Windham Elementary School Newsletter

May 3, 2013

“Safe, Responsible, Respectful, Ready to learn”

Bake Sale for the sixth grade class trip, this Saturday in Chester by the Chester Green at Lisa Beshay's Good Karma Thrift Shop.

Walking running club started yesterday. There is still time to sign up and join them if you missed this week.

There will be a calendar for May and June coming home on Tuesday. On it will be a calendar of events happening through the rest of the year. Of course, it will be subject to change, but we hope there will not be any.

Back to what we wrote about healthy lunches in April. All of the teachers at the school have home gardens and pledged to grow extra to be used once school starts again. Gail will contribute corn and kale, Sally cabbages, Mickey beets, the PE teacher cauliflower. We were wondering if there are parents who would like to grow extra peppers, tomatoes, winter squash, potatoes, broccoli or more in their gardens this summer. Let us know and we will add your name and vegetable to the list. Or if you do not have a garden, when a fruit like watermelon, grapes or apples are on sale, would you like to donate them for lunchtime.

One trip we will need drivers for is our trip to Vermont Institute of Nature Science. Sally's class, including Pre-K's, will be going there on Wed. May 29. This will be an all day trip and the school will pay admissions for everyone.

As the second reward for earning over another 1000 beads for being safe, we are tentatively planning a trip on June 3^rd, to the Springfield Movie Theater to watch the animated movie, “Epic”. After the movie we will go to the Springfield Recreation Center for swimming.

Plot of Epic: A young girl named Mary Katherine lives in a cabin in the woods with her father and dog. Her father, Professor Bomba, has long studied a group of warriors who live in the forest and protect it as guardians of good. He often will go into the forest and survey them.

One day, the professor does not return from a hike in the forest, so Mary Katherine sets out to look for him. Hours later, she comes upon a group of glowing, falling leaves. Catching one of them, she is suddenly shrunken down. In her minuscule state, she discovers the group of warriors Prof. Bomba has studied, who are known as the Leafmen. Soon she is forced to assist them in a war against forces of evil known as the Boggans and their villainous leader Mandrake, while trying to find out how to return home.

Windham Elementary School Newsletter

April 26, 2013

“Safe, Responsible, Respectful, Ready to learn”

Walking running club begins next Thursday, right after school. If you or your child will be participating please sign the attached announcement.

Pre-k's and kindergartners made kite out of paper bags on Wednesday. The kites flew well and everyone was happy running around the soccer field.

The plants Sally's class planted before vacation are thriving. Kindergarten through 3 graders are keeping a journal of their plants.

The pre-K's also planted, but are not keeping a journal. There are always small four page blank books in their cubbies for them to draw and write in. These books are a huge hit with them. They each have something different they want to express on the pages.

Everyone seemed really happy to get back to school after vacation. This is where a lot of their friends are. In case you are puzzled sometimes by why they bring so much food back in their lunch boxes, it is because they spend as much time as they can talking to each other during snack and lunch time. Probably most of them are pretty hungry when they get home.

Once we finish the month of April, the rest of the school year will go fast. At the beginning of May, I will keep an agenda on the top of the newsletter informing everyone about dates and activities.

There is a stomach bug with vomiting going around. Several had it during vacation and one of the students has it this week. Reminders about washing hands might help keep everyone healthy.

Have a nice weekend.

Windham Elementary School Newsletter

April 12, 2013

“Safe, Responsible, Respectful, Ready to learn”

Vacation is next week. See everyone again on the 22^nd.

April 22^nd is Earth Day. We will do some cleanup around the school and other activities related to taking care of the earth.

School spring concert will be Monday, May 20^th at 6:30. Mr. PJ's class will be going to Starbase in Rutland for 5 Fridays starting in May, so music will move to Monday mornings during that time.

STARBASE is a free program for students (grades K-12, though the main focus is grades 4-8) that provides them with real-world applications of math and science through experiential learning, simulations, and experiments in aviation and space-related fields. The program utilizes instruction modules that can integrate state math and science objectives. A motivational module is included to teach children how to set and achieve goals, take positive action in their lives, and build strong self-esteem. Students and teachers attend the STARBASE school year program for five complete days. Teachers use STAR BASE-generated material to reinforce learning during regular school days. In addition to written materials, facilities, simulators, and trainers are made available to the students.

