Sunday Message
Special Summer Edition
Summer Enrichment
Summer Enrichment Discussion Groups
We are offering free, summer enrichment discussion groups to any student in Western NC. We will be using AIG Learning Labs to guide students through enriching and engaging activities from June 8-19 and July 6-17.
The activities were developed by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction in collaboration with Duke University.
Each week, students will engage in academic studies as well as mindfulness, logic, and research, and field studies.
Teachers will be available via Zoom at the beginning of the week to talk through activities and then again later in the week to go over the completed projects.
If you are interested in signing up, please contact the following teachers depending on the grade your child will be in for the 2020-2021 school year to sign up:
Kindergarten - 3rd Grade: Jen Victory, jvictory@brevardacademy.school
4th - 8th Grade: Trudy Pierron, tpierron@brevardacademy.school
Your child's teacher will let you know the dates and times for the calls.
Keep the learning going!
Kindergarten
Encourage your child to read 20 minutes per day. If your child is unable to read independently, you can read aloud to them. Have your child retell the story and state the characters in the book. You can also ask your child to give their opinion of the book.
Have your child assist you in doing word hunts. YOu can do word hunts around the house, in the car, or even in the store. You can tell your child a word you see and have them search their surroundings until they identify it. You can also point to words around you and have your child read the word.
Have your child assist you in doing math challenges. For example, when you open the pantry, ask your child questions like, “Do you see more canned food or boxed food?” You can take it a step further by allowing them to retrieve the food and count it. Math challenges can be number identification, shapes, addition, subtraction or even patterns.
Encourage your child to practice their handwriting and writing skills daily. You can have them assist you in grocery list writing or reminder writing. You can even have them write letters or postcards to friends and family.
In addition, your child can access these engaging educational websites they have worked on throughout the school year:
www.mobymax.com (math and reading)
www.teachyourmonstertoread.com (reading)
www.splashlearn.com (math)
1st Grade
#1: Make learning fun! You definitely don't want summer practice to become a battle between you and your child. Keep things fun and light by using games, technology, and educational day trips to engage your child.
#2: Use what's free and close by. The library is your best friend! Visit it every week or every two weeks so your child can check out new reading material and use the computers. Many libraries have summer reading programs with incentives (prizes!). Use the internet to search for other opportunities in your area. Local museums, planetariums, and even hardware stores may offer fun (and sometimes free) activities for children, especially during the summer.
#3: Motivate your child with technology! Use apps! Many families have smartphones, iPads, or other tablets. Turn playtime into learning time by downloading educational apps.
#4: Integrate learning into everyday activities. For example, your child can easily practice writing by helping you make a grocery list. You can dictate what you want on the list, and your child can write down the words. Don't focus too much on correct spelling, unless your child insists on it. What is most important is having your child practice listening for the sounds in words and then writing them down. Other fun summer writing ideas: have your child keep a daily or weekly journal, write a postcard to a friend or relative, write letters to his/her Kindergarten teacher, or write about a vacation trip.
#5: Your child probably made a LOT of progress with her reading during first grade, and you certainly don't want those gains to be lost over the summer! When choosing books that are just right for your soon-to-be second grader, have your child read aloud the first 2 pages to you. On those first 2 pages, your child should be able to read all but about 3 of the words. If there are more than 3 tricky words on these two pages, this is a good indication that the book is too hard for your child and will frustrate him/her. You'll want to choose a variety of books, of course - some that are too hard for your child but that you can read aloud to her, and some that are just right for your child to read independently. Here are some fun books that may be appropriate for your child to read independently, or with just a little help:
- Young Cam Jansen and the Baseball Mystery (David Adler)
- Aunt Eater Loves a Mystery (Doug Cushman)
- Fox and His Friends (Edward Marshall)
- Poppleton Has Fun (Cynthia Rylant)
- Shoo, Fly Guy! (Ted Arnold)
- Will It Float or Sink? (Melissa Stewart)
- The Sun (Melanie Chrismer)
- Sea Turtles (Carol Lindeen)
- Hammerhead Shark (Deborah Nuzzolo)
- Neil Armstrong (Dana Rau)
Series books are always great, because once your child gets "into" the series, she'll want to read more and more of the books! I also really recommend checking out some nonfiction for your child to read. Kids at this age, especially boys, tend to enjoy nonfiction, and it's important for them to spend time reading informational texts. Your local librarian may have additional lists or suggestions for you, too. In many libraries, there is an "easy reader" section that you may want to check out.
