The Green Machine: Yoga, Reader's Theater, Number Sense and More!

Hello families! Wow - as we come to the end of the fifth week of school, we are so proud of how well our students are picking up the routine, and cheering on success through exploration and socialization. They are starting to demonstrate the acceptance of taking risks in areas of math, science, language arts, and more. In doing so, they deepen their understanding of the subject areas, while building a foundation that supports future learning.

We all come to the table with unique perspectives and experiences. By working as a team of learners, we can gain knowledge that we would otherwise not have gained based on our background knowledge alone. It takes collaboration and exploration to really enrich learning.

One thing we stress in our classrooms is how we learn through mistakes. MISTAKES ARE GOOD! Without mistakes there isn't any learning taking place. You have to try things over and over again, using different methods, in order to truly master a skill. This is why we encourage our students to think "outside the box." This isn't easy. We are often so used to being told what we should learn and exactly how we should learn. Sure, we can memorize facts and spit them back out, but can we really apply them to real life situations if we haven't been given the chance to explore what works for us. Authors don't write a perfectly crafted book the first time around. They have to read, edit, rewrite, delete, and so on, before the book is ready for publication. Gymnasts don't walk across the balance beam the first time. They train their bodies to balance through years of rigorous training.

It is the choices we make following the mistakes that determine what level of knowledge we will gain. We choose to never give up. Your children make that choice over and over again every day at school. We are proud of the confident human beings they are becoming in such a short amount of time. There are no limits to what they can achieve. Our "Community" unit in Social Studies has really helped us understand the benefits of making good choices, and bringing our best to every situation.

We continue to discuss, write and read about everyday people in the community, school, and even our classrooms, that help us along the way. Come into our classrooms and you will find a small community of learners who respect each other and our ideas, who are safe to "give-it-a-go" without feeling fearful, and who will turn that puzzle piece just a little more to the right to make it fit, even when it feels like they've already tried every direction.

We would like to thank the Middleburg Fire Department for taking the time to visit our school tomorrow, Sept. 5th, to educate our students on the service they provide the community. We are looking forward to posting those pictures to next week's post. Also, a huge thanks to Mrs. Lutter for planning the visit!

Thank you for supporting us and your children at home. You are their first and most important teachers - and we are so grateful for you :)

Please enjoy some photos from the week.

Thank you volunteers!