Some Added Fun!

During the past month, I had taken some time to assemble a small tent and put it in our reading center.  I placed some stuffed animals in the tent, along with bean bags and other fun things the kids could play with.  Ms. Paula found us some cool little lanterns for some added light.  The kids LOVED this area and played in it frequently.  The kids could read books in the tent, play with the stuffed animals inside or take small bin activities inside and complete them.  Here are just a few pictures of some of the students doing some camping in the classroom.

December 2015

With all of the beautiful and warm weather we have been having, it's hard to believe it is almost December!  During the next few weeks we will be busy, busy, busy preparing for Christmas.  We will continue to practice our Christmas concert songs, as well as make special projects and gifts for our loved ones!

Our Christmas concert is right around the corner as well!  Our concert will be held in the MAES gymnasium on Monday, December 21st and Tuesday, December 22nd beginning at 9:30 A.M.  There will be cookies and punch in the cafeteria following the concert.  The students work really hard to prepare for this special day.  They're very excited to perform for you, and equally as excited for the cookie that comes after!  :)  We hope to see you all there.

Here is what's going on in Pre-K during the month of December:

November 30 - December 4: Cookies and Christmas Trees

*We will be reviewing shapes during this time as well as creating some fun holiday projects.

*We will be learning about letter Cc.

*Our number this week is 5.  This will be our last new number before Christmas break.

*December's family project is due Wednesday and Thursday of this week.  We will use the trees to decorate our bulletin board.

December 6-11: Christmas

*We will continue to practice our Christmas songs as well as make Christmas gifts and projects.  Some of our projects will help decorate our classroom during the month of December.

*We will be learning about letter Ii.

*We will do a brief review of numbers 1-5.

*Book orders are due on Monday and Tuesday.

*December's Families Being Involved Workshop will take place on Friday, December 11th beginning at 9:00 A.M. in the MAES commons.  Families are invited in to decorate Christmas cut out cookies.

December 14-17: Christmas continued

*We will put the final touches on Christmas gifts and will have one last rehearsal of our Christmas program.  

*We will review the letters and numbers we have learned thus far.

*If your child is participating in the $5.00 Christmas exchange, please send his/her boy or girl gift to school by Wednesday or Thursday.  More information has already been sent home.  If this would be a hardship for your family, please contact me as soon as possible.

*December's Families Being Involved Workshop will take place on Friday, December 11th beginning at 9:00 A.M. in the MAES commons.  Families are invited in to decorate Christmas cut out cookies.

December 21-22: Christmas Concert

*We will have our Christmas Celebration before our Christmas Program.  The kids will participate in the gift exchange as well as open a gift from me. 

*After our concert, please stop down into the classroom to pick up your child's things as well as some goodies for you.  :)  You are welcome to take your child home but it is not required.

REMINDERS:
**There will be no school for all grades from Wednesday, December 23rd - Friday, January 1st for Christmas break.  School will resume on Monday, January 4th, 2016.

**Rest time bedding will be coming home on December 16th-17th.  You may keep the bedding and wash it over Christmas break or send it back on the day of the program.

**Your child will be bringing a ziploc bag of extra clothing home as well.  Please check to make sure the clothing fits your child and is season appropriate.  Thanks in advance!

I hope you all have a happy and healthy Holiday season.  See you in the new year!

Ms. Brittany

November 2015

Happy November everyone!  Thanks to all of the families who completed a turkey feather.  They are decorating our hallway, and the kids love looking at them each day!  Here's what's happening in the month of November:

November 2-6: Night Time

*We will be learning about things we can do in the night time and which animals are awake during the night.

*We will be learning about letter Kk.

*Our number this week is 2.

*November's family project is due Monday and Tuesday of this week.

*PJ and movie day is Wednesday, Nov. 4th and Thursday, Nov. 5th.

*Bedding will come home to be washed and returned.

November 9-13: Scarecrows

*We will be learning about the purpose of scarecrows and how to build one.  We will also make a fun scarecrow project.

