Rock and roll

Making non- representational art

More Nomadic Theater

Nomadic Theater assembly

Another week in kindergarten

Here are some highlights for the week of December 7.

Be sure to plan for next week's late start on Wednesday, December 16.  Everything will be two hours late.

Last Friday morning we had a visit from Tasha Miller, a Chapman parent and fine jazz singer.  We had an impromptu music lesson and concert.  We are extraordinarily lucky to have so many artists and musicians in the Chapman community.

Our class continues to grow.  We are very happy to have Nyree join us!

Thank you again to our volunteers.  It is always a treat to have parents here to help with centers and math.

This week's themes:

Theme Book: See How We Grow
Literacy Theme: Cause and Effect
New words: see, look
Words we know: I, am, the, little, a, to, have, is, we, my, like, he, for, me, with, she
New letter:  Dd, Kk
Letters we know: m, a, t, p, s, i, n, b, r
Math: Counting by 2's, graphing, 10 frames
Switch music / dance, social studies.

Song: I've Been Working on the Railroad
Star of the Week: Nathan

Castles

Check out our wonderful watercolor castles, on the wires inside the classroom!

This week in kindergarten

Here is some (belated) info about our week..

Thank you to everyone who helped with our Thanksgiving art project last Wednesday.  Putting lots of paint on children's hand is a scary prospect -- it went wonderfully, thanks to our volunteers.

Speaking of volunteers, our December Calendar is up and ready.  Feel very free to sign up.  We especially need help on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

With three full weeks of school of school, this is a wonderful time for us to focus on reading, academics, and fun.

Thank you to everyone who brought in snacks!  We still are running a little low...

This week's themes:

Theme Book: Little Quack
Literacy Theme: Plot
New words: me, with, she (week 2)
Words we know: I, am, the, little, a, to, have, is, we, my, like, he, for
New letter:  Rr
Letters we know: m, a, t, p, s, i, n, b
Math: December calendar, making sense of numbers
Switch social studies, science and art

Song: TBD
Star of the Week: Olivia

Have a happy Thanksgiving

I hope all Room 2 families have a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Today we had wonderful discussions about what we were thankful for, and what we plan / hope to do over the holiday.  I shared with the class that I was very thankful to have a wonderful class with children who are eager to learn, ready to have fun, and able to control themselves.

We made some cool hand-print turkeys (thanks to a wonderful volunteer crew).  Look for them in your child's backpack!

Please consider buying snacks for the classroom as you are shopping over the weekend!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Working on our turkeys

From our counsellors

Hi there Chapman Parents-

Please join Ariel and Stephanie, the Chapman School counselors for our monthly parent support meeting on December 4, 2015. We will meet in room 18, immediately after Round up, at about 8:20 until 9:30 am.

Thanks,

Ariel Frager, LPC

Counselor

Chapman Elementary School

This week in kindergarten

Here is some news for a short Thanksgiving week.  There is no school on Thursday or Friday.

It was wonderful to see so many of you at the auction on Friday.  Thank you for your support of Chapman and for all your kind comments!

We will be doing a fun, but potentially messy art project on Wednesday.  Your child may want to wear clothes that can handle contact with (usually washable) paint.  We could also use a volunteer or two (at 9:30) for this project!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving, and a restful long weekend!

This week's themes:

Theme Book: Little Panda
Literacy Theme: Compare and Contrast
New words: me, with, she
Words we know: I, am, the, little, a, to, have, is, we, my, like, he, for
New letter:  Nn, Bb
Letters we know: m, a, t, p, s, i
Math: Comparing numbers, shapes
Switch dance

Song: "Goodbye Old Paint"
Star of the Week: Olivia

Friday notes

I sent home leveled readers today.  Due to an error, a few children received books that they have not yet read.  We will be reading most of these unread books in reading groups next week.

We are running a little low on snacks.  Think of us as you are shopping.

I look forward to seeing many of you at the auction tonight!

Our auction project

Here is a picture of our auction project, up for your bid on Friday night.  

A computer image, of course, does not do justice to the vivid glory of the piece!

Many thanks to Morgan and everyone who helped with this!

The best time of day

By popular acclaim, the best time of day is choice time!

Fall trees

We used a combination of foil prints and fingerpainting to make fall trees.

