Teacher: Lucy Bratt lucy@newmorningschool.com
K-1 Lead Aide: Shelley Blakeney
Dear Parents,
It is with great sadness that I am writing this, my last Quokka newsletter as K-1 class teacher. The outpouring of support and sympathy for our situation that I have received from colleagues, parents, grandparents and children in the New Morning School community has made me feel loved beyond words. We are still trying to find a way, and praying for a miracle, to be able to continue our lives here in the US. In the meantime I am confident Pauline and Elaine will find the right person to take over my wonderful class. I will be working with Pauline this week to hand over the teaching to her and to ensure a smooth transition for the children. I can’t tell you how much I will miss your children, they are all exceptionally special and brighten my days with their joyful approach to learning and life. I love them all. Whilst I can no longer work at New Morning School, my own girls will continue to attend until we have a definitive leaving date, so hopefully I’ll continue to bump into you all, and your children, for a little while yet.
Last week was fun in the K-1 classroom. Much of our work was based around a holiday theme and we’ve been practicing and perfecting our holiday performance songs. The highlight for the children was visiting the Santa Gift Shop run by our elementary friends where they carefully chose gifts for you and other family members. They were all very pleased with their purchases!
This week our holiday theme will continue, with a focus on Christmas and Santa Claus. In Math we will be completing our Addition unit and completing a quick end of unit assessment. In reading we will be learning the “sh” and “th/th” digraphs. For those of you following along with the Jolly Phonics program at home, this brings us to the end of the Group 6 sounds and is a convenient stopping point for Ms. Pauline and Ms. Shelley to pick up with Group 7 in January. In Writing we will be writing wish lists for Santa and retelling the story of The Polar Express.
On Tuesday our Elementary friends have kindly invited us to join them in a holiday celebration. We will be watching The Polar Express movie and decorating cookies. We have plenty of popcorn left over from our last movie day that Carter’s mom sent in, so we shall be enjoying that and sharing with our hosts. Thank you Katie Huber! To make this day extra fun, children can wear PJs and bring a small stuffy to snuggle if they would like.
Wednesday is our holiday performance, please check the main body of the Quokka for details. Children will need to wear a holiday outfit please, and we will provide everything else.
Finally, I would like to thank you all one last time for entrusting me with your precious children. Whilst I am devastated to be leaving them, I know they will continue to thrive and flourish at New Morning School and I look forward to following their progress from a distance.
With very best wishes for happy holidays - a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year to you all!
Ms. Lucy.
