Guardian Angels Game Day

On May 22, the second graders are going to have a games day with their Guardian Angels. If your child has a board game (one that has easy-to-learn rules and can be completed in 30 minutes or less) please consider sending it in to school. We will get together with the angels in the afternoon for about an hour. This has been a terrifically fun afternoon in the past and I am sure this year’s class will have a great time!

Wellness and Nutrition

On May 8th (in the morning) second and third graders will participate in a wellness/safety program. It will consist of a pre-test, a lesson, and a post-test. This is being presented by Mrs. Snow (mother of one of our second graders) for one of her classes. An information sheet and permission slip came home today. Please read it over and return the permission slip as soon as possible. I think this will be a great opportunity for the children. 

The primary students will also be traveling to Clarion University for a “fit-trition” day on May 19th. This will be our end-of-the-year field trip. Students will learn about healthy eating and participate in a number of physical activities. Lunch will be provided. An information sheet will be in the family envelope tomorrow. Please sign it and return it to me NO LATER THAN Wednesday, May 6th. I am really looking forward to this trip. What a fun way to expand upon our wellness/nutrition/YMCA physical activity program!

A Favor on May 8th

We will have our last school Mass at the church on Friday, May 8th (weather permitting) at 1:30PM. I, however, need to leave school at 1:10PM, after getting the students ready for Mass. Their 7th grade Guardian Angels have volunteered to walk with the students to and from Mass and sit with them during the service. Miss Oliver has been very gracious in taking on this responsibility!

I was wondering if any parent might be available to help the 7th graders. It would mean being at school at 1:00PM, walking to Mass, sitting with the students, and walking them back to school where Miss Lynch will dismiss them. You can earn 1-1/2 hours of Parent Partnership time. Please let me know as soon as possible. (You can also take your child home as soon as you get back to school! No fighting the bus line! No scrambling to find parking! No waiting outside! How’s that for incentive!)

May Crowning

                  The primary students will present the May Crowning at 10AM on Monday, May 4th in the school gym. All are welcome to attend!

Our New Science Unit: PLANTS

We will beginning our last science unit this week. Students will be introduced to the wonders of plants. We will be discussing the different parts of plants and their functions. We will plants seeds and keep a log of their growth. The following video is a nice clip from National Geographic. 

http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/kids/green-kids/plants-kids.html

One Big Happy Family :)

Because Mrs. Marvin will be leaving on May 8th for maternity leave, all the second graders will be together with me all the time beginning May 11th. Yeah! I am looking forward to working with them. It may take a few days to transition, but the students are already used to being together for reading, spelling, and handwriting three days a week and math five times a month, so I am not anticipating any problems.

This will be a wonderful ending to a terrific year!

Happy Earth Day and other Important Tidbits

Happy Earth Day! We read THE LORAX today in honor of Earth Day. Students had a lot of good ideas about ways to protect the air, water, plants, and animals on our planet. We talked about Reducing-Reusing- Recycling- and Refusing (that’s a new one!). We even discussed composting and worms! Ask your child how they can help take care of God’s creation.

Tomorrow, they will get coloring sheets and a bookmark to reinforce what we learned.

On Tuesday, students learned the steps involved in making a t-shirt, from growing the cotton to packing the shirts and delivering them to stores. They worked in groups to write out these steps and illustrate them. Then they each created their own t-shirt design. These are displayed on a “clothesline” in the hallway. I think they look awesome!

Early Dismissal/No School Reminder

Monday, April 20th is an early dismissal day. Students will be released from school at 1:30PM.

Friday, April 24th is a professional day for the teachers. Students do not have school.

Mass

Mass on Friday will be at 1:30PM at St. Stephen Church weather permitting. If it is raining, we will have Mass in the gym at 1:45PM.

Mismatched Day

Tomorrow is Mismatched Day. This was supposed to take place during Catholic Schools Week, but the weather had other ideas! Students who bring one item to donate to St. Elizabeth’s (paper towels, toilet paper, kleenex, napkins, soap,…).may wear mismatched items of clothing as long as they are school appropriate. I, personally, shall be wearing two different socks, rolled up jeans (to show off the socks, of course), a turtleneck,and a wacky librarian (my other career) t-shirt. This will all be topped off by a side-splitting hair piece!  Students will also be providing acts of service around the school---some cleaning and tidying.  It should be a fun day!

Classroom Supplies

If anyone can donate a box of Kleenex, a container of Lysol wipes, or a Mr. Clean magic eraser, I would really appreciate it. Thanks!

Poetry Books

The students received their poetry books today. They had so much fun looking through them and admiring each other’s poems and illustrations. It is an awesome feeling to be a published author! Your children are to be congratulated!

REMINDERS/REQUEST

There will be living stations at school tomorrow in the gymnasium at 10:15AM. All are invited.

Tomorrow we have an early dismissal at 12:00 noon for Easter vacation. School will resume on Tuesday, April 14th. I hope you have a lovely holiday with your family and friends.

If you have a box of tissue or a container of Lysol wipes that you could donate, I would really appreciate it. Due to the lengthy spell of cold and flu bugs, we have depleted our supply. Thanks so much!

Finished Fossils

The students finished brushing loose sand from their dry fossils today. They were very excited to see their final products! I was going to send them home tomorrow, but they were so enthusiastic, I bagged them and sent them today! Be sure to ask your child to explain the process we used to make them.

Blogging

If you are reading this, you must have received the important notice that went home today. Please let me know what you think of receiving information through this blog as opposed to paper notices.

Fossils

We peeled away the milk cartons today and revealed the fossils beneath. The plaster was still damp so we only brushed off the first layer of sand. After the plaster dries completely, we will finish removing the loose sand and see the treasures created by the students.

Making Fossils

Yesterday, the students followed the directions that were in our story MonsterTracks for making fossils. The students did a terrific job sequencing the steps. We started with clean milk cartons. Water was added to sand until it could be shaped into a ball that held its shape. Each student put a ball of sand in the milk carton. They then pressed an item into the sand to make an impression. Equal parts of plaster of Paris and water were mixed in a bucket and poured over the impression. On Monday, we will release our fossils from the cartons. I can’t wait for the children to show you their finished products!

Two Resources for Parents

I receive print versions of two magazines that have tons of ideas for parents from recipes and crafts to ideas on bedtime and organization. If you have a minute, take a look at www.familyfun.com and www.parentandchild.com.

Dinosaur video clip

A quick clip about the duck-billed dinosaur found in Montana that your child might find interesting!

Dinos: Getting To Know a Duck-Billed Dinosaur - AOL Video

Let’s give technology a try!

It is time to give technology a try! I will be posting important information on this site for second graders and their parents. It will include a calendar of events, topics we are covering in school, ideas for extending these topics at home, and websites where your child might find additional practice in various subjects.

CALENDAR:

Thursday, April 9:  12:00 noon dismissal for Easter

Monday, April 13:  NO SCHOOL

Thursday, April 16: BOOK ORDERS are due

Friday, April 17: Mass (may be at church- watch for updates)

Monday, April 20: Early dismissal at 1:30PM

 

Don’t forget about trying http://www.spellingcity.com

It is an excellent way for students to practice their spelling words each week. Let me know what you think of it!

 

We are nearly finished with our reading/science unit on dinosaurs. Ask your child to tell you about the dinosaur he or she studied. you might also enjoy hearing the two dinosaur songs we learned!