September 10, 2021

 Good Morning,

  I hope this finds all of you well.  Another week is in the books and if I were a ship captain I might say "smooth sailing as far as the eye can see."  What a great start to the year.  This week the students each identified an academic/classroom goal that they each want to achieve as we start this school year.  The students then illustrated their goal, colored them in and they are will be displayed in the classroom.  These will also be used in helping create our classroom rules next week.  I am working on a way to share these out digitally.  I have some ideas but want to see what our open house looks like.  

The students have continued working on modeling expected behaviors in both social and academic situations.  The students have been practicing their reading group rotations and we have been building stamina by adding the amount of time each day.  Before we start we talk about our roles during Lexia and Read to Self.  After we practice, we gather to discuss all the good things that happened during that time.  Again this is all part of the Responsive Classroom approach and helps build a cooperative classroom with shared ownership and understandings.  

This week the students also finished their all about me books.  We will share these over the next two weeks and then they will come home for you to see.  I will ask that they are sent back because they will be kept in our classroom library.  This way kids can check out a book about another student and bring it home to share with you.

In math the 1st graders have been working on fact fluency, number bonds (part, part, total) of an addition equation and numeral writing.  I am really hoping to fix any reversals by November.  I also had a discussion with the students about addition, approaches used, and how to be efficient.  Learning to add follows 4 progressions.  The beauty of 1st grade is you will have a class with students each at one of the four.  If you would like to learn more about the general idea, this article may be of interest.  You will hear your child discussing strategies such as counting all, counting on, known facts, using a known fact to solve another.  

Ms. Figdor sent this note along regarding 2nd grade math.  Hello, my name is Alison Figdor and I will be teaching your second graders math this year.  I previously taught in the Harwood Unified School District as a 3rd/4th grade teacher at the Brookside School. I’m excited to teach your children math, and I’m looking forward to an enjoyable and productive school year. The past few weeks in second grade math have been busy. We have been learning routines and talking about what we need from each other to be a community of learners. At the same time, we have been exploring how to understand and analyze data. Our first step was to create beetle glyphs, pictures that represented who we are. For example, the color of the glyph represented our favorite season. Then we used these glyphs to explore how to sort and organize data. As part of the data analysis we created Venn diagrams, pictographs, and bar graphs and wrote observations about the data on these graphs. Our next focus will be working on becoming more fluent on our addition facts to 20. Being fluent with the basic facts will be extremely important as we move towards working with larger numbers.

The class has also been working on letter formation and we practice 2 letters each day until we get through them all.  Again, the idea here is to teach correct formation and eliminate reversals as quick as we can.  This will take longer than fixing the numeral reversals.  

NOTES:

*Please remember that book orders are due 09/27/21 Shop Our Class Page: https://orders.scholastic.com/K3277 Shop Digital Flyers for Our Grade with Your Child: https://clubs.scholastic.com/grade2 Please share the Class Page link to extended family and friends. All orders also earn FREE Books for our class.

*Homework bags Overall the class has been doing a great job with this.  Please help your child come up with some kind of routine where he/she backs the book in the bag and puts it in his/her backpack before going to bed.

That is all for now.  I hope you all have a great weekend.  The Harwood Varsity Soccer team has a game at 11:00 this Saturday (at Harwood).  My daughter is one of the starting center backs.  If you want to see a bunch of hardworking athletes, come check out the game Saturday.  

Peace,

Mr. Young

YOUR CHILD'S NEW TWITTER POST.  This is what they liked best last week.

September 3, 2021

 Good Evening

  I hope you all had a great week.  We have had a fantastic start to school and the class is already settling into a few routines.  I hope this post informs you of the week gone by, gives you a heads up on some nuts  bolts of the classroom, and gives you talking points to engage your child in conversation about their classroom.  

