Week 31: Teacher Appreciation Week

“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character—that is the goal of true education.”

— Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

In This Issue:

• STEAM Speakers Zeke Binion and Laura Smith Share Their Expertise
• Teacher Appreciation Week Celebrations
• Middle School Days: Algebra, Lunch, Life Skills and STEAM Experiments
• StoryLab Special Recording Projects
• 4th & 5th Graders Read to K/1 and 1st Graders Prepare Writing Projects
• 2nd-3rd Graders Tend the Garden
• A Learnwell Student Gets Published in a Poetry Anthology
• K-5 Learns About the Fruit of the Spirit through Movement and Motions

STEAM Speakers Zeke Binion and Laura Smith Share Their Expertise

Our K-7th graders enjoyed learning about two careers this week that both use elements of STEAM. On Tuesday, our students listened to Laura Smith share about occupational therapy, and on Thursday, they heard Zeke Binion talk about being a user experience (UX) designer. Ask them what they learned when you have a chance!

Teacher Appreciation Week Celebrations

Parents, you and your students did a phenomenal job of expressing your appreciation for our teaching staff. Here are a few highlights from the week. Thank you for all the cards, signs, food, and gifts you sent in so that these teachers know how much we value them.

Middle School Days: Algebra, Lunch, Life Skills, and STEAM Experiments

Everyday life at school for a middle school student involves lots of concentration and learning, but don’t worry — they have fun too! Here are our 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students learning everything from algebra to science and life skills (with some lunch silliness thrown in).

StoryLab Special Recording Projects

Our students in K-5 worked hard on special recording projects this week in the StoryLab. The rest is classified information!

4th & 5th Graders Read to K/1 Students and 1st Graders Begin Nonfiction Writing Projects

Our kindergarten and first graders are learning about writing in a multitude of ways. First, the fourth and fifth graders shared their own writing with them when they read their fiction children’s books to the K/1 classes this week. It’s a huge accomplishment because these 4th and 5th graders went through the entire writing process from brainstorming to drafting and editing — to cross the “finish line” with a published children’s book. Second, our first graders have started working on nonfiction writing assignments. They started today with research.

2nd-3rd Graders Tend the Garden

Our Learnwell garden is expanding, well, sort of. We’ve installed green scape netting to keep the furry friends out of our radishes! Students in 2nd-3rd graders also planted various types of herbs this week. Thank you to one of our parent volunteers who is heading up our garden team this year.

A Learnwell Student Gets Published in a Poetry Anthology

One of our own has been published in the Creative Communication Spring 2023 Poetry Anthology. This student’s poem, titled “My Bird Feeder,” is perfect for spring! Congratulations!

Here’s the winning poem:

My Bird Feeder

In the spring I watch my bird feeder all day.
It hangs from a branch where the birds all play.
I see a brown thrasher and a sparrow that’s gray.
Then comes a red cardinal and a blue jay.

A gentle breeze makes the bird feeder sway.
Some of the seed falls down to the hay
Where naughty squirrels rush to steal it away.

The leaves on the tree are the prettiest green.
I think our back yard is like a dream.
Our back yard is a peaceful scene
When I watch my bird feeder in the spring.

K-5 Learns About the Fruit of the Spirit through Movement and Motion

Our K-5 students came up with motions to depict each fruit of the spirit. From peace and patience to love and joy, these students enjoyed choosing a motion to match the fruit.