Spring Break

Hello Parents,

I hope you enjoy your Spring (Easter) Break!

Today, students were sent home with the following:

• Spring/Easter baskets (they made) with goodies
• Two packets: Math and Language Arts
• Class T-Shirt, if it was ordered and paid for

I believe both Mr. Owens and Ms. Rice gave their students math packets.  As your child's teacher, I still feel the charge is mine to make sure your child is ready for the CSTs which are in a month's time - despite whose math class they are in.  This is why I assigned a CST Math packet.

If you're travelling somewhere, have a safe and enjoyable trip.

If you're staying local, kick up your feet and enjoy the weather.

If you're sick (or your child is sick), I wish you rest and recuperation.

When we return on April 8, we're hitting CSTs  H-A-R-D.

See you in a week....

Mr. Amutan

HW - Wednesday, 3/27

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity - none this week

4.  Reading Comprehension -  none

5.  Wordly Wise - none

6.  Language Arts
- Island of the Blue Dolphins pgs. 147-164
We will finish the book tomorrow and take a test.  Activities will follow the week we resume school.
7.  My Math Class

-- Textbook pgs. 382-383

-- Workbook pgs. 213-214

8.  Science - pgs. 272-275

9.  History -  pgs. none

NOTES:

• This week will be focused on finishing Island of the Blue Dolphins, starting STAR test prep, tiding up some loose ends (Hero essays, etc.), and completing our spring baskets.
• Need a Science Fair board? Then download the Science Fair Booklet here and print it out (the last page has the board ticket). Bring the board ticket to school and receive your Science Fair board!
• STAR Test Prep Packets for Spring Break will be passed out tomorrow.
• We finished 65% of the student presentations today. We will complete the rest tomorrow.
• Reminder: NO CLASS on Friday, the start of Spring Break.

HW - Tuesday, 3/26

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity - none this week

4.  Reading Comprehension -  none

5.  Wordly Wise - none

6.  Language Arts - If you haven't finished your first draft of your Hero Essay, please do so.
7.  My Math Class - Topic 15 Test on Wednesday

-- Textbook pgs. 379-380

-- Workbook pgs. 202-210  (started and was given time to complete most of it in class)

8.  Science - pgs. none

9.  History -  pgs. 48-52; California Indian project (trioramas and paragraphs) due TOMORROW, Wednesday, 3/27

NOTES:

• This week will be focused on finishing Island of the Blue Dolphins, starting STAR test prep, tiding up some loose ends (Hero essays, etc.), and completing our spring baskets.
• Reminder: NO CLASS on Friday, the start of Spring Break.
• CORRECTION: California Indian project's due date was listed 3/25; it really is due WEDNESDAY, 3/27.

HW - Monday, 3/25

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity - none this week

4.  Reading Comprehension -  none

5.  Wordly Wise - none

6.  Language Arts - If you haven't finished your first draft of your Hero Essay, please do so.
7.  My Math Class - Topic 15 Test on Wednesday

-- Textbook pgs. 375-378

-- Workbook pgs. none

8.  Science - pgs. none; Chapter 7 Open Book Science Test tomorrow (don't forget to turn in your corrected Chapter 7 Review and Practice HW)

9.  History -  pgs. 45-47; California Indian project (trioramas and paragraphs) due Wednesday, 3/27

NOTES:

• This week will be focused on finishing Island of the Blue Dolphins, starting STAR test prep, tiding up some loose ends (Hero essays, etc.), and completing our spring baskets.
• Reminder: NO CLASS on Friday, the start of Spring Break.
• CORRECTION: California Indian project's due date was listed 3/25; it really is due WEDNESDAY, 3/27.

I'm Back on Monday

Dear Parents,

I will be returning on Monday.  Sleep, medicine, and water have been a great help but the voice and cough still nags a bit.

Ms. Wang, the substitute, appears to have completed everything I had set aside for the class.  I would like to thank her greatly for her help!  (She is actually a former Ruskin student and an aspiring teacher!)

