The Giving Tree

Here is a glimpse of our first graders' first readers' theater production this year. Thanks to Mea's mom, Susan Campbell, for adapting Shel Silverstein's story and for being an inspiring director. They worked very hard on listening for their cues and using loud stage voices to project their lines. The sound quality of this video does not fully capture their great efforts. You could tell that the students' vision of their performance far transcended the shopping bag costumes...coincidentally also a generous tree by-product!

A few last words for 2008...

While our little plants endure the freezing wind and rain outside, we have been keeping the latke oil sizzling in Room A. We learned about this delicious Hannukkah tradition and the story of the miracle of the Maccabees' victory reclaiming the temple in Jerusalem and the lantern oil that lasted 8 nights. The children also learned from Mrs. Vasquez about winter lights and decorations that are made in the Philippines to commemorate La Posada, or Mary and Joseph's search for a place to stay in Bethlehem. The beautiful star they created marked the stable that was finally their resting place. Isabella's mom came and told us the story of the Nativity that Christians celebrate this time of year. This coming Friday, Mrs. Cote will teach the northern European tradition of St. Lucia wreaths of candles.

Below is the text of my most recent newsletter home.

December 10, 2008

Dear Room A Families,

Here’s your December newsletter. Time is flying by…2008 is almost over! We have just marked our 67^th day of school on the calendar.

I really enjoyed the time to meet with each family for conferences a few weeks ago. I know the report cards contain a great deal of information to take in all at once, but I encourage you to look back at the second page listing concepts and skills to think about what to preview or reinforce at home with your child. Practice of math skills can be done in ways that don’t even feel like work – playing board games and card games, sorting or making patterns with toys, counting yellow houses or red cars as you drive, playing with a handful of change. You could even make up oral story problems and embed the number sense in a funny or imaginative context. Practice of language arts skills can be done sharing oral stories, writing a grocery list together, playing rhyming games over a bowl of cereal, doing a word hunt in a favorite book, writing a letter together to a relative or Santa, going to the library (West End branch has Tuesday afternoon story time at 3:30!) and picking out some new books to borrow.

Speaking of sharing the joy of reading, I am happy to tell you that we still love meeting weekly with Room 3 reading buddies. We visit with the third graders each week on Wednesdays after lunch to hear them read aloud to us. Sometimes we will choose the books and sometimes they will choose the books. The pine cone turkeys made in honor of Thanksgiving were thanks to our buddies and Ms. Kielty’s cooperation.

The holidays are here and anyone who would like to come to the classroom to present special winter traditions to the group is welcome. You could share music, food, stories, or family treasures. Please let me know as soon as possible what you would like to do and when you can visit. Or your child can simply bring in an object that represents a favorite tradition you observe. We will be reading a few stories and doing a few projects to broaden the children’s awareness of diverse winter celebrations. As you may have noticed, we have done minimal Halloween and Thanksgiving arts and crafts. Though it is worthwhile to channel the children’s enthusiasm about popular celebrations, Paden teachers agree not to spend much valuable learning time on consumer culture that may or may not reflect everyone’s home values. We do appreciate genuine opportunities to teach respect and curiosity about our community of multiple languages, nationalities, and religions. Speaking of community awareness, please remember that our school is doing a canned food drive to contribute to the Alameda Food Bank for families in need at this time of year. Finally, the first graders are practicing a short play on the universal theme of giving that they will perform for the kindergarteners and other classes.

This play, based on Shel Silverstein’s book, The Giving Tree, also ties in to our year-long theme, “How Does Your Garden Grow” and wraps up our science study of trees. Though the weather is turning chilly and the harvest time has passed, we have not forgotten about the garden! We have planted carrots, beets, and radish seeds in the large communal garden and in pots behind Room A. We are watching for changes and drawing and writing what we observe in garden journals. The roots will be ready to pick and examine as “Botany on Our Plate” later in the winter. We will be starting a new science unit relating life science and the garden involving critters that live in the soil, in the pond and on the plants. We will be studying worms, snails, fish, and a special surprise garden helper after we return in January. By the way, if any other parents have time on Friday mornings, there is a small group of volunteers doing weeding and other general garden chores right after opening ceremony. It is a drop-in group, so please feel free to join in and keep our garden well-tended. I will end with a little personal announcement. I am expecting a baby in May next year. I will share this with the children tomorrow at our class meeting, but I wanted to inform all you families. I am planning to continue teaching through mid-May. I wish I could finish out our year completely, but I am glad that we will have finished all of our major projects before I go on maternity leave.

Happy Holidays!
Joanna Katz

Walk-a-Thon Moments

Pumpkin Patch Postcards

What a busy couple of months!

