Something to Say from 102A

Yesterday I put the finishing touches on the report cards that will be going home with your children on Tuesday. I know that everyone says the best part of teaching is June, July, and August, but I really DO have a hard time letting go of each and every class. If the year gives me monumental challenges and more than one opportunity to grit my teeth or if I breeze through each and every day of teaching with a grin on my face and a chuckle in my belly, it makes no difference. Each and every June I do some form of internal wringing of my hands, thinking that there is one more lesson to be taught, one more set of parents I really should talk to,  and worrying that a summer’s worth of fun will obliterate so much learning that has happened this year. As you look at your child’s report card and the results of the MAP testing please know that I see your children as more than a number in a box and a line on a graph. If you have any questions about your child’s social development or  academic progress please feel free to email me. I check my school email at least every other week in the summer. Once the new school year starts though, I focus my energy on my new students. Your children have two very capable and caring  first grade teachers at Sanislo to continue the work we have started. Look at the lower left corner of the report card in the gray box where you see my signature. Just above my name you will see the name of your child’s first grade teacher.

For over the summer I have distilled advice that covers everyone:

1. Read to your child every day. There are no shortcuts here. Yes, most of the kindergarteners can read. But they need adults to boost their comprehension.  You need to ask questions as you read to them to determine if they really understand the stories. You should encourage them to ask their own questions if they don’t understand. Last week I read a story with the word ‘terror’ in the story and one of my highest readers asked; “What does that mean?”  I loved it. The curious and questioning child advances with ease in the world of academics.

2. Have your child keep a summer vacation journal and write  notes and birthday cards to relatives and friends. Practice, practice, practice. It will help to increase your child’s stamina and confidence in writing down his/her ideas.

3. Have ‘play dates’ with other Sanislo students. This is especially important for the more shy, quiet children. It will help them to feel more comfortable in the school community in fall.

4. GET OUTSIDE! Ride those bikes and scooters, visit the beach, play at our city’s fabulous parks. LIMIT the time your children spend on computers and in front of the T.V. I can’t harp enough on this point.

5. Talk with your child about safety rules around the house and the neighborhood. Two weeks ago a child came to school with a burn on his hand from touching the underside of a parked car while retrieving a ball.  That incident was an impromptu lead into a class discussion about playing ball safely. Another day as I drove home I saw a child from our classroom, without a helmet, riding his bike.  That is NOT how they rode in our gym! We can all agree that our children are precious. Talk up safety and show by example.

I guess I have written more than a few words so it is time to stop. Saying good bye is always hard. I look forward to seeing you and your  1st grader head down  Main Street (that is what us old timers  call the main hall) in September. Hopefully you will attend more evening events and I will see you at some  of those too. I am proud to be part of the Sanislo community and I hope you all become more invested in ‘The Little School with BIG Ideas’ as time goes by. We appreciate and need your support.

Let summer begin!

P.S. Have you seen the video of the reading group that performed  a readers’ theater piece entitled The Wind? Thank yous are due to Mary Clark for directing the children through MANY practices and designing the props. Thanks also, to our librarian, Craig Seasholes, for video taping the performance. Go here to see it: The Wind

The second big event of the week was a visit from the Puyallup Traveling Farm. The children loved petting chickens, a rabbit, an Angora goat, a pygmy goat and a woolly sheep. They were very gentle and as quiet as could be so as not to scare the animals.

We sure were fortunate to have good weather for our visit to the Center For Wooden Boats on Lake Union. The children were very well behaved and thanks to the NINE parent volunteers that joined me, everyone stayed safe.  It is hard to say which they enjoyed more, the paddling in the umiaq or building model boats. They found our quickly that paddling a boat is exercise! They were SO proud of the boats they made.

We had a great turn out for Hat Day. None of them were as outlandish as those worn at the recent royal wedding but Mr. Crabby Hat came close!

