Franklin Falcon Flyer
March 22, 2018
Student Artwork
To all Franklin Families:
I would like to provide an update to all our families about the display of artwork at our school, which has been the subject of erroneous posts and comments on social media over the last few days.
Let me begin by confirming that we cherish the artwork that our students -- current and past -- have created, and take great pride in sharing it publicly in our school. They brighten our halls and make Franklin the child-centered school it is.
As you visit our school, you know how vibrant our halls are with the multitude of art displayed for all to enjoy. We love to showcase the work of our students and our students take great pride and LOVE seeing their work hanging in the hallways. Most of these creations are not framed, as they are from the current products students have created during art class. The art teacher rotates the art produced as part of the curriculum. Mrs. Hurley recently took down several pieces of our current students’ artwork from our halls to complete grading for second semester report cards.
At Franklin, some art work was taken down from the main hallway over the summer due to the storage of furniture and books in our hallways to allow for the remodeling of our LRC. Some glass was broken on frames and some of the frames are really old and weathered. NOTHING has been thrown away. At present, we have ALL of the work that was taken down stored near our art room. There are still several framed pieces of artwork hanging throughout the rest of the building. Mrs. Hurley and I have been in discussions with our PTA to start a new gallery of framed current work intermixed with some past student work. We would like to rotate the artwork on display every few months. Our dedicated PTA is going to assist us in finding volunteers that would be interested in framing and hanging student work in our “Franklin Gallery.”
That said, it is important to realize that we only have so much wall space and we want our current students to see their work hanging in their school and to feel pride in their creativity just as prior students felt when their work was on display.
If you are interested in volunteering your time to help hang or frame our students’ artwork or to help out with organizing art supplies in our art room, please email me at ckowalczyk@d64.org.
Sincerely,
Dr. Claire Kowalczyk
Congratulations to our Franklin Young Author Winners!
Over 450 students participated in the district's Young Authors' competition. We had students from KDG - 4th grade submit entries this year. Congratulations to the following students/manuscripts for being chosen as the winning authors from each grade level having their manuscript entered in the district competition to represent Franklin school:
Kdg - Kate M Wrote and illustrated, Kate’s Big Adventure
1st grade - Kylie L wrote and illustrated, The Color of Spring
2nd grade - Claire K wrote and illustrated, The Halloween Scare
3rd grade - Whitney S wrote, The Flash Back of Time
4th grade - Marina K wrote, Island
We are SO PROUD to announce that TWO Franklin school students' manuscripts were chosen as District 64 Young Authors' winners and invited to attend the 44th Annual Statewide Young Authors' Conference! Kindergartener Kate M and first grader Kylie L will both be honored at the May 21st Board of Education meeting. Kate and Kylie are wonderful examples of how far our little falcons can soar!
Class Placements for 2018-19 School Year
Next month, the staff and I will begin the process of student sectioning for the 2018-2019 school year. Students will be assigned to heterogeneous classroom groups.
Our sectioning process includes input from classroom teachers, the support services team, special area teachers, and administration.
The classroom teachers have worked with the children throughout the year and understand each child’s educational needs. They are included in the sectioning process but I will have the final word on placement so please direct all of your questions/concerns to me. Collectively as a team, we consider and balance many factors including but not limited to:
Individual’s learning style
Teacher’s teaching style
Student combinations
Special education services needs
Support service needs
Class size
Social/Emotional needs
Academic characteristics
Gender balance
Our placement process is a team effort that is completed with great care and consideration. We want all of our children to be successful, and we take this process very seriously. Factoring in the above multiple variables can often be a delicate balancing act for each classroom at each grade level. You may want to share information or specific needs that may help us in the sectioning process. This should be put in writing with reasons outlined and related to the balance factors listed above. Please submit your letter to the principal’s office by April 13, 2018.
We ask that you do not make requests for placement into a specific classroom to be with friends or request a specific teacher for your child. Such requests will not be considered, as this opportunity cannot be made available to all children. Each child has unique characteristics and needs as a learner and as a developing child. The perfect match for your older child may not be such a good fit for your next one. We trust that you will rely on our professional judgment as we group the children with the idea of creating the best learning environment for everyone.
PE Badminton Unit
Information about our Unit -
K-3rd
Will learn different forms of striking with a variety of objects with racquets and paddles. Understand the importance of striking with rackets and paddles as a skill that carries over into a variety of different games, sports, and activities. Understand how striking with paddles and racquets can be incorporated into maintaining and improving health. Demonstrate alternative striking skills that can be performed in a wide variety of active environments. Racquet safety.
4th and 5th- Introduce: court boundaries, grip, service, singles play, doubles play, let on serve, serving rotation, flick serve, serve strategy/placement, side to side/front to back alignments. Racquet safety.
Lead up Games: Clean your backyard,
Under-over badminton, exploration stations, driving,
ABC striking, pop up competition
From Our Music Department
1st Grade—There are many exciting things happening in 1st grade this month!
The students are using note cards to figure out rhythms to songs we have learned. Then, they are using iPads to challenge their understanding of different note values. It challenges their understanding in a fun way.
We are learning a folk song called “May Their Always Be Sunshine.” In this song, the composer sings about several things that he would like for there to always ”be.” After we learn the song, the 1st graders then become composers by writing their OWN lyrics of things that they would like to always have in the world. Speaking of being composers, we are also learning a piece called the Toy Symphony by Leopold Mozart—the father of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. After they learn the song they compose their own Toy “Symphonies.” For the first time this year, we are excited to add instruments that the students made in their classrooms during a science unit on sound. It was great to work with the 1st grade teachers on this, and the students are so excited about the instruments they have created!