This week in kindergarten

Hi all:

We have a fairly normal, five-day-week this week.  My goal is to get through a set of four centers this week.  This will allow a little more small-group reading instruction than we have been having recently.

Speaking of reading, we have been working with the letter "i".  Many students are (appropriately) challenged by this vowel.  In the past we have been doing a great deal of switching first letters (cat to bat) and last letters (mat to map) which is a bit more challenging.  Switching vowels (sat to sit) takes this up to a whole new level, somewhat like moving from driving a minivan to flying a helicopter.  If this seems a challenge for your child, feel free to make up a game ("What would happen if I switched the /a/ sound for an /i/ sound in mad?") to play while driving around or eating dinner.

The auction is this Friday.  My understanding is that our artwork is framed and almost ready to go.  I look forward to seeing many of you on Friday evening.

This week's themes:

Theme Book: Whose Garden Is It
Literacy Theme: Realism and Fantasy
New words: he, for (Week 2)
Words we know: I, am, the, little, a, to, have, is, we, my like
New letter:  Ii (Week 2)
Letters we know: m, a, t, p, s
Math: 10-Frames, more and less
Switch Art

Song: "Goodbye Old Paint"
Star of the Week: Riley

Easy Volunteer Job!

We are going to hang our pastel owls in the Chapman office and we need someone to do the manual labor.  My sense is that this would take about twenty minutes.  This would be a great job to do before picking up, or after dropping off your child.

Thank you!

Our fire station and it's architects

Pastel owls

Check out the fine pastel owls on the wire in the classroom

This week in kindergarten

Hi all:

There is no school on Wednesday, November 11th, due to Veteran's Day.

We had two new students join us last week.  The class was very welcoming, and Eunjae and Artem are a great additions to the classroom.

The students are working away at their auction project.  Many thanks to Morgan, Lea and all the other volunteers for their work on this.

After Veteran's Day we will begin working on our second vowel; the letter Ii.  Vowels are a challenge for kindergartners.  We have begun linking Cc to the /Kk/ sound.  I tell the students that in kindergarten a Cc usually makes the /Kk? sound.

This week's themes:

Theme Book: A Bed for the Winter
Literacy Theme: Sequence
New words: he, for
Words we know: I, am, the, little, a, to, have, is, we, my like
New letter: Cc & Ii
Letters we know: m, a, t, p, s
Math: combining shapes to make other shapes, patterns
Switch Social Studies and Science

Song: "Goodbye Old Paint"
Star of the Week: Sophia

More OMSI

OMSI magnets class

This Week in Kindergarten

At last, a full week of kindergarten!!

We are gearing up on our Auction art project.  Many thanks to Morgan and Lea for organizing this. Students will be working both this week and next week as we create an amazing piece of art for the Chapman Auction.  If you would like to help out, feel free to email Morgan at moko_77@yahoo.com or Lea at leakwalker@gmail.com.

This seems a great opportunity to put in a plug for the Auction.  This is a wonderful way to get to know Chapman families, enjoy an evening out, and support Chapman, all at the same time.  The auction is one of our major fundraisers and provides important support to many aspects of our school.  Everything you need to know is at http://www.chapmanschoolauction.com/.

This Wednesday morning we have our OMSI magnets class here at Chapman.  These are always wonderful science classes.  We could use a volunteer or two to help during the class.

We have a new student joining us tomorrow.  Please remind your child to be helpful and friendly as he learns our routines.

There is no school next Wednesday, November 11th, due to Veteran's Day.

This week's themes:

Theme Book: Bear Snores On
Literacy Theme: Realism and Fantasy
New words: we, my like. (week 2)
Words we know: I, am, the, little, a, to, have, is.
New letter: Ss
Letters we know: m, a, t, p
Math: November Calendar, Combining shapes to make other shapes.
Switch music and dance

Song: "Do, Re, Mi"
Star of the Week: Stevie

Have a great weekend

Don't forget, there is no school tomorrow due to a teacher's planning day.

As you can see, we had an amazing day that included 1) a magic show from the 4th graders, 2) time with a hook and ladder truck from the fire bureau, 3) mask making with grandparents (thank you Morgan), 5) a short concert by Joy and Jacob, 6) reading buddies, 7) watching the 3rd grade pumpkin-drop, 8) library and 9) sharing.  This is apart from lots of books and reading opportunities.  This may explain why your child is a little tired tonight.

