Week 25

 

Students Dance in Celebration of Reading 12,000 minutes this year!

We made it to our February Break!  It was a busy week beginning with the 100th day of school and concluding with our Reading Celebration Dance.  Additionally, we had our first remote "snow day" followed by our routine remote Wednesday.  On Thursday I managed to squeeze in first Grade PNOA's (Primary Numbers and Operations Assessment), and on Friday we also had Farm To School with Miss Molly where students created their own recipes for a salad, sampled their salad and then voted on which ingredients they liked the most to create an "Elmore School Salad".  

Here are some highlights from our week!

100 Screws

100 fingers

100 Goldfish

100 Lego figures

100 pieces of Popcorn (Sheep)

100 Rabbits

100 Pennies (turtle shell)

100 Feathers

100 Sunflower Seeds

100 Skittles (snake)

100 Beans 

100 Gems (Rainbow)

100 Math Symbols

100 Candles (cake)

100 Wiggle Eyes

Designing a Salad Recipe with Miss Molly

Taste Testing Salad Recipe

Taste Testing!

Elmore Salad Collaborative Art Project

And...a few from our Dance!

Wishing you all a wonderful, week.  

Enjoy your time together and find joy in the beauty that surrounds you!

School resumes on Wednesday March 3rd (remote).

Don't forget to Vote on March 2nd! 

Public Information Meeting

Week 24

Handmade Valentines created by the Elmore Students decorate the Post Office Boxes at the Elmore Store.

Over the past three weeks students at the Elmore School have been busy during their free time creating handmade valentines for the Post Office Patrons at the Elmore Store (Post Office).  Their hard work concluded Friday as Valentines were hung on all the Post Office Boxes.  This has become an annual tradition for the Elmore School (started by Mrs. Anderson), and is truly an gift of love to the Elmore Community.

In Literacy this week students concluded their informational writing unit.  Students have published at least one book and this week they have been sharing them with the class.  Our next writing unit will be opinion writing (also known as persuasive writing). During this unit we will focus on writing book reviews and persuasive letters.  I also began sharing some Phonemic awareness lessons which the District is recommending for all elementary students.  Phonemic awareness (or phonological awareness), focuses on the sounds in words and the ability to manipulating the sounds.  There is no print (reading or writing) involved.   Studies have shown that when students have a strong phonemic awareness they are better readers and writers.  

In Math First graders are relating number stories to subtraction.  Second graders learned about using place value disks to show units of ones, tens, and hundreds in counting on from one number to another another using units to regroup.  Third graders are using the distributive property (break apart and distribute) to solve multiplication and division problems involving multiples of 6 and 7.  

Next week the first graders will take the PNOA (Primary Numbers and Operation Assessment).

We finished our science unit on Plant Heredity and Traits.  This week we explored the idea of growers using the process of selection (repeatedly selecting plants with desired traits to become new parent plants) to make new varieties of fruits (and plants).   Our next unit will explore Vibration and Sound.

Now is a good time of year for you to talk with your child about the importance of adhering to our health and safety protocols.  Remind them to wash hands frequently,  remain physically distanced from others as much as possible, and wear a clean, dry mask which fits over their nose and under their chin which they should refrain from chewing or sucking on.  Students should have a couple of extra masks in their bag everyday. 

Also, just a reminder, if your family is planning to travel outside of VT over the break, your child will be required to quarineen for 14 days after returning or be tested on the 7th day and have a negative test result come back before they can return to school.  The marking period ends shortly after our return on March 3rd, so please advise me of any plans to travel as soon as possible, as the week we get back will likely be a time for gathering last pieces of evidence for the mastery report.  Your help in keeping us all healthy and school opened for in person instruction is greatly appreciated!

Scroll past photos for Announcements...

Announcements:

• Library is Monday!  Remember to bring your Library books and activity bags!
• Tuesday and Thursday are PE at 8:00.  Students need their sneakers! 
• The 100th Day of school is Monday.  Projects are due!  
• We will celebrate reading with a school dance on Friday afternoon!  Students may "dress-up" of they would like to (not required).  A few students have been chosen (drawn from a hat) to help decorate the Town Hall on Thursday after school.  Permission slips will go hope with them on Monday.  
• February Break is Feb. 22 - March 2 this year.  School resumes on Wednesday March 3rd (remote).
• Voting takes place by Australian Ballet on Tuesday March 2nd.  There are optional informational School Budget meetings you can attend prior to voting.  
• The 2nd marking period ends on March 15th
• Early Release On Thursday March 18th (dismissal is 12:15)
• No School on Friday March 19th.  We will have remote Parent / Teacher Conferences. You will have the option to have a Google Meet or a phone conference and they should take between 20-30 minutes.  
• Please email me your lunch orders

A notice from LSUU

Student Services :

Families and students who were ineligible for federal assistance through the CARES Act because of their immigrant status? They may qualify for the Vermont Covid Equity Fund. All eligible adults will receive $1,200 for themselves, plus $500 for each eligible child. To learn more about the fund, please visit this page. 

