May 21, 2009
Last Week of School Information
Mrs. Hallford’s Class Newsletter
May 21st
Hello!
The class has been hard at work, finishing up their Rembrandt picture studies, autobiographies, and study of the Pilgrim Fathers, as well as their work in various other subjects. I am very pleased with how hard everyone has worked, and we have really had a great semester together!
Here is some information about the last week of school:
Monday, May 25 – No School!
Tuesday, May 26 – Field Day! Please bring your child to Veterans Park rather than Flint. If you need to drop your child off before 9:30, we will transport them to the park. Field day and school are over at 2:00 PM, so please be prepared to pick your child up at Veteran’s Park at that time.
Remember, parents are encouraged to participate in Field Day. We have always had a lot of fun in the past!
Each class has designed their own unique T-shirts. For our class, the students generated a list of names/themes that they liked, chosen from various subjects we have studied this year. They then voted on the top four ideas. The winning vote was “Mrs. Hallford’s Radiant Light Beings” which is in reference to a line from the novel Surviving The Applewhites that we read last semester. The main character of the novel started out as being very badly behaved, and was surprised to find himself being described by another character as a ‘radiant light being’. The students really enjoyed this description and our discussion about how external appearances and even behaviors do not necessarily reflect who someone is as a person., or their eternal soul. After that, I would refer to the students as radiant light beings whenever they were being naughty, as a joke. Thus, “Mrs. Hallford’s Radiant Light Beings”!
If you haven’t sent in $10 to pay for your child’s T-shirt, please do so. Also, snow cones will be available for $3 each at the park, if you would like to give your child some spending money.
Wednesday, May 27-We will have our regularly scheduled classes, with an emphasis on wrapping up any unfinished work. I will also be sending home your child’s final progress report for the year, so be sure to check their folder!
Thursday, May 28- Last day of school! Our class will be cleaning up our classroom, watching the movie Robinson Crusoe, playing our Jamestown game, and participating in the upper school water balloon fight. You may want to send your child with a change of clothes, or have a towel ready for them to sit on in the car! I will be sending home a good deal of completed work with each child.
Also, our very first graduation ceremony will be held the evening of May 28th, at 7:00 PM. This is a very special event for our school, and I think it is very important that all of the upper school students attend if at all possible. They need a chance to see what they are working so hard for, and to help celebrate the hard work of our first graduating class!
Thank you so much for a wonderful year, and enjoy the summer!
~Mrs. Hallford
May 11, 2009
May 11-14 Newsletter
I hope everyone had a great Mother’s Day weekend!
Don’t forget that the golf tournament is this Monday-it was a lot of fun last year, and a really great event for our school!
This week I need to collect $10 for each student for Field Day T-shirts. We will be working on the motto and design together, as we have done in years past, but we will not be painting them ourselves this year. Please send the $10 in your child’s folder this week.
The class has been hard at work on their Rembrandt picture studies, and have made some wonderful progress. I can’t wait to display the finished products! We will continue to work on these picture studies this week, and hopefully will be able to wrap them up by the end of the week.
In history, we have studied the various factors that contributed to Nathaniel Bacon’s Rebellion against the Governor of Virginia, and learned about the details of this rebellion. As this was one of the first examples of a rebellion against British authority in the Colonies, the students have enjoyed discussing how it contributed to future rebellions.
This week we will continue wrapping up the autobiographies that the students are writing, modeled after the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. They have worked really hard on this assignment, and their autobiographies are fascinating to read!
We are also planning to FINISH reading Robinson Crusoe this week! A part of the classical education philosophy that we embrace at Flint encourages us to read worthwhile books slowly, to savor them. We have certainly done that with Robinson Crusoe, and it has been a wonderful literary experience. The students have learned quite a bit of new vocabulary from this novel, and are becoming skilled at following the storyline even when the language becomes confusing. We are going to try and find a copy of the 1950′s film version of Robinson Crusoe to watch together as a class, but that will probably not happen this week.
God bless!
