Hello, Newton families! It is wonderful to be back at Newton spending time with these amazing students. This trimester, the elementary students are focusing on themes of caring, inclusiveness, and integrity. I will finally have the opportunity to teach the 5th and 6th grade students every week--more to come on what we will be exploring together!
In gratitude,
Jocelyn
|
|
Hello, Newton Families! As you know, Teacher Conferences are fast approaching, and that means extra work and late nights for our teachers. The PTA is organizing dinners for our Newton teachers on March 29th and 30th, as a little appreciation for all that they do for our students.
|
|
Sign Up for Elementary and Middle School Programs for Spring
Our Spring Session of One Planet begins this week! See below for our schedule of programs. Click here for the registration forms. Email Jennie for more information. |
|
Financial Help to Attend One Planet
If you have any concerns about paying for One Planet please consider applying for Vermont Childcare Financial Assistance. It can cover most or all One Planet costs. Please reach out if you have questions or need any help with this. If you are denied financial assistance from the state, please inquire about our scholarships. One Planet is for all children regardless of ability to pay.
STEAM in Spring
Check out the video of all the fun things we did in STEAM during the Winter. STEAM will be every Tuesday in the Spring session. Email Jennie to sign up! |
|
|
|
Thank you to Willis Phelps for welcoming the kindergarten, first, and second grade classes to the sugarhouse. It was an awesome field trip! |
|
|
|
|
First Grade
Mrs. Robinson
|
It is so nice to see the sun out brighter this week! The playground is still VERY wet, so if you want to send in extra clothes with your child, this would be a good time to do it.
As usual, it has been a busy time in first grade. We have continued with our poetry unit, talking about alliteration and couplets so far. We also read the poem "Sunflakes" by Frank Asch, and did a fun 3-D project.
Last week we started reading aloud Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder. There is so much to learn and do with a book like this. We are comparing Laura’s time to ours and making Same and Different posters. We also made butter by shaking cream in small jars. It was delicious on crackers, and we had some brave souls try the buttermilk.
Our Star of the Week activities have been a great change of pace during morning meetings. It is fun to learn more about each child, and I think our overall favorite activity is guessing what each child brings in their bags on Thursdays.
|
|
|
|
|
This week in second grade we played different math games to practice recognizing and adding cents. We also determined where the symbols belong when writing dollar and cents amounts.
During phonics we focused on -ed endings in past tense verbs and how they can have three different sounds. We looked for details in stories that reveal their setting during reading.
We continued learning about earth systems in science and focused on slow land changes, such as erosion and weathering. We had so much fun on our field trip to the Phelps' sugarhouse!
|
|
|
Third graders have been exploring geometry and learning more about the perimeter of polygons. They have been enjoying exploring the three types of rocks and learning about the rock cycle. They also have been working on writing a fractured fairytale using the Piney Wood Moose Tales as an inspiration. This past week they learned about the Power of Mistakes and how making a mistake can lead to a new recipe or a new invention.
The third grade will be collecting canned food for the Sharon Food Shelf next week from March 28th - March 31st. The goal is to donate 250 cans of food. Please consider sending in a can or two with your child. Or, please consider dropping off a can of food in the pick up or dismissal line. We started this at our Hike for Hunger and the Newton community is excited to try to sustain a school year long food drive. Thank you for any contribution. It all goes to those in need.
|
|
|
|
|
The 4th graders have been playing a simulation game called Caravans. This game is teaching them about world geography. They are working in caravans and collecting artifacts for a person named Big Buck Billionola.
The object of the game is to travel to as many cities as possible and collect items for Big Buck to put in his new museum. There are many twists and turns along the way. Each day the students draw fate cards that either help them on their journey or sets them back.
|
|
|
|
|
5th Math, 5-6 Science & STEM
Ms. Tremblay
|
5th grade students have been practicing team building while producing NNN10 segments this trimester. As this trimester ends, students were found in The Herald! View all NN10 segments on our Vimeo channel.
5th and 6th grade students have entered into the Tree Art Arbor Day contest. They created a story or wrote a memory of their favorite tree with the entry.
5th grade students have been creating art with shaving cream and food color. They are creating bookmarks for other students in the school.
6-8th grade students are continuing to practice team building skills while acting as civil engineers, designing and building a popsicle bridge for a competition on March 31 at Vermont Technical College.
|
|
|
|
|
Art classes have been busy this spring! Second and 3rd grade focused on some social-emotional projects, and made representations of what their joy might look like, while first grade made “yets” to represent the things that they don’t know how to do….yet!
Seventh and 8th grade finished out the trimester with an awesome zine workshop from visiting artist William Camargo, and a clay workshop with local potter Kira Campbell. They are now finishing up their zines, and I am so excited for the outcome!
Fourth grade is painting away, learning about painters Alma Thomas and Ted Harrison. Second and 3rd grade are working on creating their own galaxies using paints and oil pastels, and the first graders are painting up a storm to create some bright spring flowers, which I am ready for!
Kindergarten just finished up a printmaking a collage project inspired by Piet Mondrian, and they are ready to jump into some colorful spring projects! Remember that all of the artwork that our students make is on Artsonia (and also that art makes for great mothers/fathers day gifts…). |
|
|
Library/Media
Ms. Simone
Before the break, our 4th and 5th grade students had special virtual visits!
Fourth grade was able to talk to author Saadia Faruqi about the writing and publishing process. She was also able to talk about the importance of Own Voices in writing, fitting well with our study of how literature can increase our understanding of cultures other than our own.
Fifth graders had a lengthy q&a with some video game designers! Lydia, Virginia, and Kellie from Filament Games in Wisconsin talked about the design process, the challenges of designing for various modes, and the different types of games they've worked on. The kids were so enthusiastic and asked great questions! Because so many students were absent, the presenters were kind enough to give permission for us to record our talk; the audio isn't great, but you can find the entire presentation here. |
|
|
|
|
THE NEWTON SCHOOL
newtonschool.org
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