March 1, 2021 is the deadline to register so time is of essence here. Eligible individuals should register using this link (translated forms are available). For eligibility criteria and other information, please visit the FAQ page. If you have any questions, please contact the Program Manager via email at indra@vtcovidfund.org. Week 24

Week 23

View over the lake on an early, cold morning.

It was a short but full week at the Elmore School.  A fresh blanket of snow refreshed the playground where children worked throughout the week to construct a series of connected "rooms" stringing along the front fence and winding around to far side of the playground.   I observed the children plan, construct,  collaborate, and problem solve through their play in a way that no lesson plan could provide.  As we make our way through this challenging school year, with few opportunities for kids to play, collaborate, and interact together in the classroom, I am so grateful for the opportunities kids have to play outside together.  With nothing more than some snow and a few shovel, these kids have demonstrated collaboration, creativity, empathy, goal setting and planning, perseverance, and a growth mindset (All of our Scholarly Habits!)  And... this is why providing students with opportunities for unstructured play is so important.  This is where they get to practice the life skills and develop the characteristics they will need throughout their lives.  

Back in the classroom, writer's worked on publishing their non-fiction (teaching) books.  Small groups participated in phonics/reading groups, and I am making my way through assessing reading levels.  Students have a few extra days to work on their spelling words as we will not have our spelling quizzes until Monday due to our short week.  

In Math: 

First grade worked on strategies for finding the missing addend (3 + ___ = 8).  Students are led to understand they can use related facts to solve for the unknown.  The goal is find the most efficient method for solving the problem.  For example, 5 + ___ = 8 may more efficiently be solved  by counting on to find the unknown addend, while 3 + ___ = 8 may be more efficient to think of as 8 - 3 = ____  because it counting back 3 is more efficient than counting on 5.

Second grade used an empty number line to model counting on using units of ones, tens, and hundreds. Later they worked with a partner(s) to problem solve how many units of 10 are in 1000.  They created posters to show their thinking using a drawing (or diagram) and numbers.  

Third grade began the week using related facts to show the relationship between multiplication and division.  We ended the week with strategies for skip counting by sixes to solve multiplication facts involving 6.  Students are also discovering efficiency in multiplying by using the commutative property.  (if I know the multiplication fact 3 x 6, then I also know the fact 6 x 3.)

In Science we explored why some apples are green and some apples are red.  We learned that by using a process known as "selection", apple growers have been able to grow bigger and sweeter apples with various skin colors.  Students made connections to what they previously learn about the process of selection in the animal kingdom.

Announcements:

• Library is Monday!  Remember to bring your Library books and activity bags!
• Tuesday and Thursday are PE at 8:00.  Students need their sneakers!
• We will Celebrate Valentine's Day on Friday, February 12th.  I will send home a Class List on Monday or it can be found in Seesaw as an announcement from me. 
• The 100th Day of school is approaching and should be on Monday, February 15th.  This week we will decide how we will celebrate this annual milestone!
• We are on track to earn our next reading reward next week or the week after that.  The students have voted for a (socially distanced) School Dance.  I'd like to plan on having the dance on Friday, February 19.  We will decorate the space (possibly the Town Hall) and some students have expressed an interest in "Dressing Up", but this is not required.  Unfortunately we are not able to have parent volunteers this year, but I may looking for a few of student volunteers to help decorate after school on Thursday, Feb. 18th. 
• February Break is Feb. 22 - March 2 this year.  School resumes on Wednesday March 3rd (remote).
• The 2nd marking period ends on March 15th
• Early Release On Thursday March 18th (dismissal is 12:15)
• No School on Friday March 19th.  We will have remote Parent / Teacher Conferences. You will have the option to have a Google Meet or a phone conference and they should take between 20-30 minutes.  
• Please email me your lunch orders!