Mr. Ward’s Message:
After the AMAZING Fun Run last week this is a quiet week at FES. This will give students a chance to settle back into their well accustomed rituals and routines and their studies. To round out this upcoming week the FES PTO is putting on the Annual Trunk or Treat Event on Saturday, October 19th from 2:00 - 4:00 PM. The rain date is slated for Sunday, October 20th at the same time. What is the Trunk or Treat you might be thinking? Trunk or Treat is an event open to all FES students, staff, and families. It takes place on the Memorial Drive blacktop near the playground. Family and friends volunteer to decorate the trunks of their vehicles so students can get “trunk or treating”. Please know that candy and allergy friendly treats will be provided to the students. Students are welcome to dress up in their Halloween costumes if they would like. It is not required but encouraged. Also, there is a contest and prizes for the 3 Favorite Trunks. We hope to see you there on Saturday, October 19th. If you would like to donate any candy there are bins located at the main office and parent pick-up.
FES News and Happenings…
Please be reminded that there is no school on Monday, October 14th due to Indigenous Peoples Day / Columbus Day. School will resume again on Tuesday, October 15th.
Attendance Matters Weekly Update:
Goal: 94% of the FES student population will attend school daily.
September Daily Student Attendance for September was 96% - Goal achieved!
October weekly attendance data indicate:
October 1-4: 96.5%...Met Goal!
October 7-11: 96%...Met Goal!
Upcoming events:
October 19: FES Annual Trunk or Treat from 2:00 - 4:00 PM
October 21-25: STEM Week at FES
October 21-25: Fire Safety Week at FES
October 30: Preschool Picture Day
PTO Corner:
Please consider joining us at our next PTO Meeting on October 21st. Please note PTO meetings will be held in person and virtually. Mr. Ward will share the meeting invite link the week before the meeting. We encourage more parents/guardians to attend our next meeting, October 21st beginning at 5:30 PM. Please note the time change at the start of the meeting. Why, you might be wondering? There is a special town meeting beginning at 7:00 PM on October 21st.
FES PTO website is...https://freetownelementarypto.weebly.com/
News and Happenings from around the classrooms - Week of October 7-11:
Pre-School: This week in preschool we learned about fire safety. The children learned how to stop, drop, cover, and roll. Projects included creating fire trucks using various shapes and making firefighter hats. The children learned about the letter D and the sound it makes. They used bingo daubers to put dots on dalmatians. Preschool participated in the Fun Run, and had so much fun!!
Kindergarten: This week in kindergarten our Wonders work was -our HFW word was “the”. We worked on Mm for letter name, sound and formation. We focused on the print concepts of tracking left/right and holding books rightside up. We discussed characters in a story. For PA we segmented sounds in isolation and blended the beginning sound with the end part to make words. (Ex. b-at) In writing we worked on left/right progression and details. Our math lesson was sorting and counting objects. Everyone had so much fun at the FUN RUN!
Grade 1: This week in first grade we focused on words with short i and suffix -s. For comprehension we reviewed visualization, characters, setting, and plot, and retelling a story. In math this week we learned about using addition to subtract as a strategy to help solve math problems. For writing, we are focusing on using words in the correct order so a sentence makes sense. We had a great time at the Fun Run!
Grade 2: This week second graders worked on addition and subtraction word problems in math. In phonics students learned about magic e and continued to practice spelling and reading words with consonant blends. They also learned about the suffixes -ed and -ing. In reading we continued to learn about central message and read a story called Help! The Story of Friendship. In writing students continued to learn about procedural texts and how-to writing. Thank you for making the Fun Run such a success!
Grade 3: This week, third grade students solved multiplication problems involving multiplying a 1-digit number by a multiple of 10. In reading, students explored the new essential question: What can traditions teach you about cultures? They read a variety of short stories to explore this question and engaged in meaningful conversations. In writing, students continued to work on their first drafts of their personal narrative, adding elements such as dialogue. In social studies, students continued to work on their graphic organizers about the summer versus winter life of the Wampanoag Tribe. We also had our exciting Fun Run! Thank you for supporting us in this great event!
Art: Kindergarteners drew a variety of lines with black sharpies, then they carefully traced each line with crayola markers. We sprayed the paper with water and watched in amazement as the crayola markers turned to water color paint! Grade 1 drew adorable crazy line self portraits. Grade 2 learned about the Indian tradition of Mehndi (Henna) and drew very elaborate paper versions. Grade 3 finished their continuous line designs. Many students say they are making these at home now!
Physical Education: All grades practiced their throwing and catching skills. Second and third grade students passed and caught while using a football, lacrosse equipment, and scoops. They practiced throwing overhand at targets and also ran laps around the field for cardiorespiratory endurance. Kindergarten and first graders practiced underhand throwing and catching at several stations including: stomp & catch, teddy bear targets, tic-tac-throw and toss and catch with a velcro glove.
Music: This week, students K-3 are starting the fourth week of their unit on being expressive in music. We will learn new songs, games, and movements to be performed with appropriate musicality. Gradees 2 and 3 are also continuing to explore mallet instruments and composing.
Library: On Monday, Day 4 students worked on a STEM activity and built a school out of straw and tape in addition to creating a floor plan for what they would like to have in their school. During the rest of the week, kindergarten students listened to an Ebook on Britannica Fundamentals and used the create tool to show what they learned about. First, second and third grade students listened to the read aloud "Mango, Abuela and Me" by Meg Medina for Hispanic Heritage Month. First grade students worked on Seesaw to show what their favorite scene was from the story. Second and third grade students posted their favorite scene to a class Padlet. They were also introduced to an AI drawing tool on Padlet.