Molecules in Motion: Room 149

Blog No Longer.

The K Blog is not longer being written.  Check out the weekly newsletters for updates on the happening in Room 149. Our class page is no longer linked to the district web page.

Where are the Molecules?

I can't believe how much I miss the Molecules.  My mornings are missing that little something! Greetings from sunny (ok, not all days) Seattle! I've been home for a few days, visiting great friends, seeing movies and taking care of lose ends.  Drew started the executive MBA program at the University of Chicago last week.  He comes home from work, takes a small break and then heads to the den to hit the books. He's determined not to fall behind.  Every other weekend he will head to Chicago for two full days of classes. He's doing very well, and making us all quite proud. Click here to see Seattle photos.

Haley and her family (not Pepper) are coming to Seattle in two weeks I hope they call me so I can enjoy time with them. I want to take them to my favorite coffee shop, where the cookies don't get any bigger!!

Before heading to Seattle, I spent time in Florida with my parents. Whew, I forget how hot and humid it can be during the day. I've done well remembering total sunblock, keeping the nose out of the sun! My trip to Florida was also a time to visit those lifelong friends that we don't see often enough. I had a wonderful dinner with Mayka and her beautiful family. What fun! 

I then drove to east coast of FL to St. Petersburg to visit my friend Debbie and her family.  I fell in love with her four year old son, Danny! He was named after her brother who passed away ten years ago. (I miss Dan, tremendously..the kindest man I've ever known) On Sunday, we went to the church Debbie's dad was a pastor for many years. Debbie's parents, Glenn and VIvian are my second set of parents for the past 20 years.  I love them both with all my heart. My last trip before heading to the airport was to Seabring, FL to spend time with Kathy (Debbie's sister) and her partner. They both run a successful company, Vital Systems. I thought I lived a fast paced life in kindergarten; they blow me away.

It's been a few weeks since the last blog. We had some awesome events that took place, and one that the Molecules really shinned was the Rising K Orientation. For two hours we welcomed rising K kids by reading, chanting poems, singing and creating art together.  Mrs. V and I got to have a peek at next year! We're already talking and making plans for another exciting year. Click here for photos.

Our trip to the National Zoo was short and sweet.  For someone new to DC, I could have stayed a few more hours.  The Molecules enjoyed the day with one another and all the animals.  This trip brought a perfect end to our animal kingdom unit. Click here for photos.

Our heart was pumping and getting healthy as we all participated in the ASFS Field Day events.  Sunscreen on face and body, we played and played enjoying the outdoors and good friends. Mr. Bosley and Ms. Regan danced in the shade. Click here for photos.

Our end of the year was a week that I will never forget. Please check out all the photos! Click here to enter the photo gallery. The End of the Year Celebration and Hawaiian Luau was the perfect ending to a perfect year. The slide show and Rainbow song are ready for downloading. Be sure to play the song while watching the movie. They go together! Enjoy!!

So many great photos taken this year! I am not sure how many of you have explored Flickr, the tool I use to showcase our photos. But if you become a member (very simple and FREE), you can actually order prints. We order prints to include in our personal photo album.  You just really need to have those hard copies to fully enjoy.

The last and final (doubt it) request from Mr. Riley; please support your child in telling us all what exciting things they are doing this summer by signing the blog.  Mrs. V and I love hearing all about the exciting adventures of our beautiful Molecules.

I return to Arlington August 22 and I can't wait to swim with my favorite bunch of kids!

End of the Year So Near!

Our field day was huge fun! We really have a lot of fun together and I will be sad when it's time to say good bye.  How lucky am I?  Enjoy the photos.

Our Kindergarten Orientation for up coming kindergartners was also a lot of fun. We welcomed 80 future students to spend the morning with us. Enjoy the photos.

Can't wait to see lots of family and friends on Wednesday for our play the Kapok Tree and End of the Year Celebration.

We've had two molecules sign the blog saying something about kindergarten.  Parent, please support your child in  signing the blog....  anyone? anyone? My goal, my request was to have each molecules sign and be celebrated in the classroom. (just let me know if you need support doing that!)