 This week we introduced some of our reading routines.  During reading instruction, I will have 4 stations.  One will be meeting with me for direct instruction, a station where kids read books to themselves, one will be vocabulary and phonetic instruction, and one will be reading fluency/other language arts activities. This week the students were introduced to the read to self routine and we practiced it and talked about what makes it both successful and educational.  Next week we will introduce the same routine in Lexia.  We also started math this week.  We worked on partner games,setting up Zearn math, some number writing, and played some counting games.  The students have also been working on their all about me books.  It has been a great way to start some initial writing.  These books will be shared at open house as well as be available for kids to take home.  The thought being that kids took take other kids' books home and share about their classmates.  

  I wanted to give you an full picture of the first 45 minutes of the day.  The doors open at 7:30 and if your child rides a bus, he/she gets to school by 7:40.  If your child is dropped off, please have them to school by 7:40 too.  When the students arrive, they return their homework bag and book, sign up for snack & lunch, and then eat snack.  When they are finished they have until 7:55 to interact with their friends and choose from a variety of free choice activities.  I want to give them a chance to socialize before we get into the academics each day.  I think it is important to give them this social opportunity.  At 7:55 we start our Morning Meeting.  This is an important part of our day and offers strong social and academic opportunities.  If you would like to learn more about Morning Meeting, click here.  With all of this being said, it is important that your child is on school by 7:40 to access this first 45 minutes of the day.  Thank you in advance for your support with this.  

NOTES:

*Today your child brought home (in their homework bags) a sheet of paper that has all of their log in information for a variety of the tech tools we use throughout the day.  There is no expectation that kids work on these things at home but rather have it as an option of they are looking for something to do.  

*Yesterday your child brought home a few flyers from Scholastic.  I will do book orders in September, November, and May.  This book club is a great way to get good literature at a fairly cheap price.  Here is the information: Dear Family, You can choose to have your books shipped to your home or delivered to me with our class order. With a $25 order, you can pick a FREE $5 Book (use code: READS). Class Order Due Date: 09/27/21 Shop Our Class Page: https://orders.scholastic.com/K3277  Shop Digital Flyers for Our Grade with Your Child: https://clubs.scholastic.com/grade2  Please share the Class Page link to extended family and friends. All orders also earn FREE Books for our class.

*Wednesday will be school picture day.  We are scheduled to go at 8:00 and the class picture will be taken then.  Please do your best to be at school that day.

*This week we have read a variety of read a loud books all focusing on the concept of "me."  The books celebrated our individual qualities and how special each person is and can be.  Some of the books we have read were I Like Myself by Karen Beaumont and Only One You by Linda Kranz, 

That is all for now.  I hope you all have a great long weekend and find some time to relax and enjoy your family.  

Peace,

Tommy

August 27, 2021

 

Good Evening,

  We had a great 1st two days of school.  I am excited for the year and am energized by the potential of the group.  As I mentioned in an earlier email and blog post, I use the Responsive Classroom approach.  This approach is wonderful because it allows for a cooperative room to be created, while being specific on how to use tools, how we function, and how we work as a class.  The primary goal of Guided Discovery is to generate interest and excitement about classroom resources and help children explore their possible uses. Guided Discovery also provides opportunities to introduce vocabulary, assess children's prior knowledge, and teach responsible use and care of materials.  One of the ways we introduced crayons and rulers, was to have each child create a"stained glassed" inspired name card.  I want to fill the room with their names, (early on) and with words that they will recognize.

You may have heard your child talking about Mr. Cadwell.  Parker Cadwell is a student teacher in our room this year.  He will be in our classroom on Tuesdays during the fall semester and full time during the spring semester.  His time will wrap up with us with the start of April break.