I received some updates from TenMarks.com.  Here is the progress they shared with me:

Weekly TenMarks Report for Mr. Amutan's Regular Class

Total students in Mr. Amutan's Regular Class: 23

Students who worked on TenMarks: 5

Total problems attempted: 789

Problems answered correctly: 730

Weekly TenMarks Report for Mr. Amutan's Math Class

Total students in Mr. Amutan's Math Class: 35

Students who worked on TenMarks: 2

Total problems attempted: 209

Problems answered correctly: 184

The number of participating students needs to rise because we are now preparing for the CSTs which will take place in a month (April 30-May 1 = CST ELA; May 7-8 = CST Math).  I will create more review sections on TenMarks for the students who are finished with all of the assigned tasks.  And as always, if you have forgotten your password (Log-In and Password are the same), please see me tomorrow or any time next week.

Here are the new lessons I have assigned through the Spring Break (Due April 7):

• Place Value and Number Sense
• Place Value in Hundred Thousands
• Place Value in Millions
• Compare and Order Numbers
• Money - Count, Compare, and Order
• Rounding Numbers and Money
• Multiplication and Division Facts
• Multiplication and its Properties
• Multiply by 2,3,4, and 6
• Multiply by 5,7,8,9, and 10
• Multiplication Tables, Patterns and Square Numbers
• Division and Relation with Multiplication
• Divide by 2 through 12
• Missing Factors
• Geometry
• Perimeter of Polygons and Circumferences of Circles
• Area of Rectangular Figures
• Addition of Subtraction of Decimals
• Add Decimals
• Estimation of Sums Using Rounding
• Subtract Decimals
• Estimate Differences Between Decimals
• Data and Graphs  *May be new material for some students*
• Collect, Organize and Represent Data
• Range, Median, and Mode
• Pictographs and Bar Graphs
• Coordinate and Line Graphs
• Find Mean (Average)

HW - Wednesday, 3/20

Same as Tuesday's

HW - Tuesday, 3/19

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity - none this week

4.  Reading Comprehension -  none

5.  Wordly Wise - 19c-d

6.  Language Arts
- Grammar worksheets pgs. 83-84, 88-89, 90-93
- "My Hero" Essay first draft, mainly the three body paragraphs, due tomorrow 
7.  My Math Class

-- Textbook pgs. 362-363, 365-366

-- Workbook pgs. none

8.  Science - pgs. 244-247 (?s 1-2 only)

9.  History -  pgs. none; California Indian project (trioramas and paragraphs) due 3/27

NOTES:

• Surprise, surprise!  We have a field trip tomorrow with our Little Buddies to San Jose's Discovery Museum! We are walking to the Hostetter Light Rail Station at 8:05 a.m. and will be back at Ruskin around 1:30 p.m.  Please pack a lunch for your child and use disposable bags; there is a cafeteria-style grill there. All forms are due ASAP. No signed slip = stay at Ruskin doing work
• Because of the field trip, students do NOT have to bring their backpacks tomorrow.  We will be finishing The Pride of the Yankees then working on other work.
• CORRECTION: We are wrapping up Unit 5, "Heroes." There will be a Unit Test THIS FRIDAY, 3/22. (It was moved from Wednesday.)
• CORRECTION: California Indian project's due date was listed 3/25; it really is due WEDNESDAY, 3/27.

Scenes of San Jose's Past

Local history is of keen interest to me.  Though the child of immigrants, my father and maternal grandfather have shared with me memories of different Californias - of the 1960s and 1930s, respectively.

So, I was greatly intrigued when the Mercury News's Scott Herhold posted a film of San Jose, presumably from the early 1920s.

The Ford Educational Library, started by the American automobile patriarch, Henry Ford, aimed to capture locations across the nation where people can travel with their cars AND can be seen using cars.

Before you see it, let's put this film of San Jose in a historical perspective (of time):

