Week 1

Students performed at the Elmore Labor Day Talent Show on Saturday afternoon.

We had a fast and fabulous first week at the Elmore School! As students filed into the classroom on Monday morning, smiles stretched across their faces. In the first week we had a focus on cooperation and team work, we began laying the foundation for math menu, and students did some writing. Together we read several books.

On Monday we read the Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn which features a young racoon who is worried about his first night of school. Following the story, students made worry stones using polymer clay. The idea is that if students feel worried they can use their worry stone by rubbing it with their thumb as a way to help them feel more grounded and relaxed. Students wrote in their writing journals about something they did over the summer. In the afternoon we practiced for the talent show and had our first day of library.

On Tuesday, we learned about the Monarch Butterfly. Students made observations of the monarch caterpillar we had in the classroom and then each child mad a drawing of what they observed. Then students students listened to me read I Can Listen. Then they wrote their own mini I can listen books. In the afternoon we began learning about some of our math routines. Our math launch was "Which one Doesn't Belong. in this activity students look at four images and are asked to identify which one (or more) doesn't belong in the group. Each of the pictures in the set has something that doesn't belong so this helps students to think critically. Then we learned a card game know as "Golf". After math we practice our songs for the talent show again

On Wednesday, We began the day with Guidance. Ms. Waldman (School Counselor at MES/Elmore), introduced the "Peace Place". The idea is when students are having a disagreement or a conflict they can go to the peace place to discuss the problem and potentially find a solution both can agree with. Students then worked with a partner to role play the peace place process. Later, I read I Can Cooperate. Then students completed a I can cooperate sentence started on a paper caterpillar segment. They cut out their caterpillar piece and then assembled it into one long caterpillar. Then we had a coopertive team challenge where students worked with the table group to build the tallest cup tower they could using only 20 cups and 10 index cards. We were lucky to catch one of the caterpillars make it's chrysalis! This was a truly amazing this for us to witness. You can check it out by viewing this video. In the afternoon students leaned how to complete one of the math puzzles they will see in their math menus. Last we practice our songs for the talent show. We ended the day with a Clear the Classroom Drill.

Thursday we had more cooperative team building activities. The first one was the lower the hula hoop team challenge and the next was a relay where students had to cross the rug by using spots to stand on. The tricky part of the challenge was someone had to have contact at all times with each spot. I shared a book all about the Elmore School that was writer by students three years ago and published into a hard cover book. Then students wrote about what their bet day of school would be. We had our first fire Drill, and in math students completed window panes (these will be part of math menu each week as a was to review past content), and played a new card game with a partner. In the afternoon we practice our songs for the talent show and then had our first day of PE.