Short blog, busy week, more to come.

Have a great night!

ABC Countdown Continues!

Two days without A/C made for a warm weekend, brunch with the first grade team made it great, but seeing the Lightening Bolts play soccer made it absolutely perfect! Meeting Ben's grandmother, Judith, was also a huge highlight!

Last week we had Art in the Classroom.  Ms. Savarese shared the great Van Gogh and his masterpiece, Starry Night.  Molecules had their own easel and color pallet while creating their own work of art.  Texture was added to the paint in true Van Gogh style.

The ABC Countdown continues...  G was Game Day, H was Hat Day, J was Jump Rope Day and K was Kindness Day.  (I am not really sure what happened to I Day, but next year we'll be having ice Cream).  Next week we'll start off with a trip to the National Zoo and lollipops for L Day.

Yearbooks and field day t-shirts have arrived.  I will be passing those out starting on Monday. June 15 will me the official "Year Book Signing Day" and Field Day will be June 16.

We are leaving the desert and heading to the rainforest for the next two weeks. Here we will look at the different layers of the rainforest and all the animals that live there. We'll end the unit with a play, The Kapok Tree.  Parents are invited to join us for this performance on June 21 at 10:00. The end of the year celebration will follow at 11:30.  Lots of surprises in store for everyone! Thank you parents in advance for clearing the calendar and being with us.

As we finish our last three weeks of school, Molecules continue to work of fluency.  During guided reading, groups will be reading plays on their reading level and performing in front of their peers. Reading with expression is our goal as fluent readers.

Have a great night!

157 Days of Learning and Fun!

Friday marked our 157th day together in kindergarten. My second year in K almost completed. Hard to believe how fast time passes. How lucky I am to be able to watch such beautiful children develop into amazing learners.

Our ABC Countdown has begun with a new letter each day.  Tuesday is "G Day" for Game Day.  Bring your favorite game for us to play and enjoy.  Of course, after our work is complete!

You may have heard, none of the tadpole eggs survived.  Yes, it was sad, but when I read on the Internet that only one out of 10,000 eggs survives, I didn't feel so bad.  So off I went to Uncle Miltons and ordered older tadpoles that are destined to survive.  They arrived on Friday and I took them home. Immediately, Drew and I were off to Petco to buy a house for the new little ones. It's going to be sad when they have to leave on Tuesday.  We've become attached!

We celebrated Memorial Day by talking about the flag and reading Eve Bunting's The Wall. It's a touching story that most everyone can relate.  I've been reading it for 15 years; my kindergartners understand the same as my past fifth and sixth graders. Drew and I will to bike to Vietnam War Memorial on Monday.

Friday was a day of letting go.  We set free our caterpillars that had turned into five Painted Lady butterflies. We all made a wish as we watched them fly into the sky. One needed a little help by a loving Molecule! We also released lady bugs into the gardens of ASFS. At the end of the year we'll set free the ants and frogs near the pond, across the street.

The PALS testing is complete. Big smiles here... the growth was huge for everyone. (yes, my teaching friends were correct.. if you want to see instant growth, teach kindergarten!) Parents, please let me know if you have any questions.  These test results are not a secret, but they will not be on the report card.

Our time in the desert is filled with lots of fun. We're reading about desert plants and animals, chanting poems, sculpting cactus, and wondering if some information is a fact or a cactifract. After this week, we're off to the rainforest.

We are preparing for the Kindergarten Concert on June 16. We've teamed up with Ms. Kaye's awesome fifth graders to bring to life, Pinduli by Mem Fox. The concert will be filled with art, song, costumes...  lots of good times here.

Until the end of the year, I would like (LOVE) for each Molecules (and of course our wonderful parents) to sign the BLOG and tell us something about kindergarten.  What I like, Why I had fun, What I learned, My favorite time, How to be successful...  Please support your child in getting to the comment page.  (This could mean taking dictation... not a problem!) Like all comments they will be enjoyed by all of us.