• World
• Soldiers were going home and countries were still picking up the pieces after the end of World War I.
• The League of Nations, predecessor to the United Nations, holds its first meeting in Geneva, Switzerland in 1920.
• In 1921, the Reparations Commission fixes German liability (from the recently ended World War I) at 132 billion gold marks. German inflation begins and helps to set the groundwork for World War II.
• United States
• The 1920s were referred to as "The Roaring Twenties" because it was a time of social, cultural, and artistic dynamism: metropolises grew (i.e., New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago); innovations were becoming widely used (i.e., automobiles, telephones, electricity); and celebrities, fashion, and glitz were media focuses.
• The 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote, was ratified in 1920.
• Prohibition - the ban on the sale, manufacture and transportation of alcohol - began in 1920.
• There were only 48 stars on the US flag; Alaska and Hawaii were not yet states.
• The Harlem Renaissance was beginning.
• California
• The population of California in 1920 was 3,426,861.  Today, Los Angeles is California's largest city (and the U.S.'s 2nd) with a population of 3,792,621. San Jose is the third largest city in California with a population of 958,966.
• The automobile allowed for the explosion of suburbs all over the state.
• Agriculture, oil, tourism, shipping and film were the main economic engines for the Golden State.
• Hollywood was still producing silent and colorless movies (but that would soon change in a few years).
• Studios like MGM, Universal, Warner Brothers and Walt Disney were starting to grow and succeed.
• San Jose



• Agriculture was the biggest job creator in the Santa Clara Valley.
• Population of Santa Clara County grew by almost 17,000 to 100,588.  San Jose had 56,812 residents.
• San Jose State Normal School was renamed San Jose State Teachers College in 1921. (It would later be renamed San Jose State University five decades later.)
• Buildings not yet built in San Jose: DeAnza Hotel and San Jose Municipal Stadium.
• In September of 1920, a rich quicksilver strike was made at the Guadalupe mine (in what is now Almaden Valley).  H. C. Davy is the owner of the property and he claims that the mine now ought to be good for 400 or 500 flasks of quicksilver a month.  Read about what quicksilver is and what it was used for.
• In October, 1920, the city of San Jose used $33,000 out of the funds paid to the city from the estate of the late Anna E. C. Backesto in the purchase of a park site in the second ward.
• Backesto Park today (a little north of Japantown) surrounded by what was then a significant Italian immigrant community in San Jose.
• 
• Figures given in the report of the State Controller show that San Jose is the cheapest governed city of approximate population in the state. The per capita costs are: Berkeley, $12.49; Long Beach, $15.61; Pasadena, $20.57; Fresno, $15.94; Stockton, $18.23; Alameda, $13.25; San Jose, $11.92. On May 1, 1922, at an election an ordinance was carried fixing the rate of taxation from December 1, 1922, to December 1, 1923, at $1.30 on each $100 of taxable property, exclusive of the amount necessary to pay principal and interest on the bonded indebtedness of the city. The rate it supplants is $1.35.

NOW...here's the video:

In closing, we take for granted that things will change as time passes.  It's always important to keep looking forward to what's next, new, or in store for us.  Sometimes, it's equally important to turn around and see how much we have changed.

HW - Monday, 3/18

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity - none this week

4.  Reading Comprehension -  none

5.  Wordly Wise - 19 a-b

6.  Language Arts
- Workbook pgs. 345
- "My Hero" Essay first draft due by Wednesday
7.  My Math Class

-- Textbook pgs. 358-361

-- Workbook pgs. 200-201

8.  Science - pgs. 238-243

9.  History -  pgs. none; California Indian project (trioramas and paragraphs) due 3/27

NOTES:

• Surprise, surprise!  We have a field trip on Wednesday with our Little Buddies to San Jose's Discovery Museum! We are walking to the Hostetter Light Rail Station at 8:05 a.m. and will be back at Ruskin around 1:30 p.m.  Please pack a lunch for your child and use disposable bags; there is a cafeteria-style grill there. All forms are due ASAP. No signed slip = stay at Ruskin doing work
• CORRECTION: We are wrapping up Unit 5, "Heroes." There will be a Unit Test THIS FRIDAY, 3/22. (It was moved from Wednesday.)
• CORRECTION: California Indian project's due date was listed 3/25; it really is due WEDNESDAY, 3/27.

Weekly TenMarks Report: More Student Participation Needed

Weekly TenMarks Report for Mr. Amutan's Regular Class

Total students in Mr. Amutan's Regular Class: 23

Students who worked on TenMarks: 1

Total problems attempted: 148

Problems answered correctly: 138

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Weekly TenMarks Report for Mr. Amutan's Math Class

Total students in Mr. Amutan's Math Class: 35

Students who worked on TenMarks: 4

Total problems attempted: 385

Problems answered correctly: 358

* There are some students who are in the regular class and the math class.  They only count for the regular class's results.

