The Weekly Roar

Happy summer vacation!

We had a fantastic Field Day full of fun and a wonderful hike up to the windmills!

Graduation was a big success, and Black Bears did a wonderful job at decorating the arch and making posters for our graduation 8th graders.

6th graders had a fun step up day in Brook Trout playing family food and getting philosophical with their new classmates.

Our end of year survival projects presentations and lessons went phenomenally and they were able to reflect on the experience together.

Materials Lists for next year will come out in August. I have attached the 2025-2026 calendar below.

Here are some resources for you and your Black Bear to access over the summer to further develop their skills! I encourage them to find a good book to read in their free time, maybe find a new series they can take a long with them into next year!

LINKS:

Math Practice and Games:

ABCYA: https://www.abcya.com/

Times Tables: https://www.timestables.com/

Math and Division: https://www.mathgames.com/division

Khan Academy: https://www.khanacademy.org/

Social Studies, History, Science, Geography and Games:

Ducksters: https://www.ducksters.com/

PBS: https://www.pbs.org/

Khan Academy: https://www.khanacademy.org/

Crash Course: https://www.youtube.com/user/crashcourse

Reading and Writing / Comprehension:

EPIC: https://www.getepic.com/ Class Code: luw9093

Ducksters: https://www.ducksters.com/

Teacher Pay Teachers: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/ (select FREE under price for free resources)

Super teacher: https://www.superteacherworksheets.com/full-ela.html

Typing:

Typing Club: https://www.typingclub.com/

Writing Prompt Resource to continue to work on writing skills:

Paths to Literacy: https://www.pathstoliteracy.org/writing-prompts-summer-journals/

https://getfreewrite.com/blogs/writing-success/writing-prompts-60-ideas-you-can-use-today?srsltid=AfmBOoqYxUZ4U-pfn2tRNtj-OM8IqcxoSZ5Vyhk2NdWbUKB3i-e-lKhI

PBS: https://www.pbs.org/

Try keeping a summer journal to keep track of activities over summer and develop writing and reflection skills!

Fun Free Time Educational Resource for Deep Dives :

Crash Course: https://www.youtube.com/user/crashcourse

Ducksters: https://www.ducksters.com/

Hike to Windmills!

6th Grade End of Year Celebration!

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Math:

4th: Started chapter 4 on line graphs, plots, tally mark and more!

5th: Started chapter 4, multiplying and dividing fractions!

6th: Started chapter 4 on ratios!

ELA:

We used our argumentative essay follow-ups to have a live debate in the Black Bears with the topic being kids having homework! Some things we discussed is the difference between arguing and fighting as well as the importance of listening to others.

This week, we chose our argumentative essay topics and created our thesis statements. Some interesting topics are deforestation, animal poaching, and Esports!

Our chicks that we incubated have hatched! We got to spend some time with them on Monday and will be seeing them again on Tuesday. There are videos and pictures on Google classroom of the live hatching progress.

Social Studies:

This week, we compared the Justinian code to the Bill of Rights. Our follow-up assignments involves the Black Bears being lawmakers and creating their own set of 12 laws for kids!

Science:

We played a super fun and physical migration game that involved lots of learning about animal adaptations and habitats!

Nature Connection:

Our animal advocacy projects were presented this week! The kiddos made poster, brochures and flyers describing their animal's conservation status and possible solutions to help curb extinction.

Book Club:

Almost finished our book study packets and will be moving on to new books soon!

STEM:

We are continuing working on our wind powered cars for stem! Thanks to all who donated materials!

Art:

Creating a quilt that represents their personality!

Music: Students are creating their own musical pieces using noteflight! We are also watching live performances from MVCS kiddos with their instruments.

Friday is book swap day!

Wrapped up in a tree!

Chick!

Argumentative protest for homework!

PJ and Stuffy Day Gem Jar Prize!

Live Black Bear Performance!

Stuffed Animal Collection!

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Math:

4th: Chapter Assessment week!

5th: Chapter Assessment week!

6th: Chapter Assessment week!

ELA:

Argumentative essay work was done in small groups again. We used the "I do, we do, you do: format to dissect an argumentative essay and prepare for writing one ourselves!