©Ms. Lilypad’s Primary Pond
#6: Play car games! Here are some ideas:
- Play "Make My Sum." Choose a number from 2 to 20. Tell your child, "Can you make the number __? Look for numbers on license plates or on signs that add up to make the number __." For example, you might choose the number 14 as your sum. Your child might find the numbers 8 and 6, which make 14 when added together. Encourage your child to look for other ways to make that same number, such as by adding 10, 2, and 2. Then, give your child a different sum to search for, or have your child tell you a sum to search for.
- Have a sight word search. Have your child shout out any sight words he/she sees on billboards and recognizes instantly.
#7: Take out the camera! Kids love working with pictures of themselves! There are lots of learning activities that you and your child can do with photos. Here are a few ideas:
- Take a series of pictures of your child doing a simple activity or chore (i.e. making a peanut butter sandwich). Then, print out the pictures - 1 per page - and have your child write a book to teach someone how to do the activity.
- Have your child make an alphabet book by taking pictures of things in your home / outside that start with each letter of the alphabet.
- After taking a vacation or special trip, print out photos (1 per page). Have your child write captions for the photos and staple them together to create a memory book.
Tip #8: Cook up something in the kitchen! Choose a simple recipe and have your child help you make it. You can incorporate reading skills (to read the recipe), math skills (measuring), and practical life skills. Here are some links to child-friendly recipes:
- http://www.kraftrecipes.com/YourKids/main.aspx (Kids’ Recipes from Kraft)
- http://www.childrensrecipes.com/childrens_recipes_index.htm (childrensrecipes.com)
©Ms. Lilypad’s Primary Pond
Second Grade
Xtra Math- We will keep your child as a student in our online classroom until the start of the 20-21 school year.
Keep up to date with the Time For Kids issues that get released in the library about every 2 weeks.
Continue to log onto Compass Learning and complete math and ELA activities.
Create a free Typing.com student account to work on your typing skills.
Create a free Khan Academy account for continued learning.
Transylvania County Library Summer Reading Program
Third and Fourth Grade Ideas
MATH
-please...please...please...continue practicing multiplication facts
SOCIAL STUDIES
-continue watching Liberty's Kids videos. We are on episode #16. You can find them on YouTube. BE CAREFUL BETWEEN EACH EPISODE FOR ADVERTISEMENTS.
READING
-continue reading all summer long
-Click HERE to access the summer reading list
-Read books! For a fourth grade challenge, expand what you read. If you normally read fiction, make a goal to read two non fiction books this summer, and vice versa.
WRITING/TRAVEL
-create a journal of day to day activities
-link to Transylvania Library Summer Activities
-you can continue to work on your reading compass activities
-bowl free this summer (sign up at www.KidsBowlFree.com/RockinBowl)
Social Studies Extensions for all
-create a summer journal of all of your travels or activities
-travel the state of NC and visit landmarks...lighthouses for example
-travel to as many national parks you can. As a 4th grader you can get a free park pass.
Math Extensions for all
-you can continue to work on your math compass activities
-continue to practice multiplication and division facts
-make flashcards
Other Summer Enrichment ideas:
-Follow a recipe.
-Practice typing. There are lots of free games that will increase your speed.
-Become an expert in something you love.
Fifth Grade
Social Studies
Work on map skills by drawing maps of your yard or neighborhood. Create a "treasure" map to follow around your neighborhood, the park, or downtown. Encourage your child to follow along with a road map during a longer car ride, or help them map out the route a head of time. Develop orienteering skills by going geocaching ( https://www.geocaching.com/play). Set a goal to create your own geocache by the end of summer break.
Take a local history tour: Transylvania Heritage Museum, WNC Military History Museum, Allison-Deaver House.
https://www.ncgenweb.us/transylvania/
https://www.transylvaniacounty.org/our-history
https://www.wnchistory.org/single-category/historicalsociety/
Language Arts
Write a summary for a movie you have watched. Retell the story from several different characters' points of view. Rewrite the story-line or give the movie an alternate ending.
Write a script and film you and your family performing.
Use sequential writing skills and transition words to revise or create a new recipe. Have fun cooking and trying the recipes as a family.
Plan a gallery walk to some of the wonderful local art galleries. Take along a journal and take turns writing poetry to describe some of the artwork that you see.
