday Friday Thursday Wednesday Tuesday
● WHO: All 5th grade students and their favorite adult!
(Bring your father, mother, aunt, uncle, grandfather, grandmother etc)
● WHEN: Friday, October 11, 2019
● WHERE: Tolland Intermediate School (All Purpose Room)
● TIME: 7:00 – 9:00 pm
● Admission: $15.00 per couple at the door (Casual attire) Come join your classmates for a great night out! A DJ will be there playing all your
favorite songs! Snacks and drinks will be provided for free. “Glo Jewelry” will be
available for purchasing.
● Questions? Email [email protected]
TEPTO Presents:
5th Grade Harvest
Dance
COFFEE WITH THE PRINCIPAL
2019-2020
September 18, 2019 February 12, 2020
October 9, 2019 March 25, 2020
November 13, 2019 No April meeting
No December meeting May 13, 2020
January 15, 2020
(all meetings begin at 9:15 a.m.)
Tolland Elementary Schools Parent Teacher Organization
2019-2020 TEPTO Monthly Meetings
All meetings are on Mondays at 7pm in the Library
September 9th TIS October 7th Birch Grove November 4th TIS December 2nd Birch Grove February 3rd TIS March 2nd Birch Grove April 6th Birch Grove May 4th Birch Grove June 1st TIS
2019-2020 Executive Board President: Jennifer Gallichant
BG Vice President: Bethany Lescoe TIS Vice President: Tina Smith Treasurer: Linda Scheidel Membership: Rebecca Moore Communications: Diana Gascon
Secretary: Jenn Reynolds Ways & Means: Kristen Overton
Tolland TOPS Soccer Invites You To Join!!
Hello TOPS Soccer Enthusiasts,
I hope you have all had a great summer and are looking forward to the new school year. I want
to take this opportunity to tell you about a soccer program for children that may not otherwise
look to participate in Recreational or Club Soccer activities within Tolland. As you look to the fall
and activities for your children, please consider this avenue of fun for them to join.
Through the Tolland Soccer Club, we offer an opportunity to children with disabilities of any
kind, to learn and play the game of soccer in a non-competitive, yet challenging environment
with friends and support staff of all ages. TOPS Soccer (The Outreach Program for Soccer) is
sponsored by US Youth Soccer and the Connecticut Junior Soccer Association www.cjsa.org for
young athletes with disabilities. The program is designed to foster an opportunity of learning,
teamwork and enjoyment to any boy or girl, who has a mental or physical disability.
We are planning the Fall 2019 season and wanted to get some information out to you in
advance. We will begin play on Saturday, September 7th at Crandall Park in Tolland at 8:45-
10:00am. We also play on Tuesdays evenings from 5:45-7:00. The season goes until the first
Saturday in November. The cost of the program this year is $30.00 which cover the cost of a
ball and jersey as well as the field costs.
Our program in Tolland has consistently had 20-25 players each year for over 20 years, together
with numerous middle school and high school age buddies that are paired with the players
assisting on the field with training and development. The program offers a friendly, supportive
way to learn and enjoy the game of soccer. The program is open to all interested players ages
5-21 and is not limited to Tolland Residents.
We look forward to seeing you on the field.
Please also email Lisa Bowden if you are interested in being a buddy!
If you are new to the program and have any questions, please direct them to:
Jeff Gallagher- TOPS Director [email protected]
Lisa Bowden- Buddy Coordinator [email protected]
The End
