welcome back

We had a powerful transition back to school following our long break.
Here is a little look at some of our play and learning from the (short) week! 

Vacation Stories

I can think of something that happened or something that I did.

I can use the words first, next, then, and finally to tell a true story!

Word Building

I can hear the letter sounds in a word.

I can tap words, saying a letter sound for each tap.

I can blend the sounds together and say the whole word.

I can use sound power to build a word.

I can use sound power to read a word.

Who Pooped? 

We introduced a new academic choice this week; Who Pooped? This memory game teaches us how to identify different kinds of animal scat. The colorful cards invite the children to use sound power (a reading strategy) when reading the names of animals; bat, cat, dog, fox, rabbit...

Who Pooped? is a science choice, but it connects to literacy targets;

I can tap the sounds in a word, saying a sound for each tap.

I can blend the sounds together and say the whole word.

I can use sound power to read a word.

As I observed the children tapping and blending sounds together to figure out unknown animal names, I wondered, how else can I build off a shared interest in poop to support the growth of our young readers? 

Science Memory

Interviews 

Mr. Goss and the 7th- and 8th-grade writers interviewed the Kindergarteners on Friday morning. The middle schoolers were kind and respectful as they gathered information for their picture-book project.

I can share my likes and dislikes.

I can listen to and answer questions.

Following our time with the middle school writers, teachers transcribed snack conversations;

"My partner was so nice!"
"I hope I can have a play date this weekend with my partner, Erin."
"I am so, so, so happy!"
"I want to say I love them, but I don't know if I love them. My partner was just so nice."

"I gave my partner a hug! Can we do this again?"

Community Hike

As part of our ongoing celebration of love and kindness, we ended our week with a community hike. We noticed animal tracks in the snow, shared weekend plans, slid, crawled, and connected with one another. It was a joyful end to a special day.