Next week is a relatively normal week -- 5 days and only an OMSI class on Wednesday to take us out of our normal routine.

We could use a few more snacks.  Think of us as you are shopping.

Have a wonderful 3-day weekend!

Watching the third grade pumpkin drop!

The day Keeps getting better

Music with Joy and Jacob

Grandparent's Day masks

With Ms. McGhee's class and firefighters

Firefighters visit

Fourth grade magicians visit

This week in kindergarten

Please note; there is no school Friday (October 30) due to a teacher planning day.

Grandparents and Special Friends Day is this Thursday.  We will have activities in the classroom for grandparents and friends from 10:00 to 10:45.  Many thanks to Morgan for coordinating this.

We are beginning to focus on blending letter sounds together to make simple words.  We are working with the "letters we know" -- m, t, a, and p.  With these letters we can make many words including at, mat, pat, map, tap, Pam and more.  Many students are very quick to "get it" when we substitute first letters (mat to pat) but have a more difficult time when we substitute last letters (mat to map).  This will continue to grow in complexity as we add more consonants and when we begin adding more vowels.

Lea, our Room Parent

Many of you have met our room parent Lea, mother of Stevie (and 2nd grader Poppy).  She may be sending out information about all things Kindergarten (or PTA) and is helping, along with Morgan, to coordinate our auction project.  Please be sure to thank her for all her hard work.

And, again, thank you to all the volunteers who have helped in the classroom.  This has been a great year,thus far for volunteers.  We need volunteers both for special events, like our field trips or the auction project, as well as to help with our daily routines!  Thank you!

There are tons of clothes and more in the lost and found in the main hall.  These will be bagged up and donated soon.

I still have four or five pictures.  Try to stop by and grab them.  I hope to keep them out of backpacks.

This week's themes:

Theme Book: Animal Babies in Grassland.
Literacy Theme: Main idea
New words: we, my like.
Words we know: I, am, the, little, a, to, have, is.
New letter: Pp
Letters we know: m, a, t, p
Math: Numbers to 10.
Song: Do, Re, Mi

Conferences and more

I have been having a wonderful time meeting with families over the past two days.  What a wonderful group of kids and families we have in Room 2 this year.  Two common themes emerged.  One is that everyone seems to be having a great time in kindergarten this year, the second is that many children are tired and showing it in a variety of ways, mostly at home.  Hopefully this will ease up through the fall.  Thank you all for your kind words and for having such wonderful children!

I stopped by the Child's Play Toy Store on NW 23rd and left a list of things we would love for the classroom and for our shared stuff for centers.  In a world with lots of major needs, this is a small, but fun, need want.

Photos have arrived!  Everyone with Thursday conferences got one; families with Wednesday conferences missed out.  I would love to hand these to you, rather than risk putting them in a backpack.  Please grab one when you are in; I will be sending everything home by the end of the week.

Don't forget; there is no school next Friday due to an inservice day!

This week in kindergarten

A short blog post for a short week...

I am looking forward to conferences.  This is the one scheduled time for us to discuss your child.  During the conference I will be doing a brief overview of what I have seen in terms of academics and social dynamics.  I also leave much of the conference open in order to be sure we can address your interests, ideas and concerns.  Please be on time -- I have many back-to-back appointments, particularly on Wednesday.

Our short week will include a focus on new centers, a new math game, art, writing and much more.

Here are a few themes for the week:
Theme Book; Armadillo's Orange
Comprehension Skill: Setting
Letter focus: Aa (second week)
Letters we know: m, t, a
New words: have, is (second week)
Words we know: I, am, the, little, to, a
Weekly song: Dinah

Friday notes

Next week features conferences.  I sent home a "Pre-Conference Questionnaire" earlier in the week.    Please send this back with your child on Monday.

Due to conferences,  will have a special library check out day Monday -- please be sure your child brings back their library book.

We had our first substitute this afternoon.  Barbara Goldberg, who used to teach kindergarten and 1st grade in Room 2, filled in for me.

Leveled readers are coming home today.  Check your child's backpack and enjoy their reading!