Social Studies:

We are moving on to Justinian code of law and comparing it to the bill of rights! We will be writing a children's bill of rights next!

Science:

Learning about animal adaptations and the way animals used to look in the past!

Nature Connection:

Animal Advocacy Project!

Book Club:

Book club was ran in small groups for one day and independently for the rest of the week. 4th years finished and will be moving on to a new book before April break!

Art:

Creating a quilt that represents their personality!

Music: Students are creating their own musical pieces using noteflight!

We enjoyed the warm weather this week with parking lot games! Please send your kiddos in with the gear they need as the weather continues to fluctuate.

PJ and Stuffy Day Gem Jar Prize!

Science Fair Project!

Winter Program at Cannon!

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Math:

4th: Word Problems with all operations!

5th: Adding / Subtracting mixed numbers!

6th: Dividing fractions / decimals!

ELA:

This weeks argumentative essay work was done in small groups. Each group read two opposing sides (for and against) of a topic and talked about what they would side with. Their follow up is to identify different parts of the essay on their own.

Next week we are moving on to independent work with identifying and drafting argumentative essays.

Social Studies:

We compared COVID-19 and the Black Plague. We are moving on to Justinian code of law and comparing it to the bill of rights!

Science:

Learning about animal adaptations!

Nature Connection:

This week we enjoyed the nice weather and talked about the signs of spring!

Book Club:

Book club was ran in small groups for one day and independently for the rest of the week. 4th years finished and will be moving on to a new book before April break!

Art:

Creating a quilt that represents their personality!

This week we are able to enjoy some hammocking with our books as well as parking lot games after the cold winter snow melting away some!

PJ and Stuffy Day Gem Jar Prize!

Science Fair Project!

Winter Program at Cannon!

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Happy February Break! - This week was focused on finishing up exhibition and using STEM sills to create interactive games!

Overall, The Black Bears poured so much effort into this special project and we couldn't be more proud of their results and turnout!

Math:

Used STEM skills to incorporate math into our interactive games.

Science:

The Black Bears completed a reflection of their science fair projects.

Nature Connection:

Snow shoeing was a GO! We got out to fort creek four twice this week in snow shoes! We hope to do some more after break!

IMPORTANT THINGS TO KNOW

Parents and community members, if you are coming to the school during school hours, please check in the Burrow - NOT in classrooms!

Family committee is actively looking for new members! Please reach out to Merrill if you would like to join!

ASP is looking to schedule volunteer-run activities! If you are interested in doing this, please reach out to Brendan who is the head of ASP: brendan@mountainvillagecharterschool.org

Kiddos hard at work for Exhibiton!

Exhibition Question

Winter Program at Cannon!

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Friendly reminder that pick up begins at 2:45 in the afternoon. There have recently been safety concerns regarding families coming too early, creating a line that spills out into the road. Please try to arrive closer to dismissal time to avoid this. Thank you!

Math:

4th: Slowly mastering multi-digit by multi-digit multiplication!

5th: Beginning addition and subtraction of fractions, improper fractions, and writing fractions as decimals!

6th: Slowly mastering division of fractions!

ELA: We got into facts versus opinions and argumentative writing! In the next few weeks, we will focus in on how to write an argumentative essay as well as preparing for a class debate!

Social Studies: Started our middle ages lessons! We did a fun activity splitting into groups to create skits for the "tower of power" (hierarchy) of feudalism!

Science: Began conducting our experiments for the science fair and collecting data!

Nature Connection: Researching the wildfires in California and are working to find resources we can gather to send over as a community service project!

Book Club: All grades were able to meet in independent groups (without a teacher) for their book study this week! They followed up with meaningful conversations about what they read.

We are in need of STEM materials! Please email if you can provide any of these materials!

Here is a list of what we need:

Play dough
Balloons (24)

Sponges x10
rubber bands (regular sized)
Cardstock
Corrugated cardboard
wooden skewers
CDs x20
Plastic bottle caps (20)

Friendship Day is coming up!

Please sign up to bring a little something in for our friendship Day gathering happening at school on Friday, February 14th.

Students are welcome to bring kind notes and treats for one another! Please make sure you try to think about all 22 kiddos in the class!

