Hello Families,
Welcome to Temescal Creek! We are so happy to build a classroom community with you this year!

Our first three days of school involved getting to know one another, as well as getting acquainted with the physical space of the University Avenue campus (UAC) of The Berkeley School.

First, let’s introduce our Temescalians for 2023-2024! (I believe that you can always click on an image and download them to your device!)

Temescalians went on a campus scavenger hunt. Ask them who is at the front desk! They’ll be your point person for any attendance and health related correspondence. Did you know at there are fruit trees on campus? Ask your Temescalian what kind of fruit they are. They should know where the S.E.T. (Student Engagement Team) lounge is, as well as how many bathrooms there are on the ground floor of the campus.

On their scavenger hunt, they collect 3 leaves from campus to use for leaf rubbings. We’ll be using these rubbings in an art project that you’ll be able to see on Back to School Night!

Temescalians played “Get to Know You” Bingo and learned about each other. Creating connections are just a step towards building classroom community.

We introduced the Temescalians to the Temescal Creek classroom library. They decorated their book box signs and learned how to check out/check in library books. Temescalians are welcome to bring books they have borrowed home and books from home into the classroom. We just ask that they return borrowed books in a reasonable time. We ask that Temescalisn have 2-3 chapter books in the book boxes. Choice time books are books like Guiness Book of World Records, Where’s Waldo, and comic books. This crew seemed to enjoy the new titles available in the library!

We enjoyed Core Arts this week. Here is a snapshot of Art with Julianne! She talked about how she and her family experimented with tie-dying shirts with her family this summer, and she talked about the different types of folds and the effects they would result in, and kids designed their own paper shirts and used liquid watercolor to bring their designs to life.

We started our math unit by getting to know each Temescalian as a math learner. We used “people glyphs” to show how many people they like to do math work with (hats), how they like to show their mathematical thinking (glasses), what time of day they like to do math work (nose), and how they feel about math (mouth).

We organized the people glyphs to see that a majority of the class likes to work with one other person, many liked to work alone, and one Temescalian liked to work in small groups. Can you guess what the other graphs are representing?

We made it to Friday! This is a snapshot of Choice Time in Temescal Creek. Temescalians can build with Legos, Kapla blocks, or geometric shapes. They can read, write, or draw. They can follow along videos from GoNoodle.com. Or they can play games from our cupboard like Uno, Spot It, Set, Chess, Labyrinth, etc.

Upcoming Events and Announcements:
– ExDay classes! https://tinyurl.com/ExDayTBSFall23-24
You should have received a flyer in your Temescalian’s backpack with the variety of ExDay classes that are available. Please sign up by Wednesday, September 6 to ensure that classes meet the minimum requirement to carry on!
– Please bring in classroom materials if you have not done so already:

• Roomy, durable non-rolling backpack that fits 8 ½ by 11 folders, lunches, jackets, etc. (Optional: a water bottle to live in the backpack)
• Sketchbook, 8 ½ by 11 max.
• A 12-pack of colored pencils. Recommended: Prismacolor colored pencils. These are lovely, high-quality colored pencils that are vibrant, blend well, and will really add to your child’s art experience. (Optional: purchase an extra pack to donate to the class supplies.)
• A simple 2-pocket folder to transport work and notes to and from school on Mondays and Fridays. Let your child express their personality while choosing or decorating this special folder.
• Family photo(s), 3 max.
• A small object from nature, or a photo of your child in a nature setting that illustrates a summer highlight.

White 1 ½”  binder with a clear pocket in the front, spine, and back. Two interior pockets. (Click here for an example)
– If you haven’t already filled out the parent questionnaire or the student questionnaires, please do so and return them!

It was a fantastic start to the school year! We hope you have a great Labor Day weekend and we’ll see you on Tuesday!

Warmly,
Lisa

Upcoming Events:
September
12 – Picture Day
21 – Back to School Night (Potluck 5:00 – 6:00pm, Informational Meeting 6:00 – 8:00pm)
22 – Minimum Day (Dismissal at 12:20 for Temescal Creek. Children can bring their lunches and we’ll eat together before dismissal)
25 – In-class Guest educator: Keith Gutierrez

October
5 & 6 – Parent Teacher Conferences (no school, childcare available)
9 – Indigenous Peoples’ Day (no school, no childcare)
22 – Fall Fest (10am – 1:00pm)
31 – Halloween Parade on UAC (9:00am)

November
3 – Oakland Ballet: Luna Mexicana at the Paramount Theatre (limited chaperones needed)
10 – Professional Development (no school, no childcare)
20 to 24 – Fall Break (no school, no childcare)