I am looking forward to spending time with each family next week.

Friday recess

Cool choice time creations

This week in kindergarten

Please note that Wednesday, October 14th is a late start.  Everything (bells and buses) should run exactly 2 hours behind,

Be sure you are signed up for conferences (most of you are).  There is no school on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday next week (the 21st, 22nd and 23rd) to accommodate conferences.

Thank you to Lea Walker who has volunteered to be our class parent.  Lea is mother of Stevie (as well as 2nd grader Poppy).  She will be helping with a variety of things including communication, organizing and being a sounding board for everyone.  Please feel free to contact her at leakwalker@gmail.com.

Thank you to the many volunteers who have helped in the classroom and on our field trip last week to Kruger's Farms.  This volunteer help has been invaluable.  We will be needing volunteers to help us with out auction project (to be announced soon), as well as to help us with centers and math in the classroom.

As the weather grows chillier, be sure your child has a coat at school every day.  With the differing temperatures, many students are taking off their coats while out at recess.  Be sure to mark your child's coat with their name and Room number (2).  If they are found, they will usually make their way back to our classroom.

This Monday and Tuesday afternoon we will be starting "switch".  Both days, our students will do some dance with Ms. Leveille (and some extra music in Room 2).  Next week students will be doing social studies with Ms. Aksay and science with Ms. Forst.

This week we are working on the complexities of the letter Aa (vowels are, indeed, complex), and beginning to blend letters together to make words -- especially the letters m, a, and t to make words like at, mat, am and the name Tam.

Here are some themes for the week:

Theme Book: Life in an Ocean
Comprehension skill: Compare and Contrast
New words: is, have
Words we know: I, am, the, little, to, a
Letter focus: Aa
Letters we know: m, t, a
Writing: family words, /th/ sound
Math: Tally marks, numbers & number sense
Song: Dinah

Kruger's Farm Writing

Please check out all our fine writing about Kruger's Farm, posted on the green bulletin board just inside the classroom.

Kruger's Farm

We had a great trip today!  Thank you volunteers!!!

This week in kindergarten

This is a compressed week, with our field trip on Tuesday and no school on Friday.  Most of our academics take place Monday and Wednesday.  Thursday, as always, is filled with specials such as P.E., library and "guidance" with Ms. Cox.

Thank you to John and Victoria who volunteered to help with the first day of "real" centers.  Students worked at the writing center, the "reading for meaning" center, the art-science-discovery" center or the math center today.  Over the next three center days, the young scholars will rotate though all the centers.

Math: We will be learning about 10-frames.  These are new since I was a kid.  Basically it is a rectangular box with 10 squares inside -- five on top, five on the bottom.  Some may be filled with objects.  This is a great way of visualizing different numbers, and of making sense of how each number interacts with 10.  In other words when a student sees 7 bugs within a ten frame, they may see the top five squares filled, two filled on the bottom, and three empty squares.  We begin to learn about 10-frames on Wednesday.

Don't forget -- next Wednesday the 14th is a late opening, and we will have conferences on October 21st and 22nd.  There is no school on the 23rd or 30th.

Here are some themes for the week.
Theme Book: Dig, Dig Digging
Literacy Theme: Classify and Catagorize
New Letter: Tt
Letters we know: Mm
Words we know: I, am, the, little, to, a
Math: 10 frames
Weekly song: The Old Chisholm Trail

Friday Notes

Your child should be bringing home leveled readers today.  Please take some time to have your child read to you from these books.  I am excited to see the growth in reading skills within the classroom.

We will be rolling out our new "real" centers on Monday.  If by chance, you have any time to spare, it would be wonderful to have a volunteer in the classroom from 9:30 to 10:30 Monday morning.

Our field trip to Kruger's Farm is Tuesday.  I will be sending out more information Monday, but here are a few important items.  Volunteers should plan to be at Chapman by 9:15.  Have your child dress for the weather (rain or shine) and be sure to wear shoes that can handle mud.  As you pack a lunch - please bring it in a paper bag and be sure everything is disposable.  We hope to not bring any lunch stuff back to Chapman.

Be aware that there is no school next Friday, October 9th.

