Wow! Primary science students were very busy during the month of April. After wrapping up a unit on simple machines, all classes have been dipping their hands into some fun outdoor experiments. Students experimented by mixing together three different solutions to test which one created the best, longest lasting bubbles. All solutions worked, and the kids had a blast testing them out. In learning about polymers, students watched a chemical reaction occur before their eyes when they dipped a Styrofoam cup into acetone. Their cups melted into a pliable, stretchy and gooey substance. To wrap up the month, we continued talking about polymers by creating a form of it using milk and vinegar.

We will wrap up the year with some fun hands-on activities, games, and field day! It has been such a fun year and a true joy and pleasure teaching your children. Enjoy Summer!

In April, we explored the solar system, learning about constellations and characteristics of planets, stars, moons, etc. The students had a chance to name and develop their own models of these things. It is always amazing to dig into this universe, complex and beautiful, that God formed when He created this world! We will wrap up our year with sound exploration. It has been a pleasure to explore with your children each week. Their love of learning has been a treasured gift to me each Tuesday. Blessing to you all as you continue discovering the gifts God shares with us in this world.

During April the students learned about the Underground Railroad and slavery in America. They heard stories about how some slaves escaped and our students got to act out a couple different escapes to help them retain the information. The unit concluded with students getting to go through part of the building, hiding behind “trees” and inside Stationmasters’ houses, with the intention to make it across the Mason Dixon line. This boundary line separated Maryland, a slave state, from Pennsylvania, a free state.

On May 10th, 3 Eagles can bring Show and Tell. If there is time after Field Day, they will get to share their one item from home. On May 17th, all 1st and 2nd grade students and 3 Wolves may bring one item from home to share for Show and Tell.

In April, the Primary Spanish classes have jumped into learning about Mexico! They have made maracas, listened to Mariachi music, learned the Mexican Hat dance, and learned about the Mexican artist, Diego Rivera, as well as creating their own Mexican yarn art. They also managed to learn to say numbers 1-100 in Spanish! It has been a busy month! May will bring a Cinco de Mayo celebration, a bit of taste testing, and a final stamp on their Passports!

In April, we reviewed our vocabulary of the different seasons and had a hunt for Spring (la primavera) with Easter Eggs! We also traveled to our final destination of Mexico where we have been busy creating our very own piñatas! In April we made authentic Mexican cookies called “Polvorones” which everyone loved! Parents beware- your children have the recipe so they may try making these at home We plan on wrapping up our tour of the nations in May with a Mexican “Cinco de Mayo” celebration and vocabulary review games!

April was such a busy and fun month, and I can’t believe we are on the brink of stepping into May!

During the month of April, we focused on reading short stories and examining literary devices, such as allusion, symbolism, and theme. Students had the opportunity to write a piece honoring a person close to them who exhibits great integrity (which was based off of one of the short stories we read). I have encouraged each student to give this piece to the special person to show the impact that his/her testimony has made on your child’s life.

During May, we will be writing our own short story as well as writing a small autobiographical reflection over this school year. I can’t wait to see what they come up with for these last couple of assignments!

Whew! What a full and exciting year we have had. In April, EXCEL Spanish students prepared for and took a test over all they have learned so far. They all did very well on the exam! They also played more racing games for grammar and a beach ball game to practice verb conjugation. In addition, they studied several simple ways to make complete sentences using infinitives followed by a game of creating silly and serious examples. On April 19th, the class had a prize drawing with the final drawing coming up on May 17th.

In May, students will play review games to help cement all they have learned this year. Quizlet study sets will be available over the summer for those families who are interested in keeping up their skills. Students will also enjoy a field day as well as a movie party for the last day.

In April, students continued exploring the use of oil pastels. Oil pastels use wax and inert oils as binders making them non-yellowing and giving them excellent adhesion characteristics. That is why we chose to use a black card stock for the base of our project. Oil pastels can be applied to any paper, allowing the students complete freedom of expression. The lessons discussed in this project included the use of three main elements of art. Those three elements were line, color, and perceived texture. We started our project using a white line and breaking down our large murals into sections . Once this was accomplished we could better manage and view our work on a larger scale. To create a balanced visual aesthetic we introduced the use of symmetry into the murals. A large amount of time was required to complete 4 to 6 individual sections. An even greater amount of time was required to blend the symmetrical images together creating our finished compositions. In May, we plan on finishing some of our unfinished projects and taking home some, including our paper mache projects.