Elizabeth's Classroom

Hi All,

Spring is acting as it should with cool air and slow change to green and growth. As we have had a few weeks of regular, mostly uninterrupted scheduling at school, it’s been a nice time of growth for students as well. Unbelievably, it’s already one week from April break and after that it seems like a blink and we are at the end of the year.  We are ramping things up this week with a few details to pay attention to.

Throughout the week your children will be introduced to the joys and challenges of ballroom dancing through an Artist in Residence program.  Dance classes will be held during the afternoons Monday-Friday.  We will likely be doing this in homeroom groups.  Be sure to ask your child about this unique experience.  As a result of the disrupted academic time in the afternoon we will be changing up the AM schedule as well in order to balance all of the needs of our students.

On Friday 4/13 students were given an envelope with Mother’s Day Follies raffle tickets to sell and an explanatory letter to parents.  If you haven’t already please talk this over with your child.  All students are required to sell 15 tickets.  The money raised through sale of these tickets supports the student trips to Cape Cod, Northern Lights Rock and Ice, as well as other exciting opportunities we’ve selected for Upper Unit students through the years.  We have until the start of the Follies on May 12th to sell all of the tickets.  Please put this date on your calendars, the Follies is always a great show!

This coming Friday Andreas will be honored at the Stare House for his 24 years of service to the Warren School community. The whole school will be riding the buses to Montpelier to witness this historic event.  We will be back in time for our afternoon dance residency.

Last weekend Heidi, Anne, and I spent Saturday morning and afternoon as part of a large committee interviewing candidates for the new 5/6 position.  We met a number of spectacular people who had excellent reputations as teachers.   We are in the final stretch of reaching an agreement, and we are looking forward to being able to announce the name of our newest teammate soon.

That’s all for now.  If you are planning on missing any school days to extend your vacation please let us know asap as this helps us plan.

As always, thank you for working with us to support your child’s education.

Elizabeth

Thank you all so much for your participation in this trimester’s student led parent conferences.  We dedicated many hours of class time for your children to gather materials from mid-November to the end of February, reflect on their growth, and present to you in an organized and coherent manner how they are progressing as students and classmates over a 3 1/2 month span.  It was evident in their presentations and your reactions that good things are happening for them that they are quite proud of.

Many students had difficulty paring down what they wanted to included in their portfolios as they had so many good pieces they wished to share.  I reminded them that the conference is merely an introduction and synthesis of conversations that should happen regularly with their parents.  If they are not coming home regularly sharing their accomplishments and challenges then it is important to ask probing questions.  Asking “how was your day?” rarely gets you much meaningful information and it is easy to tune out the one word  answer, especially if it’s “good”.  If you really want to know how things are going be sure to ask questions such as “what new thing did you learn about today?”, What excited you today?”, “What challenged you today and how did you handle it?”, “What are you working on in…science, social studies, French, music. etc.?”, “what did you do at recess and with whom?”.  There is a fine line between prying into their lives and showing genuine interest in who your child is becoming.  They will always need to know that you care about their interests, accomplishments and challenges beyond making sure homework is complete, they get to school or practice on time, and what the score is in a game or on a test.  There is so much more that leads to these final outcomes.

On Monday 3/19 we will return to the Flynn theater for a presentation of Jason and the Argonauts. Please remember all students need a cold lunch.  We will leave right after 8 am so students must have their lunches in hand when they arrive at school by 7:55.  Students who arrive without lunches put an undue burden on Claire as she is trying to clean up from breakfast and prepare lunch for the school at 8, and we can’t wait for lunches to be delivered as we need to be in our seats by 9-9:15 .  Please do not allow your child to bring candy, soda, glass bottles or gum. Last week many students showed up with gum in mouth which is against school rules.

As always, thank you for all the support you give to our programs.  It is a great pleasure to be able to share in the development of your wonderful children.

Hi All,

Here we are at the start of the third, and unbelievably last trimester.  It was great to see everyone (or almost everyone) return happy, healthy and rested.  Those who travelled had interesting stories to share.  Those of us who stuck around were well rewarded with the wonderful winter storms we’d patiently awaited all winter.

