Weekly Update

Hello Parents,

Can you get over the weather this week?  We enjoyed some extra recess on Tuesday and Wednesday so we could enjoy the sunshine.  I hope you were able to enjoy it too! :)

Pinebrook STEAM Expo:
STEAM Expo is coming Friday, March 2nd!  This is our last call for volunteers and materials for this fun day.  If you are able to help, please volunteer by clicking HERE.   

Read Across America Spirit Week:

In honor of Dr. Seuss's birthday on Friday, March 2nd, we will celebrate Read Across America Week all next week at school.  Each day has a special book and theme to celebrate both Dr. Seuss and the joy of reading:

• Monday:  Whoville -- Crazy Hair Day
• Tuesday:  Fox in Socks -- Wear Wacky Socks Day
• Wednesday:  Cat in the Hat -- Crazy Hat Day
• Thursday:  The Sleep Book -- Pajama Day
• Friday:  The Places You'll Go -- College Shirt Day

Pinebrook Read-a-Thon:
Monday, February 26th will mark the start of our Pinebrook Read-a-Thon.  All money raised will be used to purchase books for classroom libraries and additional reading resources.  Please refer to the flyer I sent home in yesterday's Thursday folder for complete information about the Read-a-Thon.  At this point, please concentrate on helping your child create his/her personal fundraising page, which he/she will use to track both reading time and donations.  I will give 3 Puma Paws to any student who creates his/her personal page.

Focus Areas for the Coming Week:

• Reading:  We will explore rhyme and author's message, as we celebrate Dr. Seuss and enjoy some of his classics.
• Writing:  We will explore narrative writing as we focus on editing our writing for mechanics, punctuation, and proper sight word spelling.
• Math:  We will continue our Fractions unit.  We will discuss the concepts of equal and unequal, and talk about fractions of a whole and fractions of a set.
• Science:  We will finish our Matter unit. We will discuss the 3 states of matter (solid, liquid, and gas).  We will experiment with a variety of liquids and solids to discover how various liquids mix, and whether various solids will dissolve in water.

Please let me know if you have questions, comments, or concerns.

I'm not sure about the weather this weekend, but I hope you have something fun planned!  We are headed to DC to check out the Spy Museum and celebrate our nephew's birthday.  Cheers!

Weekly Update

Hi Parents,

We had so much fun at our Valentine's Day Party and during our 100th Day Celebration!  I hope you enjoyed the pictures on Remind.  The kids often tell me the 100th Day is their favorite day ever, and I have to say...I kind of agree!

Comfort Cases Packing Party:
Tomorrow is our community-wide Comfort Cases "packing party" from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm here at school.  Please consider joining us for this meaningful, rewarding event.  Jonah and I will be there.  :)

Pinebrook STEAM Expo:
Thank you for the supply donations for our annual STEAM Expo!  Please keep them coming!  We have a particular need for pipe cleaners, index cards, straws, construction paper, and tape. We are looking forward to STEAM Expo Day on Friday, March 2nd!  The 1st grade team is in great need of volunteers to help with this event. Please consider spending part of your day with us to see your child's creativity in action!  Don't be intimidated about volunteering ...we provide all directions, and all materials for each activity.  A teacher is present in each classroom at all times. Please volunteer by clicking HERE.   

Focus Areas for the Coming Week:

• Reading:  We will explore cause and effect in fiction stories.
• Writing:  We will practice sequence writing.  We will focus on editing for mechanics, punctuation, and proper sight word spelling.
• Math:  We will finish our Geometry unit, in which we explore shapes in the real world, and count the number of sides and vertices in various shapes.  We will begin our Fractions unit.  We will discuss the concepts of equal and unequal, and learn about fractions of a whole and fractions of a set.
• Science:   We will begin our Matter unit. We will discuss the 3 states of matter (solid, liquid, and gas).  We will experiment with a variety of liquids and solids to discover how various liquids mix, and whether various solids will dissolve in water.

Please reach out with questions, comments, or feedback.

Have a great long weekend!  Savey is headed on a trip with his youth group from church, so Leo and I will give Jonah a bit of extra love.  

Weekly Update

Hi Parents,

I hope you had a good week.  It was certainly short!  We have several things we didn't get to this week because of the weather, so many of our work items will be shifted to next week.  

Here's the rest of our classroom news: 

Valentine's Day Party:
One final reminder...our Valentine's Day party is Wednesday, February 14th from 12:05-1:15 pm in our classroom.  All families are welcome to attend.  I sent home a food permission slip in yesterday's Thursday folder; please kindly sign and return it by Monday.  

