Plays, Pond, and Plenty More!

Hey All,

I hope this letter finds you well and enjoying our beautiful spring weather. The kids are certainly feeling the wonderful weather as well! I hope that you all get a chance to make it to our amazing Spring Fair at Rumney tomorrow, 10-2. Our fantastic PTO has put together a great collection of activities and opportunities for people to help support our wonderful school. A huge thanks to them for making our school a better place!

We went to the frog pond and the kids did some great observations on what they saw. There are some kids in our room who see things I never would have! We then drew pictures of our habitats at our houses. We barely started to then talk about Venn-Diagrams and how they are useful tools in comparing things and started to use that tool to compare these two habitats. They made lots of great observations.

The stage for the plays has made the annual entrance into our room and the kids had a great time exploring it. We talked about the expectations around it and we all appear to be on the same page. As for the plays, they are next Thursday, the 26th. We will have two showings, one at 10:45 and one at 2:15. After the 2:15 performance we usually do a cast party. If you'd like to volunteer to send something in, it would be appreciated. Let me know what you are thinking via email so that I can make sure we aren't too loaded with any one thing. Please make sure that all food sent in are gluten, egg, nut, and dairy free. 

In Writer's Workshop the kids have been working on their information writing. We are working on revisions and making sure that we are filling our books with lots of facts. Their final products are shaping up to be a great representation of their amazing progress in writing. I can't wait for you all to see their finished products. They will also do some form of a visual products as well for the animal they studied. 

Ms. T and I have decided to bring our classes down to the Shady Rill picnic area toward the end of the year. We have blocked out June 9th and 14th as possible days that work. We are open to as many chaperones as possible and will be walking down from school around 11:00. We'll have a picnic lunch and then enjoy the afternoon by playing in the brook and playing large and small group games.

Please be in touch if you have any questions about this busy time of year.

Enjoy the fair!

~B

Dates to Remember

Thursday May 26th -- Ben's class plays 10:45 and 2:15 showtimes
Friday May 27th -- Book Buddies Field Trip at U-32 
Monday May 30 -- NO SCHOOL (Memorial Day)
Friday June 3rd -- Mrs. Fox's class plays 2pm
*NEW* June 9th (14th raindate) 1/2 River Day at Shady Rill
Wednesday June 15th -- The Last Day of School (1/2 Day)

Green Up!

Hey Folks,

First and foremost, I'd like to extend my thanks to our amazing PTO. The PTO helps to put on amazing programs for our students here at school and helps it become a more rich and vibrant place to learn and work. Thank you all for your support, I know I couldn't do my job without it.

Also... It was a great a end to our week! We got to write some cards, do some Greening Up outside, and had a great 4 Winds activity on nests. The kids got to end their work with smiles on their faces, which is a great goal to have at this end of the year, when emotions and energy run so hot.

The kids have continued their amazing work on their information writing pieces. They are assembling their books to have the correct number of pages and we have started to talk about the editing process to ensure that the work that goes into their books is their best work. We talked about how it is a great gift to look at your first and second grade work years down the road and how it brings you back...

In literacy, we are looking toward the end of the year. The kids are making their last pushes and gains toward making the end of grade benchmarks for spelling, reading and writing. No matter how your child fares on these assessments, please remember that they are only 7 and 8 years old, after all. Development in academic and social areas happens in a varied way. Grades and seasons are not black and white indicators of where children should be in their learning progression. Learning and skill acquisition happens on a broad spectrum, and I have been happy with all of their progress.

In Science, we are reading a big book about tadpoles and we are planning on doing some near-Rumney field trips to the frog pond and practicing how to observe, draw, and label what they see. We will also be trying to do some work on erosion to cap it all off. Time is fleeting...

We have started working on our plays and poems as well. The kids are seriously excited about this work. If you'd like a script for home to practice, please let me know. We will be working on our sets and props over the next couple of weeks.

As always, be in touch with anything on your mind.

Enjoy your well-deserved Mother's Day!

~B

Dates to Remember
Friday May 13th -- Field Trip to see "Henry and Mudge" at the Flynn Theater
Thursday May 19th -- All School Meeting 2:30 (Primary Singers performing!)
Thursday May 26th -- Ben's class plays
Friday May 27th -- Book Buddies Field Trip at U-32
Monday May 30 -- NO SCHOOL (Memorial Day)
Friday June 3rd -- Mrs. Fox's class plays 2pm
Wednesday June 15th -- The Last Day of School (1/2 Day)