The Eagle Express
End of February 2020
Welcome Winter Vacation
We have had such an interesting month between snow days, Kindness week, testing, Art day, field trips, professional development days, and Valentine's day, it is no surprise that it feels as though the month has flown by. When we return from vacation, we will be welcoming March. (I personally hope it comes in like a lamb, and not like a lion!)
Here are some dates to look forward to in March.
- School Board Meeting at the SAU - March 3, 17
- All school Assembly hosted by Kindergarten - March 6
- No school-teacher professional development - March 10
- School Budget Vote - March 10
- Antrim Community Supper hosted by AES - March 19
- All school Assembly hosted by grade 4 - March 20
This week, we were proud to unveil three after-school clubs in March - Coding, Origami, and Cribbage. There was an overwhelming response to participate, and we are so sorry that we can not accommodate more students for this round. What this does tell us is that there is interest in doing more after-school learning opportunities. As we plan for next year, we will look into increasing our offerings.
As we transition into this week off, I wish you all a relaxing, fun, and enjoyable break from school. We look forward to welcoming you back Monday morning March 2nd.
See you then,
Stephanie
MUZART News
Our art studio has been a busy place!
We have had a fun few weeks painting and weaving as we continue to learn about color!
Our AES Square One art fundraiser is happening when we return from February Break. Students are creating original works of art that you can purchase on several beautiful and functional items as keepsakes or gifts. Information will be sent home soon!
Friday, February 21st is Art Day. Be sure to ask your student about the creative adventures they experienced on Art Day!
In Music, we are studying notation and composition. Students have explored musical notes, note value and rhythms. In March we will begin our unit on Melody. Students will use instruments, sing and practice listening skills as they learn about pitch.
March is Youth Art Month!
AES student artwork will be on display in our school gallery (the hallway leading to the town gym). Kindergarten artists will have work on exhibit at the Antrim Town Library. Also, the fourth graders created canvas paintings that will be hanging at the SAU in Peterborough for the month of March.
News from Health & Physical Education
This month all students participated in activities that involved striking an object with the hand. They learned that when an object is struck repeatedly it is known as a volley. This skill is used in a variety of activities. In class, we played striking games like Straddleball and GaGa Ball. Older students learned to play 4-square which is a lead-up game to volleyball. It allows players to practice volleying skills as well as teaches them to move into a position to play the ball. To finish off our striking unit we practiced the underhand serve, forearm pass and set pass which are all skills used in volleyball. At this level, our focus is on skill development as opposed to playing the actual game of volleyball.
2nd Grade Rainforest Presentation
Indoor Morning Recess
Our School is Kind....and Clean
Universal Team organized Kindness week at the beginning of February. In the end, with all the snow days, it ended up being two Kindness Weeks! We focused on a different area of kindness each day: kindness to the community, kindness to peers, kindness to teachers and adults at our school, and kindness to nature. We earned kindness links for kind acts throughout the two weeks. As a school, we earned 513 kindness links! We had a very nice Kindness Assembly to celebrate the successes.
Universal Team has also been putting together a bathroom roll-out to help students show our Eagle Values in this area. We will be focusing on keeping our bathrooms clean. We are also working on remembering to be quiet and calm while out of the classroom. This will go into full swing after vacation; there is already excitement about earning the Golden Plunger for meeting our goals!
100 in Kindergarten
4th Graders on the Move
On February 20th The 4th graders also took a trip to ConVal High School to tour the Applied Technology Center and learn about the programs and careers they can look forward to in the future. Students enjoyed seeing all the offerings like Early Childhood Education, Robotics, Photography and Videography, Photoshop, Woodworking, and much more! To say the least, the students are already excited for High School!
