Primary Letters
WPS MAY NEWSLETTER, 2022
Principal's Message - Mrs. Judd
“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”
- Albert Einstein
Spring is such a magical time! Our surroundings transform overnight with the many shades of green accompanied by pops of yellows, pinks and blues from early blooms. This welcomed change brings a great sense of optimism and energy into our work and our play together.
Changes permeated Washington Primary School, too. Having lunch waves move into the cafeteria and reintroducing the round cafeteria tables was so joyful as it brought a more authentic way to eat and socialize through face to face conversations. In classrooms, teachers redesigned classroom space to utilize carpet time and small group clusters. Students are so appreciative of these new opportunities.
The best magic of all was reopening our school to parent volunteers and community organizations. This was especially true during our annual Green Week. Green Week is a week of activities focused on protecting and preserving our environment. We had one morning that was choice based where students pre-selected topics of interest. Ten sessions were available and included Beekeeping, electric vehicles, Monarch Butterflies, endangered CT animals, oil spills, and more. Many sessions were developed and led by parents. We were also excited to have visits from the Sharon Audubon Society, Ripley's WaterFowl Conservancy, the Institute of American Indian Studies, and a Bat Rehabilitator. Denise Arturi, from Judea Garden also visited and shared the history of the garden and with students, planted vegetable seeds for the community garden. Other activities were integrated such as planting flowers at the Town Hall and visiting an electric car at the charging station in the depot. One impressive activity organized by parents and staff in conjunction with the Washington Environmental Council was building bat houses for Steep Rock. Students used step by step instructions and tools to build seven bat houses. All the learning from these sessions were presented on signs created by each class posted around the RiverWalk for parents and community members to appreciate. Special thanks go out to parent volunteers Jessie and Ty Barr, Lauren Hoskins, Michelle Madden, Christine Weydig, Luna Garcia and Sarah Belanger for sharing their time and expertise.
In addition, we were able to start our school garden. Staff members and in house gardeners, Chrissy Gorbecki, Brooke Faison, and Jennie Bogue, spearheaded this project, teaching students about seeds and the importance of gardens to one's health and environment. They started seeds for various lettuces in February that will be transplanted outdoors. Students in fourth and fifth grades were super excited that they were able to build and fill the raised beds sponsored by the Village Improvement Society with soil donated by Scott’s Landscaping.
April was a full month of new and exciting learning opportunities. As we enter the last several weeks of school, we will continue to grow readers, writers, mathematicians and scientists as they round out the year with field trips, field day, our Elementary Art and Music Concert, our fifth grade play and many more enriching activities. I thank you for your continued support and for your positive energy. If you have questions or suggestions, please feel free to contact me at judde@region-12.org or at 860-868-7331
Kindergarten - Mrs. Schramm
Kindergarten had a wiggly good time celebrating Earth during the month of April. We made an earth worm habitat, visited Mrs. Horan to explore her vermicomposting bin, and enjoyed reading Diary of a Worm. We also made our own Floral Shop for the classroom in an effort to develop our garden and environmental vocabulary.
First Grade - Mrs. Moser
One Kid Can Make a Difference...
This is the lesson we learned from listening to the story "Katie's Cabbage" by Katie Stagliano. As a child, Katie's teacher gave her a seedling to take home to plant and give some TLC (tender loving care). Katie did just that, and watched her cabbage grow to over 40 pounds! Katie then used her cabbage to make a difference - she donated the cabbage to feed hungry families. Katie helped cook and serve her cabbage to over 275 people at the soup kitchen! During Green Week, first graders planted 2 squash seeds each - one to bring home to give TLC and one to grow in the classroom to be planted at the Judea Garden in Washington. The vegetables planted in Judea Garden will be used to feed hungry families right here in Washington. First graders are excited to help make a difference!
Second Grade - Mrs. Rotunda
Happy Spring! With spring comes an opportunity to start over, set new intentions or goals, and enjoy the beautiful weather!
Second graders have worked so very hard on their Informational Reports. We enjoyed an author celebration by sharing our reports with one another. We all learned many important facts about Arctic Animals. We especially enjoyed the "About the Author" pages and beautifully detailed illustrations. Our last writing unit of the year will be Opinion Writing. We have already started thinking about the differences between facts and opinions.
We are master measurers! We are applying our skills and knowledge of measurement using the ruler and yardstick to measure classroom items. We are using both metric and customary measurements. We have enjoyed the hands-on learning with our classmates!
Fourth Grade - Mrs. White
During Historical Fiction Book Clubs, fourth graders are doing a lot of TALKING while staying focused! Accountable conversations empower students to form opinions based on evidence of what they are reading. They are learning how to ask and answer questions, to respect the views of their peers while strengthening their communication skills. They get practice in being good conversationalists, participating in conversations in a polite manner.
P.E. - Mr. Morgan
All students have been actively participating in Physical Education during the month of April. When the weather allowed we enjoyed getting outside on the field. Outdoor units include track and field events, lacrosse, and wiffle ball. Older students enjoyed working on skills that progressed to small sided games. All lessons were modified for students depending on age/skill level. Our wiffle ball/baseball unit provided multiple opportunities to swing for the fences. We have some home run derby champions in this school.
When the weather kept us indoors we took part in our ‘net games’ unit. Badminton and volleyball (using beach balls) keep students engaged and active. Our older students are able to participate in singles and doubles tournaments while our younger students spend a bit more time focusing on beginning striking skills. Using balloons is a great way to increase their striking ability.