New TenMarks Lessons

Today, I just posted the following TenMarks lessons for BOTH my math class and regular class:

• Two and Three Dimensional Figures
• 2D figures
• Classify 3D figures
• Lines and angles
• Triangles, quadrilaterals, parts of a circle

• Measurement and Units
• Customary length
• Customary units of weight and capacity and their conversions
• Metric units of length and their conversions
• Metric capacity and mass

Please have your child try and complete these by MARCH 24.

The website is www.tenmarks.com.

If You Received Your Corrected Chapter 6 Test...

Please bring it to school tomorrow.

I need to check for a grading discrepancy.

Thank you.

- Mr. Amutan

HW- Thursday, 3/14

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity

4.  Reading Comprehension -  none

5.  Wordly Wise - none this week

6.  Language Arts
- Workbook pgs. 340-344
- Complete " My Hero" graphic organizer: Who is your hero? List three traits/characteristics of your hero (i.e., reponsible, loving, fun, courageous).
7.  My Math Class

-- Textbook pgs. 354-357

-- Workbook pgs. 199

8.  Science - pgs. none

9.  History -  pgs. none; Start your California Indian project (due 3/27)

NOTES:

• ALL this week are Minimum Days (1:00 p.m. dismissal).
• NO after school S.I. class due to minimum days.
• We are on the last story of Unit 5, "Heroes." There will be a Unit Test next Wednesday, 3/20.
• CORRECTION: California Indian project's due date was listed 3/25; it really is due WEDNESDAY, 3/27.

This Friday: Donate a New or Gently Used Book, Get Autographs from Former SJ Shark, Mike Ricci, and Sharkie

On Friday, March 15 from 2:30-3:30 p.m. Comerica Bank will host a book drive at their Almaden Banking Center located at 1092 Blossom Hill Road in San Jose. Sharks alum and fan favorite, Mike Ricci and mascot S.J. Sharkie will be available for autographs in exchange for books or monetary donations. 

In-Game Book Drives

To kick off the beginning of a new school year and season of Reading Is Cool presented by Comerica Bank, the Sharks Foundation hosts in-game book drives at HP Pavilion at San Jose. During two predetermined Sharks games in October, fans are invited to donate new and gently used books for children in grades K-6 as they enter the arena. Monetary donations are also accepted and appreciated. As a "thank you" for their generosity, all donors are entered into an in-game raffle for autographed Sharks merchandise.

Comerica Bank Book Drives

As the literacy program's presenting sponsor, Comerica Bank hosts book drives at local banking centers throughout the hockey season. In exchange for the donation of a book, fans have the opportunity to receive an autograph or take a picture with a San Jose Sharks player on hand to thank them for their support of the program.

All donated books will be distributed to local public schools who earn S.J. Sharkie visits as part of the Reading Is Cool program. Reading Is Cool Presented by Comerica Bank is a free and unique literacy program open to public K-6 grade classrooms in Santa Clara County and southern Alameda County (Fremont, Newark and Union City). It promotes the importance of reading while sharing the excitement and enjoyment of a good book. Through a multifaceted approach that includes exclusive experiences and incentives, students are encouraged to succeed as individual readers and as a classroom team.

TWO Surveys: School Lunch (for Students) and District (for Parents)

Parents,

1)  If you child has not yet taken the school lunch survey, please make sure they do so. Only ONE survey per student, please.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/StudentHotLunch

2)  Please take some time to complete this district survey.  Currently, only 29% of Ruskin parents have done so.  We would like that to increase.

ENGLISH:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ParentEnglish12-13

VIETNAMESE:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ParentVietnamese2012-13

CHINESE:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ParentChinese2012-13

SPANISH:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ParentSpanish12-13

THANK YOU!

HW - Wednesday, 3/13

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity

4.  Reading Comprehension -  none

5.  Wordly Wise - none this week

6.  Language Arts
- Workbook pgs. 330-336, 338
7.  My Math Class

-- Textbook pgs. 353

-- Workbook pgs. 197-198

8.  Science - pgs. none

9.  History -  pgs. none; Start your California Indian project (due 3/25)

NOTES:

• ALL this week are Minimum Days (1:00 p.m. dismissal).
• NO after school S.I. class due to minimum days.
• We are on the last story of Unit 5, "Heroes." There will be a Unit Test next Wednesday, 3/20.