Friday art

This week in kindergarten

Today was our last visit from Mr. Duffy, our fall artist in residence.  It was a treat to have him in the classroom over the past month telling stories, playing games, and imparting life lessons about friendship, problem-solving, and respecting everyone.  Mr. Duffy's visit was made possible by the support of families for our annual Run for the Arts.

Thank you to everyone who has returned their paperwork for our field trip to next week.  We have several volunteers, but there is always room for a few more.  This is a fun trip and a highlight of the year.

This has been a great year so far for having children arrive at school on time, and for having parents pick up their children promptly after school.  This makes a big difference in how the day flows -- Thank you!

We are running a little low on snacks -- we are still in good shape for Goldfish and fruit snacks.  We would love some other healthy, nut-free options.

We are beginning our "letter of the week" study this week with the letter M.  Our focus on individual letters is a small (but integral) part of our "big-picture" approach to literacy.  As we move in to phonics work, we will use this pool of letters as building blocks as we decode words.

Dates to note:
October 6: field trip
October 9: No School - Statewide inservice day
October 14: Late start
October 21 and 22nd - conferences

Here are a few themes for the week:
Theme book: Julius
Comprehension skill: Character
New letter: Mm
New words: a, to
Words we know: I, am, the, little
Math: sorting and patterns
Art: mixing colors

Volunteers

We have had many great volunteers in the classroom thus far including, today, my daughter Sarah.

Mr. Duffy's last visit

Library time

Texture Animals

Check out our wonderful "Texture Animals" on the bulletin board outside the classroom.

This Week in Kindergarten

Here are a few highlights for this week:

Bernie Duffy, our artist in residence, visits on Monday and Thursday.  Wednesday is picture day, and Friday we hop on a bus to learn all about bus safety.

Please be sure to return your photo form (or order online) by Wednesday.  On Wednesday be sure to dress your children in their best.  On the subject of forms, don't forget to return your child's field trip permission form for our Kruger's Farm trip.

I plan to start using photos of students on the blog this week.  Be sure to let me know if this is a problem for you.

Thank you to all the volunteers who have come in thus far.  It is wonderful to have this support.  As our centers continue to evolve, volunteers will be more and more important.

In math, we have been focusing on learning our four basic shapes.  This week we will be focusing more on numbers and number-sense.

Here are a few themes for the week:
Theme book: Miss Bindergarten Takes a Field Trip with Kindergarten
Other books: Three Little Pigs
Literacy skill: Classify and Categorize
Letter study: T-Z review
Words we know: the, little, I, am
Math: Shapes and numbers
Weekly song: Home on the Range

A visit from Mr. Duffy

Check your child's backpack and more

Be sure to look in your child's notebook this afternoon.  Aside from miscellaneous papers you should find 1) leveled readers and 2  field trip permission forms.

We are going to Kruger's Farms on October 6th.  There is lots of good info on our handout.  Please be sure to sign and return BOTH forms to us as soon as possible.

Be sure to have your child read the leveled readers that they brought home.  We have read each book more than once.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Art!

This week in kindergarten

Thank you to everyone who made it to Back to School night last Thursday.  If you were not there (or forgot to sign in) I am sending home a packet with your child today.  I also have a few extra packets for parents who may live in different houses.  Please let me know if you need an extra packet.

It is wonderful to see many names up on the volunteer calendar.  The first visit or two is a great time to get a feel for the classroom, the students and the routines.  As the year progresses, we rely more and more on that expertise to allow Shari and I to focus on individual students.

I am going to try to start sharing day this Thursday.  Your child may bring in an item of their choice to talk about with the rest of the class.  It should stay in their backpack until the end of the day.  This will be a regular Thursday feature.

Speaking of Thursdays, I believe we will be taking library books home beginning this Thursday.  Library books are due on Thursday, but I encourage students to bring them back on Mondays.  Students who do not get their books back by Thursday cannot check out a new book that week.

Mr. Duffy, our artist in residence will be in the classroom Wednesday morning.

Look for information about our field trip to Kruger's Farm coming soon to the blog. 

Here are a few themes for the week.

Theme Book: Plaidypus Lost (sic)

Literacy skill focus: sequence

New sight words this week: the, little

Letter review Oo-Ss

Writing: Making sense of the writing process

Math: Counting, sorting shapes

Song: The Sunny Side of the Street

Shape village

Check out our fine"Shape Villages" made using our four basic shapes,  Most villages are centered around a pond.

