Monday Memo February 11, 2013 Holden worked on demonstrating equivalent fractions with Des in math today.

NOTES: BOX TOPS: We have a new deadline for box tops collection: Friday, February 22, the last day before winter vacation. Please remember to cut these labels from the huge number of grocery products on which they appear; it’s a really easy way to support Riverside. Put your children to work on their scissor skills! Thanks to Julie Evans for doing the collecting, counting, and submission. SKIING: We enjoyed finally getting back to the slopes last week. Chaperones, please look out for an email from Nelia about how we can work together to make sure that Fridays run smoothly and safely. 8th GRADE PRESENTATION: Rachael will give her presentation on the history of recorded sound this Thursday. DECADES PARTY & DANCE: This Friday, student council hosts our Decades Party and Dance. From 6:00-7:00, all students are invited to come dressed in clothing from their decade to celebrate with music, games, and food. From 7:00-9:30, the middle schoolers (grades 6-8) will have their dance. If you can help with chaperoning duties, or if you can provide some healthy, tasty treats, please call the school. The decades are listed below: • K-1: 1960's • 2-3: Cavemen times • 4-5: The Future • 6: 1950s • 7: 1970s • 8: 1980s PARENT GROUP POTLUCK: Carol and Peter Whitney will host parents for a potluck at their home in Burke on Friday night during the dance. The address is 74 Orchard Road, the Whitneys ask that all cars be parked on their side of the street. Children who aren’t at the dance are welcome, but will need to be in their parents close care. RSVP to Rebecca Hill-Larsen at 402-218-9819. K-5th GRADE GYMNASTICS: K-5th graders will be taking a bus to Kingdom Gymnastics in St. Johnsbury on Wednesday afternoons in March and April. On those days, pick up will be there (Green Mountain Mall) at 3:15. If you have other Riversiders to pick up as well, please go to Gymnastics first, and then return to Riverside. A permission slip is going home in boomerang/homework folders today. FROM JANET:

Elementary Chorus: Students in grades 2 – 5 will walk over to The Pines this Thursday morning to say “we love you!” with a song or two – actually, a few! This special performance will take place during the regularly scheduled Chorus period and will include seasonal and holiday songs. Middle School: Please continue to encourage your child(ren) to memorize their lines and learn their songs for Into the Woods. Even if they are not sure of the melody, memorizing the words is critical, and we’ll continue the musical work at school. Thank you for your support! Instrumental: We’re working on learning some new rhythms found in Jazz and Concert Band pieces, and I’ve encouraged students to make time for practice, even if it is just a couple of good, focused sessions on the weekend. I understand that they are very busy with schoolwork, but have stressed the importance of making time for practice as well. Students who have the “Tradition of Excellence” method book have a DVD with recorded accompaniments that will support their practice, and all students taking lessons at school received a note last week that hopefully, has made it to parents. Thanks for taking a look and encouraging your child to make use of the tech tools available to him/her. HELP SPREAD THE WORD: Please help us to spread the word to families that may be interested in joining the Riverside community. We’ll be hosting our usual, annual, evening Open House on Tuesday, February 19 from 6:00-7:30 pm. Additionally, we’ll host an in-school Open House for parents and rising 36th graders on the morning of March 12, RSVP by Tuesday, February 5th. LATIN STUDY GROUP: This afternoon we will resume our Latin study group in the math room from 3:30 to 4:00. This is an excellent opportunity for students to get help from me and from each other, to get homework assignments completed with structure and support, and for older students to build confidence and deeper understanding as they assist others. ROY’S FRUIT BASKET: Healthy snacks are a positive and popular addition to the Riverside community. The fruit basket lives in the math/Latin room and is open to all students. We ask any parents who are willing or able to consider bringing in fruits or veggies to put in the basket. AFTER SCHOOL MAH JONG: We welcome anyone (parents, students, faculty, alumni, friends) who’s interested in joining Sarah Broome and Rebecca Hill-Larsen in extending the introduction to the game that was given during the first quarter elective. This is an ancient Chinese strategy game played with tiles. This will happen on Tuesdays during January and February, from 3:45-4:45. AFTER SCHOOL X-COUNTRY SKIING: Des and her cross-country skiers will be headed out to the Kingdom trails on Wednesday afternoon 3:45 - 5:00 pm. If you’d like to join the group, you need your own equipment. Please plan in advance with Des, as transportation is limited and plans for pick up must be sorted out specifically. CHESS CLUB: There will be Chess Club after school on Thursday for anyone who wishes to join Mr. G and others to improve or practice his/her game. Thanks so much to those parents who join us and bring snacks to share. MYTHOLOGY DAY: Next Friday is Mythology Day! In honor of our tradition of classical studies at Riverside, we will fill the day with activities for all students on the topic of Greek and Roman mythology. Roy will also share information about Luprecalia, a Roman holiday that fell mid-winter and has many connections to Valentine’s. Elementary students have been learning about myths in recent weeks in order to prepare for Friday’s events. The 4/5th grade will be presenting a skit about the Odyssey. 8th graders will be teaching short lessons and leading activities about classical culture. Each student has picked a god/goddess or famous hero to dress up as on Friday. Students will be responsible for doing some research about their characters and should prepare a costume at home. The school has many resources for information and costumes, students should ask for help as needed. If you have questions, email Roy at