Here is an introductory blurb from Parker."Hi everyone! I'm Parker Cadwell, and I'll be working with Tommy as a student teacher this year. I am so excited to be learning from Tommy and teaching at Waitsfield School. I was quickly reminded of what a special place it is on our first day of school on Thursday. I had such fun meeting all of your children. A little about me: I grew up in the Valley, and actually attended both Fayston and Waitsfield School, before going on to Harwood. I graduated from Middlebury College in 2018 and am in the St. Michael's College Master of Arts in Teaching program, fulfilling my lifelong passion for education and drive to be a teacher. I will be in Tommy's room observing for one day a week in the fall, and then I will be working with Tommy full time from the New Year until April."  Below is a picture of Parker and his family.

We also started handwriting instruction today.  Everyone will go through the alphabet again and I will determine what each student needs from their work.  If your child needs continued practice, I will keep working with them as we progress through the fall/winter.  If your child demonstrates that they have good letter formation, they will be able to move onto keyboarding skills.  Once your child demonstrates that they are proficient, they won;t have to go back to handwriting instruction unless their work doesn't represent their ability (meaning, if it is messy and not their best).  

Today we read the story, All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold. "This is a warm, welcoming picture book that celebrates diversity and gives encouragement and support to all kids. Follow a group of children through a day in their school, where everyone is welcomed with open arms.  A school where students grow and learn from each other's traditions and the whole community gathers to celebrate the Lunar New Year. All Are Welcome lets young children know that no matter what, they have a place, they have a space, they are welcome in their school."  If you would like to listen to the story with your child, click on this video.

Notes:

*We will be starting math on Monday next week.  The 1st graders will be with me and the 2nd graders will be with Ms. Figdor.  During conferences, I mentioned that the 2nd graders would be with Mr. Hubabrd.  Due to the size of the class, they are using two teachers to teach the group.  Ms. Figdor is our new math interventionist.  She was also my daughter's 3rd and 4th grade teacher.  Let me say, "she is simply amazing."  We are lucky to have her and I promise you  will be impressed with her work and commitment to your child's learning.  

That is all for now. I hope you all have a great weekend.  If you need anything, please reach out.

Peace,

Tommy

 Good Evening,

  We had a great first day of school.  It certainly was one of the hotter 1st days that I can remember.  The students were great and we made sure to give plenty of water breaks and we took a mask break outside near the garden.  It was a bit cooler and shaded.  Thank you for making sure your child had a water bottle.  

  This morning, we were treated to the talented voice of Wanda Sullivan.  Wanda is a former Waitsfield graduate and current Harwood student. She traveled around the outside of the building stopping by each classroom to keep the 1st day tradition of live music by a former Waitsfield student.

  This afternoon we read the book, The School's First Day of School by, Adam Rex.  "It's the first day of school at Frederick Douglass Elementary and everyone's just a little bit nervous, especially the school itself. The school has a rough start, but as the day goes on, he soon recovers when he sees that he's not the only one going through first-day jitters."  If you wish to listen to the story with your child please watch he video below.

  To wrap up the day, I introduced the students to Twitter and we talked about what it is used for.  We talked about handle names and each child came up with their own.  The only requirement is it had to have their first name included.  Some got creative and some stuck with just their 1st name.  Don't worry though the kids will not be creating actual accounts but rather writing or drawing posts to put on the bulletin board outside our classroom.  Check out some of the pictures below.

Notes:

Some of the kids brought home their Ziploc bags today.  There was a green folder inside it.  These forms are from Susan Laskaris (our new admin assitant) and can be returned in the bag and I will get them to her.  Please send the bag back tomorrow.  If your child didn't have a bag, it is because another sibling received it for your family.  

Please send in a reusable grocery bag if you have not done so.  

That is all for now, I hope you have a great evening.  I will post more tomorrow.

Peace,

Tommy

August 24, 2021

 Good Evening,

  For those who were able to attend, thank you for attending the conferences last week.  For those who couldn't, no worries.  I hope you found the video I sent informative enough to describe what we did at conferences.  Please don't forget to send a family picture and a picture of your pet(s) or favorite toy.  Also, don;t forget your reusable grocery bag.  I will collect all of this on the 1st day.

