Third Grade Native American Museum
Dear Lower School Families,
If you visited the Third Grade Native American Museum last Friday, as third grade parents and all lower school classrooms did, you saw proud children displaying their beautiful creations made with clay, paper, tape, glue, beads, paint, and more. You also heard the students clearly and enthusiastically explain what they’d learned about how the Lenape built and used for their homes, played games, hunted and farmed, made maple syrup and so on.
The integrated Social Studies unit is one of the highlights of our third grade year and the museum is a fantastic way to show it off. There is another major part that parents can appreciate, but don’t get to see firsthand, that greatly values and emphasizes the learning “process” that goes into the final “product” of the museum. The sheer collaboration and partner work that students joyfully undertake together in the classroom to build those displays, and in Art and Shop as well (to create the large Lenape village dioramas), is a pleasure to witness. Solving problems together, doing research to find answers, holding a string steady while a friend ties it, and even disagreeing or working through frustration with one another are just some of the important experiences that come with partner and group work.
When Ann and Peggy held a special occasion a few weeks ago to celebrate the completion of the dioramas, it was a gift (and quite amazing) to watch this group sit and listen to each other speak and be reflective about their own and their various groups’ process. The questions Ann and Peggy used to guide the discussion served to shape their mutual talk, but also to impart to the children what their teachers value most. The questions were:
- Describe how your groups made their part
- What is the importance of your group’s contribution to the life of the village?
- What was the best part of working on the model?
- What did you notice on the model that you hadn’t seen before?
- What did you notice about life in your Native American village that is different from today?
You can see these dioramas as part of the Lower School Art Show, which begins this afternoon. Hope to see you there!
Be well,
Namita
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LETTERS FROM LOWER SCHOOL TEACHERS
Early Childhood (4s, 4s-K, and K) – Songs to Share – A Note from Sue:
Dear Early Childhood Parents-
We’ve been recording some favorite songs and have a selection for you to hear. The Kindergartens, 4sK and Fours classes would like you to hear the songs on the LREI Early Childhood Songs blog which you’ll find in the left column of the Parent Blog under LREI Links, or by clicking here. You can listen to them and sing them together with your child. Note that if you listen to the other classes’ recordings, you’ll find other songs that your child may know. (We sang “Oh, Martin Luther King” for our assembly and the Fours wanted to record their version.)
Watch for the Parent Assemblies coming up on April 7 (Fours and 4sK) and April 21 (Kindergartens)
Enjoy!
Sue Ribaudo
Beth & Samson’s Fours: Please click here for this week’s updates, all about our families study.
Diane & Charles’ Fours-K: Please click here for this week’s updates, all about our families study.
Elizabeth & Stephanie’s Kindergarten: Click here to read our newsletter for parents with important reminders for the 100th day of school.
Dot & Becka’s Third Grade: Please click here for this week’s letter!
Vonick & Randi’s Third Grade: Please click here for this week’s letter!
Kate & Maren’s Fourth Grade: Click here for our February/March Newsletter.
Both Fourth Grades – From the LREI Athletics Department:
We would like to invite the entire fourth grade class to come watch the 5/6th grade intramural basketball games on Feb 26th. The gym at Thompson St. gets packed with players and fans every Friday afternoon who come to watch our fifth and sixth graders shoot hoops on the basketball court. Intramural basketball is one of our most popular sports programs at LREI, and we are hoping many of the fourth graders from this year will want to come out next year. Every Winter we start our intramural basketball program by teaching and working on fundamentals and going over the rules of the game. By the end of the season, the players are playing full-court games that are very exciting to watch. Every Friday, all the teams play at our Thompson St. Athletic Center (145 Thompson). The first game starts at 3:30 and the second game starts at 4:15.
If you have any questions, please contact me at pfisher@lrei.org.
We hope to see you there!
Peter Fisher
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UPCOMING LOWER SCHOOL MEETINGS & EVENTS
For the most up-to-date information visit the school’s online calendar at www.lrei.org/calendar. Click here to download the one-page 2009-10 school calendar.
2/18 & 2/19 LS Art Show — Save the date! All are cordially invited to the Lower School Art Show taking place on Thursday, February 18 and Friday, February 19 in the Sixth Avenue Auditorium. Please click here for a note from Ann with details, and click here for the flyer, with a couple of sneak preview works of art!
2/22 – 3/19 VISIBILITY: Lesbian and Gay People We Love, an LREI community photo exhibit. Please join LREI in celebrating diversity at the Visibility Photo Exhibit! Submit a photo of your family with a loved one who is lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered. Visit the exhibit and show support for family, friends and community. Come to the opening ceremony to share stories and experiences about visibility. For more information, click here or contact Carrie Borows or Merril Stern at visibility@lrei.org.
3/3 & 3/4 LREI 2010 Art Action – March 3 & 4 – Cocktail Reception & Final Bidding: March 4th from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Don’t miss the chance to see artwork by some of the world’s finest artists and community members. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend! It’s our main fundraiser this year. The event provides essential support for our Tuition Assistance Program and it is going to be a wonderful evening with refreshments and fun. Admission is free! Visit http://artauction.lrei.org/ for additional information and to view items that will be auctioned.
