I hope all of you are well and enjoying the end of winter and the early signs of spring. I was very pleased with the amount of work the students got done last week and was so appreciative of Zack and Eileen as they kept the academic and classroom rigor at a consistent level. The kids seemed to really enjoy their time with Zack. I had an amazing time in Serbia and have memories that will last a lifetime. 

In 2nd grade math lessons, students utilized 20-frames to master the addition of three addends by focusing on the complement of 20. When a student rolled three 6-sided dice—for example, rolling a 6, a 6, and a 5—they systematically placed counters into the grid to see how close the total came to filling both 10-frames entirely. The exercise pushed students to look beyond small pairings and instead visualize the "missing pieces" needed to reach the benchmark of 20.

In 1st grade math, students explored the world of story problems by navigating three distinct types of addition and subtraction situations: result unknown, change unknown, and start unknown. To make these abstract concepts concrete, they utilized number racks (also known as Rekenreks), which allowed them to slide beads across two rows of ten to represent the action in each story.

During our literature project time, the class engaged in a thoughtful reading of the picture book Hey, Little Ant by Phillip and Hannah Hoose. The story presented a rhythmic dialogue between a young boy poised to step on an ant and the ant itself, who pleaded for its life by describing its own family and responsibilities. As the narrative concluded on a cliffhanger, it forced the students to grapple with a difficult ethical dilemma: should the boy squish the ant or let it go? The students then used this question to guide their opinion writing focus for the week. It was great to hear their rationales for their opinions. 

We have wrapped up our study of the three states of matter through the sugaring process. To demonstrate their mastery, the students began synthesizing their observations into comprehensive informative posters. These posters served as the final unit assessment, requiring students to:

• Sequence the Steps: Outline the chronological process of making both maple syrup and maple candy.

• Identify Matter: Label the solids, liquids, and gases present at each stage of production.

• Explain Transitions: Describe the role of temperature in changing the state of the maple product.

Once these projects are completed, they will be proudly displayed on the walls outside the classroom. Many of the kids told me that "this was a fun project."

The class enjoyed a special visit this week from Trooper Alyssa Nozka, who shared insights into her vital role as a helper in our community. Rather than just observing, Trooper Nozka jumped right into the classroom's daily rhythm, reading a story to the group and even assisting the students with their science experiments. To the delight of the class, she brought along several "treasures" for every student to keep as a memento of her visit.

Throughout her time in the classroom, the students stayed busy asking a steady stream of questions, which she answered with warmth and enthusiasm. Trooper Nozka shared that she truly loves connecting with children, especially when she can engage with them directly in their own "work environment." This was just the beginning of their partnership, as she plans to visit the class a few more times throughout the school year.

NOTES:

*As you can see we have had a variety of weather over the past week. Please make sure your child has boots/outside shoes, and sneakers for in the classroom. Until the mud is gone, we try to not have muddy shoes all over our carpet. As for clothing, if it is above 40 degrees, I am good with them wearing a fleece, sweatshirt or a long sleeve shirt. Below 40 degrees, I do expect them to have a jacket. 

*Your child does have their Weekly News journal in their backpack today. Most of the kids wrote their entry in 15 minutes. It was quite impressive. Please take a look and send them back on Monday.

*Homework Bags: Please help your child find their homework bag (if needed) and/or remind them to take care of it each evening. It helps me out tremendously if they have them each day. There will always be a book in them Monday-Thursday and just their Weekly News on Fridays.

That is all for now.  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. One more week until spring break.

Peace,

Tommy

March 22, 2026

I hope all of you had a great weekend. It was so nice catching up with all of you during our parent conferences. I hope you found them informational, allowed you to see the growth your child has and continues to make, and you see how they will continue to focus on learning goals as we enter the final 1/4 of the year.  Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

Last week, our class took a trip to Living Tree Farm, and it was truly one for the books! This visit is always a personal favorite of mine, offering the perfect blend of outdoor exploration and "hands-on" discovery. The students dove deep into the sugar-making process, using it as a real-world lens to observe the three states of matter in action. From tapping trees to watching steam rise from the evaporators, the kids captured every observation in their science notebooks. We’ve turned those insightful entries and a collection of trip photos into a new display in our classroom—be sure to ask your child about it! We will continue our deep dive into the states of matter through the start of April break.

