Kindergarten

Ms. Kicza

The kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grades had a beautiful fall morning for apple picking on Friday. It was a great way to learn and have fun together--and of course, pick and eat a lot of apples. Thank you to our wonderful family volunteer chaperones and to the PTA for funding the field trip! 

First Grade

Ms. Fisk

Our 1st graders have been busy estimating and measuring objects around the classroom using creative tools like unifix cubes, popsicle sticks, and their feet.

Throughout October, they will also be crafting math stories that correspond with the

calendar, enhancing their understanding of sequencing and numbers.

We are diving into our second unit of the literacy module where students explore three

essential habits of character: initiative, collaboration, and perseverance. Through

engaging activities and literature, particularly focusing on The Most Magnificent Thing,

students are learning how these habits can make them effective learners.

Second Grade

Ms. Giampietro

Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd graders had a great time on our apple picking field trip! This past week, students practiced their skills block routine and learned new math games to practice addition and subtraction within twenty. Second graders are also learning about self talk and being assertive when asking for help. They spent time closely reading The Invisible Boy and discussing how the main character changes throughout the book.

During Outdoor Ed, students have been exploring their sit spots with drawing and writing. Second graders have been working hard and have earned a whole class celebration!

Third & Fourth ELA and Social Studies

Ms. Cayer

The third grade students are learning about challenges other children around the world are facing with accessing education. So far, we have "traveled" to Colombia, Chad, and Afghanistan through the stories we have read and had some very important conversations and learning! Third grade also visited the town pond with Becky this week to search and learn about frogs in our area. It was a great time in Outdoor Education!

The fourth grade continues to read Love That Dog and other poems, learning about the characteristics of poetry and determining the meanings/lessons that the poems are trying to convey to all of us. They also are finishing up writing an effective summary about Robert Frost's poem, "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening". Fourth grade worked on using compasses in Outdoor Education this week, and they did a great job navigating/following a predetermined route!

Middle School Math

Mr. Pooler

This week has been an eventful one! Fifth graders took their multiplication and volume check-in as we prepare to finish up our first unit in Bridges. Sixth grade is getting ready to be assessed on prime factorization, order of operations, and distributive properties.

Seventh grade is being introduced to multi-step equations by way of geometric angles. And last but nor least, 8th graders are working on linear equations and proportional relationships.

Middle School Social Studies

Mr. Breen

In 5/6 Social Studies, we did a mini-unit on presidential elections (the primary system, electoral college, historic elections, etc.) in the leadup to the elections this November. We also finally took our trip to the Morrill Homestead! The weather ended up being beautiful, it was a lovely day for a trip. For any parents interested, here's a photo album from the day. Most of the photos we took were of historic objects the kids will be writing about in class next week, so this album's just the fun ones. 

In 7/8 Social Studies, we started work on our second mini research project. We have some very cool topics that the kids picked out. Presentations are due on Monday, so check in with your child to make sure they're ready! We're also gearing up for a quiz. There's a study guide on google classroom if they need to practice, and a Kahoot will be posted next Monday they can use. 

Library

Mr. Herrick

In the Library this past two weeks, we covered a lot of ground! In some of the younger grades we read the classic book Raccoons and Ripe Corn by Jim Arnosky. This led to discussions of fall, seasons and, of course, raccoons! We used crayons and leaves to create some leaf rubbing drawings, and artists were encouraged to approach their work by tracing, rubbing or drawing leaves in any way that they liked. 

We watched this short video in which Rascal the raccoon learns how to break through one lock after another. We talked about how Rascal’s secret to success is perseverance and how we could all benefit from not giving up when encountering problems. Discuss with your Newton student: What do you do when you encounter a problem?

In the older grades we have been asking the question: How do you know when you do a good job? This led to discussions of rubrics and the importance that they hold. We talked about The Learning Pit and why it is so important to hang in there when learning a new skill. Last week we talked about Banned Book Week by looking at the ALA's Freedom to Read statement and we learned about what books get banned, how they are banned, and what we can do about it: READ! 

Art

Ms. Butters

Second graders were introduced to the work of Alma Woodsey Thomas and her abstract paintings. At the age of 80, Alma Thomas was the first African American woman to have a solo exhibition at New York's Whitney Museum of American Art, and the first black woman to have her work added to the White House Collection. Second graders used oil pastels and watercolor paints to create apples inspired by her work.