First up, items of business.

1. Home projects are due this Friday, October 5th, but your student can bring in their project any day this week. If you need additional information, you can find it in the tab at the top of the blog or email me any questions.
2. Our next field trip is coming up quickly! We are going to Green Acres Dairy Farm 10:30 AM-2 PM. We have an unlimited number of chaperone spots available and our wonderful room mom Natalie is arranging rides for students who need transportation.
3. Normalization is now over and so parents and other volunteers can begin to come into the classroom. I will be in touch with those of you who have already expressed interest, and if you haven’t yet but would like to be involved in our room, please let me know!
4. We have begun a new morning routine to help us transition into our work cycle. As the children enter, they are free to either read silently or fill out their work plan for the day. At 8:45, we all go outside to run/walk a few laps around the field. The fresh air and extra movement have helped us all to have a better morning! The only downside is that we have to change our shoes another time during the day, so if your student is struggling lacing or tying their shoes, it is a great practical life activity to practice at home!
5. We have begun using Imagine Learning as a school-wide literacy program. Several students asked for their login information so they could use Imagine Learning at home, and I told them the best thing to do would be to ask their parent or guardian to email me so I can send over the information. It is a free program and a great way to reinforce reading and language concepts.

Last week we completed our Great Lessons with the Story of Numbers, including the parts of our numerical system that we have kept from the Babylonians, Egyptians, Romans and Arabs. We began spelling groups and will get a new list tomorrow that I will post on the blog in case your student would like to practice more, but this is not required. The highlight of the week for me was our first home project presentation. One of our students presented his project on the life cycle of a katydid (he also brought in one that he caught!) and it was wonderful to see him confidently speak to the rest of the class and answer questions. The rest of the class loved being taught by a peer and we all learned about katydids. I can’t wait to see the rest of the presentations this week! Thank you for all your work to prepare, support and foster learning for your student!