The students have been working really hard on various artwork. Each grade has been making projects for the upcoming Holiday/Winter season. Here is what we are making in each of the grades:

1st Grade - Over the past couple weeks, the students made a shape printing project, a necklace, a clay pumpkin, a pinch pot, and an ornament. They also learned about pointillism and made a picture out of dots. Next, they are going to paint their ornaments and make a Christmas/ Winter rubbing. After the holidays, they will be making a snowman sculpture, learning about the craft of weaving, and will create a plaster animal sculpture.

2nd Grade - Students in second grade completed a rainbow mobile and an oil pastel silhouette tree. They are now completing a candy land drawing where they have to show their understanding of landscape drawing. We learned how artists show space on a flat piece of paper. They are next going to learn how to sew a pillow using two different hand stitches. They are the overcast stitch and the running stitch. After the holidays they are going to be making a snowman collage, a pinch pot, and a quilt square.

3rd Grade - Third grade students made radial weavings that are now hanging around the school. They are now completing their holiday/winter project which is a stained-glass picture that will be hung on the windows in December. In the weeks to come they will be making coiled clay pots, masks, and they will be working in groups on 7 Habits banners.

I hope everyone enjoys the upcoming holiday season and I look forward to a great start to the year 2020! Also remember that homemade arts & crafts make great gifts for loved ones and friends.

Happy Holidays,

Mrs. Brubaker

Grade 3

This trimester, we focused on developing our pitch matching and singing in major and minor keys as well as recognizing and singing intervals. We’ve learned several new rhythms and sang and performed them. In addition, we created harmonies with the bells and our voices. We have been learning about the parts of music such as melody, harmony, pitch, tempo, and dynamics. Also, the students have created their own rhythm patterns as accompaniment to songs. After Thanksgiving break, the third grade students will gear up to be leaders for the school’s Carol Sing in December.

Grade 2

The second grade classes have been singing and dancing as well as playing games to learn and review the parts of music. We first reviewed the concepts of music we learned about in first grade such as high and low, fast and slow, and loud and quiet. We have sung and played melodies as well as harmonies. We play harmony on the bells while singing a melody at the same time. The students have also practiced reading, writing, and identifying various rhythms. Recently, the classes practiced singing in minor. We will begin to learn the music for the Carol Sing after Thanksgiving break.

Grade 1

The first grade classes have been singing and using games and instruments to learn about music. We have worked on hearing the differences between high and low, fast and slow, and loud and quiet. We have sung several different melodies and are starting to learn about harmony and how it makes melody sound better. In addition, the first graders are learning how to perform, read, and write basic rhythms that we use in class. The students are continuing to practice the steady beat while singing and playing instruments. Soon, the first graders will start learning the music they will be singing in the Carol Sing.

We had a very busy first trimester. Our first unit for grade three was team building games. We were really working on cooperation and teamwork strategies. The students in grades one and two worked on activities that helped enforce our classroom rules and then we learned low organized games. We practiced moving in self-space and shared space. We also worked on locomotor movements such as skipping, sliding, galloping, hopping, jumping, walking, and running.

All grade levels then completed a soccer unit. We worked on skill practice, following game rules and learned some basic offense and defense in third grade. The primary students learned dribbling, various kinds of kicks, and traps. We also played some indoor soccer on days that it rained.

All students also did a fall run. Third grade did their mile run. Students in second grade did a 1⁄2 mile run and first grade did a 1⁄4 mile run on the soccer fields. They all received an index card with their time on it, hopefully they shared it with you. Third grade students had a chance to get their name on the Sneaker Wall if they ran faster than 10 minutes. Some parents still have their name on the shoe from when they were in elementary school!

We have been working on a ball skills unit using various kinds of balls in first and second grade. We practiced dribbling, overhand and underhand throwing, and catching. We then took those skills and used them to play some fun games. The third graders are working on finishing up a basketball unit. Ask your third grader what the word BEEF has to do with basketball. We practiced our basketball shooting skills by playing PIG, Knock Out and Around the World. We will be playing a game of sideline basketball when we come back from Thanksgiving vacation.

In December, third grade will be participating in a unit I call Fun with Fitness. This involves using stations to work on balance and coordination as well as fitness. Students will be exposed to unique kinds of equipment that will help us with these areas. Some of the equipment being used will be stilts, pogo sticks, climbing wall and scooters. First and second grades will be working with hula hoops and second grade will try the hoop jump challenge that some of you may have seen on Facebook.

It is really important that students remember to wear their sneakers for PE days. I would really appreciate your help in reminding your child to wear sneakers and dress appropriately for Physical Education. Our cycle days are:

Day 4 - Wednesday and Day 5 - Thursday

We've had a great start to the year in technology class! As you may remember, last year we made a transition to Chromebooks for all grades, 1st through 3rd. This year's 2nd and 3rd graders are very comfortable and confident in using these devices. It's wonderful to see the carry over from last year and the continued building of skills and independence using the Chromebooks!

In all grades, we have spent time reviewing the parts of a Chromebook as well as the function of these parts. We continue to work with the touchpad and clicking and dragging (ask your child what the Lobster Claw is!). We have also reviewed the various ways to scroll (double-finger on the touchpad or the arrows on the keyboard). All students have been working on web page navigation and learning/reviewing how to navigate the EASD Student Center and our technology class web page. Students are able to click on links, open and close tabs, and navigate the Chrome browser. First graders have been working hard learning how to login to their devices using their individual usernames and passwords. It's amazing how well they are doing with this challenging skill in such a short amount of time!

This year we are continuing our work in the keyboarding program for all grades, Keyboarding Without Tears (KWT). This is an excellent program that incorporates basic keyboarding skills with many different subjects including ELA (English language arts), math, science, social studies, and even specialty subjects like music and art. Students are able to work at their own pace through the program. Look for more information later in the year about how KWT can be used at home!

On December 6th and 16th, all students will participate in the Hour of Code! The Hour of Code is part of a worldwide initiative to give students of all ages exposure to coding early on in their education. Leading up to this event, 2nd and 3rd graders have had time to work in Code.org in various courses and activities to practice basic coding skills. Students have been using Blockly code (a kid-friendly version of JavaScript) to snap commands together to program characters to move in various sequences. 1st graders have been using the program Kodable and have been using directional arrows to program and move their "Fuzz" through a maze. Kodable is such a fun and engaging program for our youngest of tech students! A special treat for Mrs. Rachael's 3rd graders and Mrs. Roberto's 2nd graders will be having a guest speaker, Tim Haak, join them during their Hour of Code. Mr. Haak, from Mile 6 (a web/app development and design company located here in Elizabethtown), will join us and share his coding experience with students. Students are so excited to talk to and work with a "real live programmer." Be sure to check out our technology class Twitter page during the Hour of Code to see students in action! Also, check out the blue "Hour of Code" handout that will come home after the event to learn how these coding programs can be accessed at home! Coding is such an awesome activity to work through together with your child!

Finally, please check out our technology class web page for use at home! There are so many fun and engaging activities that are just a click away!

* Follow our technology class on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MrsPainterTech