Middle Grades: October 22 - 26

The Middle Grades students will spend the next couple of weeks measuring.  We will start the week by measuring with our bodies - thumbs, feet, hand span, elbow to tip of finger, stride; and steadily move to the tools of measuring - rulers, scales, and the ways that we calculate measurement.

We are getting into The Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder, and learning about the hard work involved in being a farmer.  We will continue learning about farming and gardening.  A month ago we planted spinach, kale, and collards.  Today there is nothing left of them.  Something ate every plant right down to the ground.  I'm guessing rabbits or rats.  We have to design a way to cover the beds when we aren't down there before we replant.  If any of you have any ideas, please contact me so that we can move quickly to have at least a few cool season edibles.

I will be distributing a new round of biographies this week.  Please help your child get on a schedule to finish reading the book at home by the end of next week.  Book reports will be due the following Wednesday, November 14.  The format will be the same as before.

Practice the 6x's!!!!!!

And have a spooky week,

Ki Kathee

Joyful Beginnings: October 22 - 27

We used the sunny weather at the start of the week to spend more time in the playground. Kids played in the sand building sand cakes for each other.

We used the rainy weather as an opportunity to go on the adventure trip to explore far seas of the Puddle land. We splished and splashed through treacherous lakes, raked deep trenches for hidden treasures. After long wanderings, we finally came to the Farm where the goat and donkey greeted us. Thanks to the parents for equipping us with good clothes that protected us during the journey.

On Friday we took care of our chores. Kids washed their toys from the dirt accumulated throughout the week.

P.S. Ki Ieva came down with fever in the middle of the week. Now she is back and feeling much better.

Meadowgarten: October 15 - 19

Dear Meadow Parents,

This week was full of transitions! This was our first week co-teaching with the Meadowgarten and our flow of the day has been slightly altered with the cooler weather.

We were very busy this week making butter, shredding carrots, and celebrating Pipor with delicious homemade applesauce (Thank you, Candace!).

As the weather is cooling, please be sure children have enough clothes to keep them warm. Children who do not have proper attire for the cold will be sent home.

Also, please don't forget to check lost and found for any missing items, and a change of clothes and a wet bag is still required. 

Kindly,

Ki Amanda & Ki Amy

Upper Grades: Oct 15 - 19

Happy Monday! The upper grades class wrapped up their study of Ancient India with Ki Carol on Thursday, and in the week ahead we’ll turn our attention to botany and the study of fungi, algae, lichens, ferns, and conifers. This block will be guest-taught by Ki Molly and Ki Jas, and since one week is such a short amount of time we’ll be working at a slightly brisker pace. Here’s an overview so you can support your student.


Monday: Introduction to mycology, including Masterbook dictation and illustration. Spelling words assigned (test on Friday!), report assigned on a local plant.

Homework:

  • Complete math workbook through page 4 if not finished in class.

  • Complete Masterbook work if not finished in class.

  • Practice assigned Poem for Two Voices.

  • Study spelling words.

  • Conduct research work on assigned plant.

Tuesday: Introduction to lichenology, including Masterbook dictation and illustration. Puffball mushroom hunting expedition and cooking (if our foraging is successful!).

Homework:

  • Complete math workbook through page 7 if not finished in class.

  • Complete Masterbook work if not finished in class.

  • Practice assigned Poem for Two Voices.

  • Study spelling words.

  • Write report on assigned plant.

Wednesday: Introduction to phycology, including Masterbook dictation and illustration. Perform Poems for Two Voices.

Homework:

  • Complete math workbook through page 10 if not finished in class.

  • Complete Masterbook work if not finished in class.

  • Study spelling words and write out definitions.

  • Illustrate report on assigned plant.

Thursday: Introduction to pteridology, including Masterbook dictation and illustration. Create an individual terrarium using plants we’ve studied, identified, and collected.

Homework:

  • Complete math workbook through page 13 if not finished in class.

  • Complete Masterbook work if not finished in class.

  • Study spelling words and finish writing out definitions.