~Nicole Hallford
April 19, 2009
April 20-23 Newsletter
Dear Parents and Guardians,
We have been having a great time since I’ve returned from maternity leave! Week before last, our class enjoyed some in-depth lessons on the Biblical foundations of Easter. We read and narrated passages from Exodus regarding the first Passover, and passages from Luke regarding the Last Supper, Crucifixion, and Resurrection, then discussed similarities between the Old and New Testament stories. Our class also watched The Prince of Egypt and had fun coloring Easter eggs!
The students have been hard at work developing their Jamestown board games! The artwork and the trivia questions are nearly complete, and are turning out to be absolutely wonderful. We will continue studying the progress of Virginia this week, and also learn about the 17th century artist Rembrandt. We will learn information about his life, and begin picture studies replicating his artwork. Instead of having the entire class working on a picture study of the same painting, as we have done in the past, I will assign a different painting for each student. Rembrandt’s paintings are noted for their intensity and the use of light and shadow. We have had his work displayed in the classroom all year, and have now reached his time period in our study of history.
In our Writing class, the students are making a lot of progress in their autobiographies, which are modeled after the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. They are working hard, and I have been impressed with the depth of insight and self-awareness that they are displaying!
Thank you to everyone who attended the Spirit Night at CiCi’s Pizza!
Looking forward to a great week,
~Nicole Hallford
January 21, 2009
January 20th Newsletter
Mrs. Hallford’s Class Newsletter
January 20th-22
I hope everyone enjoyed their extra-long weekend! Thanks to everyone who came to our El Chico fund raiser – it was very successful from what I understand, and it’s always fun to see everyone at Flint events.
Don’t forgot about Grandparent’s Day this week! Grandparents will meet with Dr. Flint at 2:00 on Thursday, and then come to the upper school hall to see what we have prepared for them!
We very much enjoyed our study of Shakespeare last week, and I was pleased with the student’s progress memorizing sections of “The Quality of Mercy”. They are really doing a great job understanding the language and imagery of the selection.
This week in history, we will wrap up Shakespeare, and begin studying Sir Walter Raleigh. We are also going to be working on finishing our picture study from last semester. The students made wonderful progress, and we want to finish what we started!
God Bless,
~Nicole Hallford
January 12, 2009
January 12th – 15th Newsletter
Mrs. Hallford’s Class Newsletter
January 12 – 15
Hello! We had a wonderful first week back this semester, and had a lot of fun becoming re-familiarized with our lessons and routines. I was very pleased with how hard every student worked, and the great attitudes that they brought to our classroom.
Don’t forget: This Thursday (January 15) is the Flint Academy El Chico Night fund raiser at the El Chico on Collins. This was a lot of fun last year – make sure you don’t miss it this time around!
This week we will continue our map collages of the Netherlands, and finish up some information about the rise of Dutch trade. Last week, while completing a nature study of tulips, we had a great discussion about the economic principles behind the Tulip Mania of 17th century Holland, and thought of some
modern day equivalents. This week we will also begin our study of William Shakespeare in history, and his place in Elizabethan England. Although we will not begin our Shakespeare literature assignment for the year yet, since we are still reading Robinson Crusoe, we will study the “Quality of Mercy” selection of The Merchant of Venice for recitation this week. If you would like to help your child work on this at home, here it is!
The Quality of Mercy
“The quality of mercy is not strain’d,
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice blest;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
‘Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown;
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
But mercy is above this sceptred sway;
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God’s
When mercy seasons justice. Therefore,
Though justice be thy plea, consider this,
That, in the course of justice, none of us
Should see salvation: we do pray for mercy;
And that same prayer doth teach us all to render
The deeds of mercy. I have spoke thus much
To mitigate the justice of thy plea;
Which if thou follow, this strict court of Venice
Must needs give sentence ‘gainst the merchant there.”
January 4, 2009
January 5-8 Newsletter
Mrs. Hallford’s Class Newsletter
January 5-8
I hope everyone had a wonderful and relaxing Christmas Break! I’m very excited to get back into our classroom routine, and I’m looking forward to our lessons this week!
