Reminders:

Please return towels, book bags and library books on Monday

End of the year ABC Days!

Monday-J-joke day-come with a joke to share!

Tuesday-K-Kindness day

Wednesday-L-lemonade day

Thursday-M-minute day

Friday-N-neon day-wear neon!

May 22-field trip to the Farmer’s Market-We are still working out the final details of this trip but it will be in the morning similar to our trip to Hemlock Crossing. If you would like to meet us there just let me know!

May 24-PBL celebration-This will start in our room at 11:15. We will then walk to Lawrence street park for a fun celebration. We will walk back to school by 12:15.

What we are learning:

This week in Bible we started our unit on God’s love for the church. We talked about Pentecost and how the first church started with lots of Jesus’ followers getting baptized to show their desire to follow Him.

In Phonics this week we reviewed the vowel U and then practiced all of the vowel sounds!

In writing workshop this week we started our PBL. We are using books to research about animals and writing sentences about what we discover. We will share this information with you in a few weeks at our end of the year celebration.

This is the last week we will be bringing home our book bags. Please return all bags and books on Monday. Here is a note from our reading coordinator:

We need to make sure that all books from the leveled library are returned before summer break.  Please help us in doing so.  If a book is not returned, damaged or lost families must pay $15.00 to replace that title.  (cash or check made out to ZCS).

In math this week we worked on finding missing numbers in equations. Next week we will be doing things with shapes as we begin our last unit!

We continue to enjoy our alphabet days! Here are a few fun pictures from our week!

Reminders:

Please return towels, book bags and library books on Monday

End of the year ABC Days!

Monday-E-estimation day!

Tuesday-F-Freaky Friday–teachers dress like students/students dress like teachers

Wednesday-G-game day

Thursday-H-Hat day-Wear a hat

Friday-I-ice cream/ice pop day

May 22-field trip to the Farmer’s Market-We are still working out the final details of this trip but it will be in the morning similar to our trip to Hemlock Crossing. If you would like to meet us there just let me know!

May 24-PBL celebration-This will start in our room at 11:15. We will then walk to Lawrence street park for a fun celebration. We will walk back to school by 12:15.

What we are learning:

This week in Bible we finished our unit on Parables. We learned about the parable of the sower and how it mattered where the seed was planted as to if it produced fruit. We talked about how this is just like our walk with Jesus! We also talked about the parable of the wise man who built his house upon the rock! We talked about the importance of a building your life on Jesus the one and only firm foundation.

In math this week we continued to work on teen numbers and making different equations for them using the number 10 and a ten frame.

In phonics this week we reviewed the long and short o sounds as well as learning the blends th and wh.

During Daily 5 groups this week we did more vowel practice as well as spelling some more difficult words while playing jr. boggle with Miss Hannah.

Next week we will begin our PBL projects as we start to research animals and record our findings.

This week was also the beginning of our ABC countdown days as well as our field trip to Hemlock Crossing.

Here a few pictures from our week!

Reminders:

Please return towels, book bags and library books on Monday

End of the year ABC Days!

Tuesday-A-animal day-bring a stuffed animal

Wednesday-B-bubble day

Thursday-C-chalk day

Friday-D-donut day

May 2-field trip to Hemlock Crossing-We will be leaving school at 9:30 and returning by 11:30-if you would like to join us, it will be similar to our trip last fall. You can meet us there around 10! Please let me know if you will be coming!

May 22-field trip to the Farmer’s Market

May 24-PBL celebration-This will start in our room at 11:15. We will then walk to Lawrence street park for a fun celebration. We will walk back to school by 12:15.

What we are learning:

This week in Bible we continued our study of the parables. We read together the story of the prodigal son. We also played a game called sheep and wolf to illustrate the parable of the Good Shepherd.  One student was a goat in the middle of our circle with all of our hands connected. We would then open the gate and another student who was a wolf would try to get the sheep. We would lift up our arms to let the sheep in and then put them down to keep the wolf out. We talked about how Jesus always opens his arms to us and also protects us from things that could harm us! He is our Good Shepherd!