  • Ensure that report on assigned plant is complete. It should include a scientific illustration, the common and Latin names of the plant, an explanation of how and where it can be found, and three interesting facts about it.

Friday: Introduction to conifers, including Masterbook dictation and illustration. Spelling test! Each student presents their report on a local plant.

Homework:

  • Complete math workbook through page 20 by Monday.

  • Complete Masterbook work if not finished in class.

Here are some photos from last week, when Ki Steve brought in three Indian instruments: the harmonium, the drum (this type is called a “mrdangam”), and a tamboura, which provides a beautiful droning sound. After the chant, every child had a chance to try all the instruments.

Mountaingarten: October 15-19

Dear Mountain Parents,

The past week went by smoothly and we are happy with the new changes to our daily rhythm. As mentioned before, we are parting ways with Meadow Garden after our morning circle. From now on, both classes will be returning to their home base after circle and will go back outside after second snack, returning to our nest for lunch. 

We had a very busy week! We made butter and used it as a spread on our zaatar bread rolls which we also made, cut veggies for our soup, made a salad with our cucumbers and tomatoes, and celebrated a birthday with delicious muffins (thank you Sarah!). We also went for a nature walk, fed the animals, painted with water color, sewed gnome hats, colored autumn trees with block crayons and glued leaves we found in the forest.

The children learned a story about a wise man who never told lies (we repeat the same story everyday for the week so the children have time to process and think about it) and by the end of the week our story developed into a play, where the children were able to act out the lines.

We have our good bye song that we are now singing at the end of the day with beautiful tune:

"Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye my friends

Until the day we meet again

We've had our laughs, we've had our fun

And the day is done

Goodbye my Friends."  

We also have a new song we sing to prepare us for the hall: 

"My hands are by my side,

I'm standing straight and tall,

my eyes are looking forward,

I'm ready for the hall!

Shh!" (Their favorite part)"

As the weather is cooling, please be sure children have enough clothes to keep them warm. Children who do not have proper attire for the cold will be sent home.

Also, please remember to pick up your child's rest mat at their end of the week. They will be outside next to the picnic table.

Several children are missing their inside shoes, if the shoes are still at home please remind your child to bring it with them to school. Also, if your child does not yet know how to tie shoes, please send them to school in velcro shoes or something else they can easily take on and off by themselves. 

Also, please don't forget to check lost and found for any missing items, and a change of clothes and a wet bag is still required. 

We are now going to have "show and tell" on Friday's, so please have your child find something from nature or something that he/she made to share with the class, it could even be song or a story!

Lastly, for parents signed up to bring the snack. In addition to the fruits, we will ask for a few vegetables to use in our soup. We will change up the soup every week so vegetables may vary. We plan to start this the first week of November. 

Thank you for reading this lengthy message! 

With Gratitude, 

Mountain Garden

Joyful Beginnings: Oct 15 - 19

Kids had a great week despite the colder weather. Don’t forget the jacket so we are not cold.

We went outside to the Forest playground and sandbox. They made cakes and ice cream in the sand. So yummy!

We were also getting ready for the upcoming holidays. Kids made felt pumpkins for Thanksgiving. Everyone enjoyed working with the felt.

Kids have continued working diligently on their daily task - chopping carrots and apples for a snack.

Middle Grades: Oct 15 - 19

We had a great time at The Phantom Tollbooth.  The general consensus was that it would have been much more enjoyable had the actors actually spoken, but the general response was positive.

This week we will be beginning a week of talking about grains.  We will explore a little history of grains and bread making, and, of course, we'll be cooking a little.  Plans are in the making to have oatmeal, rice pudding, bread with no leavening, yeast bread, and tortillas.  If you have experience with making tortillas, please come and help me.  I have a recipe, but I have no experience.  I will make sure that those students who are sensitive to wheat have an alternative to the breads.

If you have not already begun to flash card the multiplication tables, please do so.  We are up to the sixes as of this week, and all students can use some practice.  I recommend starting in order and then mixing them up.

