Happy December! We hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving with family and friends. As we make our way towards the holiday break, there is so much going on at DeMello. Here is a rundown of all of the wonderful things we worked on and did here this week!
Early in the week, I spent a bit of time in Mrs. Pickering's 2nd grade watching more of the literacy instruction she is piloting. Once again, I was amazed to watch our young students engage in a structured read aloud on The War of 1812! I have to say, the content addressed in the literacy pilots has been rich and rigorous. Our students rise to the challenge of complex themes and vocabulary. If you have a student in Mrs. Pickering's class, asked them about impressment and the part it played in the War of 1812. You will be impressed😊
This week I was also able to get into Mrs. Markey's class to observe students synthesizing research on Native Americans into a ChatterPix video. I was able to get a sneak peak of several students' videos, which feature an animated, student-drawn character talking about a Native tribe. Very informative and very delightful!
My travels into classrooms also took me to Miss Kaylor's 3rd grade for partner work on place value, and into Mrs. Grant's first grade for reading groups. I know I say this often, but it bears repeating--your students work so hard and enjoy their learning! I admire them all for their positivity and perseverance. And I have so much respect for our talented teachers who put so much energy and love into their students.
Finally, a big THANK YOU to our PTO and parent volunteers for running our Holiday Shop during recess this week. By all accounts, it was a big success. If your student shopped, we hope you enjoy the presents they purchased. They certainly put a lot of time and effort into selecting them!
That is it for this week! Don't forget that Monday is the first of two December early release days devoted to parent-teacher conferences. I look forward to seeing you then!
Have a great weekend-
Mrs. Correia
