Friday by Connor and Sierra

A few things we learned today:


Walnuts are brown inside.
You need to be very specific when telling someone about something.
Finding acute, right, and obtuse angles outside is harder than you might think.
Working with a large group to build a city out of blocks is fun!

Thursday by Connor and Sierra

In Betsy’s math class we worked on Mental Math and DynaMath then we played 24. In Kim’s math class we had bags of things like blocks. We reached in and tried to guess how many were in the bag. Then we checked the bag to see how close we came in our estimate. We had Hollytime. Do you know what infrangible means?  In music Kim gave us a paper with music notes on it and we had to fill in the notes. After lunch we made corrections on sentences that were written on the board. Then we visited Michi’s new office on the third floor and she talked to us about The Big One. Now we are going to computer class.

Camp Roanoke by Sierra and Connor

Yesterday we went to Camp Roanoke. It was awesome!!! We climbed a 44 foot climbing wall. We also did a thing called the Giant’s Ladder. The steps were much wider than normal. We had to work with a partner to try to climb the steps. We did a Blind man’s Maze. You worked with a partner. One person was blindfolded and the other one had to tell how to get through the maze. Then we switched. It was hard, but fun. We also did a giant spider web. We had to get the whole team through the web without touching the strings. The day was fun!!!!!!


Today we got to share our Book Projects. That was fun, too.

*Notes from Betsy:

We raised $30.00 with the Goody Sale. Many thanks to parents who sent items in.
Keep an eye out for photos of our experiencec at Camp Roanoke. The children were amazing. I couldn't be more proud of the team work, supprt, and encouragement I observed yesterday.

Monday by Connor and Sierra

In Kim’s math class we did a worksheet about classification. In Betsy’s math class we did some pre-algebra and a worksheet about angles. We had to draw lines inside a square to create angles and answer questions about them. Some of us had sibling photos taken. In Spanish we had to say, write, and spell our names in Spanish. It was hard. In social studies we drew while Kim read a book to us. In science we found leaves and drew them. Then we had to describe them. We exchanged papers and tried to find the leaf that was described. Now we are going to music.


*Notes from Betsy:
The Telescopic Group will host the Goody Sale on Wednesday, September 28. Please send items to sell.
Tomorrow, September 27 is our trip to Camp Roanoke. All children should wear closed-toed shoes. Please have your child at school on time as we will leave school at 9:00. Although we will be off campus for the day, the weekly homework and Book Project are still due.
Our individual photos will be taken on Wednesday, September 28.
The Fall Festival form and $40.00 payment are due on Friday, September 29.

Friday by Ari and Connor

In Kim’s math class we did two activities, money math problems and addition. In Betsy’s math class we did Mental Math. We cut a square into tangram pieces and had to put it back together. Yesterday we did circle art and today we worked on our pictures some more. In science we made thaumatropes, one big and one small. In social studies we wrote a note and asked for brochures about Virginia. We put together a lot of puzzles with our buddies in Tulie’s class.


*Notes from Betsy:

The Telescopic Group will host the Goody Sale on Wednesday, September 28. Please send items to sell.

Tuesday, September 27 is our trip to Camp Roanoke. If you have not signed and returned the permission form, please send it on Monday. All children should wear closed-toed shoes. Please have your child at school on time as we will leave school at 9:00. Although we will be off campus for the day, the weekly homework and Book Project are still due on Tuesday.

Sibling photos will still be taken on Monday, September 26, however our individual photos will be taken on Wednesday, September 28.
The Fall Festival form and $40.00 payment are due on Friday, September 29.

Thursday by Ari and Connor

In Betsy’s math class we worked on DynaMath and an Add-It puzzle. In Kim’s math class we played Plus, Minus, Stay and worked on patterns. Today we got to see Asia, the puppy. We had Hollytime and music. In music we learned about form and staffs. In class we wrote in our writing journals and read Kind News.

Wednesday by Connor and Ari

In Kim’s math class we did five different things. In Betsy’s math class we learned about different kinds of angles: obtuse, right, acute, complimentary and supplementary. In art we worked on our art journals. This afternoon we wrote stories in our writing journals. After art we played a buzzer game. We have four different colored buzzers. Betsy gave us an answer and we had to discuss it with our team. The first team to hit their buzzer got to say what they thought the question was. It was a lot of fun.

Tuesday by Connor and Ari

Kim’s math class cut out cards for a game and played math games. Betsy’s math class learned about lines, rays, and line segments. We played Bingo with blends and digraphs and we read about the Statue of Freedom on top of the Capitol building in Washington, DC. Then we designed our own Statue of Freedom.

Our Monday by Connor and Ari

Kim’s math class had three papers with math facts that we cut out and sorted by hard and easy. Betsy’s math class did DynaMath, Mental Math, and Around the World. We played a game in Spanish where Elena threw a beanbag and said a letter and we had to say the letter in Spanish. We chose our poems for Poetry Day. In science we did a cool experiment with after-images using a green heart and an American flag colored yellow, green, and black.

*Note from Betsy

Our trip to Camp Roanoke is scheduled for Tuesday, September 27. You will find a permission form in your child's binder. Please sign and return it by Friday, September 23. All children should wear closed-toed shoes. Please have your child at school on time as we will leave school at 9:00.

Sibling photos will still be taken on Monday, September 26, however our individual photos will be taken on Wednesday, September 28.

Some children have not returned the Book Project form indicating that you have seen the project and are aware of the due date. The assignment is in your child's binder.

