Dear 4/5 Families,
Welcome to a new school year. Our essential question for the year is – How does change impact life? Listening and discussions will become an important cornerstone as we explore this question throughout all the academic subjects. With such a meaningful question our year will be full of exciting learning opportunities and challenges. The 4/5 team will be tackling some new ways to motivate and engage students in meaningful reading and writing, as we explore economics through our business unit, learn about people in our community, investigate energy, tend to our gardens, and learn from the lake, and much, much more. We will also be focusing on understanding and developing empathy schoolwide in order to further the mission of being an Ashoka Changemaker school.
During the first few weeks of school we will be establishing classroom routines and getting to know each other. We’ll discuss the many ways we can all contribute to a school and classroom environment that welcomes change, fosters learning and independence, and promotes caring, empathy, and well-being. This is an important time of year for all of us to create the framework for the rest of the year.
We realize that views on homework vary greatly within the SA community. We expect that each child is reading a minimum of 30 minutes a night and completing homework when it is assigned. Reading can include reading with an adult, sibling or friend. It can also include listening to someone read and books on CD or tape. Most homework assignments will be given on Monday or Tuesday and due on Thursday or Friday. Contact your child’s teacher if you have questions or would like to discuss this topic further.
Celebration is an important aspect of the 4/5 team. Throughout the year we will be inviting you to special events in our classroom. We will also celebrate birthdays on a monthly basis in each room. On the last Friday of each month we will acknowledge, with treats, the students who have their birthday that month. If you would like to provide a classroom treat at another time please contact your child’s classroom teacher. We will most definitely be contacting you when we need special help with field trips and projects, but please let us know If you would like to share a special skill, subject, or help out in the classroom. Also, please check out the 4/5 Team page that can be accessed via the SA web page. Weekly newsletters will be posted on the home page.
We look forward to meeting and sharing in this learning journey with all of the 4/5 students and their families and in the coming weeks and year.
Sincerely,
Sarah Wolfe-Gordon
Tim Fitzsimmons
Kellie C. Smith