February 15, 2008

Dear Parents,
         
          I can’t believe it’s already vacation!  With all the illnesses going around, I think it couldn’t have come at a better time.  Last week alone, I had as many as nine children absent in a single day.  I hope everyone has a happy and healthy vacation!
          Last week we celebrated “Connecticut Loves to Read” at our school.  Our guest author was Nancy Elizabeth Wallace.  I read one her books, The Kindness Quilt, and followed-up with a special project the committee asked each class to participate in.  Each student made a kindness square that was put together to make a quilt.  It is hanging in the lobby of the school. It looks great! 
          Nancy Elizabeth Wallace met with my class on Tuesday along with Mrs. Voitans’ class.  She talked about the process of writing a book. Her speech contained information about where her ideas came from and how the illustrations were created.  The children were very engaged and came away with a greater appreciation of what it takes to be a great author/illustrator.
On Wednesday, Mrs. Martin, a fourth grade special resource teacher, came in to our class and read A Chair for My Mother by Vera Williams. We then discussed how customs in a city are different than customs in our town of Madison.
On Thursday, Madison’s very own First Selectman, Mr. Al Goldberg, came and talked about his role in the community.  He also read the picture book, Pepe, the Lamplighter.  The children enjoyed the book very much.  Many thanks go to Al Goldberg for taking the time out of his busy schedule to come and read.  It was greatly appreciated!
          On Friday, sixth grade Brown School students came over to share their favorite books with our class.  The boys and girls read to small groups of children. This year I had six siblings read!  It is always fun to see familiar faces!   I know the children really liked seeing them too.
          In addition to all of the special reading activities, we’ve been very busy reading the biographies of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks and learning about the civil rights movement.  Each day we have also been reading our lines to be ready for our play presentations right after the vacation. We hope that you can join us on Wed., Feb. 27th!  The children can’t wait to perform for you.
As you can see, “Connecticut Loves to Read” was a full week of a variety of opportunities for the children to experience the love of reading.
          Right after vacation, we will be finishing up practicing the skills and strategies we have been working on to support student success on the Connecticut State Mastery Tests.  The testing will begin on March 4th. We will be testing for 6 days over the next 2 weeks. Look for more information to follow from the school regarding the CMT process.  It is very important that your child gets plenty of rest and relaxation during this time.  Be sure they eat a healthy breakfast and bring a snack each day.  There will be no homework during this time.
          Thank you for all your support with all the activities that have recently taken place in school.  It is greatly appreciated.  Have a wonderful vacation!

                                                          Warmly,
                                                          Erin Smith