As we navigate through the holidays, Art class in December is about the joy of creating! I hope you all enjoy the projects I have sent home, and are excited to create during our google meets! This past month of November, Kindergarten and First grade students made wonderful turkeys! Second grade learned about Maize / Rainbow Corn and made a multimedia project, which I am so proud to see done! Third grade learned about printmaking, the artist Keith Haring, and the impact of his work. While fourth and fifth graders learned about Japanese Artist, Yayoi Kusama, and toured her Infinity Rooms and gave preference to which gallery they would like to visit. All grades have proudly shown their work and talked about their experiences in making! I am so proud of the work you all have been creating and those who have joined our google meets. I am always happy to see you and to see the artwork you have to show!

Keep creating Artists! -Miss Stumpf

Hello Patriot families! I hope that you have been able to settle into a virtual learning routine and that things at home are falling into place. I know that things are very different this year and Physical Education has been no exception. During the month of November, students across all grade levels have been focused on MyPlate, nutrition and food groups, as well as how food affects our bodies before, during, and after exercise. Students in all grade levels ended the unit with an assignment in google classroom. Please check to see if your student(s) completed this assignment. 

 

Moving into December, we will be discussing heart health. This is usually a topic that is saved for February as February is Heart Health month but this year has already been different so I decided to switch it up! Students will be learning about how the heart gets stronger as a muscle, how it works, as well as how to find their heart rate. Activities will be focused on cardiovascular endurance so that students can really feel their hearts beating. Fourth and fifth grade students will also be focused on the five components of fitness. 

If you and your student(s) are struggling with virtual learning, please know that we as teachers completely understand. But also please know that we are available if you need the extra help. Do not hesitate to reach out to me if you are unable to attend a live meet, struggling to find my live meets, can’t find my pre-recorded lessons...whatever it is, do not hesitate to ask as your student(s) learning and success is my priority. 

Email: taylor.lange@oshkosh.k12.wi.us

TIPS TO BE FIT AT HOME

Cold weather and the holidays are here but that doesn’t mean that you can’t be active! What can you and your children do at or around home to keep you moving through the seasons? 

1. Take the stairs instead of the elevator during your holiday shopping trips.

2. Build activity into family outings.

3. Shovel snow instead of using the snowblower (BE CAREFUL NOT TO LIFT WITH YOUR BACK!)

 

Throughout November we have been meeting live for music class, once a week, for 30 minutes. The students also had a recorded video to watch, with a small assignment for the older students. It has been great to see all of the work that the students are putting in for music class and I absolutely LOVE being able to see the kids faces on our live Google Meets.

In December we will again be meeting live every week, and there will also continue to be recorded lessons every week for the students to be watching. This month, students will be learning about different December holidays through discussion and musical listening. Students will also be using technology to create their own music.

Digital Citizenship Topic: Media Balance     

Help your kids find balance with technology. 

From phones and tablets to streaming movies and YouTube, tech and media are everywhere. Kids love easy access to shows, games, and information. Parents and caregivers love that kids can learn on the go (and stay busy when dinner is cooking), but it's easy to overdo it when the phone never stops pinging and the next episode plays automatically. Families can keep media and tech use in check by following a few simple practices.  Digital Citizenship is teaching students how to be respectful, responsible, safe, and trustworthy when using technology.

BOOKS, BOOKS, BOOKS!  Students can place books on hold on Destiny and pick up at school or read e-books, e-magazines, or listen to audiobooks at home.   DON’T FORGET ALL OF THE WAYS WE CAN GET BOOKS INTO YOUR KIDS HANDS RIGHT NOW.  

    

Practicing mindfulness is so important for children to help them reduce stress, focus, and unpack their big feelings. See the Read Brightly articles on mindfulness linked below--they have some great book recommendations for children to help them learn about and practice mindfulness.

https://www.readbrightly.com/mindfulness-meditation-books/

https://www.readbrightly.com/mindfulness-meditation-books-for-kids/

Upcoming December Activities at the Oshkosh Public Library:

High Flyers Early Literacy Program Kit             available           Dec. 1 - Feb. 21

Talk, sing, read, write and play every day with this self-paced program. Your kit includes tips, examples and engaging seasonal activities for children ages six months to four years old. Log activities on the included tracking sheets to incorporate literacy throughout your day and receive incentives along the way. Call 920-236-5208 to receive a kit via curbside pickup.

 

Virtual Santa Storytime on Zoom - Wednesday, December 2, 2020 - 6:00pm

Live from the North Pole, Santa will share stories, songs, and holiday antics for 15-20 minutes before meeting each family in a private Zoom meet ‘n greet session. Get the Zoom meeting link and password, and reserve your family’s four-minute session, at calendly.com/oshkoshpubliclibrary or call 920-236-5208. This event is designed to appeal to elementary school-age children.