Sign up sheet link:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1iTFp2LFC648D5UuQgxs9iRcNvF30zk-RsRkrCdrbJcw/edit?usp=sharing

Baking bread over the fire!

Free Choice Friday Fire!

Winter Program at Cannon!

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Math:

4th: Starting multi-digit by single digit multiplication!

5th: Completed our chapter three assessment on order of operations etc.

6th: Reviewing fractions and started division.

Social Studies: Finished with the fall of Rome and looking forward to learning about the medieval ages!

Science: Reviewed the scientific methods and split up into groups for our Balloonigan science fair that we will work on for the next 4 weeks!

Nature Connection: We made sourdough from scratch and cooked it on the fire during free choice!

STEM: We created boats using straws, tape, and string to test whether they would float in the water. Each group reviewed the scientific method in order to create a hypothesis of how many dice they believe their flotation device would be able to carry in the water before sinking! We identified our variables and recorded our results!

Book Club: All grades were able to meet for their book study this week!

We look forward to starting winter program next week on Thursday! Do the snow dance this weekend!

Baking bread over the fire!

Scientific method through STEM!

STEM!

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I hope your holiday break was relaxing! Our class pet, Laney, was happy to be back and to get some love from our kiddos!

This week we spent time getting back into the groove of school and diving deeper into our social studies unit.

Math:

We all practiced our math fact fluency with our snowball math fact game!

Social Studies: We finished our first section of notes on Rome and learned about the distribution of power over time. We did a mini study on the 12 tables (laws) of Rome.

Science: We reviewed our previous topics through a competitive game of Kahoot.

STEM: We competed in groups to create the longest paper chains using only one piece of paper.

Book Club: 6th years continued their book study.

We enjoyed a presentation by one of our Black Bears who rafted over 200 miles through the Grand Canyon recently! We got to connect their findings of native American history and geology to what we are currently learning. We ended the week with a nice hike and a woodsy read aloud.

Things to Know!

We encourage families to sign up for 50 volunteer hours throughout the school year to get connected with the community and help carry out projects and participate in school events. You can reach out to MVCSfamilycommittee@gmail.com to find out how to get involved!

Parent Teacher Conferences are coming up on December 13th! You can sign up for a conference using the link posted below! First come, first serve. Please reach out if you have any questions.

Flume George Hike!

Studying the decomposing fox!

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Winter Solstice is coming up this Thursday evening, the 19th, over at the Hummingbird Center! Come celebrate the longest night of the year around a big warm fire and some goodies!

Math:

4th, 5th and 6th years went over their math follow up from the half day last week. We all practiced our math fact fluency with our snowball math fact game!

ELA: We created new writing prompts and one of the topics was "what is the weirdest gift you have ever received?". Many of the kiddos used the strategies we covered in small group ELA lessons last week to improve their writing.

Social Studies: We had another fun lesson on the collapse of the Roman Empire!

Science: We took a trip up to Franconia notch to see in person just how amazing the Earth is and how the Flume George was created! We also participated in a lab where we melted crayons and put them into cold water to represent how lava, when cooled, can form rocks!

Nature Connection: We used our spatial awareness and senses to guide one another to an object in the room while blindfolded, and afterwards, guessed what the object was. We altered various aspects of the environment to see whether the results would change!

STEM: We created marble roller coasters out of tape and paper! We worked in teams playing around with gravity to find a model that worked!

Book Club: We are studying historical fiction through Native American history book studies!

4th: Morning Girl

5th: Island of the Blue Dolphins

6th: Indian No More

If you would like to see your kiddos work, we keep it all in notebooks or avoid loose leaf paper that is easily lost! Feel free to shoot me an email and I can send their notebooks home with them for review!

Black Bears Christmas PJ celebration is coming up on Thursday December 19th! Free free to sign up to bring in a treat!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1iTFp2LFC648D5UuQgxs9iRcNvF30zk-RsRkrCdrbJcw/edit?usp=sharing

Things to Know!

We encourage families to sign up for 50 volunteer hours throughout the school year to get connected with the community and help carry out projects and participate in school events. You can reach out to MVCSfamilycommittee@gmail.com to find out how to get involved!

Parent Teacher Conferences are coming up on December 13th! You can sign up for a conference using the link posted below! First come, first serve. Please reach out if you have any questions.

