January 22, 2009

Ray’s Ramblings
January 22, 2009

Dear Parents,

We have been enjoying our study of Inuits and the Arctic!!! Please ask your child what they have learned!

Tonight is our first Family Fun Night of 2009! I hope you all can come and have lots of Family Fun!!! Our Snowman projects are on display in the Library!!! Be sure to stop by and see them!!!!

We are off and running in 2009!!! Report cards have already gone home and we are almost finished with our mid-year testing. The mid-year math assessment is complete. By Friday, we should have completed our PAS testing! It has been a rough week but we are surviving!!! I am very proud of your children. Bubbling in circles is something we have certainly never done before!!!

I am attempting to make my last home visits/conferences. I am down to single digits. If I have not yet completed a home visit or school conference with you and have not been in touch with you, PLEASE drop me a note and I will schedule you ASAP. Once I have completed first visits on all 46 children, I will begin 2nd rounds for those who request!

COUNT ME IN WEEK – Next week is “Count Me In” week at the Village! This is the week we push for 100% attendance from all children. If we have at least 4 days of perfect attendance out of the five, we earn a hot chocolate and cookie party!!! Help us earn our party! If your child is sick and has to miss school, please bring in either a doctor’s note or a handwritten note explaining the absence and we can still count it as being present! You received a YELLOW sheet that details this day and the special activities! To encourage attendance we are having the following special activities each day:

Monday 1-26th – First day of competition
Tuesday 1-27th – Blue and White day – everyone wear UK colors!!!
Wednesday 1-28th – Crazy sock day – wear the craziest socks you can find!!!
Thursday 1-29th – Wear your hallway color – We are on the GREEN hall so try your best to wear GREEN!!!
Friday 1-30th – ENTIRE SCHOOL WILL WEAR PAJAMAS!!!

Join me in celebrating the inauguration of our new president, Barack Obama!!! What a historic day!!!





BOOK ORDERS: We had an unexpected 4 day weekend last week!!! Book orders were supposed to be ordered on Sunday but I waited to see if any orders were coming in for Friday (there were!!) So they will be a bit late. Should be in next week!


REACH FOR THE STARS!!! If you come in to school, please be sure to look at our door. Each child has a mitten on the door. They are earning stickers as their knowledge grows! We are earning stickers when we:

• Count to 20
• Write to 20
• Count by 10
• Count by 5
• Count by 2
• Know all 26 capitals
• Know all 26 lowercase
• Know all 31 sounds
• Can write first name correctly with initial capital letter
• Can write last name correctly with initial capital letter
Help us earn our stickers!!!! We are going to be working hard to correct our backwards letters, form letters correctly and try to write on LINED paper. I have had a few questions about what I mean by lined paper. I mean top line is solid, midline is dotted, bottom line is solid. This is NOT regular notebook paper. You can find nice pads of handwriting paper at Wal-Mart!!!

I am sending another copy of correct formation of letters. Please use this when practicing handwriting. ALL LETTERS START AT TOP AND COME DOWN!!!

1-9-09

Ray’s Ramblings
January 8, 2009

Happy New Year!!! We are officially half way through kindergarten and on the way to first grade!!! Hopefully, your children are telling you about our transitions. Before Christmas, the children began being dismissed by their drivers at the bus and they are walking on their own into the building and to the classroom! That was our first transition! This week, we began going through the lunch line on Tuesdays. We will do this (like first graders) for the rest of the year (on Tuesdays). In about a month, we will begin punching in our cafeteria account numbers at the end of the lunch line. I will be sending these numbers home soon. You will need to work with your child to help them learn their 4 digit number. This number will stay with them through the Jessamine County school system (high school).

REPORT CARDS are going home today. Again, please look over each item very carefully. ALL I NEED BACK IS THE SIGNED YELLOW ENVELOPE! You may keep the report card and all other pages included. At this point in the year, your child should have mastered (or be very close to) ALL capitals, lowercase and sounds. They should be counting, and writing to 20. We will spend the rest of the year building vocabulary and developing our writing stages. Hopefully, all will be at a stage 5 or 6 writing by the end of the year. We will be doing much more addition and subtraction. Numbers and letters should be formed correctly. I will begin to be much more picky about this. All writing should be done with LOWER CASE letters except for the beginning of a sentence or a name. Please help your child with this at home. Spaces should be put between words. We will be focusing on lined paper and will be ‘correcting’ our mistakes. You may see papers going home to be corrected for homework.

CONFERENCES/HOME VISITS: I have almost had a chance to meet with all 45 families!!! I believe there are only 6 left for me to have 100%!!! I am sending home request forms for my remaining students. Please indicate whether you prefer a school conference or a home visit. Send these back and I will contact you to schedule a time. Anyone who would like to schedule a conference to discuss the report cards or any other concerns, please just send me a note! I would be happy to meet with anyone. Remember, my planning times are on Monday, Thursday and Friday at either 10:30 or 2:30.

JANUARY BOOK ORDERS: Are going home today. Please have them turned back in by next Friday, January 16 (or complete online ordering by Sunday, the 18th.)

TESTING: For the next two weeks, we will be testing. We will, once again, have a team of teachers giving the DIBELS test. We will also be taking a PAS test. Both of these tests will measure their achievement for mid-year. They will be given again at the end of the year. Because of testing, individual check out books will NOT go home until testing is over (last week in January). I WILL still need my parent volunteers to assist with testing. I now have openings both AM and PM on Wednesday for a volunteer. If you are interested, please let me know.

SNOWMAN PROJECT: The snowman projects that were sent home on December 19 are due tomorrow – January 9. These projects are being displayed in the library. You will need to make a point to go and see them if you are in the building! What we have so far are FANTASTIC!!! All children who have returned this project will get an extra prize from the treasure box on Friday!!!