Math Fun and Gift Giving Ideas

It’s that time of the year again! Time for gift giving ideas and family time spent indoors on cold days. Did you know that playing board games has many benefits for kids?  Playing games is a great way to encourage your children to have a positive attitude toward math and children love to play with friends and spend quality time with adults. The games listed below all work on specific math skills, but don’t forget the old favorites not included in the list below such as Candy Land, Checkers, Monopoly, Battle Ship, Yahtzee and Cribbage.  

Here are just a few benefits of board games:

1. Problem solving skills
2. Basic math concepts
3. Language and communication skills
4. Social skills: taking turns, sharing, how to handle winning and losing
5. Following directions
6. Improved memory and attention

Sum Swamp  Add and subtract your way through the swamp.  Young children get to practice their essential arithmetic facts while having fun.  This game received an Oppenheim Best Toy Award.

Equate  If your eight year old likes crosswords, this game will be a hit.  Making equations can be a challenge. Eight year olds can begin making equations using addition and subtraction but older children can get more points using division or fraction tiles.

Head Full of Numbers Shake the “head” cup to roll the dice. Set the sand timer. Write as many equations from the numbers and symbols on the dice before sand runs out. Good for any number of players and level.  This is an Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award Winner.

 

Sequence Numbers The brightly colored cards have questions and the answers are printed on the game board.  Place a tile on the answer. With five in a  row, you have a Sequence!  This bingo-like game is great for ages seven and older.

 

Money Bags: A Coin Value Game This game makes making change so much fun!  Earn money while completing chores, like setting the table or for selling lemonade. The spinner makes exceptions such as, no nickels to make sure kids make use of the higher value coins. Money bags is great for developing critical thinking and counting/coin sense.

Pizza Fraction Fun Game Better be hungry for pizza as you play seven games in one!  Identifying, adding and subtracting and matching equivalents help make making pizzas and working with fractions fun. The double sided spinners allow the difficulty level to be easily adjusted.

 

Dino Math Tracks Place Value Game Dinosaurs rule with place value.  Roll the dice to make four digit numbers. Get your dinos to their base before other players do.  An Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award Winner.

 

Sumoku Play five different versions, including a solo one, of this addition/multiplication game.  Set tiles up crossword style to add up to multiples of the number on a die.  Connect all the numbers for a complete Sumoku!

 

Pay Day Board Game Family finance is fun in Pay Day.  Get paid and decide how to spend your money. Whoever has the most money at the end of the game wins.  This classic game is for suitable for ages eight and up.

 

Set Set is an amazing card game! This is a game that your 6-year-old will be better at than you are. This is a matching game that can be played solo or with any sized group. The rules are relatively simple. A set is three cards which all have the same type of an attribute or miss-match an attribute. Perhaps a set is three cards all have ovals with a striped pattern on them but each card has a different number of shapes (1, 2, and 3) and different colored (purple, green and red) There is also a Junior version for ages 4 and up.

Connect 4 Every family needs a noisy, clattering, pieces-get-everywhere kind of a game. Connect 4 is a childhood classic that supports geometric thinking, planning and pattern recognition. It is a two player game and great for two children to play together. Basically, it’s an advanced version of tic-tac-toe. This is a great game to entertain the kids while you are finishing dinner or something.

20 Express  This game is great for parents to play with your kids! It’s a number game which focuses on consecutive ordering. The scoring may take parental involvement as it is a little weird at first sight. However, the cool part about this game is that everyone tries to organize the same numbers at the same time. So you, as a parent, can compare answers with the other players. “Oh, that was a good choice, I didn’t think to do it that way!” The only negative to 20 Express is that it obviously uses math and that may turn off some kids. This game is good for traveling as it doesn’t require a central table and any number of people can play at once. Each player just needs a pen and something to write on.

Zingo 123  What better way to build reading and counting skills than with Zingo. 1-2-3, the newest game in the award-winning Zingo. product line. With Zingo. 1-2-3, players match numbered tiles to images on their cards. The first player with a full card wins by yelling "Zingo." Two levels of play focus on counting and addition. This fast-paced game will have the whole family yelling "1-2-3 PLAY".

Prime Climb  An award-winning, beautiful, colorful, mathematical board game. Color-coded board makes multiplication and division as easy as combining colors.  Prime Climb is easy to learn and perfect for 2-4 players, ages 10 and up. Also great for younger players with adult guidance. Dynamic mix of strategy and luck makes Prime Climb endlessly replayable.