Fun Friday

Math was really fun today. In Kim's math class we traced shapes and we played math games like Number Ninjas. Betsy’s math class played a game called Target. It’s like Battleship. We had to choose the squares to be our ships. Betsy called out questions and we wrote the answers in the boxes. When all the boxes of a ship had answers we said, "Target hit" and Betsy checked the answers.

The class name skits were lots of fun! Our class name is The Telescopic Group. Kim's class name is Detectives. Together we are the Telescopic Detectives.

Thursday by Noah and Ari

One of the best things we did today was cooking with Tulie. It was really fun and the food was good. We made gluten-free blintzes with vanilla yogurt and cream cheese filling and powdered sugar on top. Everybody had a chance to help. Music was fun because we did light painting to The William Tell Overture.

Wednesday by Ari and Noah

In Kim’s math class we did some worksheets. In Betsy’s math class wedid Mental math,  worked on DynaMath, and played a place value game. We roll the number cube and you fill in the numbers and try to get the highest number possible. We helped our Buddies in Katlyn’s class get ready for their class name skit. In drama we played games. We had a partner and changed three things about our clothing and had to guess what was different. In class we wrote poems about ourselves and worked on our class name skit. In art we worked on our journals and our looking glasses.

Our Tuesday by Noah and Ari

In Betsy’s math class we did DynaMath and played a game called Swat. Betsy writes numbers on the board and then says a multiplication problem. The first person to swat the answer with the mini-swatters gets a point for their team. In Kim’s math class we played math games, like Number Ninjas. We made spirals out of paper in art and then formed them into sculptures. After art Betsy wrote sentences on the board and we figured out was wrong with them. After lunch we read National Geographic Explorer, worked on our name skit, and worked in our writing journals.

A New Week by Ari and Noah

In Kim’s math class some people were using cubes to get to 100 in different ways. Other people did math work. Betsy’s math class did Mental Math, worked in DynaMath booklets, and played PIG. We had social studies with Kim. We looked in mirrors and tried to draw ourselves, Then we had science with Betsy. We learned about how our eyes work together. One thing we did was make a paper tube and when we put it next to our hand it looked like we could see through our hands. We did colors in Spanish. After Spanish we figured out our class name skit. Now we are going outside for some extra play time before music.

*Notes from Betsy
Our trip to Camp Roanoke has been changed from Thursday, September 29th to Tuesday, September 27th.
The Upper Elementary Gathering is Thursday at 7:30 in my classroom. I'm looking forward to seeing all of you there.
Please check Kim's blog for a more in-depth explanation of her social studies and math activities.

Friday by Henry and Noah

This morning we did a math activity with Kim’s class called Are You a Square?  We measured our arm span and our height to see if we are a Square, a Tall Rectangle, or a Far-Reaching Rectangle. After Fruit Break we watched the Middle School perform playground safety skits like don’t play with sticks or throw rocks. They pretended ketchup was blood. After lunch we had Buddies with Tulie. We played and read with our new buddies. Then we talked about the National Day of Service and Remembrance and the kinds of service projects we can do at school, at home, and in our community. We also chose our class name. Now we are going to our first Spanish class of the school year.  

Our Thursday by Noah and Henry

This morning we decorated the covers of our Sketchbook Journals. In Betsy's math class we did Mental Math and then worked in our DynaMath booklets. We learned how to play PIG which is a lot of fun! Kim's math class played math games and wrote word problems. Every Thursday after Fruit Break is Hollytime with Kim's class. Holly reads to us and we draw. In music we played a game and we listened to William Tell's Overture and played instruments. After lunch we finished projects we started yesterday and read. Before computer class we talked about our class name......Don't ask!

*Note for parents of children in Kim's math class:

Please check Kim's blog for a more in-depth explanation of their math activities.

Busy Day by Noah and Henry

Today we had math. In Betsy’s math class we worked on KenKen puzzles and played a fun place value game. We also started our September DynaMath booklets. In Kim’s class we made a mirror. After Fruit Break we had Buddies with Katlyn. We traced our hands and wrote things about ourselves on the fingers. In drama we played games to help Louise get to know us. After lunch we had Grouptime with Kim’s class. We designed t-shirts and made people to go with them. In art we worked on our art journals and made a looking glass.

*Note for parents of children in Kim's math class:

Please check Kim's blog for a more in-depth explanation of their math activities.

Our First Day by Henry and Noah

In the morning we got homework for our binders then we did a lot of "Getting to Know You" activities. We worked with a partner to find out things we have in common and things that are different about us. We played a game with a giant polyhedron that had words on it like age, pets, family, and favorite food. Then we played a game with a stuffed caterpillar called Jellybean. Betsy says a topic and you have to name five things before Jellybean gets all around the circle. If you don’t get five, you go in the soup pot. It was raining during Fruit Break, so we played inside. After Fruit Break we went to art and got to draw our favorite thing from the summer on big paper on the tables. After lunch we made a mirror reflection of our names to put in the windows. We also read our homework to the class. Everyone wrote about their best day of the summer. We went to Kim’s class and played some games. One was a hula hoop game where we had to pass it around the circle without letting go of other people’s hands. Before dismissal we chose books and read silently.

*Note from Betsy:
Wow! I think that pretty much sums up the day. This was one of the smoothest beginnings I can recall. What an amazing group of children I have the privilege of working with this year.

Don't forget RSO Maestro David Wiley, soprano Leah Wiley, and flute virtuoso Julee Hickox will be performing Broadway hits, opera showpieces, and jazz duets for flute and piano on September 8, at 7:00 pm, in Talmadge Hall on the campus of Hollins University. Tickets are $25 each and may be purchased at Community School, through our website at www.communityschool.net, and through The Jefferson Center. All proceeds benefit our new MIE keyboard classroom.