It's Project Homework Time!!!

Happy Winter Break Prairie Racerunner Families. 

I hope that you are staying healthy, getting some good rest and enjoying time together. Check out our 1st Project Homework of the Year! This balmy 45 degree weather is rare, but in case you forgot what snow looks like here is a glimpse from early December!

See you soon! - Ms. Brooke

The Bookmark is a great shield!

First Snowballs of the Season

Snow Angels 2011!

Project Homework: Generation Study

Prairie Racerunners – Winter 2011

This semester students have been studying their community. They have discussed, illustrated, read and pondered about who they are in their school, home and local community.  As apart of this exploration it is important for students to understand who they are and where they have come from – and how this influences our community today. Over the Winter Holiday you will have an opportunity to visit specifics from your family’s culture. Please choose one of the following areas (or all) to discuss. Then in January please work on a display for your child to share with the class. You may choose to make a poster, a photo book, a family written book or, if you are braver than me, a video!

Choose a topic:  clothing, sports, food, housing, travel, manners

Discuss what this looked like across the generations: child, parents, grandparents etc.

Create a display: poster, photo book, family written book, movie, or something of your family’s choosing

Due Date: Monday, January 16^th.

Mark Your Calendar: The first Friday in January please plan on coming to G.D. to read your child's partner book as well as the book they authored. It is sure to be a fun "read in" afternoon. 

Nutcracker Performance and Partner Book Display

Students prepared for their final spelling test this week! 

City Ballet of Iowa
During Morning Meeting Muriel invited all of her friends to a Free Performance of The Nutcracker at Iowa City West High School on Sunday, December 18th from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. 


Reflecting
I am looking forward to spending Monday and Tuesday with your children as we prepare for the Spring Semester. We will reflect on our discoveries from the fall, and set goals for the Spring.





Tuesday, December 20, 201

• Partner Book Exchange for Partners
• Holiday Sing Along with David
• Read Aloud with Carly
• Deliver Food to River Community Church - 3-6 Friends
• All School Recess

Partner Book Display

We are implementing a new routine this winter with our Partner Book Exchange. Students will share their books with their Partners, and then we will keep the books at Willowwind for our community to read and share throughout the month of January. On Tuesday afternoon you will have an opportunity to read your child's Partner Books as well as the book that they authored. In January we will invite families to G.D. to read the books with their children and partner families. This is a great way for our community to participate in the hard work children have invested in the last 6 weeks! We can't wait! What writers we have at Willowwind. 

Sharks, Goods and Boots - Oh My!

Shark Attack in Daily News

Enjoying the nice weather and writing on our "bookmark"

Did you know that The Great White Shark goes to the dentist? Well, in theory. Great White Sharks have three "destinations" in the ocean: nursery center (a shallow area where they give birth to their "pups"), feeding station (where they dine on dead seal etc.), and a cleaning station (where a special type of fish that are black with blue stripes, clean in between the Shark's teeth). This Daily News started our day in the Prairie Racerunner Classroom with a great discussion about how we and other animals are similar and different from sharks. It is one of my favorite parts of the day!

Donations
Friends have noted that they haven't donated to the Food Drive or the "Pages for Patients" book drive yet. Please help them contribute to the needs of their local community by bringing in a slightly used book and an item from your pantry. The kids pointed out that eggs, while yummy, would not be a good donation to the food drive.

Conversations at Home
In this chaotic time at the end of the semester, students have been pondering their own needs and wants. They are anticipating the gift of words with their Partner Book and examining how it feels to give with our charity drives as of late. This is a difficult concept, even for adults, so please help support these understandings with vocabulary and conversations at home.

Boots
It is muddy outside! Please bring boots for playing tag, rolling down the hill and perfecting our ultimate frisbee skills. Even though there is no snow on the ground, boots are essential.

Children's Authors Book Signing - Sunday at Prairie Lights

Studying the Desert and Inquiring about Cactus Plants

Check out this great moment as students make sensory observations of a cactus plant during our study of the desert habitat. 

Local Authors will be at Prairie Lights: Take a break for book signing date with your children!

On Tuesday afternoons students have enjoyed the chapter book, The Buddy Files: The Case of the Lost Boy  by Dori Hillestad Butler. She will be at Prairie Lights on Sunday, December 11 at 1:00 p.m. Students have expressed great interest in reading all of the Buddy File books and it would be a great opportunity to meet the author and ask her questions such as "Why does Buddy think every food is his favorite?"

Wendy Henrichs will be there to sign her copies of two picture books: I Am Tama, Lucky Cat: A Japanese Legend and When Anju Loved Being an Elephant.  This would be a great follow up to our Japanese Culture study from last spring.

Finally, our very own Katherine House (Caroline's Mom) will be there to sign copies of her book,  Lighthouses for Kids: History, Science, and Lore with 21 Activities.  This is a title intended for children 9 years and older, but would probably make a great addition to ANY library. 

This is a great time to check off that shopping list, or to pamper yourself with some great reads for your kids over the cold winter break. Hope to see you there on Sunday, December 11th at 1:00 p.m. at Prairie Lights Book Store. 

Taking some time to read books before Morning Meeting begins

December is already upon us and we are on our 74th day of school! 

Friends are deep in the throes of their Partner Book editing and illustrating. This is an evolutionary process for 1st and 2nd graders as they learn to put their own "favorites" aside to write a story using the likes and interests of their partners. This is also a time for us to discuss logical sequencing, writing transitions and descriptive details when writing a story. 

We are preparing for a lot of giving this month. 

Adding details is an important part of the Writing Process

                                                                       Friends will give of their time in creating a gift of words and art. They work in great anticipation of their partner's reaction as they read "their" book for the very first time. Have you thought about a place where you will keep this very special book?

We are giving thanks for a new friend, Kieran! Kieran joined our classroom on Monday. With 15 Prairie Racerunners we have  plethora of talents and passions to learn from.



We are also giving of our resources. 
Willowwind School is collecting Pantry Items for the River Community Church. We are also collecting Pages for Patients! Meg Richardson, a Willowwind Alum, is heading up this event as she encourages the community to collect NEW books for children who are in the hospital and gently used books (for readers of ALL ages) for the UIHC library. Please send in the donations by Friday, December 16th. 


Have you checked our website for an updated Newsletter and Calendar items?

Now that it is snowing (for awhile I thought Iowa City had forgotten its favorite ground cover) friends are welcome to bring in snow pants and snow boots. They may also bring sturdy slippers or easy slip on shoes to change into for dry feet in between recess. How cool is it that Iowa Kids get to play in the snow for 3 recess' a day??? It is a whole new time of imagination.