Some of you asked in your conferences what you could do to help your child.  Read to them, even if they are reading really well.  Read a passage to them.  Ask them to read it with you aloud.  Then ask them to read it alone.  By doing this, you will be reinforcing an expressive, fluent reading style, and they will benefit greatly from the one on one time with you.

I look forward to seeing you all at Kingdom of Halloween on Saturday.  Don't forget to reserve your time.  You may not see me there; however, Madam Katrina will be floating about reading palms and telling fortunes.

As the weather changes, be sure that your child has layers of clothing.  We are now spending more time in the garden, and that is usually during the morning hours, when it is the nippiest, but they need to shed some of their outer wear when the sun warms us up.

RAIN BOOTS!!! Every Wednesday, and any day that it has rained the day/night before.

I'd like to encourage you to fill out the Volunteer Form and get your background checks done if you haven't already done so.  Between now and the end of the semester we will be doing a lot of projects, and I could use an extra pair of hands almost every day, especially with spinning, weaving, sewing, and making things out of natural materials from the forest.  Also, at the next Community Work Day we will be doing a lot of sprucing up down at the garden, and it would be great if all of you could come and hang out with me at the garden.

Have a great week.  I am going to be absent on Monday.  I have an ear infection that has spread into my sinuses and feel the need to rest, take my medication, and be ready to get back to school by Tuesday.  Many of the students have had colds and stomach viruses already this year.  I am now taking extra vitamins to boost by immune system, and trying to eat healthier.  Maybe if we all do this we'll all feel better.

HomeSchool: Oct 15 - 19

Hi everybody!

I've attached photos below from our wonderful week.

This Tuesday there is a Simplicity Parenting discussion in the parent lounge at 2:00pm if any of you would like to attend. I hope to be there too. On Tuesday the HomeSchool group will be singing our two lantern songs, Glimmer, Lantern, Glimmer and L'Bimba, L'Bamba, L'Boom, as well as All Through The Day, Let Us Sing Together, and Iko, Iko. We will celebrate Brolin's 10th birthday with special cupcakes at the Pond Overlook. We will be painting watercolor landscapes with blue, green, and red.

On Tuesday at 3:30pm, the Garden Girls Girl Scouts will do a Creek Cleanup on Little Noonday Creek so all Girl Scouts should wear old tennis shoes or rubber boots and old clothes that can get dirty and wet. Bring gloves if you have them.

Be sure to bring in your wide-mouth glass jars by Thursday so we can make our lanterns the following week. On Thursday, I will be asking each student to talk about how what they did to fill the Let's Go Outside prescription that I gave you during our parent/teacher conferences.

Join us if you can for the Kingdom of Halloween Festival this Saturday, 4:30-8:30pm. You are encouraged to wear a costume, as long as it is not scary, does not include a mask, and is not based on any media like movies, video games, or TV shows. I will be there as the official greeter and you may recognize other teachers and parents as you make your way through the kingdom.

Please continue to work on your Amphibian take-home projects and be ready to give presentations on them Tuesday, November 6th. Each student received 4 sheets of masterbook paper. These may not be folded. If you find that yours are folded please take home new sheets this Tuesday. The sheets should be used horizontally and front-only. 

Your presentation should include:

Sheet 1: A drawing of your amphibian (may be in crayon, colored pencil, or charcoal, may show parts of the body, stages of metamorphosis, color phases, top view, side view, whatever you want to share)

Sheet 2: A painting of your amphibian (may be watercolor or acrylic)

Sheet 3: Answers to these questions about your amphibian:

What is the common name and nickname (if any) of your amphibian?

How big is your amphibian? 

How would you describe it?

What is one cool adaptation that it has?

Where does it live?

What does it eat?

What are the stages of its life cycle?

What does it do in winter?

Is it common or rare?

How is is affected by humans?

Your answers and descriptions may continue on the 4th sheet of paper or you may use the 4th sheet as a do-ever sheet.