[email protected]. Of course, we invite parents and families to join us for any part of the day that you can. The schedule will be as follows, note the early dismissal at 12:30.

CALENDAR: February 15 – Decades Part & Dance, 6:00 – 7:00 pm (all ages), - 9:30 pm (grades 6-8) Parent Group Potluck at the Whitneys February 22 – Mythology Day, early dismissal at 12:30 pm Deadline for turning in Box Tops February 25-March 4 – Winter Vacation (March 3 is a faculty inservice day) March 13 – Parent-Teacher-Student conferences, early dismissal at 12:30 March 18-22 – 6th-8th grade Play Week March 22 – Into the Woods at LI, 7:00 pm (tech and actors’ call 5:00 pm) March 23 – Into the Woods at LI, 1:00 pm (tech and actors’ call 11:00 am)

LESSON PLANS: K-1st Grade / Carriage House Kids Language Arts: We continue to read stories about love and Valentine's Day. We will also be reading and discussing some Greek myths in preparation for Mythology Day. They will bring at least one book home to read to their family each night Monday through Thursday. Thank you for encouraging them to write the title on their reading log in their Boomerang folder. They will also have a word list of words to practice. The students are writing Valentine's card lists today and plan to give out cards to their classmates. They may make some cards at school and/or home. Math: The students continue to do calendar math, work with money, and practice with addition and subtraction strategies. We will also be sorting, counting and graphing hearts. Science: We continue with our nutrition unit, using the Harvard Medical School “Healthy-Eating- Plate” model. (www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource). Several times a week we place our food on our “healthy eating plate” before we eat. This week we will make homemade yogurt. Please also send in any old magazines we can cut up that have pictures of food in them. Thank you! Art: We finished the action-packed painting with finger paint as our last layer. The stars at night have inspired us to create out own star collages using tissue paper as our base. Spanish: We’ll continue practicing words for body parts by singing our Spanish version of “Head, Shoulders.” Music: It’s been a little brisk in the barn lately, so we’re keeping moving as much as possible while we sing. This week students will add songs about the presidents (Lincoln and Washington in particular) to our list of February favorites, including Groundhog Day and Valentines Day. It is heartwarming to hear about to whom each of them would give a Valentine, and why. They have such good hearts and great voices! 2nd-3rd Grade / Allee’s Angels Mythology: We will be spending much of our time focusing on Greek and Roman mythology stories for the two weeks leading up to vacation. This week we'll focus on Phaeton and his father, Apollo's chariot, Perseus and Medusa, and the tale of Pandora and her Jar. We'll read, hear various different versions, and do activities based on each during our language arts and social studies times each day. Students will also be encouraged to read other mythology books available in our classroom. Third grade students will be expected to begin to write a report on one of the myths that they have chosen to read during class time. Details for that report will be given to the students on Wednesday. Language Arts: New spelling lists will be assigned today. Look for them in your child's boomerang. Students will finish up personal projects begun in Writer's workshop by Friday. Next week we'll work on writing our