As a reminder, I will be in class this morning and then be out of school through April, 3rd. Zack Smithwood will be the substitute the whole time. Between he and Eileen, the class is in very good hands. I spent a vast amount of time creating lessons that are thorough and will not let up on the academic rigor that the class is accustomed too. I promise, there is no 45 minute block of "let them have free choice." 

Zack does have a school email if you need to get in touch with him. I will have access to email too and will respond if needed.  

NOTES:

*It looks like Wednesday will be our last ski day for the 2026 winter sports program. Please make sure your child has all of their stuff. 

*Homework bags will come home Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday this week (nothing on Wednesday). The Weekly News Journal will come home on Friday. The following week will have the bags coming home M-Th and the Weekly News on Friday. Please help your child remember to bring their items back each day.

*Kids still need boots and sneakers each day. If it is under 40 degrees they need a coat too.

That is all for now. I hope you all have a great 2 weeks. If I have time, I will do a blog post next week (from Serbia). You can show the class what I have been up to.  

Peace,

Mr. Young

March 15, 2026

Good Afternoon. I am sorry this is only coming out on Sunday, as I had a few things going on this week (outside of school) and spent the weekend in Boston. Each year my brother and I (and now more family and friends) head to Boston for the Dropkick Murphys' concert on St. Patty's weekend. It is such a fun time and experience.

I wanted to start with next week's volunteer schedule and field trip opportunity that is happening this week.

We will not have math class or Daily 5 on Tuesday of this week. So Tuesday's volunteers (Ryan and Helen) will not have to come in for those slots. On Friday, we don't have school that day. So those volunteers are off this week too.

The class will be going to a sugar house (in Moretown) on Tuesday. This is part of our science unit on the states of matter and connecting the sugaring process to it. If you would like to attend the trip (and are a volunteer that has had their background check done/weekly volunteer) you are welcome to tag along. Just let me know by Monday evening. We will have plenty of room on the bus and will leave school at 8:40.  Please arrive by 8:30 and you are welcome to just come in when your child arrives for school. Kids will need to dress for the weather and they need boots. They will not need a bagged lunch as we will be back in time for that.

As I mentioned last week, I will be out of school the afternoon of March 23rd through April 3rd. The weekly parent volunteers should plan on coming in during this time. The class will be following its regular schedule.

PARENT CONFERENCES:  The parent conferences will occur on Thursday, March 19 & Friday, March 20. As always, please make sure that you are on time as the schedule is quite full and I won't be able to extend conference times. Below is the schedule for next week. If you don't see your name, please sign up. 

Thursday: 2:40 Stella, 3:00 (open), 3:20 Luna, 3:40 River, 4:20 Hewitt, 4:40 Emma, 5:00 Ellie, 5:20 Olen, 6:00 Vinny, 6:20 Keegan, 6:40 Elsie

Friday: 7:40 Paxton, 8:00 Elowyn, 8:20 Olive, 8:40 Beau

These conferences are in person.  Your child is encouraged to attend part of the conference.

This past week the students were engaged with a variety of read alouds that I would categorize as "fun books." I chose these books (some new to me) because they seemed highly engaging and offered a nice variety. The books were as follows:

Mel Fell, Tops and Bottoms, I Don't Want to be a Frog, I Want My Hat Back, and Alexander and the Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Click on the links if you want to listen to these stories with your child. See if you like the same ones that your child did!

Our writing instruction had us reading two different books. First we read The Three Little Pigs by James Marshall and then we read The True Story of the Three Little Pigs (told by A. Wolf) by Jon Scieszka. After reading each story, we brainstormed the pigs' arguments and the wolf's arguments. The students then had to choose a side, the wolf or the pigs and write an opinion piece about if the wolf was mean or not. The students included a hook, their opinion, support for their opinion and a closing. They each did some self editing too. These pieces are hung up in our classroom library. Make sure to check them out when you come in this week.

This week's science focus had us looking at solids and can an item be a solid if it is squishy. The students experimented with this concept as they explored some items from our classroom. They then had to record their observations and share out what they found. 

The class also wrote their next pen-pal letter. This started with an outline, then the students wrote their draft and edited with an adult. To change it up, the class worked with Eric Mongeon and recorded themselves reading their letter to their pen-pal. These can be heard by clicking this link. Then next time we connect with them, we will actually have each student do a video call with their pen pal and then write a summary of what they talked about. This allows me to tie in some of our communication goals in our curriculum.