*We will be learning about letter Hh.

*Our number this week is 3.

*We will have our first fluoride varnish on Monday and Tuesday mornings for those that signed up.

November 16-27: Thanksgiving

*This theme will be two weeks.  We will talk about what we are thankful for and will also make some fun turkey projects.  We will be enjoying a special Thanksgiving snack of pumpkin bars on Monday Nov. 23rd and Tuesday, Nov. 24th.

*We will be learning about letter Tt.

*Our number this week is 4.

*Families Being Involved Cookie Decorating slips can be found in your child's folder on the 16th and 17th.

*November's Families Being Involved workshop will be Friday, Nov. 20th from 8:00-9:00 for M/W students and 9:30-10:30 for T/Th students.  This will be held at The Sports Page.

*There is an early release day on Tuesday, Nov. 24th.  Dismissal is at 1:52 P.M.

*There is NO SCHOOL for all students on Wednesday, Nov. 25th-Friday, Nov. 27th due to Thanksgiving break.

Halloween Hoopla!

The kiddos have been patiently waiting for this week to arrive ALL October!  On Wednesday and Thursday afternoon we celebrated Halloween by having our very own Halloween extravaganza!  We started off by dressing up in our costumes and going on a little parade through some of the other classrooms.  The 3rd and 4th graders were the most excited to see the little ones all dressed up.  :)  Next, we did some trick-or-treating in our classroom and ended with having our Witch's Brew for snack.  What fun!!!!  I wanted to take a moment to send out a special "thank you" to all of the parents who supported this fun time by sending in ingredients for the Witch's Brew, treats for the kids, and costumes for them to wear.  Below is a picture of each class enjoying their party and their costumes!  You can click on the individual picture to make it larger.  :)

October 2015

And just like THAT...it's October!  The kids are adjusting very nicely to school.  We continue to work on following school rules and expectations and learning the routines of our days here.  They are working so hard!  Parent/Teacher conferences is right around the corner!  I look forward to meeting with each of you for your child's conference.  It is fun to share some of their work with you so that you can see the progress they've made in just a short time.  Please look for information in your child's folder regarding our first Families Being Involved workshop, as well as the Halloween parties, which will take place at the end of the month!

What a beautiful fall we have had so far!  I hope you continue to enjoy this beautiful weather!  :)

October 5-9: Fire Safety Week

*We will be learning about fire safety and will have special visitors from the Medford Area Fire Department.  *Tuesday's visit had to be rescheduled due to work conflicts for the firefighters.

*We will be learning about letter Ff.

*October's family project is due Wednesday and Thursday of this week.

*Students enjoyed short videos from our Scholastic - My Big World magazine that were found online.  Feel free to check out the Scholastic website for some fun activities and educational videos!

October 12-16: Hibernation and Migration

*We will be learning the terms hibernation and migration and making a fun book about bears.

*There will be no letter this week due to having only one day of school for each group.

*FBI slips are due on Monday and Tuesday.  Please let us know if your family will be participating in the pumpkin carving event.

*There will be no school for Pre-K on Wednesday, October 14th due to Child Development Day.

*There will be no school for all grades on Thursday, October 15th due to parent/teacher conferences.

*There will be no school for all grades on Friday, October 16th.  

**Ms. Brittany will have a sub on Monday and Tuesday of this week to complete PALS testing.

October 19-23 and October 26-30: Halloween

*We will be creating a lot of fun Halloween projects during this two week theme.

*We will focus on letters Mm and Jj and will begin learning about number 1 during week two of Halloween.

*Our Halloween parties will be on Wednesday, October 28th and Thursday, October 29th in the afternoon.  More information will be in your child's folder.

*This week will also be Red Ribbon Week at MAES.  Monday/Tuesday will be "wear red" day and Wednesday/Thursday will be "wear green or brown" day.  

*Picture retake day is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 27th or Wednesday, Oct. 28th.