If spring ever happens we will have a garden again. We would really like to have healthy lunchtimes next year. All of the teachers at the school have home gardens and have pledged to grow extra to be used once school starts again. Gail will contribute corn and kale, Sally cabbage, Mickey beets, the PE teacher cauliflower. We were wondering if there are parents who would like to grow extra peppers, tomatoes, winter squash, potatoes, broccoli or more in their gardens this summer. Speak up and we will add your name and vegetable to the list.

In case you were wondering just what was going on when you got a call for the kids in Sally's class to wear warm clothes on Monday. This is what happened. Sally's heater broke over the weekend, leaking water on the carpet and floor. In order to stop the water, the furnace had to be turned off. The plumber was here first thing Monday morning, the heater is out of the room and a new one is on order. The heat is back on in the rest of the school. Hopefully by the time vacation is over the new one will be installed.

The primary class has been planting beans and other sees in the grow lab. We have been learning about the parts of seeds and what they need in order to grow. Many of them have sprouted and are growing fast.

Windham Elementary School Newsletter

April 5, 2013

“Safe, Responsible, Respectful, Ready to learn”

Please Note: The cakewalk and dance for tonight has been canceled. Michael Donahue broke his wrist and would not be able to play an instrument. We hope to reschedule in May.

Our trip to the Londonderry Rescue Squad was impressive. They divided us into three groups, and proceeded to explain their three different vehicles. One idea was to make the children comfortable with being inside an ambulance, understanding what would be done to help them if there was a need for them to ever be in one. The rescue squad will be coming here later in the spring to show us how to do CPR. This is always reinforced by drawing pictures of what they saw, talking about what their favorite part was, what they learned etc.

One of our subs has a son who has outgrown some of his clothes and toys and she has brought in snow pants and sweatshirts for anyone who might need an extra pair. Every time she subs she brings in some sort of fruit, yogurt or cheese sticks for all the children to share. Last week she brought in a wonderful wooden firehouse. There is a fire truck, hoses, dressed wooden firemen, and a two story building along with a box of furniture to decorate with. This has been quite a hit with the kids at choice time. It it actually good timing coming along the same time as their trip to the rescue squad.

This week Mr. PJ's sixth graders piloted the new SBAC, Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium test for sixth graders in language arts. It will be the new national test in spring of 2015 so we were lucky to get the opportunity to practice it before it become official.

Don't forget. One more week and then it is vacation time.

If you need to get out of the house for a few hours, don't forget that the Town Library is open every Wednesday from 3:00 until 5:00. They have a nice selection of best sellers. The library is not only for adults, there are hundreds of children's books too. The other nice thing about time at the library is getting a chance to meet some of the townspeople you may not have seen for awhile. Stop by and check everything out.

While this is being written, I am listening to the pre-k's with our librarian. They are picking out a book to take home. This is a huge event for them. There are so many books to check out. There is everything from animal books, true stories designed to be read by children, nature books, weather , series for the older kids, Dr. Seuss, and truly wonderful picture books. Check out the books sometime and see the diversity of books.

Windham Elementary School Newsletter

March 29, 2013

“Safe, Responsible, Respectful, Ready to learn”

Congratulations are in order to Miles Hammerle!  Last week, Miles participated in a national honor choir in Hartford, CT, where he  sang in a chorus of 150 6th-through-8th-grade singers from all over the country.  Chorus members had to audition to be accepted into this selective choir, and learn music in advance of the rehearsals they attended in Hartford prior to Saturday's culminating concert.  Miles and his fellow choristers spent many hours preparing the music for this fantastic performance.  Approximately 2,000 audience members gave the singers a standing ovation after their beautiful, moving performance.  Congratulations, Miles!

Wednesday, April 3^rd, we will be leaving on the bus at 8:30 to visit the Londonderry Rescue Squad.

This is the last week for the JISP program and cross country skiing.

Spring vacation will start on April 15^th. We are all hoping for exceptionally good weather that week.

