Old Schoolhouse Interviews : Upcoming Field Trips

Hello Families,

The month of May is upon us, and we have been busier than ever.  First, I want to remind you that our next field trip is next Wednesday, May 12th.  We will be going to the Peterborough  Historical Society to visit their reconstructed one room schoolhouse.  A school bus will be our transportation.  We will be leaving around 9:10 AM, and returning between noon and 12:30.  If you have volunteered to chaperone for this trip, I will be phoning you to explain how the children will be grouped and what the activities will be.  I thank you in advance for your cooperation.  I also appreciate your help with the interviews.  Some of the children have already turned them on, and we will begin sharing them next Monday.  Please let me know if this project is a hardship.  I could arrange for your child to interview an adult at school.  The due date for the interview is Friday, May 14th.  We will be presenting some of the data at Friday morning assembly on the 21st of May.

Our last field trip of the year will be on Friday, June 4th.  Information about this trip to the NH seacoast and a permission slip are enclosed with this newsletter.  Please return the slip as soon as possible.  A few parents have already arranged to come as chaperones, but more are needed.  This is a joint trip with the first graders, and we will be taking two school buses.  If you would like to drive your own vehicle,  and transport your own child, please indicate that on the permission slip. 

Here is a bit of news about our classroom work. In math, we are finishing two units on measurement.  The children learned about different units of measurement for length, weight, and capacity.  It was a broad overview which included the metric system.  This week, we have extended the concept of measurement to telling time, and using a calendar.  I appreciate your support with the math homework, especially this week with the time packet.  We will continue to review these measurement concepts, and I encourage you to involve your child in practical uses to reinforce and improve these skills.  Our next unit in math will be on graphing and probability.

In literacy, we have been enjoying a chapter book called: " The Year of Miss Agnes".  It is a story about a one room schoolhouse set in a remote village in Alaska in the 1940's.  I brought in an old school chair ( from my grandmother's house).  The children have been taking turns sitting in it during read aloud.  I think it dates back to the 1920's or 30's. In our reading groups, we have been focusing on identifying the main idea and the conclusion.  We are also practicing passages to improve fluency and expression. 

Lastly, I hope you have seen our bulletin board in the hallway.  It showcases the children's ABC pages on the Arctic, the Iditarod, and Alaska.  I will try to get them photographed, and put them on our blog.  They are fabulous.