Good Afternoon!  I hope you all found a way to enjoy the lovely weather this past weekend had to offer.  For those of you who were able to get away and/or take some time off, I hope you found it relaxing and enjoyable.  I spent the week working with some 3rd graders from the Lawrence school district (in MA).  I taught a third grade math acceleration academy to kids who gave up their vacation to become stronger math students.  It is my 5th year of doing this and I enjoy the experience. 

We had a wonderful circus week with Troy Wonderle.  I hope you all enjoyed the performance.  I know you can watch it online through  the Mad RIver TV website.  Troys energy and positivity are very uplifting and contagious.  I saw many students taking risks, putting in extra time to master a skill all while feeling supported by Troy.  Troy's circus residency has certainly become a favorite and I look forward to the next time we get to work with him.

This week the students are writing their final non-fiction piece.  I am combining my states of matter assessment with the need for each student to write a non fiction book that has them go through the entire writing process independently (brainstorm to final draft).  The students will be writing books about how to  make maple syrup and candy and identify the 3 states of matter throughout the process. 

That is all for now.  I hope you all have a good week.

Peace,
Tommy