Flume George Hike!

Rock Tunnel at the Flume!

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Please donate your paper towel rolls and tin cans (washed and cleaned) for winter solstice art!

Math:

4th years: Finished up chapter 2 and took assessment regarding multiples, factors, arrays etc.

5th years: Using PEMDAS to carry out order of operations! (Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Steve)

6th years: Started negative numbers using number lines and getting a feel for the metric system!

Practicing multiplication facts at home for all grades is important and will be helpful for future lessons!

ELA: We presented biographies this week which went incredibly well! The Black Bears had so much fun immersing themselves into research they enjoyed! One of the class favorites had to be Macaulay Culkin, the famous young star from home alone!

Social Studies: Presentations are done and we are moving on to the collapse of the Roman Empire!

Science: We are studying the rock cycle! We will be doing some hands on projects when we come back from break!

Nature Connection: We cleared out the black bear fire pit area in fort creek a brought over some stumps to create a functional meeting circle!

Book Club: We are about to start our first book club after break! We are studying historical fiction and Native American history to prepare us for the topics we will be reading about.

4th: Morning Girl

5th: Island of the Blue Dolphins

6th: Indian No More

Things to Know!

We encourage families to sign up for 50 volunteer hours throughout the school year to get connected with the community and help carry out projects and participate in school events. You can reach out to MVCSfamilycommittee@gmail.com to find out how to get involved!

Parent Teacher Conferences are coming up on December 13th! You can sign up for a conference using the link posted below! First come, first serve. Please reach out if you have any questions.

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Week 10 Overview!

Please donate your paper towel rolls and tin cans (washed and cleaned) for winter solstice art!

Math:

4th years: Defining and finding multiples and factors!

5th years: Dividing by multi-digit numbers!

6th years: First math assessment complete - moving on to chapter 2!

Practicing multiplication facts at home for all grades is important and will be helpful for future lessons!

ELA: Working on biographies as well as writing prompts!

Social Studies: Presentations have been going great and we will finish up next week and move onto the next period of time!

Science: Discussions this week surrounded plagiarism and why it is important to give credit to the sources we use! Next week we are practicing creating our citations!

Tuesday we spent the day reading and hammocking in the woods after a long hike!

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Week 11 involved some much needed community building after the unfortunate and uneasy events that occurred near our school. While academics were a part of our week, I believe the more important news involves the conversations and events that were had upon returning to school on Friday. Coming back was difficult for many teachers and students. However, our ability to build back up and strengthen one another speaks volumes as to who we are as a school and a community.

On Friday morning, we had an open discussion about the recent events where we were able to share our thoughts and questions. We ended the conversation creating a poster reminding ourselves how special and strong our community is. We plan to dedicate a portion of our chalk board wall to these aspects.

We spent the rest of the morning in the woods / parking lot enjoying community activities and enjoying each other's company around nice fire in hammocks. By the end of the day, we were feeling more at home.

As for academics, here is a very brief overview of what we were able to get through:

Math:

All Black Bears continued working on their math projects from the following week.

Projects will be presented on Tuesday during work morning.

Practicing multiplication facts at home for all grades is important and will be helpful for future lessons!

ELA: We continued our grammar and writing works per usual. We are still conducting research about our chosen public figure for our biography.

Social Studies: Ancient civilization presentations were finalized and will be presented Wednesday.

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What a productive week accompanied by great weather! Here is an overview of week 9 in the Black Bears.

Math:

4th years: Using estimation and rounding to see if our multiplication answers are reasonable!

5th years: Starting multi-digit multiplication and practicing our math facts!

6th years: Common factors and square roots!

Practicing multiplication facts at home is important and will be helpful for future lessons!

ELA: Our lessons this week included grammar and paragraph structure. We wrote a silly story about jumping into pools of jello and dancing with cats in turtle costumes to model our lesson!

Social Studies: We finished the written portion of our social studies ancient civilizations projects and are moving on to create models to go along. We will start our presentations after Halloween!

Science: Each kiddo has researched and studied a specific natural disaster in a particular location! We have created written pieces and 3-D models to represent our natural disaster, and have started presenting! We had two volcano cakes models created that were shared with the class!

