I hope you all have had a wonderful week. It was certainly great to have a 5 day week with no academic interruptions. The class is really shining as a whole and in their own individual ways too. It is very rewarding to see their confidence grown and the happiness they express when that happens.
This week in writing, we read two different books about the same event. The 1st book was called The Three Little Pigs by James Marshall. In this version "the classic fairy tale is retold with a modern-day twist as the three little pigs settle into their new houses--one of straw, one of sticks and one of bricks--and find themselves threatened by a hungry, mean wolf." We then read The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka. "This is a fractured fairy tale where the wolf, Alexander T. Wolf, recounts his version of events, claiming he was framed and only wanted to borrow sugar for his granny's cake, leading to a series of misunderstandings and a hilariously skewed retelling of the classic tale."
The students then had to decide if they thought the wolf was mean or actually kind. Once they made their decision, each student started writing an opinion piece that tried to convince someone else of their opinion. They had to use evidence from the text to support their opinion. We will finish these writings next week.
First grade math had the students working on their knowledge of fact families and writing addition and subtraction equations that went with each fact family (I.e. 4, 6 & 10). We also worked with the concept of symmetry and look at shapes to see if they had a line of symmetry. Second grade math had the students started a unit on weights and measurement and are currently building Popsicle stick bridges as part of a math exploration.
Our sound unit had us looking at how sound travels and how characteristics of objects can affect how something sounds. The students learned how fast sound travels through the air, compared to liquid and solid objects. This learning was all a precursor for some mini experiments that we will do next week.
NOTES:
*I happen to wear a Messi jersey to school today. A few of the students commented on it and how much they like it. Some even said they have a jersey too. They all want to wear them next week. So Friday, will be Messi jersey or any sport, dance, or any other activity t-shirt that a kid might want to wear. Even a Waitsfield School shirt would be great. Please DON'T go out and buy something for this. This is very informal and just based off the kids asking for something.
*Yesterday, I wrote a piece (for the public) regarding all of the talk about Education and the cost of it. There are many things that I feel are unknown to many. If you are interested in hearing my view and what I feel should be done about it, please take a look here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MFOmnWCyUqdsamxSobi5b86-mZGzC7ReJnuT14WFQjU/edit?usp=sharing
Please feel free to share this with anyone you wish. If inspired to, please take action and engage with your local legislators.That is all for now. I hope you have a great weekend.
Peace,
Tommy