Good Day, LEW Families,
This month...
We had a fantastic time at the Soiree last weekend and we enjoyed seeing many of you there. Thanks so much for all of your donations to make our homeless shelter basket. We had enough to make 2 whole baskets! This proved to be a great contribution to GRS and the Dorothy Day Homeless Shelter. Thanks again!
This month has also been jam-packed with birthday celebrations. We make sure to celebrate the half birthday of the children whose birthdays happen in the summer, which meant that February held 10 birthdays to celebrate! Thank you to all of you for taking the time out of your busy schedules to come in and share stories and pictures of your child with us. We learned so much and it's wonderful to see a child that we are all so familiar with through their family's eyes. Thanks again for helping us carry out this birthday tradition :)
What we're working on
We finally had a full, 5-day week! This month has felt a little disorienting, so it was to get back into a regular routine. Here's what our week looked like:
First years discovered and proved how to classify triangles by sides. They are continuing their work with long multiplication and division with the stamp game. In language, first years are learning the basics of writing complete sentences as well as continuing to use their writing skills in story-writing and their research. In geography, the students are doing a USA study of recreating the map of the U.S., learning the names of some or all of the states, and even recreating some state flags.
In geometry, second years are learning the names of curved figures such as quadrilobes, ellipses, and curvilinear triangles. They are also continuing their work with multiplication and division, using the stamp game. In language, the second years are learning about antonyms and adding the finishing touches to their Amazon research and study of Spiritual Fundamental Needs. Second years are also learning more about the Amazon and our responsibility to preserve it. To put a cap on our Amazon study, we are looking to go to the Rainforest Exhibit at Como Zoo on March 10th or 11th. If you would be interested in helping us chaperone this special going out with the second graders, please let us know (2 chaperones should be plenty).
Third years are reviewing terms and concepts they've learned in geometry up to this point - i.e. names of polygons, types of lines, and types of angles. Third years are also learning how to analyze multiplication and some are even at the point where they can do long division abstractly. In language, the third years are exploring the world of homophones and many of them are "publishing" their creative stories. We're also coming to the point where the students are finishing up their Study of a Nation project. The last phase of the project is to choose an area of interest based on the study of a nation - ask your child where their interests took them.
Important Dates to Remember
March 16: Half Day - Dismissal at 12:30
March 17-18: Parent & Teacher Conferences
Volunteer Opportunities
Bring flowers to our community
We are looking for volunteers to bring in flowers to our classroom. This was the first year the LEW has done this and our community has grown to appreciate the beauty that fresh flowers bring :)
If you decide to volunteer, you are agreeing to bring in flowers once a week or once every two weeks for the month you sign up for. We need volunteers for March, April, and May. Please let us know if you are interested.
All the best to all of you on this sunny weekend!
Jessy Eaton Fabel
Lower Elementary Guide"Our aim therefore is not merely to make the child understand, and still less to force him to memorize, but so to touch his imagination as to enthuse him to his inmost core." ~ Maria Montessori
