October 2021

Happy Fall MacArthur Families!

Our building has been bustling as students and teachers have settled in to their routines and taken on some serious learning. A couple of fall highlights include our fifth graders participating in a Student Government election and first graders rehearsing and recording a song about Friendship for our October PBIS assembly.

As the weather cools, please have your child(ren) dress for the weather. Students are thrilled to be back on the playgrounds for recess and many are enjoying outdoor learning with their classes.

Below are some upcoming events. For the most up-to-date information, be sure to visit our Mac Portal where you can find Principals video updates, PTA info, and visit our virtual office.

November

• 7 - set clocks back 1 hour
• 11 - Veterans Day NO SCHOOL
• 16 - Board of Education Meeting 7pm
• 17 - PTA 6pm (rescheduled from 11/10)
• 19 - Picture Make-ups
• 24-26 - Thanksgiving Recess NO SCHOOL
• 30 - Parent/Teacher Conferences EARLY DISMISSAL

We are so happy to have ALL of our students back!

Mrs. Asquith, Building Principal

Mrs. Dabek, Assistant Principal

We are off to a great start in Kindergarten! The children have worked so hard on learning the routines in each class, making new friends, and always trying their best. We are very proud of them! In Reading we will be working on identifying and understanding story elements with characters, setting, and major events. We continue to introduce the letters of the alphabet and their sounds. In Writing the children will begin with matching pictures with words and making label books. In Math we continue with number sense by counting and quantifying using numbers to 5. Parents, please read to your children every night and ask questions about the story (who are the characters, where is the story taking place, and what is happening?). Thanks for all you do to make sure your Kindergarteners are ready each day to learn 😊

First grade is off to a great start to the 2021-2022 school year. We have had some fun activities that have tied in our curriculum and learning. To introduce our reading program, the entire first grade had a spaghetti dinner. This allowed the children a hands on experience of what appetizer, entree, and dessert books look like. They all enjoyed this event and they got to eat delicious spaghetti! We also put on the October assembly for PBIS on Friendship. The whole grade level sang a song and each class did their own unique activity on what friendship is.

Our curriculum thus far has been revisiting skills of kindergarten and using this foundation for first grade. We are adding and subtracting numbers to 10, using various methods, like number bonds and tens frames. We are also comparing numbers and counting, identifying, and writing our numbers. In writing, we just completed our first unit on narrative writing. We are now starting our unit on how to write letters. As a whole class, we are writing letters to individuals within our building. The children will write their own letters to people who are special to them. In reading, we are learning various techniques to decode unknown words, as well as discussing our books with a partner or adult.

Some skills to practice at home with your child are:

• Adding and subtracting numbers within 10
• Identifying, writing, and counting to 120
• Sight word identification
• Reading a book and then talking about the book they read
• Writing a complete sentence (or sentences on a topic)
• Tying their shoes
• Rhyming

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your child’s teacher. The cooler days are coming, so please remember to send a jacket with your child daily, as well as sneakers for when they play on the playground.

Have a great November!!

The First Grade Team

Now that the witches, ghosts, and ghouls are gone, third grade can back to work! The kids are slowly learning their multiplication facts and all the multiplication and division lessons that go along with that every day in math. I-Ready and Reflex continue to be part of their "on-line" learning as well. We are finishing up perfecting the "Personal Narrative" writing genre and each student has or will soon have an edited, final copy of a "small, very memorable moment" in their life to share! Cursive writing and spelling continue to be part of our weekly routine and the new FOSS Science curriculum is being unpacked with our first unit being "Water and Climate". If they haven't already, the kids will be conducting some experiments to help us understand the role that water plays in our world......it's making us thirsty every day! Social Studies is bringing the seven continents to life and our travel agents and guides are the third grade teachers.....and the tours are FREE for the kids! 🙂

We want to thank everyone who so graciously and kindly sent in goodies for the Halloween Parties.....the amount of food and paper products we had was phenomenal! Please remember to keep apprised of the weather every day because it fluctuates so dramatically from one day to the next and some of the kids need more than a shirt on some colder days. Thank you for your continued support and help. We all want these kids to thrive!

In Miss Smith’s 3rd grade class we’ve been on the hunt for the Candy Corn Bandit! This bandit stole our treats! We have to make predictions, follow clues, and use our problem solving skills to find our Halloween treat. Check out our WANTED posters (right)!.

As we begin a new month, we are starting new math concepts! We are starting to multiply in the 3rd grade. We can also write wonderful personal narratives, and edit our writing like real authors! As readers we will continue identifying genre, characteristics, main ideas, and mastering our sight words.

