Our school year began after
Labor Day, when we were greeted by cooler weather, new teachers, and new
students. The parents held a festive
covered dish dinner where new families, teachers and board members were
welcomed.
We jumped right into our
schoolwork, with the Pre-K classes learning all about colors and numbers in
both English and Spanish.
Kindergarten students have
been exploring the outdoors looking for insects to examine. They are also raising butterflies and love
creating and working on various puzzles. And Kindergarten class wouldn’t be
complete without painting, and our students have been busy mixing colors and
creating masterpieces!
The older students are
discovering remarkable facts not found in most history books about explorer
Christopher Columbus. We are writing our
own play about Columbus to present on Columbus Day. Another area of study is the life of historian
Howard Zinn, author of “Young Person’s History of America”.
Science and Math classes are
measuring everything in sight! We have
used every type of measuring instrument and scale possible. Reviewing math facts has been a “ball” since
we have used our hovering math balls to pass, bump and punch around to each
other during the game.
We have also started our yearlong
exploration of plants and animals native to the Fairhope and South Alabama
region by collecting and researching a large number of specimens. Our new frog
and turtle habitat has been fascinating to create. We are planning many informative trips around
the area for further study throughout the year.
All students have enjoyed our
writing journals. We write every day on
topics we take turns choosing. We enjoy
going to the library several times a week, and our current group reading
adventure is, “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho.
All students participate in
art class several times a week, and we are currently studying abstract
pointillism, with Andy Warhol’s work as our guide. Our school wide group project is a large
glass mosaic of our historic bell tower.
