Hey Families!
I hope you all had a great weekend! It has been a super start to the year, establishing routines and expectations. The kidsa re all doing well and I had the sense that they (and I!) needed the long weekend by the time Friday came around.
Last week we read some books that covered, broadly, making mistakes (Down the Road), what it means to be part of a group (Wolf Watch), and saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new (Country Frog, City Dog). We did some writing about making mistakes as well and the kids got to use a rubric to help guide their work. It was interesting discussing and reading work from the kids that drew a distinction between making mistakes and taking risks. They also did personalized collages and did some writing about their choices. In read-aloud, we are reading Harris and Me, a book about many things. The theme we will be focusing on is around belonging and what that word means, looks like, and feels like. We'll also be doing a spelling assessment to get a look at their spelling needs, the Acadience reading diagnostic as well as the iReady reading diagnostic.
In math class we have been doing review and getting settled into the routine of Math Menu. The kids are working hard on getting their math brains back in shape. We also will be rolling out iReady in the coming week or two. This week they will be doing their math diagnostic, giving us some baseline data.
In the coming week or two, we will be shifting the focus of our literacy time to roll out routines and to start to integrate our first unit of study, Exploration and Contact, which focuses on the first contact between european explorers and the indigenous peoples of the northeast US. We'll touch on some of the other exploration going on during this time, but our focus will be on the explorers of the northeast as a context to set for the treatment of indigenous peoples and the effect colonization had, the 7 Years War and the American Revolution. As an important note, we'll be studying about this time from multiple perspectives. I always make sure the kids know that while they are in no way responsible for the actions of others in the past, that it is important to see events through as many perspectives as you can in order to see the full historical picture. It is complicated.
I think that's about it for now. I'll be sure to update you as needed as more school events start popping up. Please be in touch with any questions, concerns or otherwise.
Have a great week,
~Ben
