Unified Arts Newsletter (WINTER EDITION)
Art Happenings (Ms. Bedard - jbedard@fcsuvt.org)
In the art room we have started the New Year with lots of creativity and energy. Sculpture is taking main stage in our creative space with Kindergartners learning about negative shapes by constructing wood sculptures. Our 2nd & 3rd grade classes are learning how to make clay containers in the shape of eggs with a handle of their choice on it. The first graders are learning about different mediums like oil pastels and cut paper to design works of art; soon we will be moving on to discovering texture. The energetic 4th & 5th graders have been challenged to transform an ordinary shoe into an extraordinary sculpture. The 6th grade students are re-illustrating one of this year’s Red Clover books , Mirror ,Mirror by Marilyn Singer into a digital story to share with their younger peers. Then they will move onto clay creations. The 7th & 8th grade students have been working hard to challenge themselves, coming up with their own lessons: some are clay crazy, inspired illustrators, peaceful painters or weirdly wired!
All the artwork your child(ren) have created this year has been photographed by myself and downloaded onto https://www.artsonia.com. It is a wonderful way to see what masterpieces your students have created this year. When your child(ren) have an account set up, they are able to make artist statements, title their work, and even add their own work from home. I have discovered that this website, when explored, can be so useful and inspiring, and provides your students with ownership of their artwork and true voice! If you are having a hard time setting up an account, or simply are lost in the website (like maybe you don’t have your child's user name or password) please contact me... jbedard@fcsuvt.org
*****Donations: Looking for sheets of plywood, ripped into 4ftx4ft pieces for Barn Quilts*****
***Clay After School January 19th, 26th, February 2nd, 9th, 16th & 23rd (added due to cancellation) ***
****Up Coming Event~ Regional Art Show @ Collins Perley Complex April 9th-13th~ Stay Tuned****
Technology Updates (Mrs. Hill - jlhill@fcsuvt.org)
Happy New Year! So much has been happening around technology here at Fairfield Center School since the new year began!
- Recently I have been working closely with music and library to develop exciting and interesting 21st Century infused lessons and units for our students.
- In Kindergarten, we have been offering a technology station once or twice a week.
- First, Second, and Third grades continue to have weekly technology classes. The students have been practicing and learning how to use technology properly, the layout of the keyboard, visiting educational web sites, while learning the Vermont State technology standards for their grade levels.
- In Fourth and Fifth, we continue to work closely with Digital Wish every Wednesday morning to make 21st Century tools and teaching practices an integral part and practice of every school day. The students are provided the hardware to learn and use many different technology applications to assist them in their learning and to help them polish presentation skills. To date they have been trained in Prezi, OneNote, PowerPoint, and are currently learning how to Podcast with Audacity software. The students have also been learning digital citizenship, communication and collaboration skills, research and information fluency, as well as how to problem solve and think critically.
- With sugaring season approaching the Sixth and Seventh graders will begin their unit Project Sweet Talk and I will be working closely with them to help them market the maple syrup, document their journey through pictures, videos and interviews, as well as making the many updates and additions to the web-page as this unit progresses.
- The Eighth graders have been offered some exciting opportunities. The first is the opportunity to take high school classes online for free through VTVLC - Vermont Virtual Learning Cooperative. Opportunities abound for students in many ways. To have the chance to earn high school credit in middle school is a wonderful opportunity for them and the students will have more courses to choose from than what would be typically offered at their own school or at their local high schools. Visit http://vtvlc.org/ to learn more.
- The Eighth graders will also have the opportunity to attend
a training at Vermont
Technical College
with me to learn how to use Microsoft Kodu gaming software and Microsoft
Expressions web building software and then become mentors and assist me in
teaching others how to use the software. This spring Fairfield Center
School will be offering
weekly after school workshops for our middle school students to learn these
applications. Be on the lookout for more information about this!
Physical Education (Mrs.Carpenter-Henderson - acarpenter@fcsuvt.org
Now that the snow has come, we are looking forward to doing all of our fun outdoor activities in P.E. 3rd grades will be participating in snow shoeing and sledding activities, while 4th-8th grades will be participating in snow shoeing, x-country skiing, and sledding. Please help your students remember to bring their boots, coat, hat, mittens/gloves, and snow pants when they have P.E.
The Fuel Up To Play 60 team did a wonderful job this past week doing a cheese taste test for the school. The team offered all students a chance to try American, Cheddar, or Mozzarella cheese. After trying the cheese, students voted to see which one was the favorite, and figured out that cheddar won the vote. The Fuel Up To Play 60 team’s next activity is “Souper Bowl Week” which will run January 30th-February 3rd. As a school, we want to see how many cans of soup we can gather to donate to the Fairfield food shelf. Don't forget your soup cans!
We are looking forward to Circus Smirkus coming to Fairfield in May! A circus professional will be coming to our school for one week to share circus skills with each class. More information will be sent out shortly about this event.
A big congratulations goes out to Hannah Earl, Jens Ulrich-Verderber, and Logan Piazza for their participation in the Elks Hoops Shoot in Newport, Vermont. Logan will be going to the state level to compete against all of the Vermont winners. Good luck Logan!
If you have any questions, feel free to contact me by email or by calling the school (827-6639).
LIBRARY LUMINATIONS (Ms. Curtis - bcurtis@fcsuvt.org)
WELCOME WINTER , FAIRFIELD FAMILIES - (I think - where is the snow?)
*The October book fair was a success , thanks to all you participating families and our kind volunteers (Mrs. Malone,Mrs. Cushing,Ms. Getty,Mrs. Coon,Ms. Kittell,Mrs. Menard, Mrs. Maquera, Mrs. Branon,Mrs. Edgerly,Mrs. Jerose), Fairfield School’s profits have purchased almost 75 new titles! Thanks so much! Our spring book fair will be March 26-30, the week of parent conferences. See you all then!
*In library classes with help of our Integration Specialist, Mrs. Hill --- 1st graders have created a photo story version of the picture book, Bark,George by Jules Feifer. Each student recorded a page they read with the matching picture. The 1st graders were so excited to hear their own voices reading the text! They shared this school-made e-book with the Kindergartners. 2/3rd graders will be creating their own I SPY books using a digital sharing program called Voice Thread. A note will be coming home asking families to help students collect objects for their personal I SPY page. 7th graders are beginning a unit to develop their own Public Service Announcements. Teams of 3 will write, video, and edit each announcement, to be shared with middle schoolers.
*Non-digital activities include: 4/5th graders using reference materials: to gather information on states/countries, learning organizational systems for encyclopedias, almanacs, and informational texts. 6th graders have completed a very engaging unit regarding technology safely; now they are exploring Multiple Intelligences, determining their own learning strengths, and how they can intentionally apply them to their personal and classroom learning. 7th graders are exploring what makes a “crackerjack” book review, in preparation for blogging their own reviews on titles they have read. 8th graders continue to focus on 21st Century learning skills; Mrs. Kerry Lambert, a Fairfield resident, spoke of her career with a huge global company, stressing the necessary learning skills and behaviors to succeed in the decades ahead. Guidance is also using 8th graders’ library time for VSAC and high school presenters, looking ahead to high school placements and expectations.
*As usual, our school library welcomes volunteers to help with various tasks, and donations of magazines.
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