NOTES:

• I want to give a special thank you to the PTA for their support with my field trip requests. They will be funding the sugar house field trip this week and for our trip in June to visit our pen-pals.
• It looks like we will be skiing this week, please make sure your child has all of their needed items.
• Remember that there is no school on Friday.

I hope you all have a great week,

Peace,

Mr. Young

March 5, 2026

I hope those of you that had some time off were able to enjoy it and were able to spend time doing things that made you smile or allowed you to feel rested. The students have been excited to share details of their break.  Instead of having the students write to you in their Weekly News (this week), I am having them write to me about their winter break. So, you will not see them in your child's bag over the weekend.

This week 1st grade math had the students looking at 3 dimensional shapes, their names, and characteristics. We specifically focused on cubes, cones, spheres, rectangular prisms, cylinders, pyramids, and triangular prisms and the characteristics of these shapes. We will wrap up our geometry unit at the end of next week.  The 2nd graders continued to focus on money, making traders and making change. They are really engaged with the hands on learning that comes with this focus.

We started a new science unit focusing on the 3 States of Matter. I will spend 10 lessons teaching the science concepts and then 5 lessons connecting it to the sugaring process. We may try and go to a sugar house as a field trip. If this comes to fruition, I may be looking for some drivers.  More to come on that.

I wanted to  let all of you know that I will miss the last week of March and the 1st few days of April. A few weeks back, I was contacted by Project Harmony and asked if I would go to Serbia to focus on some educational and basketball discussions/learning. After meeting with Kaiya and Dr. Mike, I was given the green light to take advantage of this opportunity. Zach Smithwood will be the substitute for the whole time. He knows the class well and will be able to execute very detailed lesson plans. I just wanted to give everyone the heads up.

Health Class Started This Semester

  NOTES

 *You children may tell you differently, but they will need a coat/fleece for any outdoor time until the temperature goes above 40 degrees.  Boots are a must until all of the snow and mud is gone. If kids don;t have them, they will go outside but will have to stay in areas that prevent mud from covering their sneakers. 

*Please send in a pair of sneakers for you children to wear each day. They can leave them here.  I sent them all home over break.

*Thank you all who were able to take time to vote on the school budget this year.  However you voted, I am appreciative to all of those who took the time to vote!

That is all for now.  I hope you all have a great weekend.

Peace,

Tommy

February 20, 2026

 Good Morning,

This week was all about the circus. From our morning greetings, our read-a-louds, to our daily schedule, everything revolved around the culmination of our circus unit. Please take a look at the video and the slideshow from our work.  The slide show is from the "open house" last night.

I hope you all have a great break. Please remember to vote on the school budget and that we have winter sports program the 1st day back.  

Peace,

Tommy

February 13, 2026

"Children have an amazing way of becoming exactly who we tell them they are, as our words often become their inner voice and shape their identity. By consistently speaking strength, kindness, and capability into them, we help them believe they can face challenges." This quote reminded me of the approach needed for the last two weeks of February. I find these two weeks to always be the most challenging time for students and their ability to focus and be their "best."  Needless to say, we have spent some time discussing how to make good choices, how to fight distractions, and how to help each other. I love reminding them of all they can do.

It’s been a busy and productive week of growth in our math classrooms! Here is a look at what our 1st and 2nd graders have been tackling:

1st Grade: Our 1st graders spent the week diving deep into the world of 2-D shapes, mastering their names and specific attributes. Through hands-on exploration, students learned how to compose larger shapes using smaller ones and put their spatial reasoning to the test with a shape puzzle game.

2nd Grade: In 2nd grade, the focus shifted to the practical world of currency. Students practiced making coin trades and calculating the difference between various monetary amounts. Understanding the value of money—and realizing there are multiple ways to create the same total using different coins and bills—is a vital life skill. These lessons are helping our students comprehend the cost of items and the mechanics of making change, ensuring they are well-prepared for real-world transactions.

The circus excitement continues to roll on as we deepened our focus on the whimsical world of clowns! Drawing inspiration from last week's presentation, the students put the finishing touches on their clown portraits, and the results are truly fantastic. Beyond the art, the class has been busy documenting their discoveries in their circus journals. By applying the same observation and recording techniques used in their science units, the students are keeping their technical writing skills "in tune" while exploring a creative theme. It is wonderful to see them having so much fun with this unit, and we are all eagerly counting down to our culminating work with the talented Troy Wunderle!

