January 23, 2012
I hope 2012 has been good to you so far. Sincere thanks to all of you who have so graciously kept my mother in your prayers. Fourth graders made get well cards for her while she was in the hospital. The excitement she got from reading each and every card was palpable. I know that the thoughtfulness and kindness expressed in those cards cheered her. I can't say thank you enough for that and the other forms of concern your children (from every grade) have shown and continue to show daily. I appreciate their compassion. She is at home now, and recuperating nicely. Thank you, also, for the many cards and presents which I received for Christmas. You really made the holiday season come alive for me. I was so focused on what was happening with my mom that I had paid little attention to the season. It was special having so many of you keep me on your Christmas list.
Fourth graders will be working on projects for Black History month this week and next. Each student will choose an African American who has made a positive contribution to some aspect of American life, briefly write about that person (6 - 8 facts presented as bullets), and put that information together in a pop-up book. The completed project will be due February 1st.
Fifth graders, in groups of 5 - 6 students, will work on aspects of the Civil Rights Movement, write about it and put that information together as a collage. They are to find as many pictures as possible representing that time and their topic to include with the information. The the write-up will be typed at home. We will work on how to present the information in class. Research for this project can be done here using both the internet and books. Any extra information needed should be obtained from their local library. I hope to get the collage up by the end of next week. After that, we will switch gears and return to the Mask Project which we put on hold while I was away. Students seemed excited about completing it. More on that later.
Sixth graders will begin working on the 6th grade play, and time in the library will be replaced with rehearsals and preparation for that event. They will, however, be able to check out books at any time during the day, as long as I do not have a class at the time and I am in the library.
Seventh and Eighth graders have just completed their informative speeches. For the most part, the presentations were well done and quite enjoyable. We will resume the reading of War Horse which they started before Christmas in anticipation of the movie ( I like to encourage students to read the books prior to seeing the movies made about them).
I will read Folktales and Fairytales to the Primary grades, and share with them the characteristics of each for the next month. I will start with stories from Africa. Anansi the Spider is a common folkloric tale whose origins are not known, but it is thought that the legends may have come from either West Africa or South Africa. One of these stories was shared with the students through the cultural program which was at school last Thursday. I hope your child shared that experience with you, as it was very interesting and entertaining. The students seemed to enjoy the presentation. I will bring more stories like it to life for them, as well as share some of the more traditional ones known to our children.
Stay well. God bless you.
Mrs. Guerrier