Down below is the most recent class newsletter to summarize some of the September and October highlights in Room A. Right here are pictures of four favorite trees we "adopted" on our campus. With each tree is the team of scientists who selected and have begun observing and recording their observations of these trees. They will draw, measure, and write about changes they notice.

From left to right: Strawberry Tree, Pear Tree, Willow Tree, Oak Tree

Dear Families,

Boo! October is almost over already. It’s high time for news from Room A. In the past 41 days of school we have accomplished a lot! There is so much to tell, so here are just a few highlights:

We wrapped up our welcome interviews. Each child had a turn to be in the spotlight, calling on classmates who have up-close and personal questions. We recorded the answers on chart paper so everyone could read about each interviewee. As we reread the interview chorally, we noticed where there were capital letters and periods. We also said words s..l..o..w..l..y to hear all the sounds and which letters were making those sounds. Then the class drew pictures and wrote messages to the person we interviewed that day, showing caring, friendship, and attentive listening. This has been part of our community building work to make sure the students know how to start conversations with their peers and how to discover common interests. Many of the children also worked hard at using the life skill of patience waiting for their turns to be interviewed. Thank you to Sebastian’s mom for typing these interviews up so that we can have a class book to read and posters to take home.

We have also managed to go on three field trip adventures! We have had wonderful chaperones every time. Our Farmer’s Market walk was yummy. Thanks to Joe’s, Chloe’s, Mea’s, Haashim’s, and Theo’s parents for coming along to help guide us shopping and making salsa afterwards. Safety Town was a hit as always. Thank you to Logan’s, Mea’s, Isabella’s, and Sebastian’s moms for coming along. Finally, the big pumpkin patch extravaganza was a real thrill. I’m sure that your children have told you about the gentle ponies, the daunting maze, the endless hay and piles of pumpkins, and the wild tractor ride through the fields of corn and gorilla statues?!! Special thanks to Turean’s auntie, grandma, and mom, Isabella’s mom, and Haashim’s mom for driving the long distance and managing some very excited students.

These trips and our science unit on trees are both connected to our year-long theme: “How Does Your Garden Grow?” We have been studying trees and their parts, their distinct sillouettes, their needs, their benefit to the environment. We have been learning how to be scientists, including what it means to observe closely and record detailed observations with pictures, words and discussion. The students have adopted certain trees on our campus to watch throughout the year for seasonal changes. Now we are focusing on leaves. The samples sent from home have been wonderful for comparing size, shape, texture, and pattern.

Also relating to our garden theme, on Wednesdays, we have begun outdoor lessons with Chloe’s mother. The students are getting a chance to go out in small groups to do some hands-on learning. So far, the students have estimated and investigated how many seeds are in cherry tomatoes like the ones growing in our patch. They also did a super job of clearing out the last of the straggly summer growth, chopping up the old plants, and adding them into our cold compost. To really be able to explore the garden in a thoughtful way, small groups work much better than the whole class. If other parents would like to help get out and grubby, please let me know because the more we can experience of the real critters and living things, the more we will learn.

Another treat we look forward to on Wednesdays is Reading Buddies with Room 3. This time right after lunch is short and sweet, but it is really meaningful to see Ms. Kielty’s third graders being patient and caring, sharing books and bonding with the younger ones. Occasionally this year, we will also plan some special projects for the two classes to spend a little longer working together.

Last but not least, for 4 Wednesday sessions, we will have teaching artist, Lisa Bush Finn coming to our class to work on dance movement and vocabulary with us. This Creative Education Institute was planned to synch up with a wonderful professional dance company performance that we will see at school on November 6^th. The students will go to the Deborah Slater Dance assembly with some experience and information from lessons with Lisa to be able to appreciate and remember more attentively. Then following the assembly, the students will have additional opportunities to reflect upon and re-enact some of what they enjoyed at the performance.

I want to pass on that our music, P.E. and Media Center teachers have complimented Room A on great listening, cooperation, and enthusiastic participation. I am impressed at how quickly our group is learning to be polite, follow directions, and take initiative to help each other. We have class meetings each day after lunch. Many children are articulate problem solvers, explaining to their peers how to include multiple friends in games or how to stand up to someone who is teasing. We have a chart by our door with an “I Message” script for children to use to express their feelings and listen carefully to each other. Class meetings are another time we practice these messages, as well as compliments.

Now, if you are eager to hear more about your own child’s progress – your opportunity is fast approaching! Conferences are coming up November 17-21. These will be individual conferences, so you can ask questions and receive your child’s report card. Please see the attached form to fill out your time preference. Return these ASAP so that I can accommodate your needs. Note on your family calendar that those five days are all 12:30 dismissals.

