Friday Letter - 06.10.11

June 10, 2011

Dear River Run Families,

This past week I have been meeting with each of your children to review their portfolios. It is amazing how much they have learned. Lessons continue daily. I have touched on telling time throughout the year, but recently have put new work out on the shelves and given group lessons on the hour and minute hands.

This week we learned about many animals that appeared during the Paleozoic Era (540,000,000-252,500,000 years ago). The nautiloid, one of the early animals to appear on the Time Line of Life, moved through the Cambrian oceans by jet propulsion. It would shoot water through its tube. It could also fill its various chambers with water in order to sink itself or empty its chambers of water to rise. The first man-made submarine was named after this sea creature. The children have been able to look at and touch fossils from this era. Most of them are familiar with the trilobite, which lived in the muddy bottom of our seas. I was able to bring in two fossils of trilobites. This is a fun work and we will continue to work on the Time Line of Life next week.

Have a nice weekend,
Amy

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This week we finished up our country reports and celebrated learning about Mexico, Central American, the Caribbean Islands, and South America with our South of the Border Fiesta Luncheon on Thursday. The students enjoyed participating in this last food preparation project of the school year as they shredded, chopped, and peeled ingredients for our tacos. Then on Thursday they had a delicious lunch of Build Your Own tacos, guacamole and chips, Mexican lasagna, rice, and Sopapillas for dessert. They also fried plantains and sampled them as a dessert with brown sugar and honey. Mexican decorations (which they made), Spanish music, and a piñata were all part of the festivities!

Today the class took another neighborhood walk for PE and we were thankful the weather cooperated so well. We had a lovely walk to and from Union College where we lunched under the shade trees and in a pavilion with live music playing nearby. After lunch, Greg Lindenfelser joined us for a tour of the beautiful grounds and taught us about the difference between annuals and perennials, the Latin names for trees, and the names of many plants and trees. We were also joined by Connie from the Union College Grounds Staff. She discussed the history of the gardens and the reasons for choices of plants. She showed us the Time Garden, the Evergreen Garden, the Japanese Garden, and more!

Looking ahead, we hope you can join us in the classroom on Friday, 6/17, at 1:00 p.m. for portfolio sharing, followed by a year-end celebration with ice cream from Stewarts. Parents will be taking textbooks home on that day as well. If you plan to take your child home with you, please be sure to call the bus department to cancel transportation for that day, if necessary.

In the final week of school, we’ll be having Special Lunches on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday for those who choose to participate. The students have requested another Chinese food meal and another pizza meal. We’ll also try out a sub sandwich day as there is a deli two or three blocks from us that Amy and Debbie say has tasty subs! More details will be available next Friday about costs and menu options.

Best wishes,
Nancy

Upcoming Dates:
June 17th – 1:00 p.m. – Portfolio Day and Ice Cream Social (for students and families)
June 20, 21, 22 – Special Lunches for Interested Students (Chinese food, pizza, subs)
June 23rd – Last Day of School for RiverRun Students