Welcome to the New Year!
I hope everyone had a lovely Winter Break and was able to get some rest, spending lots of quality time with family and friends. Welcome to 2020! We have a lot of wonderful experiences waiting for us to kick off the new semester including the Story of Writing and the Story of Numbers (the 4th and 5th Great Lessons).
Parent volunteers to provide snacks during the second semester can sign up on the link below. Thank you for your support! If you are willing to help collect donations for snacks at local grocery stores, please contact me through Remind.
Apps for Extra Practice
Parents looking for practice and reinforcement for their children at home may explore the following:
-IXL (use Georgia Standards links for your child's grade level
-Reading A-Z
-Prodigy
-Istation
Accounts are provided for the students and are completely free. Apps are available on Google Play and Apple Store. The passwords are available in the classroom and can be sent home via Remind or in STAR Folders upon request.
“Free the child's potential and you will transform him into the world."
- Dr. Maria Montessori
Snacks for 2019-2020
For this school year, we will be managing snack time a little differently than we have done in the past. Each family will be asked to bring snacks for the entire class for a week of the school year. Snack items should be healthy choices and contain items that the students must prepare for themselves as a part of their Advanced Practical Life lessons daily. Some examples are:
- Fresh fruits (apples, halo oranges, bananas, berries, etc.)
- Fresh vegetables (carrots, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, celery, bell peppers, etc.)
- Whole Grains (bread, bagels, crackers)
- Spreadable items (cream cheese, hummus, Wowbutter or Sunbutter, etc.)
- Dairy items (hard cheeses, low sugar yogurt - must be packed in a lunch bag with an ice pack)
- Dried fruits )raisins, apples, banana chips, etc.)
*Please avoid any packaged items and items that contain more than 5-7 grams of sugar per serving.
See the sign-up list here: (https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0a4daead2aa7f49-snack). We are seeking grocery store donations for the remaining weeks. If you would like to assist with procuring donations, please let us know.
If you have missed your snack week, please sign up for another week during the school year via the link above.
January Homework
In an effort to make homework a meaningful and engaging experience for the children and to give them more choice in what to do each week, we will continue to use a "Choice Board" for homework for the month of January. These are due in class on Friday, January 31st. Children may choose which items to accomplish throughout the month. How many they do and the quality of their written responses will determine their homework grade for the month (see the rubric in the packet).
They are expected to continue the daily reading for 15-20 minutes and keep it in a reading log which is also being sent home. First years and Second years will have different reading logs for the second half of the school year. Second years will now need to provide a response/reflectin for each book read. Reading nightly at least 5 days a week is important to your child's continued growth and advancement as a reader.
Weekly spelling lists will continue to be sent home for practice. The first list for 2020 will go home on Monday, January 6th. The first spelling dictation will be held on Friday, January 10th.
Wish List
If you or anyone you know has any of the following items just sitting around, our class would be interested:
- Small "shark-style" vacuum
- Roling desk chair
- Bunny food, timothy hay, and fresh greens (parsley, cilantro, lettuce, small amounts of spinach) for Billie the Bunny
Thank you for your consideration and generosity!