Bruno Upper EL Classroom

Congratulations to all of the cast and crew of James and the Giant Peach! Students put on an amazing show, and that’s because of the hard work they put in over months of practicing after school. Thank you to all parents who assisted with the production, waited in the carline to pick up after practice, and attended the show- you all helped make the production the amazing event it turned out to be. We also can’t forget to thank Ms. Kimberly, Mr. Jonathan, and Mr. Dana for all of their effort to make the play a special event for our community.

We started our week with a Diwali celebration. A few of our students gave a presentation on the Diwali holiday, explaining what it is and why it is an important holiday in India. During lunch, we enjoyed some traditional treats from the Indian culture.

In Culture, Mr. Fox introduced an ancient Egyptian game called Senet, which is the earliest form of a board game. The board and instructions have been found in Egyptian tombs and there is a drawing of royalty playing the game. Students have been enjoying the game and have been choosing to play it during their free choice time.

In science, Ms. Leeann led an experiment for students to investigate the purpose of a spine in vertebrates. Students used playdoh to make two, four-legged animals; one vertebrate and one invertebrate. Students used toothpicks to represent a spine and internal skeletal system in the vertebrate animal. They then reported their observations as blocks were added to the top of each animal.

Reminders for the week and near future:

• The Halloween parade will be on Monday at 9:00 on the track. Families are welcome to attend.
• Permission slips to watch a movie on Monday need to be signed and returned by Monday.
  • If you haven’t, please send in $5 for the pizza party and treats on Monday.
  • Don’t forget to cancel any school-purchased lunches for Monday.
• The vocabulary review unit will be due on Monday, November 7th.
• The vocabulary review unit test will be on Friday, November 18th.
• An email has been sent with a sign-up link for conferences for November 1st-November 7th.
• No school for all levels on Friday, November 11th, in observance of Veteran’s Day.

We had a lot of activities packed into one week. The Fall Festival was a huge hit! Thank you to the students and families who were able to attend and who supported the event. Students reported they had so much fun! Mr. Fox, Mr. Zech, Mr. Dana, and Mr. Jonathan were great sports for agreeing to sit in the dunk tank and students were excited to have a chance to “dunk” them. A big thank you to our upper elementary room parent, Gisela, for managing yet another wonderful Fall Festival. Also, a big thanks to all of the families and staff who helped organize, set/clean up, and oversee activities for everyone to enjoy.

Primary through middle school were fortunate to view a rehearsal of the play, James and the Giant Peach. About half of our upper elementary class is in the play, and they performed fantastically. Students who watched their classmates perform watched respectively and were supportive of their friend’s performances. Students who were not part of the rehearsal remained in class and we hosted a tap in/out improv. This week we also had a second picture day, due to last week’s scheduled day being postponed due to rain. Everyone smiled bright and cheery for our class photo and their individual shots.

We continue to promote positive discipline as a part of our school and class culture. Mr. Fox has been heading our Compassion Cube and Grievance Gobblet. Students have been responding well to complimenting and thanking one another in the Compassion Cube. Students have been coming up with great solutions during our morning meeting in regards to the problems placed in the Grievance Goblet.

Reminders for the week and shortly beyond:

• Vocabulary unit 6 is due this Monday and the test will be on Friday, 10/28.
• The book fair will take place October 24th-28th. Wish lists have been sent home.
• Look for an e-mail coming soon about parent/teacher conferences.
• Please send in $5 for the Halloween Party lunch and treats. If you will be packing your child’s lunch instead, please let us know via email.
• There will be a Halloween parade on October 31st, at 9:00, on the track. Families are invited to attend.
  • Primary and Toddler parade will be at 9:30 in front of their buildings, on the carline circle.
• No school on Friday, November 11th, in observance of Veteran’s Day.
  • No School Friday, November 4th for Toddlers and Primary only.

We had another short, packed week! Students arrived at school looking their best for picture day. Unfortunately, because of a crummy weather day, we had to reschedule pictures but that means we get to see your children looking their best twice! In 5th History, students created dioramas depicting Native American life. Some examples of the tribes students chose to model their dioramas after are Apache, Inuit, Sioux, Pala, Shawnee, Nez Perce, Blackfoot, Hopi, Chickasaw, Cherokee, and Navajo. It’s great to see how students chose different ways of modeling daily life for their chosen tribe. Geography class hosted a “Rock” Concert this week. Students brought in rocks from home, presented the characteristics of the rock, and then worked to identify the type of rock based on it its characteristics. Even though we had some rainy weather at the beginning of the week, we were still able to spend time outside, enjoying the fall weather.

Reminders for the week and month:

• The Fall Festival is this Sunday, October 16th.
  • There will be a dunking booth where the students can purchase tickets for an opportunity to get some of their favorite teachers and staff wet (wink, wink to upper elementary students).
  • There will also be an opportunity to purchase ornaments, plates, and mugs students can create from Do It Yourself crafts.
  • The admission fee is a food item donation.
• Picture Day for our class and siblings has been rescheduled for Thursday, October 20th.
• Vocabulary unit 5 will be due Monday, October 17th. The test will be on Friday, October 21st.
• The Fall play, James and the Giant Peach, is Friday, October 21st, at 6:30 PM. Free to attend.
• The Book Fair will be the week of October 24th.
• There will be a Halloween parade on October 31st, at 9:00, on the track. Families are invited to attend.

It may have been a short week, but it was a great week! In music class, Mr. Jonathan had students choose a musician or band, conduct research, write a narrative, and give a presentation for a Living Museum. Students worked hard to research information, practice their public speaking skills and were creative in how they dressed up. It was impressive to watch them give their presentations!

We’ve also instituted a system of acknowledging acts of kindness. Students have appropriately named the box the Compassion Cube. Compliments are written by someone who received or witnessed an act of kindness, then submit them to the box. Compliments are read anonymously during our morning meeting each day.

Reminders for the week and month:

• There is no school Friday, October 7th, and Monday the 10th, for Fall break.
• The 5th-year history diorama is due Tuesday, October 11th.
• Picture Day for upper elementary is Thursday, October 13th.
• Vocabulary unit 4 test will be Friday, October 14th.
• Vocabulary unit 5 will be due Monday, October 17th.
• The Fall Festival is on Sunday, October 16th.
  • This year there will be a dunking booth where the students can purchase tickets for an opportunity to get some of their favorite teachers and staff wet. 
  • There will also be an opportunity to purchase ornaments, plates, and mugs that they can create from Do It Yourself crafts.
  • More information will be sent out next week.
• The Fall play, James and the Giant Peach, is Friday, October 21st, at 6:30 PM.
• The Book Fair will be the week of October 24th.
• There will be a Halloween parade on October 31st, at 9:00, on the track. Families are invited to attend.

Everyone enjoy the Fall break with your family! We will see you back on Tuesday, October 11th.