Dashing through December!

Time will really fly this month, as the children keep busy during these last few weeks before Christmas.

In Reading, we will not be introducing a new comprehension skill this month. We are reading The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, and will be practicing applying the comprehension skills we have already learned (and include Character maps) as we read each chapter together. A vocabulary test and an end of unit project will be the only grades.

We look forward to Young Audiences from the Woodruff Arts Center coming to visit us on December 8^th. . Their program, “Laughing Matters,” will incorporate our book, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, into their interactive improvisational theater performance. The students should really enjoy this opportunity to act spontaneously!

In English and Writing we will finish our units on compound sentences, run-on sentences, and the writing trait  Sentence Fluency.

The students are beginning Math unit 5, and will be studying place value in whole numbers and decimals.  They will be playing several math card games to reinforce these skills.

In Bible, the students are finishing the story of Joseph, as he reunites with his father and brothers in Egypt.  We will then begin the study of Moses and the Exodus from Egypt. (There will be no spelling or Bible verse memorization the week of December 12^th.)

We have begun a Science unit on Heating and Cooling, and will be doing some fun experiments as we examine how heat affects matter.

We had a wonderful and educational “Ancient Greek Festival” to culminate out unit on Ancient Cultures, and we thank all the parents who helped make it such a fabulous experience!

Thank you, also, for taking the time to join us for the Thanksgiving Feast. The students loved having you there to celebrate this special MBCA tradition.

On December 1^st we travel to the Elizabeth Inn to tour their MUST facility. This is an amazing experience for the students as they hear about and see where the less fortunate, including children, in our community come to seek shelter from homelessness. A seed is planted in their hearts about the need to remember others who might need our help.

On December 7^th,  Mr. Callis has invited our class to join him for “S’mores” outside by the fire pit!

Our last day of school before Christmas is December 16^th, with the Christmas program in the chapel at 8:30, and our class Christmas party from 11-11:45am. This is also the last day of the 2^nd quarter.

And, finally, congratulations to Skye Mursten for winning the Lower School Christmas 

Card drawing contest! Her entry is on display on the first floor. 

As we begin the Christmas season, Leslie and I ask God’s blessings on each family and hope that your holiday is filled with the joy and contentment that comes from the knowledge of God’s precious gift to us – Jesus!

Merry Christmas!

              Lucia and Leslie

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November News

October flew by, and we capped off the month with a fun-filled Fall Party! The students loved the great food, throwing bean bags into a giant pumpkin face, and decorating jugs that can glow in the dark with a glow stick. We would like to thank all the mothers (Mrs. Nicholson, Mrs. Corso, Mrs. Schilling, Mrs. Paine, Mrs. Mallon and Mrs. Lako) who so kindly helped with food and activities for this event. We continue to be blessed by so much support from parents at MBCA! Thank you!!

In Reading this month the students will be examining the reading comprehension skill “Cause and Effect.” Students are reviewing predicates and compound sentences in English, and in Writing will continue to work on varying sentences with the Sentence Fluency trait.

Unit 4 in Math is devoted exclusively to multiplication and division, and we will be playing games such as “Baseball Multiplication”  “Division Arrays” to reinforce the skills from the chapter. Continued work with subtraction and multiplication math facts at home is essential.

In Bible, the students will be researching topics about Ancient Egypt in order to better understand the time period when Joseph was sent there as a slave. In pairs, students will be gathering information from  books and the internet about their topic, which they will put in paragraph form and present to the class.

We will then begin our study of Joseph in Pontiphar’s house, his dreams, and God’s hand in giving Joseph the ability to save so many lives during the famine.

                                    

In Social Studies students continue to look at Ancient Greece, the land, people, communities/city states, and government. If weather permits, they will be participating in some Olympic games outside! They will be comparing the Greek form of direct democracy with that of Ancient Rome, where they will follow the change from a representative democracy to the dictatorship by Julius Caesar. The unit will culminate in the much anticipated “Ancient Cultures Day (aka The Greek Festival)” on November 16^th The students (and teachers) will wear Greek costumes, and students will rotate among 4 classrooms of activities pertaining to Greek culture, culminating in a Greek feast in the classrooms.  Thank you, in advance, for helping to create a simple  costume for your child!                

         
As we discuss the Thanksgiving holiday in class, we will read Squanto, and the Miracle of Thanksgiving, by Eric Metaxas, where we can see the hand of God as the Pilgrims discover an English speaking native-American, Squanto, who appears from in the woods to help them in their time of need!

