Welcome Back!

We are writing our first blog of the 2022 school year after a busy fourth day of school! There is so much to share after meeting you at the Open House and combining the first year and second year students for our first week. The over aching theme of the week has been getting to know each other, the classroom, and the routines which has most likely left your students tired. It is hard to absorb so much in a short time!! We are entering all the systems slowly, mindful of this large transition.

Open House

Thank you for the GREAT turn out for the Open House! It made an impact on building community between our students, parents and teachers. It also made a difference on Opening Day when students new and returning entered the classroom, finding familiar materials to work with and friendly faces. We look forward to Back to School Night on September 15th at 7:00pm and Listening Conferences on September 16th to share more information about our daily learning and about your hopes and wishes for the year.

Morning Work

As your child enters the classroom they have the opportunity to “Take Care of the Classroom” one of our three classroom rules. The other two are “Take Care of Yourself and Take Care of Others”. Watering plants, feeding the animals, washing the windows are fun activities to look forward to as the students say goodbye to parents and enter the day. Excellent job getting to school before 9:00am each day, as we enjoy every minute of learning at Acera!

Morning Meeting

During Morning meeting we greet each other and start the day! We incorporate literacy, math, theme, and of course social/emotional work during the 15-25 minute together time. This week we have been learning all the classmates and teacher’s names by playing the “Name Stretching Game”. Ask your child about it! We pack a lot of learning into this short block of time while we build community.

Literacy

We are easing into Reading and Writing this week providing opportunities for drawing, writing, fine motor, as well as early screening opportunities. The most important literacy work at this time of the year is sharing stories, a pattern of listening and responding, that is a foundation of all language learning. We are lucky to have Ms. Susan in the classroom as our literacy specialist and many adults with kind and listening ears.

Snack & Recess

We are eating indoors this year to support healthy eating habits as well as appropriate social skills. Using utensils, access to hand washing, and appropriate seating supports healthy habits. The conversations have been delightful and provided important connections at the beginning of the school year and sprouting early friendships.

Math Groups

We have been exploring our math materials, as well as seeing numbers everywhere! We have completed the first round of math screenings “Too EAST!” and are getting ready for next steps! Our class is demonstrating huge capacity for mathematical thinking, reasoning, and problem-solving. As always we are finding the “just right” work for the individual and this will take a couple of weeks.

Rest and Read

We have EXCLUSIVELY been resting the week! Finding a cozy place to sit or lie down and having a few moments of peace, quiet, and reflection has been important. This time of day will eventually become reading instruction including “Book Clubs” where small groups of children will bond over books.

Theme

The Theme of the year is “Place”. We will start with our classroom space, move toward to the entire school environment, and then to our greater neighborhood. With so many materials to explore, we will spend the next several weeks focusing on our classroom.

Read Aloud

We are reading Stuart Little by E.B. White at the end of each day… except for today when we were in such FLOW we forgot it was the end of the day! Reading to your child every night is just about the best thing that you can do as a parent. At this age readers and non-readers need to have super star adults to read with expression and voices! Stopping to ask questions, “What do you think will happen next?” or checking for comprehension, “What just happened?!?” is important home and school work.

Greetings from Lisa

Kia Ora!

Greetings from a sunny and beautiful Saturday (Friday in MA) in New Zealand. It is early spring here and there are daffodils and lambs everywhere. I had an amazing time with my kids, Kaitlyn and Thomas, catching up with lots of family that they haven’t seen for five years. I drove on the other side of the car and the road, which is very tricky! We have seen bubbling mud and steam vents on the side of the road, soaked in thermal mineral pools, gone up a mountain in a gondola and a luge ride down, been out on a boat and gone fishing – I caught a snapper that we cooked and had for dinner. I have also been taking lots of walks along the beach where my family live.

I am so enjoying my time, but I am also very exited to get back and be in the classroom with Ms. Jen, learning and growing with all our students. I hope you all have a wonderful week and I’ll look forward to checking in about my next adventure to a place called “Hahei” which has hot water springs under the sand, at the beach!

Ms. Lisa