Dear Parents and Guardians,
It’s hard to believe I am writing an update for our 8th week of First Grade! I continue to be proud of this group of children who work hard each day, both academically and socially in our classroom.
Classroom Highlights
This week we began our first week of our first math block—Quality of Numbers! I am still bringing the children rich fairy tales from which we are able to highlight a quantity the following day in our review of the story. We get to answer questions such as “Where is there only one of something in the world?” The children were excited to eventually come to the idea of there being just one of each of us! Of course the children have been exposed to quantity, but this block is really about developing the quality of number. What is it about the fingers on our hands? It is that when all are up, their connection with one another is 5. Where is there always just 2? A day and night are always 2. This is a chance to connect the numbers with places in our world when it is always just so.
During this block, we will also be counting forwards and back. During jump rope, we also turn this into some fun problems to solve. When a child jumped up to 8, but only back 3, a child shared they knew to give 2 of the jumps to 8 and that is 10, then one more is 11. Another child jumped 11 and 11 more. In explanation, a child shared she knew 10 and 10 is 20 and then 2 more is 22. Other opportunities for mental math come in story form from me, allowing for quantities that are both challenging, but others that allow for much more accessibility.
We have moved our bodies to the counts, emphasizing the 2nd and 3rd in the sequence, which eventually leads to counting by 2s and 3s. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7…
And, finally, this week, when creating our drawings for each number in our Morning Lesson Books, the children are learning both the Arabic and Roman Numerals, otherwise known as the way “ancient people wrote the numbers.” This connects to how children learned that our letters emerged from images, and now they are seeing how the Roman Numerals also emerged from representing the quantity directly. They are enjoying the opportunity to predict how the next “ancient number” will be written.
In Form Drawing, we explored a form that was created in one of our Cirlce songs as we paddled. The form is commonly known as an infinity symbol, but for this we referred to it as “the path of the paddle.” The children had the opportunity to work with it in a variety of ways—paddling (our hands move that form when we paddle our canoes), drawing the form on one another’s backs, creating the form with all of the children’s bodies, and finally drawing it. We revisited the form in our obstacle course on Friday, walking the path around two buckets on the floor.
Our Nature Studies class began with gathering 3 leaves. We then worked in small groups to sort them. Many of the groups began sorting their 12 leaves by size or color. But, then I invited them to sort the same group of leaves in a different way than others had sorted. This time, the children were able to focus on other attributes, such as pointy or curved; holes, no holes; number of bumps; and length of stem. Knowing that the same group of objects can be sorted in a variety of ways is a Big Idea of Math that is a building block to higher mathematical thinking. 
Upcoming Events
Dia de los Muertos, November 1 during school day
No School—Records Day, November 2
Dia de los Muertos Fundraiser, November 1
Experience UP, November 10
Annual Fund
Our Annual Fund has just kicked off, and I wanted to share with you why my family makes Urban Prairie a giving priority.
We chose this school because of its focus on educating the whole child within the classroom and school community. The idea that an entire faculty works from the philosophy that we educate the heart and hands, not just the head was extremely important to us. Raising children who grow up considering others, thinking in innovative ways, and are able and willing to do the hard work is critical at this time. Discovering UPWS offers this, while also tending so carefully to the developmental readiness of the children was like finding home.
Because of this, we have made giving to UPWS a priority. I know we can only continue and grow that work with the help of donations. I hope that you’ll join us in giving as generously as you can and that our class can have 100% participation in the Annual Fund this year. You can click here to give today.
Dia de Los Muertos
On Thursday, November 1, we will celebrate Dia de los Muertos at school. Dia de los Muertos is a special time celebrated in Mexico, the festival coincides with All Souls Day giving this time significance in many parts of the world. On this day loved ones who have passed away are invited to return for one night to be celebrated by their friends and family.
It is a joyful and reverent time to feel close to our departed loved ones and acknowledge the cycle of life and death we all exist in.
Leading up to this day, the children are invited to send in a photo to be placed in our Ofrenda at school. On Thursday, we will have the opportunity to visit the Ofrenda. Sr. Flannery introduced the Festival to the First Graders on Monday and I spoke with them a bit as well, sharing with them that this is a time to celebrate those who have gone back up the Rainbow Bridge.
Halloween
On Wednesday, children are welcome to wear a costume to school to celebrate. Choosing an outfit should be fun and enjoyable. We had a brief discussion about costumes mid-week and it sounds like the children are set!
Please keep in mind that having an awareness of cultural appropriation during the Halloween season is particularly important. In Waldorf education we learn about and celebrate the many world cultures throughout the 12 year curriculum. We attempt to honor each culture by learning it’s history and wisdom while respecting it’s people. Please be mindful that one person’s culture is not another person’s costume.