STEM: On Thursday, we did a cup tower challenge - BUT no hands allowed! Each kiddo held onto one of four strings attached to a rubber band, and used this device to pick up the cups and place them on top of one another. The creations were inspiring and teamwork was critical!

Halloween: This Thursday is our Halloween celebration! Black Bears will have a Coraline Themed celebration with treats and games! We will then have a school wide mingle to show off costumes, hang out in fort creek, and see one another's classroom decorations.

Here is the link if you would like to sign up to bring a treat in for the Halloween party!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1iTFp2LFC648D5UuQgxs9iRcNvF30zk-RsRkrCdrbJcw/edit?usp=sharing

Volcano Cake!

Hammocking in the beautiful weather!

NO HANDS Cup Tower Challenge!

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This week, Black Bears focused on some more complex assignments. While their social studies research presentations develop, we are getting ready to make our 3D models next week. The kiddos found creative ways to make their research enjoyable to present! Some even decided to create adorable mini mascot reporters to present their work.

In math, both 4th and 5th years completed their first chapters and took their assessments to show what they learned and are now moving into chapter 2.

6th years are still working hard on factoring and prime numbers and are predicted to be done their first chapter by next week.

In nature connection, we are learning about glaciers which is tying into our science lesson on land forms and natural disasters. Next week we are creating models based on an assigned and researched natural disaster.

In music, we are getting our accounts created and set up for note flight!

On Thursday, we embarked on a build-your-own bridge challenge using straws and duct tape. Some of our creations excelled and some faltered, but we had some great takeaways surrounding building techniques and team work.

Before our infamous and insane Friday dance party, we all took a moment to connect with the silence and tranquility of the classroom. Afterwards we all enjoyed a treat at the Family Friday get together and bake sale in fort Creek. It was wonderful to have our MVCS community together, making new connections and memories.

Marshmallow Towers!

The calm before the storm...

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This week we thought quite introspectively about the goals we have for ourselves and spent time talking through and creating them. We crafted dream catchers to display our hopes and dreams.

In math, we are checking up on the skills we have worked on so far. The kiddos used their creative minds and critical thinking skills to come up with alike problems to teach to their small groups.

In nature connection, we hiked up to slippery slope and had some free play. At the end of our journey, we talked about different rock formations and how they got their placement.

In music class, we are starting to create our own musical pieces using manuscript paper! We are looking into using an online app as well. It's exciting to think about what kind of beautiful pieces we will create!

On Thursday, we had our wonderful marshmallow tower STEM challenge! Only using spaghetti and marshmallows, Black Bears had to create a structurally sound tower. Many different methods were used to create some pretty awesome towers! Our highest structure was 2 feet tall!

Thank you to all the families for gathering and donating the materials needed for our STEM days!

Marshmallow Towers!

Goals Dream Catcher!

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As we get closer to Halloween, we began reading our next read aloud, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets! A friend in our classroom brought in a wizard wand to go with our reading!

In nature connection, we searched for FBI... and not the secret service either! Fungi, bacteria, and invertebrates!

We showed off our best smiles at picture day with individual and group photos. We all awed at the drone that took our whole school phot! It was great to have all our MVCS kiddos together and laughing. Upper el got a chance to revisit the lower el woods stomping grounds during pictures. Old memories resurfaced for some, and new adventures for others!

In science, we talked about the Ring Of Fire and Pangea. We discussed different forms of transportation back in the day. We were stuck on two primary forms; walking and horse drawn carriages. It was interesting to discuss and the benefits they offered when used for navigation.

We are beginning to talk about misinformation and disinformation. As we move further into our research projects in social studies, we are learning the importance of using trusted sources!

Next week, we are talking through our personal, academic, and social goals while creating fun and meaningful ways to display them to our families and communities this coming Friday!

Below this section, there is the link to sign up for Goal Setting Conferences held on Friday, October 11th this week! School will be closed Friday. First come first serve and one family per 20 minute session. I look forward to seeing you then! Please email if you have any questions or concerns.

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Week through was fun and productive in the Black bears classroom!

After reading the Coraline book, we watched the movie this week! We were able to have an in depth class conversation about some of the thoughts and wonderings about book and the movie. The Black bears completed a writing prompt comparing and contrasting the differences between each and came up with some very interesting thoughts. Some even came up with some conspiracy theories! We did this on computers to help us with our typing and computer use skills in the future.