own myth during workshop time. We'll continue to practice our proofreading skills with daily whole class assignments. We'll be making a trip to Cobleigh Library on Wednesday right after lunch. If you can help out with transportation please let me know as soon as possible. Math: Grade two students continue to work with addition and subtraction of three digit numbers. We'll review regrouping ones, tens, and hundreds as necessary. Grade three continues to practice basic division facts using strategies that they have learned. (skip counting, number lines, repeated subtraction, arrays and groups) Chapters for both grades will be completed before vacation and should expect a chapter test sometime next week. Heads Up: 1. Library on Wednesday. Departure time at 12:50. Return time 1:45. 2. Visit The Pines Health and Rehab on Thursday morning to share music and valentines. 3. Skiing on Friday. Departure at 12:15. Pick - up at Burke's Base Lodge by 3:30 Art: Adire Eleko is an indigo dyed cloth produced by women of south western Nigeria. Instead of cloth we are using blue construction paper to create a blue and white image that will be a frame for our next project. Spanish: We’ll begin learning vocabulary for parts of the body and continue to practice our clothing words in association with where we wear them. Music: It’s been a little brisk in the barn lately, so we’re keeping moving as much as possible while we sing. Students will be reviewing chorus songs during class, preparing for our visit to The Pines this Thursday.

4th-5th Grade Valentine’s Day: This Thursday our class will hold our annual Read In. All day we will be reading, listening and talking about books. Kids can wear PJs if they choose, bring a comfy pillow and some favorite books or magazines from home. I have only one guest reader signed up so far, we welcome guests. Also, kids will be exchanging their compliment cards. Reading: This week we wrap up our unit on Patricia Polacco. We will begin to study the Odyssey in preparation for Mythology Day next Friday. Students will be listening to the Mary Pope Osborne version of this classic on CD and studying the story elements of the tale. We will also be discussing what the Odyssey has to teach; the message or theme. Writing: Word study groups will follow the normal routine as will our grammar study of parts of speech. In writer's workshop, children will spend time working on descriptive language in order to write a poem describing a character from the Odyssey. These will be coupled with an art project next week. Math: Students have been working on multiplication fluency in class by doing Mad Minutes 3 times a week, ( 60 seconds, 60 facts). They will be creating a graph to track their progress this week. Fourth graders will begin unit 6 on fraction comparison and equivalents and fifth graders will continue adding and subtracting fractions and mixed numbers with unlike denominators. Of course, we will be problem solving as well! Social Studies: This week, we will finish our giant class map of the state of Vermont, take a counties names and locations exit ticket on Tuesday, and read about the affect of geography and climate on the lives of Vermonters. On Wednesday or Thursday, we will begin to talk and read about Town Meeting. The focus question for this unit will be: "How do Vermont citizens make decisions at Town Meeting?" We will hold a mock Town Meeting in our class after the February break. Art: We worked on our fantasy space landscapes by adding chalk rubbings to create the illusion form. The Rural Community Transportation, Inc. (RCT) is having a poster contest about "pooling to school". We brainstormed ideas about carpooling and have begun designing our posters. Spanish: We’ll learn about the six forms of the verb ser, which means to be. The idea of conjugating a verb is central to language learning, and is another way we’re beginning to practice the rules of grammar in addition to memorizing vocabulary in Spanish. For 5th graders who were with us last year it will be a helpful review and will prepare them well for Spanish A next year. Music: We’ve moved on to sea chanteys and songs about waterways, as we continue to learn about our nation’s history and expansion through folk music. Students will also be reviewing chorus songs during class, preparing for our visit to The Pines this Thursday.

