Full disclosure... I have no idea how February disappeared so quickly!!! What I do know is that we have been super busy here in Room 10 learning, learning, learning and learning some more!
The winter break provided a great opportunity to recharge, and as March prepares to roll out before us we are off and running once again in Room 10.
Here are a some highlights from the past few weeks...
The children and I have taken an extended amount of time to learn about Martin Luther King and his key beliefs and messages. As is always the case, the children have many questions and are often stunned to learn some of the hard truths about civil rights during Dr. King's time. We touched upon several other key figures from this critical time in our country's history including Rosa Parks and Ruby Bridges. It can be a sensitive topic to teach at this age, but one I feel is tremendously important. Our discussions have been rich and powerful, and I'm so proud of this group for their inquisitive and thoughtful thinking.
In math we have begun to dig more deeply into place value concepts while we also continue our work with addition and subtraction. In the coming weeks we will start to work more on telling time and expanding our understanding of money (identifying the names and values of coins, counting combinations of coins). Feel free to practice these concepts at home whenever the opportunity arises!
Trimester 2 assessment time is here and will be followed by parent-teacher conferences soon after. Any questions or concerns you may have in preparation for March conferences are welcome.
Upon returning from vacation we jumped right into celebrating the birthday of Dr. Seuss and Read Across America. Our week included:
Monday, February 25 - Memorial's Read Across America Kick Off Assembly
Tuesday, February 26 - Fox In Socks Day...wear your crazy socks
Wednesday, February 27 - Think like the Cat in the Hat and wear stripes!
Thursday, February 28 - Spirit Day (Grade Level Color Day... It's not easy being green!)
Friday, March 1 - Community Reader Day and a visit from the Cat in the Hat
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We were thrilled to attend a presentation called BASH THE TRASH where we learned about the 3 R's: Reuse - Recycle - Reduce. This very spirited and talented group shared their creative instruments made from trash while teaching the children how important it is to keep the 3 R's in mind so that we give Mother Earth the best chance of remaining healthy in the years ahead. Take a peek at some of the pictures from the show:
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The children were excited to learn that we will be partnering with Mr. Mason's 5th grade class as Book Buddies. Our first meet and greet was great fun. We will continue to connect with our buddies from now until the end of the year. Of course, I am happy to have three of my former first graders return to Room 10 for this buddy time!
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We couldn't kick off vacation week before celebrating the 100th day of school AND Valentine's Day. The children always love making their valentine bags, and our party was a big success. Many thanks to the parents who sent in stickers for decorating our bags and for the many donations of food and supplies for the party. It was a sweet, feel-good few days indeed!