Here are the amphibians that we chose:

Ari: olm

Bear: goliath frog

Brolin: eft

Christopher: caecilian

Elsu: fire-bellied toad

Helene: southern leopard frog

Logan: African tree frog

Lucan: zig-zag salamander

Ollie: red-eyed tree frog

Ki Sonya: hellbender

As you practice, be sure to emphasize these public speaking skills: standing, facing your audience, making eye contact, projecting your voice, holding your paper so that everyone in the audience can see it, and, my favorite, exuding enthusiasm for your subject.

Quote from a child, written on the chalk board in the Marigold Room: "I don't fill good today. My trout hurts."

Quote from Rick Bragg, in My Southern Journey: "People ask all the time, what's wrong with kids today? I have long held that they have been brain-mushed by too much screen time, but as summer races past me now I think it is something else. I think they do not know how sweet it is to feel the mud mush between their toes."

May you find a mud puddle of your own very soon,

Ki Sonya

Lower Grades: Oct 15 - 19

The Lower Grades class worked with the numbers up to six though stories this week, practicing movement patterns and numeral formation along with building number sentences using gems and then recording them for our master books.  Students also used dice to build and solve larger number equations as well.  During our first blocks, the children and I drew pictures together, however for this new math block they are copying pictures with little direct instruction from me.  They are doing wonderfully and seem to be happy with the process as well as their final product. 

As we did not fully meet every alphabet letter, we also learned about the letter “x”.  We read the story of “The Wolf and the Fox”, thought of many “x” words and worked on letter formation.  During clay modeling, the students have been making spheres into paddies, then pressing in six places and pulling out six arms of clay that turn into four legs, a head and a tail to create animals, both realistic or imaginary.  For Language, in addition to our work with “x”, we played sight words bingo.  In Handwork, the children are working on their knitting skills.  As this is a slow, repetitive process that requires one-on-one or small groups, the children are also sewing using blunt-tipped embroidery needles and plastic canvas grids focusing on the blanket stitch to start.  They are enjoying it all very much!

This coming week, we will continue in our math block learning more about the qualities of each number through stories, arts and movement.  Please send your children with jackets each day as the mornings will be much colder and we will be spending time outside each day.  Water bottles are still necessary as well.  We will still be going to the creek, however, as the temperatures drop please send your child with boots.  This way they can play in the water, but keep their feet dry.  We will be discouraging getting clothes wet as a general safety precaution moving forward.

Warmly,

Ki Melissa

Kindergarten: Oct 8 - 12

Hello Kindy families!

Although our days were cut short last week, it was still wonderful and full of good energy and activity. We didn't spend a lot of time in the creek as the water level raised over the weekend, but we did get to enjoy seeing how high the water could rise. 

We are very pleased with how the parent teacher conferences went, it's nice to touch base with parents and see the overall picture of the child and how he or she is doing! We hope to continue in this way. Thank you all for making time for this! 

As the weather is cooling and after observing at the Waldorf School of Atlanta last week, we've been inspired to make some changes to our schedule and daily rhythm. Meadow and Mountain will now part ways after our morning circle and spend more time as a class. We are very excited for these changes. We still plan to meet during forest time however! 

Warm Regards,

Kindy 

Middle Grades: Oct 8 -12

I enjoyed seeing all of you at the conferences last week!  The big thing this coming week is our field trip to see The Phantom Tollbooth on Wednesday.  Please check your email for details about the trip, and please talk with your children about the importance of staying with the chaperone and not talking during the performance.

We are finishing up the Flood Stories today and tomorrow, and have already started working in the garden to get ready for the Farming Block.

Have a great week.

Upper Grades: Oct 8 - 12

Welcome to a new week!  It was wonderful to meet with many of you last week during our parent-teacher conferences and share and learn more about your children.  

One of the stories I brought the class last week during our Ancient India block was that of the Brahma Creation Story.  Waldorf students hear a variety of creation stories as they travel through the grades.  

One of the concepts in this story was that time did not exist before Brahma opened his eyes and brought the universe into existence.  Time began to exist when fire, planets, sun, stars and moon were created.  It was enlightening to watch the students try to take in the concept of there being a "time" without time.  And it was fun to see a light come on in one child's eyes when we discussed that growth could not occur if there were no such thing as time.  He practically quoted the line in the story that described the creation of "all the things of heaven and earth," including "the plants which burst out of the earth."  