This morning the school visited Richard Pare's sugar house. It is wonderful we have a neighbor near the school tapping maple trees, collecting, boiling, and bottling, who is willing to have us visit. We try to help our students gain an awareness of and respect for the environment they live in. This week the preschoolers were fascinated by one of their classmates sharing her pussy willows with them. They had no idea there was anything that cool around here.

Family dance at the Windham School next Friday, April 5 from 7:00 to 9:00. There will be a family square and contra dance. Sally Newton and Michael Donahue will provide music, calling and instruction. There will be a cake walk so we're looking for donations of cakes, cookies, pies or fruit baskets to be won at the cake walk. If anyone would like to bring fruit juice or a healthy snack (hummus, veggies or chips and salsa) that would also be appreciated. A small donation at the door would also be great. This is a benefit for the 6^th grade class trip.

Each day is interesting on the playground. Right now most of the play area is buried in snow. There are high snow banks all over the area and it is hard to see from one block of the play ground to the next. One of the younger kids came off a snow bank the other day, and checked out the older kids swinging. You could see on his face that this puzzled him, since the swings had been buried in the snow. So, he watched and puzzled for a few minutes. Then he walked across the play area to check out the other swings buried in the snow. He walked back and checked out the older kids swinging way up off the snow and tried to figure out how the difference had happened. We had the big kids show him how they had swung the rubber seats and chains up over the top of the swings a couple of times to make them higher. Big smile from him. Now, he is on the adjusted swings every recess.

Sally's cross country skiers skied at Viking ski center in Londonderry on Wednesday. This is a great cross country center. They are closed for the season, but let Sally bring the kids along. This is a completely different kind of skiing compared to Grafton. They skied through the woods on long trails. It has a nice closed in feeling, with a little wonder as to what will come into view around the next corner. Windham skiers have not been there for several years due to lack of snow. This is a great place to go at nighttime. They have lights throughout the trails and there is a possibility that next year that might be a nice field trip at night time.

The State of Vermont sent us a month of April calendar. April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. We are forwarding the calendar to parent's at home because it has so many excellent ideas for quality time to spend with your children. Lots of times in the rat race of life we forget how many free ways we can have fun. Right now is a great time to check out a sugar house, on a sunny day check out the clouds and see who can find the cloud that looks like a fish or lion etc first.

Leland and Gray drops off a monthly newsletter in a magazine bracket right inside the front door. They are there for you to pick up and take home.

Windham Elementary School Newsletter

March 22, 2013

“Safe, Responsible, Respectful, Ready to learn”

This Friday we will not be doing the Friday night get together at the school. There will be square and contra dancing at the Townshend Country Store. Some of the parents that have helped out here, are planning on going to the dance. Don't forget you can go down and buy pizza for dinner. You can bring along your salad, dessert and drinks to go with the pizza. Pizza is available from 5:30 to 7:30. Dancing starts at 7:30.

Thanks Lisa and Rob for bringing in salsa, chips, hotdogs and rolls last Friday night. Claudia and Beth also helped out and made sure everybody got something to eat.

Our snow day off from school Tuesday presented everyone with a great skiing day on Wednesday. Sally's husband went down early and checked out Grafton Ponds. Even though they are closed for the season they had groomed some of the trails for skier's.

Thursday preschoolers went to their monthly Mighty Acorns at the Nature Museum. This month's program was about Vermont bats and their importance to our health, safety, and food supply. We watched a puppet show and played indoor and outdoor games learning about how bats get around, how they catch their food, and where they sleep. Something that makes our monthly visit to the Nature museum interesting is our ability to make use of the Starboard in Mr. PJ's room.. Before the pre-k's left they watched 20 minutes of you -tube shorts about bats. What the bats eat, how they pollinate, why they are so essential to us, and mostly how baby bats are rescued. They are wrapped in miniscule blankets, held in the hands of the care givers and fed from mini baby bottles. If the babies are too small, a cotton ball is put into their mouth, formula is dropped onto it and they suck that in. They are cleaned with q-tips, so they will know they have to learn to clean themselves. We watched as the babies learned to hang by their back legs. Some of them learned to hang off their caretakers fingers. Watching these shorts, it is great when the kids ask, “Can we see that again?” This prep time beforehand prepares them for the day's program , and they can usually correctly answer almost any question asked by the presenter. To calm them down at one point, she asked the kids to lay on their backs , put their legs on the wall and try to act like bats. That kept them quiet for a few minutes.

