Student Learning Expectations - SLEs - are expectations that our students should know, understand, value, and be able to do by the time they graduate from St. Louise School. These 12 SLEs comprise four categories important to the development of a well-rounded student: an active Christian; a life-long learner; a well-balanced individual; and a community member. Each month, one or two different SLEs are focused on school-wide until the 12 expectations are covered by the end of the school year.
          May's Student Learning Expectations focused on throughout the school was:

•  #2.2: "A St. Louise student is a life-long learner who communicates effectively through writing, speaking, and listening."

Below are highlights from some of the classrooms on how they have been working on achieving this SLE, not just in May but throughout the year:

        Beyond their usual written responses in all of their subjects, 5th graders have large projects during the year which showcase these developing skills of writing, speaking, and listening. One such project is the History Maker Scrapbook.  Mrs. Cervantes' and Mrs. Talevich's students wrote about their chosen history makers, presented information to visiting parents and students at their Hall of Fame, and listened intently to their classmates' presentations. Additionally, the 5th graders interviewed family members throughout the year and each time wrote up the interview questions and answers into a report. They interviewed a military veteran (or a parent who knew a veteran) and wrote a Veterans' Day Report in November. Additionally, when studying the Sacrament of Baptism, the 5A and 5B students interviewed parents about their Baptism day.

        The 1st graders tied the listening, speaking, and writing expectations all together in their Insect science unit. The students read books independently and listened to read-alouds that taught them about insects and life cycles. They took what we learned and made observations of their live classroom insects. Finally, Miss Helfen's and Mrs. Howell's students wrote down observations about their classroom insects, wrote stories about insects, and drew diagrams of these various insects. You'll get a chance to see all of these examples at the Science Showcase on Friday.

        Eighth graders finished their research papers in Mr. Gallant's language arts class. This process allowed students to expand their formal writing knowledge using principles of research and sourcing, as well as crafting analytical thesis statements. Their chosen topic could not conflict with Catholic doctrine, with topics ranged from bilingual education to college tuition rates for low income families. After writing these 6-8 page reports, the 8th graders individually presented their findings in front of a class-wide audience. Students listened to their peers during this time, with a few students called on after each presentation to comment, and thus showing their listening skills.

        Mrs. McAllister's 2nd graders also wrote research reports, albeit much less elaborate than the 8th graders' papers. The 2nd graders read books on an animal, taking notes about their animal's physical features, habitats, etc. They then wrote the reports using these notes, making sure to rewrite in their own words so they wouldn't be plagiarizing. After their first drafts were edited, the students wrote final drafts, some as long as 12 pages!

        Finally, our 3rd graders achieved the May SLE of the Month when they presented their oral biography reports. The students first read about and researched a famous person, and then they wrote out notecards that highlighted the important information they wanted to share about this person. Next, they dressed up as their famous persons and presented this information orally in the first person, pretending they were this person. All the 3rd graders did a great job in this entire writing and speaking process, and these reports are extremely important in giving them practice and confidence when speaking publicly. Before these reports were given, Miss Etter and Mrs. Berlin also reviewed the expectations for all the students listening in the audience. These expectations included keeping their eyes on the speaker, their hands free on their desks, and not engaging in any side talk.

Miss Casey's 2nd graders completed posters that described their family's heritage. These posters included pictures and descriptions of their ancestors' country's specific culture. When done, the 2nd graders then shared their posters with the class, using "speaker" voices. As each student shared, the rest of the class practiced their audience skills by sitting politely and listening attentively. Ben (at left) and Henry (at right) show their family heritage posters.

 

 

Our preschoolers, through whole-group discussion and interactive writing, generated a list of questions about zoos and animals, created a research plan, a compiled a list of zoo vocabulary words. Then Mrs. Salmon had her Pre-K students each create an animal research journal where they recorded research findings in pictures and words (written and/or dictated to a teacher). The preschoolers then wrote and decorated invitations for family and staff members to visit their "Pre-K Zoo." Last week, the students greeted their visitors, welcomed them to the zoo, explained various elements of the zoo, and ended by thanking their guests for coming. Below, Declan shows his grandmother the class's list of vocabulary words during their tour of the Pre-K Zoo.