Hogle Zoo Fieldtrip

We had a great time at the zoo! The weather was just about perfect and everyone was so excited to see all the animals. After 4 hours of walking (or running) from exhibit to exhibit and playing on the playground everyone was exhausted. Several kids fell asleep on the bus ride home.

Maternity Leave

I am planning to begin my maternity leave on May 11th- June 8th. I hope to return for the last day of school. While I am away Mr. Rutishauser (or "Mr. R") will be the substitute teacher. He has never subbed for our class before. However, he has been a long-term sub for several other teachers (including one at our school). He has subbed next door in room 5 several times this year and was recommended by Mrs. Clark and her kindergartners. I'm sure he will do a great job and the class will love him.

Art Festival

This week is our school art festival! We had a resident art teacher who taught all of the kindergartners how to make birds (in nests) out of clay. Then we glazed and fired them. Here are some photos of the finished products (the boys weren't as excited as the girls to pose for pictures with their artwork).

SPRING ASSESSMENTS

Remember... there is no school for kindergarten during the week of May 4th-8th. We will be testing individual students all week. The test takes about 45 minutes per student and is similar to the fall assessments. It tests them on all of the main concepts that we have learned this year. Please remember to sign up for a time to bring in your child for testing.

Zoo Field Trip

Our zoo field trip is coming up on Wednesday, April 29th. Please remember to bring your child to school on time because we will be leaving shortly after school starts. Also, remember to dress them appropriately for the weather and for walking all day. If it is hot and sunny you may want to put sunscreen on their face and send them with a hat. If there is a chance of rain they will need a raincoat or hooded jacket. I'm sure we will have a great time. We are all excited!

Valentine's & the 100th Day!

Children's Theatre Fieldtrip

On January 21st we will be going on our first field trip. We will be going to the Children's Theatre to see a performance of Puss In Boots. If you are interested in chaperoning this event please let me know. I will need 4-5 parent helpers. We will be taking a bus and leaving the school at about 9:30 and returning at about 12:30. It should be fun. If you would like to read more about the Children's Theatre and Puss In Boots you can visit their website at... http://www.childrenstheatreandschool.org/teachers/pussinboots.html

Polar Express Party

Before the winter break we had a Polar Express party. The kids wore their pajamas to school and we read the book by Chris VanAllsburg. Then we did various activities related to the story and movie. We decorated train-shaped sugar cookies, made reindeer ornaments, played a Polar Express board game, and did word searches and mazes. During the activities we sipped hot chocolate and munched on popcorn.

Dr. Brandt

We feel so fortunate to have Dr. Brandt volunteering in our school. He is a retired college professor who has dedicated himself to helping young students succeed in a school. Kindergartners are his priority because he wants to help them catch up before they fall farther behind. He focuses on reading skills and administers a district approved early reading intervention program with those students that need a little extra help. He takes groups of 3-4 students for about 20 minutes a day. He also takes small groups for extra math help. I have definitely noticed a difference with the students he works with. Some students will excel and no longer need his assistance. Thank you Dr. Brandt for all of the many hours you volunteer to help our students.

Reading Buddies

This year our class has paired up with Mr. Airhart's 6th grade class for, what we call, "reading buddies". Every Monday afternoon we get together and the 6th graders read to the kindergartners. Everyone really enjoys it. On a couple of occasions the 6th graders have helped our class with some special projects. For example, just before Thanksgiving, the kindergartners dictated things that they were thankful for and our big buddies wrote each thing on a feather which was glued onto a turkey. Before Christmas we all made a Christmas tree with the kindergartners hand prints for the leaves. The kindergartners were supposed to think of something that they would like to give to a friend or family member and the 6th graders wrote down what they said on some wrapping paper, which we then glued under our hand print tree.