Weekly Newsletter
October 13, 2022
News from Principal Emma Liebowitz
Thank you to everyone that helped organize, prepare and work the Walking Talking Booth at the Ashfield Fall Festival.
We will not publish a newsletter next week.
Events/Calendar
Wednesday, October 19: 1:50 Dismissal
Thursday, October 20: Bus Evacuation Drill
Wednesday, October 26: 1:50 Dismissal
Monday, October 31: Sugar Rush at 10:00
Monday, October 31: Costume Parade at 2:00
Link to Sanderson Academy calendar.
Preschool News from Ms. Melanie
We had a wonderful time on Mountain Day! We hiked all the way to Bug Hill–over bridges and rough terrain. The day was lovely and the company was great. We hiked with our third-grade buddies–what fun!
Our apple dolls are done and on display in the lobby. This is always such a fun project and the costume ideas are unique and creative. It seems like a long time ago when we shook the apple tree and gathered the apples for our dolls. They came out beautifully. Below is a photo of just a few. We hope you’ll stop by to see them all while they are on display.
Kindergarten News from Ms. Sarah
With our full day Wednesday this week, we introduced our Technology lessons. For our first lesson, we talked about how the internet is like being in a big city and has similar safety rules, and we learned about the parts of the computer.
We also made another Fun Craft with our Sixth grade buddies—a falling leaf hanger to decorate our classroom! It was great to see our buddies again after walking with them on Mountain Day last week.
First Grade News from Ms. Wyckoff
This past week first graders had two wonderful opportunities to meet up with their fourth grade buddies. First, buddies met for the first time in classrooms. They had a chance to get to know one another while coloring an owl glyph. First graders shared how kind, helpful and fun their buddies were and could not wait until Mountain day! On mountain day we once again met up and all hiked together. Fourth graders encouraged, helped and made first graders feel comfortable and excited to go on the hike. After lunch we divided the first and fourth graders up into groups to see who was ready to head back and who wished to keep hiking. Four 1st graders and five 4th graders were up for the challenge! We made it to the Apple Valley overlook just beyond Bear Swap and the view was fantastic, especially with the leaves changing colors. In total this group hiked 10.5 miles and couldn't have been more proud of themselves! Thank you fourth graders for being the absolute best buddies. We look forward to seeing you all again soon!
Second Grade News from Ms. Robertson
This month finds us exploring the theme of autumn, which coincided nicely with our annual Mountain Day hike. We spent the time before Mountain Day reading aloud books and poems that focused on fall and leaves, and these books and poems will serve as an introduction to a writing activity where students will use describing words, action words, places, and times to write expanded sentences about leaves. We also learned that the primary job of leaves is to make food for trees, using air, water, and sunlight, in a process called photosynthesis.
When Mountain Day arrived last Friday, we hiked to the area of Bug Hill Road in Ashfield, where we enjoyed eating our snacks with our preschool buddies. We then walked back to the school grounds with our buddies and spent some time with them in their outdoor classroom. After eating lunch together, we then return to the woods adjacent to the school, where Mrs. Wilson read aloud the book Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. Students then enjoyed finding materials in nature to create their own nature pictures.
The month of October has also brought new features to our Number Corner area. Our daily calendar has a focus on leaves, where students are classifying leaves by looking at the way their veins are formed. A palmate leaf looks a bit like a hand, where the leaf has several main veins branching out from the base of the leaf. A pinnate leaf looks a bit like a feather, where the leaf has veins that all branch off one central vein.
To extend our leaf theme at home, you can have your child go outside and collect several different kinds of leaves. What different ways can the leaves be sorted? Can your child identify the leaves they found? Are the leaves palmate leaves or pinnate leaves? Does your child enjoy art projects? Have them do some leaf rubbings or have them create a picture with the leaves.
Reminder: Parent-Teacher Conferences are scheduled for Thursday, November 3rd and Friday, November 4th. Please reach out to me at jrobertosn@mtrsd.org if you have not yet scheduled a conference with me. Thank you!
Third Grade News from Ms. Carole
We had a wonderful day with our buddies in the woods last Friday on our Mountain Day trip. Having unstructured time in the woods on a beautiful fall day was pretty much everyone’s dream come true! Lots of fairy houses were built, leaf rubbings were made, and fun was had,
This week third grade began learning about the Quabbin Reservoir in anticipation of our next field trip. Students were interested to learn the story of relocating the people and homes of four towns so as to build a water source for Boston. We hope for beautiful weather for our visit there next Friday, October 21st.