Exploring our 5 Senses and the Kuse Trail

On Monday and Tuesday of this week we ventured to the Kuse Nature Trail to find out what we could see, hear, smell and touch.  The weather was perfect for our walk, and the kids really experienced a lot of neat things.  Below are a few pictures of our 5 senses adventure!

The M/W class entering the trail!  They waited patiently to hear the rules of the Kuse Trail.

We wanted to see if we could all fit on the M bench.

Many, many deer tracks!  The kids were very excited to see these!

I think this is a raccoon track, but the kids are convinced it's a dog track.  :)

What a gorgeous blue sky day!

Yippy for some time in the fall sun!

The T/TH kiddos lining up for the rules!

We carefully touched the moss on one of the benches.  We talked many times about not wrecking things on the trail because this is their home, but also so others can enjoy them too!

Here we are all on a bench!

Say cheeeeese!!

Hooray for no rain on our walk!!

Applesauce!

Last week on Wednesday and Thursday we had our first cooking adventure when we made applesauce!  Students were asked to bring in an apple to slice up and put in the pot.  We then cooked them down and mushed them all up.  What a neat thing it is when you can eat something you made!  The kids LOVED taking a turn!  Every student tried at least one bite...some loved it, while others weren't quite so fond if it.  My favorite part is when kids think it will taste yucky and they find out they actually really like it!  :)  Below are some pictures from the Tuesday/Thursday class.  You can find pictures of the Monday/Wednesday class on the MAES facebook page.  Here is the link: MAES Facebook

September 2015

Hello Pre-K Families,
We are off to a GREAT start this year in Pre-K!  The kiddos are getting familiar with school rules and routines and are enjoying their time here.  Thanks for all you do at home to help prepare your child for school each day.

Please take a minute to check out the tabs on top and familiarize yourself with our classroom blog!  There is a lot of useful information as well as fun games for your children to play at home!  I will update the blog monthly, as well as add pictures of any fun projects or activities we may do throughout the course of the year.  These are the themes and letters we will be covering for the month of September:

September 7-11 : Shapes
We will focus on the four basic shapes: circle, square, triangle and rectangle.  We will be making some fun projects as well as playing shape games and singing the Shape Hokey Pokey!  Our first family project is due back this week!

September 14-18 : Apples "Aa"
*We will have our first day of Library on Monday and Tuesday.  Your child will be able to check out a book during next week's library time.  Please remember your child will need to return his/her book before a different library book may be checked out.

*We will be learning about where apples come from and how they grow.
*We will be learning about letter Aa.

*On Wednesday and Thursday morning we will be making applesauce!  Please send a baking apple with your child on or before Wednesday, Sept. 16th or Thursday, Sept. 17th.

*Our first Early Release Day is this Wednesday, September 16^th.  Students will be dismissed from school at 1:52 P.M.


September 21-25 : 5 Senses "Yy"
*We will be learning abouour 5 senses and taking a 5 senses walk on the Kuse Nature Trail on Monday and Tuesday (weather permitting).  If the weather does not cooperate, we will take our walk on Wednesday and Thursday.
*We will be learning about letter Yy.

September 28-October 2 : Leaves and Fall "Ll"
*We will be learning leaves and the season of fall.
*We will be learning about letter Ll.

*Our October family project will be coming home during this week!  You will get to decorate a fall pumpkin to hang up on our bulletin board in the hallway!

REMINDERS:  
Child Development Day is Wednesday, October 14th.  There is no school for Pre-K students this day.
Parent Teacher conferences are scheduled for Oct. 15th.  There is no school for all students this day.  There is also NO SCHOOL for all students on Friday, Oct. 16th.

Welcome to Pre-K!!

