Last week we celebrated our Stone Soup Feast together as a school wide community. We peeled, chopped, sliced and diced with Peace Buddies by our side. The process and the end result were truly magical!

Chopping veggies with Peace Buddies 

Making centerpieces

"Out of a stone," said the travelers with a grin, "and a magical ingredient... sharing." As the travelers left the town they said, "If anyone ever wants to make this soup again, just remember the recipe. Bring what you've got. Put it in the pot. Every bit counts, from the largest to the least. Together we can celebrate a Stone Soup feast!"

Here is the promised music lyrics link from Jay.

http:///www.jaycookmusic.com/childrensHouse.html

We've had a wonderful week in the Willow Room.  The children returned from Thanksgiving break ready to get busy.  Everyone has been very engaged in the new Practical Life works.    

Delia develops fine motor strength while using Theraputty

G was the letter of the week and many Goofy Ghost puppets were flying about the room. We even survived the fire drill Friday morning with only a few tears.

The class celebrated with Rhys as he finished his world map project. This activity is a multi-step process that takes several days to complete. Rhys traced and punched out each continent. Then he traced and cut two circles to represent the two halves of the Earth. The continents are then arranged and glued in place. Finally the name labels for the continents are written out and attached to the map.  

Last week we were happy to see so many grandparents and special friends.  We hope they enjoyed visiting as much as we enjoyed having them.  The next GSFD will be next spring.  

 

This week we welcomed two students, Molly and Jordan, from the early education course at The Career Center in Brattleboro to our classroom.  As part of a mentoring program with Hilltop they'll be visiting every Wednesday morning through mid-January.   

Enjoy the weekend.
Melissa & Ellie


 

Lower El was busy this week, getting back into a regular rhythm after our poetry performance and the Thanksgiving break. We continue to read, discuss, and write poetry; this week, we talked about the challenging format of the haiku.

We began our study of Fundamental Needs with a lively discussion of what human beings around the world need to survive. Aside from food, water, shelter, and clothing, we depend upon tools to perform both large and small tasks. Cultural and spiritual needs, although not essential for survival, enrich our lives and make them more purposeful. Adornments, too, contribute to a happy and interesting life. We will move from discussing to building soon, as each student will have a Fundamental Needs project to complete.

Emmy Winter will be leaving us this week, to head off on a five-month adventure in Costa Rica with her parents. We will certainly feel her absence, but are looking forward to keeping in contact with her through her blog. Farewell Emmy!  We can't wait to hear about all of your adventures; maybe you'll teach us some Spanish when you return. Love, Your Lower El Community

Please note some fun and interesting dates that are now on Lower El's calendar:

• Our gift-making time will be on Monday, December 17th this year, from 12:30 to 2:30. If you have an idea for a (simple) homemade craft and are able to come, please contact parent reps Rita Ramirez or Kim Korson.
• We'd like to invite all parents to come for our Poetry Breakfast Café, which will take place in our classroom on Tuesday, December 18th, shortly after drop-off time. Each child will recite their own poem while you enjoy some homemade treats.
• On Wednesday, January 9th, Lower El heads to the Montshire Museum for a lesson on fossils, followed by time in the museum to explore. We could use four parent drivers on that day. Please let us know if you are able to help out, and thank you in advance!

Have a lovely weekend together!

Jessica, Kerstin, Connie