Summer Book List
Redwall by Brian Jacques
The Giver by Lois Lowry
The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White
The Watsons Go to Birmingham 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis
The Porcupine Year by Louise Erdrich
Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
Bedknob and Broomstick by Mary Norton
Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry
Sixth Grade
Summer is upon us! It is hard to let the students go when we did not get to say goodbye in a proper way. We have all learned so much and it goes without saying that we have adapted and have found that we can do so much when we put our minds to it. I am very proud of all the student’s hard work this year and want to encourage them to not stop learning! I have compiled some ideas about what I feel would continue the drive to learn. I hope this year students have taken away that learning is not a dirty word. It is a constant goal to want to know more. Answers are not simply given to us and it takes a personal drive to figure things out and overcome obstacles. The end of the school year made us all adapt and overcome. The world did not stop turning, and time still moved on. Learning continues!
In the summer game plan, I would like students to keep the fires of science and math alive. I have provided ideas to help them accomplish this. You could have your child do everything on here, or select portions that seem appropriate for their learning. Enjoy and have a great summer!
About Khan Academy (FREE): Khan Academy is a free program with high quality explanatory videos and practice problems. It does not completely replace a classroom and teacher guidance, but it is a wonderful place to learn material in this distance learning scenario. To use Khan Academy, students should go to Google.com and sign in to Google using their school email and password (the same one that was used to sign into their Chromebook). Then they can go to Khan Academy and sign in using Google. This will save all the progress they have made and the points they have earned. To select a Course of study, students can navigate to the top of the page on the left. The drop down menu will show all the learning opportunities available to them. We have been using 6th Grade Math as our area of focus. There may be some other options that your student may benefit from, such as practicing 4th grade geometry, or going beyond to higher level grades. Please encourage students to recognize that foundations in math are extremely important, and they should work to fill any gaps they have. Khan Academy is aligned with Common Core.
About Spectrum workbooks ($7-$20): Spectrum workbooks are a great pencil/paper alternative to Khan Academy. They offer simplified step-by-step examples for each section. They have a great feature of using pre-tests and post-tests to see what the students already know prior to the chapter, and to see if growth has been made at the end. Please choose the Spectrum books that are aligned with Common Core (most are).
About ScienceDaily.com (FREE): Science Daily is a web page with science articles from the latest research. Readers are able to learn about every avenue of science from the articles. While there are advertisements on this website, I have not personally ever witnessed anything objectionable. This is a great place to further understand how scientists use the scientific method in order to compile their information and how this information is shared.
MATH
Geometry (missed content)
Khan Academy (free)
Area of composite figures
Geometric solids
Volume with fractions
Surface Area
Polygons on the coordinate plane (review)
Statistics and Probability (further practice)
Khan Academy (free)
The whole module
You do not have to do Mean Absolute Deviation (MAD) unless you want to. It is no longer part of 6th grade math common core and I have never seen this used over standard deviation (a Math I concept).
Foundations
Khan Academy (Free)
4th -6th grade geometry.
5th grade working with fractions and decimals
Moby Max
Fact Fluency
Math (level of math work based on Placement test)
Workbooks ($)
Protractor needed
Refresh
Khan Academy (Free)
Build strong 6th grade foundations by redoing the 6th grade practice questions for each section.
Workbooks ($)
Extend
Khan Academy (free)
7th grade
8th grade
PDF Reading
Students may sign into Google Classroom using their username and password that they logged onto their Chromebook with. PDFs are available from our chapter reading to further student understanding of oceans.
Edpuzzle
Documentary: Earth From Space (extended version!)
Parents and students can watch and enjoy this one! This documentary ties together how all of Earth’s systems work together. This is eye candy for those who wish for a cohesive, visually appealing, and engaging video regarding the planet we call home.
ScienceDaily.com
I recommend students read articles from Science Daily especially regarding the section called Enviro. In this area students can read about a number of topics that relate to the learning we had throughout the year.
Scientific magazines, such as National Geographic, Scientific American, Smithsonian, and others are also great alternatives.
Journaling
Science journals were returned to students in their bags. I recommend students use them to journal with over the summer. Some ideas to consider focusing on are:
Summarize the article.
Give your opinion on the article that was read.
What questions would you have for the scientist(s) who conducted this study?
Identify the parts of the scientific method:
Question
Hypothesis
Experiment
Data analysis
Conclusion
Further testing (if any)
NCWiseOwl
Most citations are given in ScienceDaily.com. If they are not given, or an outside resource is used, students should practice using Citation Maker from NCWiseOwl to correctly cite their sources after each journal entry.
https://secondary.oslis.org/cite-sources/mla-secondary-citation
Seventh & Eighth Grades
Dear Parents and Caregivers,
Summertime is a fun and exciting time for students filled with outdoor activities and sports. But each year some students fall behind other classmates from summer reading loss. Often, families get too busy and forget to include reading into their busy schedules, or children may not even have access to books.
