Dear Parents-
WHEW! I am feeling all talked out! I really enjoyed the opportunity to meet with each of you about your wonderful learners. We have a fabulous community and it felt really great to share that with you. Please remember that we are a united team for your child, and you are welcome to speak with me any time you have questions, concerns, or things to celebrate. Definitely remember the "things to celebrate," as I love to hear about the great stuff, too! As was mentioned during parent conferences, we are excited to bring Raz-Kids and Dreambox into the fold for home study. On Tuesday, in addition to the new home study menu, your child will come home with their username information for both sites. On the Math page you will also find power points explaining how to get onto dream box from your home computer and iPad. Please take special note that the site address for Dreambox has been updated for this academic term, so you may need to adjust your settings if you bookmarked the site last year. Gold stars went out last week to Enis Guri, Scott Nadel, and Maria Sigge for naming the changes on the site. They listed details I didn't even think of, including the flash playing of the pictures, the UNIS calendar link, and Happiness 101 link to the side. Also new to the site are the literacy and Home study pages, linked at the top of the page. New this week is a Math page linked at the top. With many of you, I shared ideas to support learning at home. Here is a recap of some strategies we talked about. Literacy:
Math:
Unit Studies:
What's on my Bookshelf? I have three books that I have really been enjoying. Buddha at Bedtime: Edem and I read this together at bedtime, and we are really enjoying the opportunities that arise to talk about character and kindness. And the stories are just fun to read, too! The Conscious Parent (and the second book: Out Of Control) by Dr. Shefali Tsabary has to be one of the best parenting books I have ever read, and it helps me in the classroom, too. The Mindful Child by Susan Kaiser Greenland shares fabulous strategies for practicing mindfulness with your child. I started this one a week ago and have incorporated some practices at home and will be bringing them into the classroom. Social Emotional Learning: The recent events in the world have been very difficult, and I know that many of you have connections to Paris, Beirut, Iraq, and Syria. At UNIS, we will begin the morning on Tuesday with a moment of silence, and I will introduce this as an opportunity to send positive thoughts and energy to those having difficult times. Dr. Topher Collier sent out a message offering support; please know that we are all in this together, and I am also here if any of you need to talk about how your child is processing the tragic events in the world. Please also keep me informed if your child is expressing anxiety or sadness; knowing this will help me to be of greater support in the classroom. I found this article to be very helpful for talking with children about these events.. That's it from me this week! Sincerely, Erin M. Threlfall P.S. On Nov. 19 the PTA hosts the parent teacher social. I will be able to stay for a short while at the very beginning, from about 6:00-6:30. There will be many other families there as well, so it is a great opportunity to meet up with otter UNIS families! Comments are closed.
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SnapshotsA peek at life inside of J3T , curated by Ms. Erin M. Threlfall Archives
June 2016
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