- Yearbook Purchase Deadline: April 20
- Memorial Day | No Distance Learning: May 25
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Many thanks to all of our students who have been so understanding and adaptive with the recent changes. You having been showing responsibility in your Distance Learning and it is very appreciated. We have also heard many of you are being very kind and helpful with your families (keep it up!); a special thanks to those middle school students who are creating videos of themselves reading books to help inspire our Kinders as they learn to read.
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The Bell Crew is in full stride with Distance Learning! Students wrapped up our winter expedition about black bears by writing non-fiction bear books, creating bears out of household items, and building black bear habitats. They demonstrated knowledge of how a bear’s physical features help it survive and what conditions a bear needs to survive (air, water, food, shelter, and space). The students used design process skills from their fall “maker” expedition to create wonderful expressions of their learning. The Bell Crew kindergartners are now on a week-long mission to spread happiness and good cheer to the people who pass by their homes. Students are putting their beginning writing skills to work to post notes to their neighbors, their mail carrier, their sanitation worker and their recycling team. Colorful artwork, with love-filled hearts and cheerful rainbows, accompanies each written note. These kindergartners are working to brighten their community by sharing their love and their learning!
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The Telfer Crew has been hard at work learning from home! They have all learned to use new technology at home, like Epic books, Freckle, and Google Slides. They have been meeting once weekly with a small reading group, and once weekly for a whole group lunch date. They are continuing to learn about their local animal by researching it using a variety of resources. This week, students are starting their informational writing pieces on their animals in the format of The Important Book. I know it has been hard moving to a Distance Learning format, but these kids and parents have been rocking it! Keep up the hard work everyone, I'm very proud of you all!
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Distance Learning is up and running, and we are so grateful for all the parent support during this time! The MinBorg crew is learning to navigate technology in a whole new way than ever before, and we are proud of all the effort! For the month of April we will continue to delve into the world of poetry and play with our senses and language in different ways. We also look forward to sharing words of appreciation for the Town of Truckee, for all the hard work our community members are putting into keeping things running. Our goal is to spread words of kindness and share lovely artwork...that’s the least we can do to bring joy to others.
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The Welch Crew is making the most of their Distance Learning by exploring and creating at home. One activity we are proud to share during National Letter Writing Month is the beautiful notecards we decorated in our home art studio. Our goal is to send a notecard each week during the month of April to a family or friend. Some of us have even adopted a Grandfriend to send notes to cheer them up. We love receiving mail too, so hopefully, we will get some letters back soon. Stay healthy everyone. With love, from the Welch Crew!
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The 4th graders have done a wonderful job of transitioning over to Distance Learning! They have been sharing photos and videos of their newly created learning spaces. We meet twice a week for our crew Zoom meeting and share learning and our ideas together! We even have fun with Zoom around the room and have scavenger hunts! We are also getting the hang of Zoom meeting etiquette! The students have been working on several continuation projects that we started in March such as a poetry book that they are now illustrating with help from Ms. Lobo, and we are finishing up our Water Narrative where our water characters tell all about their travels through the water cycle. They have also completed several SWEP Snippets and labs that connect so well with our water expedition. The students have been documenting their experiences and journeys through this different time with a daily journal where they write down their thoughts, ideas, feelings and daily happenings. I think they will enjoy reading back through this sometime down the road. On Fridays, the students get to pick from a Fun Friday Menu that has them visiting virtual museums, art classes, national parks or creating drawings, finishing puzzles, and family yoga and dance parties! Thank you parents for all your support and help during this time and know that I think you and your kids are doing an amazing job!
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The Brisbin Crew 5th Graders launched themselves into Distance Learning with all of their hearts and souls this month! Day one included setting up their learning areas in an organized fashion- take a look at those work spaces! Students are learning to follow routines, meet deadlines, and ensure exercise on a daily basis. Daily slideshows include photos of Crew Members doing awesome things, like climbing trees, building reading forts, baking cookies, indoor glamping and movies, sibling and family time, pet walking, and art submissions. Also included in the students' slideshows are their daily assignments, menus for creative writing, and attendance Morning Questions and videos from Ms. Brisbin. On Wednesdays, students play "Survivor- Brizbomb Island" and work off of a cultivated Survivor Menu to gain points for their tribes. Special PE, Music, and Spanish submissions are a hit, as well as book sharing from Mr. Manahan. These hard working 5th graders have truly impressed their teacher with how much integrity, self-direction, and flexibility they have shown this past month! We are CREW!
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Distance Learning is in full swing and I'm impressed with the way our crew has embraced this new way of learning. I absolutely love this excerpt from Bill Streever's book,
HEAT
. It is eloquently written and contains a powerful metaphor for the combustion reaction. Here is the Worster crew digging into this complex text through a Zoom choral reading. The crew had fun collaborating in groups towards a project and showed perseverance while grappling through real-world technological limitations.
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In the Santos Crew we have transitioned well into our new learning environment. The crew still laughs together by being silly wearing paper hats. They have enjoyed using punnett squares to breed aliens and create pictures showing the phenotypes, the traits that show physically. They have also been working on an art project to build the skills they will need to create a book about all of the mentors they have been in contact with throughout the year. What an amazing group of motivated, flexible young citizens. Even when we are not physically together: We are crew!
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McMains Crew has climbed the steep technology learning curve to continue their education online. It’s a new experience running your own morning meeting by Zoom! As challenging as this time is, it’s certainly great preparation for the independence and initiative needed to tackle high school in the fall. We continue with monthly book talks around identifying theme, solving problems of geometry at our own pace through Khan Academy, and continuing to look at how climate issues affect our food systems in our science expedition. Hang tough McMains Crew - you’re doing great.
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Please donate to the wonderful fieldwork program you see in this newsletter. This is only possible with your continued support.
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Sierra Expeditionary Learning School
Phone: (530) 582-3701
Fax: (530) 582-3703
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