A Season for Exploration
Greetings, Philomath families! Hope wherever you are, you and your kiddos have a chance to enjoy some fall weather. The changing season naturally invites curiosity in young learners, so make sure you take some time to take in the autumn colors and changing weather!
Hard as it is to believe, we’re just about at the end of the first quarter of the 2023–24 virtual school year. Here’s what we’ve been working on lately:
In ELA our class has been learning about endangered species while identifying the main idea and details in nonfiction texts. Next week we’ll be working on a short writing and design project (details to be shared on Tuesday, 10/10). We’ve also worked on decoding and writing with consonant digraphs like “th” and “sh.”
In Math, we’ve spent so much time working on place value, number comparisons, and precisely adding the big numbers, that it is time to transition to subtraction. The students will be identifying patterns in word problems, subtracting precisely, learning to double check and defend their thinking, and choosing favorite strategies for solving. Remember, if a strategy helps you find a precise answer AND makes sense to you, it is a great strategy to employ!
Our Social Studies unit on geography is quickly wrapping up! On Wednesday, October 11th each student will be presenting their work on the “Mapping My Home” assignment to their classmates, sharing details about their home state or city with the help of a Google Slide presentation they’ve designed themselves (with adult guidance as needed). Please encourage your child to finish designing their presentation and to practice delivering it before class begins on Wednesday, so they can show their work with confidence and enthusiasm. Quarter 2 will feature Science with Prof. Smith on Wednesdays instead of Social Studies, so let’s all try to do our absolute best work with this project!
And speaking of Science, it’s time to turn your attention to the sky and ask yourself: What is Earth’s place in the universe? Whether during the day or at night, when we look at the sky, we can see the sun, the moon, stars, or possibly even planets. We may be so used to seeing these that we may not ever stop to consider: Why are they there? How do they affect Earth? Does Earth affect them? Will humans someday have to live in space? Could the moon provide new energy sources? Could we one day inhabit Mars? Astronomy is all about asking questions. In this unit, we are future scientists, space explorers, and astronomers. It’s time for us to discover more about Earth and our solar system as we work to unlock the deeper mysteries of the universe.
Once again, our school’s Fall Break will take place from October 16th through 20th. That means no classes or tutoring sessions for that week (unless you’ve spoken with a Philomath teacher to make other arrangements). Progress reports for the first quarter will be sent out by email by the end of Fall Break, as will invoices for tuition for the second academic quarter.
As always, let either of us know if you have any questions or comments about anything happening at Philomath Microschool. Thanks for all you do, have a splendid fall!
–Professors Althoff and Smith