100th Day Celebration:
The 100th day of school is coming!  We will celebrate this special day on Thursday, February 15h.  I have some super cool, really fun stations planned for 100th day! Two of the stations involve food, so I sent home a food permission slip in yesterday's Thursday folder. Please kindly sign and return it as soon as possible.  It's not likely, but if we have any snow days before the 15th, I'll adjust our celebration to align with the 100th day, and I'll notify you as well. 

Comfort Cases Packing Party:
Thank you for the stuffed animal donations for our Comfort Cases.  The Pinebrook community has collected many items, and we are ready to pack the cases on Saturday, February 17th.  Our community-wide "packing party" is from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm here at school.  Please consider joining us for this meaningful, rewarding event.  Jonah and I will be there.  :)

Pinebrook STEAM Expo:
Thank you for the supply donations for our annual STEAM Expo!  Please keep them coming!  We have a particular need for pipe cleaners, index cards, straws, construction paper, and tape. We are looking forward to STEAM Expo Day on Friday, March 2nd!  The 1st grade team is in great need of volunteers to help with this event. Please consider spending part of your day with us to see your child's creativity in action!  Don't be intimidated about volunteering ...we provide all directions, and all materials for each activity.  A teacher is present in each classroom at all times. Please volunteer by clicking HERE.   

Focus Areas for the Coming Week:

• Reading:  We will practice summarizing fiction stories as we enjoy some Valentine and 100th Day favorites.
• Writing:  We will finish the informational writing we didn't get to this week. We will focus on editing for mechanics, punctuation, and proper sight word spelling.
• Math:  We will continue our Geometry unit, in which we explore shapes in the real world, and count the number of sides and vertices in various shapes.
• Science:  We will (finally!) finish our Famous Americans unit.

The calendar is starting to fill as we move into the second half of the year...while I highlight many events in my update, please be sure to check the "Important Dates" section of this blog regularly for the most up-to-date dates and times for our many school events.

Have a great weekend!  I'll see many of you on Wednesday at our Valentine's Day party.

Weekly Update

Hi Parents,

Thanks to those of you who sent new stuffed animals for our Comfort Cases!  Please continue to send your donations - we still have 2 weeks left to collect stuffed animals before our packing party on Saturday, February 17th!  

Here are some other items of note:

2nd Quarter Report Cards:
Your child will receive his/her 2nd quarter report card this Wednesday, February 7th.  Report cards will be issued electronically; I will not send home a paper copy. Your child's report card will be available for viewing Wednesday afternoon in your ParentVue account.  If you need assistance logging onto your ParentVue account, please contact Mrs. Sciortino in our school office.

Valentine's Day Party:

Mark your calendar...our classroom Valentine's Day party will be Wednesday, February 14th from 12:05-1:15 pm in our classroom.  All families are welcome to attend.  The kids will exchange Valentine cards at the party.  If your child brings Valentines, please be sure he/she has one for every student in the class.  If your child wants to attach a little "something" to his/her Valentine cards, please don't attach candy or food... little items like pencils, erasers, tattoos, stickers are fine.  Our Room Moms will be providing bags for your child's Valentine cards.  I will send home a food permission slip next Thursday.

Next Week is Spirit Week:

Next week, we will celebrate National School Counseling Week with some fun spirit days.  I'll send a quick remind out each day with the next day's theme.  Themes for each day are as follows:

• Monday: Orange you glad you go to Pinebrook?  Show your happiness by wearing orange!
• Tuesday:  Hats Off to You - Wear your favorite hat to school.
• Wednesday:  Warm & Fuzzy Notes - Wear your most comfortable fleece or sweatshirt.
• Thursday:  We Are All Different - Wear different or crazy socks.
• Friday:  We Love Learning - Wear your favorite Pinebrook gear or college shirt.

Focus Areas for the Coming Week:

• Reading:  We will summarize non-fiction texts by stating the main idea and supporting details.
• Writing:  We will learn about informational writing as we continue to edit for punctuation, spacing, and properly spelled sight words.
• Math:  We will begin our Geometry unit.  This is a quick little unit in which we explore shapes in the real world, and count the number of sides and vertices in various shapes.
• Social Studies:  We will finish our Famous Americans unit, in which we discuss the lives and contributions of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington Carver, Benjamin Franklin, and Eleanor Roosevelt.

Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, or concerns.

Enjoy your weekend!  We are headed to an "after the holidays" party for my husband's company on Saturday, and will enjoy Super Bowl Sunday at home.  Any This Is Us peeps out there ready to watch the big episode?