If anyone happens to have fabric scissors and a little time, I could use a bit of home volunteer work for this Friday's art project.  

Art

Working on "Shape Villages" using our four basic shapes.

The "Empire State Building"

Ask your child

Here are a few  conversation starters:

What are the names of other students at your table?
What is a character in a book?
What song are you learning?
What is your favorite thing to do at math centers?
Did you have a job today?
What did you write about?
What do you like to do at choice time?

This week in kindergarten

Here are a few highlights for the week of September 8th...

Back to school night is this Thursday from 6:30 - 8:00.  This is the time to understand what goes on in the classroom and why.  There should be childcare for your Chapman kindergartner and first grader, but not for older or younger siblings.  My hope is that all parents can make it for this very important evening!

Our artist in residence, Mr. Duffy, will begin visiting the classroom today.  Mr. Duffy is a storyteller and acting coach who helps kids understand one another and understand how to make sense of the world. Over the next month, he should be in the classroom for six one-hour sessions.  This is made possible by our Run For the Arts fundraiser in the spring.

This week we will begin learning about centers; these serve as the cornerstone of our literacy program.  We will also continue working on our math curriculum and continue exploring the idea of writing.  Do be sure to check out our wonderful "1st day of using writing paper" samples on the bulletin board in the classroom.  While you are here, also admire the "Line Caterpillars" on the wires in the classroom.

We have had a great time last week with our "specials" -- library, P.E., music and guidance (time with our counselor).  This morning we should be starting Mandarin.

Thank you to everyone who has been getting their child to school on time.  This class has been doing a great job!

Please feel free to start volunteering.  Our heaviest need for volunteers is from 9:30 to 11:00 every day except Thursday.

General Themes...

Book: Fix It Duck
Literacy Skill: Setting
Letters: Review F-N
Words: I, am
Math: shapes, counting
Song: This Little Light of Mine

A great first week!

It has been a wonderful and busy first week of school.  We have an amazing group of students who work hard and get along well together.  This looks to be a great year!

We are ready for volunteers.  We would love folks to help out from 9:30 - 11:00 most days (Thursday being the exception).  Please feel free to add your name to the volunteer calendar.

Thank you to everyone who packed a lunch this week.  The lunch lines are still very slow.

Many children seemed tired today -- the first week is exhausting for everyone.  When my son came home from kindergarten feeling cranky and behaving badly, the teacher told us that he had used all his energy learning and "working hard to be good at school".

Have a wonderful three day weekend.

Line caterpillars

Check out the cool "line caterpillars" on the wires in the classroom.

Writing away

We are off to a great start!

Kindergarten begins tomorrow

The room is (mostly) ready, name tags are on the tables, and I have a selection of my favorite "read-alouds" next to my chair.  This should be a fun beginning to a great year.

I will open the door to the classroom at 7:55 tomorrow.  Please help your child find his / her cubby, hang up coats and backpacks, put lunchboxes in the laundry basket, and put on a name tag.  There will be places for paperwork and school supplies.  Please be sure to check in with me; I want to confirm your child's transportation arrangements for the afternoon, and I have some extra paperwork for a few lucky families.  Around 8:10 someone will stop by the classroom to lead parents to the auditorium for a brief assembly.

I look forward to working together for a great year!

Kindergarten Conferences

I am looking forward to meeting all of the incoming kindergartners (and their families) over the next few days.  Here are a few things to know about conferences.

We should have about 25 minutes together.  During this time I hope to

• Answer your questions about kindergarten at Chapman
• Give you and your child a tour of the room
• Learn about any health problems / allergies that may impact your child
• Find out how your child will be getting home from Chapman each afternoon
• Administer the Oregon Kindergarten Assessment

Here are a few suggestions to get the most out of your conference...

• Be sure to be on-time.  Parking around Chapman may be tight.  I have many back-to-back appointments, particularly on Friday, so one late family can have a big ripple effect.
• Help your child to think of questions they may have about kindergarten
• Make a list of questions you may have; I may defer some general questions about overall curriculum to Back to School Night (September 10).
• Be sure to let me know about health concerns, allergies, and other issues that may affect your child.   
• Be sure to let me know your plans for getting home from school, both on the first day of school, and through the year.

