News from Primary school

Testing and the Last Snowman in OG

A little black humor hasn't killed anyone yet, so one joke with a topical theme: "Mom, I'm afraid of the test." "Don't worry, you learned."

I probably won't be far from the truth when I guess that mild fears were voiced before most of the children's long-awaited return to school on Monday. Testing was, of course, one of the main events of the week and it was something new for everyone, but thanks to the excellent coordination, precise instructions and dexterity of the children, we managed to ensure that everything went smoothly. We will hope that from now on, fears about the tests will have disappeared and everything will be negative.

From next week, we will also welcome our first-graders to school again, who will certainly handle testing as brilliantly as their older classmates and if they need the support of mothers or fathers - the school door is OPEN.

The April weather is still playing with us and we are looking forward to the friendlier face of spring so that the children can finally take off their warm clothes and fully enjoy the area, which remained unused for a long time, only the wind blowing tufts of grass like somewhere in the Mexican desert. We are very happy (please don't tell the children ;-)) that loud children's screams and laughter are heard from the climbing frames and playground, which will hopefully finally wake the spring to life. The last snowman of this year was probably (hopefully) seen in the OG garden. (see photo)

In addition to the return of the children, there was also the registration of the future first-graders, which we will welcome in the new school year. Both teachers and especially this year's fourth-graders, who will be their patrons and guides next year, are looking forward to them. Enrolling in first class is definitely a big deal! Our students and teachers alike eagerly await which preschoolers will fill the lockers and corridors with their laughter, energy and enthusiasm for learning and become an integral part of OUR school.

And what happened in each class this week?

Class 1

These first-year students were the privileged few at Open Gate Primary School who got to learn from the comfort of their bedrooms this week. To add to their excitement, they had their first experience learning English with Mr. E (Eric). After short introductions on Monday they got down to work quickly, working through some Incredible English pages on Monday and Tuesday. Then they moved into some Phonics fun and reading with the Short I and E sounds on Wednesday. Thursday saw them work on some Speaking while reviewing colors and shapes, all the while creating a wonderful fox out of drawn shapes. They capped off the week on Friday preparing for a new unit of Incredible English covering Parts of the Body. They will be back in the school building next week showing their knowledge off to Clara in their old, familiar classroom. (ED)

The first-graders went to Rumcajs, Manka and Cipísk to the Řáholec forest. They did not allow themselves to be intimidated by robber word problems or robber reading. They also found out which trees bloom in spring and who pollinates them. Even though we all enjoyed it very much, we still can't wait to see you at school next week! (TČ)

Class 2

How were the second-year students?

What can we say other than we had an amazing week all together again! Class 2 did an amazing job working as a team. We talked all about what roles we can have in a team and put theory to practice during our phonics lesson. We worked in groups and taught one another our vowel teams and how they make a long vowel sound (usually at the end of words). We flexed our creative muscles and painted some beautiful still lifes of tulips Finally, we got back into the spelling grove with some familiar spelling activities. All in all we had an awesome week. Even though we will see one another virtually next week, the memories of this week will surely keep us all excited to be together again very soon. (CJ)

All in all a positive mood (because we tested negative and mainly because we are back in school). And because we discussed nouns and verbs in the Czech language, we will tell you how we are, in our own way. Nouns - joy, laughter, friends, football, games, talking, happiness. Verbs - running, playing, dancing, laughing, enjoying and being together…. So let's keep our fingers crossed that it lasts for us! -Saša and Sašenka

Class 3

This week Jerry had the pleasure of finally meeting Class 3 in person. We started the week by playing some speaking games to help get to know each other a little bit more. On Wednesday, we looked at some pictures of popular fables from around the world, put the pictures in the correct order, and retold the fables in our own words.  We also started Unit 7 in Incredible English focusing on sports and timetables. We discussed weird sports from all around the world and invented our own new sports, which we had to explain and demonstrate in class. (JD)

It was fantastic to see class 3 again and we had a lot of fun this week. We did our usual phonics quiz and it was great to be together for it again. We also continued to work on our articles for the upcoming newsletter. (LR)

Our researchers have moved from their monitors to school desks and are enjoying their lives every day. The class is literally full of them, and the joy of being together again is ubiquitous. We continue to get acquainted with the various forms of the listed words, perform written mathematical operations and learn to use the compass. We went to visit the school library and picked a lot of books so we wouldn't get bored at home. On Thursday we talked about mammals again and finally got acquainted with the experiments, although the meeting with Associate Professor Dusík and Dr. Kyslíková did not happen live in the end. However, Martin is scientifically based and so he was able to step in for them. The week has passed by quickly and before we absorb all the experiences, there will be a new week. Mask or no mask, we are very happy to be back and we hope that it will last like this until the end of the school year.

Researchers, Andrejka, Martin and Marie.

Class 4

Class 4 had an intensive but fun English week. Our week began with a snowball fight in the classroom. Later, we studied polite and impolite speech and how to conduct an interview in preparation for our interview with our new school principal for next week. We started Unit 7 in Incredible English with a focus on being on a farm. We read a fun book in class written and illustrated by Marty Kelley. We also did work in phonics and world around us. (JD)

Fourth grade Negative, Positive in Mind (literally)

Great enthusiasm took place when our group of fourth-graders met again. Terezka didn't know who to call upon all week because everyone was incredibly active and motivated! The wish of the whole class is to go to Prague and explore the places where this ruler left traces. (TK)

Class 5

It was great to welcome class 5 back this week. Aside from our usual work, including some good preparation for the PET, we had a lot of fun. We did a table quiz, a great way of learning and practicing general knowledge. We also did a workshop on the possibilities of the music production program, GarageBand to prepare for Thursday when we started to compose and produce our own tunes! A class of rock stars in the making! (LR)

The fifth-graders began slowly, and they spent Monday morning's oasis on an ellipse in the mirror hall, working with emotional cards. They talked about how they were looking forward to returning to school and how difficult it was to switch to the classic school regime after such a long time. During the week, they devoted themselves to the Traffic Education project, during which they learned how a cyclist and pedestrian should behave correctly - the traditional action of fifth-graders is a cycling trip, so we will surely use the acquired knowledge! In the Czech language, the fifth graders inflected the numerals "two", "both" and solved problems in mathematics using Venn diagrams. (SČ)

This week Jerry had the pleasure of finally meeting Class 3 in person. We started the week by playing some speaking games to help get to know each other a little bit more. On Wednesday, we looked at some pictures of popular fables from around the world, put the pictures in the correct order, and retold the fables in our own words.  We also started Unit 7 in Incredible English focusing on sports and timetables. We discussed weird sports from all around the world and invented our own new sports, which we had to explain and demonstrate in class.

For the whole team of our primary school,

Stanislav Červený