Weekly Update

What a magical night our Celebration of Learning was!  I thoroughly enjoyed myself and hope each of you did, too.  I am so thankful for such great families who are so supportive of all that we try to achieve here at school.  Our little kids are capable of such great things as I think we all witnessed the other night.  I am so proud of all my little ones and so thankful that I get to be their teacher.

Today we launched our intensive for next week by watching Swiss Family Robinson and next week will begin learning all about the great outdoors.  Weather permitting, we'd like to do quite a bit of our learning outside so I highly suggest bringing sunscreen to school each day next week.  When not outside, we'll be "camping" in our classroom complete with a tent and fire pit.  If your child would like (and you are okay with it), your little one may bring in a camping chair to use during the week.  We'll practice campfire safety, too, and would like each student to bring one stick that they may roast a hot dog with on Monday afternoon.

Now that the frog expedition has come to an end, I'd like to find a few good homes for our Oriental Fire-Bellied Toads.  I have three of them that I would like to adopt out.  They do require a few things, such as habitat that has a rocky area and an area with a small amount of water.  They do like to eat about 4 crickets each 2-3 times a week.  Other than that, they are very easy to take care of and have a sweet, soft frog call that sounds like an owl.  If your interested in providing a loving home for a frog, please email me and let me know.  I'd like to have new homes for these creatures by Wednesday next week.

Thanks again and see you next week! :)

Weekly Update

Whew!  We're in the home stretch now!  Can you feel all the excitement bubbling over what with our celebration fast approaching and the end of the school year quickly around the corner?  I sure can!  And so can our little kiddos!

We are busily making last minute additions to our celebration displays and sure can't wait to share those with our friends and family this Wednesday, May 16th.  As a reminder, this celebration will run similar to our Back to School Nights in that we are running the schedules based upon last names.  Please see below for your time.

• Last names starting with A - J 6:00 - 6:30 pm
• Last names starting with K - Q 6:30 - 7:00 pm
• Last names starting with R - Z 7:00 - 7:30 pm

This Thursday our k-2 pod will hold a Read-a-Thon.  Students are allowed to bring in a blanket, stuffed animal or pillow and a few snacks (no drinks please), as well as any of their own books they would like to read.  The Read-a-Thon will take place during the last hour or so of the school day.

On Friday, we will launch our intensive.  As a launch, I'd like to show Swiss Family Robinson to the class.  If you would like to opt your child out of this movie, please let me know and I will provide an alternative launch for them.

We are tentatively scheduling our choir concert for the morning of Tuesday, May 22nd.  I believe the concert will be held shortly after the start of school.  I am in the process of coordinating this with the other 1-2 teachers and Mrs. Child.  As soon as I have more information, I will pass that on to you.  I wanted to give you a heads up now so that you can mark the date on your calendar.

One last item of business to cover, the last day of school is May 25th.  It is an early out day with school ending at 11:15 am.  There are many traditions for our class that are held each year on the last day of school.  I am very optimistic that each and everyone of my little kiddos will be at school that day to help me reflect upon this terrific school year and marvel along with me at all that we have been able to accomplish!

See you Wednesday!  :)

Weekly Update

Hello y'all!  What a week this past week was!  We're hot and heavy creating fabulous products we can't wait to share with you at our Celebration of Learning.  This coming week promises to be even more busy and more creative...I can't wait!

This past Friday, our last book order catalog was sent home.  If you'd like to place an order, it needs to be turned in by Thursday (if turning in the paper order form) or Friday (if placed online).  For every order placed online, our class receives a free book.  Many of you have placed online orders this year and I'd like to thank you!  We've been able to get quite a few expedition related books through this program.

Our Celebration of Learning is scheduled for Wednesday, May 16th.  To give our families the best possible experience, we are running this much like we do our Back to School Night.  The schedule for the evening is based upon last names.  Please take a look below, find the first letter of your last name, and you will find the time frame for your family.

• Last Names A-J 6:00 pm - 6:30 pm
• Last Names K-Q 6:30 pm - 7:00 pm
• Last Names R-Z 7:00 - 7:30 pm

We're all aware that the school year is winding down, but can you believe we have less than 20 days left!  It's crazy!  Between now and the Celebration, it is very important that your child attends school every day.  The nature of the kind of work we are and will be completing is not the kind of work that can be made up at a later date.  I'd hate for your child to miss out on showcasing their product(s) at the Celebration.

Until next time...have a fabulous week!  :)

Weekly Update

I'd like to thank all of you for stepping up and helping to make our fieldwork to the Museum of Natural History a huge success! The students did a fabulous job at finding exemplars to help them with their own museum display creations. Many "aha" moments were had!

