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21-22 School Year Blog

What Can Parents Do with Their Kids Over the Holiday Break?

12/16/2021

 
-Ms. Lynsey Fleck, Instructional Coach 

Keeping Learning Going Over Break
While the holiday break is wonderful and all of the relaxing is great, having a few ideas for structured activities can be really helpful in breaking up the days.  This week we are sharing some ideas for fun activities you can do at home to keep your children’s skills fresh while they are away from school.
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Making 10 Card Game
This game is played with two decks of cards.  Make sure all face cards are taken out of each deck so that there are only aces (ones) through 10s in each deck.  Start by giving each player one deck of cards.  Have each player lay out the top four cards out, in a row, with both players rows side by side.  Players take turns finding combinations of 2, 3, or 4 cards that can be put together to make 10.  Once one player makes a combination, he/she keeps the cards used.  Both players replace the removed cards in their row from their decks after a combination is made and taken by a player.  Players continue to alternate and take turns until they’ve played all cards.  At that point, each player counts his/her cards.  The person with the most cards is the winner.

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Divide and Sort
This can be done while decorating cookies, gingerbread houses, or doing other holiday activities.  Choose a variety of decorating candy items (gumdrops, nonpareils, M&Ms, etc.)  Ask your child to count out a given total of each item (Example: 20).  Then have him/her split the total equally into several bowls, containers, or piles (Example: Put equal amounts in each of the 4 containers).  This provides a great opportunity to practice both counting and splitting items into equal groups.

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Read Aloud Stories
One of the simplest ways to keep your child’s literacy skills fresh is to read aloud to him/her, have him/her read to you, or have older siblings read to younger siblings for 10-15 minutes each day.  This little bit of daily practice will help your child come back to school fresh and ready to pick up with literacy learning where he/she left off.

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Thank-You Letters
Oftentimes children receive gifts from friends and family members during the holidays.  A great way to practice writing skills, as well as gratitude, is to have your children write thank you notes or letters to those from whom they receive gifts.  The length of the note or letter can vary; younger children can simply copy the words “Thank you” from a written sample you give them, or just sign their names, and older children can write a few sentences and practice signing their names in cursive.

The Importance of Building Community

12/10/2021

 
by Paula Barros, School Director 

 “The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.”

Coretta Scott King's powerful words resonate with us at MELA deeply. As “The Little School with the Big Heart”, empathy is one of our school’s expectations, and the one I personally value the most - as when you truly care about others, it is easier to be mindful, accountable, and a good leader. 

As we value this expectation so greatly, it makes sense that we seek to establish relationships with others that share our values. You probably have already read in previous blog posts about our partnerships with Canine Inspired Change, and the University of Minnesota’s science program - InSciEd Out. You probably might have read our blog post about Art at MELA, and the wonderful partnership we have with the MN Orchestra, MN Capoeira, MN Opera, Heart of Dance, MPR Class Note Artists, among others that are yet to be highlighted here on our blog.

In this post, I would like to highlight another partnership that we are very thankful for -  the one we have with the Maple Grove Fire Department, in particular with Firefighter and Inspector, Shannon Burton.

Shannon Burton has partnered up with MELA way before the Covid-19 pandemic started. During his many visits, his dedication towards our students is truly noticeable and his connection with them makes the things that he teaches more significant and meaningful.  

On one occasion, he talked to our students about fire safety and what to do in case of a fire in their houses or our school. Here are some pictures of when he visited our students in 2019, when our current 1st graders were in Pre-K:
Also in 2019, after learning all about fire safety, the 4th grade students (that are currently in 6th grade) developed such a strong relationship with Mr. Burton, that they even invited him for a special lunch at MELA!

But then, came the pandemic, and we were distance learning and/or limiting the amount of people in our building. Mr. Burton was very concerned about our staff and community well-being, and he made sure to reach out on many occasions, to schedule virtual field trips, and check in about our staff and community’s general wellness. During the virtual field trips he facilitated, he answered questions about the pandemic, fire safety, and gave us a tour of the Maple Grove Fire Department! The students really enjoyed seeing the truck and their equipment!
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​Recently, he joined our 5th grade class to talk about several areas of fire safety and share very important information for young babysitters to have when alone with littler children. The students were actively involved in the discussion and asked relevant questions about what they were taught. 
Building community is crucial for our school. If you are interested in partnering with us, please send me an email - pbarros@melaschool.org 

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