While the preschoolers were at Grafton the rest of the school were at the Brattleboro Music Center for their yearly “Meet the Orchestra.” This year the concert was titled “Pathways to Imagination and Performance“ and featured young composers and musicians.

 The children are having a great time playing in all the snow. You might want to send in extra snow pants for the younger children, especially on ski day. They get right into the snow first thing in the morning and can sometimes be soaking wet by 8:30. We hang their snow pants over the

Windham Elementary School Newsletter

March 15, 2013

“Safe, Responsible, Respectful, Ready to learn”

Our evening at school last Friday night was fun. The boys played ball exuberantly down in the All- Purpose room. The smaller children were in Sally's room. We served ice cream around seven. We are doing this again this Friday from 6:00 to 8:00. Everyone is welcome to come and play ball or listen to music and watch short animated cartoons. As of now, there will be four chaperones here this evening. You can drop your kids off and go down the hill and have pizza. Sound like a plan???

Our next Mighty Acorns at Grafton Nature Museum preschool program will be on Thursday, March 21, from 10:00 to 11:30 am. Find out about Vermont bats and their importance to our health, safety, and food supply. We'll watch a puppet show and play indoor and outdoor games to learn about how bats get around, how they catch their food, and where they sleep.

Skiing update: We plan to ski this coming Wednesday and possibly the next, depending on weather and snow conditions. Cross country skiers will probably not go to Grafton Ponds, as they close this weekend, so children will not have to pay a fee. We may ski here in Windham as there is plenty of snow.

Conferences were fairly well attended . If you did not make your conference, give your child's teacher a call and set one up. Thank you.

There is no March Reading Program this year. They ran out of money, so Mrs. Nau has set up a program that she will run encouraging students to read. We will tell you more about this next week.

Pizza nights at the West Townshend County Store: Tonight starting at 5:30, there will be pizza and a concert at the old store/post office in West Townshend. You select your own toppings and then get to watch the pizza bake in the outdoor oven. A $10.00 per pizza donation is appreciated. At 7:30 there will be a concert by Morgan Mecasky and friends, a three piece string band from Ohio.

Next Friday, the 22^nd, there will be pizza followed by a square and contra dance with Sally Newton, Michael Donahue and friends.

Wednesday, April 3^rd, we will be going by bus to visit the Londonderry Rescue Squad. This is a way to introduce the children to how the rescue squad runs, why and how they can help people, and what the inside of the ambulance looks like.

Well, we are back from vacation and already we have had a snow day.

Don't forget that next Tuesday is Town Meeting Day and there will be no school. See you at Town Meeting.

This week Pre-schoolers studied the letter “N” and did review work, writing and tracing numbers, painting, listening to nursery rhymes. Each day we worked with cuisenaire rods. Cuisenaire rods give students a hands-on elementary school way to learn elementary math concepts, such as the four basic arithmetic operations and working with fractions. Each color rod represents a number. White is one, red is two, green is three, purple is four and yellow is five. Right now we are working with putting combinations of rods together to make the numbers one through five. These will make an interesting exhibition to have at an Open House night, helping parents understand this concept more clearly.

Preschoolers can come up with some surprising vocabulary. During Show and Tell they have come up with words such as: delicate, fragile,stabilize. When asked if they know what the words mean, they are able to explain. This is a clear indication of parents talking and interacting with their kids.

It has been wonderful to see all the happy red faced kids on top of the snow banks,sliding down them, shoveling to make their tunnels deeper, building snow men, and more often than not sitting around chatting. Thursday with the warmer weather and higher snowbanks they were even happier.

On the back of this newsletter is a blurb about the changes at West Townshend County store and post office. As everyone who goes down the hill knows, it has had a wonderful face lift. It is now the place to go with friends and have pizza, there is a thrift shop upstairs and the plan is this summer for there to be more organic vegetables for sale. Check it out.