April 19, 2014

Hi Folks,

     ​Happy Weekend! We had a great week back and jumped right into our spring lessons. Students were happy to see one another and share new memories from the break. Thanks everyone for your flexibility and for those who joined us on our field trip to Seattle Children's Theatre to see Art Dog. We loved the play and had great weather and lots of time to eat lunch and play at the International Fountain. 

    We also organized our students into committees for the book fair. The Favorite Book Committee will oversee Choice Book Projects and getting them on display. The Decorations Committee will make the room come together in the name of books. The Promotions Committee will visit EC and Infant/Toddler Classrooms next week to read a favorite book. The Saturday Event and Jr. Staff Committee will give book talks and help to answer questions. You will receive a separate email if your child expressed interest in Saturday's event. 

    ​Passion Projects kicked off with a lot of excitement from students, teachers and parents! Friday's folder has the Passion Project packet if you weren't at the meeting. Please take time before this Wednesday to help your child fill out a Topic Brainstorm sheet or two to help him/her decide on an idea. There is a sheet in the homework packet as well as in the Passion Project packet.

    We are looking for a few parent volunteers to join us at the library next Wednesday from 9:30-12:00 to transport and help students locate and check out books for Passion Projects. Please let us know if you can join us!

    In geography, we will learn about the United States including states, capitals, regions, time zones, flags, and more! Next week we will begin our water cycle unit as well as our life science studies of the Plant and Animal Kingdom.

    I had the wonderful opportunity to attend a Social Thinking Conference in Portland last month and gained many new wonderful tools for the classroom. Along with our Choices lessons, we will also be using a framework for feelings and communication called the Zones of Regulation. You can find more information about it at socialthinking.com. There are four zones: blue, green, yellow and red. Blue can mean sad, tired, or bored. Green means alert, calm, happy, proud, etc. Yellow indicates nervous, frustrated, or maybe hungry. Red signifies anger or feeling out of control. 

    After students become familiar with the zones and how they are feeling throughout the day, they can start to build a toolbox of solutions to help them move out of a particular zone and back into green. Vocabulary and conversation help students understand that it is ok-and normal! to feel all the zones. Collaboration and conversation can help us all stay in the green zone. Stay tuned for more updates and don't be surprised if your child tells you they're feeling blue in the morning-we all feel tired when we first wake up! Knowing that can help us relate, understand, and help each other that much more with our feelings. 

    We hope to see you all at the Scholastic Book Fair next week-Monday-Friday from 3-5  and all day Saturday! Have a great weekend!

Peace,

Ms. Jessie and Mr. Ben