This week we are delving into some stories from the Indian epic from thousands of years ago, which is still being dramatized in every little village across India, the Ramayana.  

You might enjoy looking at an excerpt (in the attached jpegs) from a Teacher Training program manual from Africa, written by Simon Shirley, "History Teaching Grades 4-8."  It explains beautifully why it is important to bring ancient history to children around fifth grade, and why we bring it first in stories and feelings.  Later in the year we will study Ancient Greece, first in the form of myths, then in the first written history.  It's a turning point in the Waldorf curriculum.  

Tomorrow, Ki Steve will join me, and he and I will lead the class in a chant of Kali Durge, Namo Namah, using a drum called a mridang, a harmonium, and a large tamboura, which is the beautiful droning instrument you always hear in classical Indian music.  The students will get a chance to try the instruments out. 

This week the work on the stories and drawings about the Ramayana will be woven in with math practice, creative writing practice, dictation, and more vocabulary including more dictionary work.  Next week we will begin a three week Math main lesson block, on Decimals.  

Have a great week!

Warmly,

Ki Carol



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Joyful Beginnings: Oct 8 - 12

Lower Grades: Oct 8 - 12

It’s was wonderful meeting with each of you during parent-teacher conference week!  Thank you for sharing your insights about your children.

We started our math block this week. Using fairy tales, again from the Brothers Grimm, we spent time with numbers one through four. We have been using dowels to tap out patterns for the day’s number, adding a counting gem to our bags each day and working on number families as we go along.  

This week we will continue on our number journey, working with more numbers and number families (i.e. 2,3,5: 2+3=5, 3+2=5, 5-2=3, 5-3=2) as well as working on numeral formation and mathematic word problems. Some students are also using numeral dice to extend their math equation work. 

Please remember to return the behavior/conduct forms signed by you and your child.  A link to the form was posted on last week’s Monday Messenger if you need another copy or you can ask for a copy at the front desk.   Also, since autumn has decided to (finally) arrive, please send your child in layers of clothing and please label everything.  The outside weather is even more enjoyable when you are dressed appropriately for cool mornings and warm afternoons! 

Warmly, 

Ki Melissa 

HomeSchool: October 8 - 12

Hello and happy fall! We had another week of learning, growing, fun, and adventure! We learned how frogs are viewed by different cultures around the world. We played a frog card match game, talked about the differences between frogs and toads, put together a rainforest tree frogs floor puzzle, and jumped our best broad jumps in the Frog Leap math activity. We lined up the stages of a frog's life cycle. We read a frog alphabet book and chose the amphibian that each of us is going to research. 

Logan gave her Great States! presentation on Hawaii as a puppet show complete with big surf, active volcanoes, nenes, and hula dancers! We completed the detail painting on our talking sticks, sprayed them with a matte acrylic sealer to make them weather-proof, and used sinew to add feathers, seeds, and beads. After the heavy rains and rising creeks this week, we hiked to 4 points along Little Noonday to check the water levels. We saw a paper wasp nest from a distance and a yellow jacket nest up close! Our students showed great bravery on Thursday and received Courage Awards from Ki Jasmine. 

Thank you to Ki Patrick for providing the materials for our talking sticks. Thank you to Ki Kelly and Ki Julia for helping with the talking sticks project. Thanks to everyone for taking the time to come in for our parent/teacher conferences. Please let me know anytime if you have more questions or suggestions.

For the take-home project this season, each student will bring home 3 pieces of masterbook paper. They should use one sheet to draw and color their amphibian. They should use the second to paint their amphibian. And they use the third sheet to answer these questions:

What is the common name and nickname (if any) of your amphibian?

How big is your amphibian?

How would you describe it?

What is one cool adaptation that it has?

Where does it live?

What does it eat?

What are the stages of its life cycle?

What does it do in winter?

Is it common or rare?

How is is affected by humans?

