December 17 Polar Express Party

Mrs. Dodge hosted a Polar Express party in the library. The students were all snug in their pajamas. They enjoyed a cup of cocoa.
Thanks Mrs. Dodge!

Group Pajama Picture

Pizza lunch for those kiddos who saved their money and paid 100 pennies to eat with me.

Opening up gifts

Shopping at Madison Mini Mart

December 17 Newsletter

Shaking up some peanut butter free puppy chow to sell at the Madison Mini Mart

Each table took turns shaking a bag

Parent Information:

• Don't forget that the winter party will be at 12:30 in our class. It will go from 12:30 to 1:30 then the students will go to recess from 1:30 to 2:00. At 2:00 it is the all school sing-along in the gym. After that we will do a winter art project.
• Thank you for working with your child on their 2nd quarter goal. Just a reminder that goals were supposed to be turned in at the beginning of 2nd quarter so they could be worked on all quarter long. I accepted late goals this time but I will not accept any late goals for 3rd quarter, sorry...it defeats the purpose of practicing their goal all quarter long.
• The weather is getting colder outside so we will be having more inside recesses. If your child would like to bring a game they would like to play during inside recess, that is fine with me :)

Ask Your Child About:
Reading: Long i spelled i, i_e, igh, ie, and Y

Guided Reading: testing reading levels for grade cards and goals

Math: 2nd quarter testing: numbers to 50, coins, counting coins, graphing, and subtraction

Social Studies: goods/services and getting ready for Madison Mart

Art: Winter projects

Counselor Time: forgiveness

Polar Express Party

Next Week's Special:

Monday: B day, P.E. and Music

Tuesday: C day, Computer

Mark Your Calendar:

December 21, Tuesday: Winter Party from 12:30 to 1:30/ all school sing along 2:00/ 2:30 Winter Art Project
December 22: No school, winter break

January 10: Goals Assembly at 1:00 in primary pod

Class Wish List:

Rated G kid VHS movies

Appreciation Station:

A.P.

December 13 Book Swap

When: A day, December 17th, Friday
Where: Library
Why: To get a new book :)

Need to Know:

• Kids need to bring one book from home (that they do not want back)
• We talked about how the books need to be age appropriate (no baby books)
• They can bring a pillow from home and they can have a "read in" after the swap
• They do not have to participate, but they can't get a book unless they bring one

December 13 Couple of things...

We collected a grand total of $54.48!

Thank you! I bought the gifts for the Angels and turned them in on Sunday at my church. This has been a wonderful experience thanks to you guys!!!


On a totally different note, while I am thinking about it, if you have any old VHS movies that are rated G and that you do not want...I'd love to have them:) Thanks!

Happy Monday!

December 9 Newsletter

Parent Information

• As a class we have raised $38.50 in quarters! Thank you so much for participating!! It was neat to combine money and social studies by studying maps and quarters. The money will be used to buy three first graders off the angel tree the items they requested. A little boy requested a pair of jeans, a little girl wants a graphic t-shirt, and another little boy wants match box cars. I will go shopping and get those items for them. Thank you again!!!
• Book orders due tomorrow. Thanks :)
• How are goals going at home?

Ask Your Child About...

• Reading: Long a spelled: a, a_e, ai, ay and long i spelled: i, i_e, igh
• Guided Reading: Testing reading levels
• Math: Graphing and Reviewing
• Social Studies: Economic choices

Mark Your Calendars:

• Friday, December 17th: Polar Express Party with Mrs. Dodge, wear PJ's to school
• Friday, December 17th: Students will use school money to shop at Madison Mart
• Tuesday, December 21st: 2:00 All School Sing along and then Winter Parties right after
• Wednesday, December 22nd: No School, start of winter break
• Wednesday, January 5th: Students first day back from winter break
• Friday, January 7th: Homework reward party for all students who have completed 90% of their homework
• Monday, January 10th: Goals Assembly 1:00 in the primary pod

Next Week's Specials:

• Monday: A, Library
• Tuesday: B, P.E. & Music
• Wednesday: C, Computer
• Thursday: D, P.E. & Music
• Friday: A, Library

Class wish list:

• Small used toys for class store
• Fruit snacks/fruit roll-ups for class store

Appreciation Station:

• Thank you again for the quarters! What an overwhelming response!! The kids had so much fun looking at each quarter and placing it on the map!

December 6 Gardner Community Theatre

The Gardner Community Theatre presents:

Micacle on 34th Street

Where: Wheatridge Middle School

When: December 11 at 7 p.m.

December 11 & 12 at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $5 at the door

You should go and see it!! There is a student in our class that is performing in it!

December 5 Angel Tree

Today I was able to pick three kids from the Angel Tree. The kids I chose are first graders who want simple things like a pair of jeans or a graphic t-shirt. It was a very humbling experience to read all of the things the kids wanted for Christmas. Thank you all for you quarter donations. I know the items we buy for the kids will make their Christmas special. Even though we have collected all the quarters from the 50 states, I will continue to collect quarter donations until December 10th.