Dear Pre-K Families, 

I would like to welcome you to the Medford Elementary School and to my pre-kindergarten class!  I am really looking forward to meeting all of you at our upcoming open house!  The open house will be on Tuesday, August 25^th at 4:00-4:30 for the Mon./Wed. group and 4:45-5:15 for the Tues./Thurs. group. Upon arriving please join me in our classroom where I will have a short checklist of items for you to take care of before leaving.  You will be asked to fill out your child’s emergency contact information, make a deposit into your family's lunch/snack/milk account, confirm bus information, view the classroom and ask any questions you might have.  (Please come prepared to take care these items).  If you can’t make it you are welcome to come in on Tuesday, September 1^st at 10:00 or 1:00 to complete the necessary paperwork before school begins.

The open house will be a great opportunity for me to meet you and your child.  Upon arriving please pick up your child’s folder and checklist.  Feel free to explore the room, however, please let your children know that they WON’T be able to play with any of the toys as our time together is limited.  We will get to play with all of the fun toys on the very first day of school!  You are also welcome to walk around the school to help familiarize yourself and your child with its layout.

Your child will not need to bring his/her backpack during the night of open house but can bring his/her rest items.  (Remember that if the rest  items do not easily fit into the cubby space you will be asked to take them home and replace them with something smaller.  A beach towel and small travel sized pillow are recommended.)

  

I’m looking forward to meeting each of you and hope your child is excited for the upcoming school year!

Ms. Brittany

May 2015

May has come and gone so quickly that I didn't even have time to update our blog!  WHEW!  These last few weeks have been full of excitement!  We went on a field trip to the Taylor County Highway Department to learn about trucks, made some lip gloss for Mother's Day with the high school FFA students, met a baby calf during farm week, met Ms. Brittany's dogs (Zoe and Addie) and had our PBIS nature walk and scavenger hunt.  So much fun packed into our last few days of school!!

To finish up the school year, we are planning a field trip to the school forest on Wednesday, May 27th and Thursday, May 28th in the morning.  Please dress your child for "the woods."  You may spray them with bug spray before sending them to school.  Hopefully we will be able to catch some bugs and frogs!  Feel free to click the words School Forest to learn more!!

On the very last days of school, each class with head to the city park for our last field trip!  Once there, the kiddos will have a chance to play on the equipment and then we will have a picnic lunch.  After more play, we will walk back to MAES for the remainder of the day.  

It has been so fun seeing the transformation that the kids have made since walking through the doors in September.  Each and every one of them has touched my heart, making them unforgettable.  I will truly miss their personalities, their kindness, their gentle and caring hearts, and their excitement for school!  I hope that you enjoy your summer, and I can't wait to see all the kids again next year as KINDERGARTENERS!!!  

Fun Learning In the Classroom!

It never ceases to amaze me how brilliant children are.  A student came up to me this morning with this white sheet of paper.  He had drawn a black line all the way across it and asked me to write, "What is your favorite color?" on the black line.  He then went around and polled the students and asked them to write their favorite color somewhere on the paper.  After asking the first few kiddos, he realized this was a little difficult since not many of them know how to spell.  :)  I suggested that he ask each student to write his/her name using their favorite color.  All of the kids jumped on the opportunity to participate and it turned into a really cute and fun activity!  

I just love how little minds work!!!

April 2015

Welcome to April and hopefully more spring-like weather!  The year is going by so fast!!  It is hard to believe in a few short months these kiddos will be heading out my door and onto bigger things!  :)  We have a busy April, followed by an even busier May!!  Be sure to check the Classroom Newsletter to find dates, times and information about upcoming events and field trips.  Below you can find info for the month of April!

April 1-3: Easter

*We will be wrapping up our theme of Easter on Wednesday.

*There is NO SCHOOL for all students Thursday, April 2 - Monday, April 6th due to teacher inservice and Easter break.  School will resume on Tuesday, April 7th.  HAPPY EASTER!!!

April 6-10: Pets

*There will be NO SCHOOL on Monday, April 6th due to Easter break.

*We will be learning about pets this week.  We will talk about animals that make good pets and how to take care of these animals.  Students will get to share stories about their own pets or about a pet they wish they could have.

