Dear Families,
We had a week full of special events. On Thursday we had a presentation from author Sara Albee. She shared how she became an author and what inspired her to write. The students really liked learning about her family, how she loved to write and draw at a young age, and how she used to work for Sesame Street.
We also got to take our first field trip to Copicut Farms in Dartmouth, MA. The farm is owned and runned by The Frary family. Elizabeth (Emmett’s mom) greeted us with picnic blankets ready for us to have lunch. After lunch we had a tour of the farm. We got to see chicks, pigs, turkeys, and egg laying chickens. The students got to feed apples to the pigs, spread bedding in the chicken coop, learn to put feed and water in their feeders, and use the egg washing machine. I hope everyone enjoyed the fresh eggs the Frary's supplied to each student. Our focus for this field trip was not only touring the farm and seeing the animals it was also to see how Emmett and his family work together. We recognized that they have many jobs (similar to chores) on the farm. Emmett is responsible to keep the chicken’s water clean, give fresh water, and help keep the animals safe. Emmett and his mom work as a team, they work together for the animals and to supply good food for the community.
Over the next few weeks we will be talking more about families and how they work together. I strongly feel that sharing family memories, traditions, values, and everyday happenings allow all the students to understand each other better and have an open mind to differences. I will be asking for family volunteers to share a few stories with the class and be open to answering a few personal questions. I’ll send out more details soon.
Check out some curriculum highlights below.
Math
- made a math web displaying what we know about subtraction
- practiced subtraction problems
- book clubs (sight word review, created character webs, discussed parts of a story)
- lexia and raz kids
- Author’s Choice (check out our newspaper article sent home on Friday)
Spelling
- introduced digraphs (two letters that make one sound)
- /th/ as in thumb and this
- /ch/ as in chin
- /sh/ as in shell
- We read a book titled My Brother Charlie by Denene Millner, Holly Robinson Peete, and Ryan Elizabeth Peete. This book is about the love a sister has for her Autistic brother. After reading we had a wonderful discussion about disabilities and how they affect us socially, physically, and emotionally. The students were so honest and respectful to each other’s feelings and connections. This was another opportunity for us as a team to listen to one another and reflect on the stories told. It was a powerful and touching discussion!