Mrs. McFadden's and Mrs. Viola's Classroom

Welcome to an exciting New Year, and may you achieve all your goals in 2019.

This month’s assembly, Colors of Character for January, reminds us that perseverance is essential to success.

What can you learn from:

• Understanding Talent
• Your Brain on Books
• Ezra Frech Sports Illustrated’s SportsKid of the Year Award.
• The Royal Bee

“YOU CAN DO ANYTHING YOU WANT. YOU CAN DREAM IT. YOU CAN HOPE IT. OR YOU CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN!”

Post your goal for 2019 and the steps you will take to achieve this goal.

Empathy is the feeling that you understand and share another person’s experiences and emotions.

• Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.
• Empathy is about standing in someone else’s shoes, feeling with his or her heart, seeing with his or her eyes.
• Empathy makes the world a better place.

Practice empathy by being observant of others, using active listening and donating a pair of new or gently used shoes for Soles to Souls.

Our book of the month is The Yellow Star by Carmen Deedy. After reading and listening to the Legend of King Christian X of Denmark, explain why the author titled the book The Yellow Star. What does the yellow star symbolize?

What’s your favorite book? Are you ready to encourage others to read it? Now is the time to use some writing skills and creativity for Mrs. McBride’s monthly challenge,The Book Bottle Buddy Challenge.

Reuse a bottle and get to work! All entries are due November 21st.

November is Gratitude

This month we celebrate Thanksgiving and Veterans Day. It is important to show gratitude for your own happiness, health, relationships and impact on the world.

Cottage Lane will be growing a gratitude tree. The gratitude tree will show everyone that we appreciate the small things in life, are grateful for everything they have, are mindful of the things that are going right in their lives and hold people in our lives close to our hearts.

In your writing journal write daily gratitude responses. Feel free to go above and beyond and say thank you to others, write them a letter and share that letter with them. After 7 days of gratitude responses, receive a leaf for your teacher and add it to the CLE gratitude tree. If you need writing prompts, try these:

• It was a good moment today when __________________.
• I’m glad I had the opportunity to _________________ this week.
• Thinking about _______________ makes me feel good.
• I like seeing _______________________ in nature.
• I’m grateful I’ve accomplished ________________ in my life.
• I learned _________________ from a challenge.
• ______________ always makes me smile.
• Additional gratitude writing prompts can be found here.

Veterans Day 2018

Sunday, November 11th is Veterans Day. Our book of the month, America’s White Table. Listen to the significance of each item placed on the table and how Katie comes to understand and appreciate the depth of sacrifice that her uncle, members of the Armed Forces and their families have to make.

It is important Americans give thanks for their freedom. The perfect way to do this is by thanking our active troops, our veterans, our heroes. It is important to show gratitude toward those who serve. Consider writing a card to send to a veteran.

Additional Resources:

• Learn how to say thank you to veterans – The Gratitude Campaign!
• Bet You Didn’t Know: Veterans Day | History
• Men’s Basketball Veteran’s Day Recognition
• History of the Holidays: History of Veterans Day | History

SAC Food Drive – 11/2/18 – 11/9/18