Each year kids add their own
leaves to this tree.

The first day of school is always an exciting time and I am sure there are some nerves and lots of questions in your child's mind.  The 1st two days will be used to learn names, getting to know each other and to develop an atmosphere that feels "fun" for your child.  We are   creating a "Twitter" bulletin board where kids will create their own   handle and create written tweets about their first few days.  I will   make sure to send pictures.

 The best thing you can do for your child, especially for those who   are nervous, is to make sure the following is clear for them:

 *Do they need school snack and/or lunch?

 *Do they have a water bottle, labeled?

 *Do they know their after school plans?

 Your child knowing the answers to these three questions will go a   long way in easing their minds on the 1st day.  

That is all for now. If you haven't subscribed/followed the blog yet, please watch the following video to learn how.

I am looking forward to a great year.

Peace,

Tommy

June 8, 2021

 Good Afternoon,

FINAL WEDNESDAY ASSIGNMENTS:
Below are your final assignments for tomorrow. You only have two things to do but each one requires your best effort and detail.
1. Complete the writing prompt. It must be your best handwriting. As the note says, complete the task and earn a surprise.

2. Use the white card stock I gave you and create a Happy Retirement message for Kathi.

Then take the day for yourselves!

FRIDAY CELEBRATION:

Thank you all for signing up for the breakfast items.  It will be a nice way to celebrate our year and our class.  It will also be great to not fill them up with cake, cookies, and ice cream and then send them home to you.  Again here is what you all offered to bring:

Item	Family Name
Plates	Joseph
Cups	Zeno
Forks, Spoons & Knives	Ben
Fruit 1	Sierra (Bananas and Berries)
Fruit 2	Arlo (Clementines)
Muffins	Koji (blueberry muffins)
OJ (1/2 Gallon)	Brayden
OJ (1/2 Gallon)	georgia
OJ (1/2 Gallon)	Callum
Syrup	Otto
Pan Cake Mix	Mr. Young
Feel Free to Add anything else to the list
Whipped cream	Otto
Napkins	Joseph
Apple Juice (1/2 Gallon)	Zeno

Again, this will be on Friday.

Have a great evening.

Peace,

Mr. Young

June 1, 2021

 Good Evening,

  Tomorrow's work is as follows:

1.  Attendance Question

2.  Morning Meeting & Read A Loud

3.  Zearn

4.  Lexia

5.  The last online specials class schedule is as follows: 

• Please note that students generally need to be logged in to their HUUSD accounts in order to join meetings. Meeting links are in Google classroom .LIBRARY  11:30 - 11:45     Library Meeting linkART 11:45 - Noon        Art Zoom Link: password is zoomart  

We will be collecting everyone's Chromebooks on Friday.  Please send in any charging cords and the Chromebook.  This will save Eric a ton of time and emails.  Since we all like Eric, let's help Eric .  The last Wednesday of the school year will only include an assignment that I send home a week from today.  

End of the Year Celebration:

There have been several inquiries about an end of the year celebration.  Getting through COVID, being in person 4 days a week, when many didn't think we would make it through Thanksgiving, and the fact that the kids did so much this year on all fronts, I would think a celebration is called for.  I think a breakfast would be great and can be pretty healthy.  This way your kids aren't going home filled with 4 different types of cupcakes and ice cream.  So, I will make Pancakes, in class, on the last day.  We will have a celebratory breakfast and engage in some final day activities. I am also including a link if you wish to donate anything to the party.  Please feel free to sign up for whatever you wish to.  Thank you in advance for your generosity. 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1IDxjl1bjdHcapx1NY8th4fxiT0Y01CLw3w-41BoFU3k/edit?usp=sharing

NOTE:  We have 17 students, no allergies, and food must be individually wrapped.  If you are providing fruit, whole fruits would be best (i.e clementines, apples, bananas.  This is strictly to follow COVID protocols.  

Best,

Tommy