THANK YOU AGAIN!

December 2 Popcorn and Movie Party

The kiddo's enjoying the movie and some yummy popcorn.


Watch Dog Dad and K.M.

What a fun way to end a Friday afternoon!

December 1 Twins for the Day

December 3 Newsletter

Parent Information:

• Thank you for all of the food you supplied for our Charlie Brown Thanksgiving! What a fun day! Check out the pictures below if you haven't already.
• Thank you for all of your support with the quarter project! We will be collecting quarters until Dec. 10th. We are still missing 6 state quarters (Nevada, Colorado, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and New Jersey). All the quarters will be donated to buy an item for someone off the Angel Tree.
• How are goals going? There is about 2 weeks and 2 days left of the second quarter.
• Scholastic book orders are due Friday, December 10th. I will order online that day so there will be plenty of time to get the books in before winter break :)

Ask you child about...

• Reading: Long e spelled: e, e_e, ea, ee, ie, and y
• Guided Reading: working on comprehension. I will be testing reading levels next week.
• Math: counting like groups of coins
• Science: Property words
• Counselor Time: Realizing it is okay to look different then your friend and to like different things that your friend likes.
• Popcorn/ Movie Party

Next Week's Specials:

• Monday: D day, P.E. and Music
• Tuesday: A day, Library
• Wednesday: B day, P.E. and Music
• Thursday: C day, Computer
• Friday: D day, P.E. and Music

Mark Your Calendar:

• December 10: Friday, Last day for Quarter and Book Order's due
• December 17: Friday, PJ day-Polar Express and cocoa with Mrs. Dodge
• December 21: Tuesday: End of second quarter: goals due
• December 22: Wednesday-no school, start of winter break
• January 5: Wednesday: First day back from winter break

Appreciation Station:
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE FOR BRINGING IN SNACKS FOR OUR FEAST!
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE FOR BRINGING IN QUARTERS!!!

Class Store Items:
***G.S.
***J.S.

November 24 Our Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

The pilgrim boys The pilgrim girls

The Pilgrims

The Native American girls

The Native American Boys

The Native Americans

OUR CLASS

Look at all of the delicious snacks!

Thank you!!!

Let the feast begin!

November 23 Sneak Peak

This picture was taken yesterday thanks to Mrs. Insognia!

There will be A LOT more to come after our feast today so please check it out!

Happy Thanksgiving!

November 19 Newsletter

This picture was taken on Veteran's Day. My husband came up with my daughter. They met the class for the first time :)

Parents:

• A huge thank you for all of the recipes! Everyone sent is such delicious stuff...I can't wait for you guys to see what we are doing with it ;)

• How is your child's goal going? Do you need anything? (simmonse@usd231.com)

• It is that time of year to get out those heavy coats for recess.

• I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with love and laughter!!

Ask Your Child About:

Reading: Long E spelled e, e_e, ea, and ee

Guided Reading: comprehension questions about the story, especially questions that relate to the student

Math: identifying the penny, nickel, dime, and quarter (next week we will be counting like groups of coins)

Social Studies: Studying the First Thanksgiving. I got adventurous and we completed a project on vuvox.com. If you are looking for a great way to display pictures, check it out! We also used wordle.com to express what we are thankful for. This is also a really cool site.

2nd Grade Musical: all about dogs, it was SUPER cute!

Next Week's Specials:

Monday: B day, P.E. and Music

Tuesday: C day, Computer

Mark Your Calendar:

Tuesday, November 23: First Grade Thanksgiving "snack" celebration at 2 p.m.

Wed.-Fri., Nov. 24-26: No school, Thanksgiving Break

Appreciation Station:

Thank you for allowing your child to donate food to the food drive!

Thank you to the following families for helping me out on the class wish list:

*C.W.

*L.C.

*J.S.

*A.P.

Junie B. Jones

A parent has asked me to pass on this information:

Junie B. Jones in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells
Theatre for Young America
November 23-December 30

The parent is going with her child December 18th. If anybody is interested in going with them, you may be able to get a group discount rate depending on how many people go. Please e-mail me and I will forward your e-mail on to the parent. Thank you :)

November 12 Newsletter

Parents:
Don't forget to get out your coins this weekend. Next week we will be learning about coins. How cool would it be to give your child a head start:) The students need to be able to identify the coins and be able to count like groups of coins (expect quarters). Every year, the quarter and nickel seem to be very tricky for first graders.

How are goals going?

Have you turned in a recipe yet :)

Gobble, gobble...thanks for all of the adorable Turkeys!

Ask Your Child About:
Reading:Long Vowels
Guided Reading: Strategy: finding the "chunks"
Math: Numbers to 50 (Knowing what numbers come before, after, and in-between)
Social Studies: Mapping
Counselor Time
Veteran's Assembly
Popsicle Party (They earned 10 stars!)