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LOWER SCHOOL ASSEMBLIES
All Lower School Assemblies are held in our Auditorium at 8:45 a.m.
SPRING 2010
4/7 – 4s & 4s-K Music Assembly
4/14 – 1st Grade Music Assembly
4/21 – Kindergarten Music Assembly
4/28 – 2nd Grade Music Assembly
5/12 – 3rd Grade Music Assembly
5/19 – 4th Grade Music Assembly
5/26 – Kindergarten Movement Assembly
6/2 – 4s & 4s-K Movement Assembly
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UPCOMING PARENT ASSOCIATION MEETINGS
2/19 Cookbook Committee Meeting
2/22 Multi Cultural Committee Meeting
2/22 Red is Green Committee
2/23 LS POCOC Meeting
2/25 Adoption Committee Meeting
2/25 Food Committee Meeting
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COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS
*From Peter Fisher, LREI’s Athletic Director:
Congratulations to ALL 5 of our intermural basketball teams for making the post season schedule. All of the teams have worked hard. The players and coaches would love to have your voices and support at the following games:
Middle School Boys – Finished in second place with a 5-1 league record. Watch them in the finals: LREI (2) vs Garden (1), @ The Garden School, Feb 25th. 5:00PM
Middle School Girls – Finished in a 3-way tie for first place with a 5-1 league record! LREI won a coin-toss and earned a playoff bye. Watch the girls in the finals: LREI (1) vs. the winner of Dwight/Garden (1), @ LREI’s Thompson Street Athletic Center, March 1st, 3:15 PM
JV Boys – Finished in second place with a 7-3 league record. Watch them in the playoffs: LREI (2) vs York (3) @ LREI’s Thompson Street Athletic Center, March 1st, 4:30 and in the conference final: BWL (1) vs. winner (above) @ The Churchill School, March 2nd, 4:00PM
Varsity Girls – Finished in a tie for third place with an 8-4 league record. Watch the girls in the conference playoff play-in game: LREI vs. Garden, Feb 22nd, @ The Garden School at 3:45PM. The winner will play in a playoff game: vs. Lycée Français de New York, @ LFNY, Feb 23rd Time: TBA The winner of this game plays in the Girls Independent Schools Athletic League inter-conference game: Feb 24th, who: TBA time: TBA
Varsity Boys – are in third place with a 5-4 league record. Conference Playoffs: LREI (3) vs. The Garden School (2), @ Garden, Feb 22nd, 5:15. The winner plays in the Independent School Athletic League inter-conference game @ Columbia Prep (1), Feb 24th, time: TBA
There are also several weeks of 5th/6th grade intramural basketball games left each Friday afternoon at the Thompson Street Athletic Center, beginning at 3:30PM.
*LREI Night at YANK! Tuesday, February 23rd at 7:00 p.m. Limited Tickets available, please contact Liza Sacks, lsacks@lrei.org if interested. About YANK: Set during World War II, Yank! chronicles the romantic relationship between two servicemen long before don’t-ask-don’t-tell was part of the national discussion. With a lively score inspired by the pop sounds of the 1940s, Yank! captures the spirit and exuberance of the era even as it explores questions of prejudice, courage and survival. It tells the story of Stu—a photographer for Yank magazine—and Mitch, an Army Private, who fall in love and struggle to survive in a time and place where the odds are stacked against them.
*We want your recipes! Plans for the LREI Community Cookbook are under way, and we are now seeking recipes from all members of the community. Recipes can be for any dish that you would bring to a potluck. Please send recipes or questions to cookbook@lrei.org. The deadline for recipes is March 19 (right before Spring Break). Help us create a cookbook that represents the diversity of our community!
*Grandparents and Special Friends Day will be held on Friday, May 7th. Fours to First Grade – morning, Second Grade to Fourth Grade – afternoon. Please send your names for Grandparent and Special Friends to Liza Sacks, lsacks@lrei.org, 212-477-5317 ext. 291. Invitations will be mailed in March.
*From the Red is Green and Community Services Committees…
Donate Old Cell Phones: Cell phones will be donated to Phones for Haiti, a partnership with the American Red Cross and ReCellular, Inc. For more info, see phonesforhaiti.com. By donating your old cell phone, you can provide critical aid to people in Haiti, protect the environment and bring new technology to developing areas. 100% of the proceeds from Phones for Haiti will go to aid victims of the Earthquake in Haiti.
Recycle Used Batteries: We will accept all rechargeable and non-rechargeable batteries. Electronic waste is the fastest growing concern in the world! Batteries contain toxic substances like mercury that are harmful to our landfills. Don’t throw them out in your regular trash – let us help you recycle them.
Batteries and cell phones can be dropped of in the Red is Green recycle bins at the Sixth Ave. and Charlton St. lobbies throughout February and March.