Research has shown that summer reading loss is cumulative over time. While some struggling students are falling behind, others are moving ahead with their skills, creating a wider gap each year. By middle school, children who lose reading skills over the summer have accumulated a two‐year lag behind their classmates.
Students who read regularly receive higher test scores compared to those who do not. Choosing their reading materials is an essential factor in motivating readers, especially those who are struggling. Children and teens are more likely to read when it is something that interests them. Independent reading is essential for students to become better at reading, spelling, and writing. Reading just 4‐5 books during the summer may potentially prevent a child from experiencing a reading lapse and help perform at higher levels next school year.
Participation in summer reading programs at public libraries is an excellent solution to reading loss. Summer reading programs give students access to books, keep students engaged with reading, encourage self‐selection of reading materials, promote independent reading, boost student performance, and can develop lifelong readers. Children can also benefit academically from other activities at the public library. By encouraging reading, whether it is at home or the public library, you can help increase the odds that students will choose to read over the summer.
What Can You Do to Help?
Encourage your child to read at least 15‐30 minutes every day or a minimum of 4‐5 books during summer break.
Motivate them to read anything at their reading level that interests them; whether it is comics, magazines, graphic novels, recipes, etc.
Take your child to the public library to check out books online. Let your child participate in summer reading programs and other activities.
Keep track of your child’s reading with a reading log.
Students can also continue to practice reading and writing skills on Moby Max. Parents can find excellent reading project ideas that are exciting and fun for their child on the following website.
Reading Project Ideas - Edutopia
SOCIAL STUDIES
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/Geography.htmGeography games- countries and capitals of any continent!
Read!
Students can read a book about any of the following topics:
- World War 1
- World War 2
- Civil Rights Movement
- Vietnam War
- Roaring 20s
- Great Depression.
Virtual Field Trips-
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SvIdgTx9djKO6SjyvPDsoGlkgE3iExmi3qh2KRRku_w/preview
Stay up to date with the news-
Science:
https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=19RnOK1jlkKBoKtRCFOVHDSbG0BJzu5U0
Other Summer Opportunities
MobyMax Learning
As you may know, Brevard Academy uses the resource "Moby Max" for practice in Reading and Math. As this school year comes to a close, many of you may wish to continue using this resource with your child over the summer. We wanted to make you aware that Moby Max will archive student data and information from this year, as of July 31. Teachers will still be able to access student data in the fall, as far as prior progress history, placement test results, and scores.
Your child will still be able to work in Moby Max from home, but their work after July 31 will not be saved. We just wanted you to be aware of this, as your child works through the program over the summer. Thank you for all of your support and work with your child over the past months.
Camp Muddy Sneakers
Muddy Sneakers is still going strong this summer!
Camp Muddy Sneakers expanded our camp last summer for children ages 12-14 who are looking for outdoor adventure! Campers can experience a variety of mountain sports while getting to know outdoor spaces through exploration and science discovery. A typical day will be spent traveling through diverse ecosystems while hiking, rock climbing, fly fishing or kayaking. Campers will head out for their adventure day to experience a beginner-level sport and learn about the wildlife, history, and formation of the Appalachian Mountains.
Check out all opportunities Camp Muddy Sneakers is offering on their website.
2020-2021 Official School Calendar with Virtual Days Options
Remote Learning Days for Students
- September 25 and 30
- October 15
- January 19
- February 24
- March 19
Mark Your Calendars for the First Day of School, August 12
Summer Learning Opportunities
June 8-22 and July 6-17
If your child is interested in enrichment learning opportunities with guidance from BA staff members, please contact the front office at 828-885-2665.
Students will be guided through different learning labs throughout the summer. A list of the learning labs is available here.
Gentle Reminders
Send Us Your Photos
We love to see all our students smiling faces and we sure do miss each and every one of them! Share with us some of the ways your children are staying active, working on projects, maybe a cool place they have found to read. Send pictures to our Facebook page or to ebrewton@brevardacademy.school. We will share photos and videos on social media.
Review Us
As parents are checking out school choices for their children, they want to hear from you! If you love Brevard Academy as much as we do, take a few minutes to post a review to Facebook, Google, and Great Schools. Please send us the review as well, so we can post it on our website. Reviews can be emailed to ebrewton@brevardacademy.school.
Thank you for your support!
#ILoveBA
Brevard Academy: A Challenge Foundation
Email: feedback@brevardacademy.school
Website: https://brevard.teamcfa.school/
Location: 1110 Hendersonville Highway, Pisgah Forest, NC, USA
Phone: 828-885-2665
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BrevardCFA
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