6th Grade Math: Students will discover the formula for the area of a circle and finish their chapter this week with the test Friday. The COW is due Friday. Ancient History: We will continue to build the Parthenon during class. There is a written hw assignment due Friday explained at http://sites.google.com/sites/roysresources Latin A: We will be talking about the genitive and vocative cases as we read about the Cornelius family preparing to travel to Rome. Spanish A: We will be practicing regular verbs and the verb tener this week. We are making good progress with our song! English: The students will work on their essays on Roll of Thunder, which are due next Monday (2/18). There will be a vocabulary quiz on Wednesday. Art: We put the finishing touches on our Oaxaca folk-art creatures. The Rural Community Transportation, Inc. (RCT) is having a poster contest about "pooling to school". We brainstormed ideas about carpooling and have begun designing our posters. Music: Having explored pre-historic and ancient music, students will now move on to the real roots of Western music. Beginning with the organization of chant melodies in the 5th – 6th centuries, we’ll be moving toward the Middle Ages, listening, singing, and considering the different purposes of music in early European cultures. 7th Grade Math: Students are working with surface area of different solids. This week they will work with pyramids and composite figures. Quiz Tuesday (6.1-6.3) and COW due Friday. English: The students will begin an independent reading project this week. They should be sure to bring their books to school every day! There will be a vocabulary quiz on Thursday. American History: This week, we'll look at the people who explored and settled the West. Spanish A: We will be practicing regular verbs and the verb tener this week. We are making good progress with our song! Spanish B: We’ll be learning command (affirmative, informal) forms this week. This has been a demanding chapter for the class and many students are struggling to master the vocabulary and the former lesson about irregular verbs; most of them should be practicing nightly. Latin A: The class is moving on into chapter 11 and will have 5 lines of translation due at each class meeting. Latin B: We will be learning the personal pronouns and reading chapter 22. Art: We continue to work on our koru stamp for a fabric design. At the same time we have started designing our school's t-shirt for the annual Fun Run this spring. Music: We began a discussion and listened to examples of music of the Civil War, and will focus on “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” this week. After an introduction to John Brown as a pivotal character in the Civil War era, and the song that arose from his execution, we’ll turn our focus to Julia Ward Howe, who made that song into a beloved, patriotic favorite. 8th Grade Algebra: Students will explore an additional way to solve a system of equations called elimination (or linear combinations). This chapter has been a good review of symbolic skills and graphing. Quiz Wednesday (7.17.4) and COW due Thursday. English: The students will begin an independent reading project this week. They should be sure to bring their books to school every day! There will be a vocabulary quiz on Thursday. Spanish B: We’ll be learning command (affirmative, informal) forms this week. This has been a demanding chapter for the class and many students are struggling to master the vocabulary and the former lesson about irregular verbs; most of them should be practicing nightly. Spanish C: The class is starting chapter 8 and will be learning reflexive verbs this week. Latin B: We will be learning the personal pronouns and reading chapter 22.

Latin C: The class continues to learn about the subjunctive mood as we read about ancient pirates. Art: We are working on our zooming in and zooming out series of drawings. At the same time we have started designing our school's t-shirt for the annual Fun Run this spring. World Issues: We’ll continue reading and discussing The Other Side of the Sky this week, in addition to considering how colonialism has factored into current relations between the Middle East and the West. Music: Students continued the discussion about what music was like when their grandparents (or significant elders from that era) were their age, leading to questions (and answers) about what technology was like (78s, 45s, 33s…) and the composition and instrumentation included in bands and musical acts. We’ll continue this discussion and do more listening this week. Thank you for helping your child to get answers to the questions he/she took home.