In math this week we are studying teen numbers. We are using counters and 10 frames to help us understand that teen numbers are 10 + a given number.

During writing workshop we wrote another note to our pen pals in Mrs. Bronsink’s room. We also worked on writing questions using our wh- word wall words to friends in our classroom. It was fun to see the answers they gave!

During Daily 5 we continue to work with Mrs. Arnold. We are also doing extra work with Miss Hannah during this time. I am so proud of how they have all grown as readers!

Phonics, this week, consisted of reviewing the short and long sounds for the vowel E as well as the sh, ch sounds.

In Science this week we brainstormed about different animals we would like to learn about during our Project Based Learning activity. This will end with a celebration in our classroom and at Lawrence Street Park on May 24 (more information above). We also got a chance during nature rich to see some of God’s creation and the amazing living things He put around us!

 Reminders:

• Please bring towels, library books and book bags back on Monday
• On Tuesdays, with nature rich, please have your child bring rain boots.
• We have another field trip planned to Hemlock Crossings to connect with our is it living study. It is TENTATIVELY planned for the morning of May 2. As of right now it will work just like our last trip-we will take a bus and parents will drive and meet us there. As soon as I have more information I will pass it along
• Our trip to Holland Farmer’s Market will also be done the same way. That is tentatively planned for May 22.
• We will have a small celebration in our classroom on May 24 at around 11:15. We will be sharing what we have learned from our PBL (project-based learning) on animals. Parents, grandparents and siblings are invited to attend. Immediately afterward we will walk to Lawrence Street Park for an end of the year celebration. We will plan to leave the park by 12:15 to make it back in time for lunch. More information is forthcoming!

What we are learning:

This week in Bible we continued our study of the parables. We did skits for the wedding banquet as well as the lost sheep and coin. We talked about how it is important to NEVER be too busy for God and listen to his invitation! We are singing this song often in class right now!

During writing workshop we are practicing proper sentence formation as well as writing notes to our pen pals in Mrs. Bronsink’s class.

In math this week we continue to work on making partners for numbers! This can be a tricky concept! I encourage you to count things at home and ask your child questions such as, “How many more would I need to get to 10?” or “How many of these would I need to get to 8?” etc.

In Daily 5 we are continuing to work in small groups with Mrs. Arnold as well as practicing literacy skills with Miss Hannah and doing some writing and reading on our own.

In phonics this week we worked on o word families as well as reviewed the vowel i and the short and long sounds it makes.

During science we continued our study of living things. Last week we learned about living vs. nonliving things. This week we watched a video about how a beaver adapts to his environment and learned about the big word adaptation. We talked about all the different ways living things adapt to their environments. We also discussed how God made animals and humans each in their own special way to help them adapt.

Lately, the class has been asking to read to friends as their reading skills are improving daily! On Friday we had the opportunity to do that!

Reminders:

• return library books and towels on Monday!
• If it is wet feel free to wear boots or outdoor shoes!

What we are learning:

This week in Bible we started our unit on parables. We learned about who is neighbor through the story of the Good Samaritan. We came to the conclusion that Jesus wants us to treat everyone like our neighbor. We also studied the parable about the friend at midnight. The students, along with myself, took part in a skit for this story. They all rested quietly on the rug with the lights out and I knocked on the door 3 or 4 times before Miss Hannah finally answered and listened to my request for some oil to make bread so I could feed my family. We learned that Jesus wants us to keep knocking and asking and that He will always answer us. This goes along with our new verse, Matthew 7:7,”Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you.”

In phonics this week we focused on the vowel i and the short and long sounds it makes. We also continued to work on word families, this week we concentrated on the -it and -in families.

In writing workshop this week we began our pen pal unit. We each were assigned a pen pal from Mrs. Bronsink’s class. We worked on the format of a simple letter and are looking forward to receiving a response back from our friends!