HW - Tuesday, 3/12

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity

4.  Reading Comprehension -  none

5.  Wordly Wise - none this week

6.  Language Arts
- Workbook pgs. 325, 327-329
- Grammar worksheet
7.  My Math Class

-- Topic 8 Test Tomorrow
-- Textbook pgs. 351-352

-- Workbook pgs. none

8.  Science - pgs. none

9.  History -  pgs. none

NOTES:

• ALL this week are Minimum Days (1:00 p.m. dismissal).
• NO after school S.I. class due to minimum days.
• We are on the last story of Unit 5, "Heroes." There will be a Unit Test next Wednesday, 3/20.

Lou Gehrig

The last story of Unit 5 centers on the life of Lou Gehrig, a phenomenal baseball player for the New York Yankees, who died at the young age of 37 from a disease which would eventually be named after him: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or ALS.

We will be watching a movie next Wednesday about Lou titled, The Pride of the Yankees.  Gary Cooper plays Lou, Teresa Wright plays Eleanor, and former teammates Babe Ruth, Bill Dickey, Bob Muesel, and Mark Koenig play themselves.  Released during World War II (1942), the film chronicles Lou's humble beginnings as a son of German immigrants, his development into one of the finest players baseball has ever seen, the comedically portrayed courtship and eventual life-long marriage to Eleanor, and the last years of his life.  Also in the movie is the Irving Berlin song, Always, sung (and performed) by Bettye Avery; something that was commonplace in the movies of yesteryear but rarely utilized now.  Shown in black-and-white, it is sure to be an experience for the students as they learn more about one of America's heroes.
Read more about the movie here: 
1) IMDB's entry: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0035211
2) Wikipedia's entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pride_of_the_Yankees
3) Amazon's entry (and reviews): http://www.amazon.com/The-Pride-Yankees-Gary-Cooper/dp/B000069HZY.

As Lou was fighting the disease, he wrote letters to friends and various medical staff.  With his wife Eleanor's help, he was able to stay in touch with them.  In each of the letters, you can sense the roller coaster of feelings Lou had: hope, desperation, confidence, fear, and courage.  And of note, the letters between Lou and Dr. Paul O'Leary are showcased.

"On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of Gehrig's famed "Luckiest Man" speech, Ancel, a sports memorabilia collector, and The Rip Van Winkle Foundation, which oversees the Gehrig estate, have agreed to let ESPN make a large group of selected letters public -- in their authentic, original form -- for the first time. Author Jonathan Eig wrote of the letters and excerpted from some of them in his 2005 biography of Gehrig, "Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig." The correspondence between Gehrig and Dr. Paul O'Leary provides a rare and exclusive look at the documentation of Gehrig's decline."

The collection of letters can be found here: http://espn.go.com/mlb/flash/gehrigletters#/letters/earlystages

Here is a video (about 5 minutes long) about the Lou's letters: http://espn.go.com/mlb/flash/gehrigletters#

Finally, here are some more interesting questions and tidbits:
- Who IS Henry Louis Gehrig?
- Hear his farewell speech and read the transcript.
- "Visit" his plaque at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY.
- Did you know you can "visit" his gravesite?

HW - "Moon" Day, 3/11

1.  Ruskin Reads - 30 minutes 

"Reading Is Cool" Goal of the Month:  MOST AUTHORS READ 
Remember: read your Accelerated Reader (ZPD) Book and take the Quiz in class...and ADD UP THE PAGES YOU HAVE READ!

2.  RuskinFIT (Physical Exercise) - 30 minutes

3.  Spelling Activity

4.  Reading Comprehension -  "The King of Mazy May" (writing questions #6 only)

5.  Wordly Wise - none this week

6.  Language Arts
- Workbook pgs. 324, 326
7.  My Math Class

-- Topic 8 Test on Wednesday
-- Textbook pgs. 220-221, 349

-- Workbook pgs. 129-130
-- Topic 8 Packet

8.  Science - pgs. none; Chapter 6 Open Book Test on Tuesday

9.  History -  pgs. none

NOTES:

• ALL this week are Minimum Days (1:00 p.m. dismissal).
• NO after school S.I. class due to minimum days.
• We are on the last story of Unit 5, "Heroes." There will be a Unit Test next Wednesday, 3/20.