*Our letter is Xx.

*We will be reviewing number 9.

*Our field trip to the Medford Veterinary Clinic is scheduled for Wednesday, April 8th and Thursday, April 9th.  If you need to know specific times for the field trip, please contact me.

April 13-17: Seeds and Flowers & WOTYC

*We will be celebrating The Week of the Young Child (WOTYC).  Dress up days are as follows:

--Monday - Sports Day

--Tuesday - PJ Day

--Wednesday - Crazy Hair Day

--Thursday - Beach Day

--Friday - School Colors Day

*On Monday of this week, we will be giving our Pennies for Pets donations to the Taylor County Humane Society.

*We will be learning about Seeds and Flowers. 

*Our letter is Uu.

*We will be reviewing number 10.

*On Wednesday and Thursday of this week we will be going to the MAES gym for a special presentation of Hairy and Company.

*Thursday, April 16th is Pre-K registration from 3:30-6:00 PM.  This is also the evening of the Beach Party- Pre-K Pot Luck Dinner and Dance.  The dinner will be from 5:00-5:30PM and the dance will be from 5:30-6:00PM in the MAES Commons/Cafeteria.  If your family hasn't sign up, but would like to please do as ASAP.

April 20-30: Oceans

*Oceans is a two week theme where we will be learning all about the world under the sea.  We have completed the letters of the alphabet but will continue to review letters and letter sounds.

*We will be reviewing number 10.

*Ms. Brittany will have a sub on Monday and Tuesday, April 27th and 28th for PALS testing.  

March 2015

Hello,

March is right around the corner!  Hopefully the weather will begin warming up and spring will be on its way!  We can hope, right?  :)  Below you will find more information about our March themes and other events that will be taking place.

March 2-5: Dr. Seuss and Rhyming

*This week we will read many Dr. Seuss books and continue to talk about rhyming.  We will make many fun projects including a Cat in the Hat headband and Thing 1 and Thing 2.

*We will be learning about letter Rr.

*We will be reviewing number 4.

*The Swimming FBI slips are due on Wednesday and Thursday of this week.  

*Spring Parent/Teacher Conferences are from 3:45-6:30 PM on Thursday, March 5th.  These conferences are only for those requested by a parent or teacher.

March 9-12: Zoo

*This week we will be learning about animals that live in a zoo.

*We will be learning about letter Zz.

*We will be reviewing number 5.

*March's family project, The Rhyming Chart, is due back on Monday and Tuesday of this week.

*The Special Education Advisory Council is offering a Family Day Snowshoeing Event on Tuesday, March 10th from 4-5:40 PM.  Families will meet at MAES and will snowshoe on the Kuse Nature Preserve.  Cookies and hot chocolate will be provided!  You are welcome to bring along your own snowshoes or some can be provided for you.

March 16-19: St. Patrick's Day

*This week we be learning about St. Patrick's Day by making leprechaun projects and by talking about shamrocks and luck.  I wonder if that quick and quiet leprechaun will visit our classroom!?!?!

*We will be learning about letter Qq.

*We will be reviewing number 6.

*There is an EARLY RELEASE day on Tuesday, March 17th.  Students will be dismissed at 1:52 PM.

*March's Families Being Involved workshop will be held on Friday, March 20th from 1:30-2:30 PM at the MASH pool!  Students and families are invited in for an hour of swimming and pool fun!

March 23- April 2: Easter

*Easter will be a two week theme.  During these weeks we will make spring and Easter projects, play a fun Easter memory game, and share our own experiences about Easter.

*We will be learning about letters Bb and Ee.

*We will be reviewing numbers 7 and 8.

*Information about April's Families Being Involved workshop will be coming home and will be due back before Easter break.  We will be having a pot luck dinner and dance!

*There is NO SCHOOL for all students Thursday, April 2 - Monday, April 6th due to teacher inservice and Easter break.  School will resume on Tuesday, April 7th.  HAPPY EASTER!!!