Superstudent 1/31-2/4

Roses are red

Violets are blue

We have a Super Student

And it is you!

Congratulations Jillian,

You are a Superstudent!

Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day is this Wednesday, February 2nd.

Punxsutawney Phil!

 On Groundhog Day, people want to know if spring will be starting soon.  They wait for a groundhog to come out of its den.  If the groundhog sees its shadow and runs back in the den, it is believed that there will be six more weeks of winter.  If it doesn't see its shadow and stays outside, spring is coming!

Groundhogs (also known as woodchucks) are about two feet long from their heads to their bushy tails.  They have grayish-brown fur.  They dig underground dens that have many "rooms" and more than one entrance.  Groundhogs hibernate (sleep) during the winter.  When they leave their dens to look for food, they sit up on their hind legs and look around for any signs of danger.

Do you think Punxsutawney Phil will see his shadow this year?

Goodbye January, Hello February!

Big M, little m. What begins with M?

This week we will be talking about the letter Mm!


Save the date, February 14 is Special Person's Day!  Each family will be able to invite one very lucky and special person to visit our classroom at 1PM.  We will be reading a special book, having a special snack, singing a special song, and doing a special craft.

A You're Adorable

Three Billy Goats Gruff

This week we read the fairy tale, Three Billy Goats Gruff.  We spent all week acting out the roles of the troll, the littlest billy goat gruff, the second middle-sized billy goat gruff, and the big billy goat gruff.

 

"Trip, trap.  Trip, trap."

Can you guess where the troll is hiding?

Animals, Animals

This week we continued to learn about animals.  At the conclusion of "The Giant Book of Animal Worlds" we learned that there are many other animals, besides lions, that are in danger of becoming extinct.  Each student selected an animal that they liked best and created a picture to describe how they would feel if that animal was no longer here.  Can you guess which art work is your child's?

We have completed our class letter and artwork which has been signed, sealed, and delivered to Washington D.C.  Our class letter:

"Dear Leaders,

We love lions.  We want to help them.  We want to give them hugs.  We want them to be healthy.  We want to play with them.  If anything happened to the lions we would feel sad.  We can feed the lions and give them drinks.  We will take care of the Earth for the lions.

Love..."


To find out more information about where our letter and artwork is going visit the following link: National Geographic Kids

Superstudent 1/24-1/28

2-4-6-8-

We think you are really great!

You are kind,

You're our friend,

congratulations we will send!!

Congratulations Julia!

You are a Superstudent!!!

Science Explorers

Updates are posted weekly.  Click on the link under "Pages" labeled "Science Explorers"

Math with our Calendar

We have been using our calendar for more than just knowing the month, day, year, and day of the week.  Each week, one student is selected as the calendar helper.  They search through an array of numbers to find just the right one that comes next.  Then as a class we count how many green numbers we have, and how many blue numbers.  We are also discussing addition and subtraction to see how many more (addition) or how many less (subtraction) we see.

How many green numbers are on the calendar?  How many blue?  Which color has the most?  How many more numbers are green than blue?

Big L, little l. What begins with L?

Letters and lions!  This week we will be mailing our class letter with our pictures of lions to the National Geographic Kids media center in Washington DC.  The latest I can accept permission slips is Wednesday, January 26.  We will also be discussing the importance of post offices, mail carriers, and discuss how exciting it is to receive letters in the mail.

Writer's Notebook

We have begun writing in our writer's notebook.  Each day students are given a topic to illustrate and then label their picture.  What's in our notebook so far?

Day 1: self portrait with our name
Day 2: favorite animal, labeled
Day 3: our dream for the world, labeled

Big K, little k. What begins with K?

Kk is for kindness.  This week, we will be celebrating The New Year of the Trees with a feast of fruits. 

 

K is for ketchup too!  We will be designing our own ketchup labels, which will be entered in a Pittsburgh Heinz Factory contest.  

Update: we designed our own trees using crayons and paper, then we created our own edible trees with a pretzel, popcorn, and fluff.

Superstudent 1/17-1/21

Knock Knock...

Who's there?

Super.

Super who?

Superstudent!

Congratulations Erica!!!

You are the Superstudent!

Martin Luther King Jr.

Today we learned about Martin Luther King Jr. and what it means to be fair.  We also learned about his "I Have a Dream" speech and discussed our dreams to help make the world a better place.

No school Monday, January 17 in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day!

Superstudent 1/10-1/14

2-4-6-8!

You are awesome, you are great!

You are kind, You are sweet!

And your friendship can't be beat!

Congratulations Aaron - You are a Superstudent!

Writer's Workshop

Each child is currently writing their own book, at a level that is most comfortable for them.  We choose our own topics, and continue on with our work at a pace that works best at an individual level.  Our writing center is always open during our center time, and students must write at least 3 pages in order for their book to be complete.  More is not always better, as we want students to stay on a topic and create a story that is meaningful and purposeful.

Every 2 weeks, a book will be honored, showcasing each student as they share a story that is creative, beautifully illustrated and narrated, and with representation of letters and symbols.

For our first writer's workshop publication we would like to honor, Sienna, Congratulations!

Our first books will be sent home soon!