I hope you all remembered to turn your clocks ahead last night or this morning so we will all be on time for school tomorrow, no later than 7:55.  We will be leaving right after 8 AM for a terrific show at the Flynn theater.  The show starts at 9:30 so it is imperative we hit the road asap to be in our seats as expected by the Flynn by around 9-9:15.  Tomorrow we see the Golden Dragon Acrobats which promises to amaze even the most athletic and coordinated among us.  Next week we will see Jason and The Argonauts as an extension of the Greek unit studied last year and scheduled for next.  Please remember to send in $17 to pay for both shows if you haven’t done so yet. As always, if this presents a financial hardship please send in a note with your child and we will arrange for a scholarship, no one should miss these great opportunities!  Students will need a cold lunch on both Mondays as we will return to school after 1PM.  Reminder: no candy, gum, soda or glass for the safety and welfare of all.

As we have wrapped up the second trimester it is time for report cards and student led parent conferences. Your children are diligently gathering work samples to support their efforts to show you the growth they have experienced since the last conference.  Sign ups for time slots went home before break and notices of your assigned time went home in the weekly bulletin this week.  If you have not seen it please ask your child about the bulletin and/or give Laurie a call.  Conferences will be held Thursday afternoon and evening, as well as all morning on Friday.  Please make every effort to come to your scheduled conference on time as the schedule will be booked tight and your children are working hard to prepare for their presentations.

Conferences are 20 minutes long with your child leading the presentation.  If you would like your child to use 15 minutes so that you and I can have the balance to discuss issues without your child present, or if you would like a separate conference in addition to your child’s presentation please let me know.  There is tremendous value in having students lead the conferences, however I’d like to make sure that your needs are met if they reach beyond the student led meeting.  Please look for your child to bring home a report card after school on Wednesday.

Enjoy the longer sunny days and evenings.  I look forward to seeing all of you by the end of the week!

Elizabeth

Hi all,

The GeoBee was great. We are congratulating Rex as our Geography champion this year with Rose and Tucker coming in as runner ups.  Kids were focused and thoughtful as they attempted to answer the random questions shot at them when it was their turn.  Some are lucky and get the Vermont question or the question that deals with somewhere they’ve vacationed, otherwise general knowledge and the ability to use context clues in the question helped students attempt answers to the many questions about US and world geography.

This week both 5th and 6 grade math classes started new units.  5th graders are working on fractions including equivalent fractions as preparation for adding fractions with different denominators.  Please be sure to read over the Family Letter that went home with students early in the week.  6th graders are also working with fractions. We will begin a brief review and solidification of addition and subtraction beginning with estimation to insure the solid conceptual understanding that is not always evident when students have memorized procedures for standard algorithms.  The bulk of the unit will involve learning how and when to multiply or divide fractions.  The algorithms are not particularly challenging to learn but the understanding of the effect on numbers and when to use each operation is where the important and more challenging learning is. Again, estimation is an important component of mastering the concepts involved as this will help students reflect on the reasonableness of their answers in problem solving.

In science we are also at the end of our in depth study of our dynamic Earth.  The next unit will be the Human Body where our focus will be on the major systems including a quick study of bones and muscles, and more in depth study of the respiratory and circulatory systems.

In Literacy and Social Studies students continue working on reading Sign of the Beaver and completing a variety of assigned tasks including chapter summaries, vocabulary work, answering comprehension questions and staying prepared for quizzes. Please be aware that many of these tasks are handed out in a packet that contains directions and often due dates.  Kids’ assignment books should also have the due dates written. When asking your child about nightly homework completion be sure to ask about these assignments that have a longer completion window due to the number of tasks to do.  Leaving this work for the night before it’s due will be impossible and cause a lot of anguish for your child.

I hope everyone enjoyed our first “snow” day yesterday.  I found it a wonderful opportunity to catch up on some correcting and house work, as well as get some always needed rest. Perhaps everyone will show up energetic and ready to learn on Monday without the usual fatigue I tend to see in many after a busy weekend:)

Cheers!