I look forward to seeing you soon.

Room 2 Alum still receiving email

Hello first and second grade parents:

If you are still receiving this blog via email, I apologize.  After some (but certainly not comprehensive) research, I cannot find a way to delete email accounts.

I will not be offended, in the least, if you use your spam blocker to keep these posts from clogging your email account.

Names

I will be making nameplates, name tags and more soon.  Please be sure to let me know, as soon as possible, if your child plans to go by something different than the name s/he was registered under.

Thank you!

Welcome to Room 2 kindergarten

Hi everyone:

This is a short post to welcome you and your family to Room 2 kindergarten for the 2015-16 school year.

This should be a wonderful year.  As of mid-August many things are still up in the air including class size and what sort of support we may receive in terms of educational assistant time.

This blog is my main communication tool.  Be sure to check back often; better yet, be add your email to the "Follow by Email" box and get automatic updates when the blog is updated.  I am leaving up posts from last year in case you want to get an idea of what goes on throughout the year in kindergarten.

The ice cream social is on Monday, August 24th from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m.  This is a great way for me to meet you and for you to meet other Room 2 families.

You should be receiving a welcome letter soon.  This should include a 30 minute appointment to meet your family.  I will show you around the classroom, answer questions and administer the Oregon Kindergarten Assessment.

I look forward to meeting you soon!

Richard Melling

Have a wonderful summer

What a great final day yesterday!

Many thanks to Robyn and to everyone who helped organize our party.  It was fantastic seeing so many of you here.  Thank you, from Shari, Mythandra and I, for the kind class gift!

Have a wonderful summer!

Wednesday Notes

I sent home a major shipment of art today.  Check your child’s backpacks!  .Look for a self-portrait from the first day of school, a self-portrait from today, and other miscellaneous masterpieces.

We had a wonderful time at field day this afternoon.  Your child will hopefully be a little extra tired this evening.

Our end-of-year party is tomorrow, beginning at 12:30.  Our plan is to start at the tables near the smaller playground in Wallace Park.  We will come back to the classroom around 1:20 and spend some time talking about each student.  Please come and help us celebrate an amazing year.

Friday Notes

I subtly put T-shirts in the backpacks of kids who earned 30 points during our Run for the Arts (a combination of number of sponsors and number of laps).  Students might not know they are there.  Please be sure to check your child’s backpack.  Every student who participated will get a small prize next week.

Our field trip is Monday.  We plan to leave Chapman at 10:30, walk to Macleay Park, eat lunch, walk to the stone house and then back to Chapman well before 1:00.  We could still use another volunteer or two.  I have ordered some sack lunches.  Please be sure to pack your child’s lunch in a paper bag and please be sure everything is disposable!   Also, be sure your child has appropriate shoes!

Many thanks to Robyn and everyone else involved in organizing our class party next Thursday.  The party will go from 12:30 to 1:30 and be followed by a quiet celebration of our students from 1:30 – 2:15.  If the weather holds, we will hold our party outside and the celebration in the classroom.  Please come celebrate our amazing year.

A visit from the cast

Belle, Gaston and many others from "Beauty and the Beast" came to answer questions and sing for us this afternoon.

Friday Notes

The volunteer tea is Monday from 2:30 TO 3:30 in the gym.  If you volunteered at Chapman this year please come.  Volunteers play huge role in the classroom and around the school and we want to honor you.

We plan to take a field trip with our third-grade reading buddies to Macleay Park on Monday, June 8^th from 10:30 to noon.  We will eat lunch in the park and hike to the ruins.  We would love volunteers.

We will be going to see “Beauty and the Beast” next Wednesday afternoon.  The Chapman musicals are always a treat.

Thank you to everyone who has brought in snacks.  We are close to having enough to make it through the last nine days of school.

Our class party will be on June 11^th in the early afternoon.  It would be wonderful to see you there!

Have a great weekend!

Curious George art

Weekend thoughts

This is the time of year when life gets very busy.  I apologize for missing a few posts here and there.

Our primary literacy focus is using all of the skills we have worked on through the year to do lots of reading and lots of writing.  In math, we are chugging away at addition, subtraction and some very simple multiplication.

We are low on snacks.  Think of us this as you shop.