As you can see, this is a busy month, and the students will be happy to rest and relax for an entire week during the Thanksgiving holiday! Leslie and I pray for blessings and safe travel for you and your family during this special holiday.

Lucia and Leslie

Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.        Psalm 100:4-5

                        

                                                        

                         

                                             

October 3rd Grade Scoop!

The highlight of last week was an exciting trip to the Tellus NW GA Science Museum! Students panned for gems, sorted rocks into 3 categories based on their properties, and enjoyed looking at the Mineral Gallery, which included a huge amethyst geode!

In Bible Unit 3 we will begin our study of Jacob and Esau, and the first part

of Unit 3 will cover Jacob’s life as he leaves to live with Laban and finally returns to Canaan. The second half of the unit will cover Joseph’s life in Egypt, the brothers’ reunion, and finally the deaths of Jacob and Joseph. The students will be tested on each half of the unit separately, since the unit is so long. Our Fruit of the Spirit this month is Gentleness. 


In Math Unit 3 we will be measuring in metric and U.S. Standard measurements. We will be exploring perimeter, area, diameter and circumference with many hand-on activities to make it meaningful. We continue to talk about the Ideas trait of the “Six Traits of Writing” in Language Arts, and are working to incorporate the grammar skills we

have been studying in our writing. Following our Reading Comprehension unit on Summarization will be a unit on Main Idea and Supporting Details beginning Oct. 7th. Students will be reading non-fiction books, finding a main idea and supporting details in each chapter, and turning the information from their visual tool into a well written paragraph with a topic sentence.

*Students should have reached at least 8 AR points by the end of the 1st quarter, October 13th.

In Science the students are performing several experiments on their rocks, comparing different types of soils and learning about fossils. Our Rocks and Minerals unit will be followed by a Social Studies unit on Ancient Greek and Roman Cultures.

September Newsletter

Our classroom has started off September with a much-anticipated activity! On September 1^st ,  students “set up shop” and displayed the products that they created for our Economics “Market”.  They marketed their products with posters, and acted as both producers (shopkeepers) and consumers (customers) as they sold their wares and purchased other students’ products. Using the pattern statement, “The choices we make can lead to positive or negative outcomes, “ students determined what to price their product in order to make a profit, and whether or not their product created a high or low demand. Connor’s “Thing-a-ma-jig” gets the prize for most create name!

We have brand new Science textbooks this year, with many additional resources (such as a great collection of science booklets on a variety of science subjects) for each classroom. On Tuesday we will begin our new Science unit on Rocks and Minerals. Our main focus in this unit will be identifying and describing the three main types of rocks:  igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary. We will also be learning about fossils, soil, and how weather shapes our land. Students will be getting a “Pet Rock” and keeping a Pet Rock Journal, which will be due on September 27^th (details to follow.)

The students have begun unit 2 in Math, where they will have varied opportunities to add and subtract whole numbers and solve number stories.   

In Bible, we enjoyed going outside and measuring the far parking lot in order to get an idea of just how big Noah’s Ark really was (150 yardsticks long!). We were amazed at the size of it! In Bible Unit 2, the students will be learning about Abraham and Isaac.

Our Fruit of the Spirit for September is Goodness, and we have been talking about what it means to “do good”. We will be memorizing this year’s school verse picked by the 8^th graders, Col. 3:15.

In Writing, we continue to explore the “Ideas” trait, and students are learning how to focus and then develop an idea, using “juicy details” that enhance the story by describing what things might smell, taste, look, sound or feel like.

We will begin our new Reading Comprehension skill “Summarization” on Tuesday, and students will be making “Summary Balloons” to help them determine how to summarize the essential events in a story.

Amanda Lako’s mother, Lisa, surprised us all in costume as our first Mystery Reader with a dramatic reading as “Veronica Grace Smithers” from the book, Marty McGuire. Students each had a prop, and Mrs. Lako’s flare for the dramatic made it a very exciting afternoon! Thank you, Mrs. Lako!

We thank Lisa Lako and Sherry Morgan, our Room Parents this year, for doing a fantastic job creating a booklet of important information for parents, and for helping organize volunteers at Scoop Night.

Thanks also to the parents who have given such wonderful gifts to our classroom from our class Wish List!

Leslie and I feel blessed to have such precious children in our class this year, and can’t wait to watch them grow in so many ways!

In Him,

Lucia Johnson and Leslie Ayres

School theme verse: Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Col. 3:15