Over the past few weeks the halls of St. Helen School have transformed to 17 Cherry Tree Lane and other importance places from the book, “Mary Poppins,” as part of a reading initiative to help promote family literacy called Connect...
Teatime
Over the past few weeks the halls of St. Helen School have transformed to 17 Cherry Tree Lane and other importance places from the book, “Mary Poppins,” as part of a reading initiative to help promote family literacy called Connect. The parents and teachers collaborated to create special activities, lessons and projects to help the students connect their learning from the book to school, community and beyond.
Each family was given a copy of the book along with a pacing guide to read along at home. Each chapter brings on new themes and learning experiences for the students and families. Chapter three, “Laughing Gas,” encompasses a special teatime with Uncle Albert on his birthday. To help connect to the book and learning, the students enjoyed a special tea party at school together. Students dressed up for the fancy occasion as they sipped lemonade, iced tea and enjoyed delicious pastries together while getting a lesson about the history of afternoon tea and etiquette.
The tea party is one of several activities planned for the students. The culminating activity is the production of “Mary Poppins Jr.,” the musical put on by the students in grades five to eight. The students will then have an opportunity to analyze the differences between the book and the musical. The integration of learning across the curriculum has been an exciting adventure for the families, students and teachers.
