Tasting the Fruits of Their Labor

Though the school year is young, lots of learning is going on. 

In honor of Johnny Appleseed's birthday last week, several kindergarten and first grade classrooms turned their studies to the apple. 

Some classes learned how to make applesauce from scratch and got to enjoy their freshly made treat.

  Mrs. Donahue's kindergarten class made applesauce. Student Jacquelyn Gangemi worked with teacher assistant Mrs. Agen to peel the apples.

Amelia Bleskoski helped Mrs. Malbone stir the apples in her kindergarten class.

First grader Michael Koltakov in Miss Munley's class loved the applesauce.

In Mrs. Cunningham's first grade class, students studied buoyancy and tried to determine if an apple would sink or float in a pot of water. Be sure to ask your child if he or she thinks an apple would float! 

Several classes tasted the different types of apples and then created graphs based on students' favorites. Here, first graders Necessidy Odom and Jacob Dalton in Miss Elmer's class point to the results in their class.

 To learn more about Johnny Appleseed and try some fun activities, click here.

Second Grade Students Learn about the many Cycles in Nature

Second grade students have been involved in an amazing area of study called Cycles in Nature. It is one of the many content-driven units of study offered for grade two. It supports the Common Core Learning Standards and introduces students to the many natural cycles that make life on Earth possible. 

Students first learn that a cycle is a sequence of events that repeats itself again and again. The unit talks about cycles that create day and night, our four seasons, the water cycle, and the life cycles of a flowering plant, tree, chicken, frog, and butterfly. Your budding scientist will have exposure to vocabulary words such as: axis, cycle, rotating, equator, hemisphere, tilt, adapt, germination, metamorphosis, larva, and molt just to mention a few!  

Above, young scientists from Mrs. Lizzi’s class, Alexa Pallone, Liam Tyler, Jonathan Shoults, and Samantha Casson examine butterfly larvae. If you would like to learn more specifics about butterflies and their life cycle, click here.

Matthew Pietrafesa in Mrs. Prosser's second grade class points to the egg step in the life cycle process, which begs the question: Which came first the chicken or the egg?

To learn about butterflies and their life cycle, click here.

Eric Litwin, Author of Several Pete the Cat Books, is Coming to Stonehedge!

Beloved children's author Eric Litwin will be presenting assemblies to all Stonehedge students on Thursday, October 2. The PTA is sponsoring the author's visit which promises to be an exciting, musical, entertaining, and educational experience. We've got our school shoes on and we can't wait! Mr. Litwin's visit helps to kick off the PTA's month-long reading program called PARP (Parents as Reading Partners). Look for information to come home soon with your child. 

 

Be on the Lookout for New Transportation Forms

In an effort to simplify the dismissal procedure and make it consistent, Stonehedge is providing new Transportation Change Request and Dismissal Procedure for Student Pick-Up forms. The forms provide a quick and easy way to let your child's classroom teacher and our offices know any changes taking place for the day. You will be getting forms home in your child's folder shortly and you are strongly encouraged to use them.  


Thanks,
Lori

Hail, Hail, the Gang’s all Here!

The rain held off just long enough for all students to enter the building dry. What a wonderful day for students! Reconnecting with friends, meeting a new teacher, and exploring a new classroom all topped the list of favorite things to do today. Students were sporting their fashionable new clothes and shared their spiffy look with friends. The excitement could be felt throughout the building. There are several more photos included below to help you get a glimpse into our day.

Arrival Procedures

Tomorrow we will begin our full day schedule (9:00 a.m. –  3:17 p.m.). Please take care when dropping off students at 9:00 a.m. in the parent circle. It is a one lane and one way circle. Pull up as far as you can and have your child exit on the passenger side of your car and proceed directly to the sidewalk. This morning, students were ready to exit quickly and walked directly onto the sidewalk. Traffic flow moved swiftly and safely. Thank you for a job well!

Dismissal Procedures

All parents picking up their children at the end of the day should report to the Blue Cafeteria.  Doors open for pick up at 3:10 p.m.

I would like to take this opportunity to review dismissal procedures. Our ultimate goal is to ensure that children arrive home safely and stress free!  If you plan to pick up your child, you must write a note notifying the teacher.  This note must be sent in the morning with your child.  The note is then sent to the office and the child’s name is recorded on the daily sign out sheet.  If you will be picking up your child every day all year long, you should write one note which will suffice for the year. This needs to be done at the beginning of each school year.

Today we called over 50 classrooms in a matter of 20 minutes (between 11:20-11:40) to make arrangements for students who did not have a note.  We then made 50 last minute transportation changes. I’m sure many of you do not understand the impact that this many unplanned changes have on our dismissal process. This creates too much room for error and confusion at dismissal. 

If you have not sent in a note, and it is past 2:30 p.m., please plan to meet your child at home. I will certainly work with anyone who finds themselves in an emergency situation. Safety is our foremost concern. Thank you in advance for adhering to these guidelines.

New Teaching Staff

Welcome to our new teachers! This year we welcome Mrs. Farrow and  Miss Kolis, both of whom are teaching first grade, and Miss Finger who is teaching second grade. 

Mrs. Farrow welcomes a student into her first grade classroom today.

Miss Finger sits in a circle on the rug with her second grade students as they shared information about themselves. 

Miss Kolis admires the work of one of her first grade students.

Open House

I look forward to seeing parents at our upcoming Open House on Sept. 11, 2014. This is an important night for parents to learn about grade level curriculum, classroom routines, and upcoming events.  A more detailed letter with grade level presentation times will be forthcoming.  Please mark your calendars!

In closing, please take time this week to establish homework routines and reestablish bed time routines. both will ensure successful days! As always, feel free to contact me at the main office (487-4633) with any questions or concerns.

Lori