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone had a restful and healthy holiday break.  It was so nice to have time to enjoy family, never set the alarm clack, and fall asleep on the couch whenever I felt my eyes droop.

Now, we are 2 weeks back into our regular routine.  The ski program is in full swing as are all of the regular classes and expectations for work quality and completion including homework.  In the Upper Unit we see the ski program as a wonderful opportunity and privilege of our students.  Because of the cut in educational time during the ski season it is really important for students to stay caught up in their work.  If a student falls behind in classwork or homework completion we will ask the student to remain in school on Friday afternoon instead of going skiing in order to have time and support to get back on track.  We will notify a student on Thursday if it is likely s/he will need to stay at school on Friday. The missing work would be due by 8AM Friday in order for the student to be allowed to ski.

Some reminders about the ski program:  I encourage kids at this age to take responsibility  for packing their own ski gear so that they know what they brought and where everything is and what needs to go home at the end of the day.  If a student is staying at the mountain beyond 2:30 a note from you with your permission is required. You may write one note to cover the entire season.  It is often colder and windier on the mountain than at school so please remember to encourage packing extra layers and always packing dry ski socks to put on when boots go on.

Geo Bee is this week.  All students have been practicing answering questions in the various rounds of last year’s annual National Geographic Geo Bee.  This week they will participate in the actual Bee.  There will be one session for all students and a second round will be held for up to 10 finalist to determine the geography champion of the Upper Unit.  The winner of the Bee will take a written test to determine eligibility for participation at the state competition held later this year. Unfortunately it is not a spectator event so remember to ask you child about it.

That’s about it for the news.  Enjoy the return of winter.

Hi All,

Wow, what a whirl wind of activity over the last couple of weeks.  I apologize for the delay in getting out the news.

Currently we are quickly preparing for the holiday break.  The concert on Wednesday night was wonderful.  Your children sang, played and buddied with great skill and pride.  With our preschool buddies we made pinecone bird feeders which we hung on the tress around the school yard together.  Even our feathered friends deserve some special thought.  Buddy Time with our preschool friends is a highlight for both classes.  We had collected the cones together at another meeting.

Crafts:  As a special treat Heidi, Anne and I have amended the Friday afternoon schedule to offer some craft options. After some advertising students were able to sign up for the craft of their choice.  I am teaching kids to make paper mache containers, Heidi is teaching the art of Origami star making, and Anne is having kids learn to be creative with food items.

Cool School Tools:  In the spirit of fun and useful giving we are having a gift exchange in the Upper Unit on Thursday.  A notice went home last week with the UUWR to give kids time to prepare.  If you haven’t seen this notice please ask your child.  The gifts were due Friday but many have not turned them in assuring me that they will come in on Monday.  In order for all students to feel that this equally fun for all we are asking for the cool school tools cost about $5. Please help your child select something(s) new that they might want to receive assuring that the gift will be appreciated by whoever gets it, girl or boy. The gift should be wrapped with the name on the inside of the package.  As always, if this presents a financial hardship just let us know and we will help your child celebrate with his/her classmates.

Conferences: While conferences seem like ages ago I actually just wrapped them up.  It was such a pleasure to attend the meeting between you and your child as s/he told you about him/herself as a student.  It was clear that your children take pride in their budding independence and are learning to be honest with themselves about their strengths and areas where they could strive for more growth as well as develop strategies for this growth.  Thank you all for your support.

For all of us this is a season of trying to balance the importance of work with the hopes, dreams and expectations of family and friends. We are all looking forward to a productive week followed by a well earned holiday break. Adequate rest, good nutrition and a sense of humor will help us all complete this week cheerfully and peacefully.