We're now in the process of synthesizing all of the expedition information we have acquired. It's hard work, but boy oh boy is it fun! Students are sculpting, painting, sketching, illustrating, building, and writing all of their knowledge in hopes of creating a celebration the likes you'll never forget! As a reminder, our final celebration of learning for the school year is slated for the evening of Wednesday, May 16th. I will pass on more details as the date draws nearer.

We need help making all of our big plans come to fruition. If you'd like to help out, we are in need of the following donations:

• paint (Tempera or craft paint of any color)
• wood (2x4's, plywood, and help cutting it)
• fake plants (shrubs, plants, trees, vines, cacti, etc)
• fake landscaping rocks
• outdoor misters
• outdoor archway
• astro turf
• sand paper
• chicken wire
• plaster
• small hand-held fans
• foam of many sizes and shapes (color does not matter)
• sand
• large old t-shirts (to keep our school clothes nice and clean)
• help in the classroom (wood cutting, painting or just coming in to help)

We are so excited (I bet you can't tell!) and can't wait to share all of this wonderful creating with our families!

Weekly Update

Happy Spring Break to all of you! Hopefully y'all are all out enjoying the beautiful weather and the extra long weekend!

This was an exciting week for us! We had not one, but two experts come work with us. Our first expert visit was from Todd Wetzel and his wife. They are poison dart frog enthusiasts who love to share their passion. They brought so many cool specimens for our kiddos to observe. This truly was a treat since these frogs are not native to our country.

Our second expert was none other than Miss Rebecca's sister. She is a sculptor and came to share her expertise with our kiddos. She helped each student sculpt their expert frog. Once our clay froggies have dried completely, she'll come back and teach us how to paint them to look realistic.

We are now in the refining process for our expedition. Many preparations are need to get ready for our big unveiling at our Celebration of Learning. From here on out, that is what we will be working towards. To pull off our Fabulous Frogs Celebration, students are in need of some donations. If you have any of the following and wouldn't mind sharing with us please send them to school with your child as soon as possible:

• any plastic greenery: shrubs, vines, flowers, cacti, etc
• fake landscape rocks
• chicken wire
• sandpaper
• tempera paints
• large sheets of cardboard
• large shirts for messy painting and other messes (one for each student)

If you have anything around the home that you think would fit any of these habitats: rain forest, desert, or meadow please let me know. We're thinking BIG so any help from home will really help make this happen!

Weekly Update

We've just wrapped up another fabulous week! I thoroughly enjoyed meeting with each of you and celebrating all that your child has achieved. While we prepared for conferences this week and last, I found myself thinking and reflecting about everything our little crew has done and it just tickles me because each of us (including parents) has grown so much since the start of the year. I love conferences for that very reason: slowing down and reflecting on all the growth and accomplishments. As much as I loved hearing each student share their artifacts and reflections, I really enjoyed watching your faces; the smiles and giggles and sheer pride shone through as you listened to your little one speak. It was a special treat for me to watch you enjoy your child!

A few things to mention:

• Spring Break April 6th-9th
• Natural History of Museum fieldwork April 12th (Permission slip sent home today)
  
• Mega Crew April 13th (Please arrive at school at 8:20 am)
• Book orders were sent home today. They are due April 13th
• Earth Day Celebration at the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge April 14th (Flyer sent home today)
  
• School Fundraiser Dinner April 21st
• K-2 Mini-slice-more information to come later
• Celebration Of Learning May 16th

Thanks again for being so supportive of your child and all the awesome things they are learning and trying!

Student-led Parent Conferences

As a reminder, our conferences are scheduled for Thursday, March 29th and Friday, March 30th. If you are unsure of your child's conference time, please let me know. Below you will find some helpful tips and information to prepare you for your child's conference.

Before the Conference:

• Please have a babysitter arranged for younger siblings if at all possible.
• Please arrive 5 minutes before your schedule time slot.
  

During the Conference:

• Stay positive. This is a new experience for your child and he/she may be nervous.
• Parents should step back and allow the student to do things his/her own way.
• Try to bottle up any concerns until after they are finished presenting the information. Then discuss.
• Questions should be open-ended. (i.e. Can you tell me about this piece?)
• Focus on the big picture and not the single spelling error. Celebrate your child’s academic growth!
• Be an attentive listener by providing support and trying to understand.
• Try to stick to your 20 minute time slot.
• Please do not take the data folders home. Your child is still working on mastering standards and tracking their personal growth. I will send all papers home at the end of the year!
  

These conferences are a time to celebrate your child! If you would like to meet with me separately, I am more than happy to make an appointment for the following week.