This week in History, we are learning about the Counter-Reformation movement and the Netherlands’ struggle for religious and political independence from Spain. In addition to learning about the inspiring heroes of this story, such as William of Orange, we are also laying important groundwork for understanding why the Pilgrims moved to the Netherlands before turning to the New World. To coincide with these History lessons, we will study the basic geography of the Netherlands by creating a photo collage over a map of the United Provinces as they were formed in 1648.
We will also take this opportunity to take a close look at the composition of tulip bulbs and blossoms for Nature Study, and learn about the Tulip Mania that occurred in Holland.
Our debate this week will be about the pros and cons of placing restrictions on texting in various settings, which should inspire a lot of interesting dialog.
I’m looking forward to a great first week back!
God bless,
~Nicole Hallford
December 8, 2008
December 8th-11th Newsletter
Mrs. Hallford’s Class Newsletter
December 8th – 11th
Merry Christmas! We had an absolutely wonderful time at A Christmas Carol last Thursday! The students were all very well behaved, and they enjoyed the play, which was very well done. We have almost finished reading the book (only three pages left!) and after the play, we had a class discussion about the similarities and differences between the play and the movie. I was very impressed with all the details that the students recalled! We also played a few rounds of Yes And No, a game that was played at a Christmas party in the book.
This week we will focus on learning the Christian foundations of Christmastime, as well as enjoying each other’s company as the semester draws to a close. We have had a wonderful semester together!
Our agenda includes making sachets that can be given as Christmas gifts from the herbs we harvested earlier this fall, studying the lyrics of traditional Christmas carols, looking at the meaning of Christmas symbols, and a holiday-themed debate. Mrs. Roy is showing our class the movie The Nativity Story during Bible, and they are really enjoying it!
On Thursday our class will have a gift exchange as their Christmas party. Each child needs to bring a wrapped gift of a $5 or less value to participate. Dollar Store items would be perfect for this, or you can always find something at home to re-gift! We will also be watching the movie A Muppet Christmas Carol, as a lighthearted end to our study of this wonderful piece of literature.
I hope everyone has a joyful Christmas season, and I look forward to our Spring Semester together!
God bless,
~Nicole Hallford
December 1, 2008
December 1st – 4th
Mrs. Hallford’s Class Newsletter
December 1st -4th
I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving Break! We are very lucky to have such a long break – it is a great opportunity to become refreshed and excited about school! Now that Coach Hallford and I are completely moved and settled into our new house, and our computer is unpacked and set up, I promise that the class newsletters will be much more regular!
There are only two weeks left of this semester, and we have a lot of really fun things planned. Most importantly is our upcoming field trip to see A Christmas Carol performed at the Dallas Theater Center. We need to be ready to leave at 9:15 on Thursday morning, as the play begins at 10:30, and if you would like to attend with your child (and help us carpool!) please purchase a ticket ASAP. I need to know who is interested in attending with us, so I can get organized. Also, if you have not turned in the $12 for your child’s ticket yet, please do so promptly.
In preparation for this trip, we will be reading A Christmas Carol in our classroom. We will have to set Robinson Crusoe aside for the week, and I have high hopes that we can finish A Christmas Carol before this Thursday! I plan to incorporate this into our Art and History lessons for the week, with a lot of discussions about the language and culture of England in Dicken’s time, and some artistic narration. Rather than the formal narration that we usually do for literature, I plan to have the students work on a picture study of an illustration from the book, and then create their own illustrations of key scenes while listening to the story. I love projects like these, because we get to see how differently each student is visualizing the story, and what elements stood out for them. They are also a great opportunity to work on the Habit of Perfect Execution as it pertains to art.
I’m looking forward to a great week as we all learn about the true meaning of Christmas and the fine arts!
God bless,
Nicole Hallford
October 14, 2008
October 14-16 Newsletter
Mrs. Hallford’s Class Newsletter
October 14-16
Malkia shows us the beautiful ceremonial Inca mask she made in History.