Hi All,

Incredibly we have already wrapped up one trimester.  Students have worked hard, and while we have reported weekly with the UUWR on whether or not your child’s work is up to date, sent home tests to sign, handed back graded assignments,  it’s time to put all of the pieces together to get the full picture of how your child performs as a student. As you’ve seen, in the Upper Unit there is a step up in responsibility. As children mature and request more independence it is important to give them the opportunity to take on more responsibility and with this come increased accountability.  For this reason we have students report to parents on their performance as students. This can feel intimidating at first but usually we find that it is actually an empowering experience that builds self confidence, self respect, sincere motivation and communication skills as kids learn how to be honest and open about their skills as well as their short comings.  They learn that with honesty and openness we continue to love, respect and support them through their growth which further encourages self advocacy as they struggle through the challenges of becoming truly independent learners and citizens.  This week we will cut back on all academic subjects to give kids the opportunity to collect samples of work and reflect on this first trimester to prepare for student led parent conferences. Please make every effort to attend the prescheduled time assigned for your conference.  Report cards will come home before the conference and students are encouraged to let parents know how they are doing to celebrate accomplishments and deal with challenges long before report cards come out to avoid surprises.

I look forward to seeing all of you next week.

Elizabeth

Hi All,

Due to Heidi’s role on the Common Core Leadership team and as a literacy leader she will be out of school at workshops on both Thursday and Friday this week.  For this reason we will sign and send home UUWR notebooks for your review and signing on Monday next week.

I also want to remind you that the deadline for kids to bring in their money for wreath sales is this Friday.  All students are asked to sell 10 wreaths to do their part in fundraising for the great events all students enjoy. Please continue to encourage and support them in this endeavor.  Recent suggestions included selling in front of Mac’s, Paradise Deli, Mehuron’s, Shaw’s and the Warren Store with store permission and to go to local businesses.  The return of chilly weather will remind people that the holidays are coming:)

Best wishes,

Elizabeth

Hi All,

On Friday I had the opportunity of joining the 5th graders and our new 6th graders on the annual trip to Boston for an overnight camp in at the Museum of Science.  The greatest part of this trip is watching the students ask “what’s this?” “What does this do?” and then explore an answer by delving into a display.  While we traveled freely throughout the museum in small groups we also had the opportunity to re-converge for a hands on experience to learn about birds and their individual calls, dissect owl pellets to find and reconstruct skeletons of their prey to determine what was eaten, and then create new bird species with various art materials.  Despite the late hour the kids were engaged, eager and creative. After an exciting show in the Electricity room we hunkered down for a brief 6 hour rest on the floor of the lighthouse room.  We rose early for more exploration, a show in the Hayden Planetarium, followed by an IMAX movie on migrations.  Overall it was another great adventure of curiosity and discovery.

The upcoming week will feature 5 days of regular scheduling! Yippee:)

Next week students will begin the process of preparing their student led parent conferences.  I’ll send details on this in next week’s posting.  Please remember that conferences will take place in the afternoon and evening on Tuesday, Nov. 22 and Wednesday morning Nov. 23rd.

Enjoy the reappearance of sun while it lasts.

Peace,

Elizabeth

Well, I can’t believe that October ends and November begins this week.  I feel like we just started school and yet here we are.  Soccer season has ended, snow is beginning to fall.  We will be wrapping up the trimester in 2 weeks and will begin preparations for report cards and conferences.  Remember that the original schedule was changed back to what we’ve seen in the past with conferences right before Thanksgiving.

Your child was given an envelopes and order forms as well as directions for wreath selling on Thursday.  It was great to see a number of students come in on Friday having already sold a few wreaths.  We are asking each child to sell at least 10 wreathes over the next two weeks.

5th graders and new 6th graders will be heading to Boston this Friday for the annual overnight visit to the Boston Science Museum.  Kids were given forms with packing recommendations and some details about what the museum has to offer.  I always look forward to this trip as it is great to experience the enthusiastic curiosity the kids exhibit throughout their explorations.

Halloween is Monday. We will have our usual costume parade.  All are invited to be in costume but there is no requirement.  Complicated costumes and make up must be taken care of at home or left for the evening as we won’t have time at school to take care of extensive costume needs.

In closing, hats off to all the kids who worked hard on the UU play Porrigegate.  I enjoyed what I saw from backstage Thursday afternoon and I heard from Andreas the the evening show was very well done.  We have a lot of diverse talent among our students.  Thank you for your ongoing support of all of the activities we put forth for them.

Happy Halloween!

Elizabeth