Good Morning! I am sorry I am just getting to last week's blog now but there are a few things I wanted to make sure you were all aware of. As I have mentioned several times this year, our social studies curriculum has us looking at traditions and celebrations and how they can be the same or look different based on culture, family, etc. The month of December certainly provides for a chance to dive deeply into this. I have decided to look at the holidays and traditions that the students might see in our community. The focus will be on Hanukkah (last week), Kwanza and Winter Solstice (this week) and Christmas and New Years (next week). This will give the students a chance to talk about what they do, to learn from how others may do it differently and to learn new information as well.
Last week I used the book Hanukkah by Molly Aloian. This book gives a very simple explanation of the holiday from its roots to the present-day celebrations. We used the book to have a discussion about Hanukkah and why it last for 8 nights and 8 days. The students learned to play the dreidel game and should have brought some chocolate coins home (on Friday) to talk to you about their learning.
Over the years I have done variations of secret pals in our classroom. This year I am going to try a different version of it. This version has you having to not worry about any of it. Instead of the kids each creating items for their secret pals, I am going to do things for all of the kids 12/17, 12/18. and 12/19. We will have a little celebration on 12/19 (in the afternoon), if you would like to donate something for the party, please sign up here. On 12/17 I will have a holiday card for each kid, on 12/18 I will have a snack for each kid, and on 12/19 I will have a small present for each kid. This will make the final week fun, allow us to tie it in to our social studies curriculum and will also connect as a class.
NOTES:
*Please remember to have your child bring sneakers for wearing inside the classroom. They can't wear their boots all day long. Also, hats and gloves are a must each day. If you want your child to just leave a pair of shoes at school, please send them in and let me know.
That is all for now. I hope you have a great week.
Peace,
Mr. Young
