Thank you to all the grown ups who were able to meet with us for parent-teacher conferences last week. We really value and enjoy the time to connect and make the home-school loop even stronger. Please know that conferences are not the only time to do this important work and that we are available for questions, comments, and wonderings whenever they come up.
Tuesday is class photo day and Pi Day . . . we welcome students bringing in any homemade or store-bought pies to help us celebrate this important number and day. We will be reading Pi picture books, brainstorming and creating Pi puns, and calculating Pi around the classroom. Temescal mathematicians will also be challenged to memorize as much of Pi as possible. What is Pi you ask? Click here to find out more.
All the work we have put into measuring will help us calculate Pi. Last week Paula cinched up our measurement unit by helping us compare centimeters and inches. This week we will be moving into an exploration of area and starting to use what we learn for a project that maps out a farm.
We put the finishing touches on our models of shelters built from natural materials collected at Strawberry Park. Then we went on a gallery walk to learn from each other’s building process and final products before they went home.
Time was spent reflecting on our year so far and setting goals to share at conferences. Each student enjoyed looking through their portfolios, making observations, and reading encouraging notes from their grown ups. Three pieces of work were chosen by them for their conferences: one that they were proud of, one that exhibited a goal, and one that they just wanted to make sure their grown ups would see.
After we wrapped up our biography unit in Information Literacy, Rebecca brought down some eighth graders to interview the third grade biographers. The Temescalians role played being the African American they read about and took notes on and answered the questions from his/her point-of-view. The eighth graders were impressed by their knowledge and wrote the class thank you cards.
Kate Klaire taught us a mindfulness game called Guess That Feeling, where one student silently acts out a feeling and the class tries to guess it. The wide variety of guesses resulted in a thoughtful class conversation about how you can’t assume how someone else feels inside even though they give clues with facial expressions and body language so, “when in doubt check it out!” Also, naming your own feelings and checking in with others about their is a powerful SEL tool and way to connect. After the game we looked a visual representation of of feelings and colors that overlaps with our Zones of Regulation work.
We also finished up our layers of the atmosphere art/science pieces that are now hanging in the classroom. Come by and take a look at the beautiful blue hues if you haven’t seen them yet!
And speaking of art, Julianne and Emily would really appreciate some extra hands in the Art Studio this week as they prepare for the big show coming up. Third graders have their art time Thursday morning from 8:45 and 10:15. For more information about the Art Show and other volunteer opportunities check out the latest Newsnotes.
Lice has been an ongoing challenge in Temescal, at TBS, and in the community at large, and while lice are not a public health issue, we know they are an inconvenience. With that in mind, TBS is bringing in a professional team to conduct a UAC head check on Friday, March 17. We’ve chosen a Friday so that affected families have the whole weekend to begin treatment. If your student is found with live bugs or nits during Friday’s check, again, you must thoroughly treat your child’s hair and comb out nits before they return to school, as well as continue to use the nit comb for the next few weeks. Early cases of lice are often very difficult to see. Even if the professional check finds no lice on your child, please continue to check at home once a week.
Here are a few other snapshots from our short but full week!
