November 25, 2009

Only one month until YOU-KNOW-WHAT!

Mr. Heidebrecht asked all teachers to remind parents that ALL children need to come dressed for the weather. Right now, that means coats and boots at a minimum. They should also have a way to keep their heads dry: hoods or umbrellas.

Please, please, please, have your child also bring indoor shoes EVERY DAY. Sitting in boots all day is not healthy. It's especially not healthy when the boots get full of water and the choice is sitting in wet boots or nothing.

Thanks to those of you who send your child properly dressed each day.

NOTE: If you do not have jackets, boots, shoes, or other necessities for your child, we have fund for that. Let me know what you need. All the kids at Gibsons Elementary deserve to be warm, dry, and healthy, even in rainy weather.

November 20, 2009

Today we celebrated Jessica's birthday with cupcakes she brought.

We also got to practice on the stage for our Christmas concert.

November 19, 2009

Today we talked about how people and animals prepare for winter. You can extend this conversation with your child by pointing out what you are doing to get ready. You can also note changes in nature that you see together.

Tomorrow we have a full day of school.

November 18

Tomorrow will also be an early dismissal day.

If you haven't seen the book sale in the Library, do stop in. There are some wonderful books and the library gets credit for the books sold, so the school benefits by being able to buy new books as well.

Be sure to check the planner pocket for the red notice about the costumes we'll need for the Christmas concert. There's a need for helpers, so if you are inclined toward the arts or are good at crafts, this could be your moment to shine.

November 17, 2009

Grade One is a time to set a good foundation for life-long reading. Much of the day is given to reading activities. Hearing a story is still a great way to develop reading skills. During story time, children hear language used by some of the world's best writers, see illustrations by professional artists, and are challenged to think about literature or stretched in their knowledge of the world.

Your story times at home also build that foundation. Although it's important for your child to read, it's still important that you read to your child.

Wednesday and Thursday this week, students will be dismissed at 1:35 so teachers can meet with parents. The schedule is posted outside the classroom door, and your interview time is in the planner.

Nov. 12, 2009

The Primary Team at Gibsons Elementary is putting emphasis on mental Math this year. Mental Math involves using strategies like visualizing arrays of numbers. We use a variety of arrays to help children develop flexibility in building numbers. Watch your child for signs that he or she is using mental Math strategies.

November 10, 2009

We went to the gym for a Remembrance Day assembly. We listened to the school choir and band and to poems and a short talk by a Legion member. Then we watched a short video that helped us to think about the soldiers.

We wore poppies.

When we came back, we wrote and drew our thoughts. You can see what we wrote if you visit the bulletin board outside our classroom.

November 9, 2009

Did you get your child's Driting? It's in a special planner pocket. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

The children are writing their own report cards this week. I'm impressed by what a good job they are doing. I think you will be, too.

November 6, 2009

Today we had examples of good sharing: Things kids made or items with personal meaning.

A word about H1N1...

At the end of the day, I ask kids if they want a hug or a handshake. Some people have been startled to see this in the face of H1N1 fears.

The kids in our class will have washed their hands (and I will have washed mine) at least once before the end of the day. Anyone who sneezes, coughs, or even puts his or her hands near a nose is asked to wash right away. That said, if you would rather I not shake hands with your child, please let me know and we will make another arrangement.

You should also know that our custodians are more diligent than usual in cleaning classroom surfaces daily. We even had our carpets shampooed an extra time during our professional development day.

November 4, 2009

We met Baby Charlotte today! When she comes, we sing a her a hello song. Shannon brings Baby Charlotte around so she can meet all of us. We don't touch her, but we can smile at her.



Baby Charlotte has a special green blank to lay on in our classroom. We all stay off her blanket. Sometimes today she was on her tummy and sometimes she was on her back. She played a little bit. Shannon measured her with our multilinks. She is 29 multilinks long. Shannon says we can watch her grow.


We have a bulletin board with information about Baby Charlotte. Last time Shannon came we guessed whether Baby Charlotte would be smaller than, bigger than, or the same size as the doll Shannon brought. We made a graph about our guesses. Most of us thought Baby Charlotte would be the same size as the doll. She is bigger than the doll.

Baby Charlotte was in the newspaper with the rest of her family. We put that part of the newspaper on our bulletin board.

We are all looking forward to the next time Baby Charlotte will visit us.

November 3, 2009

Division 9 shows an impressive improvement since the beginning of the term. Everyone knows the routines and follows them well.

Our desks have moved. Now our desks make a big rectangle with a great meeting space in the middle.

Today we read Where The Wild Things Are. Then we played Wild Thing. Two players sit knee-to-knee and look into each others' eyes. The first person to laugh is out and the other player is the Wild Thing.

October 30, 2009

What a great day we had! We roasted the seeds from Vampire. We estimated them and counted them. Then we divided them among us. Everyone here got 15 seeds.

After recess we watched a presentation from Tricia Hunter who has had 24 surgeries to correct problems she has had since birth. She answered lots of questions.

You can see part of Tricia's presentation here. (It might take a minute to load. Be patient.)

In the afternoon, we joined four other classes for lots of Hallowe'en fun. Older kids led small groups around to activities like games, face painting, singing, dancing, bowling, drawing, listening to stories, Bingo, and lots of other fun things.