The Connecticut Physical Fitness Test was completed during October of this school year. We allow students to retest in May and look to see if there is any noted growth from earlier in the year. Fourth graders across the state all complete the same 4 assessments (aerobic endurance, muscular endurance, muscular strength, and lower body flexibility). I'm proud of our student efforts. Students will take this same test as they head to middle/high school. The state requires this testing in the sixth, eight, and tenth grades.
Lastly, keep an eye out for updates in regards to our WPS FIELD DAY! We are scheduled to hold this event on June 7th. If things continue to go as planned- we will be asking for parent volunteers to spend the day with us. Lots of fun for students and parents!
Bring Back the Bedtime Story - Mrs. Ubaldi
There is no more important activity for preparing your child to succeed as a reader than reading aloud together. But sometimes that can be hard. Am I right? Between work, homework, after-school activities, and getting dinner ready you have to make choices about how to spend your time. Reading aloud to your child is worth the time. Why is that? Here are five reasons why reading aloud to your child is beneficial.
Reading aloud to your child creates a lifetime interest in reading. The goal of the read-aloud is to love the story and to develop a love for books. It creates happy memories, and this feeling helps them to persist in learning to read. You also have the opportunity to expose your child to new authors, texts, and genres. You can pick a book your child might have never selected. When a child falls in love with an author or series, it’s hard to hold them back.
Reading aloud aids in the development of language. Children hear proper grammar and sentence structure. When you pick books for read-alouds, you want to choose books that are above his or her current reading level. Through these challenging books, they are exposed to a wealth of new vocabulary.
Reading aloud helps to build your child’s imagination and his or her ability to visualize a story which aids the comprehension of the text they will read on their own. Stop and talk about what they see in their own head while you read the story. How do they picture the character and the setting?
Reading aloud to your child gives you an opportunity to model fluent reading. He or she will hear how you pause at commas and periods, or how your voice inflection changes when you read questions or exclamations. You can show what a fluent reader does when you come to a word that you don’t know. (Even if you have to pretend.)
Reading aloud to your child also builds an awareness of the world around them, and gives them an awareness of empathy. Stories give children an understanding of something without experiencing it for themselves. Books can do this with all sorts of subjects and concepts to understand the world around them. It’s important when you are reading to hit the pause button. Try not to rush through the book, but stop and talk about what’s happening, and make connections to the characters and their problems. You can have important conversations that are less risky because they are about a character in a book and not about themselves.
Begin when they are young and continue to read to them even when they are older. Most parents stop reading to their children as they grow older, yet 83% of children ages 6 to 17 say being read to is something they either loved or liked. So take that time to cuddle up and read to your child. It’s worth it!
Math Puzzlers - Mrs. Bottari
When solving word problems, children need to make sure they truly understand what is happening in the problem before they can decide how to solve it. We visualize, act them out and/or draw a pictorial representation, but it is not always easy. Practice with understanding word problems beyond the numbers is needed. Give your child some practice with these math teasers. They’ll require you and your child to think outside the box and decipher what is really happening in the problem. It should be fun. When you find the answer, email me at bottarir@region-12.org. I’ll let you know if you got them correct.
#1. A duck was given $9, a spider was given $36, a bee was given $27. Based off of this information, how much money would be given to a cat?
#2. If you buy a rooster for the purpose of laying eggs and you expect to get three eggs each day for breakfast, how many eggs will you have after three weeks?
#3. If the zookeeper had 100 pairs of animals in her zoo and if two pairs of babies are born for each and every one of the original animals, and then sadly 23 animal don’t survive, how many animals do you have left in total?
#4. A cell phone and phone case cost $110 in total. The cell phone costs $100 more than the phone case. How much was the cell phone?
Upcoming Art Show
All year, K-5 students have been honing their art skills and testing out new creative ideas despite having art in their classrooms and delivered from a cart. After two years without an elementary school art show, expect to be knocked over by this year’s special art show opening celebration event - How Can Art Help Us Tell a Story? This narrative art theme runs parallel to how students learn about writing - both their own and that of others. In the visual arts as well as in the language arts, there are author or artist tricks, styles, and techniques. Students have learned different ways to express themselves visually at each grade level.
Every K-5 student will be represented by a piece of their artwork that will be hung alongside middle school and high school student work in the mall at Shepaug Valley School. This unique venue will provide you with a view into the articulation through the grades of the Region 12 art curriculum. The artwork will be on display May 15 through May 21, 2022.
K-5 Art Show Opening Celebration
The Mall @ Shepaug Valley School
Thursday, May 19, 2022
5:30 - 7:30 pm
To make your evening even more complete, enjoy a musical interlude at 7 pm in the SVS Auditorium that features a concert by the Grade 4-5 Band and Chorus.
THANK YOU PTO
We have so much gratitude for our awesome PTO for all you do all year for WPS staff and students. A special thanks for the spectacular lunch your provided on Teacher Appreciation Day, as well as all the wonderful gifts!
Upcoming Events
May 3-13 - SBAC Testing
May 10 - PTO Meeting - 6:30
May 19 - PK, K, 1, 2 visit to SVS for Ag/science visit
May 19 - K-5 Art Show at SVS - 5:30-7:30
May 19 - 4th and 5th Grade Band and Chorus Concert - 7:00
May 20 - Grades 3-5 visit to SVS for Ag/science visit
May 26 - Family Bingo Night - 5:30-7:30
May 30 - NO SCHOOL - Memorial Day
May 31 - 5th Grade to SeaQuest
June 1 - 4th Grade to Flanders Nature Center
June 2 - 3rd Grade to Institute for American Indian Studies
June 7 - Field Day
June 9 - Fifth Grade Play - 6:00
June 10 - RAIN DATE - Field Day
June 13 - Aloha
June 15 - Half Day for Students
June 16 - Last Day of School - Half Day for Students