4th and 5th years started learning about place value while 6th years are learning about the construction of number lines using whole numbers, fractions, and decimals. Next week, everyone will be working on comparing numbers using these symbols: >, <, =.

In science, we completed a puzzle of Pangea and are now covering the differences between convergent and divergent landforms. Magma, earthquakes, volcanoes, OH MY!

In social studies, our friends chose between creating their own civilization and researching one that already exists, and started their projects with their partner. They are eager to continue!

Our half day was successful as many balloonagins who finished their weekly work began making the leaves of our 9/11 survivor tree in remembrance of those who passed away in the tragic event. We ended our half day on Friday with a conversation on leave no trace and lots of laughter and smiles throughout fort creek.

Our assistant teachers, Meadow (with baby Finn), and Tanner, have adjusted very well in our classroom and have quickly become a well loved part of our community! It has been very helpful to have extra hands on deck for our kiddos.

Lastly, below this section, there is the link to sign up for Goal Setting Conferences held on Friday, October 11th. School is closed this day to ensure guardians and their student a time to sign up to meet. It is first come first serve and one family per 20 minute session. I look forward to seeing you then! Please email if you have any questions or concerns.

Read aloud in the woods!

Math curriculum!

Coraline

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In week four, we finished our first read aloud - Coraline by Neil Gaiman. We are well pre-beared to watch the movie on Tuesday with the Brook Trout who have also read this book recently. We will be following up with a writing assignment comparing and contrasting the characteristics of the movie and book, accompanied by an artistic piece of their choice to represent their writing.

We met our new assistant teachers, Meadow (with baby Finn), and Tanner, on Thursday! They are joining in the Black Bear Classroom fun! Meadow has her baby cub are with us on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the classroom. All three of our new friends are already well loved in our MVCS community!

In week three, we also conducted our first independent work morning, accompanied by our language and math lessons which went wonderfully .In Social Studies, we dove deeper into our research of the middle ages. Students have partnered up and started conducting research on their chosen ancient civilization. In this weeks lesson, we will be working towards making a creative presentation of the students' choice. They can choose to do this based on their research of their chosen civilization, or they can construct and create their own ancient civilization based on research.

Read aloud in the woods!

Math curriculum!

Coraline

Black Bear Newsletter

Summary of the Week

Week three kicked off our first full trial run of work morning! Last years Black Bears assisted the new kiddos and fourth years in getting used to the work we are doing this year. We finished the last of our assessments this week as well.

On Wednesday, we watched a remembrance video for 9/11 with both classrooms in turtle cove. We talked about the events that took place this day and why it is important to remember them.

In social studies, we are diving right into the middle ages and are beginning to study ancient civilizations. The mini presentations on this time period that were made last week were presented this week. We learned a whole lot about the lifestyle of the medieval ages and had group discussions about the differences between then and now. Next, we will be looking deeper into the ancient civilizations that existed during this time period.

In art, we are creating folders for our work! Some Black Bears are using auxiliary images (reference photos) to create something of their own choice with their own artistic spin that will represent all the art work we will be creating this school year. They are coming out beautifully!

We ended the week with a hike up to Slippery Slope and did our read aloud (Coraline) in the woods! We plan to watch the movie with the Brook Trout classroom soon as they are also reading the book.

Open house took place Thursday evening. It showcased the curriculum we will be using this year as well as the Montessori tools we will be accessing. Math and language small group lessons start next week!

Read aloud in the woods!

Math curriculum!

Black Bear math station!

Black Bear Newsletter

Summary of the Week

We started off week two visiting the garden that was planted by the Black Bears this past spring at lower elementary. We observed the different vegetation and harvested our sunflower seeds to plant next spring.

While heavily focused on establishing academic routine and assessments, the Black Bears also started science, nature connection and social studies this week!

In social studies, we dove right into the middle ages and are beginning to study ancient civilizations. We split into groups with different topics about the middle ages and made mini presentations that the students will present to each other next week.

In science, we talked about gravity and tested some theories on it. We also learned about taking observations and making statements based on facts.

