Dear Parents,
Now that the excitement of the first week of school is
behind us and we have all had a chance to catch our breath I wanted to give you
a few updates of how our first week went. It has been fun getting to know the students
and observing how they learn. The first two days we worked on a group project
where the students needed to use teamwork to build a structure that could
withstand wind. It was great to see them work through their struggles, come up
with some interesting structures using their own problem solving strategies and
most importantly working together as a team. I did take a few photos that will
be posted on the website soon. Later in
the week we worked on the creative side as the students wrote stories encouraging
them to use their imaginations. I have to admit we have some very creative
thinkers in our class.
As expected in the beginning of any school year there will
be a few minor classroom changes. These changes are being made to help students
focus more and be less distracted during classroom time. The first change is
regarding individual pencil sharpeners. These little items are creating major
distractions and I have asked all students to leave them at home. Sharpened
pencils will always be available to the students. All they need to do is trade in their dull or
broken pencil for a sharpened one. The second change is in regard to the class
bathroom. The students are thrilled at the uniqueness of having a bathroom in
the classroom. They are so thrilled that they like to spend much of their day
in there at the most inopportune times.
As a result we will be starting a “bathroom pass system”. Students will
be given an equal number of passes for the week. Once they have used all their
passes for the week they will not have the opportunity to use the bathroom
during class time. Please remind and
encourage your student that the bathroom is accessible to them before school,
during both recesses and lunch without having to use a pass. Of course, if
there is an emergency they will be allowed to use the bathroom. The final
change is regarding water bottles. We
have already had several spills on our carpet from milk and juice that has
required carpet cleaning. Students are
asked to bring water to drink during class time to keep hydrated and they can
easily refill their bottles during the day.
Milk and juice is only acceptable during lunch. Thank you for your
understanding.
It was a pleasure to meet many of you during Back to School
Night and the School Dedication. As you are aware our TV monitor was not yet hooked
up and I do want to bring your attention to the following link (click here) which is a video I created to
give you a tour of the class website. The website will be your greatest source of
online information about what is happening in class. Please enjoy and refer to
the site often.
If you have any questions please feel free to email me at
the address below.
Mr. Williams
jwilliams@streamcharter.net