The Blue Sea and DC

Our study of the ocean animals comes to an end tomorrow. We've looked at the differences of whales and fish, collected animal cards from the Internet, shared interesting facts, and water colored creative fish. Today, we finished our study with a trip to D.C. and a visit to the Ripley Center. The exhibit was Vicious Fishes.  While there were also enjoyed the Museum of African American History.  Lunch in the Rose Garden made for a perfect day!

During Modeled Writing we are exploring with different types of paper for our writing.  We are writing "How to" and "All About" books. Molecules are filled with information and they are sharing with everyone. I've learned how to plant, make crowns, do a somersault, and make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

In Language Rotations we practice rhyming, handwriting, word families and vowel sounds.  We started out PALS assessments.  It's doesn't surprise me how well everyone is doing.  This is such a smart bunch... HUGE brains!

Mother's Day was last weekend and the Molecules created hand painted pots.  We planted colorful impatience and wrote poems.  We love our mothers so much! A few Molecules shared their poems to our 2nd grade reading buddies.

Five chrysalis are still hanging in the classroom. Haley noticed today that they some were rocking back and forth.  Will Painted Lady butterflies be waiting for us in the morning? That will make for a great day!

Thank you great parents for being with us today and sharing your time.  How lucky we are.

Have a great weekend!

Worms, Art, and Photos!

Last week the Molecules studied Earthworms at Investigation Station.  We kept a discovery log and recorded our observations.  Did the earthworm like the dark or light, a rough or smooth surface, the dry or wet? We learned about how worms move and why they are important to the Earth.

Nicholas' mom, Mrs. Savarese joined us for Art in the Classroom.  She shared the works of Mary Cassatt and the Molecules created art focusing on perspective. They were given objects such as sand, shells, feathers, and broken tiles to include on their beach side picture.

The perfect spring weather is calling us outdoors to extend our learning.  Whether it is for math (using sidewalk chalk to create number sentences or finding the line of symmetry), science (observing plants and animals in the courtyard), or social studies  (listening and discussing a story)... we're going to think of as many reasons to enjoy the spring, outdoors!

For the next three weeks, Molecules will be given the  DRA and PALS assessments. These important tools will give us data for next year's planning and also provide parents information on their child's strengths and areas of possible concern.

Our Animal unit take us from the woodlands to the ocean.  We're learning about insects, reptiles, mammals, birds and fish. We have five caterpillars in the classroom that are beginning to turn into chrysalis.  Soon they will turn into beautiful Painted Lady butterflies! After the Ocean we will head to the desert.

The photo gallery has been updated on the classroom website. Check out all the photos of the beautiful Molecules. Most of our photos are stored on Flickr.  It's easy to order prints (and so cheap!) for any photo... please let me know if you need instructions.

Current and past newsletters

Happy Mother's Day to our world's greatest moms.  The flowers that were given to you were planted with lots of love. The poems were written with lots of heart. Said the baby ant to his mother, "I love you as much as the biggest picnic!"

Thank you! Thank you! for all the wonderful notes and beautiful flowers that I received for Teacher Appreciation. It was such a special week. I am so rich!

Final wedding photos.

Have a great night.

The Long Overdue Blog!

Here I go to Seattle, get married and then return to VA and forget to blog.  Well that isn't actually the truth; I didn't forget to blog, I just haven't been able to find time. I'll have regrets when I go back to read the archives years from now. Well, the light is shinning bright at the end of this tunnel and rain is now falling on this dry spell.

Before the Spring Break we enjoyed an unforgettable event, Outside of the Box Day.  The Molecules became elves and helped the shoemaker by designing and creating very cool shoes.  Thank you to the parents who joined us, gave their time and support. We love you!  After creating the shoes we walked the runway in Mrs. Riverson's room.  Her students extended great compliments before presenting to us the their handmade instruments. What a treat we all had!  The pride and effort put forth was outstanding!

To end our plant unit, we decorated the front of the school with pansies. We've explored the roots, stem, leaves and flower... we're plant experts. Ask us anything!

In Math Workshop we will finish the year reviewing all the math concepts introduced this year. Lots of attention will be on addition and subtraction word problems and number sentences, counting coins and yes, even making change.  Each week new math games and activities will be introduced that the Molecules will play with partners. While they work independently, Ms. V and me will work with the Molecules needing additional support.

