Hope you had a good 3 day weekend, amidst our smoky skies! I'd like to dedicate this newsletter to the veterans who fought, and soldiers who continue to fight, for our American democratic ideals; the fire fighters battling our California wildfires; and the families who have lost their homes, loved ones, and communities. My heart continues to be with you all!
Thank you, parents, for taking the time to meet with me to discuss your precious kiddos! I always look forward to conference time to converse with parents. I find it very enlightening and helpful! As a reminder, daily reading (30 minutes daily) is our 2nd grade homework. I have added to our Resource page links to Reading Reflection Strategies and Finding a Book at Your Child's Lexile Range. Remember, you can get to our Resource page via Westlake Charter School's website (select teachers, then grade, then my class website link) or just click over to the next tab above after you read my weekly newsletter. Lots of good stuff for your child and you to peruse and practice!
Curriculum Highlights:
In Language Arts, we have switched gears from narratives and are reading and writing informational text. We learned about plants and photosynthesis and wrote about something we are experts on. We learned about the Journey of a Recycled Cardboard Box and tied it to our Journey of a Strawberry. We rotated through 30 stations around the classroom perimeter to identify a good vs. a service. In Math, we continue to practice different strategies for 3 digit addition without regrouping. (I plan on integrating some enrichment activities and projects for mathematicians that would like a little more challenge.) We sure enjoyed time with our little buddies in Mrs. People's class, watching a video on our Core Value of Responsibility and making collaborative posters together. We also had a fun K-2 Morning Meeting in the gym led by Mrs. Battin!
School-wide News:
Parent Survey: Please click HERE fill our parent survey use to rate your family's experience at Westlake Charter School during the 2018-19 school year. These questions help us evaluate how we are doing on our current strategic plan. Deadline 8:00 AM on Tuesday, November 13th.
Olympic Triathlon: Click HERE to set up your Olympic Triathlon Family Fundraising website. Click HERE to volunteer for the Olympic Triathlon Event Day on Thursday, November 29th. The Olympic Triathlon is in full swing and students are excited to hear about which class receives the Olympic torch and which wins a donut party. Students receive a raffle entry for every $20 collected with no maximum. Two donut parties (one Elementary and one Middle) will be awarded every week! Additionally, there will be prizes for students meeting their personal goal, classes with 100% participation and top earners.
Thanksgiving Break: School will be closed November 19th to 23rd for Thanksgiving Break. Our BASE program will be open from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM on November 19th and 20th.
2nd Grade Kindness Movement:
In the middle of a busy conference week, I go to my desk between conferences to discover an unexpected post-it message mindfully placed on my coffee travel mug that reads: "I like you Ms. A. To: You From: ?" Touched by this sweet, anonymous act of kindness, I mention in Morning Meeting the next day how it lifted my weary spirit! And now, a Mystery Kindness Movement has started! Students are using our class post-it notes to write anonymous kindness notes to their classmates!
That's all for now! Have a great week!
Mrs. A