During math we continued to work on breaking numbers into parts. We also worked on finding missing parts of an expression. At the end of the week we even threw snow balls at Mrs. Arnold after we came up with expressions for numbers all on our own!

Finally, we enjoyed writing and learning about the solar eclipse. We carried science a step further by creating an oven from a pizza box and seeing if the sun’s energy could heat up s’mores! We learned the sun provides light, energy and heat!

Reminders

Spring break-March 29-April 7-Enjoy!

What we are learning:

This week in Bible we finished our Easter timeline. We had so many good conversations at the rug about what Jesus did for us and how that shows how big His love for us is. We also rejoiced in the fact that the angel said to the women, “He is not here, He is risen just as he said!” Matthew 28:6

In phonics this week we worked on the “O” word families, ot, og, op.

This week in math we continued to break numbers into different parts. Another thing we are practicing is counting on. I am working with the students to be able to hold up seven fingers, for example, and have them count the first hand as 5 and then 6 and 7. This can be a bit tricky but we are getting there!

During writing workshop this week we finished our unit on how to writing. We came up with our very own idea about what to write directions on and we were very careful to remember the words first, next and last.

During Daily 5 time this week we worked on alphabetical order as well as some spring break writing!

To close out March is reading month, we enjoyed dressing up as our favorite book character and listening to some amazing mystery readers!

Reminders:

Monday, March 25 – Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day WEAR GREEN!

Tuesday, March 26 – Autism Awareness Day (celebrated internationally on 4/2/24) WEAR BLUE!

Wednesday, March 27 – Your Choice! Wear a specific color, shirt, bracelet, etc. to bring awareness to something you or your family are passionate about related to a specific diagnosis or disability. We can use this as an opportunity to learn more about what makes us all unique!

Reminders:

Please send in clean towels in a bag on Monday.

Please keep an eye on this ever changing weather  We make sure kids wear a jacket when the weather is below 40 degrees. If it is sunny and above 40, we allow long sleeve shirts and no coats as an option.

March 21 All School Chapel 9:10am

March 22 Wear pajamas to school (kindergarten only)

March 22 Half Day of School

Book Character Dress-Up Day: Thursday, Mar. 28,2024- Plan and prepare a costume to resemble the character as closely as possible.

March 29-April 5 Spring Break

What we are learning:

In Bible this week we began our Easter timeline and started learning our new verse, Matthew 28:5,6- “The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid for I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He his not here, He is risen just as he said, come see the place where he lay.” We read from out Bibles about the triumphal entry of Jesus as well as His washing the disciples feet and the Last Supper.

In phonics this week we worked on onset and rime. We learned that words have beginning and ending parts.

During writing workshop we worked on spacing, capitalization and punctuation as we wrote sentences and how to directions.

In math this week we worked with unifix cubes to break numbers apart and then write matching expressions.

We also are continuing to learn wh words. This week we worked on the word where.

March is reading month was fun this week as we met Titus’ grandma and Anders’ dad!

Reminders:

• library books, book bags and towels due back on Monday
• half day March 22
• Spring break March 29-April 7

What we are learning:

In Bible this week we worked on our Bible verse, “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.” Luke 7:22  This week we focused on the Jesus healing the blind man. We talked about how God uses all things for his glory.

In writing workshop we continued our how to directions as well as writing an entry for our time capsules. It was so fun to see the things the students came up with! They are very creative!

In math this week we worked on drawings to illustrate expressions as well as identifying which expressions matched which drawing.

During Daily 5 we continue to work on reading strategies, there should be a copy of these in your child’s book bag. If not, please let me know and I will send home a new one. One strategy we have been using lately is trying the long vowel sound if the short one does not work!

We played -an family baseball this week and wrote out -an family words in phonics! We had to watch out for some of Mrs. Hunderman’s home runs!!

Hailey Doren was Up in Lights this week. Hailey’s mom came to share about her and we learned that Hailey is not afraid to touch a lizard!! We also learned she loves to spend time with her grandparents! We are blessed to have Hailey and the joy she brings in our classroom!