We will be having an end-of-year party on the last day of school (June 11) in the early afternoon.  We would love to see you there.  Look for details coming soon!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Snack Monday

Thank you to Ben from Room 4 and his friend from Clark Lewis for bringing an amazing breakfast yesterday.

OMSI class 2

OMSI class 1

Monday bird-art project

Many thanks

Thank you to everyone for the wonderful piece of artwork, the kind cards, and the delicious food!  It is really an honor to teach at a school with such a wonderful community of families.

Markers at choice tome

This Week in Kindergarten

We are well into the first week in May.  Here are a few highlights...

We had a wonderful Kindergarten Roundup yesterday.  We had a small group of future kindergartners spend part of the morning in Room 2.  Our students were friendly and helpful and fine hosts.

Book fair continues through Friday, downstairs in the Art Science Room.

We are still a little low on snacks!

Next Tuesday, May 12th is our OMSI "Sink or Float" class, downstairs at noon.  We could use a volunteer or two to help during the class.

Our math theme this week is 1:1 counting to 30, using groupings of 10.  In other words we may find problems that involve two stacks of 10 unifix cubes and 3 extra cubes.  Kindergartners can have a challenging time counting 10, 20, 21, 22, 23.

Here are some themes for the week:

General Theme: Transportation around the world
Theme Book: On the Move
New Words: Where, Come (week 2)
New Letters Vv, Zz
(This is the last week of new words and new letters)
Math: 1:1 counting to 30, using groupings of 10, counting by 5's, addition and subtraction
Science in Room 10: living and non-living

Star of the Week: Easton

Important Friday Notes

The young singers did a great job at the Roundup Assembly this morning.

We are very low on snacks -- think of us as you shop!

Book fair is next week beginning May 4th through the 8th!

Tuesday is the Kindergarten Information Meeting.  Next year's kindergartners will be visiting our classroom and sharing some choice time.  Be sure to tell your friends with younger children!

We have had some illness floating around the classroom this week.  Be sure your child gets lots of rest!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Assembly with Trashcan Joe

Yes they played "It Don't Mean a thing if it Ain't Got That Swing"

This week in kindergarten

Room 2 will be on stage at the Roundup Assembly this Friday morning.  We will teach "This Land is Your Land" to the school, and we will sing another song, yet to be determined.  Be sure to have your child at school by 7:50 on Friday.  Parents are welcome; please stand in the back or sit upstairs (but not in the 4th or 5th grade seats).

The Fall Kindergarten Information Meeting is next Tuesday, May 5th at 9:00 a.m..  Incoming kindergartners and their families are welcome.  The soon-to-be-scholars will spend time in kindergarten classrooms and parents will have a chance to learn more about Chapman.  Please help get the word out.  We also need a few volunteers.

I will have a substitute for most of the day Friday while I am meeting with incoming students with special needs.

We have been settling into the routine of having sharing day on Tuesday.  Your child is welcome to bring something of interest to share with the class in the afternoon.

We have an assembly with Trashcan Joe this Wednesday afternoon.

Here are a few highlights of the week...

General Theme: transportation
Theme Book: On The Move
New Words: where, come (last new words of the year)
New letters: Vv, Zz
Comprehension Skill; Main Idea
Math: measuring, 1:1 counting to 30, addition and subtraction.

Star of the Week: Jayden
Song: Erie Canal (week 2)

Flower art

This week in kindergarten

This is Art Ball week.  Art Ball, for the uninitiated, is Chapman's annual celebration of all things artistic.  Please make plans to come to Chapman this Friday evening from 6:00 - 8:00 (the talent show actually begins at 5:00) to admire art and enjoy artistic activities.  Throughout the week, we will be doing as much art as we can squeeze in.

Speaking of Art Ball, we need some volunteers on Friday.  The basic plan is to fill the kindergarten hallway with art.  The hours are flexible  -- feel free to stick around after Art Ball or to come in later in the day (or even, possibly, after school).

Here are a few themes for the week...
General Themes: transportation and art
Theme Book: The Little Engine that Could
New(ish) letter: Uu
New(ish) words: what, said, was
Math: Subtraction and sorting

Star of the Week: Milo
Song: Erie Canal

Bears in formation

Man, are these bears ever orderly....