We also recently worked on a fall mural with our preschool buddies. We are fortunate to live in a region that has four distinct seasons, and it is fun to celebrate each one of them. Our finished product is on display in the lobby for all to enjoy. Below are some pictures of it as well.
Fourth Grade News from Mrs. Lagoy
Fourth graders have finished reading about the land and water of the Northeast Region. They took 2-column notes while they were reading and have been using those 2-column notes to write summary paragraphs in their Northeast Region Scrapbooks. We will be printing the first page of their scrapbooks today so students can work on illustrations.
News from Ms. Prew
Our Sanderson students really enjoy learning math concepts through hands-on exploration! The tools that we use are called manipulatives. You will see tons of manipulatives such as dominoes, number racks, and unifix cubes. Ask your kiddos what tools they are using in math class. Check out some more examples below. :) aprew@mtrsd.org
News from Trish Aurigemma
“Did you know… “
That you take 20,000 breaths per day, on average, according to Adventknows.com.
The body uses the nose, throat, and lungs to help move oxygen to our body’s cells. The main breathing muscle is called the diaphragm and it rests just above the stomach. Proper breathing begins with breathing through our nose. The nose is responsible for cleaning the air we breath. After we inhale the air travels through our throat to our lungs. The body uses the air (oxygen) to move sugar through our bodies so that we can have energy to play and learn. Other benefits of proper breathing include:
Brain development and processing- the brain uses 20% of the air that we breathe to process what is happening in our body.
The body needs oxygen for healing.
Our muscles use oxygen when we run, play or exercise.
Proper breathing helps calm the body and mind.
One of the first activities I use in my speech sessions is to teach and practice proper breathing. Good breathing is useful for everything we do and can be practiced everywhere. Below you can see the steps for a proper deep breathing exercises.
Deep Breathing
Get comfortable. You can lie on your back in bed or on the floor with a pillow under your head and knees. A child can hold a stuffed animal.
Breathe in through your nose. Place one hand on your belly. Let your belly fill with air. As your breathe in, feel your belly rise, and watch the stuffed animal rise.
Breathe out through your nose then watch the stuffed animal lower.
Take three more full, deep breaths. Repeat steps 1-3 three times.
References:
AdventKnows. com/ blog/ How Many Breaths You Take Per Day & Why It Matters
MTRSD Elementary Library News
News from the District Literacy Coach
My name is Valerie Vasti, and I am honored to join the Mohawk Trail Regional - Hawlemont Regional School District community as the District Literacy Coach. I am enjoying a warm welcome from a team of creative and thoughtful educators as well as many curious and kind students!
This year is my 27th as an educator. I started out teaching ELA to insightful high schoolers and went on to teach energetic middle school (6th, 7th, and 8th) ELA, ELL, and inclusion classes. Along the way, I directed student theater productions and created advisory programs.
My calling as coach began while serving as Director of Curriculum and Instruction. I have coaching to thank for expanding my world to include the wonder of elementary school students.
I am truly excited to work in this beautiful place with so many wonderful people.
I am starting a blog to respond to questions received and to share information. I also look forward to sharing some of the wonderful thinking, reading, and writing happening in ELA classes!
Check out the first blog. I answer the question, Why did we choose EL Education for our ELA curriculum, and share important information about Dyslexia as October is Dyslexia Awareness Month. Check it out here.
I look forward to meeting everyone!
Thank you,
Valerie
Mohawk Trail District News
MTRSD STEAM Fair is coming this fall for students in grades 6-8, and we couldn’t be more excited! We are hoping to recruit caregiver and community members to our cause: to connect our students with a diverse range of new and interesting hands-on experiences in the Sciences, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics. Volunteers needed to run sessions or help with logistics. Tentatively scheduled for Wed., November 9, we would love to have you join us; click here for more information.
Community News:
About Us
Email: eliebowitz@mtrsd.org
Website: https://sanderson.mohawktrailschools.org/
Location: 808 Cape Street, Ashfield, MA, USA
Phone: (413) 628-4404
Facebook: facebook.com/SandersonAcademy