Here are the amphibians that we chose:

Ari: olm

Bear: goliath frog

Brolin: crested newt

Christopher: caecilian

Elsu: not sure yet

Helene: southern leopard frog

Logan: African tree frog

Lucan: zig-zag salamander

Ollie: red-eyed tree frog

Ki Sonya: hellbender

The Amphibians take-home project is due Tuesday, November 6th and we will do our presentations to the class that morning. In your practice, be sure to emphasize these public speaking skills: standing, facing your audience, making eye contact, projecting your voice, holding your paper so that everyone in the audience can see it, and, my favorite, exuding enthusiasm for your subject.

Here are the new songs we are singing together:

This is one I created last year to sing during transitions. I hope we can sing it as a round someday soon!

Sing a high, high, high note,

Sing a low, low, low note,

Sing a middle, middle, middle note,

All through the day.

Sing a hiiiiiiiiiiiigh note,

Sing a looooooow note, 

Sing a midddddddle note,

All through the day.

Sing a high, high, high, high, high, high note,

Sing a low, low, low, low, low, low note,

Sing a middle, middle, middle, middle, middle, middle note,

All through the day.

These are the songs we'll sing along the Lantern Walk on Thursday, November 8th.

Glimmer, lantern, glimmer.

Little stars a-shimmer.

Over rock and stock and stone,

Wander tripping little gnome.

Pee-whit, pee-whit, rick-a-tick-a-tick,

Roo coo, Roo coo.

Glimmer, lantern, glimmer.

Little stars a-shimmer.

Over meadow, moor, and dale,

Flitter flutter, elven vale,

Pee-whit, pee-whit, rick-a-tick-a-tick,

Roo coo, Roo coo.

and

I go outside with my lantern,

My lantern goes with me.

Above, the stars are shining bright,

Down here on earth shine we.

So shine your light through the dark, chill night,

L'bimba, l'bamba, l'boom!

'Neath heaven's dome til we go home,

L'binba, l'bamba, lboom!

We are going to make our own glass lanterns for the Lantern Walk. I have all the supplies we need except the jars. Please bring a wide-mouth glass jar for your child's lantern to the Blue Sky Room by Thursday, October 25th. Medium-sized jars are best, and the colorful tissue paper sticks best to those jars that are not embossed with Ball or other writing on the glass.

Quote from a child on the Cumberland Island trip (during the smelling activity on the beach):

The first scent was cinnamon, the second one was peppermint, and I'm pretty sure the third one was vanilla abstract!"

Quote from Sarah Williams: "I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night."

See you along the way,

Ki Sonya

Kindergarten: October 1 - 5

Hello Mountain and Meadow families!

Last week was exciting as we introduced our new autumn song “The Farmer”. We also enjoyed making autumn decorations for our classrooms, we hole punched and strung squirrels, pumpkin, acorn, and fox cut outs and colored them as well. We also spent extra time in the creek since it was so warm outside and we were having fun. We made our bread, chopped veggies for our soup, and played a new game in Spanish called “pato, pato, ganzo”, or “duck, duck, goose.” We also loved seeing everyone’s performance at the Friday assembly. 

Thank you all who came to help during the Saturday workday. 

For parents who drop off fruits or vegetables, we would appreciate it if you could drop it off upstairs in the kitchen. Thank you :-) 

Mountain & Meadow 

Joyful Beginnings: October 1 - 5

Here are some pictures from our week!

Lower Grades: October 1 - 5

The Lower Grades enjoyed a week of nature stories and form drawing each morning this past week.  The children physically moved the various running forms, practice them on scrap paper and then finally drew the forms for their master books.  We also enjoyed playing sight word bingo as well as working with pattern blocks for math.  We began our latest circle time with new verses, songs and games.  The children worked each day this week on the verse they shared during the assembly.  They learned it so fast and they did a fantastic job sharing it!

This week we will start our first math block.  Through story, art and games the children will spend time with the numbers 1-12 and then move on to working with place value (ones, tens and hundreds) though hands on activities.  Throughout each week, we will continue to have modeling with clay, language arts periods, Nature Exploration, Games class, Handwork, Friendship Circle, Yoga, Indoor Games, and wet-on-wet painting.  We do like to stay busy! 