With most of our assessments being completed, we will be diving into the use of Montessori tools and starting our regular work morning assignments next week.

Open house is this Thursday, September 12th, parents and caregivers only. It runs from 6-6:45 in upper elementary. Hope to see you there!

Black Bears and Loons Olympics!

Black Bears Newsletter

Summary of the Week

Week one kicked off our big conversations about expectations and community building!

We spent time in our classroom labeling our school materials, creating fun name tags and getting to know one another through games and group shares. Past Black Bears took the reigns in helping explain the expectations to the new students, and new students shared ideas and questions. We also spent time outside hammocking! Past students naturally assisted the new students in their hammock set-up and Fort Creek was filled with laughter and smiles!

In honor of the Olympics that took place over the summer, the Black Bears and Loons classrooms meshed into four Olympic Teams this week, where they were able to get to know kiddos from both classrooms and start creating connections that will carry on throughout the school year. During the afternoons, the teams met and began making organized cheers, brainstormed games to play in the Olympics, and created crowns with natural materials (if they chose to).

Lastly, we kicked off Friday with our MVCS Olympics! Within these games, we fostered team-building habits, good sportsmanship, kindness, and overall excitement and connection between one another! Ask your Black Bear what parts they enjoyed the most!

Week one was a success and we are excited to move into week two with classroom routine and beginning of academics!

Hammock Expectations

Black Bears and Loons Olympics!

Questions to Ask Your Black Bear!

Ask about our first read aloud choice, getting ready for the spooky season!
Ask about hammocking in the woods!
Ask about the surveys we took surrounding our feelings towards math!
Ask about the team-building games we played in the Olympics!
Ask about their assigned country and Olympic cheer!
Ask about their Magical Me worksheets and their favorite shares!

The Weekly Roar

Week 39

Happy summer vacation!

Graduation Day! Graduation Day!

Hike to Windmills!

6th Grade End of Year Celebration!

Ask Your Black Bear About...

Volunteer Hours!

Important Dates Coming Up

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Week 30

National Reading Month! Taking book donations! National Reading Month! Taking book donations!

A Glance into the Cubs World

Wrapped up in a tree!

Chick!

Argumentative protest for homework!

PJ and Stuffy Day Gem Jar Prize!

Live Black Bear Performance!

Stuffed Animal Collection!

Ask Your Black Bear About...

Volunteer Hours!

Important Dates Coming Up

The Weekly Roar

Week 28

National Reading Month! Taking book donations! National Reading Month! Taking book donations!

A Glance into the Cubs World

PJ and Stuffy Day Gem Jar Prize!

Science Fair Project!

Winter Program at Cannon!

Ask Your Black Bear About...

Volunteer Hours!

Important Dates Coming Up

The Weekly Roar

Week 27

National Reading Month! Taking book donations! National Reading Month! Taking book donations!

A Glance into the Cubs World

PJ and Stuffy Day Gem Jar Prize!

Science Fair Project!

Winter Program at Cannon!

Ask Your Black Bear About...

Volunteer Hours!

Important Dates Coming Up

The Weekly Roar

Week 25

Exhibition Week! Exhibition Week!

A Glance into the Cubs World

IMPORTANT THINGS TO KNOW

Kiddos hard at work for Exhibiton!

Exhibition Question

Winter Program at Cannon!

Ask Your Black Bear About...

Volunteer Hours!

Important Dates Coming Up

The Weekly Roar

Week 20

A Glance into the Cubs World

Friendship Day is coming up!

Volunteer Hours!

Baking bread over the fire!

Free Choice Friday Fire!

Winter Program at Cannon!

Ask Your Black Bear About...

Important Dates Coming Up

The Weekly Roar

Week 18

A Glance into the Cubs World

Volunteer Hours!

Baking bread over the fire!

Scientific method through STEM!

STEM!

Ask Your Black Bear About...

Important Dates Coming Up

The Weekly Roar

Week 16

A Glance into the Cubs World

Things to Know!

Flume George Hike!

Studying the decomposing fox!

Ask Your Black Bear About...

Important Dates Coming Up

Graduation Day!

National Reading Month! Taking book donations!

National Reading Month! Taking book donations!

National Reading Month! Taking book donations!

Exhibition Week!