Hope everyone had a great break! Some days the weather was better than others, but it is always nice to have a few days to “catch up” on all the “life stuff” I put aside when I am busy preparing for each school day. I spent the beginning and end of vacation with “brand new” teachers. As a member of the Salem State University Friends of Education board, we had a Pinning Ceremony for all graduating education majors on Thursday April 13. On Saturday, I spent the day teaching pre-service teachers the SEAM Conference in Worcester. It fun to be with people new to the profession, and gave me that extra energy push to get back to school for our last leg of our year!

Oh and yes…one little friend asked me, “Did you knit Ms. Purdin?” Of course I did!!! Here’s what I made over vacation!

We are busy, busy, busy as we come back from break. We will be starting new units and continuing to reinforce fundamental math and literacy skills.

This week we will be learning in:

English/Language Arts

• word work with digraphs (sh, ch, wh, th, ck)
• word family practice in writing
  

  Children sketch plants they found outside at recess during center time.

• Guided reading small groups
• Begin Mo Willems Unit

Math

• Begin Unit 8
• 3-D shapes
• subtraction/addition number models

Science

• What plants and animals need unit
• Earth Day

 

Pitter, patter, drip, drop…I hope this mucky weather will soon stop! We were lucky this winter to have so many days of outside recess – this week, with two days of indoor recess, due to rain have made our days a little bit more difficult. The stormy weather has brought us an opportunity to learn some old fashioned card games – like Go Fish, Old Maid and Crazy 8s during inside recess and even learn a new game that you can play with any deck of cards. Trash card game instructions

We also have some FUN to look forward to next week with our TEDDY BEAR FLOAT PARADE! I am super excited for this event! Mr. Andrews is going to help us on Tuesday afternoon assemble our wheels and axels. It should be a lot of fun and a great send off into school vacation on Thursday afternoon. 🙂

Here’s what we will be working on until April Vacation:

English Language Arts

• Writing a story with a Beginning, Middle and End
• Sight words for mastery
• handwriting practice
• Learning about books in a series

Math

• Addition and subtraction to 10
• number stories
• math symbols: +, – , =

Science

• Motion (wheels and axels)
• magnets
• Rainbows

Social Studies/Social Skills*

• Being a Learner
• Joining a group
• Making good decisions

*Our new school adjustment counselor, Mrs. Sullivan, meets with our class on Tuesdays to work on social skill practice. I am thrilled we have been able to add this as part of our curriculum to honor the whole child.

And just one gentle reminder…

I’ve noticed many of the students being a little more tender and tired as we move through our day. As the days get longer and the spring gets busier, it is often hard to keep to a bedtime routine. However, it is important for young children to get enough rest so they are able to be active learners in school. Here’s a link for some helpful tips. Thank you!

Have a great April break!

Ms. Purdin