Trucks!

Thanks to Mrs. Straume and the generosity of our MLES parents, after-school enjoys the use of over one dozen trucks!  We move a lot of dirt, drive around the "race track", and are always excavating the huge hole on our playground.

Snow Days

I hope that everyone has enjoyed a few extra days at home with hot chocolate and warm pajamas!  Just a quick reminder about how snow days impact your after-school days...

Question: What happens to my unused day when school is closed due to inclement weather?

Full time students:

On the last day of the cycle in which a day or days are missed, a roll over day equal to the number of days missed within the current cycle will be applied to the account of all full time students. These day/days will then roll over to cover the snow make up day/days in whichever cycle they occur.

Part Time Students:

On the last day of a cycle in which a day is missed due to inclement weather, if your child’s account shows unused days; a roll over day will be applied to your child’s account for each day not used up to but not exceeding the total number of days school was closed due to inclement weather.

For example: If you purchased 12 days for the current cycle and school was closed for two days due to inclement weather;  your child will have two roll over days added to his/her account if there were two days remaining in his/her account on the last day of the cycle in which the missed days occurred.   These days can then be allowed to roll over to cover the snow/inclement make up days or if not attending those days can be used at your discretion anytime before the end of the current school year.

• Please keep in mind the cycle in which the make up day occurs will have more than the typical 20 days.

These are a few of our favorite things...

It's Wednesday, which means it's CHOICE DAY!  One of our favorite choices is iPods for sure - and parents often ask me about the Apps the kids are using.  Here is a short list of games being played today at after-school:

-Stack the States

-LOBSTER DIVER - a K-2 all time favorite!!

-Checkers and Chess

-Shape Builder

-Geared

freerice.com

This week we are introducing the kids (and parents!) to the website freerice.com - an online game and learning tool operated by the United Nations World Food Programme.  For each answer we get correct, 10 grains of rice are donated to help end hunger around the world. 

Username: MLESedep

Password: edep

Children have the opportunity to choose from a variety of subjects (English Vocabulary, Basic Math, Spanish, or World Capitals to name a few) and then answer a multiple choice question.  If they answer correctly, 10 grains of rice are added to our MLES EDEP score.  If they answer incorrectly, that question gets repeated a few turns later, giving the students a chance to try again.

We will be playing in the afternoons at afterschool, but I want to encourage the kids (and adults!) to feel free to play at home.  By logging on using our MLES EDEP username and password, the website will keep a total number of grains donated (no worries if you don't log in, you still earn rice, it just doesn't add to our EDEP total).

Thanks, and have fun!

November at EDEP

During the month of November, EDEP will be learning about art and artists!  We began the month by rotating through 4 different "art stations".  Children were able to

-Put together a variety of different art puzzles

-Draw with a long bamboo pole like Henri Matisse

-Have their photo taken while recreating Grant Wood's "American Gothic"

-Try drawing at an interesting angle, just like Michelanglo had to do while painting the Sistine Chapel

Overall, we had a great time and are looking forward to learning more about art and artists as the month continues!



  Ian doing his best Michelangelo impression!



Ellie using a bamboo pole to sketch

                                            

Lights on Afterschool - October 18th

Lights on Afterschool is celebrated every October in communitities nationwide to call attention to he importance of afterschool programs for America's children, families, and communities.  Lights on Afterschool was launched in October 2000 with celebrations in more than 1,200 communities nationwide.  This October, 1 million Americans will celebrate Lights on Afterschool!  Lights on Afterschool is a project of the Afterschool Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring that all children have access to quality, affordable afterschool programs.  More information is available at http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/loa.cfm.

This year, MLES EDEP will be participating in Lights on Afterschool by having our students and parents decorate light bulbs with their favorite things about EDEP.  The completed bulbs will then be displayed as a string of afterschool lights in the cafeteria.  We will also be playing "Freeze Dance", one of our favorite games!