Backyard Toys

On Monday, scholars of every age were introduced to the first playground toy of the year, the jump rope.  At TCS, students are introduced to playground toys one by one as a strategy to encourage these creative minds to initiate inventive play. The beginning of the year is also the time to develop friendships among different grade levels through group games. Therefore, it was of no surprise that when jump ropes were introduced at Whole School Morning Meeting students were excited to experiment with all the creative uses the jump rope can offer. Once a new toy is introduced, students discuss and model proper use and care of the toy. After jump ropes, teachers will continue to introduce one toy a week at Whole School Morning Meeting. This ensures each toy is used appropriately and to its full potential.

 

Bee Study

As we continue our bee study, we are learning more and more about how honeybees affect our lives and the world around us. This week, students looked into how products made from bees directly affect our economy. To launch this investigation, your researchers studied the ingredient labels of several food and cosmetic items. We found that items such as candles, lotion, lip balm, cereal, snacks, dipping sauces, and drinks contain honey, beeswax, or even royal jelly!

 

Students also participated in a honey tasting. Six different types of honey were tasted and then described by the students. Flavor, texture, color, and consistency were examined for each type of honey. Students then had to guess which type of honey they were tasting based on the characteristics found.  Several had unique flavors and textures.

 

Reading

This week in Reading Workshop students finished Shiloh, a novel by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. This is a dramatic tale about a boy named Marty and a runaway dog, Shiloh. One interesting aspect of this book is the Appalachian dialect that it is written in. Students investigated how this dialect is different than Standard English. We also discussed the many different types of conflict that are found in the story, including man vs. man, man vs. beast, and man vs. law.

 

Important Dates:

Wednesday, October 25^th     Parent Lunch 11:15 am

Tuesday, October 31^st                   Halloween Carnival ½ Day

Thursday, November 2^nd      Middleton Plantation

Friday, November 3^rd            Bee Presentation