Wow! It's Already February 2014!

Oh my! 2013 went by so fast and I am so behind with my blog posts! I will strive to keep up with this blog for the last part of the school year! Please forgive me! The kiddos have learned so much since school started in August and I'm so excited for the 2nd semester. It always amazes me each year to see how the young children change physically, academically, and emotionally. I finished administering DRAs (Developmental Reading Assessments) and even though we had a long winter break (Christmas and Snow Days), the kiddos did really well on their tests. Guided Reading groups are going well! There were a few changes to the groups depending on the children's scores and my observations. They will work on individual skills and strategies along with reading books on their independent levels. Please continue to read daily with them and review their sight words, letter sounds, and blends. In math, we are learning addition including word problems with sums to 10.

Here is a recap of our fall activities:

October - We enjoyed a field trip to Rutledge-Wilson Farm and Pumpkin Patch. The kiddos were able to see lots of animals, climb on tractors, pick pumpkins, play in a "barn and silo" jungle gym, and have a picnic lunch. We carved a class pumpkin and everyone enjoyed scooping out the pulp and counting seeds! The kiddos also estimated the circumferences of their pumpkins and used unifix cubes to measure the lengths. We had a Fall Party consisting of a costume parade, games, and refreshments. Thanks to everyone who helped make this a fun time for the kiddos! We participated in the door decorating contest for Red Ribbon Week (drug safety awareness). The students made mummy faces!

 

Our units in November were: Scarecrows, Veteran's Day, Thanksgiving, and Turkeys. We also had a Thanksgiving "Feast" with First Grade students.

 







 

Our units in December were: Bears, Santa, and Christmas. A favorite day was making Gingerbread Houses. Thanks to everyone who donated ingredients for their projects! Some high school students also helped with their projects. The kiddos also enjoyed a Polar Express day including wearing their pajamas to school! Of course, the most favorite day was our class Christmas party! Below are photos from the Music Concert and other activities in December:

 

 

We enjoyed an added week to our Winter break because of snow! But hopefully we won't have too many more snow days or we'll be going to school until June! :)

 

I hope you liked the re-cap of the past few months. I will try to post more often!

 

 

~ Mrs. Eilenstine