Sincerely,

Joanna Katz

Farmers' Market Moments

Our First Walking Field Trip

Today, we had a great outing to the Farmers' Market with Room B. We harvested dozens of tiny, sweet, orange cherry tomatoes from our school garden, but needed to round out this harvest with a few more ingredients to make a lunch treat. We had wonderful parent chaperones that walked the students through all the stands, asking the vendors questions about the produce, tasting all the samples that we were offered. Pluots, peaches, and strawberries seemed to be the favorites.

Haashim's group successfully found green and round yellow onions. Mea's group found cilantro. Joe's group found big, juicy red tomatoes. Chloe's group found some unusual yellow and green tomatoes. Can you guess what we made with this collection of fruits, roots, and herbs? Yes, delicious salsa! We were lucky that Theo's mom had the idea to make some nectarine salsa to taste and compare to the traditional tomato salsa.

After taking turns at the cutting boards - much washing, chopping, mixing and a few shakes of salt - our snack was ready. The children from both classes enjoyed having a few corn chips and a small cup of both kinds of salsa to go with their lunch. Many who reluctantly took their servings ended up deciding it was a pretty tasty combination. It was a great way to celebrate the whole group staying to eat in the multipurpose room together starting this week. Of course, this was also a great example of how the life skill cooperation can make our classroom community more delicious.

More Than You Probably Want to Know...

The following is a copy of the letter I am giving out at our Back-To-School Night. I'll warn you that it contains almost nothing about the garden. However, I thought it might be useful to archive it here in case anyone wants to double check my nuts and bolts manifesto.




Dear Families,

I am happy to be introducing or reintroducing myself to all of you families of the students in Room A. My name is Joanna Katz and I feel privileged to be a member of the collaborative K/1 teaching team at Paden School.

My philosophy of teaching continues to evolve as I learn from children, from parents, and from other teachers. I will strive to provide a healthy balance of exploration, guided choices and systematic practice of valuable skills in all subject areas. I have seen children rise to high expectations when empowered by having input in their academic program and responsibility to revise and continue to improve their work products. Whenever possible, I try to design multiple encounters with the same concepts, thematically linking activities in reading, writing, math, science, art, and so on. I believe students need various modes of accessing and expressing understanding about a subject.

I strongly believe in open and honest communication between everyone involved in nurturing each life long learner. Please feel free to email me at jkatz@alameda.k12.ca.us or call 748-4014. This is an email account and a phone number I only check Monday through Friday at school. If you have time-sensitive questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to stop by to talk to me before 8:10 a.m. or after 3:00 p.m. If I have meetings or other business, we will schedule an appointment. I value your input into your child’s educational program very highly. After all, you are the students’ first teachers and experts on their successes, as well as their needs.

My principal goal for the first several weeks is to build a foundation of caring cooperation in the classroom. The grand task of becoming readers , writers, artists, scientists and mathematicians can only be accomplished through teamwork in a harmonious environment. The children and I will openly discuss differences of opinion and learning styles so that it feels safe to go at one’s own pace, to ask questions, to suggest variations on assignments, and especially to make brave guesses even when one is not sure of being right. The children can be incredible supports to each other, tireless peer-teachers and even conflict mediators when they are invited to take initiative to help. When students feel known and appreciated by their classmates, they will be ready to take risks and to take responsibility for mistakes. We practice the language of lifeskills so that they learn the vocabulary of positive self-discipline that is spoken schoolwide.

Our weekly schedule includes Music and P.E. sessions on Tuesdays (10:40 to 11:40) and Fridays (8:30 to 9:30). The children will get a half hour session with Mr. Slauson and with Ms. Towsey each of these days. The children need to wear good running shoes and comfortable, active clothing on these days. Wednesday mornings we have Media Center (10:40 to 11:40) with Ms. Russell which includes book check out from the school library and lessons in the computer lab. Books and CDs can be borrowed and returned weekly.

Each morning, we also do a one-hour switch with our neighbor class. First graders from both classes come to Room A for first grade math instruction. Kindergartners go to Mrs. Vasquez in Room B for K reading, math, and social studies. The purpose of the switch is to provide differentiated instruction for the children at their level of academic readiness. Mondays and Thursdays we will have longer blocks of time for thematic projects integrating literature, science and art with our yearlong topic “How Does Your Garden Grow?.” At least twice a week, there will be some Choice Time for free play. This is valuable oral language, logic and social skills practice! The fifteen minutes after lunch is always our class meeting to share compliments, reflections and problem solve together.

With our packed schedule in mind, please make every effort to be on time. I will take attendance at opening ceremony and your child will be marked tardy if s/he arrives in line after Mr. Rust begins speaking. It is really best if the kids are here at 8:10 so they can greet friends and be active on the yard before coming into the room. New traffic rules are in the works for safety reasons, so be prepared to walk, carpool or park on the street for drop off and pick up times in the near near future. If your child is absent, please call the office 748-4014. If you are going on vacation, please try to plan in accordance with our school calendar. We lose money for every absence - even those due to illness! If you will be gone more than 3 days and less than 11 days, please arrange for make-up work, a.k.a. contract study. You must give the office and me at least a week’s notice to prepare materials.