I hope everyone enjoyed their long weekend! Don’t forget to sign up to help out with our class booths for the upcoming Fall Festival. Our class is going to have a color hairspray booth and a bowling booth, and the sign-up sheet is outside our classroom door. We had a lot of fun at the first Fall Festival last year, and I’m really looking forward to it!
Last week we finished up Surviving The Applewhites as planned, and started an art project based on the novel. The students are drawing portraits of the main character, Jake Semple, from the beginning and end of the book to illustrate how he changed throughout the course of the story. We also talked about how many of them hadn’t originally thought he could change at all, and how people have the ability to change themselves and make good decisions no matter what others may think of them. We will finish that art project this week, and I plan to let the class spend Thursday afternoon watching The Sound of Music. I am also going to attempt to prepare some spicy Indian food for the students to sample while they watch the movie, since that was discussed in the novel quite a bit, and they are all curious to try it out!
We devoted quite a bit of time to our history lessons this past week, studying the native cultures that existed in Central and South America when the Spanish explorers and colonists began to arrive. I split the class into Aztec and Inca empires, and each student was given an aspect of their culture to study, create a product, and give a presentation to their classmates. I loved how much time and effort they devoted to this assignment! A lot of the students volunteered to work on their projects at home, although this was not assigned, and their presentations were informative and interesting. Two of our students were assigned the traditional foods of their cultures, so Laura-Jane popped some Inca popcorn (on the stove, not in the microwave!) since that was one of the foods the Inca stored in their storehouses. Mike made Aztec hot chocolate, with a great deal of effort. He had to grate unsweeted baking chocolate and mix it with hot water, vanilla, and chili powder to create the drink of Aztec royals. We got to sample these foods during the presentation times.
Having learned about these important pre-Columbian cultures, we are going to spend this coming week learning about the Spanish conquistadors, particularly Cortez, and the conquest of Central and South America.
We are also going to spend some time on fall gardening this week, planting carrots, broccoli, and radishes in our garden plot. I would also love to have the students plant some bulbs such as tulips or daffodils, etc., if anyone would like to donate the bulbs to our class!
I’ve mentioned before that our class is using the Lost Tools of Writing curriculum, along with the rest of the upper school. They are doing a wonderful job! We have worked through most of the first unit, learning strategies to brainstorm ideas, a format for creating outlines, and how to convert an outline into an essay. These are the three basic lessons that we will be working with all year, adding more depth and detail with each unit. The students are all working hard and do particularly well when it comes to brainstorming ideas (called ‘Invention’ in the writing curriculum).
Have a great week and God bless!
Nicole Hallford
October 6th Newsletter
Mrs. Hallford’s Class Newsletter
October 6-9
I hope everyone had a great experience at the Flint Academy Open House! I really enjoyed getting to speak with everyone who was there, as well as meeting some prospective Flint families.
Last week we finished up our study of Columbus with a written narration. This is an informal way of assessing what the students learned and retained for a given topic. I told them to write down everything they could remember about Columbus, and gave them plenty of time to do so. I was pleased with the amount of information that the class was able to recall! We are now moving into a shorter study of South America and the Spanish and Portuguese explorations there. We will focus on the cultures that already existed in South America, their interactions with European explorers, and native flora and fauna.
We have spent a week preparing for a debate on Sarah Palin, reading an article about her policies in World Magazine. We postponed the debate till Monday, so students could watch the vice presidential debate if they wanted more information. I’m excited to see what they do with this topic!
We are nearly finished with our novel, Surviving The Applewhites. I expect to finish it sometime this week, and then we will do several projects relating to the content of the novel before moving on. Since the characters in the book put on a production of The Sound of Music, and that is a major element of the story, we will be watching The Sound of Music in class. I love helping the students make connections between a novel and other media, because their awareness of the book is so heightened!
In Art we have completed some wonderful picture studies of the Santa Maria, and they are hanging in the hallway outside our class if anyone would like to take a look. I’ll send these home after they have been enjoyed on display for a while!
God bless!
~Nicole Hallford