UPCOMING DATES:

Week of 1-12 to 16 – PAS testing
Week of 1-19 to 23 – DIBELS and MATH Assessments
January 19 – NO SCHOOL – Martin Luther King Day

A few shots of our AM Party

Thanks to Taunya for the great pictures!!!

Here's the Link!!!

Oops!!!

http://www.google.com/ig/adde?moduleurl=http://www.labpixies.com/gadgads/norad/norad_new.xml&source=imag

Santa Tracker

Thanks to Trina Eller (Julie's mom) PM for this post!!!

Hello, I found this Santa Tracker online and the kids can watch where he's at. Here is the link:



I thought some of the other parents might like that. I think google maps is also tracking Santa on Christmas Eve.

December 11, 2008

Ray’s Ramblings
December 11, 2008

Dear Parents,

I cannot believe we have only 6 days left until Christmas Break!!! I have a lot of fun things planned in this time. We also have our end of second nine weeks assessment to complete!!! Report cards will go home on Thursday after we start back in January!



HOLIDAY CENTRAL – I have to say a tremendous “Thank You!!!” to everyone who was able to give to the Holiday Central fund! Our class collected PLENTY of money to make a very special Christmas for two families in our school!!! I knew you guys would come through. This is my very favorite part of Christmas! You guys are the BEST!!!

Here are the highlights for the next six days:

Monday – Polar Express kick-off. We will go to the computer lab, board the train and watch “the Polar Express” (reading of the book, not the feature movie, sorry – no time!)

Deadlines: I need each child to send in their gifts for the class AND a large shopping bag (to collect their presents) by Wednesday. (This will give me time to see who needs assistance with gifts or bags!) Many children have used the bag to send in their presents. If you happen to have extra shopping bags (Macy’s; Dillard’s, etc.) please send them in. I have some children who are unable to locate a bag. These DO need to be big enough to hold 24 gifts. Some children’s may send a party bag for each child. Some may send party rings. We never can tell. Just be prepared

Please send me a note tomorrow If you are planning on sending a treat for the party – by note tomorrow or via e-mail – cjlray@gmail.com We will need juice boxes, cookies OR cupcakes, plates, napkins.

Thursday - Our Christmas Parties will be at 9:45 and 1:45. The students will go to Music at 10:30 and at 2:30.

Friday – All children will wear pajamas to school. Just like our last PJ day, children must wear regular shoes for outside but may bring slippers to wear at school. They may bring a stuffed ‘buddy’ to share the day. If anyone wants to donate a large canister of cocoa mix, I need enough for both classes. Marshmallows, cookies. (I have a cookie volunteer for the AM!) Also cups for cocoa – Styrofoam. We will have a ‘somewhat’ regular day on Friday. We will have ELF groups but lots of storytime! Parents are welcome to come but should wear their PJ’bbs!!!

I will be sending home my second FAMILY HOMEWORK activity next week. This will be due on the Friday after we come back to school. More about this next week!

December 4, 2008 Newsletter

Ray’s Ramblings
December 4, 2008

Dear Parents,
It is so hard to believe that we only have 11 days of school left before our Christmas Break!!! Where is this year going?

Our Christmas Party will be on Thursday, December 18 at 9:30 and 1:30. At 10:30 and 2:30, the children will go to music. Remember, all children need to send in a SHOPPING SIZED Christmas bag to collect all their presents. Make sure your child’s name is on the bag! Many children have already sent in their presents. Each child will pass out their gifts that day. The big entertainment will be looking in our goody bags. However, if someone wants to send in juice boxes and/or a treat, let me know. We won’t need much! If you have not sent in presents, remember, each child is to send in 24 like things to give 1 to each child.

Friday, December 19 – we will end our Polar Express Week with a pajama/hot chocolate party. We will re-read the story and take it easy!!! If you want to help with the hot cocoa and maybe cookies, let me know.

Holiday Central – We have received $50 so far to shop for 4 children. We need more money! If you are able to send in a dollar or two, please do so.

Next week: Gingerbread Week (stories and activities related to the Gingerbread Man/ Gingerbread Baby/ Gingerbread Girl)

Week of 12-15: Polar Express Week (stories and activities related to the Polar Express!) Remember, party on Thursday – Pajamas on Friday!

HOMEWORK: Since we were not in school the last Friday of November, all children turning in their November homework packet will receive double treasure box tomorrow. I had a number of children who did not complete or turn in this packet. If you have it at home, please do so tomorrow. I would like to have the December homework packets turned in on our last day – 19th if possible. New January packets will go home after Christmas.

December 19 is the end of our second 9 weeks. Report cards will be going home the first week after Christmas. Remember, this 9 weeks, we will be assessing more things. Those items that were grayed out last time but are white boxes this time will be the new assessments: skip counting by 2, 5, 10, one to one correspondence, more/less, This marks our half-way point in the year. This means your child should know ½ of the vocabulary!!!! Don’t wait until the last nine weeks to start work on this! Letters and sounds should be pretty much under their belt. We will test writing numbers to 20 as well as recognizing the numerals 0-20. These are all things that you should be working on nightly!!!!

We wrote letters to Santa this week (using kidwriting). These letters will go in our portfolio and on to first grade AND, they will be published in the Jessamine Journal!!! Look for the special Santa Letter edition of the paper!!!

BOOK ORDERS: I sent the orders home on Monday (AM) and Wednesday (PM). Please send orders to me by tomorrow or you may order online through Sunday in order to receive the orders by the 19th. Let me know if the orders are for Christmas and I will ‘conceal’ them before sending home!!! 