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West Hempstead Weekly Update
December 5, 2022
Thinking & Communicating with Clarity & Precision and the Habits of Mind
"There are many ways to explore the relationships between thinking and language, ways which demonstrate the need to choose words carefully so that they communicate with clarity and precision. The key with each activity is to draw the children’s attention to the fact that we are carefully selecting words that give a clear and precise description of what we are thinking.
Start off with a straightforward, concrete noun such as ‘cat’. You can ask them to make a picture of a cat in their mind and draw it using their colored pencils, crayons, or felt-tip pens. Let them share their ‘mind pictures’ with one another and notice the differences – some are tiny, some are big, some are sleepy and purring, others are fierce, some are short-haired, others are long-haired and can be all sorts of different colors.
Choose any one of the pictures and ask the children how they would choose the right words so that someone who had never seen the actual cat or the picture would be able to have the same ‘mind picture’. As the children make suggestions, write these down in such a way that the cat picture and the words can become another chart to put on display somewhere in the classroom. This is an activity that can be varied in many ways for many different subjects. The important thing is to stress that we are carefully choosing words that are precise and clear."
- https://www.ascd.org/blogs/thinking-and-communicating-with-clarity-and-precision-finding-the-right
RamCulture in Action!!!
Chestnut Street
Cornwell Ave.
George Washington
West Hempstead Secondary School
PreK
I am reading, Reading for Our Lives by Maya Payne Smart, and over the next several newsletters, I will share some of her ideas from her writing.
Chapter 6 focuses on the importance of having daily conversations with your child. The author suggests the following to try:
"Fun, social interactions (aka play!) start in infancy and have positive impacts for both parent and child. A study of naturally occurring baby games, like peekaboo-where a parent and child share attention, gazes, facial expressions, touches, gestures, and vocalizations-showed that they were associated with a boost in the release of the feel-good hormone oxytocin.
In your child's early years, it's great to have a few go-to games in your toolkit for times when you need a conversational pick-me-up. Boost your talk and playfulness anytime, anywhere by keeping some language-rich games in your metaphorical back pocket.
I SPY ages incredibly well--with variations for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers--works in a variety of settings, and requires no assembly.
The game uses the phrase "I spy with my little eye something _______" to set up a hunt for an object of your choice. Start by choosing an object-say, a blue dictionary on the kitchen counter--and then give hints: I spy with my little eye something blue. The child looks around and (hopefully!) responds by saying they see a blue book or perhaps simply pointing. Then your child takes a turn to give you hints to find the objects they choose, giving them a wonderful chance to flex their expressive vocabulary muscles.
As your child grows, you can adapt the game to pose new challenges. With the youngest children, you might use it to draw attention to colors or shapes. Later you can amp it up to direct your child toward certain letters or rhyming words, as in "I spy something that rhymes with car. Yes, the peanut butter jar!"
The possibilities are endless, but here are a few to get you started:
• Shapes: I spy something that's square.
• Colors: / spy something red.
• Letters: / spy the letter T.
• Letter sounds: I spy the letter that says /s/.
• Rhyming: I spy something that rhymes with stair.
• Onsets and rimes: I spy something that starts with the /k/ sound.
• Ending sounds: I spy something that ends with the /if sound."
-Adapted from, Reading for Our Lives by Maya Payne Smart
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It is not to late to join SEPTA, PTA, and PTSA!
Everyone involved is a volunteer focused on meeting student needs. The difference between a great school and a wonderful school community is the strong relationships between teachers, administrators, staff, and parents.
Why join?
- You can have your voice and perspective heard.
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- You can learn about the school community, and they can learn about you.
- You can be “reflective.” Your children can submit their work to The National PTA’s Reflections program. This 50-year-old program provides opportunities for recognition and access to the arts. Students submit artworks in several categories based on the year’s theme.
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Email: drehman@whufsd.com
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Location: 252 Chestnut Street, West Hempstead, NY, USA
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