Grand View Elementary
December 5, 2018 • Issue 28
Upcoming Events
December 6: Grand View Elementary PBL Night, 5:30 - 7:00 pm
December 11: School Board Meeting
December 18: Winter Concert, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
December 20: End of First Semester
December 24 - January 6: Winter Break
Inclement Weather
If school is canceled due to inclement weather, families will be notified via all-call and the school's closure will be posted on the school website.
Is Santa Smarter?
You're Invited to the 2018 Christmas Play!
Since as far back as October, Grand View students have been hard at work learning songs and lines for this year's Christmas play. In "Is Santa Smarter?" Santa and his elves realize that they will run out of gas money and can only make it to Grand View, Idaho to deliver presents! Thankfully, one of the elves gets Santa on the game show where you have to answer questions but can get help from local students. With the help of several 4th and 5th graders, Santa is quizzed on Christmas trivia. Large sections of dialogue that is being learned in the students' free time alternate with chorus parts in catchy songs that relate to each question. Will he succeed? Or will he need to be rescued by the Grand View Elementary helpers? Find out on December 18th at 6:30 pm in the Rimrock Auditorium! Call time for the students is 6 pm at Rimrock- please wear something Christmas!
Principal's Corner
Dear BGV Parents,
“No student fails who learns.”
It’s hard to talk about grit without stumbling quickly into stories of failure. For many, the anxiety they feel when anticipating a failure can be paralysing. Someone once said that “anxiety is experiencing failure in advance”.
The other day, I was on a bike ride with my son and we encountered a steep, short hill near the end of our ride. As we approached, I gave him the typical encouragement to “attack the hill”. “Ride up to it, pedal hard, and don’t give up.” Pedaling closer, he looked at me at the start of the hill and said with certainty, “I can’t.” I encouraged him some more. “Yes you can. Be tough”. He pedaled with even less enthusiasm than before and rolled to a stop about a third of the way into the hill. Gritting my teeth, I shouted from the top, “go down and do it again. You didn’t even try.” He looked up at me from under his helmet. “I’m too tired. It’s too steep.” I realized now, looking back on this moment that he was letting the anticipation of riding up a steep hill stop him from even trying to get up it. He quit at the first moment it was hard. As a father, I was upset. I wanted him to be tough. To attack the hill. To be fearless. So, what did I do? I made him do it again. Three times, actually. I’m not sure that making him ride that hill an extra time was helping him to realize and enjoy the success of achieving something difficult. But, what he did do was try again. He turned back down the hill and built up some speed for another run. As he got to the hill, he stood up on the pedals, and rode straight towards me. As he did, I yelled encouragement to keep going, don’t give up, and you can do it! He made it.
Working with students at school is similar to the hill my son climbed. They can see the tasks we present them as unattainable. And, anticipating the struggle that may come with learning, they can give up before they start. Our hope at school is to change student’s experience with failure to show them that working hard, whether or not they succeed the first time will result in learning. Will Smith, the actor, has spoken out several times on learning and failure. Speaking from his experience, he shares that “practice is controlled failure”, and “failure is where all the lessons are.” Grit at school is exactly this, that students have within them the desire to try and fail over and over again in order to learn.
As always, our kids model their behaviors and thinking after us, their parents and teachers. Take some time this month to show students where you have tried and failed. Tell them how you are not giving up, but instead learning from your mistakes and trying again. Thanks for all you do for your students!
Sincerely,
Josh Noteboom
Caught Using Kelso's Choices!
Classroom Corner
Ms. Davis (Kindergarten): Kindergarten has been working on blends, digraphs and finding patterns in words. In math we have been practicing several strategies to help us with addition and subtraction through 10. We have practiced using tallies, counting on, using a number line and tens frames. As we wrap up our project on community, we are excited and proud to share what we have been working on at PBL night. Hope to see you all there!
Ms. Baker (First/Second): First and Second grade has been working really hard on our PBL this month. We have been answering the question "What do we need to run a business?" We are super excited to show you our learning at PBL Night this Thursday! To go with our PBL we have also been practicing using money. We can pay for various items and make change using various types of bills.
Mrs. Meyers (Second Core): The second graders have been learning how to add and subtract within 1000 with regrouping. I hope to be able to wrap that up before break and move on to money when we get back from break! They are still working hard on their adding and subtracting fluency to 20. In reading they are learning all about water. We will be wrapping up the unit next week with the water cycle. We will be moving on to comparing and contrasting two versions of the same story with the Polar Express the week before break!
Student Spotlight
Each newsletter, fifth grade students are going to pick one
primary student to interview for our Student Spotlight!
What is your name?
Baylan
What class are you in?
Baylan is in Ms. Baker's first grade class.
What is your favorite subject in school?
Baylan's favorite subject in school is math.
Do you have a favorite book?
Baylan does not have a favorite book.
What is your go-to Kelso's Choice for small problems and why?
Baylan's go-to Kelso's Choice is Walk Away, because he does not get bothered.
Do you have a hidden talent? If so, what is it?
Baylan can do a front flip.
Written by Morgan
Picture by Clayd
Student Spotlight
Each newsletter, fifth grade students are going to pick one
upper elementary student to interview for our Student Spotlight!
What is your name?
Kaylanni
What class are you in?
Kaylanni is in Mrs. Lawrence's fourth grade class.
What is your favorite subject in school?
Kaylanni's favorite subject is P.E.
Do you have a favorite book?
Kaylanni's favorite book is the Wayside School series.
What is your go-to Kelso's Choice for small problems and why?
Kaylanni's go-to Kelso's Choice is Apologize, because it is easy to tell someone sorry.
Do you have a hidden talent? If so, what is it?
Kaylanni does not have a hidden talent.
Written by Morgan
Picture by Clayd
At Home
During community groups, our students have been using Kelso's Character Education and ClassDojo videos to learn more about the differences between empathy and sympathy; as well as how we can show both to the people around us.
Sympathy is when you see how someone is feeling, and feel sorry for them.
Empathy is when you understand how someone is feeling by putting yourself in their shoes.
ClassDojo introduced the concept of the Maze to help kids understand that when they have deep feelings like sadness, anger, or nervousness, it is easy to feel stuck in that feeling, and end up lashing out at others. When you take time to try and understand how other people feel, you are able to leave the Maze. That's when you're showing empathy!
Our students are beginning to consciously notice how what they say and do can affect others. And like the ripple effect, when one person shows empathy to another, it does not typically stop at that one person. Usually the kindness will spread throughout the community.
Studies suggest that kids are more likely to develop a strong sense of empathy when their own emotional needs are being met at home (Barnett 1987), meaning that what we learn in community groups will be much more effective if it is also talked about at home.
Some Questions You Can Ask Your Child to Start a Discussion:
- How can we recognize when we're in the Maze and try to stay out of it?
- What does it mean to put yourself in someone else's shoes.
- How can you practice staying out of the Maze?
- Do you think your actions can cause feelings in other people? What was a time your actions affected someone else?
About Us
Email: jnoteboom@sd365.us
Website: www.sd365.us
Location: 205 1st Street, Grand View, ID 83624, United States
Phone: (208) 834-2775
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BruneauGrandView/