2nd Grade— Second graders will be continuing their study of Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saens. We listened to and watched a couple different versions of the story and after break will compare and contrast the two. We will explore different ways to perform the music ourselves and experience a fun pirate play for “Fossils.” We will also learn a new springtime song we can sing in a round AND add an instrument part! Dust off those kazoos at home, if you have them! The kids can bring them to music at the end of April!
3rd Grade— The third graders are learning about their second composer of the year: Haydn. Haydn is a Classical composer famous for writing the “Surprise Symphony” and the “Farewell Symphony,” both of which have fun stories to accompany them. Once we finish our study of Haydn, we will play a cool trivia game called “Haydn Seek!”
4th Grade— What’s better than Amazing Grace on the bagpipes? Amazing Grace on the recorders! The fourth graders will be playing Amazing Grace on their recorders this month, adding more notes and patterns to their repertoire. They can use their chrome books to practice these parts as the sheet music, instrumental accompaniment, and interactive fingering chart are in their shared with me folder for 4th grade recorder music. The students will also be learning more about minor keys and singing a song in a round. They will then listen to Mahler’s First Symphony and be able to identify the song, “Ah, Poor Bird” in his music. We can even sing our round TO the symphony!
5th Grade— The fifth graders continue to play recorder in music this month. We will be studying Shortnin’ Bread, a pentatonic song they can play on their recorders. We are adding F to the list of notes we can play and now know over twice the number of notes they knew in third grade! We will also be learning more about syncopation in a Caribbean Song called “Four White Horses.” This is a fun song to sing, but definitely more challenging than other songs since the syncopation keeps changing. Once we learn it, there is a fun four person hand clap that goes along to it and the groups continually change. The hardest part is doing the hand clap in a straight four-beat pattern while the song is syncopated!
Make sure to follow us on twitter if you haven’t already! We have pictures, video, and more! @ccarlsond64 and @bkabatd64org
News From Our Art Room
· Kindergarten: In kindergarten, we have been working really hard on creating our self-portrait books! They look amazing so far! Look for these on the tables in the art room at Open House!
· First Grade: In First Grade, we have just finished the Spring Tree on our four season tree project. I wish Mother Nature would get the memo! We are about to begin a mixed media seahorse project.
· Second Grade: Second Graders are finishing up their Cat on a Mat paper weaving project and are about to begin a mixed media project featuring a pufferfish!
· Third Grade: Third Graders are beginning their weaving project using yarn. We will be making blankets for our little stuffed animals!
· Fourth Grade: In fourth grade, students just finished painting their own homes. They are gorgeous!! Plan on framing these! And now we are starting a project by studying Rose Windows.
· Fifth Grade: Fifth graders just finished glazing their clay food and will begin studying Andy Warhol and Pop art by creating their very own Campbell’s Soup Can using watercolors.
Please follow the
Art room on social media!!
https://www.facebook.com/Franklin-School-Art-Room-1920605824871248/
KINDERGARTEN ROUND UP FOR INCOMING KDG STUDENTS 2018-19
NEWS FROM SCHOOL HEALTH SERVICES
Springtime turns thoughts to warmer weather, outdoor activities, and spring break travel. However, please continue to take time to regularly check your child for the presence of head lice. The Center for Disease Control has information regarding head lice, and can be accessed at:
http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/lice/head/parents.html
In addition, your Building Nurse can provide you with useful materials regarding identification and treatment of head lice. This information is also available on the District website:
http://www.d64.org/health-services/health-safety-tips
Social Emotional Learning Focus (SEL) - Second Step Curriculum
All of our classroom teachers teach weekly lessons from our Second Step Curriculum to teach the Social Emotional Learning Standards to our students. This past month, these are the topics that each grade level have been learning about:
KDG has been learning the Problem Solving Steps (say the problem, think of solutions, explore consequences, and pick best solution) and managing different feelings such as disappointment and anger.
1st grade has been learning about Problem Solving and the three steps to use to calm down: belly breathing, counting, and/or talk to teacher.
2nd grade is on Unit 4-Problem Solving. The lessons have focused on solving problems with peers in the classroom and at recess, and taking responsibility for your actions.
3rd grade is learning about strategies for dealing with accusations & anxiety
4th grade is learning about managing anxiety and avoiding jumping to conclusions.
5th grade is finishing up Emotion Management - The goal of this unit is to develop students' ability to manage their own strong feelings before feelings escalate and result in negative consequences.
School Wide Falcon Focus of the Month
We will have a school wide celebration tomorrow at the end of the day. The Jessie White Tumblers are coming to perform for the entire school. At the assembly, we will announce the two classrooms that earned the most golden Falcon slip for the month of March.
IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER
Mon March 26 - Mon April 2. Spring Break. Students return to school on Tues. April 3rd. We wish all of our families safe travels and a relaxing break!
April 3 -6 Health and Nutrition week
April 9 - Neat to Use Your Feet Week
April 11th - Author Blue Balliett for 4/5th grades
April 12th - Author Terry Lynn Johnson for 2/3 grades
April 12th - Jazz Festival @ Lincoln
April 13th - PTA K-2 Social in gym
April 13th - placement letters due to Dr. Claire Kowalczyk - see above for guidelines
April 16 - Go Green Week!
April 17th - Parent University
April 19th - KINDERGARTEN ROUND UP 5:30-7:00 P.M.
April 23 Screen Free Week