Don’t forget, we have our field trip to the Center For Wooden boats on this Tuesday. Be sure your child dresses for the weather and don’t forget a sack lunch from home. Most importantly, make sure your child gets to school on time or he will literally ‘miss the boat’!

I do believe there were close to 400 people from the Sanislo community attending the Cinco de Mayo celebration hosted by our Latino PTA. The dancing was colorful, the music lively and the food was delicious! We had a kindergartner dancing:

and mothers with their sons:

and even some darling preschool dancers:

“Spring is here” said the bumblebee.

“How do you know?” asked the old oak tree.

“I just saw a daffodil,

dancin’ with the fairies on a windy hill.”

We began reading information books and stories about spring time and baby animals last week. We took a little time to do some directed drawing; teaching the children to focus on line and shapes to have success drawing recognizable pictures. Using pens instead of pencils  is fun for them and it forces them to work slowly and thoughtfully. I lead the drawing, using my document camera and talking about what I am doing as I draw. Every few minutes I hop up and look at their work. I am no artist but I think some of THEM are!

No, I am not talking about the kindergarteners. I am referring to our second investigation of earthworms.  Night crawlers brought even more squeals and confidence than the red worms lesson (see previous post). There was much braver handling of the LONG wiggly critters. So, what can your child tell you about worms? They do not have bones but they have muscles that allow them to move. They breathe through their skin which is called ‘cuticle’. They are hermaphrodites; it takes 2 worms to make babies but there are no boy worms and girl worms. Worms need to be kept moist yet they can drown if the soil is too wet. That is why you will see them on the pavement on very rainy days. Go here for more earthworm info to share with your kindergartener.

At the end of our Animals 2 by 2 unit  the children heard the story Log Hotel by Anne Schreiber. Then they went outside and picked and prodded at some decaying logs I had brought to school from my wood pile. Here are some writing samples from that experience:

What a blustery start to March! We had it all; wind, rain, hail and gray skies with unexpected sun breaks that caused us to look up in surprise and squint in the bright light. One week from today and Daylight Savings time begins. Along with the increasing hours of daylight it will also be increasingly difficult to get the kindergartners to bed on time but please be consistent. 8:00 continues to be the best time to say “Lights out! Time for bed!” to your kindergarten child. March is what I call a ‘school rich’ month. It gives us many consecutive days in the classroom and our young students are at the edge of so many learning leaps. Look above this post at the March Letter to Families for more particulars on classroom learning and the school calendar of upcoming events.

That magical number of 100 days in school has been passed. Here, along with help from a trusty volunteer, the children are counting and stringing 100 pieces of cereal to make yummy necklaces.

Wednesday’s focus questions in Science      were:

What do you notice about the body and behavior of a redworm?

What does a redworm do when it comes to a barrier?

When the worm came to the lid he went under it. When he got to the crack between the two tables he went down and ‘boy oh boy’ did that ever cause excitement!

Well, not frogs, but snails, yes! On last Wednesday we investigated  land  snails. As a gardener I am totally turned off. These critters are totally destructive to early spring greens. But for observing in a kindergarten science lesson, they are stellar. Everything is SO easy to observe;  the breathing hole, the 4 tentacles and the eyes on the stalks of the 2 longest tentacles, the mucus trail. Here is a link to a great site with more information on snails: KIDDYHOUSE

Some students were cautious and curious.

Others were totally curious.

Many were amused.

Even our school secretary, Mrs. Crandell,  was interested. She came in to deliver a message to me but got caught up in our gastropod investigating.

Last week our read aloud books were all about Chinese New Year. On Friday after our story, Lion Dancer: Ernie Wan’s Chinese New Year by Kate Waters, the children all made dragon puppets and then we paraded down the hall to the 4th and 5th grades to sing our Chinese ‘Hello Song’. My guess is that your children are singing it to you this weekend. The tune is the same as The Farmer in Then Dell and these are the words:

Let’s wave and say “Nihao”,

Let’s wave and say “Nihao”,

Let’s say “Hello” to all our friends,

Let’s wave and say “Nihao”.