During the month of April, we celebrate the Month of the Young Child. The entire month features free, fun activities for families with young children, throughout Brattleboro and neighboring communities. The Children's House classrooms drew their own self portraits that will be displayed at the 13th Annual Young Children's Art Exhibit on Sunday, April 2nd, from 10am until noon (postponed from Saturday due to storm).  The portraits can be viewed at the River Garden on Main St. in Brattleboro. 

Check out the Month of the Young Child brochures, or for more information and other events, look here. See you there! 

Sincerely, 

The CH team  

In the botany portion of our cultural studies, students have been learning about the chemical process of photosynthesis. They are also tending the plants involved in their botany experiments. On the Silk Road, the class last week explored the remarkable spread of the Islamic Empire in the decade following the death of Muhammad. This week, Dan introduced the contributions of science and medicine from this part of the world by inviting students to look closely at art from the period.  As a means of practicing skills in writing mechanics as well as sharing book recommendations with one another, students are writing brief book reviews to share with the class on a favorite book.

This is a time of year when the class often experiences extra challenges within the social fabric of our community - despite the snow on the ground, spring is in the air! Social challenges are normal and an important part of learning and growth at this age. We want to equip the class with a shared vocabulary that can empower students to talk about situations as they arise. To this end, our weekly Peace Curriculum lesson examined types of peer conflict. We discussed examples of physical and verbal aggression, then spent most of our time learning about the less-familiar category of "relational aggression," or doing things that undermine someone's relationships and standing in the community. Acts such as teasing, ignoring, eye-rolling, excluding, or embarrassing someone fall into this category, along with spreading an outright lie or sending a text in someone else's name, for example. We identified the important role of the bystander ("upstander"), and reviewed a range of possible responses both at the time of an act of unkindness, and after the incident. Simply moving to stand beside someone who is being treated poorly can be a powerful statement, reducing the feeling of isolation for the person feeling hurt. Students practiced a few things they could say to a friend who is being mean to someone. They have brought real thoughtfulness as well as a bit of humor to these discussions. Up next week: exploring social norms!

 

As you are most likely aware, we are embarking on our yearly play preparations. We will be needing some help. Scripts go home on Thursday, April 6th, and your child will need to memorize lines and cues over that weekend.  Another person to read the cues is helpful. On Friday, April 7th, we would like a small crew to stay after school to help set up the stage in the theater. A slip will go home for student sign-ups for this help. Finally, after the play on April 13th, there is a potluck dinner in the middle school that parents organize. A parent coordinator would be most welcome.

 

REMINDER: An in-class water bottle and indoor shoes are needed for all students.