I know many of you are wondering about homework and school supplies. Homework will start the week of September 15th. The children will take home packets on Monday to return on Friday, though on holiday weeks, it will be given the first and due the last day of the school week. The work will be mostly phonics or reading practice, as well as some math, spelling, handwriting and occasional thematic material. I will include family discussion starters for the K’s. My expectation is that kindergartners spend approximately 12 minutes each week night and first graders should spend approximately 20 minutes each week night on homework. These minutes include their reading practice books (but NOT your reading to them which is also very important). The purpose of the homework is primarily to build the child’s work ethic and responsibility. Homework is neither enrichment nor entertainment. Homework will be predictable in format so that the students can complete much of it independently. If you find that homework is taking significantly longer than 20 minutes per evening, please let me know so we can decide on a reasonable modification. If homework takes significantly less than the recommended time, you will probably be seeing corrections from me on the work, requesting that more care be invested in neatness and completeness.

Your child’s success in all his or her studies begins now as he or she sets thoughtful routines and learns to think of him/herself as studious. As much as possible, a consistent time for sitting down to work will also make starting smoother and the effort come more easily. Though you do not need to sit by your child while homework is done, please do check over what he/she considers complete. Coach your child to spend more time on careless work and congratulate your child on a job well done. Your interest in homework will make its importance clear.

Please make time each night to read to your child. These students need to hear stories that stretch imaginations and expand their vocabularies, not only the simpler books they can manage on their own. Stop and discuss word meanings and personal opinions about the plot and characters. Reading nonfiction, such as recipes, grocery lists, newspaper picture captions, game instructions, even magazine articles is a terrific idea for sharing language and modeling the usefulness and appeal of reading, too.

Please save school supplies at home for completing homework. Pencils, erasers, glue, scissors, colored pencils and crayons will be important to have on hand and accessible to the child. Paden will supply all the pencils, paper, erasers, sharpeners, etc. that the children use in class. Conflicts and disappointments often occur over lost or broken supplies brought from home. Special personal belongings always create distractions .

With the same reasons in mind, please make it clear to your child that no toys from home are allowed unless Mrs. Katz sends a special note about a sharing activity. Toys cause aggravations because the children will be tempted to bring them out of cubbies at an inappropriate time. There will be opportunities to bring in special collections, souvenirs, and treasures throughout the year, but no spontaneous show and tell.

Backpacks are necessary for school. They should be sturdy and large enough for homework folders and the 9 x 12 inch envelope that comes home with notices each Wednesday. This means they need to bring the backpack Mondays to take homework home, Wednesdays to take notices home, Thursdays to bring the notice envelope back, and Fridays to return homework - yes, just send it everyday! These backpacks, along with jackets and lunch containers should be labeled with your child’s name.

We encourage eating a snack each 10 a.m. recess. The children appreciate a nutritious boost mid-morning. Fresh or dried fruit slices, crackers, mini-bagels, pretzels, cheese, and water in a re-closable bottle are the kinds of snacks that are appropriate. We will learn the procedure of NOT sharing these individual snacks for several reasons. If your family would occasionally like to contribute twenty servings of something delicious , that will be fine for sharing. I will not serve any junk food in the classroom. This means no sugary cupcakes/cookies/chips/soda. We want to introduce the children to healthy nutrition habits and keep their minds energized.

Like snacks, lunches should consist of worthwhile calories with vitamins, carbohydrates, protein and fiber. Containers should be easy for the children to open and close independently. School lunches should be paid for in the office. There is a box for dropping off checks to add new money to your child’s account. If children run out of paid lunches, they are given one credit and reminder. Then they go hungry until you pay again. Please do check in occasionally to verify the number of lunches left.

I will post a classroom wish list and volunteer sign up in the classroom. It is helpful to note your available hours and then I can figure out when we need you most. If I don’t contact you soon, please feel free to check back with me. I definitely believe that the more parent help, the more enriched the class will be.

Thank you all very much for taking time to read this long letter. I intend to send home newsletters on a monthly basis, but my next one will be briefer, I promise.

First Day Of School

Welcome Room A Friends!

You are still probably playing around barefoot and wearing the same t-shirt you've worn all week, but I am in a classroom, starting this blog, getting excited about meeting you, greeting you and getting busy with books and crayons and seeds and soil! I could barely sleep last night, all sorts of questions and plans for you coming to me. We're going to have a wonderful year together!

Early Harvest

So I went by to see how our spring plantings fared the summer weeks without us...What a shame that the first day of school is still two and a half weeks away. Sorry everyone, I guess I'll just have to take care of all these beauties myself.