Maplewood News
Mustangs Maintaining Connection while Social Distancing,4/27
Some Updates from your Special Areas + Team:
Last week the Special Areas Plus team invited parents to a Zoom session on how to get on to Blend to see the one-stop-shop that we have made to help you access everything for Continuous Learning. If you weren’t able to make it live here is a link to the recording of that meeting.
Zoom with the Specials + Team, Join Us!
Moving forward the Special Areas Plus Team would like to continue to host grade level Zoom check-ins every other week with each grade level. Coming up this week (4/27-5/1) we’ll see the intermediate grade 3rd, 4th, & 5th and next week (5/4-8)we’ll have the primary classes K, 1, 2. Our plan is to continue this pattern into the future so you can set these times on your calendar.
Message from Ms. Jacobson, Maplewood Principal
All of us at Maplewood have really loved seeing your great student work on SeeSaw and Google this week! You are all doing such creative things while learning at home. Last week on Earth Day, and during the week, I hope you were able to get outside and enjoy our amazing earth. It was really nice to be able to enjoy beautiful weather and fun activities.
Since we weren’t able to hold our Maplewood Olympics, many of you have been creating your own physical and exercise challenges. Keeping your body healthy through exercise and outside play is very important, especially while we aren’t in school. I hope some of you will continue to share your creativity with learning at home, and your self-created sports challenges. I always look forward to seeing what you are doing. Read some good books, and take good care of your at-home teachers (your PARENTS J). We miss you and hope you are learning many new things! Have fun! We love you!
Ms. Jacobson
Ms. L-A-K, Maplewood P. E. Teacher
This is our last week focusing on the Striking with Implements unit in our Physical Education at home. I hope that you’ve enjoyed practicing skills and creating your own games and now is the time to start challenging your skills.
How can you challenge your skills more?
What will take your ability to the next level?
What will show that you have succeeded?
What are the things that make it easier or more difficult to adjust the challenges to the differing skill levels in your family?
**Make sure you get permission for the implements (tools) and objects (things you hit) as well as the space that you’re in to keep you and those around you safe.**
Please keep sharing what your family is doing to be active at home and your striking with implements challenges. To add what you’re family is doing to be active to our PE padlet use this link to access it & I have removed the password to hopefully help all those who were having trouble accessing it. #AISDmovesAtHome You can add pictures or videos of your activities! Check out the PE Page on Blend to see what everyone is up to!
Ms. Cervantes-Maplewood Art Teacher
Art- Creative online ideas:
Share your talent Maplewood artists! - PADLET post Challenge:
This week’s challenge is to create a SCULPTURE out of CARDBOARD and any reusable materials you have at home. Ana Serrano is an L.A. contemporary artist that uses cardboard to create brightly-colored neighborhood buildings often seen in Latino communities all over the U.S. You can check out an inspiring video of her art on our choice board. Please remember you can choose any of the activities on the choice board on the art BLEND page. Don’t forget to add your work on our “Share your Talent” art padlet! If you’d like to try more Earth Day Art ideas check out this site that has themes for each day!
Mr. Hutson, Maplewood Music Teacher
Music News: This week I took a look on our classroom Blend Music Page at the music choice board activity 9: Pictures at an Exhibition: “Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks” by Modest Mussorgsky. Mussorgsky wrote these songs after he saw some of his friend’s artwork and decided to write music about the pictures. Some call this song the “Ballet of Unhatched Chicks in Eggshells.” You’ll have to listen to the song to see why it gets its name.
-If you’d like to share ways you and your new learning community are sharing music at home I encourage you to go to the Music Padlet using the password “Mustangs!”to upload and share a video or write about ideas you might have tried in your new learning space.
Ms. Braziel, Maplewood Librarian
The Academy of American Poets proclaim Thursday, April 30 as “Poem In Your Pocket Day.” Normally, we would carry poems in our pockets and share them with our classmates throughout the day at school. This year, I challenge you to share at least 3 copies of a poem of your choosing in a creative, safe way. The poem can come from a book or website, or you can write your own, just be sure to share the title and give the poet credit. 💥 Let's “Poetry Blast” our neighborhoods by hanging a poem on a sign post, sidewalk chalking it, reading it to people walking down your street, sharing it during a class Zoom, leaving a copy for the postal worker or delivery person, or whatever other creative method you can fathom. Spread Poetry to cheer up our friends, family, and neighbors during the final week of Poetry Month! Remember to stay safe and practice social distancing while you blast the neighborhood with the joy of poetry. For more information, visit Poem in Your Pocket Day.
This week, I’ve shared a read aloud of All the World, by Liz Garton Scanlon. It’s a poem illustrated as a children’s book. Check it out in the library section of your grade level BLEND page.
Ms. Kirk, Maplewood School Counselor
Create a Gratitude Banner
Send a Message of Love and Peace to Your Community
Create a Gratitude Sign
For Parents:
Stay safe! I REALLY miss you all.❤️
Ms. Baker, Maplewood Reading Specialist
Hi Mustangs-
As I'm typing this, I am noticing that the sun is shining and I hear the birds chirping outside my kitchen window. I hope you get a chance to get outside this weekend and enjoy the sunshine. I miss you all so much and look forward to when we can see each other again.
My lesson idea for this week is on sight words or what I like to call instant words. We use some words in our language so often that it's important to recognize them instantly. We call these words instant words. Some teachers call them high frequency words. Here are a few ideas to practice these words at home:
Using a cupcake/muffin tin, write instant words on pieces of paper (or have a family member help you) and then tape the words into the tin/pan. Now you can play toss and read by tossing a ball or penny into the pan and read the word that the ball lands on. This game is on my video this week so please check it out.
Another game on my video is called sight word egg hunt. After you or a family member writes instant words on pieces a paper, you can put the words into the plastic eggs and then ask a family member to hide those eggs all around the house or outside. Now its time to find those eggs and read the instant word that is inside.
These are just a few ideas to practice instant words! Please check out my video for next week where I'll talk about non-fiction reading strategies.
Lots of love and hugs-
Ms. Baker ❤️
Important Resources
AISD Learning at Home
https://sites.google.com/austinisd.org/aisd-learning-at-home
Meals Support
https://www.austinisd.org/covid19/meals
Food Bank Delivery
512-972-5133
City of Austin Neighborhood Centers (some are providing meal delivery)
512-972-5133
*email Ms. Kirk (kelli.kirk@austinisd.org) if you need additional information re: food, rent, or utility support
Austin Diaper Bank
https://www.austindiapers.org/
Spectrum Internet Free for K-12 students
Unemployment
https://twc.texas.gov/jobseekers/unemployment-benefits-services
800-939-6631