Specials Next Week: (11:30-12:30)
Monday: A day, Library
Tuesday: B day, Music and P.E.
Wednesday: C day, Computer
Thursday: D day, Music and P.E.
Friday: A day, Library (BOOK FAIR DAY!)

Mark Your Calendars:
Tues.-Fri. Nov. 16-19 BOOK FAIR
Wed. Nov. 17: Picture Re-Takes
Thur. Nov. 18: 2nd Grade Musical
Tue. Nov. 23: First Grade "snack" Thanksgiving
Wed.-Fri. Nov. 24-26: Thanksgiving Break

Class Wish List:
Any small toys for the class store
Brown paper bags
Paper plates

Appreciation Station:
Thank you for donating canned food items to the food drive. Which team is going to have the most canned food...Jayhawks?....Wildcats?...or Tigers?

Thank you to A. P. for the popsicles for our popsicle party.

Thank you again to A. P. for buying books for the class out of scholastic. Wow, what a treat!

November 5 Newsletter

Reminders:
Thank you for turning in your child's favorite recipe! They all sound so delicious!!

Thank you for reading the book in a week with your child. I will send a new book home Monday.

Thank you for decorating the turkey. They are hanging outside our classroom.

Thank you for the book orders. I will try to send one more home before Christmas just in case you want to buy books for the holidays.


Ask Your Child About:
Reading: Long Vowels sounds
Math: Counting to 50, knowing numbers that are one more then the given number, and knowing numbers that are one less then the given number. Don't forget to get out your coins at home and challenge your child to tell you what they are and how much they are worth...we will be studying coins in one week.
Social Studies: Maps
Couneslor Time: Thinking before reacting

Next Week's Specials:
Monday: D Day, P.E. and Music
Tuesday: A Day, Library
Wednesday: B Day, P.E. and Music
Thursday: C Day, Computer
Friday: D Day, P.E. and Music

Mark Your Calendar:
Nov. 17, Wed. Picture Re-Takes
Nov. 18, Thur. Second Grade Musical
Nov. 23, Tue. First Grade "snack" Thanksgiving Feast
Nov. 24-26, Wed.-Fri. No School, Thanksgiving Break


Class Wish List:
Small toys for the class store

November 3 Reminders

Please don't forget to send in your child's favorite recipe. It can be their favorite dinner, dessert, appetizer...thank you!

Book orders are due tomorrow :)

How are sight words going? Don't forget to send in your child's sight word book on Fridays. If they have past all of the lists already, try the enrichment activities on the back. Thanks.

Book In a Week

Today I received 7 book in a week's. Out of those 7, only four did the paper work.

Book in a week is a great opportunity for your child to read books on their level. It promotes confidence. You can also mark those reading minutes on your child's reading calendar.

Don't forget to send it back to school :)

Thanks!!!

October Pictures

Crazy Hair Day The boys
The girls

Fun picture

Stuffed Animal/PJ Day

A special lunch

These two boys lost their first tooth at the same time and they have the same name!

Fall Party

What a great time! Thank you parents for EVERYTHING!

A special thanks to M.N. for organizing it all!

October 29 Newsletter

Thank you for all of your participation with red ribbon week! What a fun, energizing week! I will post picture this weekend!

Thank you for all of the goals, they were due today :) If you did not turn in a goal, maybe a sight word goal would be good for your child. E-mail me and I will make your child's goal to pass sight word lists 5-10. Thanks!

On Fridays the students have been using lap tops to log on to raz-kids and read books. If you would like to do that at home, go to raz-kids.com and my password is esimmons1mde. Happy Reading!

Ask Your Child About:
Reading: long a, long i, and long o sounds
Guided Reading: working on asking the students how the book they read relates to them
Math: Subtraction to 10
Science: solids, liquids, and gases
Writing: writing with quotations (talking marks)
Counselor time: During what you are suppose to do even when you don't want to

Next Week's Specials:
Monday: C day Computer

Tuesday: D day P.E. and Music

Wednesday: A day Library
Thursday: B day P.E. and Music

Friday: C day Computer

Mark Your Calendar:
Nov. 17, Wednesday, Picture Re-Takes

Nov. 18, Thursday, 2nd grade musical 2 and 7 p.m.

Nov. 23, Tuesday, 1st grade snack feast at 2:00

Nov. 24-26, Wed.-Fri., No school

Nov. 29, Monday, Choir Sings in Christmas in The Park at 7 p.m.

Appreciation Station:
Thank you to the following families for donated items for the chocolate basket:

***K.M.
***G.S.
***K.L.
***J.K.
***K.G.
***R.L.
***A. P.
***K.K.

A special thank you to E.K. for the class donation!

October 22 Go Blazers!

We turned a liquid into a solid...Butter!

The kids enjoyed eating it afterward on crackers.