poetry_festival_costumes_2012.docx |
Our classroom has been a full excitement and joy in the past week. Most children have been telling stories about how they will celebrate the upcoming holidays while other children have been talking about how excited they are for the Poetry Festival. Sometimes it is distracting when a child tells a story, but it is very important to listen. Often we are caught up in what we believe that the children should be doing at any given time. This past week Ms. Ramos, Ms. Mohamed, and I have been listening to a lot of stories and asking questions about these stories. Over the break be sure to continue having engaging discussions with your child. If your child is writing, we hope that he or she may put their thoughts into drawings and written stories.
This past week we really enjoyed hearing stories by Tomie DePaolo such as "Strega Nona", "Marianna May and Nursey", and "Stagestruck". We also enjoyed hearing about the celebration of Haunkkah from Ava's family. We learned about how the candles are lit each night on the menorah, how to cook latkes, how to play dreidel, and how to dance the Hora. On Friday the final parent reader of the year shared her son's favorite new story, "The Mouse before Christmas", (an different take on "Twas The Night Before Christmas"). Many children commented that the story had lots of rhyming.
We have also been practicing for our part in the school's Poetry Festival. Next Friday, (December 21st), we hope that you will attend the show. It starts at 9 and our grade group level is always the first to perform. Many children received costumes that should be decorated to look like a specific recycled material. Attached you will find the list of costumes for each child.
In addition to the morning poetry festival we will have an end of the year pot-luck lunch. We invite all families to bring a dish to share on Friday. Lunch will be at 11:30, and all families are welcome to join us .
I wish all of you a joyful and peaceful break. Thank you all for sharing the year with Ms. Ramos, Ms. Mohamed, and I.
Until 2013,
Ms. Joanna Boone
"What we need is a world full of miracles, like the miracle of seeing the young child seeking work and independence, and manifesting a wealth of enthusiasm and love." Maria Montessori, from "Education and Peace" (p. 51).