Happy Summer

Dear Parents-

I want to take this opportunity to thank you all for sharing your children with me this year.  They have all grown in many ways over the past ten months, and I am very proud of each of them.  I also wanted to thank you for all the "behind the scenes" work you have done to support your child as well as our classroom.  Without your support many of the activities we did this year would not have been possible. For your help, I am most grateful.

I hope you all have a relaxing and fun summer.  Again, thanks for a great school year.

Mrs. D.

June 15th- The Last Savanna of the Year

Dear Parents:

            Thank you to all the shoppers who came and supported the businesses of Tuckahoe Town today.  It is always fun to see our hallway transformed into a shopping mall with all the shoppers and this year was no exception.  The children worked so hard leading up to this big event and did a wonderful job creating all their products and working with their partners.   From what I saw, I think we have several future entrepreneurs in our midst.

            This week has also been spent learning about gravity and magnetism and looking back over our year. On Wednesday, Dr. Gary White, a physicist and former Tuckahoe parent, brought his physics interns in to present a physics lesson about invisible fields of gravity and magnetism to the children.  The interns created some wonderful experiments for the kids that all related to gravity using spandex and marbles.  The interns were amazed at how our children were able to describe what they were seeing and doing and the science vocabulary they already have.  One of the interns suggested we might have several physics students in our midst.  Hmmm……All in all it was a great morning for everyone involved.

            Next week we will be taking time to look back on our year as well as to look forward towards the year to come.  A portion of the week will be spent cleaning up our room, and sending things home for the year (please send in a grocery bag) and bringing closure to our time spent together this year. Tuesday we will have our class picnic.  Please take a look at the flyer that came home with your child about this and how you might be able to lend a hand.  Friday morning the children will have an opportunity to visit the fourth grade and hear about some of the activities they will be participating in next year.  In addition, I am planning a special luncheon for the children on Friday, so no lunch will be needed. We will take this time to share our memories of the year and our hopes for the summer and beyond.  

            As we turn our attention to summer and all the fun and relaxing activities in front of us, I hope everyone will find a bit of time to read, write and practice math skills.  There will be information coming home about summer reading challenges, and math packets. A few minutes spent each day on these activities will help keep these skills fresh for the fall.

            It has truly been a pleasure being your child’s teacher this year.  They are each very special in their own way and as a class a very caring group.  As I have said before, thank you for sharing them with me each day.  I also want to thank you all for your support and thoughtfulness throughout the year.

 I hope everyone has a great summer.

                                                            Sincerely,

                                                                        Mrs. DiNardo

Important Dates to Remember

Tues. June 19               Third Grade Picnic- 11-1

                                   

Fri. June 22                 Last Day of School- 1:26 pm Dismissal

Report Cards Issued

Thurs. August 30          New Class Orientation 10-11 am

Tues. Sept. 4                First Day of 2012-13 School Year

Housekeeping Updates 6-14

Please read through the following information about upcoming events.

Tuckahoe Town Update

I am writing to remind you that tomorrow, Friday, June 15^th from 10:30-11:30 the annual Third Grade Tuckahoe Town.  The children have been working hard as team members to make their products, figure out how to work within a budget and create advertisement for their businesses.  They are all very excited to “sell” their goods and services to all the customers who may come by their “stores.”  We are hoping you will be able to join us in the Third and Fourth Grade hallway tomorrow to support this culminating economics simulation.

Picnic Update

Just a reminder that Tuesday, June 19^th from 11-1 is our Third Grade picnic in Tuckahoe Park. Information about food and drink donations as well as game suggestions has been sent out though the room parents.  Should you wish to volunteer with any of these things, please contact Lynn Cook (Lynn.Cook@towerswatson.com). 

Last Day Plan

As you know our last day of school is Friday, June 22^nd.  It is an early release day so the children will be dismissed at 1:26pm.  I host a luncheon for the children on the last day of school each year.  I will have food, drinks as well as a cake for this occasion, so your child will not need to bring their lunch to school on the last day.  Besides this being a nice closing activity for us all, it is also an opportunity for us to recognize those who have summer birthdays. 

6-8 Savanna

Dear Parents-

There is not much new to report this week.  The children have been working hard in their Tuckahoe Town groups creating their product.  It has been fun to watch their conceptual ideas come to life and watch as the kids make adjustments to their original thoughts.  Budgets have been set and the reality of how much things cost is beginning to settle into everyone’s thinking.  I hope you will be able to join us for some great shopping at Tuckahoe Town next Friday, June 15^th from 10:30-11:30.

The children have also been working on maps in Math, safety rules in Health, and practicing their typing skills.  We conducted our Family Life discussions this week.  It is our hope that these preliminary discussions about how our bodies change during puberty will be a jumping off point for further talks at home.  Mr. Corkins taught the boys this week and I worked with the girls.  I was most impressed at the level of maturity and the level of questions the girls had while we talked. The children also met with Mr. Bowman, our Instrumental Music Teacher, on Monday and learned about the band and orchestra programs available to them next year.  Mr. Bowman is testing each child out on different instruments and will be sending home recommended instrument choices should your child wish to participate in either of these programs next year.  Please return the slips to me as soon as possible.

Below are important dates for the remainder of the year. 

June 15- Tuckahoe Town- 10:30-11:30 am

June 19- 3^rd Grade End of Year Picnic- 11 am-1 pm

June 20- Early Release

June 20- Fifth Grade Farewell- 7:00 pm

June 22- Last Day of School- Early Release/Report Cards Issued

If you have any questions, please let me know.  Have a nice weekend.

Savanna 6-1

Dear Parents:

            The class has officially been turned into Tuckahoe Town.  This week was the kick off to this culminating economics activity. The children have been quite excited to figure out what good or service they will provide, and whom they will work with.  Next week, a portion of our day will be dedicated to production of goods, creating advertising, setting prices and getting ready for the big sale day on June 15^th. 

            The rest of this week has been busy with the wrap-up of our government unit by creating collages of what “Life Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness” means to us today.  We also finished our literature circles with the children creating trading cards about their books to share with the class along with short descriptions of the books they read.  In math we honed our math skills by playing the Game 24.  We also wrapped up our unit on alcohol and tobacco in Health. 

Next week we will continue our Health study by discussing and learning about safety in and out of school, continuing our economics unit and we will use our math skills with some “shopping” activities, and learning about creating budgets.  In addition, the children will be learning about the instrumental music program and trying out different instruments. The librarians from Westover Library will visit Tuckahoe to share information about the summer reading program with all the students.  On Friday, we will visit the 4^th Grade Colonial Fair.

            As we come to the last three weeks of school, I would like to once again ask for your additional help in making sure your child comes to school ready to learn.  There is a perception that once the SOL testing is over, and the pools open, that school is over.  We have three weeks remaining in our school calendar.  During this time we do have the opportunity to do a few fun special projects along with concluding our regular curriculum. The children and I have been talking about “finishing the year strong” and your help at home reinforcing this is most appreciated.

            I hope everyone has a nice weekend.

 Mrs. D.

Dates to Remember

June 15- Tuckahoe Town- 10:30-11:30 am

June 19- 3^rd Grade End of Year Picnic (more information to follow)

June 22- Last Day of School- Early Release/Report Cards Issued