Last week's read a louds focused on the series of books titled "What If You Had Animal . . .." The "What If You Had..." book series, written by Sandra Markle and illustrated by Howard McWilliam, is a brilliant blend of whimsical imagination and rigorous biological science. Each book poses a playful "what if" scenario—such as having a shark’s teeth, a polar bear’s fur, or an elephant’s nose—and explores how those specialized animal traits would function on a human body. They are incredibly instructional because they break down the concept of biological adaptations into digestible, fascinating facts, showing exactly how an animal uses its unique features to survive in the wild.

The students took big strides in their persuasive writing unit this week as they tackled a topic close to their hearts: "Do kids need more recess time?" The classroom was full of passionate arguments as students focused on crafting solid endings that leave a lasting impression on their readers. Our 2nd graders leveled up their writing by practicing "twin sentences," a technique used to elaborate on their thinking and provide deeper detail for their arguments. To wrap up their pieces, everyone practiced the vital habit of self-editing, with a specific eagle-eye focus on consistent capital letters and correct ending punctuation.

NOTES:

*There are no Weekly News entries for this week so the journals are not in their bags. We will pick up with these again after the break.

*On Thursday, February 19th the school will be performing in a circus. This is a culminating event from our work with Troy. The event will start at 6:00. We will have a 1st and 2nd grade open house from 5:15-5:45 that evening. This will be a chance to stop by the classroom and see some of the work that your child was involved in during the circus unit.  I hope you will all have a chance to stop in and take a look. This will end promptly at 5:45, so that we can all get to the gym and set up for our performance. Please plan accordingly.

That is all for now.  I hope you all have a great weekend.  Happy Valentine's Day!

Peace,

Mr. Young

February 6, 2026

They say time flies when you’re having fun, and this first week of February was a whirlwind. I’m so proud of how the students balanced the whimsy of our circus activities with the grit required to wrap up their math units and sharpen their persuasive arguments. The smiles I see at the door each morning are the result of some truly impressive hard work and a lot of fun.

Our circus unit took a hilarious and heartwarming turn this week as we explored the art of the clown! We were so lucky to host Olive parents Collen and Bobby Kintz, who treated the class to an incredible, hour-long presentation. From discovering the "smallest mask in the world" to learning the different personalities and types of clowns, the students were absolutely spellbound. They spent over an hour teaching us the history, the makeup, and the heart behind the character. The kids were leaning in the entire time! We are so grateful to the Kintz family for sharing their time and expertise with us.

If you want to see the magic for yourself (or if your child hasn’t stopped talking about it), you can watch the full presentation here.

This past week both first and second grade math students finished up their Unit 4 work and took the end of the unit assessments. The first graders are now moving on to a geometry unit that the students explore geometry by identifying, describing, and comparing 2-D and 3-D shapes. The unit focuses on composing shapes to create new figures, understanding part-whole relationships, and splitting shapes into equal parts (halves, thirds, fourths). The 2nd graders are now moving on to focus on place value concepts. The students will focus on building deep place value understanding up to 1,000, using manipulatives like base ten pieces to organize numbers into hundreds, tens, and ones. Key skills include adding/subtracting multiples of 10 and 100, money calculations (nickels, dimes, quarters), and identifying patterns in sequences.

Developing Young Persuaders: Writing a good argument is one thing, but making a reader care is another! This week, our writers focused on the craft of engagement. Students revisited their previous persuasive pieces to add compelling hooks. We discussed the goal of sparking curiosity and "pulling" the reader into their work. This is a sophisticated writing skill, and the progress has been impressive. Looking ahead, we will be polishing these pieces further by drafting powerful concluding statements.

Move over, Halloween! The excitement for Valentine's Day is officially here. We will spend time passing out Valentines on Friday, February 13th (just before our Language Arts rotations). Participation is optional, but if your child would like to bring cards, please ensure they have one for everyone on the list below:

Our Classmates: Paxton, Luna, River, Beau, Vincent, Olive, Ellie, Stella, Keegan, Elowyn, Hewitt, Olen, Elsie, Emma, and Jayden.

 *Note: We do have one student that has a gluten allergy (if the Valentine's have a treat attached to them).

NOTES:

*We will have the Winter Sports Program again on Wednesday. This will be the last Wednesday in February. The program will start back up in March. 

*Your child has a new Weekly News Entry in their homework bag. Please take a moment to read over it with them. 

*SNEAKERS, SHOES, FOOTWEAR.  Please make sure your child has something besides boots to wear.

That is all for now. I hope you have a great weekend.

Peace,

Tommy