Please remember all week we have early dismissal at 12:30 due to Parent-Teacher conferences.   I am looking forward to sharing about some of the work and fun we have each day in class!

Warmly,

Ki Melissa

Middle Grades: October 1 - 5

We have planted our first garden bed, and we are almost finished with a 3-pile compost system down at the garden!!!  We planted kale, spinach, and collards seedlings, and we're counting on their being harvestable by late November so that we can harvest and cook them for our Thanksgiving Feast.  As the weather cools, we plan to plant lettuce from seed and we might try to squeeze in some snow peas.  

As the leaves begin to fall, if you gather leaves for pickup in the large paper bags, and you have yards that are insecticide and commercial fertilizer free, we would love for you to bring those bags to the school for mulch and compost instead of sending them off with the garbage collectors.

We were supposed to start our first Farming block this coming week, but the temperatures are forecasted to still be in the high eighties most days, and I am not comfortable in having the children working outside for two hours in that kind of heat.  The following week the forecast is for somewhat cooler temperatures, so I am going to present the Flood Stories Block this week and save the farming block for the week beginning October 15.  For the farming block, I would like for children to wear boots to school, so that we can go immediately from the playground to the Farm or into the woods.  If you come early and usually leave boots and backpacks upstairs, please make sure they have their boots on by playground time and have their snacks and a water bottle at the picnic table, since we will not go back into the building until about 11:00.
Most of the class has mastered the multiplication tables for 2, 3, 4 and 5, as our math block comes to an end.  We will continue to work on math in the practice periods, and our goal is that all children will be able to recite the tables up to 15 by the end of the year.  Also, our upcoming measurement blocks will be filled with math, including an introduction to fractions.  Any opportunities you have at home to encourage "everyday" math calculations would be fabulous.  After the measurements blocks we will have a Money block, so there will be a lot of counting for the rest of the semester!!
Every student has made great progress this year with reading.  When you read at home, please read aloud WITH your child, and then transition to letting them read TO you.  This is a great way to build confidence. Reading for comprehension will walk side by side writing skills, which we will do more of as the year progresses.  Do not be surprised if your children start writing their own "booklets."  When they bring them home, be sure to read them.  There are some very creative young minds in our class.
If you missed the First Friday Assembly Friday, you missed being proud.  Our class hosted the assembly, and everyone was great!!  They introduced the other classes, they sang, recited, and several of them told jokes.  And they had fun preparing for the event.
Beginning next week I will be sending a Friday email out to the parents of the Middle Grades class.  It will basically be the same information as the Monday Messenger, but will be more detailed.  I will continue to send last minute reminders and information via Bloomz.  If you have not yet joined, please do this.  It is a great way to get pertinent info to you from the grade parent and from me.
If you have not already signed up for a parent conference next week, please do that right now.  After care is being provided, but you will need to sign up for that in advance to get the better rate.
If you are still reading, thank you.  I believe that you, your children, and I are in this process together, and the more we can support one another the better.  If you have concerns, questions, or just want to chat, feel free to call or text me, 770-654-7878 (before 10, please).  This is a very important year for our children, and I want it to be a positive one.
Have a great week!!  I'm looking forward to seeing you this coming week at the conferences.
Upcoming events in October:  
October 8-12 Half days for students.  Parent Teacher Conferences in the afternoon.
October 17 Trip to see The Phantom Tollbooth.  We need at least one more chaperone to drive, and two would be even better.
October 19 No school for students.  Teachers will be attending an Outdoor Education Symposium.
October 27 Kingdom of Halloween

Upper Grades: October 1 - 5

Dear parents,


Today we begin our exploration into Ancient Cultures. From the myths of ancient India, Mesopotamia, Persia, and Egypt, to the written history of the ancient Greeks, we will move from the stories of ancient peoples to the formal study of history.  


For the next two weeks, we will experience aspects of the culture of Ancient India, especially getting a feel for how human perception and worldview has transformed over the millennia.


I hope we start getting some cooler weather!

Ki Carol