Fourth graders have been working hard learning about the Iroquois in their Reading and Writing Workshops and have been working on all aspects of math….adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing. Students will be participating in BOOT CAMP to have a day focused on their multiplication facts. Stay tuned for more information! We are looking forward to our upcoming units on biographies and learning how to write a speech. We encourage students to practice basic multiplication facts each night as well as read for 20+ minutes!

The fourth grade classes visited Roberson Museum to learn more about the Iroquois as part of their social studies , reading and writing units. Students are enjoying learning more about the Iroquois as they continue to research in preparation for their upcoming writing.

Mrs. Ward's class has been busy with lots of hands-on learning in Science and Social Studies, and enjoyed painting pumpkins as part of their fall celebration.

MacArthur artists have been busy in the Art room! It is great to have students back in school and to display their artwork in the Gallery again!

We began the year creating artworks inspired by the book "The Dot" by Peter Reynolds. This story encourages students to "Make a mark and see where it takes you!" Then each grade level went off in a different direction learning about art around the world and throughout history. This includes learning about a variety of artists, art materials, the elements of design (line, shape, color, texture, space, form and value), the ideas and subjects we might see in artworks and more. We will save kids' artworks in a portfolio and bring them home a few times throughout the year. I hope you enjoy their creative creations!

Mrs. Ann Sargent

Mrs. Peterson (Speech Pathologist), Mrs. Wiggins (Occupational Therapist), Mrs. Mahakian, Mrs. Mason and the 12:1:1 classroom students have been cooking up some delicious recipes in their cooking groups this year! Cooking groups have been addressing many goals for these students including:

Improving social language skills, following directions, sequencing, vocabulary, answering questions, fine motor skills, and math skills. These students are measuring, chopping, slicing, pouring, drizzling, and baking a lot of deliciousness and having fun learning new skills!

It has been so wonderful to have kids singing in the music room this year! In all grades, we’ve been practicing singing, because it’s been a year and a half since some of us have done that together.

Kindergarten and first grade have been singing, doing movement activities, and learning how to play the beat of a song and some short rhythms on instruments.

Second grade has learned the skill of following written music in a book – they are well on their way to learning this new language of music reading!

Third, fourth, and fifth grade has been polishing the music reading skills they learned in previous years, as well as singing, playing rhythms, and learning more about the symbols in music.

All grades enjoyed the song ‘Danse Macabre’ by Camille Saint Saens at the end of October – Listening to and learning more about this song is a 60-year-old tradition, one that I enjoyed when I was a student at MacArthur!

For those of you with kids in third, fourth, and fifth grade – I am very excited to be starting Chorus up for those grades again! Chorus will be starting soon. Students that are interested will get a chance to hear all about it, and will be bringing home more information for you to read together. There are no auditions for chorus – any student that wants to participate, can!

The key to your child’s success on an instrument is good practice habits. These habits need to be established at home from the very beginning, and a parent can HELP.

Help to set up the best possible practice space. The area should be well-lit and free from other distractions, and should accommodate a straight chair and music stand (or something to hold their music at eye-level).

Establish a regular time and routine for practice sessions. Students should be practicing at least 6 days each week for at least 20 minutes each day. Their whole assignment should be played and worked on each day. Troublesome parts should be isolated and worked out before the entire song is repeated. Students should end the practice session with a favorite song or the one that they can play the best to end on a good note!

Listen enthusiastically to your child’s practicing. Recognize his or her efforts with a positive comment. You are the audience your child will most appreciate.

Participate in our three-way partnership: parent, student, and teacher working together to make band or orchestra an enjoyable and worthwhile experience. Start by reinforcing your child’s practice routine. Acknowledge his or her home practice times by initialing your child’s practice chart in the front of their lesson book.

Enjoyment in playing a musical instrument and a desire to practice come with success. Success is the result of dedicated practice. Success and practice are dependent on each other. Together, we can guide your child on the road to success and enjoyment in music!

We have been busy in classrooms implementing our social emotional learning curriculum, Connected and Respected. In unit 1, students are learning the ways to make connections with others and the importance of it. This year, Mrs. Plourde is working with grades K-2, and Miss McIver is working with grades 3-5.

It is that time of year where you may be looking for extra support, or know someone who is. Please feel free to reach out to us if you’re in need. Please also utilize 211, a great local resource for connecting with local agencies that are able to help!

As always, if you have any questions or need assistance, please feel free to reach out! We value your input and your partnership in your child's learning.

Cristin Plourde

School Social Worker

(607)762-8368

PlourdeC@binghamtonschools.org

Griffin McIver

School Social Worker

(607)762-8129

MciverG2@binghamtonschools.org