On Monday, Mr. Markowitz joined us to share his creative improv talents. Lots of laughter here! What fun!

Today we celebrate the administrative assistants at our school. We created a book for these wonderful people letting them know why they were important. This book was inspired by Margaret Wise's The Important Book. We headed down to the office to present Mrs. Diaz, Mrs. Mazzaro, Ms. Morard and Ms. Warring our book.  I think we may have made their day!

We've enjoyed watching this fox and her family all week. It seems they love to hang at ASFS!

Our animal unit has begun! For the next two weeks we'll hang out in the woodlands. The next stop after the woodlands is the ocean, then desert and finally the rain forest.  In each region we'll study the different animals of that habitat. Soon to be arriving in the classroom: tadpoles, caterpilers, and mealworms. 

Subtraction, Sunshine, and Shower Curtains!

The curtain is finished, and I must say it's a master piece that will bring beauty and delight to any shower! The Molecules have worked for the past two weeks making this creation the best it can be.  Thank you to the parents who have offered their time working with us to make it happen. This was not an easy task, but what great art is? The shower curtain will be up for auction this Saturday night.  Along with the curtain, the winning bidder will receive a gift card at Bed Bath and Beyond to choose a liner of their choice.

Forgive this late posting, put the photos of our Taste of Green event are here.  The afternoon with Mrs. Wade's class was so much fun.  So many brave Molecules tasting new flavors.  We all then graphed the food we liked the best and the food we thought was best for us. The day was filled with green everywhere, dancing the Irish Jig, reading Irish tales, and perfect shamrock necklaces from Ms. Wells.

Since being a more fluent reader is a goal for many reader in Room 149, we enjoy hearing stories read by the Molecules. A small book report is written then the story is read using the microphone for everyone to hear.  Compliments, as always, follow each reading.

The Author's Chair never gets cold, and either does the writing. Writers just finished counting their published books.  Be sure to ask your child how many they've written! Check out photos here.

Lots of fun in the sunshine today...  subtraction number sentences on the black-top, stem measuring, and pansy planting! Photos to be added soon.

Have a great night... hope to see you tomorrow!

Alara and Warm Weather!

The warm weather was a perfect start to our plant unit.  For the next few weeks the Molecules will be planting seeds and examining the different parts of a plant.  We'll talk about the needs of a plant and keep an observation journal as our plants grow.

Extra recess today to celebrate the warm weather and our new student, Alara! We are excited about both! We really look forward to getting to know our new friend. Today we found out that Alara comes from Turkey, loves pink and blue, has an older brother and sister and LOVES corn flakes!

 

The new literacy workstation in the classroom is the "Reading Performance" station.  Here Molecules will choose one book from their book box and practice reading it three times. They will then complete a short book report that serves as their script when they read it to the class.  Students are invited to use the microphone to make their fluent voice loud and clear. Compliments are extended by their peers after each reading.

On Friday, we enjoyed a follow up to our new learning about Picasso and Matisse.  Thank you Juleen Savarees for coming in and teaching us about collage, positive and negative space.  Molecules created their own creations as we "Sculptured with Scissors".  Original art hangs in the classroom for all to enjoy.  Be sure to stop by and take a look.

So many great authors sharing in the Author's Chair. Longer stories with many details make for a great listen, especially with a microphone.

In Math Workshop we continue to focus on the penny, nickel, and dime; telling time to the hour and half hour; addition and subtraction story problems and number sentences.

We just finished a great week in the Investigation Station, where the Molecules explored magnets, negative and positive force, pulling and repelling.

We love Marion Hawthorn!! She supports and believes in all of us.  She listens when it time to listen and is there for everyone....students and staff.

Today the Molecules enjoyed the sounds of the Dixie Power Trio Jazz Band.  Mr. Bosley and Ms. V were taken back to New Orleans and the students danced in their seat.  What fun!

Planning a very special event happening over Spring Break has taken much of my time outside the classroom. Feel free to drop me a line, I would love to share with you.