A Note from Ms. Gregg, School Counselor
In classroom counseling lessons Kindergarten students learned that we feel feelings in our bodies. We talked about being “feelings detectives” who can look for clues about our own feelings as well as the feelings of others: facial expressions, body language, tone of voice, and, also—stomach aches, tight muscles, shallow breathing, rapid heartbeat, headache—sign that we may be experiencing a strong feeling (sadness, fear, frustration, disappointment) rather than being sick, hungry, or needing to go to the bathroom
First-grade students also spent time reviewing ways to discover how another person is feeling. They also listened to the book, Each Kindness, by Jacqueline Woodson, and talked with each other about ways to be kind.
Second-grade students participated in a partner activity/challenge about following directions and began to learn the “calm down robot dance” to reinforce ways to manage strong feelings.
Third grade and fourth students read some stories about kindness and discussed the difference between being a bystander and being an upstander. Fourth-grade students also are reviewing/learning a problem-solving method and exploring the possibility of creating a problem-solving corner in their classrooms.
A Note from Nurse Mellon
What is sleep hygiene?
Sleep hygiene is the term used to describe what good sleep habits and practices are. Good sleep hygiene is very important to maintain good overall physical and mental health. Being chronically tired can lead to chronic health issues.
Ways to improve sleep hygiene
Start a regular bedtime routine
Go to bed and get up at the same time (children 6-12 years old need approx. 10-12 hours a night)
Avoid napping longer than 30 minutes during the day
Eat a healthy diet-don’t go to bed hungry
Avoid caffeinated drinks before bedtime (soda, energy drinks, coffee, tea)
Exercise daily- try to go outside and get natural light
Limit all technology before bedtime
Don’t keep computers or TV’s in the bedroom
Lights from cell phones should be off, turned down or put in a drawer
Enjoy the winter break
Grade 3 News
Third Grade has been a flurry of activity. We took our math and reading NWEA tests and participated in Art Day.
In math, we continued to work on area. Students were finding the area of shapes. Recently, we started learning about fractions. Your child is partitioning shapes and lines into equal parts and labeling them. Next, we will be comparing and finding equivalent (equal) fractions. Students need to use their knowledge of area to do this.
In literacy, we are comparing both informational and fictional stories. Students are working hard to compare main ideas, story elements, and writers' craft. Next, month will begin our work on biographies. Your child will need to pick a famous person to study. The work will be presented in May during a biography night. We look forward to sharing our hard work with you.
Title 1 Family Engagement
Did you know that the Title One school wide plan explicitly supports opportunities for families and school staff to connect outside of the school day? This year each grade level invited families into their classrooms to learn about ways to support students at home as a way to reinforce classroom learning. Today our school is celebrating the arts by having mixed age groups of students learn through art. This is only possible because of the ongoing support of the community and families who have volunteered to come in and support these many learning projects.
Again this year, our staff is connecting with families outside of school. Some families have hosted us in their homes, some meet at the library, but the purpose is always the same: for the children to see their family and school join together to build a relationship that supports them. There are many other wonderful connections our staff and families have made, these are just some of the highlights. Coming up before April vacation, we will be hosting a family make your own book night. Families will be able to write their own stories, illustrate them and bring them home to read. Thank you families, volunteers, members of the community and school staff for working together to make long lasting connections for our community of children.
First Grade is Fun
The following week, we celebrated reaching the 100th Day of school! Some of the activities included listening to the funny story The Wolf's Chicken Stew, working together to create designs using 100 pattern blocks, doing 100 exercises (in 10 groups of 10 actions), stringing 100 beads to make a necklace, and hunting for 100 unifix cubes hidden in Mrs. Donovan's room. (We've found all but three cubes!)
Looking ahead to March, we are all excited to continue learning about wild animals that live near us, and how they get ready for winter. We will be creating two big murals in our hallway, showing the animals in their fall and winter habitats. We will be connecting our science work with informative (nonfiction) writing, poetry, and a readers' theater script!
Stephanie Syre-Hager, Principal
Email: ssyre-hager@conval.edu
Website: aes.convalsd.net
Location: 10 School Street, Antrim, NH, USA
Phone: 6035886371
Twitter: @aes_ssh